Ian stepped closer to the child slowly.
The kid was still busy dragging the large bag, face red from exhaustion. His feet stumbled again, this time nearly falling, but he managed to catch himself by pulling the bag as support.
Ian stopped right beside him. "Hey."
The kid turned quickly. His eyes widened, a mix of surprise and hope.
"Need help?" Ian asked while crouching down to match the kid's height.
The kid's face immediately brightened. "Yes! Please!" His voice was hoarse, probably from shouting for help earlier but being ignored by other players.
Ian looked at the large bag. From the texture, it seemed full of wood or stones, something heavy and rough.
"Where are you taking it?"
"To my grandpa's house," the kid answered while pointing toward the village's east gate. "Not far. Just at the edge of the village."
Ian nodded. "Okay. I'll help."
The kid smiled broadly, the genuine smile of a child who finally got help after struggling alone.
Ian lifted one side of the bag. His arms immediately ached.
Damn. How did this kid carry this alone?
But Ian didn't complain. He was used to carrying heavy things. Twenty shipping containers in the real world were far heavier than this wooden bag.
They both started walking, dragging the bag together along the slightly uphill dirt road.
Ten minutes passed. His stamina bar dropped slowly but steadily. But the kid stayed energetic, even occasionally chatting lightly about his carpenter grandfather who needed materials to make a fence.
Finally, they arrived at a small house on the village outskirts. A simple wooden house with a slightly tilted thatched roof. There was a pile of wood beside the house and a large hammer leaning against the wall.
"We're here!" the kid exclaimed with relief.
Ian released his grip on the bag and immediately sat down on the ground.
The kid smiled broadly while approaching Ian. His hand reached into the pocket of his tattered pants.
"Thank you so much! Because of you, I finished way faster!"
Ian raised his hand weakly. "Yeah... no problem..."
The kid pulled something from his pocket.
An egg.
Ian froze.
The egg was the size of an adult's fist. Bluish-white with a pattern of golden cracks shimmering on its surface.
"What... is that?" Ian asked while staring at the egg in confusion.
"An egg!" the kid answered innocently. "I found it while looking for mushrooms in the forest yesterday. Grandpa said it's just a regular egg. But it looks nice, so I want to give it to you as thanks!"
Ian scratched his head. "I don't really need an egg..."
But the kid was already thrusting the egg toward Ian with shining eyes, the eyes of a child wanting to give the best gift he had.
"Just take it! Besides, I don't know what to do with it. Grandpa said it can't be eaten."
Ian stared at the egg again. Its golden light blinked slowly, like a heartbeat.
An egg that can't be eaten? So a decoration item? But the golden light looks expensive. Maybe I can sell it?
Ian reached out and accepted the egg. Its texture was warm, not warm like an inanimate object, but warm like something alive.
"Thanks," Ian said while staring at the egg curiously.
The kid smiled broadly, then ran into the house while shouting to call his grandfather.
Ian stood slowly, still staring at the egg in his hand. Maybe I can sell it for 10-20 gold?
He opened his inventory and moved the egg to an empty slot.
CLICK.
The egg entered the inventory.
Then...
The screen flashed red. A large notification appeared in the center of the screen with glowing red letters like a fire alarm. Its size was three times larger than normal notifications, filling almost Ian's entire view.
[GLOBAL NOTIFICATION]
Ian froze, His heart stopped for a second.
His eyes started reading the first line...
[A MYTH-LEVEL CREATURE'S EGG HAS BEEN...]
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
An alarm from the headset shattered his concentration.
"Rental time remaining: 10 seconds."
"WHAT?!"
Ian reflexively opened the menu with panicked hands, trying to read the complete notification, but the text was too long...
"9 seconds."
"8 seconds."
Ian's hand moved to the logout button.
"7 seconds."
Pressed YES without thinking.
"Logging out... Please wait."
"5 seconds."
The screen started fading to black.
Ian could still see that red notification, large text he hadn't finished reading.
[...STOLEN.]
[QUEST: RETURN THE EGG WITHIN 180 DAYS OR...]
"2 seconds."
Total darkness.
***
Ian opened his eyes. Capsule. White light shining brightly above his head. The sound of AC humming softly in the corner of the room.
He removed the headset with trembling hands. His breathing was ragged even though his body had just been sitting still for hours.
Myth-level? Stolen? 180 days?
Ian stood from the chair quickly, almost tripping over his own feet, stiff from sitting too long. He opened the capsule door and walked quickly to the corridor.
I need to extend. I need to read that notification...
The moment he reached the ground floor, Ian froze completely.
A long line in front of the reception desk. Dozens of people standing, some sitting on the floor playing on their phones, some standing restlessly while glancing at the clock.
Ian stood at the end of the line with a pale face.
The receptionist girl at the front desk was shouting with a hoarse voice, probably had been shouting for a while.
"SLOTS ARE FULL UNTIL 11 PM! IF YOU WANT TO BOOK TOMORROW, FILL OUT THE FORM ON THE SIDE!"
Ian glanced at the wall clock. Already 8 PM. Three more hours? Mom's definitely waiting.
He stared at the long line once more, then turned and left the Nexus Capsule Rental building with sluggish steps.
***
The night streets were quite busy. Shop lights started turning on. People heading home from work, schoolkids passing by laughing, the sounds of motorcycles and cars blending into the city's white noise.
Ian walked with his head down, hands in pockets.
His feet carried him to a small park across the street, a park with worn wooden benches and a vending machine that sometimes worked, sometimes didn't.
He sat on that bench, leaning back tiredly. Body still ACHING and shoulders stiff from carrying the kid' bag earlier. Even in the virtual world, that exhaustion felt real now.
Strange.
Ian reached into his pocket and pulled out some loose change. Walked to the vending machine, pressed a button, and out came a can of cold soda.
CLICK.
THUD.
Back to the bench, opened the can with a PSSHH, then drank.
The city sounds kept running normally around him. Cars passing, A gecko chirping in a tree. Someone laughing in the distance.
Everything normal.
Ian stared at the soda can in his hand while his thoughts started spinning.
Egg.
Red notification.
Myth-level.
Stolen.
180 days.
Those words appeared one by one in his head, but still didn't connect.
What does it even mean?
Maybe just flavor text. Lots of games like to make dramatic notifications for regular quests. I remember a game that said "THE WORLD WILL END" when it was just a quest to kill 10 goblins.
He drank again.
Tomorrow I'll login again and read it slowly. There's definitely a full explanation.
But something nagged at him.
Why was the notification red? Why was it that big? Why did it say "GLOBAL"?
Ian shook his head.
No. Probably just developer dramatization.
His phone vibrated in his pocket.
BZZT.....
BZZT.....
Ian pulled it out and glanced at the screen. Notifications.
Ian stared at the screen briefly, then put the phone back in his pocket without opening it. Ahhhh.... Maybe later. Not in the mood right now.
He leaned back again, staring at the night sky slightly covered by the city's light pollution.
Two people passed in front of his bench, a guy and a girl, chatting.
"...did you hear yet? Atlas Fall is going crazy right now."
"Seriously? What happened?"
"Apparently there's a huge global quest. Everyone's logging back in."
"Whoa, sounds fun. Let's play tomorrow."
Their voices faded slowly.
Atlas Fall going crazy?
He stared at the soda can in his hand, maybe there really is a big quest.
But he still didn't connect. Still didn't realize he was at the center of it.
Ian finished his soda, tossed the can toward the trash.
CLANK.
Made it!
Then stood and continued his journey home.
***
Ian arrived in front of the house and pressed the doorbell.
DING DONG.
A few seconds later, the door opened. Hana stood there in casual home clothes and hair tied messily.
"Took you long enough. Mom's been cooking for a while," she said while stepping aside, giving Ian room to enter.
"Sorry. The line was long," Ian replied while taking off his shoes.
Hana closed the door and returned to the living room. TV sounds were clear, probably watching a variety show.
Ian wanted to go straight to his room, but...
"Hey, wait. Look at this first."
Ian turned. Hana sat on the sofa while pointing at the TV screen with the remote.
"What is it?" Ian asked while walking to the living room with heavy steps.
"Weird news about a VR game," Hana answered while munching chips. "Seems interesting. I don't really get it, but it looks like a huge deal. It even made national news."
Ian froze, His steps stopped right behind the sofa.
The TV screen blinked, then the national news station logo appeared.
Large text below the screen in red:
BREAKING NEWS: ATLAS FALL ONLINE SHAKEN BY GLOBAL CRISIS
Ian's heart stopped for a second.
A female reporter in a neat blazer appeared on screen, her face serious like reporting a natural disaster or political crisis.
"Breaking news from the gaming world. Atlas Fall Online, a VR game with the most advanced technology now played by more than 50 million players worldwide, is currently shaken by the emergence of an unprecedented world mission."
The screen switched to in-game footage. The village scenery Ian recognized. Players running in panic. A large red notification appeared in the virtual sky like an aurora but terrifying.
"According to the official Atlas Fall Online website, a player has stolen an egg from Krios Dragon, a Myth-Level creature considered one of the strongest entities in game lore. This mission must be completed within 180 days in-game time, or half of the Atlas Fall Online world is predicted to experience total destruction."
Ian stood frozen behind the sofa. His eyes locked on the screen.
The screen changed again, this time showing the face of a young man with a gaming headset around his neck and an e-sports team jersey with a dragon logo.
[VINCENT "BLADEKING" ZHAO - RANK 3 GLOBAL LEADERBOARD]
The man stared at the camera with a sharp gaze. His jaw hardened. Veins in his neck visibly tense.
"Fucking greedy thief," he said in a cold voice full of restrained anger. "Because of you, you've ruined the enjoyment of millions of players. You destroyed the game for your own benefit."
He paused briefly, took a breath, then continued in a lower but more menacing voice.
"Just try showing your face. See what happens when I find you, in-game or in the real world. I'll turn you into pulp."
Hana whistled softly. "Whoa, that's scary. Whoever stole it is gonna get hunted down hard."
Ian didn't answer. His hands trembled at his sides. Cold sweat started running down his temples.
Wait. I just got an egg.... An egg from a kid.... An egg that...
The realization came slowly, like cold water poured over his head, one drop at a time, until finally becoming a flood that drowned everything.
Myth-level....
Krios Dragon....
Stolen...
Don't tell me I...
"Hey?"
Hana's voice broke his trance.
Ian turned quickly. "W-what?"
Hana looked at him with a confused expression. "You're really pale. Sweating too. Not feeling well?"
"No. I'm just tired."
Ian turned and walked quickly to his room before Hana could ask more questions.
The bedroom door closed with a soft click.
Ian leaned against the door, eyes staring blankly at the cracked ceiling of his room. His breathing was heavy, short gasps, like after running a marathon. His hands still trembling.
I took that egg. I'm the thief....
He slid down to sit on the floor, back still against the door.
But I didn't know! I just helped a kid! I didn't know what that egg was!
But that doesn't matter. What matters is the whole world is now looking for me.
Ian grabbed his phone from his pocket with trembling hands. Notifications still full. Hundreds.
He opened Reddit with bated breath.
r/AtlasFallOnlinle
First thread: [MEGATHREAD] MYTH-LEVEL EGG CRISIS - DAY 1 DISCUSSION
Pinned. 51.2K comments.
Ian opened the thread. Scrolled.
Top comment (28.7K upvotes):
> "I don't care if it's an accident. I don't care if they didn't know. Find them. Ban them. Sue them if possible."
Reply (+14.3K upvotes):
> "This could qualify as disruption of online services under cyber law. If the company can prove damages, legal action is viable."
Another comment (+11.8K upvotes):
> "Major guilds pooling 2 million gold bounty. Some adding real money. $50K for verifiable info leading to ID."
Ian closed his phone. His hands trembled so violently the phone nearly fell.
He tossed the phone onto the bed and covered his face with both hands.
I didn't mean to.
But nobody cares. To them, Ian is a criminal.
And the scariest part, if they find out my identity...
Ian imagined his face being doxxed. His home address leaked. Mom and Hana suddenly visited by an angry mob.
No.....Can't happen. I have to figure out how to return that egg.
But alone? With an Explorer class? Without knowing where to return it?
I need help.
Ian grabbed his phone again and opened contacts. Scrolled down. Stopped at one name.
Minho (Crazy Best Friend)
Ian's finger hovered over the CALL button.
Minho understands this game. He has connections. He might be able to help.
But should I be honest? Should I tell him I'm the one who took the egg? Or should I lie?
Ian stared at Minho's name on the screen with an empty gaze. His finger trembled over the CALL button.
What should I do?