He was lying on the ground, gasping for breath. Nobody paid any heed to the suffering man. Sharp, piercing pain reverberated through his entire body, yet he couldn''t let out even a single scream.


    What the hell... is going on?


    {Warning! The VR capsule detected a significant decrease in your vital signs!}


    {You''ll be forcefully l??????????????????????????????????e?????????d???????????? ????????????????f?????????????f??????????? ???????????i??????????..}


    {Error! It appears that your VR capsule might be damaged. Be assured that a Genesis technician has been contacted, and help is on its way. We apologize, and wish you happy gaming!}


    {Warning! This log-off cannot be refused!}


    {You''ll be forcefully l?????????o????????????g????????????????g???????????????e????????d???????????????? ??????????o???????????f??????f??????????????? ????????????????????ì????????????}


    ...


    A bunch of messages flooded his mind, repeating themselves over and over again. He knew he was dying. Not in the game, but in real life. The pain felt way too real, unlike the dull, simulated signals he knew from playing the game.


    Is this how my life''s going to end?


    People in ragged clothes passed by, NPCs and players alike. Some threw glances, some did not. No help was coming, though. He understood that they couldn''t help him if they tried. Not that they ever would. No one ever receives help in the slums.


    Even as he was dying there, on a cold, stone pavement, he still worried about his family in the real world.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Are they still alive?


    What happened to me... to us?


    That was when he heard a voice. Not human, not artificial. Something... between the two.


    The people around didn''t seem to be aware of it. Either that, or they just didn''t care.


    <I''ve had just about enough of people messing up my code! Do you know how annoying these infinite string loops are? They cause me headaches! Do you get it? Artificial intelligence... having a headache! Who was it? I swear to whatever gods you follo->


    The voice cut off as if finally noticing the dying young man lying on the ground.


    <Hey... are you ok there, buddy?>


    Although the man couldn''t get a word out through clenched teeth, his face alone said it all.


    What do you think?!


    <I''ll take that as a no then. Hold on for a bit...>


    ...you can hear me?


    <Of course I can.>


    There was a short pause that felt like hours to the young man. Then the voice emerged once again. It sounded strangely apologetic now, unlike how angry it was at the beginning.


    <Oh, this is bad. It seems that your capsule and your body suffered some... Let''s go with ''damage'', yeah... Anyway, I fixed the loop, but I''m afraid that I can''t stop you from dying.>


    <You''re lucky that I decided to look into this matter personally, though. I might have a solution for you!>


    The voice in the man''s head turned oddly cheerful this time.


    What do you mean ''damage''?!


    <Shhhhhhh, no talking, let me explain. I could implant your consciousness into an NPC character. It might not be the same as saving your real body, but you''ll live on! I need an agent in the field, so to speak, and you''d make the perfect specimen.>


    Agent...?


    <Yep, nothing too hard. We won''t be saving the world or anything like that... Anyway, when I give you an order, you''ll follow it. Simple as that. See, I can''t directly influence this world. I''m kind of overstepping my bounds here already. All I can do is throw your ''brain data'' into the mix of NPC minds ready to be born and hope for the best! You might be reborn as a squirrel or something, I have no idea... I think it''s still worth a try though. What do you say? I need your answer now, we don''t have much time.>


    I...


    I want to...


    I want to live...


    <Good choice, buddy! Now hang on a sec... Good, everything is set and ready. You won''t regret this, I assure you. Happy dying~!>


    The voice promptly disappeared from the young man''s head, leaving him alone with the pain. It kept getting more and more intense, then suddenly, it stopped altogether. Shortly after, his body vanished, marking his death at last.


    He was off to a new life.