The double doors of the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center swung open, releasing Renly Alfred into the harsh afternoon light. He squinted, his hazel eyes struggling to adjust after eight hours of staring at exam screens. A hollow feeling lingered in him, the weight of months spent studying for an 8-hour licensing exam still sinking in. The thought alone made him feel drained, as though the effort had cost more than just time.


    His phone vibrated in his pocket. Renly fumbled for it, his fingers still cramped from furiously clicking through question after question of pathophysiology and pharmacology.


    Jake: Survived the slaughter?


    A weak smile crossed Renly''s face. Jake Moreno had been his roommate since undergrad—the one constant through four years of pre-med hell and now two years of actual medical hell. While Renly buried himself in textbooks, Jake balanced his own engineering coursework with an almost supernatural ability to maintain a social life.


    Renly: Barely. Brain feels like scrambled eggs.


    Jake: Perfect time for beer then! Meeting some people at Murphy''s at 8. You in?


    Renly stumbled over a crack in the sidewalk, catching himself on a light pole. The thought of shouting over music in a crowded bar made his head throb harder.


    Renly: Rain check. Need sleep for approximately 72 hours.


    Jake: Weak sauce, Ren. But fair. I''ll drink one for your dead brain cells.


    Renly: Make it two.


    He pocketed his phone and continued his zombie shuffle toward the bus stop. Three blocks had never felt so far. Eight years of education, thousands of flashcards, and endless nights of study had culminated in today''s exam—the gatekeeper to his clinical rotations.


    A car horn blared nearby, making him flinch. Renly realized he''d been standing at a crosswalk, staring blankly at the pavement. The walk signal had cycled through twice without him noticing.


    He crossed the street, his body moving on autopilot. Jake would understand his absence tonight. That was their friendship—Jake pulled Renly out of his study cave when the isolation grew too heavy, and Renly kept Jake grounded when his spontaneity veered toward self-destruction. They balanced each other.


    The bus stop bench appeared before him like an oasis. Renly stepped onto the bus and collapsed onto a seat, his backpack sliding to the ground. For the first time in months, he took a deep breath that wasn''t tinged with anxiety. One hurdle cleared. A moment to breathe before the next.


    The bus lurched forward, its ancient suspension creaking under each pothole. Renly slumped against the window, his temple pressed to the cool glass. The world outside blurred into streaks of autumn colors, buildings and trees melting together as his eyes unfocused.


    Three days. Three blessed days of nothing but his bed and his tablet. No more cramming pathology terms, no more practice questions. Just him and his growing collection of webnovels.


    His fingers twitched toward his pocket, already itching to pull up the latest chapter of "Of Kings and Commoners." The protagonist had just unlocked his system, discovering his hidden talent for the sword arts. Renly''s lips curved into a tired smile. There was something satisfying about watching the downtrodden rise up and demolish their oppressors.


    It played a stark contrast with the current state of the world. As a medical student, Renly wasn''t ignorant to the fact that the healthcare system was broken. He hated that despite his best intentions, he knew entering the healthcare system was to become a cog in a machine — submitting to the pressures of the healthcare conglomerates and pharmaceutical corporations that prioritize your net billing numbers over patient outcomes.


    The bus hit another pothole, jarring him from darker thoughts. This was why he escaped into stories. Tales where the peasant boy discovered he was actually the strongest mage in existence. Where corrupt nobles trembled before the might of the common folk. Where justice actually meant something.


    His stop approached, the familiar sight of College Square''s run-down shops coming into view. Renly pulled the cord, shouldering his backpack as the bus wheezed to a halt. The walk to his apartment complex stretched before him—five minutes of putting one foot in front of the other.


    The setting sun painted long shadows across cracked sidewalks. His building rose ahead, a testament to 1970s architecture with its weathered brick facade and rusted fire escapes. Not pretty, but the rent fit a student''s budget. Besides, the wifi was decent enough to stream his novels without buffering.


    The security door''s lock stuck as usual. Renly jiggled his key, throwing his shoulder into the push until it gave way. The fluorescent lights in the lobby flickered in greeting, casting their sickly glow over peeling wallpaper and stained carpet.


    Home sweet home. At least for the next forty-eight hours, it would be his sanctuary. Just him, his bed, and countless chapters of common-born heroes bringing arrogant nobles to their knees.


    ~*~


    Two days later, Renly''s apartment resembled a disaster zone. Empty energy drink cans formed a metallic constellation across his desk. Takeout containers created their own miniature skyline on his nightstand. His sheets lay tangled at the foot of his bed, kicked off during hours of restless tossing.


    His bloodshot eyes burned as they tracked across his tablet screen. The clock in the corner read 4:37 AM. Another sleepless night.


    "You''ve got to be kidding me!" Renly muttered, scrolling frantically through the latest chapter of "Of Kings and Commoners." His thumb jabbed at the screen with increasing force. "No, no, no, no, NO! Not her too!!"


    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    The protagonist, Alfred, had just watched his fiancée die in his arms—poisoned by the same duke whose father had murdered Alfred''s adoptive parents fifteen years earlier. It was the third person Alfred had loved and lost in as many story arcs.


    Renly threw the tablet onto his pillow and stressingly pressed the heels of his hands against his eyes. The advertisement that had hooked him flashed through his mind: "Read this satisfying tale as Alfred, a commoner, rises up to fight for justice in a corrupt magical world, reclaiming what was rightfully his."


    What a joke! Satisfying?! You had got to be kidding!! Nothing about this story delivered on that promise. Alfred never reclaimed ANYTHING! Every time he gained something—power, allies, love—it was violently stripped away.


    Born in secret to a queen who couldn''t acknowledge him, abandoned in a forest as an infant, Alfred had been taken in by kind villagers. For eight brief years, he''d known happiness. Then a passing noble killed his adoptive parents on a whim, simply because they hadn''t bowed low enough.


    From that moment, Alfred''s life became an endless cycle of struggle and loss. He''d fought, schemed, and sacrificed to rise above his station. He''d uncovered ancient magic, built alliances, and challenged corrupt aristocrats. But the cost was always too high.


    Now, 978 chapters in, Alfred teetered on the edge of insanity, his quest for justice warped into a thirst for vengeance that consumed everything good about him.


    Renly dragged himself to the kitchen and filled a glass with tap water. His reflection in the window above the sink looked ghostly—pale skin, dark circles under his eyes, three days of stubble shadowing his jaw. He too felt like he was teetering on the edge of insanity. The author had to be a sadist! Just when he thought there would be a satisfying end, the author had to make Alfred suffer through another traumatizing experience, all in the name of ''character building.'' Fuck that!


    The sound of a key in the lock made him turn. The door swung open, revealing Jake, his roommate and best friend since freshman year, dressed in hospital scrubs.


    "Dude, you look like actual death." Jake dropped his backpack by the door. "Please tell me you haven''t been reading that novel for two straight days."


    Renly leaned against the counter. "I can''t stop. It''s like watching a train wreck in slow motion."


    "You know normal people read happy stories to escape reality, right?" Jake opened the fridge, grimaced at the contents, and closed it again. "Not... whatever masochistic thing you''re doing."


    "I keep thinking it''ll get better." Renly ran a hand through his unwashed hair. "The advertisement promised a satisfying story about justice and reclaiming what was stolen. Instead, it''s just endless suffering."


    "So stop reading."


    "I can''t. I''m invested now. I need to know if Alfred ever catches a break."


    Jake sighed, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl. "From what you''ve told me, that seems unlikely."


    "You don''t understand." Renly''s voice cracked with frustration. "Alfred deserves better. He''s spent his entire life fighting against a system designed to crush him. He watched his adoptive parents die when he was eight. Eight, Jake. And every time he builds something—a relationship, a home, a purpose—it gets destroyed."


    "It''s just a story, Ren."


    "Is it, though?" Renly stared into his water glass. "UGH! Whatever. I''m going to sleep."


    Renly pushed himself off the counter and turned to head for his room. As he took a step, the floor seemed to ripple beneath his feet. A deep, low rumble filled the air, and he stumbled.


    "What the—" Renly managed before a violent tremor shook the apartment.


    The glass of water slipped from his hand, shattering on the tile floor. His legs buckled, sending him sprawling next to the shards. He could feel the cold seeping through his clothes, but his mind was elsewhere. It was like a thousand voices whispered in unison, muffling Jake’s frantic shouts.


    "Ren! Hey! Renly!" Jake''s voice wavered with panic. "What’s happening? You’re supposed to be the medical student, not me!"


    Renly’s vision blurred. Jake''s face hovered above him, a look of fear etched into every line. His mouth moved, but the words seemed distant and garbled.


    "I’m calling for help! Don''t die on me, Renly!"


    The world around Renly felt like it was dissolving into darkness. A swirling vortex of thoughts and memories sucked him in—images of Alfred''s countless struggles and defeats flashed before his eyes.


    “Damn this novel... Damn medical school... Damn it all…”


    His body grew heavy as though gravity itself had multiplied tenfold. He tried to focus on Jake’s face, on anything familiar, but it was like grasping at smoke. His consciousness slipped further away, leaving behind only a sense of helpless frustration and bitter resignation.


    The whispers grew louder, blending into a cacophony that drowned out everything else. The last thing Renly saw before darkness claimed him was Jake''s tear-streaked face mouthing silent words that he could no longer hear.


    ~*~


    Renly''s head throbbed as he regained consciousness. He squinted against the dappled sunlight filtering through the dense canopy above, the earthy scent of the forest assaulting his senses. His mind swirled with confusion, memories of his apartment and Jake''s frantic shouts fading into an incomprehensible haze.


    "What the fuck... how did I get here?" Renly muttered, his voice hoarse and disbelieving. His hand pressed against his aching temple, feeling the rough dirt beneath him. This wasn''t a dream; it was too vivid, too painfully real.


    His muscles protested as he pushed himself upright. The forest around him was alive with the sound of rustling leaves and chirping birds, but it did little to calm his racing heart. The last thing he remembered was collapsing in his apartment, and now he was… in the middle of a forest? He must be dreaming.


    A sudden rustle nearby snapped him out of his daze. Renly''s eyes darted toward the source of the noise, just in time to see a rock hurtling toward him with alarming speed. He barely had time to react before it whizzed past his ear, missing him by mere inches.


    "Shit!" His heart pounded in his chest as he scrambled to his feet, his mind barely able to keep up with his body. Instinct took over; he dashed to the nearest tree for cover, pressing his back against the rough bark.


    His breath came in quick gasps as he scanned the forest floor. To his surprise, everything seemed sharper than before—the leaves were more defined, every blade of grass crystal clear. He could see further into the forest than he''d ever thought possible. Everything felt off — it felt like more, but Renly couldn''t explain it, but he tucked the thought away for later, assuming there was a later.


    Steps crunched on the other side of the tree, and Renly held his breath. Whoever—or whatever—was out there was closing in fast. He strained to hear more clearly, trying to gauge their movements.


    Before he could react, pain exploded in his right abdomen, a gash opening way to blood as Renly ran in the only direction he could — forward. His mind was rushing faster than it ever had before, trying to come up with an explanation, a reason, a plan. But there was no time.


    Renly could hear his attacker getting closer and closer, the sounds of leaves crumpling under feet getting louder as he ran. Ducking behind the closest tree, Renly immediately turned and grabbed the hand pushing the knife into his body, twisting the knife and falling onto the ground — into his attacker''s chest.


    Coming off a high of adrenaline, Renly hyperventilated, and he could feel his consciousness leaving him a second time. Except, this time, it wasn''t surrounded by his kitchen counter with the words of his friend Jake echoing in the background. This time, he lay bleeding on top of a dead green goblin-looking creature, with words that seemed to go straight into his mind replaying in his head:


    [Congratulations. You have slain: Low Goblin. +1 Level. System initializing. Generating rewards…]


    Before Renly could process the glowing text searing itself into his mind, the world tilted, his vision darkening as unconsciousness dragged him under a second time.