――I can hear the cheers.
Countless people lean their avatars out from the stands, smiling and waving. With drinks in hand and mouths wide open, they stand, shouting loud enough to shake the virtual space.
“Wow, did you see that, Sakujiro-san?” “That was an incredible match! Who would have thought――”
The commentators excitedly chattered, their words blending with the cheers, but I couldn’t make them out clearly. I looked around at the audience, catching my breath, which had become ragged at some point.
The cheers didn’t stop. The energized arena erupted with confetti in all colors, raining down. As I looked up at the confetti, someone tapped me on the shoulder. Without turning around, I steadied my breath. I steadied it, again and again, until…
“Everyone! You saw it, didn’t you!? The legendary ‘Good Knight’ has finally been defeated!!” “We are witnessing history—the moment the gaming world is changing!!” “Behold, the birth of a new champion who surpasses the greatest ‘Good Knight’ of all time!!”
Beyond the falling confetti, it wasn’t me but someone else who was jumping for joy. Several people stood with their arms around each other, laughing and crying, monopolizing the confetti and the cheers.
I was always the one standing there. It had become so normal that I couldn’t even imagine being anywhere else.
As I took a step toward the center of the cheers, someone grabbed my shoulder. I tried to shake it off, but the grip pulled me back, and I turned around against my will.
What I saw was a scene I didn’t want to face. My teammates, who had fought alongside me just moments ago, stood there, staring at me. Their faces were obscured by a dark haze, making their expressions unreadable.
They stared at me accusingly, slowly walking toward me as they spoke.
“It’s your fault.”
The voice was cold—colder than ice, colder than the wind on a midwinter night.
“If you hadn’t rushed out on your own back then, we could’ve won.” “Did you even think about their strategy? Or did you just charge in recklessly, thinking we’d win like always?” “You’re always going solo and making these reckless moves, but this time it’s too much.” “Why’d you mess up today of all days?” “You never listen to our plans, do you? What’s the point of even having a team?”
One after another, they blamed me, approaching me slowly, pointing fingers at me. I wanted to say, “You’re wrong.” But no words came out. The more I thought about why we lost, the more my own face surfaced in my mind.
I tried to come up with excuses, over and over again. But before I could, tears and apologies spilled out.
“I’m sorry… I’m really, really sorry.”
The cheers never stopped, and from afar, I could hear the sound of someone being lifted up in celebration.
―――――
“Ugh…!? Hah… hah… damn, it was just a dream.”
Gasping for breath, I wiped my face with the sleeve of my pajamas. They reeked since I hadn’t done laundry in ages, but I didn’t care. I wiped my face roughly and glanced around the room.
The room was dark, filled with discarded clothes, empty bento boxes, bottles, and trash scattered everywhere. It was a pretty spacious room, but there wasn’t a single spot to step without hitting garbage.
A tiny fly buzzed annoyingly near my face. I swatted it away, scratching my bedhead.
“……”
This is the current state of ‘Good Knight,’ once hailed as the world’s strongest pro gamer, or whatever. I can’t even manage to do laundry or clean, haven’t taken a bath in who knows how long. All I do is order food, eat, take care of business, and sleep. I haven’t opened the curtains in nearly six months. When was the last time I shaved?
“…Damn it.”
No, I can’t think about this. I shouldn’t think about this. I’m starting to get hungry, so I need to order delivery soon. Luckily, I still have money. I reached for my phone, unlocked it, and browsed the menu of a nearby restaurant out of habit.
I need to eat something light. But before I could decide, my phone vibrated.
It was just a notification—nothing special. But without thinking, I let go of the phone.
“Ugh… damn it…”
Images of internet posts flashed through my mind. Social media, forums, blogs—everywhere I looked, it was the same words.
Familiar thumbnails, trending terms dominating the top spot day after day.
“Damn it… Damn it, why? Why…!”
Even with my eyes closed and my head buried in my hands, the comments flowed effortlessly through my mind.
“‘Good Knight’ is done for.” “He was just a flash-in-the-pan relying on luck and youth, right? This makes sense.” “Lately his play’s been so arrogant, it’s satisfying to see him lose.” “‘Good Knight’s’ loss compilations are getting insane views, LOL.” “His decline before retirement was pathetic, honestly. What a way to ruin your legacy.” “If he’d just retired after losing to NxF, things would’ve been better.” “Clipping ‘Good Knight’s’ losing moments is an easy way to go viral, LOL.” “The way he loses from unwinnable situations is almost artistic, like a Rube Goldberg machine, LOL.”
“Shut up, shut up, shut up! Just shut up already!”
I slammed my fist into the bed in frustration. Every single one of them kept talking about my undefeated streak, a new era, and whatever else. They had no idea how I felt when I was playing.
――Buzz. My phone vibrated again. Annoyed, I grabbed it to see the screen, expecting more nonsense. But what popped up was a direct message and a video link from a familiar name. At first, I thought it was a scam, but this was my private account, and from this person, it couldn’t be.
“Lact… why is he contacting me now?”
I scratched my head in frustration, thinking it over. Lact was… a member of the pro gaming team ‘Inflation Frenzy’—known as ‘Infla’ for short. He was there that night when ‘Good Knight’ ended.
Despite his emotional ups and downs, Lact became a completely different person when it came to games, always calm and collected. Among the team, his game knowledge and understanding were unmatched, so he was always the brains of the operation. …Not that I ever cared much about his plans, though.
That guy, why? I can’t figure out the reason, nor do I know what he sent. If I open the message, it’ll be marked as read immediately, so I can’t even check. And no follow-up messages are coming either.
…After thinking about it for a while, I quietly opened the DM.
What had been sent were two videos. Both were gameplay clips of the same game. For a moment, an unpleasant feeling ran through me, but I took a deep breath and played the first video.
“…A game promotion video?”
The game’s title was idea is you. I’d never heard of it before. Judging by the quality of the video, it seemed to be a fairly new game. …Impressive. What’s up with these graphics?
“A VRMMORPG, huh? The type that was popular for a while before it pretty much died out.”
I wasn’t interested in the story, so I ignored that part, but from what I could see, it seemed like a fantasy MMO, the kind that was once all the rage. I couldn’t say for sure, but it definitely wasn’t the type of game I usually touched.
What I excel at… what I excel at is…
“…”
The video and audio were still playing from my phone, filling the room. I stared at it blankly, reminiscing. During the peak of my career, when I was winning tournament after tournament, a reporter had asked me this question.
“Good Knight-san! Could you tell us what types of games you’re good at and which ones you struggle with?”
“Uh, well… If it’s anything that involves moving your body, I’m pretty much good at all of them.”
I didn’t think I was lying. In fact, I had left results in any game I played. Whether it was racing, fighting, sports, shooting, battle royale, or MOBA… everything. In any game that involved physical movement and PvP, I was unbeatable.
Whether it was a local competition, a tournament in the city, or an international one, I won. I was the strongest.
“…”
Before I knew it, the screen on my phone had gone dark. The video had ended, apparently. Well… from what I saw, it was an ordinary game. Nothing about it drew me in. Besides, I didn’t have the luxury to care about games right now.
So, I decided to just ignore it. But then my phone buzzed again, this time with a message. And seeing it reflexively changed everything for me.
“The game came out about two weeks ago.”
“Let’s play it together.”
“By the way, the second video is my gameplay.”
“…No, I’m not doing that.”
I sighed. I’m not really into games where you have to grind stats to hit things. Besides, I don’t feel like doing anything right now. I had no intention of watching the second video either. I didn’t know what his intention was in reaching out to me, but this conversation was over.
I was about to leave the message on read when another one came in. I glanced at it, exasperated, and then my expression stiffened.
“The enemy I’m fighting is a quest boss, but its movements are like a character from a fighting game.”
“To be honest, it’s stronger than you.”
“There’s no way that’s true.”
I reflexively responded, then realized what I had done. It wasn’t an old habit… no, it was a bad habit rooted deep within me. After getting berated for so long, I thought I had stopped.
“Its parry precision is like a finely-tuned machine, and it reads your movements and intentions perfectly.”
“And this combo? It cancels its throw animation into the optimal combo beautifully. Even the way it juggles you after a low kick and then loops you with throws is impressive.”
“And after it transforms, its knockdown follow-ups are faster than when you were at your peak.”
The string of messages continued. I could feel like I was being toyed with. He was pulling me in with his words. And yet, strangely, I found myself smiling. It had been a long time since I’d laughed.
While sporting a slight smile for the first time in about a year, I played the second video. It was a first-person gameplay video, presumably from Lact’s perspective. The opponent… was an old man with a devilish appearance, dressed in white robes.
Instead of wielding a sword and shield, Lact charged at the old man with a violin in hand, fighting flamboyantly alongside other players.
Dodging through lightning, flames, and tornadoes, he struck the old man with effects flying from the violin, ignoring other players who seemed to be transforming. He got blown back by a counterattack, but somehow managed to whittle down the old man’s HP.
The video ended with other players smiling and running toward Lact.
“…”
I touched the seek bar, replayed the video from the beginning, stopped at the parts that caught my attention, rewound, slowed down, zoomed in, and watched again and again.
Once I’d gone through it enough times to satisfy myself, I opened the DM and replied for the first time in ages.
“No, I’m stronger than him.”
After sending it, I immediately regretted it. What was I doing, acting like my old self? I tried to delete the message, but he’d already read it. I held my breath and waited for a reply. The message “Lact is typing” appeared, and then his response came.
“I know.”
“But actually, that guy wasn’t the main boss.”
“See how there’s no health bar? He’s just a mid-boss.”
“We’re not strong enough for the main boss. We fought it, but got wiped out instantly.”
But then Lact continued.
“I wonder, though… how would you fare?”
As soon as I finished reading those words, I found myself laughing again. Lact was just too good. Unlike someone like me, who relied solely on instinct, he had a silver tongue.
I sat still for a moment, then replied.
“What was the game’s name again? I didn’t really pay attention to the title screen.”
“idea is you.”
And that was how I came to meet my destiny.
