"Is he going to be alright?"
A concerned female voice echoed through a dimly lit room.
An older male voice responded calmly, "He will be fine. I have expelled the poison from his body. He should regain consciousness within an hour."
After a minute of silence, the voice broke the silence once more. "I'll be taking my leave now."
"Thank you, Maester Roland." The girls voice softened as the door creaked open, then clicked shut behind her.
A heavy silence settled over the room. The faint groan of a wooden chair punctuated the silence briefly.
The girls hand gently caressed the face of the young man, lying on the bed.
"Please wake up, Ethan… please."
The steady ticking of a nearby clock filled the silence as minutes rolled by.
Feeling the warmth of her hand, asoft groan escaped Ethan's lips as his eyelids fluttered open. His blurred vision settling on a young girl with short hair and striking blue eyes.
He blinked in confusion. "Where… am I?"
"Oh, Ethan, you're awake!"
The girl gasped, relief washing over her face. Before he could react, she threw herself at him, wrapping him in a tight embrace.
A soft warmth pressed against his chest, a shiver ran through him, followed immediately by a sharp jolt of pain.
Ethan winced, tapping weakly against her back. "I… can't... breathe."
She pulled away abruptly, her face flushing with realization .
"Oh! Sorry!"
Ethan sat up, leaning against the wooden headboard. His gaze fixed on the door.
Disjointed memory fragments, flashed through Ethan's mind, his eyes dulled slightly from the quick burst of pain.His mind slowly tried to piece together the memory fragments.
The last thing, he remembered was playing the long-awaited Rise of Empire late into the night, fully immersed in the game after its long-anticipated release.
Then—pain. A crushing weight in his chest, his vision blurring… and then darkness.
'Did I… die?'
A shiver ran down his spine at the thought.
'No. That's impossible. This has to be a dream… or maybe a side effect of last night's heart attack.'
As if reading his thought, a blue screen materialized in his vision.
[This is not a dream, nor a side effect everything around you is real]
He squeezed his eyes shut, shook his head. When he opened them again, the screen was still there almost like it was mocking him.
The screen flashed in response.
[Did you think closing your eyes would change reality?]
Ethan stared at the words blankly.
[That's what I thought bitch. Welcome to Vaeloria]
'Vaeloria? No way!'
His breath became unsteady, panic instantly filling his eyes.
The girl beside him leaned forward, worry etched on her face as she pressed the back of her hand on his forehead.
"Are you feeling okay Ethan?"
Taking a deep breath to stabilise himself, Ethan gazed at her then reassured her, "Yeah, I'm fine. I just can't seem to remember anything."
"Where am I? Who am I?"
Clenching her fists, the girls face scrunched up in fury. "If I find whoever did this..."
Exhaling softly, her expression softening as she looked at Ethan, "You're in Cross village, and your name is Ethan Cross."
'Hmm, it seems I reincarnated into a body with the same name. Wait a minute, cross village isn't that the name of my village in Rise of empire.'
"Are you sure you're alright ."
Nodding, he pushed himself off the bed with as much effort as he could muster, his legs unsteady as they met the wooden floorboards.
A wave of dizziness hit him, and he staggered slightly. The girl stood up immediately, gripping his arm to steady him.
Her hands trembled slightly, her voice steadier than her expression. "Easy, Ethan. Don't put too much stress on your body."
Ethan took a deep breath, steadying himself as he stood upright. His body still ached, but the dizziness was slowly fading.
The girl holding his arms watched him closely, her brows furrowed with concern. "Are you sure you should be moving?"
"I'll be fine."
Ethan assured her, though he wasn't entirely convinced himself. "I need to find out what exactly is going on."
She hesitated for a moment, before nodding. "Alright. Let's go to the village elder council, they will explain everything."
Slowly leading him toward the door, the scent of herbs and woodsmoke thick in the air. As they stepped outside, the cool morning breeze carried the distant sound of hushed murmurs.
Ethan squinted his eyes, adjusting to the light outside. The village wasn't large—just a collection of wooden houses, a farmland in the distance, and a central square where smoke from burnt out torches drifted through the air.
People gathered in hushed groups, their faces marked with sorrow and unease.
One of the village elders, a wiry middle-aged man with a long white beard, walked through an opening in the crowd. As soon as he saw Ethan, his expression shifted—a mixture of relief and sadness.
"Ethan, you're awake," the elder said. His voice was steady but heavy.
That was when it finally dawned on Ethan, and his stomach twisted. The tension in the air, the sorrowful glances—it was the same atmosphere he had seen in the game after losing key NPCs.
Despite knowing the question, he asked, "What happened?"
The man sighed deeply. "Your father, Chief Leonard Cross, he couldn't make it. The poison was too severe and he died before dawn. I'm sorry Ethan."
Ethan's breath hitched. His father? The man he had never met—but whose name he now carried?
The girl beside him squeezed his hands gently.
"I… see," Ethan murmured, trying as much as he can to feel sorrowful. He wanted to feel something, but the weight of this new reality hadn't fully settled yet.
The elder continued, "The village cannot remain without a leader. The council has gathered to appoint a new chief. You were his only son, naturally the position now falls on you"
Ethan was then led to a wooden meeting hall a few blocks from the village square, where three elders sat around a crudely built table. The room smelled of old parchment, burning candles, and aged wood.
One of the elders, a stout woman with piercing eyes, spoke first. "Leonard was a good chief. We must decide who will take his place."
Murmurs spread through the hall. The elders nodded in accord, glancing at Ethan.
Finally, the bearded elder spoke again. "As Leonard's son, Ethan has the right to take his father's place."
An elder with a scar running along his face cut in. "He's too young to lead, someone should rule in his name until he comes of age."
The bearded elder glared at the man. "You didn't have that to say when he toiled the village farm or went with the hunters on hunting trips."
The elder snorted, shifting his gaze towards Ethan, growling he leaned back on his chair.
The bearded elder glanced across the room. "Does anyone object?"
Ethan's mind raced. This was moving too fast. He had just woken up in this world, and now they wanted him to lead a village?
"I… don't know if I'm the right person for this." Ethan admitted.
The stout woman crossing her hands on top the table. "Maybe. But the people need leadership. And we don't have the time for a debate."
The bearded elder nodded. "Then it's settled. Ethan Cross is now the Village Chief."