Chương 1: Reincarnation

Roleplaying. By definition, role-playing is the acting out or performance of a specific role, character, or behavior—either consciously, as in training, therapy, or gaming, or unconsciously in social settings—to simulate real-life situations or fictional scenarios. It involves adopting attitudes and actions different from one's own to explore viewpoints, practice skills, or simply entertain. Yeah, we've all roleplayed at some point in our miserable lives, right? Usually as children.

We loved pretending to be the characters we adored, the professions we admired, or even actors, famous role models from TV and cinema, fictional beings from books and novels, and above all, cartoon shows or anime. Usually, unless you grow up to become an actor—for theater, TV, cinema, or anything else—you stop roleplaying. Most of society would look at you strangely if you started acting out in front of them, especially once you're no longer a child. And that's perfectly fine.

But there are some people, especially those like me who love games—tabletop or video—that have never stopped roleplaying since childhood. We never pursued real careers in acting; we don't want to take it too seriously anyway. It's just a form of entertainment. It feels good to imagine yourself as someone else—someone cool or awesome from your own self-made fantasies and dreams.

Everyone has that one friend who loves to act like a big, muscular bearded barbarian, or a powerful paladin slaying demons for faith and justice, or a sexy goth sorceress, or a cackling lich commanding a bunch of Skelebros, or maybe even a mighty Dragonoid or a cute kobold—whatever floats your boat. The thing is, we never stopped. We turned that childhood play into a secret passion. Well, to friend groups filled with people like this, it might not be so secret. Yeah, friend groups, hahah…

I don't have any of that, at least not in real life. But I've always loved roleplaying inside games. Sometimes games are pretty strict about what your character can be. A few are more flexible, like "Your Story Online"—an expansive fantasy realm of endless worlds and wonders where I've been roleplaying as my favorite character for the last decade. This lonely woman has gone to work and come home every day to play this game like her life depended on it, and I haven't stopped since.

Meet Elizabeth Drakeheart Yggdrasil (cool name, right?), heiress of the Drakeheart Dragon Family, daughter of the Celestial Heavenly Ash Dragon King and the Abyssal Demon Queen of Entropy—an almighty, super-strong, OP dragon girl who's half demon and wields power over Celestial Energies, Chaos, and Demonic Magic.

Yeah, I'm a pathetic loser who loves acting as an overpowered character in my made-up scenarios, writing this entire world like a novelist and designing it in this expansive game with an auto-generative AI that grows as you feed it more and more prompts. It's an online game too. You can invite friends to play inside your world or even monetize it into its own damn MMO. Of course mine is way too messy, and nobody visits unless I beg them or… pay them. But whatever the case! It is my life. And…

my life was now crumbling before my eyes. I screamed in disbelief, smashing my keyboard in the ultimate display of gamer rage, female edition.

"AAAAHHHH! WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT'S OVER?!" The reason for my insanity? [Thank you for playing "Your Story Online" for the last decade, but we've decided to close our services. All Servers will be terminated tonight at 00: 00. Once more, we are deeply grateful for your support!]"What?! It's like they're mocking me! What's with this cynical tone?!" I had just come home from overtime to earn enough for an expansion pack to make my server even bigger, and now this?! Are you kidding me?!

"Ahh… a decade wasted…" I nearly passed out in my chair but slowly recovered, glaring at the screen with eyes full of sorrow and nostalgia. Ten years, huh? I started playing in high school. Time sure flies when you're a loser like me. Now what do I do? Find a guy and start a family? Ugh, who would even look at me? I'm so ugly. I've lived my entire life as someone everyone dismisses. I've always been told to mind my manners, not speak loudly, to… keep quiet. My only coping mechanism has always been video games.

But now that I don't even have that, what do I do with my life? Complain on Twitter?! No, it's hopeless.

"Haaa… it's not over yet though. At least… let me see this world one last time." My beautiful world, shaped with hundreds of characters, filled with tragedy and romance, life and death, complex plot points and twists. I cannot let go of you yet… I slowly put on the VR headset and immersed myself in the game once more—one last time. FLASH! There I appeared as my character, looking around in awe and sorrow at the world I had built.

Right now, I stood in the world called Yggdrasil, inside the Divine Dragon King's Golden Heaven Palace. This is where my great-grandfather—I mean, my character's great-grandfather—lives with the rest of my Dragon Family, the Divine Dragons of Yggdrasil. I walked around, watching the NPCs—all individual AIs—moving through their daily lives as usual.

"Good morning, how are you, your majesty?"

"Hello Lady Elizabeth!"

"Have you thought about your next journey, your majesty?"

"Your majesty! I have made you this new dress, as you've requested!" Suddenly I was surrounded by all the NPCs I had created. The gentlemanly vampire butler, Vlad, who always called me "your majesty" no matter what—an overprotective secondary paternal figure. My character's childhood friend, a pink-haired half-dragon nature spirit named Erika, daughter of the Spirit King of another world—always cheerful and outgoing, the perfect extrovert friend for an introvert like me.

The elegant mountain giantess maid, both strong and powerful, a war priestess of my father's church—Gigantia, who was always by my side spoiling me. And my fashion-obsessed cousin, Nyx, a young phantom dragon girl who used the souls of creatures to craft the most lugubrious and gothic dresses—my favorite style. And these were just a few of the hundreds I had made.

"Thank you so much for everything, everyone…" I started crying out of nowhere, hugging all four of them tightly.

"You've… you have been everything to me for all these years… thank you for accompanying a lonely loser like me."

"Good morning, how are you, your majesty?"

"Hello Lady Elizabeth!"

"Have you thought about your next journey, your majesty?"

"Your majesty! I have made you this new dress, as you've requested!" Of course, without inputting codes, they would loop the same dialogue forever. AI had advanced by leaps and bounds, but even then, with the little money I had, I couldn't afford to make every character a truly advanced intelligence.

"…" But even so, when they were just code in the game, I knew they were still my creations—my children, my family, my friends.

"Let's go to the main palace," I commanded, and they all followed.

"Oh, of course."

"Shall we start a new journey?"

"What do you plan on doing, your majesty?"

"Please tell me what new dress you need me to make!"

"Yeah, yeah, pipe down and just come with me…" I rolled my eyes. Although they could be a little annoying sometimes, they were better than nothing. From the skies above Yggdrasil, in the Divine Dragon King's Golden Heaven Palace, I walked and greeted dozens of NPCs. All of them were my family, friends, or acquaintances I had recruited since I started playing. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

Although "Your Story Online" lets you create your own worlds and characters, it fills in the rest for you—main campaigns, tutorials, bosses, and more. They were all people I had recruited through this journey as Elizabeth Drakeheart. My once-evil uncle I recruited by beating half to death—the Golden Dragon Sage, Sheng Xie. My auntie, the Dream Weaving Fairy, Titania. My older cousin, the Mountain Dragon Prince, Gigante. Another aunt, the Lake Dream Spirit Princess, Alma.

My mysterious uncle who likes to show up and drag me into crazy adventures—the Great Summoner, William. My grandfather's rival and friend, an uncle of sorts—the Divine Spirit King of Spiritias, Blake. My younger cousin, the Cherry Blossom Dragon Princess, Sakura. A powerful villainous character I recruited by defeating her in battle—the Thunderbolt Cyclops Queen, Brontes.

And many more I had brought into my faction, fighting together against the antagonistic forces that created enough tension to make this world truly epic.

From the top of my head, I remember the Nightmare Demon King, Ruler of the Nightmare Dimension; the Grievances born from Destroyed Parallel Worlds; the Evil Fairy King Oberon; the Demon King of Pride Lucifer; the Cosmic Monarch of the Oort Cloud; the Ruler of the Court of Outer Gods, Ginnungagap; the Blood Fairy Queen of the Demon Tree Forest; and many more villains and threats I had to overcome. Right now, no new threats have appeared for a year. I had reached a sort of "post-game" status.

But by spending enough money on expansions and writing what I wanted, I could probably expand it endlessly with more conflicts, worlds to explore, and realms to plunder. But lately, the only thing I truly enjoyed was chilling—living a laid-back life, traveling, sightseeing, admiring the beauty of the world I had created. The world I might never see again tomorrow.

"Elizabeth, you've returned, my daughter." A tall, intimidating, and divine dragon greeted me, sitting calmly on his vast golden throne. It was my father, the current owner of the throne of Yggdrasil. His grandfather—my great-grandfather the Dragon King—had allowed him to take it because he wanted to go on a vacation… which he hasn't returned from since.

My father—I mean, Elizabeth's dad—was the Celestial Heavenly Ash Dragon King, an almighty existence within this universe I had created with my strongest creative juices. I had even made him the main character of his own story. You see, my father has a very sad past! Before I was born, he struggled in a distorted, warped Earth where his home, the Frostbane Kingdom, was constantly threatened by forces from the Dimensional Labyrinth.

He was born crippled without dragon blood, called a failure, until he gained the power of Death Loop. Yeah, my dad's a damn regressor—isn't that awesome? He endured endless tragedies and losses across thousands of time loops until he reached the "perfect ending" with my mother. And I, Elizabeth, was born after that. It's like my character was born as the protagonist of the sequel—isn't that awesome?

"Elizabeth? Hey, I'm talking to you."

"Ah, sorry! Dad, yes, I've returned. I just want to… to spend time with you and Mom. Is she around?"

"Your mother should return any time. She's been busy managing the Chaos Demon Realm," my father explained.

"She's been deeply invested in ruling the Chaos Spirits and Demons born there for a while now."

"I see—Ah!" As he spoke, a portal tore open through space itself, revealing a black gate. A gorgeous woman stepped out—pale white skin, long black-and-red hair, sharp red-gold eyes, a pair of long black horns on her forehead, a third purple eye, and black fairy-like wings with red eyes that seemed to be decaying.

"Mother..."

"Hello, my dear daughter." She was the Abyssal Demon Queen of Entropy, reincarnation of two powerful Primordial Threats that once endangered Yggdrasil: the Primordial Demon King, Pandemonium, and the Primordial Queen of Chaos… Chaos. Uh yeah, I wasn't that original with that last name. But anyway, she also has a crazy backstory. She's the reincarnation AND their daughter. These two primordial beings had a tragic past—they were forcibly summoned by the Ancient Gods of Yggdrasil and tortured to extract their power.

They went berserk once and caused Yggdrasil's first Ragnarok, nearly destroying the world before being stopped and sealed away. Later they were revived by the Evil Fairy King Oberon but slain for good by my great-grandfather, the strongest being in this verse, the Divine Dragon King. However, my great-grandfather was soft-hearted and kind. He allowed them to reincarnate together. Instead of becoming new individuals, they chose to create a new life from their own souls—their daughter, my mother.

My mother and father have the craziest, tragedy-filled, action-packed romantic story ever. Through all the suffering and despair they faced together on Earth, they slowly overcame every challenge. My mother was the only one who could remember my father after every time loop, becoming his pillar and ultimately the woman he swore to love forevermore. Kyaaaa! Isn't that so romantic?!

"Um, dear?" My mother walked toward me, patting my head and smiling.

"Is something the matter?"

"Ah…" Unlike most other characters and NPCs, my parents—and a few others—had the best AI I could afford. It's all because… well, I wanted to feel the experience of being their daughter for real. And perhaps because I've always wanted new parents. My real ones… can I even call them parents when I never learned anything from them? They always felt so bleak, showing nothing but anger and frustration over their own lives or my existence.

Treating me like a mistake, hating each other for being forced together because of me, and finally divorcing—only growing more bitter when they realized sharing custody was too much trouble. I just… as a woman over thirty, I wanted to experience what it felt like to have perfect parents. Well, they aren't perfect. I made them flawed. My father is deeply traumatized too, but he's kind. He was once a really crazy, insane young man, but over time he mellowed, becoming a great father.

My mother can become depressed sometimes, remembering her past, but when she's with us, she always smiles and forgets her problems. And she's so kind. She makes delicious food—unlike my real mom, who never cooked for me. Hm, maybe I'm being childish. Maybe I'm asking too much from my parents? Well, I never really complained. I just dealt with the life I had and moved on. But in this world where I can roleplay not just a character but an entire life, an entire universe I created… why not?

Why not have a little self-indulgence? Isn't the point of games immersing yourself in a new world and escaping our boring, bleak reality? Yes… That's what I've come to understand throughout my life.

"It's nothing, Mother," I said.

"I'm just happy that I'm here right now…"

"Oh dear," she smiled, hugging me.

"You're almost eighteen now, my beloved daughter. Your ritual of passage into becoming a divine dragon is coming soon, correct?"

"Hah, she's done so much already—does that ritual even matter now?" my father laughed lightly, smirking at me with his six golden eyes.

"Elizabeth, from now on, once your eighteenth birthday comes, you will become an independent adult. I will even allow you to manage a world or two of your own. Being a god is no easy feat, however. Are you ready for the responsibility?"

"Hahah… yeah!" I nodded.

"I… I am!" I just played along with them, like I always did, on our last day in this wonderful world of fantasy—my ideal dream, my ideal realm of creativity and imagination.

"Then let's have a feast!" my mother said.

"Shall we?"

"Eh?" The scene shifted in an instant. I found myself seated on a small golden throne, surrounded by dozens of dragons, spirits, demons, giants, titans, cyclopes, oni, and many other races. There were even humans among them—my father was half-human, and my mother's vessel was technically human too.

"Congratulations!"

"A toast for the next Dragon Princess, Lady Elizabeth!"

"May her long life be prosperous!"

"OOOOHHHH!" As I watched everyone celebrating on my behalf, I couldn't help but smile and even chuckle. Deep down I knew this was all fake—just a game, a living dream with no weight in reality. And yet it had become my life. Even now, as it approached its end… I didn't want to believe it would disappear. I wanted to stay here until the very end.

"Mother…" I muttered, looking at my mom sitting beside me, chatting with many of her friends.

"Yes, dear?" she wondered.

"I… What would you do if the world was coming to an end tomorrow, and there was nothing you could do about it?"

"...?" She looked at me with curiosity, tilting her head lightly. Then she fell silent, gazing at the cup of wine in her hand for a moment. Finally she met my eyes again.

"Naturally, I'll fight with all my might to make sure it doesn't happen… Like I once did with your father."

"…I see." As I looked down, feeling a little sad at her simple response, my father noticed my gaze. He placed his hand on my shoulder. In his Dragonoid form, he took the appearance of his human one—a gorgeous man with long white hair and golden eyes, resembling a young prince from fairy tales, but with white scales and golden horns.

"Elizabeth, is there something troubling you?" he asked with gentle, perceptive eyes.

"If there's something you want to talk with us about…"

"…No, don't worry," I smiled. They were all AI. It's not like they could even understand that their world was about to end, that everything I had built would crumble and vanish.

"I… I just wanted to say that you two have made my life so much better," I said, smiling.

"Even if this is all just a game, my fantasy… I'm glad I have you here with me, and I'm glad I created you."

"…?"

"…?" Both looked confused. AI were programmed to become puzzled by any mention of their creation or the outside world, then simply forget what was said.

"Haha, don't worry about the last part…" I said, looking down at my food. I noticed the game clock floating beside my vision. [Local Time: 23: 59: 32]"Time sure flies… It's almost time, huh?" I held my father's hand, then my mother's, and sighed. I looked out at the vast sea of clouds, the floating islands, the endless horizon, the great world tree of Yggdrasil, and the dozens of rainbow bridges leading to different realms, worlds, and planes. It's time to say goodbye to this beautiful world.

I closed my eyes and sighed.

"Goodbye, everyone…" As tears streamed down my face, I watched the clock reach the long-awaited and dreaded moment. [Local Time: 00: 00: 00] And it arrived. Silence. Everyone stopped moving, living, working. The world slowly lost its color. Everything I had built and created faded away pixel by pixel. Yeah, it wasn't going to be like Overlord. Staying until the end would only let me watch everything torn apart before my eyes. A complete Server Reset.

"Why…" I cried, tears falling as I saw my family, friends, and everyone else slowly disappear, turning into data and scattering. The world became white. I looked at my parents—the most complex data in this world. They took longer to fade. But slowly, they too began to vanish.

"Dad…" My father went first, still looking at me with a calm smile. I tried to touch his face, but he disappeared forever.

"Mom…!" I did something stupid. I ran to my mother and hugged her, even as she faded. Her disappearing pixels mixed with my avatar.

"Don't leave me…" I cried like an idiot—a completely childish, stupid person who had grown too obsessed with a world she created. I really am crazy. But in the end…

"A-Ah…" She disappeared too, and my avatar began to delete itself. As I wept tears that turned into data and pixels, I looked at the white void before me and… At someone else standing right there. Staring at me.

"Huh?" A man in a white suit stood before me. Slender, tall, gorgeous even. Golden eyes, short white hair, and a glowing halo above his head.

"Hello, Elizabeth."

"W-What? Are… are you a Game Master or something?" He smiled at me. His footsteps echoed through the void as he drew closer.

"I've been looking for you all this time."

"M-Me? Wait, what? Who are you?!" As he approached, he shrugged. But as I tried to speak, I realized my avatar was already fading away. He stared at me in silence. There was something deeply unsettling about this super-handsome guy.

"All Stories must come to an end. That is a fact." He walked closer. The pressure in the air grew heavier.

"However." The bright white void intensified, becoming so bright it nearly blinded me.

"Fantasy never dies, don't you agree?" His hand extended toward me as brilliant light enveloped me.

"W-What are you doing?!" He smiled—calm, almost cunning.

"As fellow creators, I know you'll agree: the spirit of fantasy can never truly die. It springs eternal from the depths of humanity's heart and boundless imagination."

"Some might even argue that what truly sets us apart as intelligent beings is our power to forge entire worlds within our minds. Imagination and fantasy are the very essence of the human spirit."

"So, as one creator to another, let us collaborate on something together, shall we? After all, the brightest ideas are always born when creative minds unite." FLASH! Before I could do anything else, white light swallowed me whole, and I vanished from that place. My consciousness plunged into a deep black void.