Kapitel 2: Back in time

What comes after death?

When he was alive, Leon often wondered about this on a daily basis. Was there really something beyond the veil of death, or was it just an empty void?

If the religious teachings were right, then after death, a person's soul was sent to the afterlife, where they would either face eternal peace or judgment, depending on their deeds. But if those teachings were just empty words, then death meant the end—no afterlife, no continuation, just nothingness. Everything would end for a person the moment they drew their last breath.

But what happened after he died was something Leon could have never expected. After dying, he heard the familiar ringing of his semi-automatic alarm clock. Reflexively, he muttered, "Ciri, turn it off."

The ringing stopped instantly, following his command.

But a mix of bewilderment and shock filled his heart.

Ciri was the name of the second-hand alarm clock his parents had bought for him a week before he was supposed to enroll in college. The alarm clock was semi-automatic because it responded to only one command, which he had just used to turn off the alarm. Compared to other alarm clocks that came with futuristic functions like voice-activated reminders, sleep tracking, and even holographic displays, it was quite basic. However, it was what his hard working parents could afford to gift, so he cherished it.

'How could I be hearing that alarm now that I'm dead? What's going on?'

The shock Leon felt from hearing the familiar sound of his old alarm clock after his death swept away the drowsiness that had been barricading him from opening the windows to his soul.

His eyes snapped open.

A familiar ceiling came into view.

A strange sense of déjà vu washed over Leon.

Immediately, Leon looked around, taking in his surroundings.

He was in a small room. Apart from the bed he was lying on, the small room contained only three pieces of furniture—a small wardrobe, an even smaller study table and a worn-out chair that had one of its three legs missing. It was the human equivalent of a eunuch—a joke his best friend used to make whenever he came to visit.

"This…" Leon's eyes widened in disbelief.

This was the room he used to have when he was still living with his parents.

But how could that be possible?

He had moved out of his parent's house when he was 20 and rented a small studio apartment.

He had been living there right up until the moment he died.

Now Leon rarely visited his parents because he was too ashamed to face them. When he did visit, he never stayed overnight; the guilt gnawing at him would become too much to bear in the presence of his parents. So, the idea that his current situation was simply a case of falling asleep after visiting his parents' home and waking up from a nightmare was completely out of the question.

'No way.'

A weird conjecture began to form in Leon's mind, one that defied all logic.

'It can't be.'

Leon pinched himself harshly. The area he pinched turned red, and the sharp sting of pain confirmed it wasn't a dream.

'What I'm thinking might very well be the truth.'

'It's a bit too much to believe, but I seem to have gone back in time?'

There was one sure way to confirm if he had truly regressed: he needed to look at himself. If he appeared younger, then that would mean his wild theory was correct.

He touched his face and couldn't feel his beard, which made him more excited to see his reflection.

There was only one mirror in the house, located in the bathroom. But why go all the way there when he had a better option?

Leon instinctively reached into his pants pocket, where he usually kept his mobile phone. However, he found nothing but an empty pocket.

Searching the room, he finally spotted something—an older version of smart devices, a smartphone with a cracked screen. The model was an old Xperia Quantum X, a device that had been popular in the late-2040s and early-2050s. It was a device he used to own 2 years ago, but he got it as a gift 8 years before his death.

In the year 2060, smartphones have gone out of production. They were replaced by VR systems, Augmented Reality Glasses, Brain-Computer Interfaces, and implantables. Implantable devices made one feel like a superhuman. As a result, they were the choice of many. Leon also bought one on installment in the year 2062. That's when he stopped using his outdated smartphone for good. Holding it again in his hand, he felt nostalgic.

His Xperia Quantum X was already switched on. When he pressed the power button, the screen lit up, displaying the date and time.

February 15, 2056, 7:42 AM.

'The date it's showing is eight years before my death. I should still be a teenager.'

To access the camera, He just needed to enter the password to unlock his phone. However, it had been more than two years since he last used it. He entered the wrong password thrice and got lucky on the fourth try.

He quickly activated the front camera and turned it towards himself.

What he saw made his heart race: staring back at him was the face of a handsome teenager with a clean-shaven face, not the depressed man with a bearded, weathered appearance he had become.

There was no way this could be a prank. Technology has advanced greatly over the last several decades, but it hasn't yet reached a point where aging could be reversed.

Leon's eyes lit up with joy. He had become young again. He had gone back in time! But he still had some doubts.

It was 7:42 AM on a workday. At this time, his parents would be out working, and they wouldn't return until around 8:00 PM. If this wasn't some realistic dream, they shouldn't be at home.

Without wasting another second, Leon rushed out of his room and headed down the stairs.

Before he moved out to live in a studio apartment, he had lived with his parents in a rather cramped space. The house only had one bathroom, two small bedrooms, a tiny kitchen, and a space that could barely be called a living room. The first bedroom, kitchen, and bathroom could be accessed through the living room. As he explored the house, he realized everything was exactly as he remembered.

Moreover, just as he expected, his parents weren't home. This wasn't some realistic dream his mind had conjured up while he was dying. This was reality.

Buzz!

Just then, his phone, which was held in his hand, vibrated.

He looked at it and saw he had received a message from his friend, Quintin Baxter, on WhatsApp. Leon's eyes warmed up and his lips quivered. He quickly unlocked the screen to read the message.

Quintin's message read: "Hey, I'm going to pick up the VR helmet for New World Online today. Want to come along?"

Quintin Baxter was Leon's best friend. They had grown up together, sharing countless memories, from sneaking out to play video games in cafes after school to supporting each other not only academically but also in battle against their bullies and rivals.

Quintin was always the more cheerful and outgoing one, while Leon tended to be more reserved, but their bond was unbreakable.

Quintin's family was better off financially than Leon's. His parents had bought him a car for his 18th birthday, which was just yesterday, and his mother had also given him the money to buy the VR system that was specially designed for New World Online. Quintin had it good, but Leon never felt jealous of him. Everyone had their own path in life, and Leon believed that.

Not to mention, Despite the difference in their financial situations, Quintin had never allowed it to affect their friendship. He never looked down on Leon for being poor or made him feel inferior in any way.

Quintin was always there for Leon, whether it was offering a ride when Leon's bike broke down or covering the bill when they hung out together. Their friendship ran deep, built on trust, loyalty, and mutual respect. Leon knew that no matter what, Quintin had his back, just as he had Quintin's. He couldn't hate that guy even if he wanted to.

As for why he was being so emotional, it's because Quintin had died protecting his classmates from a psychopathic school shooter.

"He's still alive. Oh God, he is still alive."

Tears streamed down a rather emotional man's eyes. Leon wiped his tears away. Left in his eyes were indescribable determination and a type of fury that could swallow a person whole.

"The school shooting that took his life won't happen until a year later. I have a lot of time on my hands to change his fate. I will change his fate!"

Leon vowed then and there to save his best friend, no matter what the cost.

Leon quickly began typing a reply to Quintin. He wrote, "I'll come along with you, but only if you promise to let me stop by the ATM first. I've changed my mind. We're going to play New World Online together, my brother!"

When New World Online was newly released, the system for exchanging in-game currency for real-world money wasn't implemented right away. It was only added three months after the game's launch. Before that, players could still make money by selling rare items to other players who were willing to pay real money for them.

Because the currency exchange system didn't exist from the start, Leon hadn't used the money he had saved up from part-time jobs to buy the game. Instead, he used that money to send his parents on a vacation. Later, he enrolled in college and focused on doing well enough to earn a scholarship. Unfortunately, he wasn't smart enough to get it. It would be more accurate to say he offended someone he shouldn't have, which blocked his path to a better future. The only way to unlock it was with money, which he didn't have. This also delayed his entry into the game, setting him back by two years as compared to veteran players who started playing it when it was newly released.

But this time, things were different. He was determined to start playing New World Online as soon as it was newly released. He believed he would make it big this time by leveraging his knowledge of the next eight years.

Moreover, there was a way to earn at least ten grand within two months just from playing the newly released New World Online. The catch was that he had to get the game today. Otherwise, it would be too late!

A few moments later, Quintin's response came through: "5. I'll be at your place in 5."

Leon smiled at the screen. "I'll be waiting," he typed back.

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