Otherlife

Runner has a massive problem. He and nearly half a million others are trapped inside a deadly game, their memories scrambled upon forced entry. As the sole IT expert with the knowledge to log everyone out safely, Runner faces one critical obstacle: he doesn't remember his password. With every in-game death resulting in a permanent brain wipe, the stakes are impossibly high. His only lead is a single, garbled message.

To save everyone, Runner must embrace his skills as a power-gaming min-maxer and level up, hoping each new gain might restore a fragment of his lost memory – and the crucial password. It's time to go Hardcore. Brace yourself for graphic violence, a harem, unconventional opinions, and a hero as tactless as a dog at a cat show, all in a perilous fight for collective freedom.

Runner and his companions barely escaped a besieged city, but the real game has begun. He desperately needs a password to log off and save over 400,000 crewmates from permanent death in this evolving virtual world. Influenced by his actions, the game constantly shifts, and his once-programmed companions have gained true sentience.

As Runner navigates this unpredictable reality, the outside world contacts him, forcing him to juggle roles as gamer, IT support, and officer. Captured mere hours after leaving Crivel, he faces an escalating Nightmare difficulty, with fate seemingly stacked against him. Runner is as tactful as a dog at a cat show.

Warning: This novel contains graphic violence, a harem, and unconventional opinions. Read at your own risk.

After successfully bringing peace to Tirtius, Runner and his team are finally settling into their new home on the isle of Vix. But fate, it seems, isn't finished with them yet. Dangerous plots are already in motion, threatening Runner from local factions, forces outside the ship, divine powers, and global in-game schemes. All seek to eliminate him and the powerful potential he represents.

Adding to the peril, the server itself is ramping up towards a full awakening, creating a world of fully aware, "living" beings. The brewing storm culminates when an assassin makes a brutal attempt on Runner's life within his own home. Now, Runner faces his true test: what – or rather, who – is he willing to wager to forge the future he desires, both within the game and beyond its virtual walls?