Academy's Second Seat - Chapter 38: Homecoming Day (5)

Year 2035. A groundbreaking game—“Glory Lords: Arcane War”—takes the world by storm.With cutting-edge VR immersion, players can feel the pulse of magic, the tremors of battle, and the weight of every decision. But more than just a game, it becomes the ultimate stage for global esports. Elite teams rise, billion-dollar prize pools emerge, and the entire world is swept into the frenzy.But for Ethan Parker, this isn’t just a game. It’s a gamble with fate itself.Las Vegas. Midnight. A secret high-stakes game.On the table lies the world’s only Legendary-tier artifact—the Stone of Glory.Its value? Far beyond a billion dollars. Because hidden within it is a secret—one that can rewrite the very rules of reality.Ethan bets everything. And loses.In that moment, he doesn’t just lose the artifact—he loses his future.Then, the world changes.The game and reality merge.Earth is no longer the world it once was. Society collapses, replaced by a brutal new order where a person’s rank in “Glory Lords: Arcane War” determines their status in real life.The strongest players become kings.The weakest? Slaves.And the one who won the Stone of Glory—Griffin Musk—rises to absolute power, ruling over this new world as its supreme leader.As for Ethan? Once the #1 player in the world, he loses everything—his account, his status, his freedom. Reduced to the lowest class, he suffers, tortured until his final breath.But now—he’s back.Reborn with the memories of his past life, he returns to the moment it all began.This time, he wins the gamble.This time, he won’t let the world fall into Griffin’s hands.But fate has more in store for him…When he logs into the game, he realizes something is off.Not only is he the first player in the world to own private territory, but he also acquires something unheard of—the only Legendary-tier unit in existence: the Green Dragon.And then—something even more shocking.These two Green Dragons aren’t just powerful units. They’re heroes. With growth potential and combat abilities surpassing even top-tier players, they have the power to change the course of the entire game.At that moment, Ethan knows—his path to the top has begun.But the real world isn’t done with him yet.Governments, military forces, corporate giants, secret organizations—and even Griffin himself—are now watching his every move.This time, it’s not just about revenge.This time, he’s taking control of the future.The war of heroes has only just begun…

Why, seems like I’ve become a haunted portrait.

The live show, Survive in Wilderness was a hit.

There were thousands of participants in the game show. They would all start by parachuting from a plane and land randomly in a primary forest.

The participants would have to rely only on a backpack, a water bottle, and a dagger to survive.

Yu Beier was only eight years old when he joined the game show so that he could buy the cure for his ill mother with the prize money. He was the youngest to have ever participated, and he had accidentally woken up a wilderness survival system.

[Ding! You have received the Wilderness Survival 101 Pack!]

[Ding! You have received Max-leveled Hunting Skill!]

[Ding! You have received Max-leveled Building Skill!]

[Ding! You have received Max-leveled Swing Skill!]

…

When the show started, the viewers were utterly shocked. From climbing the tallest mountain to crossing the ocean, conquering the forest and swamp, and managing an island, there was nothing that Yu Beier could not do.

“Dude! That eight-year-old boy is living a much more interesting life than us!”

“Yu Beier is the apex among men!”

“Whenever I see his stream, it feels like I’ve just lived an extra life!”

Before his gruesome death, Gene Conti was one of the greatest icons of the 1960s. But after spending half a century in Hell, only gambling and the suffering of others excite him.Fortunately for him, his days of boredom are over. Having served his sentence, he finds himself in the body of a young man in the modern era.Now freed, Gene wishes to continue what he missed the most as a dead man: acting.Once again, he aspires to be an actor admired the world over.But will the angels and demons leave him alone? Will his bold attitude clash with the sensitive modern era? Or will the actor from Hell surrender to his lust for chaos and violence?