Chapter 49

Once every few months, players were granted a brief respite from the game. "Logout!" Wesley shouted, and in an instant, the screen flashed and darkness enveloped him. Gradually, light seeped back into his vision.

"Ahh, I’m starving," he muttered, removing his helmet and placing it on a nearby desk. After a quick shower, Wesley changed into a black and red tracksuit, laced up his shoes, and retrieved a key from his desk drawer before leaving his apartment.

Descending the stairs, Wesley checked his watch; it was still over an hour until six in the evening. He jogged to a nearby children’s park adorned with various heights of monkey bars, from the shortest just a meter off the ground to taller ones progressively higher.

Arriving at the now-empty park, Wesley stretched and jumped a few times. "Let’s see if my body can keep up," he muttered, fists poised like a boxer beneath his nose.

Launching forward, Wesley arched under the first monkey bar, then the second, the third, and... misjudged