Ethan Graves was a 26-year-old man living alone in a small, worn-down house on the edge of town.
He was unemployed and had been single for as long as he could remember. A virgin who had never even held a girl's hand before, let alone experienced anything beyond that. In fact, talking to a girl properly had always felt like a challenge too great to overcome. The only "dates" he had ever been on were with virtual girlfriends or 2D characters.
But tonight… none of that mattered anymore.
He was locked in place, his eyes glued to the glowing monitor in front of him. They were laser-focused, unblinking, intense. His hands trembled on the keyboard, his fingers twitching slightly. Beads of sweat began to form on his forehead, dripping slowly down the side of his face.
The air inside his room was heavy with the pungent stench of instant noodles and stale energy drinks. Empty cans and noodle cups were scattered all over the floor and desk like the aftermath of a small indoor battlefield. His room was a mess, a shrine to countless sleepless nights and endless grinding.
But in this moment, none of that mattered
In this very moment, he was a hero. No—he was a god.
"Come on… just a little more—just one last hit," he muttered under his breath, fingers shaking.
On the screen, his game avatar—Overlord Veyrion—stood tall in dark, ornate armor, unleashing a final cataclysmic blast of dark mana. The cosmic dragon empress from the Ninth Realm shrieked in agony, her massive health bar cracking, then shattering into a thousand crimson shards.
A system message appeared on the screen in flashing text.
[CONGRATULATIONS. YOU HAVE CLEARED "REALMS OF ETERNAL DOMINION" 100%.
UNLOCKING TRUE ENDING…]
Ethan slowly set his mouse down on the desk and leaned back into his old, creaky chair. It groaned beneath his weight. His chest rose and fell in uneven breaths. He had done it.
He had finally cleared the hardest action-fantasy RPG currently available on the market.
Every boss defeated, every hidden path uncovered, every secret route explored. He even pursued every romance path. Although, even in-game, none of the female leads ever picked him. Not a single one.
They were all obsessed with the game's default protagonist—the cliché "chosen hero" with golden hair, a tragic past, and a shining sword. The type that always stole the spotlight.
Ethan let out a long sigh, raised his arms to stretch, then got up and collapsed onto his small bed. The bedsprings squeaked in protest as he landed.
He stared up at the old ceiling fan, spinning lazily above him. A crack ran through the ceiling like a lightning scar.
"If only I could live in that world," he whispered, barely audible. "If only I could be the one everyone feared... and desired. Not a side character who fades into the background."
He turned to his side, still speaking softly to himself. "No more fake heroes hogging the spotlight. Just me, ruling everything... with a harem of badass villainesses, fierce warriors, and powerful queens by my side—loyal to me, obeying me like their master."
He chuckled to himself, the sound echoing faintly in the silent room. "Yeah… that's the dream. Just a pathetic dream, a loser like me can only dream."
His eyes grew heavy. The exhaustion of weeks of effort finally caught up to him. Slowly, he drifted off into sleep.
Then—
A thunderous boom.
A shockwave pulsed through the entire room, rattling his bones. A loud, deafening noise rang in his ears. His body felt strange, as if it were falling—weightless and unanchored.
He opened his eyes slowly, groggily. But what he saw was not his room.
He was lying on a floating stone platform, suspended high in the stratosphere. The surface beneath him was solid, but it swayed ever so slightly, carried by invisible forces. Above him stretched a sky painted in burning crimson, like a canvas soaked in blood and fire.
All around, strange towers floated weightlessly in the air—twisting spires of black stone that defied gravity, ancient and alien in design. They hung like silent sentinels, their purpose unknown.
Dominating the heavens was a massive black sun, hanging motionless in the sky. It cast long, distorted shadows across the land below, its light dim and eerie. A vast eclipse cloaked the world, swallowing every corner in otherworldly gloom.
His body felt different—taller, broader, stronger. His limbs pulsed with power. He looked down and realized he was wearing some fancy clothing.
It looked expensive… unreal. Like something straight out of a high-budget fantasy game.
Almost as if he was inside a game.
A voice echoed in his mind, deep and resounding. "Overlord... you have returned."
Ethan whipped his head around, scanning the area. But there was no one in sight.
He blinked. Was his mind playing tricks on him?
Before he could think any further, something flickered before his eyes—a glowing screen, suspended in the air.
[OVERLORD SYSTEM ACTIVATED]
[Initializing User Sync… Complete.]
[Welcome, Player: Ethan Graves.]
[Title: SSS-Class Overlord]
[Harem Slots Unlocked: 0/10]
[Dominion Level: 1]
[Current Location: Realm of Embers – Tier 0 Starting Zone]
He stared at the screen, wide-eyed, barely breathing.
"This… this isn't a dream?" he whispered. "This is a system window. Like... a real one."
The interface glowed with gold and black light, flickering slightly like digital flame. It displayed a minimap, character stats, skill trees, and even Subjugation Bonds.
Ethan's mouth went dry. "This is the game. It's Realms of Eternal Dominion. But... I'm inside it?"
[Main Quest Initialized.]
[Objective: Rise as the True Overlord and Subjugate the Realms.]
[Warning: Death is permanent.]
His heart pounded as he looked at his hands—no longer soft and pale, but hardened and rough. They were calloused, forged through battle. Faint wisps of dark energy circled his fingertips like smoke.
A slow, almost feral smile spread across his face. His hands trembled, but this time it wasn't from fear.
It was excitement.
"Holy shit," he whispered, voice shaking. "I can do whatever the fuck I want now."