I often have strange dreams.
The content of the dream is always the same.
I keep falling, endlessly, from an empty sky.
As the clouds rush past my vision, I wonder—how long will I keep falling?
But no matter how long I fall, there’s no sign of the ground or the sea.
The vast sky is filled only with endless white clouds, both above and below.
I have no idea what happens when I reach the end, nor do I know what happened before I started falling.
Because when I wake up, the fragments of the dream become hazy and indistinct.
How long will this strange dream, which has persisted since childhood, continue?
“You need to clear out your desk by today.”
A termination notice, just three months into the job.
For an average office worker, those words would send their heart sinking.
Maybe they’d even cling to their boss’s leg in desperation.
But—
“Oh, really?”
Hyesung’s response to being fired was nothing more than a single nod.
His face remained composed, as if he had expected this outcome from the very beginning.
“So, I can just leave now, right? No need to clock out?”
“…….”
As the office door clicked open, a heavy silence fell over the room.
Even the usual sound of keyboards tapping had stopped.
Everyone kept their eyes fixed on their monitors, but their attention was entirely on Hyesung’s footsteps.
Pity, envy, superiority—various emotions swirled in their minds.
So, he couldn’t adapt to the company culture and is finally leaving.
He must have another place to go if he’s quitting so easily.
Maybe he has connections somewhere.
Or perhaps he comes from a wealthy family…
But contrary to their speculations, Hyesung had no backup plan, no connections.
The only immediate job option for him was part-time work, and his only family was his older sister, a regular office worker.
Even so, there were two reasons he was leaving the company.
First, he didn’t feel much of a sense of crisis about being fired.
Second, he had realized he could never survive in this workplace anyway.
Following unspoken rules outside of official policies, constantly reading the moods of superiors, engaging in subtle power struggles with colleagues—
For someone like him, who had always struggled with communication, such things were simply impossible.
On the bus ride home, Hyesung placed a hand over his chest.
Strangely enough, he felt nothing at all.
When he first stepped out of the office, he had briefly wondered, Is this really okay?
But that faint sense of unease had melted away while packing his belongings.
It wasn’t a decision driven by emotion—it was the opposite.
He had accepted being fired so easily because he simply didn’t feel anything.
Should I have tried to hold on a little longer?
He knew he wasn’t normal.
He had realized from a young age that he was different from others.
But the moment he understood he wasn’t just different but actually strange was in middle school.
It was when his divorced parents abandoned him and his sister, disappearing without a trace.
People around them expressed sympathy and pity, but even then, he felt nothing.
Some assumed he had changed due to the shock.
But they were wrong.
He had always been this way.
Yeah, I guess I really am abnormal.
A kind of mental disorder.
A condition where emotions beyond a certain limit simply couldn’t be contained.
Joy, fear, boredom, curiosity—any feeling that exceeded a certain threshold would naturally disappear.
Only the faintest ripples of emotion remained.
His heart never raced with excitement, nor had he ever cried from sadness.
So, he couldn’t adapt to office life, where reading social cues was crucial, and he felt no sense of urgency even after quitting with no backup plan.
Would things be different if he won the lottery? If he saw someone die right in front of him?
But such events were unlikely to happen, so his life remained nothing but a dull routine.
That night, Hyesung decided to be honest with his sister about what had happened during the day.
With a seven-year age gap between them, his sister was the only person he could truly open up to.
“I need to tell you something.”
“Huh? Don’t tell me it’s about that falling dream again!”
His sister had an unusual fascination with his recurring dream.
She often asked if there were any changes to it.
Did she think his condition was somehow linked to his dreams?
He was pretty sure the two had nothing to do with each other.
“No… it’s something else this time.”
Hyesung told her about recent events.
Her reaction was surprisingly casual.
“Oh, so you quit your job?”
“I got fired.”
He hesitated slightly, careful not to make her feel too guilty.
After all, guilt was an emotion too, and if it crossed a certain threshold, it would vanish completely.
It was important to maintain this current, faint level of feeling.
“For now, I’ll just do some part-time work.”
Rather than scolding him, his sister simply smiled softly and reassured him.
“Don’t be too discouraged, little brother. You haven’t even shown your true potential yet.”
“Don’t joke around.”
Hyesung frowned as she exaggerated her gestures.
A stern scolding would’ve been better than this playful teasing—it was oddly frustrating.
Of course, that frustration faded the moment it arose.
Sometimes, his condition was actually pretty convenient.
“I’m serious. This world is just too boring for you. What could possibly make your heart race? It’s no wonder nothing excites you.”
“…….”
“But I believe in you. There will come a day when you unleash your true abilities.”
“‘A crucial moment’? When?”
“Hmm, let’s say the world suddenly turned into hell. A place where survival meant doing whatever it took. No one could afford to stay idle, right? In a world where everyone has to give it their all—that’s when the real you will shine.”
“Stop saying dumb things….”
Hyesung clicked his tongue as he prepared dinner in the kitchen.
He often wondered how someone with such a dream-filled mind could be his sibling.
Their personalities were complete opposites.
“Anyway, since you quit, I guess you’ll have some time to rest now?”
“No, I need to get a part-time job until I find something else.”
“Come on, just take a few months off. No, at least a few weeks!”
“Why?”
“Because I have a favour to ask.”
With a mysterious smile, his sister fiddled with her phone.
A moment later, a message arrived on Hyesung’s own device.
Sky_Islands_Test.apk
“What’s this? Sky Islands?”
“Yep. It’s a new game our company is developing. I want you to play it and give me your feedback.”
“Are you sure? Wouldn’t it be better to recruit testers or ask someone at work?”
Seeing his indifferent reaction, his sister responded enthusiastically.
“Who else would judge it as objectively as you? Besides, this is the first project I’m leading, so I really want to hear what my little brother thinks.”
“You’re in charge of this?”
“You didn’t know? I’m the project director!”
“Really?”
Hyesung glanced at her expression.
She looked slightly offended, as if asking how he could not have known.
If anyone else had asked, he wouldn’t have cared at all.
But…
“Does it actually help if I test it for you?”
“Yeah, definitely!”
“Well, if you say so.”
Hyesung set his smartphone, which was in the middle of installing the game, aside on the dining table.
Since it was his sister’s request, he would do it, but for now, eating came first.
“I’ll take my time with it while working.”
“Do you really have to work? You could just stay home and play games, you know?”
Because he was indulging his sister’s absurd insistence, Hyesung failed to notice the faint blue aura flickering around his smartphone.
And…
At that moment, he had no idea that today would be the last time he saw his sister’s face.
—Sorry, Hyesung. I don’t think I’ll be able to come home for a few weeks! Make sure you eat properly and call me as soon as you finish testing!
After reading the message, Hyesung shook his head.
Was his sister’s company actually worse than the one that had fired him?
He’d heard plenty of stories about how game developers were practically worked to the bone before a new release, but making someone stay at the office for weeks on end?
Maybe it was even worse for his sister since she was the lead planner.
Whatever the case, even while they were apart, Hyesung didn’t forget her request. He continued balancing his part-time job at the convenience store with playing the game.
It’s actually kind of fun.
The file his sister had sent him turned out to be a run-of-the-mill mobile game.
The setting: the sky and countless floating islands.
As the captain of an airship, players had to ascend toward ever-higher islands, with the ultimate goal of reaching the “Summit Isle,” where all wishes would be granted.
It wasn’t all that different from the countless “tower-climbing” games flooding the market, but the storyline was too well-crafted to call it generic.
Hyesung quickly found himself immersed in its intricate, expansive world.
Was it just his imagination? Whenever he played this game, it felt like his emotions were dulled a little less than usual.
It was almost as if the virtual world were real, making his heart race with excitement.
And so, weeks passed.
After several sleepless nights, Hyesung finally completed his first playthrough.
He had reached the Summit Isle, the place said to grant all wishes.
[You have reached the summit of the sky!]
[…Ending not implemented…]
Unfortunately, since the game hadn’t officially launched yet, the ending story hadn’t been added.
[Number of deaths: 1053]
[Episode completion rate: 11%]
As soon as he finished his first test playthrough, a results screen popped up.
Huh? That’s it?
The statistics were surprising.
Did this mean he had only seen a tiny fraction of the world?
It wasn’t like he had skipped through all the story scenes out of laziness. He had even used the test version’s cheat function to accelerate time. Just how massive was this game’s world?
Maybe I should do a quick second run through the early parts.
Hyesung’s finger slowly hovered toward the “Restart” button.
With such a low completion rate, he couldn’t really claim to have tested the game properly.
More than that, though, there was something thrilling about being inside Sky Islands.
Like he was dreaming.
He wanted to know—was that feeling real or just a trick of his mind?
“……”
Ding!
As the opening scene ended, the character creation screen appeared.
The player could customize the avatar that would serve as their in-game self.
This choice couldn’t be changed unless the player restarted from the beginning, and as the game progressed, the character would develop a variety of traits and skills.
During his first playthrough, Hyesung had chosen a standard character.
This time, he planned to keep rerolling until something unusual appeared.
Then—
Huh? What’s going on?
A question mark popped up over the character’s head.
No matter how many times he tapped the arrows, the character selection wouldn’t change.
The screen automatically reset to its original state every time he tried to move forward.
A bug…?
Hyesung stared at his phone.
In the center of the screen sat a man in elegant, old-fashioned attire, resting upon a grand throne.
With one leg crossed over the other, he radiated the dignity of a sovereign ruler.
But for some reason, the moment Hyesung saw him, a strange shiver ran through his chest.
What is this…?
Hyesung placed a hand over his heart.
A tremor of emotion he had never felt before.
Drawn in, he kept staring at the man on the throne, before snapping himself out of it and checking the character’s details.
Name: Pinenes Bledian
Unique Trait: [Iron Sovereign] (Rank: S)
<One who rules over all does not waver in emotion. Their tone carries authority, and their gestures command respect.>
—The Iron Sovereign perceives the truths of the world.
—Only by maintaining inner peace can this ability be wielded.
The character’s unique trait was S-rank.
Luckily, it wasn’t similar to the one he had chosen in his first playthrough.
But honestly, what did it mean to “perceive the truths of the world”?
Was it an appraisal skill? The ability to see other players’ stats? Or maybe it revealed hidden secrets within the game.
Peacfullness, huh.
As he read the description, Hyesung let out a small chuckle.
Maintaining composure no matter the situation was practically his unwanted specialty.
For a brief moment, he found it a shame that this was just a mobile game.
If this were reality, he could probably make excellent use of the Iron Sovereign’s power.
Not bad.
In the end, there wasn’t much point in overthinking his choice.
He had only seen a handful of S-rank traits during his first run.
The fact that he could start with one was probably a perk of the test version. There was no need to pick anything else.
Alright, my second run will be with this guy.
A power that could see the truths of the world.
For a faster, more effective test play, there was no better ability.
Hyesung decided to go with Pinenes Bledian, the Iron Sovereign.
Whew, but for now, lets get some rest.
After finalizing his selection, he stretched and lay down on his bed.
The clock on his phone read 4 a.m.
Was his sister asleep by now? Or was she still pulling an all-nighter for her project?
He suddenly recalled her request to contact her once he finished his first playthrough.
It’s late. I should just call her after I wake up.
Hyesung had been about to send her a message but lowered his phone instead.
She probably wouldn’t see it at this hour, and if the notification woke her up, that would be a problem too.
As soon as he put down his phone, exhaustion washed over him.
Beep.
After one last check of his alarm, Hyesung drifted into sleep.
That was the last night he ever spent in the real world.
