Chapter 3

The top-floor VIP operating room of the Aksim Group's affiliated private hospital.

The temperature here was kept constant at a frigid 21 degrees Celsius, and the air was filled with the pungent smell of disinfectant. I lay flat on the stainless steel operating table, and a huge operating light suddenly turned on above my head, the stark white light making me squint slightly.

" Mr. Theodore , please relax. It's just a routine minor surgery, we'll handle it. We'll anesthetize you right away, and you'll fall asleep quickly without any discomfort." The doctor inserted the needle into a vein on the back of my hand.

Serafina isn't here, I know without asking that she must be with Kyle right now.

The system's pain simulation was still very realistic, but I ignored the slight chill.

I took a deep breath and used my willpower to summon the semi-transparent panel that only I could see.

I stared calmly at the red option at the very bottom of the screen.

——[Logout]

it's over.

I took one last look at the doorway to make sure Serafina wouldn't come back.

After that, without hesitation or lingering, I pressed "confirm" with my mind.

My consciousness began to slowly drift away. During this time, the system would automatically take over the body, maintaining its basic vital signs. Once my consciousness had completely left, the body would die completely.

I slowly closed my eyes.

…………

"hiss--"

In the real world, in a spacious underground laboratory, a sealed simulation chamber emits a slight depressurization sound.

The hatch slowly rose, and fresh air rushed in instantly. I opened my eyes, removed the sensor device from my head, and sat up in the comfortable cabin.

A series of crisp keyboard clicks came from the side.

“Your heart rate is normal, and all your health indicators are stable.” My partner, David, was eating half a pizza, looking down at the health data on the screen. He turned to me, raising an eyebrow. “How are you feeling?”

Looking at David in front of me, I felt like I was in another world. David is my partner and friend, and this sandbox world was designed by us together.

I asked, "How long have I been asleep?"

David glanced at the time: "Five hours."

I rubbed my still slightly sore temples, stepped out of the cabin, and let out a deep breath.

The feeling was incredibly strange. Although the memories of the so-called "seven years" and more than two thousand days and nights spent in that false world were still there, the moment the real air of the real world filled my lungs, those unforgettable love and hate entanglements instantly felt like an overly realistic long dream.

Now, the dream is over.

The heavy emotions that I had felt for the test quickly faded from my mind, leaving only a slight weariness from staying up all night.

"It's nothing, I just had a slightly tiring lucid dream."

I took the water glass David handed me and took a big gulp. The real thirst I felt was finally relieved. "I'm fine. I can start the next job anytime."

"That's good." David took a bite of pizza and gestured with his chin to the large screen on the wall. "Come and see that virtual girlfriend who put you on the operating table. She's riding high right now."

I held my water glass, leaned back in my leather chair, and looked at the live feed of that world on the screen.

Right now, in the hospital corridor of the virtual world.

Serafina was sitting on a leather sofa outside the operating room, her long legs elegantly crossed.

The assistant was quietly reporting on next week's press release.

The surgeon and several assistants pushed open the door and came out.

Serafina immediately stood up and walked quickly over: "How is Kyle feeling?"

"Don't worry." The surgeon took off his blood-stained gloves. "The kidney removal and transplant were extremely successful. Mr. Kyle is completely out of danger. The new kidney has a good blood supply and there is no rejection reaction."

Upon hearing this, Serafina's nerves, which had been tense for half a month, finally relaxed completely. A genuine joy appeared on her face.

“Very good, the bonus will be deposited into your team’s account tomorrow.” She straightened her suit jacket. “ Arrange the highest level of special care for Theodore . I’m going to check on Kyle first. You guys take good care of Theodore .”

But the expected thank you did not come.

An eerie silence fell over the corridor. The assistants following behind were deathly pale, their heads bowed and trembling.

“Ms. Serafina…” the surgeon’s voice was hoarse, “No… Mr. Theodore is gone , he has passed away.”

Serafina's smile froze instantly. She frowned, her tone somewhat unreasonable: "Are you kidding me? It's just taking a kidney. He was perfectly healthy in the pre-operative assessment."

"The organs were indeed removed perfectly, and his vital signs were very stable and normal for the first half of the process." The doctor was almost trembling, his eyes filled with a sense of collapse he had never seen in his decades of medical practice. "But just as we were doing the final suturing of his wound... his heartbeat suddenly and without warning flattened out."

"There was no internal bleeding, no surgical error! But his brain activity and vascular pressure plummeted to zero instantly!"

The doctor lowered his head: "We performed chest compressions for nearly forty minutes, used the most powerful defibrillator and the highest dose of adrenaline... to no avail. I'm sorry, Ms. Serafina, just three minutes ago, Mr. Theodore died on the operating table."