Chapter 1: Trip is not something you can do

– Oh.

When I opened my eyes, I was sprawled in a place I’d never seen before.

It didn’t take long to realize this was Maple World.

How could I not? The things I’d only seen in games were roaming right in front of me.

Plus, there was a signboard nearby that literally said “Maple World.”

I tried to figure out why I’d ended up here, but my memory was blank.

Probably because I’d been blackout drunk the night before.

The only thing I vaguely recalled was drunkenly mashing buttons on some window that popped up.

Who could’ve known that would land me in a place like this?

Still, at first, I was kind of excited.

Maple World.

Who hasn’t fantasized about it at least once?

Slaying monsters, building a harem.

I, too, started out with a heart full of excitement and those kinds of dreams.

And then.

It didn’t take long to realize how utterly foolish that was.

—

“Kuh… hrrk…”

Less than 30 minutes after arriving in Maple World, I was surrounded by a gang of thugs and beaten like a dog.

The reason? Nothing special.

Some stranger I didn’t even know asked me for directions.

I tried to fight back, but I was no match for them.

I’d always prided myself on staying fit, but the strength in Maple World was on a different level from Earth.

“Hand over everything you’ve got!”

“I-I don’t have anything… cough I swear, nothing!”

“Man, this guy’s useless. Strip him. Let’s at least take his clothes.”

“…What?”

“You f*ck, I said strip!”

After the thugs left, I couldn’t bring myself to leave the alley.

The thought of stepping onto the main street in just my underwear, with everyone’s eyes on me, was too much to bear.

But I had no choice but to leave soon enough.

Another group of thugs showed up and beat the crap out of me.

Something about “teaching a lesson to a pervert exhibitionist.”

Anyway, I stumbled out of the alley in my underwear, and instantly, every resident’s gaze locked onto me.

“Kyaaa!”

Screams erupted from all directions, and soon enough, the guards swooped in to arrest me. Predictable.

“They… they stole my clothes…”

I mumbled, barely audible, and the guards let out mocking laughs before tossing me a sackcloth.

Draped in that, I wandered aimlessly all day.

I was starving, but there was nothing to eat.

Naturally, I had no money.

I went from restaurant to restaurant, begging for even scraps of leftovers, but every place turned me away.

One shopkeeper even slapped me with a ladle.

F*ck.

A curse slipped out.

This wasn’t what I’d imagined.

The truth I’d tried to deny hit me again.

This was Maple World.

The Maple World with no dreams, no hope.

As the sun set and night deepened, I had to find a place to sleep.

Of course, every door I knocked on slammed shut in my face.

Who’d take in a filthy beggar with a beaten-up face, barely covered by a tattered sackcloth?

With no other choice, I curled up in a corner of an alley to sleep.

A lot happened after that, but the worst was the hunger.

On the third day in this world, I started digging through trash cans.

As I rummaged through the garbage, it suddenly hit me—my situation.

“…Pfft.”

I burst out laughing.

Here I was, draped in a ruined sackcloth.

Starving, rummaging through trash cans.

Compared to who I was just three days ago, it was night and day.

The absurdity of the gap was unbearable.

“Kh… keke!”

I laughed my ass off while digging through the trash.

Anyone watching would’ve thought I’d gone mad, their faces twisted in disgust.

But what could I do when the laughter wouldn’t stop?

Then, a thought crept in—maybe this was a dream.

Even after living it, it felt so unreal that my mind refused to accept it.

Maple World? What a load of bullsh*t.

If this wasn’t a dream, then what was it?

It didn’t make sense. Maple, my ass.

I must’ve drunk too much.

That’s why I was having this ridiculous dream.

The sensations felt so real.

The hunger was so vivid.

But this was a dream.

Just a very realistic dream.

“…Time to wake up.”

I raised my hand.

And then.

Slap—!!

I smacked my cheek as hard as I could.

My cheek stung.

I ignored the sensation.

This was a dream, after all.

Slap—!!!

I hit my cheek again.

Still didn’t wake up.

So, again.

Slap—!!!!

…Again.

Slap—!!!

“…”

Why.

Why the hell.

“Why won’t I wake up, you f*ck—!!”

My cheek burned from the repeated slaps.

But I didn’t wake up.

“Haa… haa…”

…I knew, deep down.

This wasn’t a dream.

I was just escaping reality.

And when I finally accepted that this wasn’t a dream.

When I realized I could never go home.

“…Kh, hrrk…”

I was crying.

“Mom… Mom…”

I could never go home.

I could never see my family again.

That day, I clutched my chest and cried all day.

I cried ugly tears.

It was a shameful past.