The first level 2
1040 Words
The game restarted, and the five hearts in the top left corner dropped to four.
Losing a heart didn’t bother you at all.
After all, you’ve already figured out that this game has quite a bit of flexibility.
Okay, fine, you admit that was a lame excuse, but seriously, why was this target person so rude? A friendly greeting doesn’t deserve that kind of reaction!
You took a deep breath and decided to think things through this time.
Maybe it’s better to get to know him first? That way, you’d have something to talk about.
But… how do you learn about him?
You opened his profile.
His avatar was just a blank white space with a single period. Does that mean he's cold and distant?
There wasn’t much information to go on, so you checked his posts. Turns out, he hadn’t posted anything.
This wasn’t going to be easy.
But wait, there’s still hope!
He had a background picture on his profile! A snow scene, and there he was, skiing in full gear, looking pretty cool.
In real life, you’d definitely back off if you met a guy like that.
He seemed too cool, too sophisticated—a type completely out of reach for someone like you. Even if you were tempted to approach him, your shyness and insecurities would get the best of you.
Yeah, you’ve never tried to approach guys like that, so no experience points for you here.
But hey, this is a game, so why not go for it?
You felt a surge of confidence just thinking about it.
It was as if you leveled up in a novel, with a "ding" sound signaling your upgrade. A new line appeared under the four hearts: "Level: L1."
As a seasoned gamer, the sight of a level indicator got you all fired up. Let’s go! No matter how high the max level is, you’re going all the way!
You were brimming with energy.
Upon closer inspection of the background photo, you noticed something new.
There, in the corner of the snow scene, was a partially visible golden retriever—just its legs and tail in the frame.
Could this be useful?
You stared at the photo for a while, feeling like it might be worth a shot.
You remembered your roommate once said that for pet lovers, animals are the perfect conversation starter. It’s a quick way to connect with people.
But how do you bring it up?
Your eyes wandered around the room as you pondered, eventually landing on a photo frame on the shelf. Inside was a picture of you and a cat. So, your game character is a cat owner?
Yes!
Your eyes lit up. This room wasn’t just for show.
After searching the desk and drawers, you found a classic escape room essential—a diary.
It was a pet owner’s diary, recording your interactions with an orange tabby.
You looked at the diary, feeling like this could be your breakthrough.
But how do you start the conversation?
Going straight into his DMs might seem too forward, and it could get awkward fast—your first attempt already proved that.
Maybe you could try getting his attention instead?
You quickly came up with a plan.
“Got an orange tabby at home, but I’m thinking of getting a golden retriever too. Would they get along, or would they fight?”
You prepared to post this as a status update, hoping to catch the "target" with your bait.
This was the boldest move you’d ever made, and you were honestly impressed with your own brilliance.
Wow, you’re a genius!
Who knew being proactive wasn’t that hard after all?
You took the cat photo from the frame, snapped a picture, and posted it with your message. Now, all you had to do was wait for the "target."
One minute passed.
Ten minutes passed.
An hour passed.
You were getting sleepy.
You yawned and thought, if nothing happens soon, maybe you should just try messaging him directly again.
Then, to your surprise, there was a reply when you refreshed the page!
“Hahaha, didn’t you say you hated dogs? What, did you change your mind? Or change your gender?”
It wasn’t from the target, though, but from someone else in your friends list.
At that moment, all you could think was: Who the heck are you?
His avatar was a cute doodle of a boy wearing an artist’s hat. He looked kinda adorable. Was he some kind of younger brother figure? You weren’t sure.
You opened the chat history between you two. It was full of shared songs, snacks, TV shows, and more. You called him "Sweet Dog."
Looked like he was a childhood friend type character.
Suddenly, your otome game instincts kicked in.
Could he have feelings for "you"?
But…
You had to apologize to him. He wasn’t the target.
With a guilty conscience, you replied: "I am not the person you know."
“???”
He shot back three confused question marks.
You didn’t reply. You were already planning your next move. But before you could come up with a strategy, the target finally responded.
“No.”
He replied!!
But—no?
No?!
Okay, it’s not like you were serious about adopting both pets. This was just an excuse to get closer to him, after all.
You calmly asked, “Why not?”
Not long after, he replied: “If it were you, would you want a sibling, or would you prefer to be an only child?”
“…”
His response floored you.
Was he trying to say that pets need their own space too?
Who knew? He actually seemed kind of considerate.
And, well, a bit unpredictable in conversation.
But—
A moment later, unable to resist stirring things up, you smiled and teased him: “Whatever you say, I’ll listen to you.”
Congratulations, you’ve been blocked.
For the second time.
But you thought it was totally worth it.
In all the otome games you’ve played, you’ve always wanted to mess with the guy after he dropped some strange or emotional line.
But those games never gave you that option.
Now you’ve finally done it.
Heh heh.
So satisfying!
- Writer
