The highly anticipated holographic game Deep Blue Future – blending cyberpunk aesthetics with Lovecraftian elements – is about to launch.

By a stroke of bizarre luck, Kaia gets selected as a beta tester.

Yet things rapidly spiral into the uncanny. She soon realizes this isn't just a game, but an actual parallel world she's been thrust into.

In steel-and-iron forests where survivors scrape by beneath neon-lit skylines, corporate overlords clink champagne glasses. Megacorps control economic lifelines while rogue AIs monitor every breath. Superhumans, cyber-augmented mercenaries, occult syndicates, and mutated aberrations all vie for dominance...

The moment Kaia logs in, she senses catastrophe looming.

Q: What do you do when your in-game identity turns out to be a Federation Most Wanted criminal... who's also deep undercover within the very agency hunting you?
A: Turn the hunters' maxim against them – "the safest place is inside the lion's mouth." Play a lethal game of chasing her own shadow, then stage a spectacular exit.

Name: Kaia
Status: Double agent infiltrating the Federal Investigative Department for a rebel faction
Mission: Survive. Level up.

Kaia reads the briefing and scoffs.
Being a mole is for small-timers. Mere survival and grinding XP? Dull. She craves fireworks.

Why settle for hiding when you could overthrow the sovereign AIs?
Why be a pawn when you could hijack the whole damn chessboard?

I'll continue updating this novel for free on a regular basis.
New chapters (typically around 2,000 words each, usually no fewer than that) will be released weekly every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with five chapters per week.
I've added a Ko-fi account - if you'd like to read chapters faster, you could consider making small donations. This would be tremendously helpful as it motivates me to dedicate more time and energy to writing.
As a token of appreciation for supporters, Ko-fi will offer early access to additional chapters.
Of course, all content will eventually be released here for free - non-donators just need to wait a bit longer for updates. Your patience and support are always appreciated!