Godfather

"Run faster! Run faster! These legs are not mine!"

What a lie. If only these words were true. Zen could feel his lungs burning and blamed the previous owner of this body for not exercising more. If they did, his flawless plan wouldn't have turned against him.

Something whistled past his head, and Zen ducked narrowly. The forest was realistic... too realistic for a VR game. Why did they have to replicate even the physical capabilities of the player?

"If this is truly a game, I should be able to use some cheat abilities. These lungs are not mine. These legs are not mine. Even if I can't dodge everything, I can still survive by taking damage in non-critical areas! GAH!"

Just as he said it, a bullet embedded itself into his left shoulder from the back. The pain was nothing like Zen remembered. The last time he got shot, he died.

With a yell born from his last burst of courage, Zen followed the increasing sound of roaring water. This was it! He was near.

"Breakthrough… Breakthrough…" he whispered like a mantra. The adrenaline numbed the pain for now. He was almost there.

"Stop running and die!" his pursuer cackled and reloaded from the trees. "Either way, it's a dead-end ahead. You won't survive the fall."

Zen didn't listen. He didn't care. Sure, it was a cliff ahead with a huge waterfall. Ordinarily, Zen would never jump. However, this was a game - a death game.

"I'll take my fucking chances!" he seethed. Leaves and branches smacked into his face as his feet pounded on the dirt. This technology was too impressive, but Zen didn't have the time or energy to admire how it worked. All he knew was if that sniper hits him one more time, his health bar wouldn't hold up, and he was going to die in real life.

The sound of the sniper rifle getting fired echoed in the forest and Zen took it as his cue to jump off the slippery edge. He meant for a better angle to avoid whatever rocks there could've been in the way, but at the very last moment, the sound caused him to slip on some moss.

"How lame…" the thought crossed his mind and time slowed. He could see the smirk on his pursuer's face as he fell.

Then, time sped up. The free-fall was accompanied by freezing water pouring into his nose and throat. Zen didn't know which way was up, but he knew that if he didn't continue to struggle, he was going to die. Thankfully, Zen knew how to swim even if the young master of the Taro family who owned this body didn't.

His landing at the bottom of the waterfall broke some bones. The pain made Zen want to scream, but the water drowned everything out. This deep down, not even bullets would reach him. For now, he was safe, but Zen had to think quickly.

His nose and lungs burned. He was severely injured. The icy water could freeze him to death if he remained in it any longer. Going up to the surface was only going to make him an easy target. Was there no way out?

Zen smiled bitterly as his vision started to flicker. After everything he did, all he wanted to do was live a good life. When Zen was still a regular 24-year-old nameless civilian by the identity code #3207, he once thought good deeds would be rewarded. He saved a man from the mafia near death and brought him to his home only to be rewarded with a bullet to the head.