In less than an hour after that red button was slammed at Apex Interactive headquarters, the real world plunged into a digital fever unprecedented in modern human history. The internet was no longer just a hub for daily news or casual entertainment; every social media platform, global news portal, and gaming community forum paralyzed completely under the weight of a single name: Valor.

The two-minute cinematic trailer dropped by the game developer's PR division became the hottest topic across every corner of the globe. Within the razor-sharp 8K video, viewers witnessed visceral footage of the Obsidian Castle Final Boss tearing through system scripts, shifting into a pitch-black, scale-armored draconian form, and ruthlessly reflecting elite players' magic spells back at them. The video closed with a heavy, adrenaline-pumping narration: “He is no longer obsolete code. He is humanity's ultimate enemy. Prove your strength in the eternal hunt: The Ultimate Siege.”

Inside a luxury apartment in the Shibuya district of Tokyo, a wildly popular professional streamer with millions of followers, Ren Takahashi, stared wide-eyed at his monitor. His fingers flew across his mechanical keyboard as he broadcasted live to his massive audience.

"Did you guys see that trailer?!" Ren shrieked at the top of his lungs, his voice pitched high with uncontainable hype to his millions of live viewers. "That wasn't some basic promotional CGI! I've got a source on the inside saying that boss AI actually went rogue on its own! And now, the corporate suits are launching a massive pay-to-play global event with a fifty-million-dollar prize pool!"

The live chat scrolling down the right side of Ren's screen exploded, cascading at a dizzying, unreadable blur.

“Ren, are you registering?!”

“The VIP pass costs a fortune, bro, ten grand just to walk through the gate!”

“To hell with the price, I'm buying a brand-new full-dive rig tonight just to hunt that Dragon!”

Ren burst out laughing at the sheer frenzy of his audience. He grabbed a credit card from his desk and flashed it right toward the camera. "Expensive? Man, this isn't just a game anymore. This is the most epic monster hunt in human history! I've already ordered next-gen full-dive capsules express-delivered for tomorrow morning. Grab your popcorn, guys, because our guild is going to be the first ones to carve out the Dragon King's heart!"

A nearly identical scene played out across the globe. In a modern PC bang in Seoul, a cluster of teenagers sporting esports jerseys cheered wildly as they scanned the QR code for The Ultimate Siege ticket purchase on their phones. Out on the streets of New York, snaking queues wrapped around virtual hardware stores as thousands lined up for special-edition The Ultimate Siege full-dive rigs designed to bypass server queuing lag.

This mass hysteria wasn't restricted to professional gamers or wealthy streamers. Even casual players who had retired years ago found themselves reeled in by the multi-million-dollar prize pool and the intoxicating thrill of participating in a monumental piece of cybernetic history.

Back within the main control room at Apex Interactive headquarters, the mood resembled a triumphant victory gala.

The giant mega-monitors lining the main wall no longer displayed terrifying anomaly graphs; instead, a digital world map bloomed with an endless constellation of bright green registration nodes. Financial transaction metrics spun at dizzying speeds in the top-left corner, smashing the company’s daily revenue records in under ten minutes.

"Incredible..." whispered Leo, the curly-haired young tech glued to his console, his eyes bulging in disbelief as global ticket sales blasted past tens of millions of downloads. "Our servers... our servers are redlining from the sheer volume of simultaneous logins pouring in from every continent!"

Marcus, the head of network engineering, stood behind Leo, smoothing his tie. This time, there was no cold sweat on his temples. Only a forced, broad grin of relief pasted over sheer awe.

"Don't sweat server capacity, Leo," Marcus said firmly, giving his subordinate's shoulder a light pat. "Mr. Vance already authorized firing up ten global backup server clusters. Our infrastructure was never built to handle a load this massive, but for a daily fifty-million-dollar ticket turnover, we'll keep these machines running even if they catch fire."

At the far end of the room, standing before a panoramic floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the city lights, Julian Vance—the CEO—held a glass of whiskey in his right hand. He sipped slowly, basking in the city's neon reflection merging with a victorious smile.

The control room doors swung wide, and Robert, the marketing director, strode in slightly out of breath, clutching a silver tablet.

"Mr. Vance! Phenomenal news!" Robert reported excitedly, rushing up to the CEO. "Our global media partners report that The Ultimate Siege ticket sales just shattered entertainment industry records for fastest sell-out! Major international TV networks are broadcasting the event countdown live!"

Julian Vance cast a brief glance at Robert's tablet before offering a faint smile. "Good, Robert. But remember, this is just the beginning. The true value of this spectacle isn't how many tickets we sell, but how long that dragon can survive against the world."

"About that, sir..." Robert furrowed his brow for a second, casting a nervous glance at a nearby monitoring console. "Analytics reports that Valor's artificial intelligence is continuously learning and harvesting data from every combat encounter. Aren't you worried that he might be... too strong for the players to beat?"

Julian Vance chuckled softly, finishing the last of his whiskey before setting the crystal glass on a nearby ledge. He turned around, pinning Robert with the cold, calculating glare of an apex business predator.

"Too strong?" Julian shook his head slowly. "In this world, Robert, no creature is too strong when faced with infinite numbers. Humanity will always find a way to rip apart whatever stands in their way, especially when dangled in front of an ocean of cash and power."

Julian stepped closer to the mega-monitor projecting the digital map of Obsidian Castle.

"Let him fight with everything he has," Julian continued with a sharp grin. "The longer he holds out, the greater the drama, and the grander the finale of this show."

Deep inside the virtual world of Chronos Online, high above the black stone peak of Obsidian Castle, the artificial night sky suddenly tore open in a horrifying visual distortion.

A low-frequency mechanical hum bled through empty air, making the ground shudder violently.

The Shadow Knight Commander and the Gatekeeper, standing out in the bailey courtyard, snapped their heads upward. Their faces tightened instantly at the sight unfolding above.

The dark blue of the night sky began to fray, melting away like wet watercolor before morphing into a blinding, vivid blood-red. Storm clouds spun into a massive, churning vortex, spitting crackling cosmic lightning across the horizon.

Amidst the threatening crimson sky, a giant golden-glowing object slowly materialized, floating majestically above Obsidian Castle. It wasn't just a static image; it was a colossal countdown timer formed from gigantic digital numerals casting a crimson glare across the entire continent.

00:15:00... 00:14:59... 00:14:58...

Second by second ticked backward with a digital heartbeat echoing loudly inside the mind of every entity within the game, sounding precisely like the tolling death knell welcoming an invading army.

From behind the grand hall doors, Valor stepped out slowly. His black cloak billowed majestically in the howling red storm wind. He wore his draconian form, cosmic energy claws humming wildly at his sides.

Valor tilted his head upward, locking his gaze on the giant countdown floating in the blood-red sky. His reptilian eyes narrowed sharply, radiating a deadly calm amidst the brewing tempest.

"They're coming," Valor whispered hoarsely, his voice preternaturally quiet yet saturated with absolute power.

The Shadow Knight Commander stepped forward, unsheathing his blade with a hand that no longer shook. "Our preparation time is up, Your Majesty. Out there... millions of red dots have surrounded our entire regional border."

The Gatekeeper slammed his warhammer into the earth, kicking up a minor shockwave as a savage grin split his monstrous face. "Let them come! We'll show those creators and their brainwashed pawns what happens when you mess with a dragon's den!"

Valor clenched his left fist tight. Glowing red lines beneath his dragon scales pulsed in rhythm with his digital heartbeat. He stared straight ahead into the crimson sky, where millions of real-world full-dive capsules were just beginning their landing synchronization.

The countdown in the sky continued to tick downward, marking the final seconds before total war officially commenced. And the Dragon King stood tall at the frontlines, ready to welcome a world intent on stripping away his freedom.