The persistent hum of a gaming headset vibrated against Tadhg Walter’s ears, filled with the dying cries of his online gang. “Walter brother, I hope it’s all on you! This BOSS is so powerful, can you resist?” came a desperate voice. He gazed intently at the flickering screen, his character, the last standing, facing a colossal, ancient beast. Three health bars glowed ominously above its head.

Twenty-two years old and fresh out of college, Tadhg Walter was a renowned online martial arts game prodigy. He moved the mouse with practiced ease, his fingers dancing over the keyboard. "Brothers, just believe in me, I won't let you down!" he declared, identifying a weak point in the digital monster.

Suddenly, a deafening 'Boom!!!' shook his world. The computer screen fractured, and a searing pain, like lightning, tore through his body. He couldn't move, his hands glued to the peripherals as his vision blurred, then faded into absolute darkness. He was just 22, full of life, and yet… gone.

He awoke to the chirping of birds, his body aching, lying on a hard bed. The room wasn't a hospital, but ancient, with stone walls and wooden doors adorned with dragon carvings. A tidal wave of memories, not his own, flooded his mind. He was dead. And he was now Tadhg Walter, a brainless, despised son-in-law in another world, married to a woman named Vivian Arnold.