The story begins with Suzune waking up and preparing for her part-time job at a local cafe. Her primary motivation throughout these chapters is to improve her relationship with her younger sister, Shizuku, who is a shut-in. Suzune's attempts to connect with Shizuku are met with resistance, including a pillow thrown at her face during a morning greeting. Shizuku is portrayed as a beautiful but reclusive girl, weakened by a past incident. Suzune confides in her childhood friend, Ranko, the cafe owner's daughter, about her struggles. Ranko teases Suzune about her physique and her close relationship with Shizuku.
A turning point occurs when Suzune learns from Ranko that Shizuku has been playing a VR game called "Fantasy Frontier Online" (FFO) with her for about six months. This revelation sparks Suzune's determination to join the game and connect with Shizuku. She immediately purchases VR gear and begins customizing her avatar, aiming to create a character that Shizuku will find appealing, inspired by Shizuku's younger appearance. She names her avatar "Bell" and chooses the "Magician" class, intending to mirror Shizuku's choice.
Upon starting FFO, Bell (Suzune) undergoes a tutorial where she learns basic mechanics. She discovers that her initial strategy of focusing on attack power (ATK) and neglecting intelligence (INT) makes her Magician class ineffective with magic skills. Instead, she finds that physical attacks with her staff are more potent. After defeating a Rock Golem and learning a new skill called "Magic Shot" (which converts INT to ATK), Bell realizes her mistake in stat allocation.
Bell then encounters a player named Cocoa, who is revealed to be Shizuku's sub-account, "Tier." Cocoa, acting as a friend to Bell, helps her acquire better equipment, including a powerful staff and armor that enhance her ATK and AGI stats, further solidifying her "melee Magician" or "brawler" playstyle. Cocoa also reveals her own home base, a player-built structure, and discusses the game's frontier-building concept.
During their interactions, Bell's overly affectionate and somewhat naive personality, combined with her surprisingly effective combat prowess despite her stat build, puzzles Cocoa. Cocoa, who is secretly Shizuku, struggles with her own identity and her desire to connect with her sister while maintaining her online persona. She offers Bell emotional support, even allowing Bell to hug her avatar, which triggers nostalgic memories for Shizuku of their childhood.
Bell, unaware of Cocoa's true identity, is excited about the prospect of playing with Shizuku and improving her skills to meet Shizuku's challenge of defeating a forest field boss within three minutes. She continues to level up and refine her combat style, while Shizuku, as Cocoa, grapples with her feelings and her desire to support her sister without revealing her true identity. The chapters end with Bell, now equipped with new gear and accompanied by Cocoa, heading towards the mountains to continue her training, determined to become strong enough to play with Shizuku.
