Haruto stared blankly at Priscilla and then back at Dimitri. "Just who the hell are you guys, and where am I?"
Dimitri let out a sigh of frustration. "Yep, he's an idiot," he said, teleporting back to his seat. "Priscilla, our window isn't big. They will come soon if we don't speed this along."
Priscilla slowly walked back to her seat. "We have time, Titan is stalling them at the moment."
Dimitri looked genuinely surprised. "Haruto, your realm and world aren't the only ones. There are multiple. My brother and I, we are Celestial Rulers. We each rule over aspects of these worlds. I just happen to rule over the one that contains your world."
Haruto was speechless. Yesterday his concept of the world was small, but now he was finding out about multiple realms and celestial rulers.
"So what do you want with me? Didn't I die?" Haruto said, slowly standing up, wondering why he was even there. "Wait! Am I about to be isekai'd?!"
Priscilla giggled at Haruto's demeanor.
"Oh yeah, you definitely died alright," Dimitri said, gesturing with his hand and making a falling sound effect.
Priscilla shook her head. "Yes, you died, but the life force goes through a process after death. Death is final, and as Celestial Rulers, we cannot intervene directly in the realms we oversee. We only watch for anomalies. But there are loopholes, such as your situation."
Dimitri then chimed in. "That's where I come in. Every world and realm is the same but also different. You have multiple selves, but they are governed by the realm they exist in. They play out their own separate lives and die accordingly. But in very rare instances, if two deaths occur simultaneously with one being unexpected, we are able to pick the life force out of the stream before the celestial fiends get to them and reincarnate them."
Priscilla then looked at Haruto seriously. "How would you like to see your parents again?"
Haruto looked shocked. "That's not possible, right? You just said death is absolute." Then, as the wheels started to turn, he realized something. Priscilla mentioned something about loopholes. Did that mean his parents were still alive in another world somewhere? Haruto felt something swelling up inside of him that had been lost for a minute.
Hope.
Haruto thought to himself as he pondered things. The more he thought about it, the more he felt himself getting excited. Could he really have a chance to do things all over in a new world? But something was gnawing at him. These gods did not just pluck him out of their own goodwill; they needed something from him, something only he could give. He looked up and realized they both were letting him steel himself. If the gods needed him for something, as long as it did not cross any bottom lines, it could be worthwhile, couldn't it? He finally readied himself for the task that would be asked of him.
With a look of newfound clarity, he looked at both of them with new confidence.
"What do you need me to do?"