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(1st POV)

Hey there, my name is Azuki Takiro. I'm 13 years old, just your typical "normal guy," or maybe "normal boy" would be more accurate.

You could say I'm a semi-otaku—well, maybe not even that. I haven't watched the entirety of Naruto because, let's be honest, those fillers are endless. But I did catch most of the main arcs in Shippuden, and I've picked up a lot about Naruto from YouTube highlights. As for Boruto, I managed to make it up to episode 170 before giving up. That series is a snooze-fest.

I've watched some anime like Overlord, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, In Another World with My Smartphone, How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord, and The Misfit of Demon King Academy. But I haven't really dived into Bleach or One Piece. No worries, though—I've read a ton of fan fiction and some manga, manhua, and manhwa based on them. Just don't expect me to touch light novels. Hahaha...ha...ha...ha.

Anyway, about my parents... Let's just say they're a piece of work. They always compare me to other kids when it comes to exam scores. Back in 5th grade—or maybe it was 4th, who even remembers—I ranked 5th out of 54 students. When I proudly showed my parents my report card, all I got was a lecture: "Why couldn't you be 1st?" And then, of course, I'd get a nice whack on the back with a broom for good measure.

I guess that's why I'm so obsessed with reading fan fiction and binge-watching anime. It's my only escape.

(A/N: Just so you know, this is NOT my real life story. It's just the MC's background. 😋)

Now, back to the story. I was on my way to a convenience store when I slipped on an icy patch in the middle of a busy street. I stumbled, and just as I regained my footing—

BAM!

I looked up from where I'd fallen and saw it. The legendary harbinger of isekai: Truck-sama.

Oh my god, it's happening! I'm about to meet God, get a wish, and reincarnate into some awesome fictional world!

Yes!!!!!

(3rd POV)

Azuki felt control slipping from his body as his vision blurred and darkness overtook him. With one last breath, his eyes closed.

When he regained consciousness, he was surrounded by pitch black. 'So, this is it,' he thought. 'The classic meeting-God-in-a-dark-void scene from fan fics.'

He waited. An hour passed. Then another. Days turned into weeks, and weeks turned into what felt like months. Azuki's patience was hanging by a thread.

'Am I actually going to get reincarnated, or is this some cosmic joke?' he wondered, just as he heard voices.

"Push! Come on, 3...2...1... Push! You're almost there!" a woman's voice called out.

Before Azuki could process what was happening, he felt a strange pressure on his head—as if something was pulling him. A bright light suddenly flooded his vision, and everything became clear: he was being born.

'Wait, what?' he thought in shock. 'Aren't I supposed to reincarnate into an anime world?'

He was brought fully into the light, his eyes blurry and unfocused. The woman holding him frowned as she noticed he wasn't crying and gave his tiny bottom a gentle smack. The sharp sting made him wail on instinct.

(1st POV)

After what felt like a minute of disoriented crying, I finally opened my eyes. The first thing I noticed was—tiles. White hospital tiles.

'Seriously? This doesn't look like an anime world,' I thought, exasperated.

Sigh. Whatever. Wait, could this be a manhwa world, like Solo Leveling? That would explain the modern setting...

[Time Skip]

By age 1, I was toddling around; by 2, I could talk; and by 3, I was writing short words—though my baby brain wasn't exactly a powerhouse.

At least my mom turned out to be wonderful. My dad, on the other hand... well, he wasn't in the picture. "He's in a faraway paradise now," my mom would say, tears rolling down her cheeks.

It didn't take long for me to realize that this world was indeed Solo Leveling. And from what I could gather, I was about a decade older than Sung Jin-Woo, born in 1960 while he was born in 1970.

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So, where's my golden finger? Shouldn't I have a system by now?

Sigh. Looks like I'm not one of those overpowered MCs with broken skills and a cheat system that defies all logic. Figures.

Sigh.