Leon Reinhart sat in a quiet corner of his school. He had blonde hair that shined under the sun and green eyes that seemed filled with intelligence. He was also quite short with a soft-looking face that definitely would have been attractive if it wasn't covered in band-aids.
It wasn't hard to tell that he was the victim of constant bullying, this deserted spot was where he spent most of his free time at school to hide from others.
He was rarely happy considering his situation however today he opened his backpack with a smile. He looked at the 500 dollars that was in there. He had somehow managed to get a part-time job without letting his parents know and that money was the result of 2 months of hard-work.
' It's not enough to buy a virtual reality pod but I can at least rent one for a few months. Tomorrow I will finally be able to play Tales Eternal, if I manage to make some money from it...'
He started to think of everything he would buy if he became rich. He would start with a comfortable bed, maybe buy a small house outside of the city and he would finally be able to taste cookies as much as he wanted. He never had much to begin with so the bar for him to be happy was pretty low.
His parents never really cared for him, they fed him the bare minimum and never gave him anything, attention included which is why he had to find work behind their back. He feared that they would take what little money he had managed to make even if they didn't have any money problem.
He was looking at his money while daydreaming, trying his best to not think of his horrible reality, so he didn't notice that someone had sneaked beside him or rather there was now three people surrounding him. When Leon noticed this he quickly zipped his bag up while throwing it on his back, instantly recognizing who was there.
" Well, well, well. I didn't think you had the guts to lie to me Leon. Didn't you say that your parents never gave you allowance? That's why I could never get any money out of you but I think I just saw something interesting."
The leader of the trio was a man named Connor. He had black hair and blue eyes, his ears were filled with piercings and he was wearing a leather jacket. He was definitely trying too hard to look like a tough guy however few people would dare to tell him.
Despite being 16 years old like Leon, Connor was tall and built like a truck. He was more fat than fit but there was clearly some muscles on him. He was the one that bullied Leon however the reason why Leon was so injured was because he never gave in to his demands.
" That's the money for my parent's rent, I have to bring it to our landlord. If you take this my parents will definitely look into it this time."
He quickly made up an excuse on the spot, after all the trio had no way of knowing the exact amount that was in there. It clearly worked... For a few seconds.
" I just have to spend the money before you can tell them, then there will be no proof. Now be a good dog and hand over the money."
Connor wasn't very smart so he didn't care about the repercussion. He simply saw money so he wanted money. Leon started to look around to find the best way to escape however it quickly angered the brute in front of him. Connor launched a powerful punch straight into Leon's stomach, instantly cutting his breath.
Leon folded like a piece of paper as he held his stomach, curling up into a ball into the ground. When he saw this, Connor put his shoe on top of his head with a laugh.
" Come on, just hand it over and it will be less painful for you."
The bully could easily grab the money by himself at this point but he wanted to humiliate Leon. Making him give up the money willingly would be the best way to show his dominance.
' It's not fair, I just wanted to play a game... I just wanted to have fun one time in my life yet even that is being taken from me. What do I even live for? All of that studying to please parents that don't even care, all of those efforts just to get beat up by some bully, is this really all that my life is?'
Leon's mind turned dark, the humiliation was just about to break him. He was still determined on running away with his money but even if he did, so what? His parents would still ignore him, Connor would still beat him.
He just wanted to give up but just the idea of losing to someone like Connor made him feel sick. He had dreamed of playing Tales Eternal for so long, he wasn't about to give up the day before it would come out.
Leon cleared his mind of the darkness as he grabbed the bully's foot that was resting on his head. With no warning Leon spun with the leg in his grip. Even if Connor was strong he was in an unstable position so he ended up falling to the ground face first.
The other two goons were taken by surprise so they barely had any time to react as Leon bolted past them. They tried to grab him but due to his small size he was both fast and slippery, in less than 5 seconds Leon already disappeared around the corner of the school.
There was still other classes today but the pain in his stomach made him afraid to run into the trio again. He started to wander around in the city while thinking of how miserable he was. He was just a joke that didn't matter to anybody.
' I heard that you could make money by playing Tales Eternal. I just have to become the best player and show them that I matter.'
His depression was quickly turned into anger as he motivated himself. He just had to hide until tomorrow then he would be able to buy a 6 month pass to a gaming center with some virtual reality pods. If he didn't have any money it couldn't be stolen.
While he was thinking of his future he noticed in the corner of his eyes someone crawling in pain. Leon turned his head and noticed that it was a homeless old man. He was dirty and by his appearance there was a high chance that he consumed drugs so the passerby ignored him as much as they possibly could despite how close to the walkway he was.
While a bit afraid for his own safety Leon still went to the other side of the road to go talk with the homeless man that was in an alley. The smell was pretty horrible however Leon managed to endure it, his sympathy easily won over his disgust.
" What happened to you sir? Do you want me to call an ambulance?"
The old man turned his head toward Leon, almost surprised that somebody had come to look at him but then a bit of fear appeared in his jaded eyes. He had been clearly beaten up recently as his face was covered in blood.
" Ey don't got no mony. Ah can't afford the amblance."
Leon lived in Canada so to get access to the universal healthcare you had to buy a health insurance card which wasn't exactly expensive but it wasn't something homeless people would buy with whatever little money they had.
In this case just calling the ambulance would cost over 50 dollars.
" I wouldn't mind paying for the ambulance but I don't know If I have enough for the hospital fees..."
Leon was trying to come up with a solution, he didn't know much about hospital prices but even if he did it would be hard to predict what kind of treatment the homeless man would even need. He was ready to use all of his money but he was far from rich.
' Once again I am useless. Even if I want to help what can someone like me even do?'
" Don't warry too much bout meh sony, if ya really want tah halp meh just some good ol food will do the trick."
The old man looked at him with a warm look of appreciation, despite the situation that he was in he was grateful that someone even just came to talk to him. Leon closed his eyes for a few seconds to focus a bit.
" … Hotel... That's right, I can rent a cheap hotel room for a few days to let you rest. You will be able to clean your wounds while you are there too. I would bring you to my house but my parents would definitely kick you out so that's the best I can do. I can probably find one that serve some food too."
Leon took out his phone to look for nearby hotels.
" Are you sure you want to spend all your money like that? Isn't there a game that you want to play coming out tomorrow?"
Leon was still busy looking at his phone so he didn't realize the change in the homeless man's voice.
" What's a game compared to a life?...?"
He had answered by instinct but then he realized that the question in itself was weird. He had never talked about that with anybody. He looked up his phone and then he realized that he wasn't in the middle of the streets anymore.
No, right now he was standing on a white floor floating in space. He could see the earth floating not too far away from here, or maybe it was extremely far? The sense of distance in space made it hard to guess.
" For decades I have been testing your kind by disguising myself as part of the lowest of the low of your society. Millions ignored me, hundreds of thousands actively tried to harm me and yet very few tried to help me at all.
Out of everyone there was only you that helped me without any ulterior motive, ready to sacrifice your own happiness for my well-being. So I have a gift for you."
The old man slowly started to look more clean, more holy. His clothes changed to a single white robe, he didn't need anything else to make it clear that he was god himself. Leon wasn't one to believe in god yet even he instinctively knew who he stood before.
God gave him a smile as a white orb appeared in front of him. Images slowly played inside of the orb, showing something that looked like a paradise.
" I will let you visit the other worlds of this universe, you will be able to see perfect civilizations in peace, you will be able to experience magical fantasies just like the one you have dreamed of playing. I can take you with me but... this planet has to go.
Your kind is one of the most corrupt, most cruel civilization I have ever seen and I cannot let them spread their influence outside of their own planet."
Leon was shocked by this revelation. He had hated his life but he had no wish to see everyone on earth die.
" I... you can't just kill everyone! I know that what you went through is a part of us human but we are so much more than that!"
God looked straight into Leon's eyes, the pressure was almost soul crushing but the teenager stood his ground.
" Very well Leon. I will give you a single chance. A choice for you only."
A table appeared as god said that, on top of it was a pistol.
" You can take this gun to end your own life and save humanity, or you can come with me. You, who suffered your entire life to the hand of other humans, would you risk your life to save those who made you miserable? Would you take your life to let others suffer just like you did?"
Leon started to tremble under the pressure. He took a few unsteady steps toward the gun as everything in his body was trying to stop him. He wanted to be happy, to find a wife and form a family. He didn't want to just die here.
God had just offered him a life where he could have all that he wished for, there was finally some hope for happiness in his life.
Still, by pure willpower, he grabbed the gun as he unsteadily brought it to his head.
" People are trying to endure their own suffering because they have something to live for. They are trying to be happy in their own way, that's why they are f- fighting."
Leon's voice shook as he spoke.
" Everyone has a dream and a right to try their hardest to achieve it. I- if my life is all it takes then so be it."
Even after saying that Leon still hesitated for one last second but ultimately he still pulled the trigger. A loud bang resonated into the infinite space.
" I have existed since the dawn of time. Countless times have I given this offer yet none took it, until now. Leon Reinhart, be proud because today you have impressed god. You have made your choice. Your planet will be safe and I will let you return to your life however you still deserve a reward. I hope you will be able to attain happiness my child."
With one last warm smile God disappeared in a flash. Leon was now back to the same street, only now the old man was no longer there and a blue window was floating in front of him.
[ You have been given the guardian angel system by God.]