Inoue Ichimaru, could my life get any more miserable? Trying to find a stable job after messing up my last one, sometimes I wish death could just sweep me off my feet, but alas, life won't give me such luxury.
Which brings me to my current predicament. Somehow, I got myself into a random bar fight and, in one way or another, managed to get myself stabbed in the abdomen.
The shock was instantaneous. It took a few seconds before the pain made itself known... but it came, ready to make up for lost time.
The man who stabbed me grimaced at the scene unfolding before him, instinctively letting go of the knife. His face contorted with shock as his trembling hands were covered in blood. He fell on his behind and screeched before quickly scurrying across the floor and out of the bar, leaving me sprawled across the floor.
My body felt cold, except for the burning pain I felt in my abdomen. My eyes were hazy, I was trying my best to stop them from closing as I asked myself;
"So this is what dying feels like? Funny enough I was actually wishing for it to end, but I really didn't expect to be dying so soon, and I definitely didn't expect it to be this painful."
"If only I had taken life a bit more seriously." I groaned, spitting out blood.
"I can't believe I'm about to die a virgin at the age of 39." I chuckled.
"Man, if I was ever given a second chance, I'd take it in a heartbeat." I told myself as I shut my eyelids and death embraced me.
VOID.
I could feel myself floating aimlessly, for how long? I don't know, you lose track of time when you're floating in a void with no beginning or end.
Suddenly, a bright light engulfed my field of vision. I impulsively used my hands in an attempt to shield my eyes from the radiating light, but it had little to no effect.
Much to my surprise, I was no longer afloat but in a chamber akin to a throne room. Sitting majestically on the throne was a tall, slender figure, cross-legged with scarlet red eyes, possessing back-length silver hair held in a ponytail, his body adorning a white robe with golden outlines.
"Welcome to my humble domain! You may refer to me as Silvamilion. I am what your kind may refer to as a god," he said haughtily.
"Rejoice! For you have been chosen to serve as my source of entertainment," he continued as he elegantly walked towards me. I stepped back nervously, assuming the worst. But to my surprise, he stopped a few feet away from me as he smirked.
"Rest assured, Inoue-san, I have absolutely no intention of harming you. In fact, I'm offering you a chance," he emphasized, trying to reassure me.
"Have a seat!"
He insisted, as a comfortable-looking chair instantly appeared behind me out of nothingness. He then ushered me to sit. I was hesitant at first, but after a few seconds, I eventually complied.
The self-proclaimed god returned to his throne. He sat down, crossing his legs once again.
"Now then, I'm sure you have a lot of questions that need answers.... You may ask them!" he said intimidatingly. I didn't need to be told twice; a million questions came to mind. "Who are you? Where am I? Am I dead? What's going to happen to me?" I asked brimming with anxiety.
"As I said before, you may call me Lord Silvamilion. I'm what you humans would normally call a 'god'. But I'm referred to as a Deva by the rest of my kind. As for our whereabouts, we are currently in a special dimension I created specifically for our meeting. And finally, yes, you are indeed dead," he concluded.
"Oh... okay, then shouldn't I be on my way to the afterlife?" I asked him matter-of-factly.
"Perceptive, are we?" He asked ironically.
"You are indeed correct! The moment your soul left your body, I teleported you here. Like I said, I've chosen you to be my source of entertainment," he asserted. "After two millennia of making sure you foolish humans didn't go extinct due to the constant wars, I simply got bored," he grumbled.
"You got bored?" I asked incredulously. "Don't be ridiculous! What do you mean you got bored, you lousy excuse for a god?" I raged. It was almost like all the anger, regret, and frustration I felt when I died was being redirected at him.
"This must be some sort of drama show, right? Where is the camera crew?" I asked in self-denial. I looked around suspiciously as I continued mouthing off.
"Inoue!" He called my name once, but I ignored him. "Inoue!" He called me a second time, only this time his tone carried a hint of annoyance. It was my decision, and I didn't think it was going to be a big deal, but boy was I wrong.
All of a sudden, it was pitch black. I could feel myself getting pulled into the nothingness by a ridiculously strong force of gravity. I thought I was going to get blinked out of existence; my body felt like it got stretched, shredded, and put back together continuously. It felt like I was falling for eternity at the speed of light. Just as I had completely lost all hope of ever seeing the ground again,
I felt a throbbing pain spread throughout my body as I plummeted to the solid surface beneath me.
I opened my eyes, squinting in an attempt to sharpen the blurry images. Before me stood a familiar figure. It was the self-proclaimed god whose name I still can't pronounce; Silva... Silvi... whatever. He looked down on me with a smug look on his face as I was still lounged on the floor.
"What just happened?" I asked tersely as I sat myself up. "Simply put, you just experienced the sensation of getting dragged into a black hole, but this time it was just an illusion," he explained carefully.
"An illusion? It felt like my body was being shredded and put back together in an endless loop!" I protested.
"That was my sacred skill; Absolute Mirage. With this skill, I can affect all five senses and manipulate the senses of spirit and time at will," he explained elaborately. "Now that you've seen just a fraction of what I can do, are you finally willing to listen?" he asked loftily as I inevitably nodded in agreement.
"Good, your soul is about to be reincarnated into a special body that I have created especially for you."
He explained.
"Wait! Does that mean I get a second chance? There's a catch, isn't there?" I asked out of curiosity as it sounded too good to be true.
"I was right, you sure are sharp." He boasted.
"The world you're about to reincarnate in, is a fantasy world of magic and knights. Up until now, it has been relatively peaceful; however, the current nobles seem to abuse the commoners by severely punishing misdemeanors and imposing felonies, taxing the poor masses. Corruption and injustice are spreading like wildfire, and if left unchecked, will spiral out of control. And that is where you come in. Your task is to depose the current king of the empire, Charles Slavier, and become the new king in order to transform his kingdom," he insisted.
"Don't I have a say in any of this?" I grumbled.
"Your class and skills have already been decided, but since I am feeling so generous today, you may have the privilege of choosing two unique skills of your choice as a parting gift, so choose carefully," he said, completely oblivious to my complaint as a strange-looking screen appeared in my field of vision.
"What? What's this?" I asked in shock as a list of items popped up on the screen and prompted me to select two skills from what seemed like an endless list.
"Wow! It's like those RPG games I used to play as a kid. I remember always charging my mom's credit card to buy new item boxes," I recalled. I grabbed my chin as I looked at the screen, contemplating on the two out of the list near infinite skills I must pick from as I got lost in thought. From what I could see, there are many versatile skills. I slowly but surely checked the pros and cons of every skill. Making any hasty decision may cost me, but with the knowledge I have acquired all those years I spent engrossed in reading fantasy novels, picking a new skill shouldn't be a problem. I kept scrolling down until my eyes glinted as it came in contact with a particular skill. I grinned ear to ear as I knew for a fact I have found the skill I've been searching for. A skill so special anyone would consider it overpowered. Damn, this new skill comes with endless possibilities. I eagerly tapped the unique skill as my first choice, picking my second skill wasn't as time-consuming as the first.
As soon as I finished, Lord Silvamilion glanced at the screen before him with a smirk etched across his face.
"I must commend you on your findings because I didn't really expect to come across such useful skills," he says overbearingly.
"Unbreakable Bonds and Skill Forge, impressive choices," he added.
"Well, thanks... I guess," I replied, unsure of accepting such praise.
"Enough of that, let's move on to more pressing matters... your secondary magical attributes. I already picked all the basic elements as your primary attributes, as for your secondary... that is up to you," he tells me coolly as another menu popped on the screen.
"Fire magic, wind magic, water magic, and earth magic are your primary attributes. Now, choose your secondary attributes," he commanded.
I looked through the options carefully, weighing the possibilities. This choice could greatly impact my abilities in the fantasy world I was about to enter. After much consideration, I made my decision.
"Well then, 39-year-old Ichimaru Inoue is no more. From now on, your name is Kazuki Sato," he said as all of a sudden, my world went dark.