Flashing white, and the blackest of black. My vision is absolutely disorientating. Next, a thud. I landed on my… head? Ahhh, I'm losing consciousness…

-[1 Day Earlier]-

I woke up at 5:45am, and proceeded to get ready for the school day. I took a shower, washed my long hair, and shaved off the facial hair that was starting to grow once more.

Today is the first day of the second semester at the high school I go to. I'm a third year student, aged 17. My name is Jacob. Jacob Stalin. I like to play video games, read books, and listen to music.

The average stuff, you know? Average person stuff for my age.

Standing at 5'8", I'm a bit shorter than the average male at my high school, but that's fine. I'd rather have more IQ, rather than height. "Ah." I noticed the time and started to head out the door. It was 6:45am, and school started in 25 minutes.

-[In Front of the School's Entrance]-

"Yo!" I heard a familiar voice call out to me. Ah, yes. Of course. It was my friend, Michael.

He walked up to me and motioned for a high-five. I followed suit. He then asked, "How was your mornin', twinkle-toes?" Ah, "twinkle-toes''... that's a new one.

I looked at him and said, "Nothing much. What about you, tard-nugget?" He laughed at that one. We have a sort of game where we give each other stupid nick-names on the first day of each semester, and quarter. He then said, "I like that one, heh. It's funny."

He's such a child… But, I guess I am, too.

We walked to our first lecture and headed to where we normally sit. We sit on the far right side, just a few rows back from the ginormous screen so we can read the notes and presentations quite easily.

We got out our laptops, opened a new note page, and prepared to start taking notes.

-[4 Hours Later]-

Lunch time.

We just sat down at our normal place and started to eat our lunch. Nothing special. After we ate, we played a few games on our phones together and then headed back to our classes. Him and I have only that first class in the morning together, so I'm off on my own now.

-[4 Hours, 30 Minutes Later]-

The school day is over, and I'm tired as f*ck. I'm stopping at the grocery store before heading back to my house.

-[At the Grocery Store]-

As I walked towards the grocery store, I bumped into someone who was hastily turning a corner. They were about 145cm tall, with long, black hair that looked very nice and fluffy.

The person then said, "I'm sorry." They were female. She looked at me intensely for several seconds, and then I noticed something fuzzy around her head. It was like a mist that was nearly invisible to the naked eye.

The woman then told me, "Be careful, don't panic, and do not be afraid for what comes."

That's a weird thing to tell someone... I replied with, "Thank you...?" She then walked off into the night, going the direction I came from. I turned back after she had passed me, hoping to tell her something. But, by the time I turned around, she was already gone.

"That's strange..."

I then made my way into the grocery store for what I came for.

Walking through the aisles, I found the items that I was looking for. If you're wondering what they are, they're just some cup noodles, a couple of apples, and four bottles of water. It's a strange list, for sure. But, I'm a strange guy.

I walk up to the counter and set my items down to pay for them.

The cashier told me, "That will be $4.95, please." I got out a $5 bill and handed it to the cashier. I then said, "Just use that. No change needed."

The cashier looked at me strangely, and then nodded their head. I then got my items, put them in my bag, and headed for home.

I exited the store and I started to feel woozy. I tried to keep walking and brush it off, but it just worsened. I fell to my knees and tried to re-collect myself.

I looked down at my hands and they started to turn… white? Like, not the skin colour. But, white, white. Like "a ghost in a horror film", white. My surroundings turned black and I felt like I was falling. I dizzily said, "What the fu—"

*thud*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(??? POV)

My domain started to shift unusually. What could be causing this massive shift in this dimensional space? A crack opened from up above, around 15 metres high, and some… "thing" fell out from it. It was shaped like a… human?

It wore nothing except for some kind of book-bag, and carried a plastic bag from some grocery store.

It seems from the indicator on the soul that this person is from Reality 2A, Earth-616. It was barely conscious at this point, so I studied its soul and material complexity.

-[24 Minutes Later]-

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

(Jacob POV)

I'm… alive? I started to slowly gain my vision back and found myself in a purely white space. I sat up and looked around once more. In front of me, directly, I found a man with long green hair, wearing a fancy-ass white robe, sitting on a very expensive looking chair. It might be more appropriate to call it a "throne".

He just stared at me. I asked him, "Uh. Hello. Might you know where I am right now?"

He just stared at me. I then said, "Uhhhh, okay… I need to get home. It's getting late… probably."

How long have I been out? Minutes? Hours? Days…? Well, whatever the time may have been, I need to get home.

The man with green hair then told me, "Welcome. You're not dead, so don't worry. Well, you're technically not dead, per-say."

…Huh? I'm… what?

I then asked him, "What do you mean 'technically'?"

He then said, "I cannot explain it. This is quite rare. It's only the ninth time in the last 2,000 years this has happened."

I'm not getting what he's saying.

I then asked him, "Well, may I inquire for your name… good sir?"

He looked at me and said, "Kai. Kai the God of Soul Reimbursement, or Reincarnation, to simplify."

I blankly stared at what he said. I then asked, "The fuck do ya mean?"

He chuckled lightly and then said, "I feel sorry for you, as I did the others. Welcome to the Land of the Gods, Jacob."

I then asked, "Land of the Gods…?"

He then nodded his head. He then said, "I will provide you some information on this world, and then send you on your way."

Kai then said, "So, you now know that you are in the Land of the Gods. Us Gods watch over all of you in existence and even other worlds." I was dumbfounded. "Other worlds?" I asked curiously.

Kai's voice chuckled a bit, presumably at my curiosity and astonishment towards this newfound information.

The man said, "Don't worry. Your questions will be answered in due time. Just be patient." I was still wary of the man but I decided to trust him. For now.

I asked the man, "So what exactly do you Gods do besides your title job? You said 'Land of the Gods'. Gods being plural."

Kai then said, "Me? Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to tell you this. I am the God that decides upon which souls should be eligible for reincarnation, with or without their memories."

'What? Reincarnation… did I just get sent to a cliche isekai story?' I said in my mind. I sighed and asked, "So, am I eligible for reincarnation? I already know about some things due to the amount of isekai content I've seen."

Kai nodded his head. He then said, "You will be granted a few things, including a body."

Huh? But, I have my own body, don't I?

I looked down at myself and noticed it. Yep, my body is gone. It's only a ball of light. Presumably my soul.

Kai then said, "You didn't notice it until now, huh?"

I then embarrassingly said, "Yeah…"

He smiled and said, "You will now be bestowed with a system that is customary for reincarnation."

He then touched my core and I felt warmth envelope me. I then heard in my mind, <>

I somehow knew the name I'm giving immediately. It feels like I've done this before…

"Kitsu". Your name is "Kitsu".

<>

Heh.