I am currently sitting in a white room with one question in mind.
'How the hell did I get here?'
I don't know, but I do remember getting hit by a truck while protecting a little girl who had fallen into the road. After that… my memory goes blank, and now I'm here with nothing in sight. As I look around, I realize I'm not in my body. So, I guess it's more accurate to say I'm viewing this place with something akin to sight.
'I'm surprised I'm so calm! Sure, I'm normally pretty chill, but that's in normal situations, which this definitely isn't!'
"Hello!" A soothing feminine voice broke the silence of the white room. I looked around, but no one was there, so maybe I was starting to go crazy.
"You aren't going crazy. It's just that my actual form would overload your soul, so I'm currently trying to create an appearance that you can withstand," the feminine voice answered my doubts, which meant she could read my mind. Great~.
'You really don't have to worry about appearances. Can I ask who you are and why I'm here?'
"Really? Phew~ that saves me some trouble! As for why you are here, it's because you sacrificed yourself for another in addition to some other stuff. To answer your second question, I believe the mortals in your world would refer to me as Izanami or something like that."
'Ohhh, Shintoism. Are you guys like the main religion?' I asked, as this would settle a burning curiosity of mine.
"No, all of the mythologies and religions live in balance. If you had died one day later, you would have met someone from the Greek Pantheon. If you had died the day before, you would have met someone from the Egyptian Pantheon."
'So, you guys share?' This was both soothing and intriguing, firing up my curiosity! I had always been fascinated by different mythologies and religions back on Earth. The entire concept was so enticing and interesting!
"Yeah, something like that. If I really went into the specifics, it would waste all the time we have, so let's move on. I'm going to give you a chance to reincarnate in another world, and it will have magic and all that. I've read your memories, so I doubt I need to explain too much, right?"
'Yeah, I get the gist. Do I get any cheats or anything?'
"Cheats? Uh... I mean, you'll have to train and improve it yourself, but I guess you could call it a cheat."
'I see, so this cheat is in the form of a talent or skill, then?'
"Exactly! I'll be giving you True Creation Magic, which grants you full control over your creations. You can create anything and even manipulate creation itself. The specifics of your abilities will be True Projection, True Alchemy, and True Transfiguration. The only limit is your understanding of both your own creations and creation itself."
'W-Will I have enough magic to even use this talent?'
"Hahaha~! Of course, not at the start! In the beginning, you'll really only be able to do Projection, as Alchemy and Transfiguration require way more energy and practice. Now, don't misunderstand you can do anything at any time but there will be consequences, if not done properly!"
'My understanding is like this...
True Projection: Creating an image or taking a thought and manifesting it into reality.
True Alchemy: Combining, breaking down, and re-fusing elements to create a new item or concept.
True Transfiguration: Editing or adjusting existing creations either ones I've made through Projection and Alchemy or those already present to improve or alter them.'
"Yep! To make it even simpler, Projection is the whole picture; Alchemy is the paper; and Transfiguration is the ink."
'Wow! I didn't think something so complex could be explained so easily.'
"Well, as creation is part of one of my divinities along with death, you could say I'm experienced enough to simplify it. However, Kushmanda could probably explain it better than me. You know her?"
'If I recall correctly, she's from Hinduism, right?'
"Yeah, yeah~! She's like a big sister to me, always helping me improve. Though I don't like how she enjoys poking my face like I'm a child."
'...'
"What, no comment?"
'For my safety, I'll refrain from saying anything.'
"Bwhahaha~! She won't do anything because she can't interfere in another pantheon's work, just like the other gods. You're safe here for now, but whenever you go to the new world, I'd just shut up and forget about what I said!"
'Noted.'
"Phew~! That was fun, but let's move on to the last part, your body. You can either reincarnate as a baby, or I can create a body for you. Heads up, it'll be at the bone age of 15."
'I'll take a created body. I don't want to worry about parents or anything. Besides, I already have my mom and dad in my memories, and it wouldn't feel right replacing them, especially after all they did for me.'
"Fair enough. So, what do you want to look like? Race?"
'What are my options?'
"For races, you have High-Human, High-Elf, True Dragon, High-Demon, High-Dwarf, Spider, Slime, Bird, Tiger, Fox, etc. As for your overall appearance, you're not limited."
'What are the strengths of the first four?'
High-Humans: Master any path, second-highest potential overall.
High-Elves: Weaker physically but strongest affinity in Life Magic and third in Elemental Magic.
High-Demons: Strong physical abilities and strongest affinity for Elemental Magic.
True Dragons: Strongest physique and highest affinity for advanced magics like Death, Space, and Time.
'I'll go with your suggestion. Learning how to live as a different race would just waste time. I'd rather focus on training!'
"Cool! Now, about your appearance? Heads up, you'll be handsome no matter what, so don't hold back."
'Ash-grey hair, skin color can be random, emerald-green eyes, 6'1.'
"Quick and to the point! Now, the world is called Gaia. It's about 20 times bigger than your Earth, and the magic energy is called mana."
'How does the cultivation work or magic system rather?'
"Oh yeah! The mortal cultivation follows a color pattern starting from Black, White, Yellow, Red, Blue, Green, Orange, Purple, Cyan, Lime-Green, Violet, and finally Violet-Gold, with 12 stages in total. Each major stage has Entry, Mid, and Peak levels."
'Anything else?'
"Yes! But we've taken too much time talking about everything else, so I have to send you off now! Bye-bye~!"
'Bye, and thanks for everything! Especially for not being a dickhead of a divine being!'
Izanami: ^-^
Izanami gave me a playful smile or at least I imagined she did. Then, I vanished from the white space! However, this whole scenario did leave me questioning really why she did all this. It's hard to believe her words at face value, she is a god after all. I'm sure there is some greater plan at play!