But if school was bad, home was worse. His parents, once a source of comfort, had grown cold and distant over the years. His mother's sharp, biting words always cut deep, while his father barely acknowledged his existence. They were perpetually disappointed in him—his mother would tell him as much on a near-daily basis. "Why can't you be more like your brother?" she'd say, her voice laced with bitterness. His father, meanwhile, offered nothing but silence, his disapproving gaze doing all the talking. They didn't care about his struggles at school, nor did they bother to hide their disdain for his lack of success. To them, Kenji was a failure.
This rejection from both home and school forced Kenji into solitude. He preferred to stay in his room whenever he could, finding a small measure of peace in the isolation. He had even rented a tiny apartment near his school with the money from his part-time job, further distancing himself from the oppressive atmosphere at home. The apartment was small, barely more than a single room with a bed, a desk, and a kitchen. But it was his, and it offered him some freedom from the judgment and scorn of others.
Even then, the emptiness gnawed at him. Nights were the hardest—when silence pressed in from all sides, amplifying the loneliness he tried to ignore. He buried himself in video games and anime, losing himself in worlds where he could be a hero or someone who mattered. It was a distraction, but it kept the darker thoughts at bay.
But now, as he lay in this strange new place, wrapped in silk and surrounded by luxury, those thoughts of loneliness and insignificance felt far away. Everything felt different—wrong, but in a way that didn't frighten him as much as it should have.
'Where am I?' The thought came sluggishly to the forefront of his mind, slowly pulling him out of the haze. His body felt light, almost weightless, like floating on a cloud. The softness of the silk wrapped around him was so foreign, unlike anything he had ever known.
Finally, with some effort, Ren forced his eyes open. What he saw took his breath away. This wasn't his cramped apartment or his dingy school. Instead, he was surrounded by opulence on a scale he could barely comprehend. Everywhere his eyes landed, there were rich, intricate designs—walls adorned with carvings so delicate they seemed shaped from pure gold. It was a room fit for royalty, not for someone like him.
Ren's eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, he could only make out the blur of soft colors and gentle lights. The bed beneath him was unlike anything he had ever felt—luxuriously plush, enveloping him in its warmth. The silk sheets draped over him like a second skin, their coolness brushing against his arms in a way that made him shiver.
He turned his head, trying to take in his surroundings. The intricate designs on the walls were mesmerizing—delicate carvings that shimmered as if spun from threads of gold. The room seemed to pulse with a faint, otherworldly glow, casting shifting patterns across the ceiling. It was a scene of such opulence and beauty that it felt surreal, as if he had stepped into a dream spun from the fantasies he used to escape to.
The enormity of the room, the richness of the materials, and the otherworldly glow around him seemed to defy reality. Ren's heart raced as he struggled to process the lavishness that surrounded him. The familiar sense of inadequacy he had always known was replaced by an overwhelming sense of disbelief. 'This... can't be real,' he thought, feeling a jolt of panic. Everything was too perfect, too alien, and it was as if he had stumbled into a realm beyond his understanding.
'Am I dreaming?' he wondered, his pulse racing. The last thing he remembered was falling asleep on his couch after watching anime. How had he gone from there to... here?
'Could I have died?' The thought crept into his mind like a shadow, cold and unnerving. 'No. This isn't heaven, and it doesn't feel like hell either. So where am I?'
The realization hit him slowly, sinking into his consciousness like a heavyweight.
'I'm not in the same world anymore.'
Suddenly, a voice interrupted his thoughts, soft yet powerful, as if the whisper of a goddess herself echoed through his mind.
[Welcome to the Ethereal Goddess Summoning System...]
Ren's breath hitched. He blinked, his thoughts momentarily frozen. The voice was so clear, so real, but it carried a weight that made the hairs on the back of his neck rise.
Where was it coming from?
[Soul merging detected... Preparing synchronization...]
The words barely made sense, like someone speaking a language he didn't fully understand. But still, they flowed through him with an undeniable authority, forcing his mind to race.
[Synchronizing... 1%... 10%... 65%...]
A strange, unsettling sensation stirred within him. His body felt... foreign. As if something deep inside him was being unraveled, rewired, then pieced back together. It wasn't pain, exactly, but it was a feeling he had no control over.
[99%... 100%... Synchronization complete.]
Those final words brought a strange finality. Something had shifted within him. Changed. But what? He couldn't put his finger on it, yet the truth lingered just out of reach.
[Welcome, Host! Congratulations on obtaining the Ethereal Goddess Summoning System.
Ren's pulse quickened. The voice had returned, cool and composed, as if this situation were the most ordinary thing in the world. But nothing about this felt ordinary.
[To access more information, the Host can open the status window by focusing.]
'Status window?' The phrase felt like something from a video game. He wasn't in a game—was he?
'Focus? What does that even mean?'
A nervous laugh escaped his lips. It sounded ridiculous, but he had nothing to lose at this point. With a small breath, he whispered, "Status window."
To his shock, a glowing, semi-transparent screen materialized before him, hovering just above the silk sheets. Its soft light illuminated the room with an ethereal glow, confirming that none of this was a dream.
[Welcome, Host! By merging with a compatible soul, you have unlocked limitless potential. You can collect Summoning Points by completing quests. These points allow you to summon elemental princesses, queens, and maids. Primordial Points can be used to summon goddesses.
"What...?" Ren's eyes darted across the screen, struggling to absorb the information.
'Summoning... elemental princesses? Goddesses?' It sounded absurd, like something out of a fantasy novel, but then again... everything about this felt like a dream.
He glanced down at his hands, startled to see faint streaks of purplish-blue lightning flickering across his skin. They crackled softly, like the magic was alive—a part of him now. He could feel it coursing through his veins, humming beneath the surface.
'No way... this world really has magic. I can feel it.' The realization sent a thrill through him, excitement bubbling up. But he forced himself to calm down.
'Okay, focus. This isn't the time to get carried away.'
Taking a deep breath, he looked back at the floating screen. It seemed responsive enough. Maybe it could answer his questions.
"What's your name?" he asked, half expecting silence. "Am I supposed to just call you 'System'? Helloooo?" His frustration was beginning to show. "Crap! I knew it wouldn't answe—"
Before he could finish complaining, a small pop-up appeared in the corner of the screen.
[All memories of the previous owner of this body can be accessed through the Memory section in the Extra tab.]. Do you wish to initiate the memory transfer?
Ren's brows shot up. 'Memories of the previous owner?'
Curiosity overrode his hesitation. Whatever this was, it was his best chance at understanding where he was or who this body even belonged to. With barely a second thought, he tapped 'Yes'.
[Starting memory synchronization in 10 seconds] Warning: The transfer may be painful or emotionally distressing. It could leave lasting effects on the host. Do you still wish to continue? [Yes or No.]
His finger hovered over the options as a brief wave of doubt crept in. 'What did this guy... this Ren Kurogane... go through?'
But he was in too deep to turn back now. With a determined tap, he selected 'Yes'.
[3... 2... 1... Memory synchronization initializing...
And then it hit him.
A tidal wave of memories, emotions, and pain slammed into him all at once. His body seized as if struck by lightning, and his breath caught in his throat. His vision blurred as images and sensations flooded his mind—flashes of a life filled with torment, regret, and betrayal.
He felt it all. Every wound, every heartbreak, and every moment of despair and humiliation that Ren had endured. It was overwhelming, the weight of another's suffering pouring into him, reshaping his understanding of the world and his place within it.