Let's start from the beginning. My name is Byron Vanish, and I am dying. How did I die? Well, my country plunged into a war, and I received a letter saying that I had to defend my country as part of the national army. I had to go through a 24-week training program to "be in good shape," which was just a lie; it was only to ensure we could survive one week in the epicenter of the war. At that moment, I realized it wasn't a war but rather a genocide.
There I was, on the ground, trying not to close my eyes as I lost blood from a bullet that struck the lower left side of my torso. Something that gave me merit was that I was the last one to survive from my platoon, and I managed to take down seven enemies with a weapon I had crafted in the precarious circumstances I was in. I used it as a sword. Clearly, it wasn't the best time to think, but luckily for me, I had spent 18 years practicing kenjutsu, only to fulfill my family's frustrated dream. My father was a four-time world champion in kenjutsu and a seven-time national champion in fencing, but a car accident ruined the perfect career he was building.
After the accident, his life went downhill: my mother left him, his manager ran off with the money he had earned, and he was left with a child on the street. We spent two years on the street, surviving on minimal food. Later, my father managed to stabilize financially and buy a house, where he trained me to be what he couldn't achieve, his perfect creation. And there I was, his perfect creation, dying. Thus ended my beautiful excursion, a gift from my country, into the abyss. I felt my last breath escaping, carrying all my essence, and my entire world went black.
I was in a dark and somber place. I had been floating for a long time, without feeling my body; it was as if I were only the essence that had left me with my last breath.
I stayed there for a long time, in that strange place. It was like looking into the depths of my soul, and that sensation made me remember my most critical moments, like eating from the trash or watching my father waste away to skin and bones just so I could eat something and have enough strength to open my eyes the next day and face the life we had. Well, if that could even be called life. I spent a long time gazing into the abyss. I could say that years or mere seconds had passed; the feeling that place gave me was strange.
After a while, I felt a blinding light that burned me. It was like the feeling of sleeping and suddenly someone turning on the light, but multiplied by a hundred. Then I saw it: a light coming toward me in the form of particles. No sound came out, but at the same time, it seemed like something could be heard.
I felt as if the light were saying, "What a miserable life you lived. Because of a simple accident, the person who gave you life and loved you abandoned you and your father. You survived on the streets, and when everything finally started to come together, another tragedy arrived in the form of your father's frustrated dream, for which you trained until your hands stopped responding. And for what? So that the country you sacrificed yourself for would send you to die as cannon fodder."
'What is this, and how does it know what I lived through?' I thought.
The light spoke: "So I'll give you two options: first, to stay here for eternity, admiring your pathetic life; or second, to gain a second chance in a faraway place."
I didn't even have time to process it. But I knew something from the moment I died: if I could come back, no one would control me—not my father's dreams nor my nation. I would decide in my life, and whoever tried to limit me would be the first to find out that no one would dominate me.
"And if I choose the second option, where would I go?" I asked.
The light replied, "Well, are you going to choose or not? First, you need to respond for the choice to activate."
"Option two is my choice. I have nothing to lose, and this place makes me uncomfortable."
"Haha, that's the point…" the light murmured.
"Well, without further ado, it's time for the choice, and as I told you, I won't make it; it'll be made by [the wheel of fate]."
As soon as it said that, the entire place started to change, and from the deep darkness of the abyss, a wheel appeared.
"I'll explain how it works. It's easy; you just have to think about spinning it, and that's it."
'It seems simple… could it really be that easy? I'm sure it has some trick,' I thought, distrustful.
At that moment, I thought about making it spin, and instantly it began to move.
[Initiating selection]
[...]
It felt like an eternity passed, until suddenly it stopped.
[Congratulations, the selection is complete!]
[The chosen world is: Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation]
'Damn it, I knew it. It had a trick. How am I supposed to survive in a world where magic, swordsmanship, and, not to mention, terrifying creatures exist?'
"How am I supposed to survive in that world?" I exclaimed to the light.
Now that I thought about it, I didn't know much about the story. I only saw up to when the protagonist's teacher left.
"Relax, you'll be able to spin [the wheel of gifts] twice, and it will give you something to defend yourself… or so I believe."
-_- "What do you mean, 'so I believe'?" I shouted.
'Well, it's better than nothing,' I thought as I spun the wheel.
[Gift selection]
[...]
[...]
[Congratulations! The selection determined your gifts are:]
[You obtained: Ban's zero signal!]
[You obtained: foresight eyes and tracking eye!]
"And what are these abilities supposed to do?"
"I'll tell you because I see you don't have much knowledge," the light replied with an arrogant tone.
"The zero signal lets you erase your presence until you take an action. A bonus is that, when activated, you'll get a small speed boost of two seconds, and it can improve with training. However, it's slightly adapted to the world: it will consume mana like magic, and people with certain powers might sense your attack. It's not 100%, but there's a chance they'll feel it."
"The foresight eyes are one of the 12 demon eyes, allowing you to see a certain time into the future depending on the mana you use. The downside is that you won't be able to see more than one or two seconds ahead, and you'll need to train your body to react; otherwise, you won't be able to make the most of it in critical moments."
"The tracking eye lets you analyze someone's mana to know if they're going to attack, or you can track a person's mana if you've seen it before. Additionally, we've given you the advantage of being able to activate and deactivate these abilities without the need to get used to them, as some people in that world must cover their eye to avoid discomfort or mana drain."
"I know it's a bit selfish, but could you give me the ability to learn languages quickly?" I asked in a tone that aimed to convey clemency.
"Alright, fine, only because I'm a being with empathy for the inept. Without further ado, goodbye."
"Wait, no—"
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I'm not sure if this chapter is a bit short, but thank you for reading, and I apologize if there are any mistakes or if the story feels a bit novice. This is my first time writing on this type of platform and also my first attempt at writing a story.