Rei Nakamura sat on the sidewalk, blinking at the ruined vending machine that had just killed him.
Well, almost killed him.
"Is this... normal?" Rei muttered, staring at his body—or at least what used to be his body—lying beneath the crushed vending machine. He felt strangely detached from the scene, probably because he was now floating above it, translucent and weightless.
A sharp ding echoed in the air, and a glowing blue portal opened above him. Before Rei could process what was happening, a hand yanked him inside.
He landed, face-first, in a grand marble hall. Massive pillars stretched into the void, and celestial light cascaded from the heavens. At the center of the hall sat a semicircle of glowing figures, their forms indistinct and radiating divine authority.
"Welcome, mortal, to the Hall of Gods!" one of the figures boomed.
Rei sat up, rubbing his head. "I didn't even get my soda."
The gods ignored him. Another spoke, their voice softer but no less imposing. "You have been chosen, Rei Nakamura, to be our champion. A great evil threatens the balance of the multiverse, and you alone—"
"Hold up," Rei interrupted, raising a hand. "Wasn't I just hit by a vending machine? What does that have to do with any of this?"
The gods paused, clearly unaccustomed to being interrupted. The first god coughed awkwardly. "Er, yes. That was... unfortunate. But it provided us the opportunity to bring you here! You see, your soul was on the brink of transition, and we—"
"So, I'm dead?" Rei asked flatly.
"Well... yes."
Rei sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Great. First, I miss my soda. Now, I'm dead. This day keeps getting better."
Another god cleared their throat. "As we were saying, we have chosen you as our champion. In exchange, we will grant you a power beyond mortal comprehension to aid you in your quest to—"
A loud clatter interrupted the speech as one of the gods dropped their glowing scroll. "Wait, what's this line? 'Absolute Denial'? That wasn't part of the plan!"
The other gods leaned in to inspect the scroll, their murmurs growing frantic.
"What's the problem?" Rei asked, already annoyed.
"The summoning ritual malfunctioned," one god admitted sheepishly. "Instead of granting you a standard heroic ability—like strength, speed, or magic—we've accidentally imbued you with the Authority of Absolute Denial."
Rei blinked. "Uh, what's that do?"
Another god sighed, clearly exasperated. "It allows you to reject anything. Death, fate, causality, existence itself—nothing can oppose you if you deny it."
Rei's eyebrow twitched. "So, you're telling me I can just... say 'no' to anything?"
"Yes."
"And it works?"
"Yes."
He stared at the gods for a long moment, then stood up and dusted off his pants. "Great. Thanks for the cheat power. I'll be leaving now."
"You can't leave!" the lead god exclaimed. "The fate of the multiverse depends on you! Without your help, countless worlds will—"
Rei waved his hand dismissively. "I deny that."
The gods froze. A ripple passed through the air, and their glowing forms dimmed.
"What... did you just do?" one whispered.
"I denied your doomsday prophecy or whatever. No big deal." Rei shrugged. "So, we're good, right?"
"No, we are NOT good!" the lead god shouted. "You can't just—"
"I deny that."
The god sputtered, their voice vanishing mid-sentence. Rei gave them a lazy grin. "Wow, this is fun."
Before the gods could regroup, Rei clapped his hands together. "Alright, I think I've had enough of this divine nonsense. I deny this meeting ever happened."
The entire hall trembled as the gods and their grandiose chamber dissolved into nothingness.
---
Rei blinked and found himself lying in the middle of a grassy field. A breeze rustled the trees, and a serene blue sky stretched overhead.
"Well, that's one way to get out of a mess," Rei muttered, sitting up. He looked down at his hands, flexing his fingers experimentally. "So, I can deny anything, huh?"
A sudden roar shook the earth. From the nearby forest, a massive wolf with glowing red eyes charged toward him, its teeth bared.
Rei sighed. "Of course. I can't even get five minutes to relax."
The wolf lunged, its claws gleaming.
"I deny you," Rei said flatly.
The wolf froze mid-air, its glowing eyes dimming. Then, with a faint pop, it disappeared, leaving behind nothing but a faint puff of smoke.
Rei yawned and stretched. "Yep, this is definitely going to be a pain."
Little did Rei know, his act of denial had already sent ripples through the multiverse. Beings from every corner of existence were now aware of him—a mortal with the power to undo reality itself.
And they were coming for him.