Rei lay back in the grass, arms crossed behind his head, enjoying the calm that followed his first encounter with his new power. The blue sky stretched endlessly above, birds chirped in the distance, and a soft breeze rustled the leaves. It was the kind of peaceful moment he always dreamed of having back in his normal, vending-machine-crushed life.
"Not bad," Rei muttered to himself, staring at the clouds. "Maybe this otherworld thing won't be so bad after all. No responsibilities, no deadlines, no vending machines trying to assassinate me. Just peace and quiet."
Unfortunately, Rei's moment of tranquility was short-lived. The ground beneath him began to shake violently. A bright red sigil appeared in the sky, etched with glowing runes that burned like fire. A chorus of ethereal chanting echoed across the land as the sigil grew larger, pulsing ominously.
Rei sighed. "Of course. It's never that easy, is it?"
The sigil erupted in a cascade of crimson light, and from the center emerged a massive figure clad in spiked black armor. Its eyes glowed an eerie green, and its shadow alone seemed to darken the entire field.
The figure pointed an enormous, jagged sword at Rei. "Mortal!" it bellowed, its voice like thunder. "I am Kael'tor, the Herald of Ruin! By the will of the gods, I have come to—"
"I deny that," Rei said casually, waving his hand.
Kael'tor's speech was cut off mid-sentence. The towering figure froze, its sword vanishing into thin air. A moment later, the rest of its body followed, unraveling into a flurry of glowing particles that scattered on the wind.
Rei stretched and yawned. "Huh. That was easy."
He barely had time to relax before another sigil appeared, this time in the shape of a golden sun. A squad of armored knights stepped out, their polished weapons gleaming in the light. At the center of the formation stood a man in ornate white and gold armor, a halo of divine light encircling his head.
"Rei Nakamura!" the knight declared, his voice ringing with authority. "By the decree of the Holy Order, you are to be detained and brought before the Council of Divinity for crimes against reality itself!"
Rei rubbed his temples. "Crimes against reality? Seriously? I've been here for, what, five minutes?"
"You have violated the sacred balance of existence by wielding powers beyond mortal comprehension!" the knight continued, raising a shining spear. "Surrender now, or face the judgment of the Holy Order!"
Rei sat up and raised a finger. "Okay, first of all, I didn't ask for this power. Second, I'm not surrendering to a bunch of cosplay rejects. And third..." He snapped his fingers. "I deny your authority."
The knight staggered, his halo flickering. "What—what did you just do?"
"Denied you," Rei said with a shrug. "No big deal."
The rest of the knights hesitated, clearly unnerved. The leader growled and steadied himself. "Do not falter, men! This abomination cannot be allowed to—"
"Denied," Rei interrupted again.
The knights vanished in a flash of light, leaving nothing but empty space where they had stood.
Rei sighed, standing up and dusting off his clothes. "Okay, this is getting ridiculous. Do I have a sign over my head that says, 'Please come and bother me'? I just want some peace and—"
The sky itself darkened as a third sigil appeared, this one black as night and radiating pure malice. A chill ran down Rei's spine as a voice, cold and merciless, echoed from the void.
"Rei Nakamura... you will not escape the consequences of your defiance."
From the sigil emerged a woman cloaked in shadows, her crimson eyes piercing through the darkness. She carried no weapon, yet her presence alone was suffocating.
"Let me guess," Rei said dryly. "You're here to 'judge me for my crimes against reality,' right?"
The woman tilted her head, a faint smile playing on her lips. "Not quite. I am Lena, Goddess of Chaos. I've come to observe you."
Rei frowned. "Observe me?"
"Yes. Your power is... fascinating. Absolute Denial. A force that transcends even the gods." Lena's eyes gleamed. "Do you realize what you've become, Rei Nakamura? You are no mere mortal. You are a walking paradox—a being who can reject the fundamental laws of existence."
Rei shrugged. "Yeah, I kinda figured that out when I denied a giant wolf and a guy with spiky armor into nonexistence. What's your point?"
Lena's smile widened. "My point is that such power does not go unnoticed. The gods fear you, Rei. They will send champions, armies, and even themselves to destroy you."
Rei crossed his arms. "And let me guess, you're different? You don't want to destroy me?"
"Destroy you?" Lena laughed, the sound echoing eerily. "No, no. I want to see what you do with that power. Will you bring order to this chaotic world? Or will you plunge it into ruin? Either way, it will be... entertaining."
Rei sighed. "Great. So now I've got a creepy stalker goddess watching my every move. Just what I needed."
Before Lena could respond, another figure appeared in the sky, this one clad in resplendent golden armor. His presence radiated pure divinity, and the ground trembled beneath him.
"Lena!" the figure roared. "You dare interfere with divine judgment?"
Lena rolled her eyes. "Oh, look, it's the babysitter. Relax, Alaric, I'm just here to watch."
The golden-armored figure, Alaric, turned his gaze to Rei. "Mortal! You are an abomination, a threat to the balance of the cosmos. I, Alaric, God of Justice, shall purge you from existence!"
Rei groaned. "Can I get a five-minute break from all this cosmic drama?"
Alaric raised his sword, a weapon of pure light, and charged at Rei with blinding speed.
"Denied," Rei said, waving his hand.
Alaric froze mid-strike, his sword shattering into particles of light. The god staggered, clutching his chest as his divine aura flickered.
"What... have you done?" Alaric gasped.
"I denied your attack," Rei said simply. "And I'm denying this fight. Go home."
With a snap of his fingers, Alaric vanished, leaving the field silent once more.
Lena clapped slowly, a smirk on her face. "Impressive. Very impressive. But tell me, Rei—how long do you think you can keep this up? The gods won't stop. They can't stop. You've disrupted the balance of power, and they will come for you."
Rei shrugged. "Let them come. I'll just deny them too."
Lena laughed again, her form dissolving into shadows. "We'll see, Rei Nakamura. We'll see."
As the goddess vanished, Rei sat back down in the grass, rubbing his temples. "This is going to be a long afterlife."