I woke up in my bed and reached for my mobile phone to silence the alarm before it could ring. Sigh. It's been 14 years since I reincarnated into this world—a chaotic blend of DC comics. Even worse, it's a world where the stakes are higher, and the dangers are relentless. But hey, at least it's not Warhammer 40k, where every freaking character is just one wrong step away from dying in the most painfully imaginable way, or I'd probably be dead by now. I swung my legs off the bed and made my way to the orphanage washroom. Yeah, I'm an orphan. Of course, I had to be reincarnated without parents. Couldn't catch a break, could I?
Shaking my head, I couldn't help but wonder why whatever god or entity brought me here couldn't at least give me a decent family. And to top it off, I don't have any cheats. No special powers, no system, no nothing. Just me, my memories, and my wits. I've become one of those unlucky reincarnated isekai protagonists without a single cheat to my name. Before all this, my name was Ren Dover—an average-looking guy with nothing particularly special about him, except for my sharp sense for market trends and some decent game development skills that I used to create small mobile games. That skill helped me build my own investment company, and at one point, I was even among the top 150 richest people in the world. But I lived modestly and enjoyed helping others. After all, as the saying goes, "If you have enough, you should help those in need." And it's true—there's a unique joy in seeing someone's face light up when their worries are lifted.
Thankfully, I still have my memories and my knowledge from my past life. which i used them to secure enough wealth to live comfortably once I turn 18 and can legally leave the orphanage. You might be wondering how much money I have and how I got it. Well, the answer to the first question is $20 million, and the answer to the second is… games. Yes, I created Undertale in this world. How could I not? This world didn't have the masterpiece that is Undertale, so it felt like my god-given duty to introduce it. Unsurprisingly, it became a massive hit. I could've made it earlier, but I didn't have the funds for a decent computer back then.
After washing my face with warm water, I stared at myself in the mirror. A gray-haired man with blue eyes, pale skin, and a sharp jawline stared back. I'd say I'm a solid 7 out of 10—enough to catch the eye of some girls, but not exactly a heartthrob. They say a woman's heart is a mystery, and I guess that's why I never married in my previous life. Hey, don't look at me that way. The reason why I didn't have any girlfriend was because I was too busy building my career to find someone who wasn't a gold digger and actually cared for me. And then I died at 25, so yeah, my experience with women is… limited.
Today is a special day, though. Bruce Wayne, the billionaire playboy, is visiting the orphanage for some charity work. But if I'm not mistaken, he's probably here for another reason—his other work. You know, the whole Batman thing. Otherwise, why would he come to Central City? Yes, you heard that right. I didn't spawn in Gotham, of all places. I'm grateful I dodged that bullet. Shrugging my shoulders, I reminded myself it wasn't my business anyway. What could I possibly do about it?
I headed back to my room to work on my new game—or rather, the next project inspired by my old world. Hollow Knight. Yeah, that game. It's far more complex than Undertale and will require a lot more work. I'll need to hire artists, music producers, and programmers to handle some of the workload. It's a massive undertaking, but I'm determined to make it happen.
"Yo, Alex! Going back to your hole?" a voice called from behind me. I didn't even need to turn around to know it was Jim, my so-called friend. He's the hyperactive extrovert who somehow latched onto me. For someone as introverted as I am, he's both a blessing and a curse. In my past life, outside of my family, I only had one true friend. Jim, in his own way, fills that role here.
I turned around, plastering a confident smile on my face. "Yo, Jim. What's up?"
"Nothing much. Just wanted to ask if you're ready to meet Bruce Wayne. Who knows? If he's interested, he might take one of us under his wing, like he did with that Dick guy," Jim said with way too much enthusiasm.
Child soldier, Jim. Child soldier. But he doesn't need to know that. A smirk formed on my face as I walked over to him, placed a hand on his shoulder, and gave him a thumbs-up. "Do your best, Jim. If you're lucky, he might consider you for his little team of child soldiers." With that, I turned and walked away, leaving Jim standing there, utterly confused.
Closing the door behind me, I made my way toward my desk and opened my laptop to work on my project.
5 hours later
Letting out a breath, I looked at the clock next to my desk and saw that it was 12:45. Damn, I spent two hours just on this part of the code. Shaking my head, I stepped outside my room since it was approaching lunchtime. Most of the time, I prefer eating out rather than eating here—not saying the food at the orphanage is bad, but if you have money, why not spend it? But today, the orphanage director—the kind old woman—asked everyone to be present. Probably because of Bruce Wayne's visit, to show that everyone here is treated well.
I made my way inside and sat in the corner by the window. This place was mostly empty and was my favorite spot to watch the clouds float by. Then I saw a black car with the Wayne symbol on it enter the orphanage compound and stop near the entrance. The door opened, and out stepped a man who stood tall, with broad shoulders and a muscular frame. His face was perfect—a strong, well-defined jawline giving him a sculpted, elegant appearance. His nose was straight and proportionate, neither too large nor too small, complementing the overall harmony of his face. There was an air of confidence and charisma that radiated from him, making him not just physically attractive but also magnetic and memorable. It was a face that commanded attention without trying too hard, blending classic beauty with a touch of individuality. Oh, now I know why most of the female superhero and female—supervillains fall for Batman. With that face of his, I'm getting jealous of Batman.
Remember, Alex, beauty isn't everything. It's the heart that matters, as the greatest chad used to say. I watched as a few trucks followed and stopped. Bruce talked to some of them before walking inside.
"It is my pleasure that you came to visit this humble orphanage," the old director told Bruce Wayne.
I observed the interaction from afar. After they were done, Bruce surprised everyone by providing them with special Wayne Enterprises laptops. He was handing them out himself. As I went to take the laptop, my hand slightly touched Bruce's, and suddenly I heard a sound in my head—a voice that sounded like a female AI.
[System initializing…]
[System initialization complete.]
[Welcome to the Gacha System.]
[Please choose the world from which the gacha should be taken.]
What? A system? Gacha? I thought as I saw the screen floating in front of me. Wait, first I should quickly thank Bruce Wayne. I made my way to my room with the laptop in hand.
Placing the laptop on the desk carefully and sitting on the chair, I began to think. Gacha means random pull, so it's mostly luck-based. But the question remains—what world should I choose? I've watched a lot of TV shows, movies, and manga. "Jujutsu Kaisen could be interesting," I muttered. As the words were spoken, I quickly regretted my decision.
[Gacha world chosen.]
[The Gacha System has become the Jujutsu Kaisen System.]
My eyes widened in shock as I watched the screen transform into the JJK gacha system. Wait, wait, wait! This isn't what I wanted! I told the system in my mind with a worrying thought, but the system didn't change.
[Once the decision has been made, it cannot be changed.]
Ahhhhhhh! I shouted in my mind in anger for my stupid decision. It is what it is. I have to work with what I have. "Okay, system, how do you work?"
[1 million USD for one pull.]
[First 5 pulls are free.]
[yes /no ]
I have five free pulls. With all the knowledge from my past life, I know exactly what to do. I dropped to my knees, joined my hands together, and bowed my head. If anyone saw me, they'd probably think I was deep in prayer. Oh, mighty Gacha Lord, I, a humble being, beg you for a 5-star reward. Amen. With a deep breath, I opened my eyes and clicked the "Yes" button.
[Reward: Itadori's Hand-to-Hand Combat Technique]
Itadori's hand-to-hand combat technique is a good thing to have. It's not bad, but I could've really used something flashier, like Blue or Red techniques, or even the Goat or Flowing Scales from Sukuna's arsenal. Dismantle or Cleave would've been nice too. But hey, you've got to start somewhere, right?
Alright, I still have four more pulls. Come on, Infinity or that bum Megumi's Ten Shadows technique would be great.
[Reward: Nanami's Ratio Technique]
Okay, still not bad. If I put some creative binding vows on it, this could be really useful. Like, what if I limit the Ratio Technique to only my right hand or right leg, but it deals 100% more damage? Oh, I could abuse binding vows like there's no tomorrow.
I tried to use the technique on the chair, but nothing happened. Why is that? System, why didn't Ratio work?
[Because the user doesn't have cursed energy.]
Oh, that makes perfect sense, I thought, bringing my hand to my chin and tilting my head. So now, I either have to pull cursed energy from my free pulls or dip into my money stash. Alright, I've got a good feeling that the next one will be Yuta's cursed energy.
[Reward: Yuki's Cursed Energy Reserve]
Not the one I wanted, but the one I needed—that's what I like to say. Yuki is special-grade for her cursed techniques, but her cursed energy reserve isn't exactly top-tier. Still, it's okay. Now, at least, I can use my techniques.
Alright, two free pulls remain. Taking a deep breath, I pressed the "Yes" button again, hoping for Gojo's Infinity.
[Reward: Todo's Cursed Technique – Boogie Woogie]
Brother. The man. The myth. The legend himself. This is a really good technique, even without adding binding vows into the equation. Suddenly, I felt a surge of luck. Smiling widely, I quickly pressed the next button, fearing that if I hesitated, my luck would vanish.
[Reward: Mai's Cursed Technique – Construction]
The smile on my face instantly disappeared as I dropped to my knees in defeat. I had literally gotten the worst version of this technique. Okay, it's not that bad. I can work with it, I thought to myself, with my confidence shaking
Sigh. Letting out a sigh, I scratched my head as I had just finished with my free gacha pulls. Now, the only option left was to use my own saved-up money to pull. But hey, a million dollars is a lot—though it doesn't compare to something like Infinity or the Six Eyes. After giving it some thought, I opened my investment account to check how my investments were doing. Oh, yes, this raises a big question.
"Hey, System," I asked, "how will the money be taken out? Like, if I pull four times, will my $5 million just vanish from my bank? Won't that raise suspicion in the world? And how can I tell you which investments to remove money from and how much?" I was worried this could lead to more problems in the real world.
The answer the system gave me was reassuring:
[The system will make it as if the money never existed. As for your other question, you can instruct the system on where to remove the money from and how much.]
Alright, now I looked at my phone to see that I had $25 million. Raising an eyebrow, I checked further and realized that one of the companies I had invested in had released a new product, and Lex Corp was interested in buying the entire company. This is going to be interesting, I thought. The world's timeline is before Darkside's attack and the formation of the Justice League. Except for Flash and Superman, there are no mainstream superheroes.
Wait a minute. Placing my hand on my chin, my eyes widened in realization. I had yet to do the most important thing that every isekai protagonist does—rip off the old franchises from my world! This world doesn't have anime or manga like the ones released in my old world. Yes, this could work. This world deserves some good culture, like Naruto and Bleach. And why stop there? I could recreate masterpieces like Dune here. A huge smile spread across my face as I realized the limitless potential for money and influence.
But then it hit me—I don't know how to draw. That's a problem, but it's solvable. First things first, though: gacha. "Okay, System, remove $5 million from my investment in housing properties in Gotham."
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