The slow embrace of the void was closing in on Sel.
"Master, where are you? Master..." Sel said while frantically looking for Reiji.
"Where could he be?… Wait… could it be he was forcibly reincarnated into another world?" Sel said with a look of confusion and relief on her face as she readied herself.
"Well, I'll just have to go find him..." Sel turned, looking into the void. "Phew… this is going to be a pain… on the other hand, I'll get to be with [Blur]—Reiji's real name. It's worth it," Sel said with a smile on her face.
The scene cuts to Reiji.
"Where am I?... Did I somehow return to Earth? Was it all a dream?" Reiji said while looking around at his environment.
With a look of confusion, I stood up to check my surroundings.
"Trees as far as the eye can see… it wasn't a dream after all..." I let out a sigh of confusion and disappointment.
"What happened to Sel?... Is she somewhere around here?"
"Of course not," I said while imagining Sel's outward personality and charismatic attitude with a hint of tsundere.
Just as the thought crossed my mind, I heard a loud voice.
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A TSUNDERE?!"
It was Sel—falling from the sky… falling toward me?! Frightened, I tried to dodge her falling right on top of me.
"HEY! HEY! WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE FALLING?!"
The more I ran, the more she followed me in mid-air, as if she were intentionally trying to fall right on top of me.
"Hey, stop following me! Go find somewhere to la—"
Before I could finish my sentence, Sel crashed… right on top of me.
"Yahoooo! And that's how you crash-land!" —Sel
"Ow, ow, ow… 'How you crash-land' my ass," I said while holding my head.
"Oh, zip it. You should be thanking me..I chose to crash-land on you."
"HEY…" I said, looking at Sel angrily.
"Oh, stop overreacting. It didn't hurt that bad." —Sel
"Oh yeah?..." But then I realized...she was right. It didn't hurt that much. Why though? I asked myself.
"Are you made of carbon fiber?" I asked, puzzled as to why she was that light.
I immediately felt my body burning...the same sensation as when Sel held me in the void.
"WHAT DID YOU SAY, YOU JERK?! I'm made of carbon fiber, huh?!" —Sel
"No, no! I'm sorry, okay?! I didn't mean it that way. I barely felt any pain at all, that's why I asked!" I said, trying to get her to let go.
"Huh? Are you dumb? You barely felt anything because you're durable in this other world." —Sel
"Huh?" I said, with a look of confusion.
"Jeez, you need a lesson on how to address women, you know." —Sel
"Yeah, sorry about that... but wait...you said I'm more durable?"
"Yup! I made sure to give you some awesome abilities before coming to find you." —Sel
I got up hurriedly.
"What? Really? That's cool… must be nice being a goddess."
"It sure is," Sel said with a smile on her face, clearly enjoying the praise. Now that I think of it… she really did enjoy it.
"I am a goddess, that's true... but when coming down here, I had to put a limiter on myself." —Sel
"What? Why?" I said, confused. I mean, anyone would want to know why a goddess would limit her own powers, right?
"Well... it's kind of complicated, but just to put it in simple terms… if I were to descend to the lower realms of the human world… BOOM—gone.
"What, for real? Wait—are you really that powerful, Sel?" I said, surprised and confused.
"I sure am," Sel replied with a smug, accomplished look on her face.
"Wait… then what about me? Am I really that strong too?" I asked, excited, like I was expecting a prize.
"Yes..."
A huge smile spread across my face. I was about to burst with excitement.
"...You were," Sel added.
"Huh? What? Were? Oh right, I almost forgot... I'm just a shell of what I used to be. Ugh."
Still, I wondered—what was I like before reincarnating as Reiji? Was I really a god? Sel didn't seem like she was lying... I'd just have to keep asking her as we go.
"Wait... where exactly are we?" I asked.
"In a forest. The Kingdom of Grimholde should be this way," Sel said.
"Oh yeah? Wait—Grimholde? How do you even know the names of kingdoms in this world?"
"Well, before following you here, I absorbed all the information about this world. Unfortunately, I lost most of it after I limited myself. So I remember some stuff, like the names of significant kingdoms and a few major characters… like the Hero."
"Hero?!" I blinked. "You mean there's already a Hero in this world?"
"Of course there is. You thought you were going to be the Hero? This world already has one. You being here was a huge mistake.... wait, no. You were forcibly brought here."
A wave of disappointment hit me like a slap. So I'm not the Hero… No OP powers, and I'm not even special? What a joke. Send me back to my world already. This was a damn waste of—
Oh yeah... I can't go back. Not with those freaky things chasing me.
Wait...
"Hey Sel, isn't the world like, in danger? Should we really just be standing here doing nothing?"
"Let's get moving then," she said without hesitation.
And so, we began our journey toward the Kingdom of Grimholde.
"Oh yeah, and about your question earlier..." Sel continued. "The world is going to end. But we've still got time."
"Really? That's good. At least we can make a plan before it happens. How much time do we have?"
"Well... around 30 to 50 years, give or take."
"HUH? That long? That's practically half my life! I'd be pushing the Unc Status by then!"
"No, you won't. You can't die of natural causes. I'm not sure about... other things, though."(I can't let anything happen to him in this form. The truth is... even I don't know what happens to him in this body. We have to be careful.)
"Oh really? Well, that's good to know at least."
I turned and saw Sel deep in thought. I chose not to ask any more questions. She looked too serious, and I didn't want to ruin the mood. So we just kept walking.
We kept walking until we reached a cliff. I looked out and could finally see Grimholde. We were close. Relief washed over me. At last, I could rest, learn more about this strange new world, and begin preparing for the inevitable day I knew would come.
As I stepped into the kingdom of Grimholde, it felt like I'd walked straight into the pages of a storybook. Stone streets bustled with horse-drawn carriages and children darting between vendors, their laughter echoing through the air. The scent of fresh bread, blooming lilacs, and something faintly magical... like the crackle of lightning before a summer storm...hung around us. Guards in silver-trimmed armor patrolled in pairs, though they didn't appear threatening at all. One of them was even helping an old woman across the road.
And rising above it all, nestled in the distance, stood the royal castle.
"This is nothing like the kingdoms I read about in books," I whispered without realizing it.
"I'm sure it's not," Sel said with a proud smile, like she was quietly basking in a personal victory.
"Well, we still need to find the Adventurers Guild and register. We need to gather as much information as possible. Information is power, as they say," Sel added.
Eventually, we found the guild. It was a massive structure located at the heart of the central district, with a large, weathered sign reading "ADVENTURERS GUILD" hung boldly above the entrance.
Inside, the place was a chaotic symphony of noise. Adventurers laughed, shouted, and drank with wild abandon. Some sang; others arm-wrestled on tables worn smooth from years of similar battles. Typical adventurer stuff.
But not everyone was caught up in the revelry. I felt eyes on me... harp, hungry gazes. Battle-hardened warriors scanned me with expressions that made my skin crawl. Was this some kind of ability kicking in? Or could everyone just… sense these things?
We made our way to the reception desk, where a young woman was calmly flipping through a thick, leather-bound book. She wore a composed, professional expression—too composed, honestly, given the chaos behind her.
"We'd like to register with the guild, please," Sel said.
"Of course. Please fill out this form and proceed to the magical assessment afterward," the receptionist replied, sliding a parchment toward us.
I couldn't take my eyes off her.
She was stunning.
"Would you like to register as well?" she asked, her voice effortlessly pulling me out of my trance.
Flustered and slightly mortified, I tried to respond like a normal human being. Instead, I malfunctioned.
"M-M-MY NAME IS REIJI! IT'S A PLEASURE TO MEET YOU ON THIS FINE DAY!"
What the hell was that?! Had my years of loneliness finally caught up to me? I wanted to disappear. I glanced at Sel—she was glaring at me like she was trying to ignite me with her eyes.
"Really?" Sel deadpanned.
"My name is Lyra. It's nice to meet you on this fine day as well," the receptionist said, her voice laced with something I couldn't quite read. Was it sarcasm? Playfulness? Mockery?
Just kill me now. This was so embarrassing.
"Uhm..." Lyra said, looking at me expectantly.
"Y-Y-Yes! I would love to register, please," I stammered.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sel's expression darken. She was angry about something, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.
I was filling out my registration form, while Sel was getting her magic assessed.
As we journeyed to the kingdom, Sel talked about the types of magic that existed in this world. There are four basic elements: Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth. There are also Light and Dark magic. Beyond that, there are ancient or "lost" magics—types that haven't been seen or used in hundreds, maybe even thousands, of years.
Scene cuts to Sel, during her magic assessment.
"Put your hand on the magic cube, please. This will tell us your elements and aptitude for them," said Lyra.
"So like this?" Sel replied, placing her hand on the cube.
A face of shock and disbelief spread across Lyra's face. Her mouth hung slightly open, as if words had tried to leave but got stuck halfway out.
"Incredible... This can't be real. This is unheard of," she muttered.
"This is a good thing, right?" Sel asked, raising an eyebrow.
"'Good' isn't even close. This is unreal. Unbelievable. Wait—hold on, we need to retake the test just to be sure."
"Uhm... Okay."
Lyra disappeared into the back and returned with another magic cube. She asked Sel to place her hand on it again. Sel complied.
"This... This is the same as before. She has an aptitude for all magical elements. And not just that—she has them all at maximum level."
The guild hall went dead silent. Then came the whispers.
"That can't be true, right?" – Random Adventurer 1"It has to be a lie." – Random Adventurer 2"But she took the test twice. Same result." – Random Adventurer 3"They must be cheating. That's impossible!" – Random Adventurer 4
Lyra turned to me. "Hey, Reiji, right? Let's take your magical assessment next."
Sel is this incredible? I'm definitely going to be as strong as her—or maybe even stronger. I'm her master, after all.
Sorry, randoms. You just got yourselves a new strongest adventurer. I don't know or care how strong the previous guy was—I'm about to set a record. No one can stop me...
Or so I thought.
"Put your hand on the magic cube, Reiji," said Lyra.
"Sure," I said with a smug grin.
"Her powers are incredible. I can't wait to see yours."
As I placed my hand on the cube, a bright light exploded from it, filling the entire guild hall.
"Wow. I knew I was strong, but not this strong," I said proudly.
"This is... This is..." Lyra's expression shifted to a mix of confusion and concern.
"What? Am I so strong you're speechless? Can't blame y—"
"No. That's not it. In fact... you're incredibly weak. Are you sure you're ready to be an adventurer?" she asked with genuine pity.
"...Huh? That can't be true. I am strong. I'm sure of it. Let me take another test. Just like Sel. Maybe there was a glitch."
I glanced at Sel—and I swear I saw her smiling.
No. She was smiling.
She was mocking me.
Suddenly, I felt it—an overwhelming pressure. Bloodlust. A gaze that pierced into my very soul.
What was this? No... Who was this?
The entire guild fell silent. Not a single person dared to speak.
I turned around.
A massive presence stood at the guild's entrance.
"That... No, it can't be. What's he doing here? He rarely shows up at the guild," whispered Lyra.
"Wait—you know this guy?" I asked.
"'Know him?' Everyone knows him. Every adventurer. Every citizen in Grimholde. That's the strongest adventurer in the entire kingdom..."
"KAEL THORNE," Lyra declared.
What the hell have I gotten myself into now?