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"Satou Kazuma, welcome to the afterlife. Your life, although short, is over."
The room I was in looked like the sky at night. It was black, but with small lights, as if it was telling me to not focus on the enveloping darkness, but to look at the glowing balls of gases that guided many crews back to their families.
I was sitting on an office chair while the person before me was sitting on a throne, as if she was royalty and I was the subject.
The moment I laid my eyes on her, I knew she was a goddess.
How should I describe her?
In terms of looks, a beauty queen would cry when facing her.
Her sky blue hair looked as mesmerizing and wavy as the ocean.
She had the expression of a mother looking at a child while seeming to be of my age.
She wore a dark blue outfit with a hagoromo draped over it and a globe around her neck.
...I was tempted to ask her to be my wife right then and there, and I would have if my voice didn't fail me.
I remembered what happened.
I don't go out often. In fact, I've spent most of my time at home, despite being seventeen. I am what you would call a 'hikikomori' or 'shut-in.'
Anyway, I heard there was a limited-first release version of a popular game, so I woke up early to buy it.
I bought it after lining up longer than I expected. By that time, the sun was already shining.
As I was rushing to get home, I walked past a girl whose uniform was from the same private school I went to.
She was walking down the pedestrian lane and the shadow of a truck loomed over her.
Before I knew it, I pushed her out of the way and...
"Hey, may I ask a question?"
"You may," the beauty replied.
"Is the girl safe?"
"Yes, she suffered a leg fracture, but it will heal over time."
I was relieved.
"Thank goodness."
I finally did something with my life.
"Puhehe."
Huh?
"HAHAHAHAHA!"
I've never heard a more annoying sound in my entire life.
Granted, my life already ended, but I didn't expect this.
"What's so funny?"
"You were trying to save that girl, right? I've never seen a human try to save someone from a tractor. Nothing would have happened to her if you just stayed put."
What tractor?
"A tractor?"
"Yes, a tractor. A slow-moving tractor."
"I was run over... by a tractor?"
Well, I see how that was a strange way to die.
"Nah, you died from shock."
"..."
I should probably stay silent.
"You even pissed your pants and had to be rushed to the nearest hospital. The surgeons were laughing so hard that they forgot to actually do the surgery! Puhehe!"
That was close.
If I married her, I would have divorced her in 30 minutes or less.
"When your parents arrived, the head surgeon told them about how you died, and they couldn't help but burst into laughter upon hearing about the cause of death."
I still don't see what's funny.
I only made things worse?
I think I'm going to cry.
"Well, I feel much better about myself now. I am Aqua, goddess of water and guide of those who die young in Japan. While your demise was funny, let's get down to business. The way I see it, you've got two options."
... Do gods bleed?
If they don't, can I at least strangle this one?
"You could either reincarnate as a baby, or you could go to heaven and live like an old man."
That explanation seems short.
"Heaven, huh? Sounds nice. I choose that."
"Actually, heaven isn't all that great. I should know, I've been there. You don't need to do anything there. You don't need food or sleep. There aren't any materials there like on Earth. That means games, manga and those weird doujins and videos I've seen from your memories don't exist. I'll tell you now: That stuff is disgusting. Also, you don't have a body, which means you can't do anything kinky. All you can do is chat with those who have died and went there. Forever."
Aqua emphasized the 'forever' part.
Doesn't sound like a good option to me.
"Oh right, youcouldbecomeahigherbeing if you're lucky."
"What did you just say?"
"Nothing."
Oh well, never mind then.
"The second option is to reincarnate in Japan. You might not live a luxurious life like you did before, and you won't retain your memories."
Both options are bad.
"Heaven. I'll go to heaven."
I'll just relax for all of eternity.
Aqua quickly said:
"Oh don't be in such a rush. There's another option."
I have a bad feeling about this.
"Do you like games?"
Aqua explained that in this world, there was a Demon King who was terrorizing all the inhabitants that weren't on his side. The people who were killed could respawn, but they didn't want to because they were traumatized.
"Gods and goddesses like myself came up with a solution to that! We offer the choice of reincarnating young people who've died with their original bodies and memories. To make it easier to not die immediately, you'll also come equipped with a legendary talent or weapon! What do you think?"
That did seem appealing, but...
"About the language-"
"With our fool-proof system, you'll be able to read and speak the language of that world. There's a chance your brain could be wiped blank, and you'll become a vegetable, but it's a really small chance."
"Hey, repeat that last part."
"Well, all that's left for you to do is to pick!"
Aqua threw a stack of papers in the air.
On each piece of paper, there was a description and picture of the talent or weapon.
These all looked cool but...
"Aqua-sama..."
Aqua sported a smirk.
"Yes?"
"There aren't many young teenagers like myself who die often, but there still are some... right?"
"Yeah."
"Your pitch was really convincing."
"Of course! All the young souls before you chose the third option."
I started sweating.
"If all of them chose the third option, and they got a really good weapon or talent, then that means that the mortality rate is really high isn't it?"
It wasn't really a question anymore.
"Now calm down, I only need to convince one more soul, so please accept- I'll even guide you myself if you wan-mmmprgh!"
Aqua quickly covered her mouth, and then... I saw it.
An angel appeared from above.
"Aqua-sama, thank you so much for volunteering. I'll transport both of you now."
A blue magic circle appeared under her feet and under mine as well.
No, no, no!
"W-Wait!"
Both Aqua and I had exclaimed the same thing.
"I didn't mean it, it was just a slip of the tongue- I swear!"
"Yeah, a slip of her tongue- I just wanna go to heav-"
"Farewell, heroes! Don't worry, Aqua. I will take care of your tasks. Both of you shall be granted a gift after you defeat the Demon King. I wish you luck on your journey."
A gift huh?
I looked at Aqua. She was squealing and begging to the angel. Her hagoromo was flailing around and her globe was glowing.
I suppose the weeping of someone who laughed at my death was satisfying and... pretty funny.
We were surrounded by a bright light-!
In the Demon King's castle:
"Another one..."
"My lord?"
"Call a meeting with the Generals."
I, the goddess of water, am screaming.
I can't be here. I'll just close my eyes and-
I'm still in this world!
"AHHHHH!"
I don't know what to do now.
Right! Where's that soul?
I looked to my right.
"Hey, Kazuma. What do we do now? I mean, I can live easily because I'm a goddess, but what about you? Wait a minute- are you even listening to me?!"
I looked at the soul.
He was staring at the ground with a blank expression and... drooling?
Author's Note: That's all for now! Please review on how the chapter was and how to make the other chapters better. I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Until next time!