The empty white expanse sat in front of me, only broken up by a chair in front of me, occupied by a girl with blue hair.
"Satou Kazuma-san. Welcome to the afterlife. Unfortunately, you passed away moments ago. Your life was a short one, but you are, in fact, dead," said the woman in front of me.
Surprised by what she had said, I decided to distract myself from her statement by observing the woman.
She had a blue blouse on with a very short blue skirt. The skirt ended just barely at the bottom of her ass. Her hair was held up by a blue ball that kept her hair in a bizarre circle. A green ribbon sat just under her neck and seemed to hold her blouse together.
"Satou Kazuma-san, I realize that this is a very astonishing event, but I need to talk to you about what will happen next."
So I'm dead, huh? Well, I saved that girl, so I guess that my life was not for nothing. I thought.
"Satou Kazuma-san, my name is Aqua-sama. I am a goddess who guides humans who die young to the afterlife."
So that means that even though I'm dead something will happen?
"You have two choices. You can start from square one with a new life, or you can go to Heaven and carry on like an old man. To tell you the truth, Heaven isn't the dreamy place you all imagine it to be."
"Huh?" While that was somewhat expected, it's surprising that she would just flat out state it. Unless…
"Not only is there no TV, but there are also no manga or games, either. You don't even have3 a physical body, so can't do that either."
Based on her emphasis, there was little doubt what 'that' was.
"There's nothing to do there but bask in the sun for all eternity."
"Okay…?" I responded as she seemed to be waiting for a response.
"Yeah, you don't want to go to a boring place like Heaven, do you? On the other hand, starting over isn't so fun, either. On that note, I've got a great offer for you."
Yep, this is what I thought it was. A sales pitch. She is trying to push me into going for this other option by downplaying the qualities of the other options and trying to subtly imply that these other options would be something I would not like.
"You like games, don't you? That world, which has long enjoyed peace, is being threatened by the Devil King's army! The livelihood of its citizens has worked for are…"
I tuned the rest out. She is really trying to push for this option three. Even bringing up the supposedly terrible living qualities of the people in this world. She is playing on the reason that I died, too, trying to push the heroism of this option. Really pulling out all the stops.
"...Since that's the sort of world it is, everyone refuses to be reborn, so the population is declining."
But are the numbers of souls finite? That seems to be what she is implying, but the rising population is disagreeing with her.
"So we decided, 'Why not send people who've died in other worlds there with their bodies and memories intact'? To prevent you just dying as soon as you appear, you are granted to bring any one thing of your choosing with you. It could be a powerful weapon or a tremendous talent."
Yeah. I don't see many downsides in this deal. She is obviously pushing me to do this choice, but it seems that I don't have much a choice. It is possible that she could just send me anyways even if I choose something else. Goddesses in mythology have been known to do worse.
"Would I be able to understand the language of this other world?" There. That should be worded to ask for reading, writing, and speaking.
"Yes, that won't be an issue. With the kind support of us gods, we'll overload your brain and you will learn it instantly. As a side effect, your brain may go 'poof' if you're unlucky enough. So all that leaves you to choose is a powerful ability or piece of equipment."
'Poof'? That sounds dangerous. "You said something very serious just now. What do you mean 'poof'?"
"I never said that."
She probably wasn't supposed to say that, then. Might be contractually obligated to let me know?
"I'll grant you a power second to none!"
She moved a part of her body other than her mouth for the first time since me arriving, handing me a pamphlet that seemed to materialize out of nowhere. I opened it and started flipping through it.
This may be the number of games I've played speaking, but some of these abilities are broken! There's one here that has a sword that can cut through anything. And here, one that is a pendant that allows the user to change form at will!
The best thing that I can choose may be the goddess. She should, in theory, be better than any of these items. It is a calculated risk, but it should pay off well. I can brush away any of her concerns by saying 'what you said about heaven being boring made me want to save you from that'.
"Hey, hurry it up! No matter what you pick it's all the same. Nobody's expecting much from a shut-in otaku."
"I'm not an ota- well that would be a lie. But I'm not a shut-in! I died after leaving my house."
"None of that matters, just hurry it up."
Hurry it up? Well, even if she just supports it would still be helpful to have her.
Well, I guess I'm done.
"Very well. I choose you!" Pikachu! I jokingly finish in my head.
"All right," she started, not realizing what I had said, "stand there and don't leave the magic circle- What did you just say?"
A floating angel seemed to drift down from the sky. "We have heard your request. I shall take over for you from here on out, Aqua-sama."
"Huh?" Aqua, stupified replied to the angel.
"Satou Kazuma-san's wish complies with the regulations and has been accepted," the angel said.
"Hey, hey! What is all this? You've got to be kidding. No! No, no! This is not right! Taking a goddess with you is illegal!" I started to almost feel pity for her.
"Please have a safe trip, Aqua-sama. Should you successfully defeat the Devil King, I will send someone to pick you up," the angel said.
"I may have the ability to heal since I'm a goddess, but I have no fighting ability to speak of! I can't beat the Devil King!" The goddess said, tears starting to collect in the corners of her eyes.
"That's why you're with me! Since you're a goddess, you can use your godly powers to make this next life easier for both of us," I told her.
"Brave hero, I pray that of the many prospective heroes, you will be the one to defeat the Devil King. If you do so, we shall grant you any wish you desire as a gift from the gods. Good luck, Satou Kazuma. You will need it with her around."
"That's what I'm supposed to say! What do you mean by that, Eris-sama?"
The Town of Beginning Adventures
Axel
It's a parallel world! Wait, I'm really going to be using magic and going on adventures from here on out? Goodbye otaku, hello new world!
I looked to my side and saw Aqua sitting in the dusty street beside me, crying.
"Hey, shut up. You can't already look crazy when we've just arrived!"
Now, isn't there some basic starter equipment I'm supposed to get? Ah, that's probably what this bag is. It's full of coins.
"Kazuma! Kazuma! I can't go back! I'm really trapped here!"
"Shut up. We need to go to the nearest guild. They are good places to register and find information about where we are."
"You are supposed to be an otaku shut-in. Why are you so reliable?"
I rolled my eyes. "All right, let's go, Bakaqua."
"What did you call me? Kazuma! What did you just call me?"
I asked a nearby person about the Adventurers Guild as I tuned out Aqua's wailing, trying to look like I wasn't associated with her. I got some good directions and started off toward the Guild Hall.
Walking up the steps, the goddess still following me still, I was met with a large man with scars.
"Hey! I haven't seen you around here before. And what's with the weird clothes?" The large man asked.
"Oh, we just got into town today and I'm from a far off land. I want to register to become an Adventurer and heard this was the place to begin my fight against the Devil King's army."
"Is that right? Well, welcome to the gates of hell. If you're lookin' for the registration desk, it's over there by the pretty blonde."
I thanked him and walked in and headed over to the desk. Aqua entered after me, which I barely noticed due to having tuned her out.
"Hey. My and my friend there want to register as Adventurers," I told the blonde at the desk.
"I see. You'll have to pay the registration fee first, then we'll get you set up."
"How much is it?"
"1,000 Eris per person."
I pulled out a coin and held it up to my eye and read a small 1,000 on it. I pulled out another that looked similar and handed it to the lady.
"I'm Luna and let me formally explain. Adventurers have their own occupations. This is your registration card. It keeps track of how many monsters you have killed. As your level increases, you'll earn points that can be used to learn skills."
During the explanation, Aqua had come over and was listening to what Luna was saying.
"So please, work hard to raise your level. Now both of you please hold your hands over this crystal." I did as she asked. "With this, you will each learn your current status, so please choose your desired occupation based on your stats."
"Yes, like that. Let's see… only a bit above average in Strength, Vitality, Agility, Speed. Your Magic is a fair bit above average, but your Intelligence is really high! Your Luck is just ridiculous, though! With that high of a Luck, I'd recommend becoming a merchant if not for your other stats!"
Cool. While a merchant does sound interesting, it may be better to do something else. I might do a mage.
"With these stats, you can be a Thief, Mage, Swordsman, or Archer. You can also be one of the more advanced classes of Mage, a Wizard or an Arch Wizard. Your Magic skill may not be quite suited for those though. There is one more, but I wouldn't recommend it to anyone…" She said.
"Well, what is this last Job?"
"A Ranger, which can learn no skills on their own, but can learn any skill from any other class. It's not very good because of that."
Hm… That is a bit of a tough choice. I could be a form of magic user, but having the versatility from the Ranger would be very useful. Choices, choices.
"Oh, you can change your Job once every level. You don't need to be too picky now."
That changes things. I can choose a different Job. I think I'll take… Yeah, that makes sense.
"I'll take…"
I want to have you all determine his Job. I will probably have him keep the Job that he chooses here. That depends on how much I like it. The Ranger class would be closest to what he is in canon, as it is just the upgraded version of the Adventurer Job. So, it is up to you to decide what will happen from now on. Will he be the Skill absorbing powerhouse that he is in the show, or he will be something else?
It is up to you to decide. Leave a review with your vote. If you have any other Job suggestions, you can leave that as a comment and I will consider it.