Disclaimer: Re: Zero is not owned by this certain author, nor is he using it to profit. The idea for the alternate timeline, however, is mine.
1
When I realized I was transported to another world, I could feel various emotions swelling within me.
Euphoria. I felt an elation that could only be described as ineffable. It was bursting in my insides, seeking to be released. This was only so when I realized.
The fact that I had been transported to another world.
A fantasy that most otakus like myself would surrender everything for an astronomically tiny chance for it to come true. The bargain would have appeared illogical from an objective viewpoint as 'everything' was too large. Too large for a price to pay, even for a second chance to live.
But the thing was that, we were outcasts of our society.
Abandoned. Tattered. Treated like trash. Faceless beings casually ignoring them as if it was normal. To break the norm was taboo. Anyone who dared to do so was judged by the eyes of society as impudent. They create false impressions online, praising those who did good out of goodwill.
Hypocrisy was the image of society.
One would not lend a hand to those in need, out of fear of stigma, unless required. Thus, those who were deemed as trash were left alone. Humanity's wastes.
In light of our poor choices and circumstances at the most important points of our lives to lower our worth as outcasts, the value of this opportunity was insignificant compared to 'everything'.
Skepticism. The impossibility of the situation, which I'm assuming, was absolute in the common sense. It was literally incomprehensible. To think that another world could have existed—let alone an alternative one?
This had some logical sense, however, when diving deep into literature. History has proven to us that what we had used to conceive as "impossible" was merely pessimism and short-sightedness at work, ignoring the potential of developing moral values and technology of their time.
The creation of civilization. Iron forging. Traversing beyond the unknown territory and creating an empire. Freedom and equality over aristocracy. Vehicles. The irony of the invention of the airplane and the paradoxical discovery of nuclear fusion. Black holes. Teleportation.
The impossibility of all of these phenomena was all debunked by science, time, and perseverance. No matter how long, humanity had persevered to surpass the impossible.
There was just one tiny bit of a problem.
The way I was transported to this world wasn't even what you call a scientific breakthrough.
Inquisitiveness. I wondered how this world worked. Did it follow the same laws of physics my world had? The existence of gravity here was still similar to my world as I didn't feel the excessive force the ground inflicted against me.
Or perhaps the sensation was just the same, but the noumenon itself was different.
The laws and lore of the world I was previously in were still on the brink of the unknown, brimming with potential yet to be uncovered. There was just so much to discover about the universe.
However, I lost interest in digesting information about them when I was piled with tedious, mundane topics of knowledge taught by teachers without even making us understand their significance and potential, nor to allow us to explore and analyze in a practical, exciting, and child-friendly way.
Nevertheless, the embers of my curiosity were fanned by the fuel of "incentives" into a raging fire.
Money, reputation, and power. The very three arsenals of the rich and powerful. With these, you could claim and pursue anything you wanted the more you had them. Securing happiness materially could be achieved without fail.
Of course, there were still other factors to gain happiness. I must acknowledge that fact.
Through the advancement and techniques of science in my former world, I could innovate primitive concepts and lead a revolution in technology and social reform. My reputation could be equivalent to the likes of Newton.
After all, what could ignite curiosity more effectively than ambition and gain?
I studied my surroundings with my eyes. Humans and individuals with animalistic characteristics appeared to be walking casually together as if there was little difference between them. Some people were displaying cold looks, expressions of disgust, and anger. A clear indication that racism still exists here.
In light of how severe the discrimination was in my world during the pre-Revolutionary eras to the point that an entire race of humans was subject to slavery and segregation, it was surprising how lax this country is when compared to a similar period of time in my world.
The language they spoke was still understandable to me. It was similar to ol' English. Might be the fact that it might have originated in a medieval society. The writing system had a say, however, when my mind failed to interpret or analyze the symbols written on the posters placed around the walls in the street.
I could feel my nervousness and excitement. My body trembled, barely able to suppress the impulse to act without a clear goal or understanding of the world around me. I eagerly attempted to lift my legs with the intent to explore this city.
...
Frozen. It refused to move. As if it was chained to the ground.
Why?
I was clearly enthusiastic, but my body said otherwise. It refused to move on its own. I willed myself to try and push a step in futility as it still would not budge. Hesitation was likely the main cause of my current plight. But why hesitate?
I gritted my teeth in frustration.
My expectations were accelerating to sky-high levels. Enough to leave irreversible traumatic scars if this situation was to be proven false in any way if it goes on.
I have been betrayed by expectations more times than the average person could count.
Expectations that were perfectly reasonable. Valid. Credible, even. It was within common sense to know that quality was above quantity. That it was perfectly fine to conclude using smart and more efficient methods over hard work, discipline, and tradition.
So why did the most important things in my life keep on failing to reach my expectations of them?
Even the normal ones could have sufficed. But they just kept on breaking boundaries in the most unexpected ways possible. Or perhaps it was wrong of me to have expectations in the first place? It might even be the scope of my expectations.
No. I knew my flaw.
People kept reminding me that I should be lowering my standards.
But I can't help it, really.
Expectations were instinctive. They couldn't be controlled or disciplined in any way. It was even foolish to consider it. One could only suppress or control how they would respond regarding expectations in the external world using defense mechanisms.
Not in the internal world, where it had negative effects.
Forming expectations, in another perspective, could also be some sort of defense mechanism from trauma. This clearly shows in pessimism.
Regardless, the most effective way to control my response was to confirm what could be confirmed early. As the side effects that come from failing to meet expectations could be mitigated the lesser the time it is given to propagate.
So I tried shooting down my hopes by asking this particular question:
Was this simply a dream or was this actually happening?
A common trope in books or any anime series is that the main protagonist of the story pinches their chin or any part that's sensitive in an attempt to check whether this was the product of their dreams or reality facing them.
This usually is proven the latter thanks to plot convenience.
My logical self argued that this trope did not apply to reality. However, the circumstances I was currently in argued that the situation wasn't even realistic to begin with.
The aforementioned analogy I've given was of poor quality, to be honest. But there's nothing wrong with seeing my current situation from an RPG perspective. Plus, you can't feel pain in dreams.
Right?
I proceeded to pinch my cheeks with a twisted sense of hope.
...
Other than the sensation of my cheeks compressing from the pressure applied by the outside force, it was even generous of me to say that I barely felt any pain at all.
A deafening silence engulfed me. As I froze in dismay in the middle of the path, life went on around me. With eyes downcast from disappointment and second-hand embarrassment, my arms sagged below my shoulders.
My inner voice told me, "This isn't working." My face was nigh-tolerant to surface pain due to the rough treatment it had experienced in the past, courtesy of my ID.
A thought popped out. It was incredibly foolish and unnecessary that my logical self immediately protested. But it was the only plan in mind I had left.
With ease and without regard for social protocol, I stomped my foot hard on the stone floor.
As a result of the action-reaction force, shockwaves from the impact vibrated through every joint in my foot. My leg shivered. The pressure from the collision compressed them against my skin.
A thousand needles prickled my heel. The sound echoed through the alleyway, attracting the attention of the bystanders. They looked at me weirdly and soon left, minding their own business.
I breathed a sigh of relief. Even though my feet were numb, the pain indicated that it was illogical to think that I was in a dream in the first place.
I could hear the clanking of a vault opening inside my head. Optimistic thoughts and aspirations washed into the corners of my mind, allowing my brain to analyze and process them. Not even a trace of hesitation was left in me.
My motivation reached unfathomable levels as the hypothalamus released dopamine, which was incomparable to any situation when I was still in the previous world. It would be an understatement to say I was merely enthusiastic.
In fact, even if one attempts to search the whole thesaurus of the U.S. Congress Library given as much time as he needs, not a word he can find can accurately describe the amount of excitement flowing through me. Enthusiasm, however, comes with an underlying state of confusion:
Exactly how the hell do I redo my life in this world?
Just as I was considering writing my 'Foolproof Guide to Start Life in Another World', something dimly glinted in my peripheral vision. My attention was drawn to the phenomenon.
I turned to examine it.
A distorted, black line zigzagged through the air, unaffected by any natural vectors.
It was barely visible under the sunlight, glowing in a corporeal manner. As thin as a strand of yard, it stretched endlessly to the horizon. Just barely above the faceless people who lived across the streets.
The line pulsed occasionally, blue veins appearing then fading away after a moment had passed.
I grew curious about what it could be. My hand reached for it, supported by my body's abnormal height. Only to find the line essentially intangible as my fingers phased through it.
It seems as though I couldn't grasp nor interact with the thread-like phenomenon. I waved my hand in the air, attracting the curious eyes of the locals. The people around me didn't appear to be able to perceive the line above them as they paid more attention to my hand than the line above them.
Being a hallucination was a possibility, although very unlikely. Especially considering that I didn't have any significant memories or fears regarding threads nor inconsistent lines.
Additionally, I did not exhibit any early symptoms of Schizophrenia in my life, so that hypothesis was already considered unrealistic and therefore, null.
It is also possible that I, someone who has been transported to another world, would be able to view lines similar to this one as part of my Starter Pack in accumulating to this fantasy world.
An ability like this should have significance since such a scenario can't be a coincidence. The timing is too coincidental to be mere chance. It may have been destiny's way to invest in me or equip me to handle upcoming major problems.
There was no way I could believe that this was the whim of some naughty god intent on bringing fun to my future adventures.
As a result, I tried moving my legs forward to follow the direction of the line. Surprisingly, the heavy lumps I used to have in place of my legs were gone. Walking was significantly far easier than I had in my previous world. It might be due to the intervention of adrenaline and serotonin that I was able to experience such a feeling.
The gratefulness I had for the person responsible for my current situation was immeasurable.
I tiptoed at a snail's pace, perfectly aligning my foot's position inside the geometrical patterns of the pavement, nervous from the surreal sensation I had. Then the intervals of my footsteps accelerated into a walk's pace and then skipping the path out of euphoria.
Everything that I've passed became a blur as my brain failed to keep up with the influx of information my vision received.
Unknown individuals hurriedly shooed away from my hyperactivity. Their behavior indicated that they feared to collide and sending my figure tottering.
Although I had no idea where I was, I continued strolling along the street, oblivious to the scrutinizing gazes I received as I passed by the medieval houses lining the sidewalk.
In my former world, I would have shrunk out of embarrassment from the judging stares of society and catching the attention of authorities. This would indicate that I unintentionally disturbed the norm where they felt comfortable.
But why should I care about standards in this world? In contrast to my former world, no vehicles were passing beside the path, and the streets weren't as narrow and crowded as the avenues of Manila.
Skipping was merely the outlet I used to manage my body's overstimulation caused by excess dopamine being excreted.
Moreover, I had a destination in mind:
To follow the distorting line in the air erratically glowing.
It felt as though I was being guided towards something of great significance by the line. Like I would regret doing so when I would be ignoring it. The ominous feeling of promise and loss didn't help either.
I might be influenced by an unknown variable, but it was strange that my rationality was aligned with my goals. It also gave me a predetermined answer to the question I had earlier.
I shook my head to clear my thoughts. Such skepticism is counterproductive to my current goal. Doubt only serves to lengthen the speculation I had in mind, trapping me in a complex web of uncertainty.
As I turned from corner to corner to follow the line, I passed brick structures inferior to modern architecture. Quite a distance did I travel from my initial spawn point until I found myself in a park.
My eyes were glued to a fountain that felt so familiar to me. I tried to recollect the sensation of familiarity with no success as nothing came to mind. Coincidentally, the distorting line seemed to lead into an area behind the fountain, blocked by the said object.
My attempt to assess the endpoint of the line was then halted by a wave of nervousness, uncertain of what to do. Just the thought of what comes after overwhelmed my logical capacity, unable to do any worthwhile analysis other than the apprehensive urge to avoid the goal in fear of failure or disappointment.
I was suddenly compelled to chew something.
Instinctively, I reached for my handbag which swung the whole duration when I ran towards this place. Although most isekai protagonists start with Zero and later get OP power-ups via plot armor, I already had a handbag as a starter pack and was able to perceive astral lines of unknown origin. Though I am unaware of the significance of the latter, it is still important to mention.
A far cry compared to being chosen as the Hero of the Shield, bringing a Goddess as an otherworldly adventure companion, or getting a self-aware, omniscient AI.
Still, it felt better this way since I was not too fond of any tropes relating to overpowered protagonists and a straightforward adventure with half-baked tragedy at all. I wanted my journey to be as realistic as possible, filled with hardships, heartfelt moments, relationships with people, contributing to society, and of course;
Tragedy.
Often, people think (and I feel the same) that I'm twisted to think this way, but it is uncomfortable thinking about the idea that a journey could be realistic without tragedy. It feels hollow and vain when every life-threatening situation was happening to my advantage. With barely any stakes or reality checks that makes me question my beliefs.
Can a journey without tragedy be considered a journey at all? Who knows? Of course, this might be naivety on my part.
If I only knew how much I would be regretting these thoughts in the future.
These monologues, however, were unwelcome in the current situation as I was currently busy satisfying the nagging sensation I had in my mouth. I searched my handbag and listed the available objects I had.
Paper, a wallet probably full of useless fiat currency, pens, my phone, my diary, a notepad, a solar power bank, a charger always with me, a bag of chocolate bars, and a pack of table napkins.
The paper was of great value at the current time, no doubt. Apart from the fact that I could sell it to a merchant (which was probably worth a national treasure considering its quality), I could use it to practice writing this world's language and communicate with others.
One might argue that I could use my phone for that, but the language program on my phone doesn't exactly support the writing system of this world, nor did my phone have a note pen since its brand was Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra.
In addition, it is edible and plentiful compared to chocolate, which I had to reserve for 'special occasions.' Heh.
As I looked to my left and right for onlookers, I took precautionary measures, including disguising my gesture to put the paper in my mouth as a polite gesture for coughing, chewing it afterwards as I looked at my belongings.
My wallet was probably the most useless thing in my starter kit, frankly speaking. Identification cards, passports, and other necessary documents for identification and authority verification were completely invalid since they were written in another language.
I suppose I could auction them, but the archeologists in this world aren't as renowned or prestigious as mine. Auctions probably have different demands too, if they even exist at all.
Even so, I can still use their manufacturing process as a model and reverse engineer my innovations in this world.
I considered my phone to be the most important tool in my starter kit. The fact that I have 70+ groups containing 5-103 tabs each means I could access tons of offline tabs regarding the random information my hyper fixation brought me, with the only disadvantage being organization.
In addition to novels, encyclopedias, identifiers, videos, music, games, and tools, my phone also contained a wide range of online and offline applications. I could even use it to contact- wait a second.
My eyes swiftly scanned the screen, searching for the 'Social Apps' category, where most of my social media and phone apps were kept.
Drips of sweat landed on the screen of my phone as my arm trembled, missing the app icon or unintentionally triggering other commands until I finally pressed it. Once the messenger app was opened, I waited for the messages to update.
Above the message contacts tab appeared a notification bar with words. My attention was drawn to it.
"No internet connection."
I swiped downwards, blinking, to trigger the reload action.
The sign reappeared. "No internet connection."
Frantically, I closed the app and entered Discord to see if I could access servers.
"Internet connectivity limited or unavailable."
Facebook, LINE, Telegram, VK, Instagram, and even Tiktok- they failed to work.
Arknights, Genshin, F/GO, GFL; they failed to update and proceed beyond the loading screen.
Last resort.
Sluggishly, I swiped right and sought to find Contacts. I saw a phone icon at the bottom-right corner of the group. I gently pressed it. I moved my fingers to encode a number and pressed the call button. Waiting was a pain. A moment passed in silence.
"Sorry, you have no recept-"
I slammed the 'end call' button.
The realization left me feeling overwhelmed with negativity. There's no doubt; I'm completely isolated from my former world.
I felt as if my heart would burst to pieces when I saw that I couldn't access any social applications or gacha games.
Even though I didn't have a good relationship with my family, I had a number of acquaintances and witnessed many interesting things in Messenger and Discord.
Out of frustration, I clenched my teeth.
"I guess it was for the best; if I'd lost interest in them, I would have coldly left them shortly after." I tried to convince myself by stating such an obvious rationale.
My logical reasoning still didn't convince my emotional self to stop feeling guilty and regretful about it.
As I attempted to distract myself from thinking about my past life, I kept on searching and analyzing the items in my handbag in vain as I still felt these negative emotions.
Perhaps, I realized, that I was using this as an excuse and a distraction to avoid seeing the end result of the action I did earlier by following the unknown line, so I had to be forced by a variable outside my interference to act decisively.
"I'VE BEEN SUMMONED TO ANOTHER WORLD? !"
An unknown source felt the need to elicit a loud and obnoxious response while I was thinking. The voice came from the same direction as the distorting line, so my attention was drawn to it.
I could not see the source of the noise behind the fountain. It was an oddly familiar voice, one that I had heard several times, yet it was still unknown to me who it was.
The sensation of deja vu is making me too suspicious of my current circumstance. Not only were the two things I've mentioned earlier familiar; they literally screamed suspicion since somewhere in my mind, I knew the voice by heart.
Now unmindful of my nervousness, I walked to the fountain to see who the person was, to satisfy the unexplainable feeling in my heart. Furthermore, the said person literally did say 'isekai', a term understood only by my world and any parallel timelines.
It's highly possible that they might be in the same situation as me.
People of different races stopped to see the anomaly that disrupted their day, curious about the impending situation. Their full attention appeared to be focused on the person I couldn't see, forming a grotesque crowd that hindered me from reaching my destination.
The average height difference between humans in my world and the residents of this world was small, except for certain demihumans with large necks and more animal characteristics, like a certain lizardman who blocked my view of my target.
"Excuse me," I muttered as I pushed through the crowd to reach my destination. The pressure of people pushing against me hardly allowed me to breathe as I squeezed myself into the narrow spaces people gave me.
Incomprehensible murmurs from gossiping at various angles filled my ears. Even society in this world wasn't immune to rumors twisting or exaggerating facts to create an exciting story.
Pushing aside the last person in the sea of individuals (which wasn't one at all since there were only three rows of people in the throng), I inhaled deeply in order to restore oxygen to my blood.
After seeing the person who appeared so absorbed in his thoughts that he ignored his surroundings, I was able to make up his appearance, which was highly likely to be Asian.
His short ears and flat nose weren't something one would call as attractive. With miniature eye irises, his brown eyes made the whites of his eyes stand out; he was the type of person who would blend in perfectly with a crowd due to the lack of any notable features.
An active physique that was slightly muscular, but not overly so, indicating a regular schedule for physical activity. His height was 5'8", which was roughly average in comparison to my 6'1" frame.
Despite this, however, the most distinguishing characteristic of him was his cheap outfit. A pair of deep-grey tracksuit bottoms with an orange stripe down the side, black sneakers with orange laces and soles, and a black t-shirt constituted the ensemble.
The very characteristics that allowed me to identify him.
There was no doubt about it. It would be foolish to think otherwise, but the identity of the person I watched was the protagonist of Re: Starting Life in Another World from Zero;
Natsuki Subaru, the Fool.
In an instant, a plethora of emotions burst out from the dam of my mind, chaotically flooding most of my psyche with various feelings, the most prominent being;
Astonishment. He was the last person I expected to be here. Reincarnation in other worlds is a miracle in and of itself, with science in our world barely scratching the surface of the multiverse theory since it was beyond our observable universe.
Even so, this was already borderline impossible. The fact that Subaru Natsuki exists means that I am in a world no different from Od Laguna, the scene from Re: Zero.
Od Laguna is a fictional world, a product of the imagination; something that can't be a possibility of a previous event so the many-worlds interpretation is already a nullified hypothesis. Thus, this couldn't possibly be other than a landscape or an ultimate universe.
The laws of physics work differently in this world, with some similar intersections such as Newtonian Laws. The fact that I am perceiving this reality meant that a simulated universe made from the imagination of humanity is considered 'real' beyond the cosmological horizon.
Relief. The presence of another isekai protagonist from modern Earth meant that I wasn't alone and completely isolated from the connections of my former world.
A person that could actually understand most of my knowledge and experience, which was foreign to any residents of this world. There is no need to hide certain facts in order to avoid rejection or stigma, or merely to make my peers feel comfortable.
There's no doubt that this was the greatest blessing that was given to me by an anonymous, higher being. There was just one major problem with the current situation.
Dread. The presence of Natsuki Subaru out of all people meant that I was in a world that sought to hunt me. As a mere reminder of Subaru's supposed journey (was it not for my presence) implied that despite the fact that social welfare here is much better than the Dark Age in my world, there were multiple threats such as the Mabeasts, War, and the Witch Cult.
Despite the fact that destiny seemed to be on my side at the moment, there was no guarantee that it would continue to be so in the future.
No, screw that assessment!
I'm not even sure if destiny caused me to be transported here in the first place! There were too many variables against me here that I'm more likely to die in vain here than in my former world.
Due to the combination of these thoughts, my brain went into overdrive, overwhelmed by the various emotions resulting from my realization of a particular individual.
It appeared like the best thing I could do was to understate my current plight; it was an innocent response.
"Eh?"
As punishment for my early idiocy from speculating too much and making biased conclusions, I raised my hands to my head and squeezed them ferociously. I was deeply embarrassed to utilize isekai to gain a better understanding of the unknown world.
It was only after I analyzed the lines to correct any incorrect assumptions I had about the world and its concepts that I discovered it was gone. The line phasing above Subaru appeared to have disappeared into nothingness, leaving no evidence behind.
Perhaps it was a hallucination or a form of defense—
"You know that looking at me without saying anything gives me the creeps, right?"
Natsuki Subaru saw it fit to interrupt my thoughts by pointing out his discomfort while wrapping his arms around himself in a defensive manner.
"Uhm, huh." I abruptly stammered, a poker expression present on my face. Unbeknownst to Subaru, I lost the capacity to speak coherently as shyness took over in an instant. As much as I tried to gain a confident and eldritch image online, I was a wreck when it comes to social interactions in real life. "Ahhh, yeah?"
An ironic contrast to the inner, logical monologue I had in my head. But hey, no one is capable of judging except me when I'm the only one to perceive it, right? Such is the beauty of thoughts...and the depressing proof that it is so lonely.
"For such a person taller than me, you're awfully reserved. It kinda ruins the intimidating image you give at first glance, you know?" He sighed, expressing his confusion by placing his palm on his forehead, then shaking it. "You appear too much like a normie for a protagonist in an isekai drama."
As if I had a choice to be one.
"A— uhuh, sorry."
"Or perhaps," he gasped at the realization, one that I was not aware of. Probably something so extravagant as his body implied, evident by the exaggerated enlightened expression his face formed. "You're plotting to steal the spotlight from me!"
!I barely heard a chuckle as he outrageously accused me. "Pfft, no." I responded. Oddly, it came from me myself. An instinctive reaction unsuppressed by my interactive limiter, possibly due to my lack of impulse control.
"Uhm, I don't exactly know how to respond so don't judge me for it, but please understand that I'm the very example of terrible protagonist material." I smiled in contrast to my attempt at self-deprecating humor as I hesitantly sat upon the ledge of the fountain behind us in case of a rule unknown to us.
As I reached forward, I tapped the space beside me, beckoning Subaru Natsuki to join me in my comfort. "The publisher would have been infuriated with the author for putting too much inner monologue, although it would probably be inferior to Regulus Corneas."
Subaru sat beside me and accepted the invitation. "I don't know who that is besides the fact that his name was inspired by a star. But your tone indicates that he must be a very troublesome person."
"Hmph, that is a massive understatement." Planting my elbows above my thighs in order to support the weight of my head, I gazed aimlessly at the atmosphere. "Though I must state that Regulus isn't a protagonist, but a major antagonist. One you'd meet in the future."
"Oh! Are you seeing my future? Is it your isekai protagonist starter pack?" He exclaimed as stars lit in his eyes before shaking his head, frowning. "Damn, that's really overpowered; a cheat! I tell you, it's a cheat!" Naturally, I turned my head towards him, eyes attracted to observe his gestures.
I twitched my lips at his antics. "Calm down," I told him, despite the fact that I knew how ineffective my remark was. "I don't really have anything special except for this handbag of mine and a probable hallucination earlier. Unless you count being broke or hopeless as one."
"That would be really depressing if that was true." He shrugged.
"Doesn't that apply to you as well?"
"Yen doesn't work here?!" He incredulously said as he realized that our former world's currency couldn't possibly work in this world.
"Duh." I groaned, rolling my eyes as I inclined my head. "What do you expect fiat would do in a medieval-fantasy isekai? Universal currency?"
"It's just weird when you live most of your life buying off with yen," he sighed, reaching into his pocket before pulling out a leather wallet. "And then, the next moment, it's worth junk." He then held a 10-yen coin in the air while staring at it.
"I understand." I shifted to a sitting position. After opening the smaller compartment of my handbag, I took out multiple currencies of different national origins, such as francs, yen, dollars, and pesos, and waved them towards Subaru.
My attempt to brag caused Subaru's eye to twitch. My mouth formed an instinctive smirk, clearly amused by his reaction.
"Bah, at least we still have our clothes on." He tried to compromise, unwary of my lingering thoughts. "Imagine if we sell them; we could be rich due to how far ahead our clothing is compared to this medieval world." His tone still remained optimistic despite my efforts at giving him a realistic perception of our current situation.
Unfortunately for him, I'm not a master of overthinking for nothing.
"But wouldn't that make us a target of human traffickers as we obviously stand out?" I shut him down instantly.
"You should really learn how to become optimistic and stop shutting down other people's ideas with reality before they come to fruition." He twitched his eyes again; this time much more intensely. His trembling hands showed he was trying his hardest not to strangle me, his apparent annoyance evident in his face.
I casually replied, contrary to Subaru's mood, "Funny how similar your comment is about my brainstorming to most of my peers.". I did so deliberately since I was interested in how far twisted pleasure could irritate him. "I can be optimistic when given the chance, however."
"Like when?" He rhetorically quipped, with a tone indicating sarcasm.
I winked. "When it's realistic, of course." Getting out of my seat, I twirled around in elegance, moving in a small distance before stopping in front of Subaru. With a gentle breeze passing by, the fabric ends of my clothing swayed along with my hair.
I felt like I was applying dramatic exaggeration when I offered my right hand to him and said, "Now, shall we go?"
"Yeah!"
A wide grin spread across Subaru's face when it responded to my gesture, which I responded with a smile of my own. "All right! This marks the beginning of the great isekai adventure that awaits us two!"
"As if that was going to happen."
"Absolutely no pessimistic comments allowed or you'll be inviting karma knocking at our doorstep."
Author's Note:
Domo~
Dr. Otonashi here, speaking. I apologize for the long time waiting for the rewrite of my fic. Had a lot going on, especially considering that I've skipped 95% of my outputs the whole school year.
Got to beta-read the author of Path of the Blessed Stars and 'Divine Protections? No, just pure luck!' too, so you should check out their stories if you didn't already. I guarantee you, they're good enough to catch my interest and be an editor prior to publishing the latest chapters.
Special thanks to BLT_General for the brainstorming and Politician Seal for making memes about my plight, and beta-reading. This is not an obligatory message; I really mean it. Seriously.
Also to SpiritusAvernum for random medical facts, Scuffed Senku for clarifying certain incorrect assessments I had about Re-Zero, and LordPurifex for letting me get ideas from his fic.
Anyway, how did you like it? If you want to message me directly, ignore the forums.
We use Discord now. (Yeet)
You can also message me in Messenger.
Hiring beta-readers, editors, and brainstormers, lol.
Discord link for beta-reading and reviews, lmao: https / discord gg / 385BgfQemE
Messenger name: Otonashi Ren (with the Eugeo pp)