Chapter One: New Game+
(?, ?'s POV)
With a surprising suddenness, I become aware of the all-encompassing, abyssal Void surrounding me.
That's not to say I am suddenly in the Void; rather, something tells me I have been here for some time already, and yet only now am I becoming aware of it. My mind is hazy, like coming out of a dream I didn't want to wake up from, leaving me groggy and disoriented. I try to look around, and take in my surroundings, but all I can see is nothingness.
Complete and utter blackness in all directions.
I try to rub my eyes, but when I go to move my hands they never connect with my face. It 's as if my arms are suddenly miles long; I can feel myself attempting to move them, but they never seem to go anywhere. I try blinking very hard, to clear my vision, but I feel no resistance from my eyelids, and nothing seems to become any clearer. I try to look down at myself, to see what my arms are doing, but there is nothing there to see. I can't see my arms, my legs, my torso, even my nose is gone. Nothing to be seen but darkness.
At this point I feel something is wrong. Well, clearly something is wrong, my fucking body is missing! However, the more immediate issue is that it doesn't feel like an immediate issue. My body, or the apparent lack thereof, feels like nothing more than a fleeting issue, not worthy of any concern or introspection. Even as I try to focus on the issue, I can feel a calmness settle over my mind. Why should I bother worrying? I can't even remember what my body looks like, what is the point in missing it?
...Wait. WHAT?!
With the vaguest stirrings of panic, I try to force myself to remember my body. My arms and legs, my hair and face. The feel of my skin after a hot shower, the subtle numbness after a day in the snow. The sound of my voice, the color of my eyes. Yet even as I try to force the memories to the forefront of my mind, I can feel them slipping away, becoming murky and indistinct. And even as I try to hold on to the slow panic, the only feeling I can muster, it too slips away from me. With my last burst of emotion, I scream out into the Void.
"Hello?! Can anybody hear me?! Where am I?!" And yet even as I feel the words leave my mouth, if I even have a mouth to begin with, the sound seems to die in the still blackness of this alien place.
If I could feel my eyes, I'm sure they would be starting to water. 'Am I alone in here? What happened? What's going on?' I attempt to move, to maybe find anything else in this barren landscape, but I can't move. Not only do I seemingly have no body to move, but something tells me the "air" in this place is as solid as stone. Even if I did have a body, I feel like I'd be stuck in place here, immobile. The disassociation of my missing body and the forced calm this place is pressing onto me is making me shut down. I start withdrawing into my own psyche, whatever is left of it at any rate, when suddenly a sound and a brightness invade the space around me.
*Ping!*
[GREETINGS, GAMER!]
...What in the Hell? Floating in front of me is what I can only describe as what looks like a pop-up window. A large rectangle of transparent blue background, with white lettering on it. Like something out of Final Fantasy, or some other JRPG from my past. Actually, wait a fucking minute; how do I remember what Final Fantasy is but I can't remember my own face?!
[Because you are in the In-Between. Physicality matters not here. Memories of concepts or ideas hold more weight than recollections of your mere mortal shell.]
"...Who are you? Where am I?" The sound of my voice still seems to die not even a foot from where I picture my mouth to be as I try to express my confusion, but whatever this entity is it seems to hear me anyway. "Wait, did you just read my mind!?"
[I am a System of the Game. And you are the latest applicant to be a new Gamer. We are in the In-Between, the realm between realms, so that we may converse, and an offer may be made. Thoughts and intentions are as solid as speech here.]
"What am I doing here? Why me?"
[Your memory might be faded, but try and remember your last moments.]
"My... last moments?" That is very ominous, and I don't like it. I give it my all, and really try and focus on the last thing I can remember...
Fire.
I remember Fire.
I was walking along a sidewalk, but from where I was coming or where I was going I have no recollection. Suddenly, ahead of me, I could see a bright light and feel a great warmth, getting stronger as I approached. An apartment building was on fire, smoke wreathing the top floors and gouts of flame shooting from the top windows. There were firetrucks parked in front, hoses on full blast and aimed at the windows, firefighters shouting and racing around. As I stood there in numbed shock, with a few other nearby pedestrians, I heard a sudden piercing scream. A little girl was on the fire escape, but it was an old building, and the ladder has rusted off.
She was stuck, two floors up, and flames were licking at the window behind her.
Seeing this, I tried to run and grab one of the firefighters, but a sudden explosion from one of the upper floors grabbed their attention, and they brushed past me before I could explain. Seeing a side door on the same side of the building as the fire escape, I hesitated for only a moment before running inside. The fire hadn't fully reached the bottom floor yet, as far as I could tell, but smoke was filling the halls. I stumbled around for a bit, searching for stairs heading up. When I did find them, I had to pull my shirt up to cover my mouth from the excessive smoke. On the second floor, I could feel flames behind some of the walls, and the smoke was even thicker here. I tried to stagger towards where I remembered the window to be, but it was difficult, as my head was swimming and my eyes were stinging and watering from the smoke. When I finally made my way to the window at the end of the hall, I could see open flames licking the wall, pouring from the open door of the closest apartment. I braced myself, and flung myself through the open window, feeling the flames licking at my back through my shirt. As I landed on the fire escape, I saw the little girl staring at me, tears in her eyes. She couldn't be older than 5, blond hair in pigtails, wearing overalls and a pink shirt. She was the picture of childhood innocence, and any regrets I had about leaping into this situation were gone.
"Are you okay sweetie?" I asked, trying to put on a brave smile despite the burns on my arms and neck. She didn't respond beyond a teary nod, so I gently picked her up and rushed to the edge of the railing. I shouted and waved towards the group on the sidewalk, and this time one of the firefighters saw us, rushing over immediately. As I gently lowered the girl down to the firefighter's waiting arms, I heard a sudden explosion, closer and louder than any of the others. A distant voice screamed in panic, "The gas line ruptured!" Even as the girl left my arms, I twisted my head, and saw over my shoulder a fireball racing towards my face. I felt extreme heat along my face and chest, and before I could even scream I was thrown bodily off the escape. I felt myself engulfed by the flames, flying through the air, before hitting the wall of the opposite building, and then I knew no more...
"I... died?" I ask in a stunned, subdued voice.
[Yes, you did. You broke your neck upon impact with the other building.]
"Did the little girl make it?" That is the only thing I can focus on, my own death far too vast to accept at this point.
[She did. She survived, as did her parents. They would go on to have a son, and name him after you. In fact you are well loved as a local hero. They rename that street after you.]
"Good... That's, that's good." I fall silent. What more can I say? I died saving a little girl's life. That seems like a good way to go, I'm pretty sure. I look around again, the pop-up window excessively bright against the pure darkness of the Void surrounding us. "Is this Hell then? I'd hoped that maybe saving a little girl's life might have overwritten some of my College exploits."
[No. This is the In-Between. You have been diverted from your ascension to Heaven in order for us to offer you a deal, if you are willing.]
"Oh, I did get into Heaven then?"
[You were plucked from the arms of an angel to be brought here. And if you decide you have no interest in our offer, you will be returned to that exact moment to go on and enjoy that afterlife should you so desire.]
Well it seems like all of my emotions aren't completely stifled, as I can not help but surge with a flicker of anger. I got into Heaven, and this fucking pop-up box pulls me from the literal arms of an angel to stick me in a featureless Void and waited until I have a fucking panic attack to even show up!
"Fine, give me whatever offer you have so I can tell you to fuck off and go to Heaven!"
[You are upset. That is understandable. But if you truly are not interested in another chance at living, then we will send you back to your afterlife.]
"...What do you mean?"
[You are the latest to be offered the opportunity to become a Gamer, and be reincarnated in another world with all the powers of the Game behind you! This is a very rare and unique offer, and comes with many potential perks and opportunities.]
"Such as..?" Despite myself, I am intrigued. Heaven sounds great and all, but getting to live again is an awfully big draw. Maybe if I were older, and had people waiting for me, it would be more tempting. But I haven't lost anyone close to me, as far as I can recall; Hell, I'm pretty sure my childhood dog is still alive! There's nothing personally waiting for me in Heaven, beyond the generic promise of Paradise, and the option to live again, even on some other world, sounds very tempting. And this is starting to sound vaguely familiar to me, too... Something from my faded memories is trying to scream for my attention. But it is just out of reach.
[If you are willing, you have the option to recreate yourself within another world of the Multiverse, and become a Player utilizing the Gamer System to essentially become a living Video Game character. You will have the opportunity to gain Skills and Abilities by gathering Experience Points, level up by killing Monsters and completing Quests, and gather rare and powerful Treasures and Loot. You will have free range in this New World to act as you see fit, and possibly even Travel between Worlds once you become strong enough.]
"So, let me get this straight; if I take your offer, not only do I get to live again, but I'll have the chance to become some kind of super powerful game character, and do all sorts of cool shit like fight dragons and aliens, and I can become strong enough to return home one day, since I can travel between worlds?"
[That is correct. It would take a lot of time and effort, but it is certainly possible to return to your Earth at some point in the future.]
"Alright, you spin a good pitch, I'll give you that. What's the downside?" This seems too good to be true. There has to be some kind of catch, somewhere. No such thing as a free lunch, and no such thing as a no-strings attached resurrection.
[Clever. Yes. There is... one thing, you should probably be made aware of now. Your new life will not be without risk. If you are to perish while in any plane but your home world, your soul will be lost to the Void, and return to the In-Between. However, souls are not meant to dwell here without an anchor to keep them present, and this place will actively decay any unprotected souls. Reincarnation wipes your soul clean, and severs its ties to your own cycle of Life and Death. Normally this tie is reforged upon rebirth into your own world, should you choose to reincarnate to your own world, however the rules change when moving between worlds. If you die during your adventures, before you become powerful enough to insert yourself into the new world's Cycle, you get no Afterlife, and your soul will be drawn here and decay until you simply cease to exist.]
That's, uh... That's a really big catch. Huh. So it seems like my options are to refuse, and return to the guaranteed safety and paradise of Heaven, or agree and be sent to a new world I may know nothing about with only the vague promise of one day becoming strong enough to return home, and the very real threat of my soul literally ceasing to exist if I mess up. This should be a no-brainer, I'd be an idiot to accept this stupid offer! But that distant part of my mind is still screaming at me, begging me to take this chance.
"I'll need a moment to think about this."
[Take as long as you like. Time is irrelevant here.]
I should say no. I should absolutely, 100% say no to this stupid idea. Whenever you are given a choice between a zero percent chance of having your soul obliterated, and a non-zero chance of having your soul obliterated, the choice should be pretty damn clear! But something about this is just so appealing... The opportunity to basically get superpowers, to become magical and powerful, to go on some grand adventure... It calls to me. I want it. It's a stupid, silly, ridiculous idea, and my common sense is screaming in my ear that this is a horrible thing to even begin to consider. And yet... I can feel my non-existent heart start to race. Adrenaline, or the psychic resonance of such, surges through me. Every objection or reason that I shouldn't do this fades away, and all I can feel is excitement. My mouth moves without conscience thought;
"I accept."
[Verbal acknowledgment accepted! Establishing Game System v1.4.8b interface. Initializing {Gamer's Mind}. Restoring memories.]
A new pop-up window appears just below the one I'd been reading this whole time; this one is slightly smaller, with a pale gray background instead of blue, and solid black letters instead of white. The bold letters give me the details of my first "skill."
Skill Gained!
{Gamer's Mind: Unique}-Passive| Lvl. Max
{Mind over matter, taken to the Nth degree. Your Mind is now another system of the Game. Grants a calm, steady and objective mental state in all stressful situations. Protects the Gamer from all manners of Mental and Emotional trauma, manipulation and Status Effects.}
Before I can fully comprehend the ramifications of that skill, I am overwhelmed by the sudden influx of my missing memories and emotions rushing through my brain, as if a dam in my mind has burst. I can suddenly remember most everything about myself; I am 20 years old, I live just north of Boston, I have a Father I hate and haven't spoken to in 3 years and a Mother I love but who is such a doormat for everyone else in her life. I have never been a great student, I fucked around in school and got an English degree that I never use and a horrible job at a call center that paid like crazy to try and keep people from quitting every other week. I had a few dates and flings along the years but never anything serious, and had a fallout with some of the family over the fact that a few of those dates were with "boys," regardless of the fact that they were prettier than a lot of the actresses you'd see on TV.
I can even remember what caused that walk on my last day on Earth; my brother swapping between beers and weed going on with his political bullshit, my sister only pulling herself away from her chips and computer enough to scream her conflicting views back at him, and my Mother just ignoring the entire screaming match to take some pills and watch talk shows. So I gave the dog a pat on the head and wandered out to get some fresh air and quiet. Don't think I even said goodbye to anyone at the time, I just had to get out of the house. Then it was my fateful trip towards the inferno. The only things still missing were my name and my physical appearance. Those are just a void in my memory. Trying to stifle the emerging headache from the rush of information, I turn towards the main pop-up screen, that I've been more or less focusing on as the "face" of the entity I'm speaking with.
"You could have restored my memories at any time? What the Hell, why would you do that?"
[Apologies. But you needed to make this decision solely of your own response. While your memories were unavailable and your emotions tempered, you still retained your sense of self. You can not make this decision in a state of panic or resentment.]
I groan and try to rub my temples in exasperation, before remembering I have neither hands nor temples at the moment. "I don't know why you'd need to bother. Now that I can remember it, my life kind of sucked. Shitty job, no real friends beyond people I texted with, out of shape with no real future. I would have probably killed someone for the chance to be Isekai'd." If I had eyes right now, I'm sure they'd be bugging out of my head as what I'd just said registers, and that faint voice in my brain that has been shouting for me to take the deal is suddenly a lot clearer. Memories of hundreds of fanfictions and anime suddenly race into the forefront of my mind, and I can no longer hold in my excitement. "Holy shit I'm getting Isekai'd!"
[That is a terminology your world uses for situations like this, yes. Earths are always wonderful nexus points for ideas, they tend to filter into the greater subconscious even without interference. Now, we have a lot of things to cover in order to get you situated, so let's start.]
"Wait, before we start, I just have to know. Why did you pick me? Is it because I saved that little girl, because I died doing a good thing?" If I don't ask, this will bug me forever. I know that ultimately it doesn't matter, I'm already here, but I need to know what made me so special. The window is blank for a few moments, and I'm worried that by asking I have broken some rule or something, before it finally starts to fill in again.
[You were chosen for this opportunity because you died doing something interesting. There was a firefighter who died in that fire as well. 8 years as a crew member. A good person, without a doubt. But he was used to everything by then; it was a job. It was routine. He was not chosen. Once, we would choose people based on their moral choices, acting as a pseudo-judgment system. We would send Saints and Sinners, the Holiest of Holies and the most depraved of Wretches, to other worlds and see what they'd do. Some were wonderful to watch, causing chaos and disarray like nothing you can imagine. Paragons of virtue, standing between the people of that world and all of its Evils. Or living monsters, engines of destruction who would destroy everything just to watch the world burn. We cared not which path they'd take, as long as it was interesting. But do you know what most of them did?]
I can only attempt to shake my head in denial, struggling to catch up with the text that is filling in even faster as it went on, as if the entity is getting frustrated.
[They did NOTHING. We gave them gifts and powers beyond mortal reckoning, and so many of them refused to use them. They would simply act like the standard mortals of their new home, rejecting their Status and going about their mundane lives. Or they would flock to the strongest banner to keep them safe, using just enough power to become useful enough to their new masters to warrant their protection. And so, many of us started to seek a different kind of entertainment. We would take random people, regardless of their pasts, and simply drop them into the new world directly. No options or chances to refuse. Sometimes without even activating the Game system. Other times we would tweak the system, make it more and more difficult to manage or succeed. Many of these Gamers died swiftly in their new realities, their souls left to rot. If the mortals would not entertain us with their lives, they would entertain us with their deaths.]
If I could blanch in fear, I probably would, while taking a few steps back for good measure. I swear, I can almost see the text in the pop-up screen shaking in anger. But after a few more moments of silence, the text slowly starts to scroll again.
[But that's not going to happen this time. I'm glad you brought up the question, honestly, because it saves us the issue of bringing it up later, or beating around the bush. You wanted to know what the real "catch" of this situation was, correct? Well there it is. You are being given this offer because you interest us. As long as you keep us interested, as long as you keep us happy and entertained, there won't be any problems. YOU just need to keep going on adventures; grow strong and explore the multiverse, give us a story worth following, and WE will keep supplying you with new trials and powers, giving you new horizons to cross and worlds to plunder. Do we have an Accord?]
"Yes, that's a deal. Sure. Can do! No problem!" I am rambling, and I don't care. I would have said anything to just have this conversation be over.
[Don't sound so worried. We won't demand you fight gods every Tuesday or anything like that. Just don't stagnate. At least for as long as you keep our attention; when we inevitably grow bored with you, and move on to the next Gamer, you will be free to live your new life as you please. At that point you can consider it a "retirement," of sorts.]
"Alright. Yeah, okay. I just, uh, how will I know if I'm 'stagnating?' If I'm gonna spend like a little while training or preparing for something, will that make you angry, or... What's my limit here?"
[Don't get cute. Training your skills or preparing for a fight is not the same as cowering behind the legs of whatever pathetic mortal you decide serving is more important than entertaining us. Just don't be purposefully useless. We'll certainly let you know if we're getting bored with you.]
Ominous. As. Fuck. I am starting to regret agreeing to this, just a little bit, but something tells me I am beyond the point of backing out by now.
[Now that all of that unpleasantness is out of the way, we can get to the fun parts!]
A beam of light suddenly erupts from behind the pop-up, shooting straight up into the sky for a very long ways, before coming to a stop. The tip of the beam slowly begins to move down and to the right, in a clockwise manner, leaving behind a bright white streak on the blackness of the Void. I watch as the beam of light slowly rotates around the pop-up window, eventually creating a full circle when it has reached the zenith again. Suddenly a thin black line races up the circle, and begins moving the opposite manner in a counter-clockwise spin, as it goes it seems to leave writing along the edges of the circle that slowly spread towards the center. Eventually the black line also ends its rotation, with a whole slew of different writing crawling along the circle. There have to hundreds, no, thousands, maybe millions of separate words on the wheel now.
"What is that?" I ask in confusion, trying to read any of the words on the wheel. However most of them are too far away to see, and the ones closer up are still too small to read properly.
[This is how we are going to determine what world to send you to. This wheel contains every single subset of the Multiverse Clusters we can send you to. We will spin the wheel to determine where you're going to end up.]
"Huh. I was kind of expecting to not know where I was heading? That seems to be pretty common with Isekai stuff. I'm not complaining or anything, though!" I quickly backpedal, "it'll be nice to know before hand what's going to happen."
[You will need to know what world you're heading into for the Character Creation process. While it would be mildly amusing to see you create an elf and be sent to a world of lizard-men, or create a cyborg and go into Tamriel, I am not that cruel. I'm sure quite a few of my brethren would enjoy putting you through such an ordeal, but I'm going to give you at least a decent start. We will determine what world you are being sent to, and then you will be able to create your character.]
Without any further input, the wheel begins spinning with the classic "click-click-clack" sound of a prize wheel. I watch the wheel spin with a sense of wonder; I can't stop the childlike anticipation from bubbling up from within. I am actually going to go to some crazy fantasy world. It is finally settling into my mind that this is real; this is happening.
After some time, the wheel is no closer to showing any indication of slowing down. I mean, that makes sense; it is choosing between an uncountable number of worlds. Still, I feel the urge to fill the silence.
"So, you mentioned that these are all, uh, 'Multiversal Clusters,' right? What does that mean?"
[Hmm... How to explain. The Multiverse is infinite, that's rather well-known. However a lot of people don't seem to grasp what that entails. What is a portion of Infinity? It is still infinity, but a smaller piece of infinity. The total of all universes in the Multiverse is infinite, and the number of universes where-in the events of Star Wars, for example, and all of its variants and permutations are taking place is also infinite. So these infinities are equal, as they are both infinite, yet at the same time the infinite universes with Star Wars are an infinitely smaller number than the infinities of the Multiverse. Do you follow?]
"Yeah, no. I think you've lost me on that." I swear I can feel my brains leaking out of my ears...
[Alright... Put it this way; picture all of the decimal places between 0 and 1. You know, 0.1, 0.01, 0.001, all the way through 0.9, 0.99, 0.999 etc? That can go on forever, since no matter how long it gets you can still just add another 0 to the front or a 9 to the back, so it will never quite reach 0 or 1. So there are an infinite amount of different, unique numbers between 0 and 1. And each of those unique numbers represents a universe where, say, DragonBall Z's events have happened, with all of its variants. With me so far?]
"Yeah, I think I get it so far..."
[Now, picture all of the decimal places available between 1 and 2, and all of those infinite numbers represent universes where the events resembling World of Warcraft have happened. The infinite numbers between 0 and 1 are equal to the infinite numbers between 1 and 2. And the numbers between 0 and 1 or 1 and 2 are still equal to the infinite numbers between 0 and 2, yet are each only half of the infinite numbers between them. Now picture between 2 and 3, or 3 and 4, or 4 and 5... It keeps going forever, as it hits every number between 0 and infinity. And each amount of decimal numbers between integers is infinite, and as such are equal to the total value of infinity, while simultaneously being an infinitely small percentage of the greater infinity.]
"Okay, that makes sense, I think? I mean I guess the logic is all there..." Seriously, my brain is actively melting out of my head. I'm just trying to make small talk, I didn't want to get into a Masters class on theoretical physics!
[Yes, of course it is. Simple.]
That one is straight-up condescending, I just know it! Fucking smug pop-up window...
[But to answer your original question, if you picture that every possible permutation of a certain type of universe are held within those decimal points, then the different integers representing the different types of universe are what's on the wheel. Instead of having every decimal point between 0 and 1 to denote all the available universes with DragonBall Z's variants on the wheel, we just have 0 on the wheel, and if it lands on 0 we'll just throw you into one of those particular worlds at random. It still means that the wheel is infinite, but at least we're only going to have to choose within one set of infinity.]
"So are all of the universes just copies of each other, but some of them might be slightly different? You said 'Variants,' right?"
[Yes and No. Each universe is unique, and vary from each other. Sometimes by a little, sometimes by a lot. Worlds within the purview of what you know as the Pokemon universe might vary from as little as Ash wearing a different colored hat, or eating a different breakfast one day. Or they might vary as much as Ash dying from Pikachu's thunder attacks, or the entire planet being destroyed under the assault of thousands of magical monsters going 24/7, or even Pokemon overthrowing humanity and they are the ones keeping humans as battlepets instead.]
"Okay, I see. So whatever world I go to, if its even one I recognize, might not be identical to the version I'm familiar with?"
[Correct.]
"Wait, so if every version of every type of world exists out there, does that mean that every fanfiction or SI story exists in the multiverse too?!"
[Yes, it does.]
"Well, damn... I feel sorry for some of those people. Some of those worlds are just completely fucked up." Suddenly, before the pop-up can respond, the click-click starts to slow down, and eventually stops entirely. The entire wheel slowly starts to dissolve, starting at the bottom and going along each edge upwards, until only the single chosen option in the dead center of the top is remaining. The writing quickly shoots down to hover just above the pop-up, but even up close I still cannot read it. Probably in some kind of weird, R.O.B. language then.
[It is decided. You are being sent to a world you would find most familiar as being similar to the events of the anime High School DxD.]
...Holy Shit. This is either gonna be really good, or really, really bad. High School DxD has a lot of really awesome power-ups and amazing things I can do without too much hassle. If I can get my hands on some Sacred Gears, that should make this whole Gamer thing way easier. However, it also has a lot of really strong people who will have no qualms or issues with killing me really easily without any effort on their part. And I've only seen the anime, I've never even read the manga or light novels! I have read quite a few fanfictions, including some Gamer fics actually, so I kind of have the gist of the situation for the start at least. But I'm sure there must be a whole bunch of super crazy stuff just waiting to happen in the future I have no idea about. Poor Issei barely even gets to stop and think about getting all those cuties in his harem, what with all the insanely powerful- Wait a second. Hold up. I'm forgetting the most important part of High School DxD's entire deal: THE WOMEN! Okay, now, I need to think again for a moment here. Real talk time: Does going to this world, a world full of really, horribly powerful beings who can literally destroy my soul, seem like a fair trade off for the chance that I might be able to get together with some of those beauties?
Yes. Yes it does.
"Alright then, High School DxD it is! What's next?" As I ask, the pop-up suddenly changes, growing into a much larger window. A bunch of sliders and options suddenly line the edge of the screen, and in the middle is a 3D render of a formless humanoid shape, looking vaguely like a manikin, yet somehow with even less detail. The same text I've gotten used to since arriving here now scrolling along the top of the screen;
[Create your Character!]
Suddenly another window popped up overlaying the 3D model, giving me a number of options before I got into actually designing my new body, I guess?
~What sex would you like to play as?~
[Male] [Female]
While I've known a number of people who would kill for one of these pop-up menus in their real lives, I don't hesitate to mentally choose Male.
~What race would you like to play as?~
[Human] [Cambion] [Nephillim] [Hanyou]
There were only four options lit up that I can choose from, even though I can clearly see a large number of other options that were grayed out, and written in whatever that weird R.O.B. language I can't understand is. "How come there's only these 4 options? I see a bunch more that are locked." The normal pop-up gave me an explanation with scrolling text, as the race options were still in front of me.
[When reincarnating to a new body in a new world, you must be sent into a form as close to your previous as possible. For you, that means a human, or at least as close as possible. Therefore your choices for this world are only those with human ancestry. Had you been sent to another world of, say, nothing but mermen you could only be an aquatic creature. Or in a world like Tamriel, you can also be a Beast Race or a Mer, as they are all considered more or less equal.]
"Okay, makes sense I guess. I was maybe hoping for full-devil or something right off the bat for an easy power boost, but I'll take what I can get. Are there any special bonuses or anything for choosing one over the other?" As soon as I ask, the window shifts, growing taller with a lot more detail.
[Human]: The most numerous race on Planet Earth, humans are stock standard, pertaining to no specific Pro's or Con's. They do not have any resistances or weaknesses to attack types, and gain no base bonuses to any attack types. However, due to their adaptability, Humans gain a +10% Exp Boost while leveling, a +1to all Stats every Level, and have a 1% chance to be born with a Sacred Gear.
[Cambion]: The offspring of a Human and a Devil, Cambions take much of their power from their infernal parentage, yet retain some of the perks of their human heritage as well. Cambions have a +25% Weakness to Radiant Damage. Cambions gain a +25% Increased Infernal Resistance as well as a +25% Increased Infernal Damage. Cambions suffer no penalties in sunlight. Cambions gain access to the Skill: Devil Magic starting at level 1. Cambions are born with Wings, and gain access to the Skill: Fly starting at level 1. Cambions are supernaturally durable, and only take 25% of Non-Magical Damage. Cambions are beings of Sin, and are born with 2-4 Deadly Sin Traits, to be determined at rebirth. Due to the failing Heaven System, Cambions have a 0.01% chance to be born with a Sacred Gear.
[Nephillim]: The offspring of a Human and a Fallen Angel, or an Angel who has since Fallen from committing this act, a Nephillim gains immense powers from their semi-divine parentage. Nephillim gain a +25% Increased Radiant Resistance as well as a +25% Increased Radiant Damage. Nephillim gain access to the Skill: Light Spear starting at level 1. Nephillim are born with Wings, and gain access to the Skill: Fly starting at level 1. Nephillim are supernaturally durable, and only take 25% of Non-Magical Damage. Nephillim are beings of Sin, and are born with 1-2 Deadly Sin Traits, to be determined at rebirth. Due to the failing Heaven System, Nephillim have a 0.1% chance to be born with a Sacred Gear.
[Hanyou]: The offspring of a Human and a Youkai, Hanyou is a broad term that can refer to any half-spirit, half-human, not necessarily just those born from Japanese Youkai. Most Hanyou gain specific traits and skills based upon what type of Spirit their parent is, but they do all have some base traits that are shared. Hanyou tend to display the attributes of their heritage in the form of animal ears, tails, claws or wings, but they may disguise themselves as whatever creature their Spirit half is descended from, as well as a normal Human. Hanyou are capable of using the power of Ki to perform spells and strengthen their bodies, utilizing their own internal energy. Hanyou are supernaturally durable, and only take 25% of Non-Magical Damage. The type of spirit the Hanyou is descended from is determined upon Reincarnation. Due to the failing Heaven System, Hanyou have a 1% chance to be born with a Sacred Gear.
Alright, that's some good info to know. Hmm, decisions decisions... I know it's gonna sound really lame, but I'm kind of leaning towards Human. The starting skills for the other races are really good, especially the Nephillim. Having access to Light Spears from the get-go would make dealing with Devils a lot easier, and if I'm dropped anywhere near the start of Canon the main baddies are gonna be Fallen and Stray Devils, and then eventually the fight with Riser's peerage, so the extra damage and resistance to Radiant would be useful. However, it might also alienate the main team there, especially Akeno, who really hates anything that reminds her of her heritage.
As for the reason as to why I'm hesitant with the Cambion, I'd be better protected from other Devils, true, but as soon as I fight an Angel I'd still take way more damage from them. When the Kokabiel arc happens, I'd be taking way too much risk. Plus, it seems like people really don't like Cambions, if how Vali is treated as a kid is any indication. I like it a bit more than Nephillim just for the "Devil Magic" skill. Devil Magic is literally based on imagination, and I have an entire lifetime's repertoire of video games, cartoons and comic books to pull from. But I'm not sure if that outweighs the negatives.
Hanyou might be neat, no weaknesses against the major Factions, but I'm hesitant about the randomness of whatever spirit I'd be descended from. I can luck out and be half kitsune, or an inuyoukai, like Inuyasha, or I can get a bug or a fish or something. So I think I'll stick with Human. The free boost to Stats and Experience is going to be a godsend, and if this is gonna be anything like those other Isekai stories I'll be able to find or learn those other skills anyway.
I mentally choose the Human option, and the pop-up disappears before the character creation screen shoots closer to me, so I can see all the details. The 3D model has now filled out to looking like a naked, yet very average human male. My eyes can't help but shift to what is to be my new body's groin, and I can confirm that this default is VERY average. I can probably make this look like my old body, but honestly, I was never overly fond of it to begin with, so given the option to upgrade I'm certainly gonna take it. This is gonna be fun!
Oh God, that took forever... Messing around with crappy character customization for a throwaway game playthrough can already take forever, but when it's going to be your actual body, as well as being such a detailed creation kit, that probably took me literal hours. No way to know in this place. But, I'm happy to say, I'm finished! I give my creation one last once over, to make sure I'm happy with it.
It took a lot of doing, and I'm sure I messed up somewhere, but since I'm heading into an anime world I decided to make myself look like, in my own humble opinion, the King of all anime pretty-boys, Cloud Strife. And I will fight anyone who disagrees. I think I pretty much nailed the face from the FF7 remake, and the body is pretty easy to get going, too; just go with a solid, muscular build but still very lean. I'm debating making myself just a little taller though, since Cloud is only supposed to be like 5' 6" or 5' 7", but I think I'll just cap him at 5' 7" and be good with that. Besides, people tend to underestimate the little guys, and in a world with people like Cao Cao and Rizevim running around, I really want to be underestimated. I went with Cloud because I've always thought that traditionally "handsome" guys in anime always tended to look really wooden. I'm sure the artists are trying to go for super masculine, but I think it makes them look like their faces are carved from blocks of oak or something. Not very attractive, honestly. It's the androgynous pretty-boys who usually steal the show and get the girls. And if anyone tries to give me shit for being "girly?" I'll slap them with the 9" schlong I gave myself! Ha ha! Ah, what is wrong with me... I probably spent too long working on that bit, honestly.
And I know for a fact I spend way too long deciding what to do about the eyes. I'm fine leaving pretty much everything else as-is colorwise, but Cloud's eyes are kinda boring. They're just... blue. They're a pretty blue, but I'm going into an anime world here, c'mon! I need something crazy! Eventually after going back and forth forever I decide to go with a nice, pretty lilac color. That does, however, make me go back to the sliders for hair color out of morbid curiosity, and I swap Cloud's bottle blond for a silvery blond, bordering on metallic gray. I can't help the snorts of laughter as I look at myself; the attractive, androgynous face; the silvery blond hair in Cloud's trademark cut, sticking out in all directions; and the lilac eyes, sparkling in a stereotypical anime manner... I look like someone's crappy Targaryen OC. I keep laughing, even as I go ahead to accept the body I've made. I look damn good, I'm sure I'll fit right into the world, and I can give myself a good laugh whenever I look in a mirror. After a bit, I finally get to the last pop-up for the Character Creation.
~Are you sure this is the Character you'd like to Play as?~
[Yes] [No]
Still chuckling, I select "Yes," and suddenly my entire world is reduced to Pain. I'd been numb hovering in this Void for so long, as well as having my mental state screwed with by the R.O.B., that I have forgotten what bodies were supposed to feel like. Suddenly being shoved back into a body, with all of its senses going from 0 to 100 is pure torture. It is like every nerve is firing at once, starting off feeling like pins and needles along all my limbs and spine, then evolving to poison ivy over all of my skin, before finally going to full on bitten by fire ants in all of my muscles.
I have no idea how long the pain lasts. It could have been a few minutes, or a few days. There is no way to tell. All I know is that eventually I find myself on my hands and knees, panting like a winded dog, with all of my bodily sensations returned to me. I struggle to my feet, nearly falling over and collapsing to my knees before I manage to fully push myself back up onto my feet. The Void seems to have formed a solid floor under me to give me stability. Still a little wobbly, I manage to stay standing, before looking over my new body. It is an... odd feeling, to look down and see a body that did not match any of my memories.
Still, it is a very nice upgrade, and I can't help the grin stretching across my new face as I behold my nude form. I run my hands over solid pecs and corded biceps, before tracing my fingers over the lines of my new six-pack stomach, even dipping lower into the 'V' of my pelvic muscles. I stretch and look over my newly sculpted shoulders to see the sharp lines of my back and, in my opinion, one tight little ass. I run my hands over my newly softened jawline and thin lips, high cheekbones and sharp nose, learning the new contours of my face by touch. I feel almost like a blind man, in a way, learning a stranger's face. I squat down to feel my legs, thighs and calves thin yet rippling with strength, seemingly carved from marble instead of flesh and sinew. And finally, I can put it off no longer, I give my new penis a fondle. Hey, don't judge me! I dare you to find any man in creation who, upon being given a new body, wouldn't immediately feel the difference in his junk. The fact that I saved it for last should get me bonus points for my restraint, if anything. But still, it looks alright as far as I can tell. Decent length and heft, even while soft. In my last life I had been a grower, not a shower, so in this body I'd like to be both. Perfectly straight, uncut and smooth, the only trace of hair being a small thatch of silver above where my shaft meets my body. That was the only body hair option the creation menu had, so I'm unsure if I'll just grow normal body hair as I go forward, or if I'll stay smooth forever. Might be an anime thing, now that I think about it. Don't usually see fuzzy pits, legs or stomachs in most ecchi series.
My impromptu groping session over, I turn towards the pop-up to see what is next. The Character Creation screen is gone, replaced by the original pop-up alongside a few more of the gray Skill screens in front of it. The smaller screens proudly display my new skills;
Skills Gained!
{Gamer's Body: Unique}-Passive| Lvl. Max
{Infinite potential in the palm of your hand. Your Body is now a Game Avatar. Your body can be improved through Leveling Up, gaining Skills, or by using special Items and Consumables. Resting in a Bed or other Safe Zone will restore all HP, SP and MP, remove physical Status Effects, and restore any damaged or missing body parts. Regardless of damage done to your body, you can only die once your HP reaches 0.}
{Adaptable}
{Ah, they grow up so fast, they spread across the world, and in a few generations they become unrecognizable... You are a Human, filled with piss and vinegar, ready to take on the World. Gain an increased 10% Experience from Combat and Quest rewards, as well as a +1 to all Stats every level.}
"Alright, that sounds pretty great. So what happens now- Oh, wow, is that what my voice sounds like?" It seems like the Game has gone above and beyond for my new body; there hadn't been a voice option, so I was resigned to sounding like my old self, but it seems like it knew what voice would suit my new look, and with that new husky timbre I sound just like Cloud. Thank you, Game!
[Now you get to choose your starting stats. We have 3 ways of doing so, so take your pick.]
Another new window pops up in front of me, and I actually do step back in surprise. Now that I have flesh and blood again, I can feel the slightly displaced air as these things popped into existence, meaning they are physical objects to an extent, and I have no desire to know what would happen if one popped up inside of my body.
~Choose your Starting Stats!~
Base 10's: You start with 10 in every stat. This would be considered an average stat for most normal humans of average health and fitness, and grants you a level playing field to start with. Choosing this option also gives the [Average Joe]* trait.
Standard Array: You may assign any starting value to your stats from the given values of 14, 12, 12, 10, 8 and 6. If you know what type of character you'd like to play, this can give you the opportunity to min-max a bit. Choosing this option also gives the [Same Old, Same Old]* trait.
Roll for Initiative!: You have the option to let Luck determine your future, and can roll 6 numbers to be assigned to your starting stats as you see fit. Potential for very powerful starts, but might come back to haunt you as well. Choosing this option does not give any additional traits.
"Well, seems like someone's a bit of a D&D fan. So what are the stats, anyway?"
[There are 7 Major Stats you should be aware of, as they not only effect your Avatar in some way, but certain Weapons, Armors, Skills and even Classes have specific Stat requirements you have to meet in order to use. The 6 you must choose are as follows:
Strength(STR) is a factor of how much physical power your body holds, and determines damage dealt by melee weapons and skills, as well as maximum HP and SP.
Endurance(END) is a measure of your physical resilience, impacting your natural damage resistance and determines your maximum HP and SP, as well as your HP regeneration rate.
Dexterity(DEX) reflects your speed and flexibility, and impacts your movement speed and reflexes, damage with certain finesse-based weapons, as well as your maximum SP and SP regeneration rate.
Intelligence(INT) is directly related to how smart you are, and impacts the rate at which you learn new Skills along with Stats gained per level, as well as directly impacting the damage you do with magical attacks and skills, as well as your maximum MP.
Wisdom(WIS) is how well you apply your intellect, and therefore your magic, and as such effects your natural magical resistance, as well as the effectiveness of certain magical skills and your MP regeneration rate.
Charisma(CHR) is the deciding factor of your personality, and will determine how much people like you, which will effect Reputation gains and losses and can potentially open or close certain interactions with other people.]
"Alright, seems pretty straightforward... More like Elder Scrolls stats then D&D stats then. Hmm, what are these traits if I choose the first two options..?" Since I now have actual hands, I can physically reach out and touch the pop-up, so I gently click on the two listed traits, hoping the * symbol means that more info is available. I'm in luck, as clicking on them opens up a description of each trait.
{Average Joe}
{You are just a face in the crowd, 999,999 in a million, nobody special. Permanently removes first impressions, both positive and negative, from all characters upon first meeting them. Permanently reduces the Stat requirements of Equipment, Skills and Classes by 5%.}
{Same Old, Same Old}
{You're the kind of person who always orders the same meal, because you like to know what you're removes random encounters and events, both positive and negative, from the world. All details of Items, Skills and Quests will be available upon first viewing, regardless of Level or Skills.}
Hmm, I don't know what to do here. I'm not thrilled by starting at neutral stats if I choose Base 10's, but the second half of that trait seems like it will be super useful later on. I doubt 5% stat requirement reduction will be too useful starting out, but if I get to the point in any kind of end-game where the requirements for Legendary gear or classes are in the thousands, 5% off will be huge. But again, starting off as an average human, as well as losing out on any first impressions is kind of harsh. If any of the Gamer stories I've read hold true, then the Reputation system is gonna be insanely useful, so losing out on any boost to that would be a no-no.
The Standard Array isn't usually too bad, I've made plenty of D&D characters with it before. Grants you a few guaranteed strong stats, with one neutral and one bad. However, it looks like this version has been reduced even further. It looks like... yes, the numbers add up to 60 total, same as choosing Base 10's. Looks like it's trying to balance between the two a little bit. So three above-average, one average and two below-average starting stats... If this were a "normal" game, and I knew what class I is going to spec into, that seems pretty fair. But this is a Gamer experience, and any inconvenience or handicap at the beginning can be a death sentence. Also, the trait seems a little lackluster, honestly. Removing any random encounters is like... are you even playing a Game if the system doesn't throw crazy curve-balls at you? Plus, while knowing the details of everything from the get-go is a nice bonus, I'm sure I'll be able to do so myself without too much issue before long.
That just leaves rolling my stats, which will determine whether or not I start off with an advantage, or if I die in my first combat encounter. I can get really lucky, or really unlucky doing that, but it's also my best shot for starting off on a good footing. With no small amount of hesitance, I reach out to press on the Roll for Initiative! option. As soon as I click the chosen option, the entire pop-up window suddenly shifts. It clears itself off and flips to become a horizontal surface, with all 6 stats written on it in a column, next to blank spots, taking up the left half of the screen. The other half of the surface is empty, and as I watch four red, plastic D6 emerge from the tabletop, and it fills with writing.
~Roll all four dice and drop the lowest number to generate a Stat Value! This Stat Value can be assigned as the starting value for any of your stats. Your current Values are:-, -, -, -, -, -.~
Alright, here goes nothing... I pick up the dice, and cup them in my hands before shaking them gently, listening to the rattle of the plastic. I close my eyes and toss them onto the table with a clatter, bracing myself before taking a peak at the first set of results.
The dice show a 5, a 6, a 4 and a 2. Add them together and drop the 2... I got a 15! Alright, that's already better than the highest option for the Standard Array. Just need to hope my luck keeps up. I sweep the dice back up and shake them again before tossing them down once more. This time it is a 5, 6, 5 and a 6, so that's... 17?! Amazing! That's 2 really good scores so far. To my utter shock and joy, my luck stays strong for the entire process, and I proceed to roll a 13, a 12, another 13 and a 14 in quick succession. I just stare in amazement, wondering if I am imagining things, but nope. The scores are listed on the screen in descending value, right there in black and white.
~You have rolled all your Stat Values. Please assign your Values to your chosen Stats as you see fit. Your current Values are: 17, 15, 14, 13, 13 and 12.~
Alright, this is really good. Got a really good start here. I just need to decide where to allocate these scores. After a bit of deliberating, I reach over and drag the 12 to the Charisma box. While Charisma is going to be an important stat later on, it's not as important right now as survivability, and as a stat that has no impact on my physical attributes or combat prowess it gets the lowest value. But considering that it's still an above-average stat, I don't feel too badly about it. I also don't hesitate before bringing the 17 over to Endurance. As a stat that impacts health, stamina, damage resistance and health regeneration, that needs to be high from the start. I waffle for a bit before assigning the 15 to Intelligence. If that skill only impacted my maximum mana, I might not have given it the second highest stat, but considering that it also directly effects how smart I am as a person, as well as how quickly Skills level up and earning Stat points per level, it gets the 15. With those taken care of, it is a lot easier for me to assign the rest of the points, and at the end I'm left with what I feel is a pretty decent spread.
STR: 14
END: 17
DEX: 13
INT: 15
WIS: 13
CHR: 12
~Are these the Stats you'd like to start with?~
[YES]
I press the little Yes button, and the screen clears off and the dice vanish. However, a D20 suddenly appears on the table, and a new set of writing fills in the empty space.
[There is one last Stat that needs to be addressed. Your Luck(LCK) Stat has no direct impact on you physically or mentally, but will impact everything you do in some way. It increases your chance for Critical Hits, improves the rate of Item Drops, the quality of Loot and the chance for random Events to occur, and improves the overall odds of things going in your favor. Fittingly for this Stat, there is only one way to determine its starting value: Roll the D20.]
"I knew I was forgetting something," I groan. The stupid pop-up even mentioned 7 stats at the beginning, and I only rolled 6 of them. How could I forget Luck?! It's one of the most important stats in Gamer fics. Where would the protagonist be without getting a Legendary skill from a Gacha reward, or a really good starting bonus from the first dungeon? I need this to be a good roll. If I get a 1 for my Luck, it wouldn't matter if all my other stats were at 20, I'd still probably die in a matter of days. With shaking hands, I pick up the D20, and roll it around in my fingers for a moment. Finally, with a silent prayer, I toss the die and watch it roll across the screen before coming to a stop.
18.
I let out an explosive sigh of relief. That is really good. That's going to almost guarantee me some good starting loot once I really begin leveling and dungeon crawling. The screen rotates back to being a vertical pop-up in front of me again, and starts filling itself with more text.
[Your starting stats and attributes have been set, and can now be viewed at any time in your Stats Menu. Try accessing it now by saying "View Stats Menu."]
"View Stats Menu." Oh, I've been wanting to view my menus for ages now! Another pop-up appears in front of me, this one a sky blue edged in white as opposed to the R.O.B.'s sapphire blue.
Race: Human
Title: The Gamer
Level: 1 (1) [0/1,000xp]
HP: 310/310 (3.4/s)
SP: 440/440 (2.6/s)
MP: 150/150 (13/s)
STR: 14
END: 17
DEX: 13
INT: 15
WIS: 13
CHR: 12
LCK: 18
Alright, looking pretty good here. Stamina regen is a little lower than I'd like, but it looks like I have a pretty decent reserve of it, so hopefully I'll just be able to fall back on my reserves until I can level my DEX and get it higher. Also, I'm a little worried about my mana regen. If the mana regeneration formula is so high compared to health and stamina, it's probably because magic is gonna eat through my mana pool really fast. I was already going to be leveling INT for the bonus to Skill leveling speed and the bonus Stat points, but I might need to focus on it to upgrade my mana pool as well. Still, overall I'm very happy with my starting stats.
"So what's next?"
[Choose your starting Class! Classes are going to be the major way you unlock Skills, Traits and Attacks as you level. Once you choose a Class, it will level alongside you as you collect experience, and as the Class levels up you will improve the Skills associated with that Class, or even learn new ones. You only have access to a few Classes at the moment, but more can be unlocked through various actions, such as leveling up, maxing out other types of Classes, completing Quests or Story Events, as rewards from Dungeons or as Special Rewards. Which is your preferred starting specialization?]
[Combat] [Stealth] [Magic]
So far, I've definitely been preaching survivability above all else. But now I need to stop and think about what that really means, because this is gonna be an important choice. I think I've definitely been focusing more on physical survival; being able to take a hit and keep going. That's why I prioritized END earlier. It's the style I prefer in most video games, beefy tanks who can take obscene amounts of damage while dishing out steady hits in return, with bonus points for any kind healing capabilities. It's why I usually end up as a Paladin or similar in most games. But in the High School DxD world, taking most attacks head on is suicide unless you're strong enough to get away with it. I don't think you can just tank one of Sirzechs' Power of Destruction blasts... So maybe the other options are a better idea.
Stealth class means I can avoid direct combat entirely, and take out my enemies from hiding without exposing myself to danger. However, that kind of a build isn't made to take damage, and if I ever did end up in a direct confrontation, or a situation where there isn't any way to hide myself, I'd be a sitting duck. If this Game follows kind of generic RPG mechanics, though, Stealth would be where ranged builds fit in. Combat Stealth Archer, maybe? It always works in Skyrim. Damage from a distance solves some of those issues. Although, something like that would probably be locked until I have both Combat and Stealth classes under my belt. Hmm...
I can't lie, the thought of doing Magic, actual Magic, being able to just throw my hands out or say some nonsense words and have blasts of fire or knives of ice shoot forward, or have a wave of shadows erupt from the ground, is definitely a childhood dream come true. Depending on the specifics, I can become impossibly BROKEN using magic, just snap my fingers and evaporate my enemies. But again, also depending on the specifics of how the system is gonna handle magic users, they can be so squishy. You always need to dump points into your mana pool, into your mana regeneration, into casting speed, meaning things like health and strength fall by the wayside. The best option in my opinion would be something like a Battlemage, tough and heavy armor, high health and using support magic to enhance your physical attacks. Maybe even get a healing spell in there, some extra DPS with temporary buffs... aaand I'm back to Paladin again. Hmph. I'm sure there's some kind of Paladin class in the system somewhere, I'll just need to unlock it eventually.
"Hey, is there any kind of multi-class options? Like, have two going at once?"
[After Maxing out a certain number of Classes, there might be a Quest that can be undertaken to unlock Multi-Class capabilities.]
"Alright, and how do I reach max level in a class?"
[Classes are considered to be maxed out at Level 50. Upon reaching Level 50 in any Class, you have the option to either Prestige the Class or pick a new one from your list of available Classes.]
"Geeze... Okay, so I won't be unlocking multi-class for a while then. What happens if I prestige a class?"
[Prestiging a Class allows you to level it again from 0. The levels and Stat Points earned from the first 50 levels will remain, but it will reset the Skills of that Class to 0, if applicable, while upgrading them to the next Skill tier automatically.]
That makes me feel a little better, honestly. Seems like this Game is gonna expect me to have a lot of levels by the end of it, and it offers a lot of variety. I think I'm gonna focus on Combat for now, dedicate a few points to INT and DEX here and there as I level, and then spec more into Magic and Stealth as I go. And I just realize something, too. While it's true that usually you can't just tank certain attacks, in this universe that doesn't hold true after a certain point either. I have completely forgotten about Sairaorg Bael. Strongest Devil of his generation, pretty sure he is Ultimate Class, and he doesn't have any fancy magic or special powers. Dude is just that strong that he can punch in the same weight class as the rest of the magic spitting Devils. And furthermore, if straight-up physical strength and defense weren't valid options, then Ajuka wouldn't have created the Rook Evil Pieces. I've seen Koneko just shrug off massive explosions and insanely powerful hits like they were nothing.
I laugh, and shake my head. I suddenly feel very silly. I'm trying to assign too much real-world logic to this kind of thing. Not only is this a Game, literally designed by higher powers to be entertaining, I am heading into a borderline Hentai world where the main protagonist gets power-ups through breasts and the most powerful being in the world is a Gothic Lolita dragon. There was never any logic here to begin with. Still chuckling, I click on the Combat option.
[Combat Classes will enhance your martial abilities, and are predominantly focused on the STR, END and DEX stats. Which class will you start with?]
[Warrior] [Barbarian] [Martial-Artist]
Okay... Barbarian is out, they're usually not allowed to wear armor, and while D&D tends to make them seem like unkillable rage machines, I'm not sure how much of that will need to carry over into the Game. I don't love the idea of constantly needing to be angry to be any good at fighting. Martial-Artist is out for now, mainly for the same reason that they don't get armor, but also because of the lack of weapons. I'm not thrilled with the idea of just punching things to start out. However, this world has a lot of Ki usage, with things like Senjutsu and Touki and all that being rather prevalent. Martial-Artist is either a class that uses Ki, or is more likely a prerequisite for any class that uses it. So that's on the back-burner for now, but I'll probably revisit it once I get a bit stronger, or once I can get multi-class going. I choose the Warrior option, and my vision floods with pop-up messages.
Skills Gained!
{Weapon Handling: Novice}-Passive| Lvl. 1 (0%)
{The pointy end goes in the other guy. You have gained a basic understanding of most melee weapons, and can wield them reasonably well without hurting yourself. Can do base damage with melee weapons you meet the requirements of.}
{Heavy Armor Proficiency: Novice}-Passive| Lvl. 1 (0%)
{Bite my shiny, metal ass! You have gained a basic understanding of heavy armor types, and can wear them without penalty. Gains base defense rating from heavy armor you meet the requirements of.}
{Focused Attack: Novice}-Active| Lvl. 1(0%)
{Strike with the force of a great typhoon. Channel your full STR into your attacks. Adds your STR score as a flat damage modifier to any melee attack. Costs 30 SP.}
{Brace: Novice}-Active| Lvl. 1 (0%)
{Prepare for impact! While active, all incoming physical damage is reduced by your STR and END scores combined. Channeled Skill. Costs 100 SP maintenance.}
[Class selected: Warrior! View details of your current and available Classes in your Class Menu. Try accessing it now by saying "View Class Menu."]
[You have gained Active Skills! You can view them and your Passive Skills at any time in your Skills Menu. Try accessing it now by saying "View Skills Menu."]
I blink away the after-effects of having like 6 bright pop-up windows suddenly shoved in my face before opening up my Class Menu. It is the same sky blue as my Stats Menu, but doesn't show much info.
Current Class: Warrior, Lvl. 1 (0/1,000xp)
Available Classes:
Combat: Barbarian, Martial-Artist
Stealth: Rogue, Thief, Hunter
Magic: Mage, Cleric, Warlock
Combos:
Special:
I can't click on any of the other classes for more information about them, so either I have to go into each new class blind or I'll be able to "unlock" it somehow. A little disappointing, honestly. But I guess I can't have everything handed to me. I open my Skills Menu to see how that one is organized. It just lists each Skill I've gotten so far, and if I click on them it brings up the full description again. Useful, but nothing groundbreaking.
"Alright, so that should be everything, right? I've got my new body, got my starting stats and my starting class. Is there anything else we need to do?"
[There is one last option, if you wish.]
A small table rises from the darkness in front of me, and on top of it is a small bowl filled with... fortune cookies? "Um, thanks? I guess?" I reach out for a cookie before the pop-up flashes to grab my attention.
[Before you take the cookies, let us explain. These cookies each contain a Fickle Fortune, each of which will grant you two Traits, one positive known as a Perk, and one negative known as a Flaw, though they are usually linked in some way*. You may take as many or as few as you'd like. Once you are ready to proceed, simply let us know.]
"What's with that little asterisk there, Game?"
[*Due to the effects of a certain Fickle Fortune resulting in a Gamer erasing the Glunck-Pau Gamma series of Multiversal Clusters, as well as the usurpation and eventual dissolution of several System Operators, it has been decided as a whole to remove the negative traits: Asexual, Erectile Dysfunction, Frigid, Premature Ejaculator and Inorgasmia from the System.]
"Wait, wait wait wait... let me get this straight. Some other Gamer got bad traits, and he was blueballed to the point he destroyed a portion of the Multiverse and killed off some of the Game systems themselves?" I don't know whether to laugh or cry at that, I really don't.
[We don't like to talk about that. Now either take your cookies or shut up and move on.]
"Fine, fine. I think I'll take a few of them."
Ah, the good old RPG traits system. Immediate positive gains for a minor negative that can usually be overcome with time and effort. Depending on what I pull, this can be pretty useful. Hopefully it's nothing too bad though, but it should be fine... I'll take one and if it's not too bad I might try for a few more. I pick up one of the cookies and crack it open before pulling out the little slip of paper; "You look awfully familiar, huh stranger?"
Traits Gained!
{Cool Backstory, Bro!}
{Upon entering a new world, that world's history will be rearranged to give you an existing identity and backstory. It will be as if you had originally been born into the world itself.}
{Do I Know You?}
{Your past is a mystery to everyone... even you! Nobody knows who you are, you have no idea where you've come from, and you'll need to find your own identity by yourself.}
[You have collected new Traits! Traits passively effect you and the world around you in many different ways, some good, some bad. You may view any Traits you have collected in your Traits Menu. View them by saying, "View Traits Menu."]
Still a little confused, I ignore the prompt to open yet another new menu. "Um, what does this mean? Don't these just kind of cancel each other out?"
[Hmm, interesting combination. The overlap should mean that while you will have an established identity in the new world, you won't be appraised of the details immediately. You'll most likely have to do a Quest of some sort to unravel your own history.]
"Alright, that's not too bad. Honestly that's just a net gain, since I wouldn't necessarily have had a backstory in the first place, so it basically gave me a quest to gain one. Pretty good, I'll take another one." Cracking open another fortune cookie, I pull out another paper; "No pain, no gain!"
Traits Gained!
{Natural Gains}
{Gain double Stat Points per Level Up. Does not effect Stat Points gained through Consumable Items or Quest rewards.}
{It's All Uphill From Here}
{Leveling Up now requires 50% more Experience per level.}
"Yes!" I was hoping for something like that first skill! Oh, this is gonna be a lifesaver. It's essentially like double levels! I'm not exactly thrilled with that 50% more experience needed per level, though. That's gonna be really annoying at higher levels, so I'm gonna need to overcome that sooner than later. Maybe through potions? Most Gamer stories have XP boost potions, right? Still, pretty good overall. I'm a little more hesitant to take another one, but overall this has been a positive. I grab one more cookie, and the scrap of paper in this one is... glowing? It reads; "You are one of God's Chosen... Punching Bags."
Rare Traits Gained!
{Soul of a Champion}
{You are reborn with a Sacred Gear in your soul. Sacred Gear will be determined randomly upon reincarnation.}
{Foot in Two Worlds}
{The spawn of two separate races, your existence is an affront to some. Cannot choose a pureblooded race at character creation. Decreased Reputation gains/increased Reputation loss with bigots among both races you are descended from.}
Before I can really even take in those traits, I am suddenly in front of the Character Creation screen again.
"Wait a minute, what's happening here... Oh, God damn it!" Fuck! I went on that whole mental soliloquy earlier about how being human, while boring, is the best choice! And now I can't even choose it! Uuuuggghhh!
"Fuck it all! Fine, dammit, I'll take Cambion for the Devil Magic. Can I at least keep my current body!?"
I guess the Game is taking at least a little pity on me, as the Character Creation screen pops up again showcasing my current body. The only difference seems to be the black wings sprouting from my shoulders, and I think I look a little more... refined, maybe? Bit sharper jawline, maybe slightly shapelier lips, bouncier hair... I'm not sure how to put it into words, I just look a bit better. I mean, I guess Devils are supposed to be incredibly attractive to entice Humans, so it's not surprising, but still. I accept the new race change, and am once again forced to my knees in pain as my body changes around me.
It feels like my shoulders are being pulled from their sockets, and my skin is on fire as I can feel my features shift ever so slightly. This change lasts only a few seconds, so not as all-encompassing as the first time, but it's still not comfortable at all. I get back up, and my balance is immediately thrown off by the enormous bat wings suddenly hanging off of me. I instinctively flex them, and estimate I must have at least a six foot wingspan. I gently reach out and feel them, marveling at the tactile feedback. They feel like the richest, most luxuriant leather I've ever felt in my life. I give them an experimental flap, and am thrown off my feet by the unexpected displacement of mass. Giving it a few more goes, I think I get the hang of at least moving them around without falling on my ass. I fold them against my back, and shiver as I feel them seamlessly slide into my back, leaving no outward traces that they exist. I look up, and start to wave away the cloud of gray pop-up boxes that came with my race change.
Traits Gained!
{Hellspawn}
{You weren't merely raised in the Darkness... you were born in it. You are a child of Hell, born from the loins of Devils. You gain +25% Infernal Damage with all Skills and Weapons and +25% Infernal Resistance from all Sources.}
{Prayers Unanswered}
{Smite me, almighty Smiter!You are an Unholy being, born of the Underworld, mired in Sin. You take +25% Increased Radiant Damage from all sources.}
{Supernatural Durability}
{'Tis but a flesh wound! You are resistant to all forms of Non-Magical Damage, taking only 25% of Damage from Non-Magical sources.}
Skills Gained!
{Flight: Novice}-Active| Lvl. 1 (0%)
{To Infinity; and Beyond! You were born with Wings, and know the basics of how to use them. Allows for flight within any area large enough for your wingspan. Costs 5 SP/s.}
{Devil Magic: Unique}-Active| Lvl. 1 (0%)
{Will the World to Change, and accept nothing less than the fullness of your Dreams. Grants access to the Devils' brand of magic, limited only by the limits of your Imagination. Costs vary based on desired effects and Skill level.}
Alright, I can admit these are some decent skills to have. Aside from the increased Radiant damage, of course. As soon as I stop being mopey about the lost XP and Stat boost from the Human race, I'll probably be excitedly testing out my wings and Devil magic. But right now, I'm still upset. As I clear out the last gray pop-up, I see the bowl of cookies is looking as full as ever, and the blue pop-up window is awaiting my signal to move forward.
[Are you ready to proceed?]
That fucking smug pop-up, it knows how pissed I am about this!
"You know what? Fuck it. Last one! One more Fortune, and then I'm done." I grab one final cookie and break it open with extreme prejudice to read the fortune inside; "Here's a tip: Become a Pizza Delivery Boy."
...What in the fuck does that even mean?!
Traits Gained!
{Paradise Lust}
{The status of the world is increased from an Ecchi universe, to a Hentai universe. Sexuality is a much more open topic, and sexual situations will happen more frequently, with stronger results.}
{Nobody's Watching for the Plot}
{The world, or at least some parts of it you will encounter, now run on Porn Logic. This can effect Allies, Enemies, and Random Encounters at random.}
Huh. Okay. This will certainly be, um, interesting... On the one hand, it means I'll probably have to fight tooth and nail just to keep my new body's V-Card. So that's nice. However, Porn Logic is... well it's nonsense. I'm going to have to start keeping a freaking tally of all the times a supernatural woman gets caught in a laundry machine or something. While this one seems like a very silly "Flaw," I know that realistically it's just going to mean the Game will randomly throw challenges and hardships at me, that just happen to be perversely themed. Oh no... Issei is going to be literally useless in any and all fights, since the girls aren't just going to be naked now if their clothes or armor are destroyed, they're going to be provocatively naked!
"Touche, Game. That's a flaw that will sneak up on people. Doesn't really seem like a bad thing until you really think about it."
[That's the idea. Are you ready to begin?]
"Yeah, let's do this!" I pump my fists in excitement, as I feel myself begin to be enveloped by an unfamiliar energy, and the Void and the pop-up slowly fade out in a white haze, though I can see the last few lines of text on the screen...
[Initializing World Transfer in...
3...
2...
1...
Game Start.
Good Luck!]
AN: Hello people! I'm not sure if anyone will remember me, as it's been a number of years since I've posted anything, but I'm tentatively back for now. Things have been... rough, for awhile, and honestly they still are, but I decided to at least give writing a shot again. This is gonna be very sporadic, so don't expect frequent updates, but I would consider this a normal chapter length when it does update. I've decided on writing a High School DxD/Gamer fic because I've been reading a bunch of them lately, and it seems like fun. This world has a lot of potential for that kind of story in my eyes, and the HDxD world is that really neat blend of having a ton of different things mentioned or brought up, but not a lot is explained in super detail, meaning there's plenty of room for interpretation. Plus some of the mechanics of that world, specifically Evil Pieces and Sacred Gears, seem to literally just be begging for the attention of beings and concepts from other media. And I know this was a long chapter for what amounts to pretty much nothing but filler/exposition, but I really wanted to setup as realistic of a Gaming system as I possibly could. Seriously, I have like 5 text docs saved to my desktop just filled with all the formulae and details of skills and attacks and derived stats. Chapter 2 will be the "real" start of the story, with the MC making it into Kuoh, getting to test out his skills with some combat and dungeon delving, and maybe even a glimpse of plot! Who knows? Please let me know what you thought, and take care!