Volume 1
Chapter 1
Died
Translator : PolterGlast
"... Hmm...
Huh…?"
I seemed to have
fallen asleep without realizing it.
It was after school.
The setting sun cast an amber glow into the classroom. The teacher had already
left, and most of the students had gone off to clubs or part-time jobs.
There were only a few
students left,
"Oi~, let’s go to
karaoke. Well then, you go clean up, alright?"
"Huh... Yeah, got
it."
They had dumped the
chore of cleaning up the classroom on me, who was sitting in the back seat by
the window. Ever since I started attending this school—or rather, since I
became a student—being assigned these kinds of odd jobs has become the norm.
Well, I don’t really mind, so it’s fine.
I stood up from my
chair and, as usual, started to clean the blackboard. In other classes, the
teachers would stay behind to check if the students were cleaning properly, but
the teacher in this class never bothered to check. It was because of me. Since
I cleaned every day like this, the teacher probably got tired of checking and stopped
coming. I think it’s kind of unfair, but I don’t say anything.
Come to think of it…
my vision is really blurry today. Am I tired? I can’t seem to get a good grip
on my arm.
I looked down at my
arm, which was resting on the desk as I was about to stand up. My arm was
trembling like a newborn fawn.
“Ah!”
And then, I lost my
balance and collapsed onto the floor.
Ah... Not again.
Lately, I’ve been falling over a lot like this.
Maybe it’s because I
haven’t been eating properly? But I can’t buy food if I don’t have any money.
Well, whatever.
There’s no point in worrying about things I can’t do anything about. First, I
need to get up and finish cleaning...
“H... huh?”
My arm... I can’t move
it. It’s just trembling. Usually, even if I fall, I can get up after a while.
I have no strength.
Not only that, but my vision is getting more and more distorted.
What is this???
What is...
happening...?
After that, my eyelids
couldn’t hold out any longer, and my consciousness slowly faded away.
□□□
Suddenly, I woke up.
...? Where... am I? A
completely white world—is this a hospital? But even a hospital would be a bit
more decorated, I think.
Except for the chair I
was sitting on, there was nothing else in the world where I had woken up.
"Well, well,
you're finally awake, you goofball. To think you could sleep so soundly while
sitting down."
Suddenly, from behind
me, a woman with blonde twintails who looked like a delinquent spoke to me in a
voice I had never heard before. She was wearing a plain white T-shirt with only
her left shoulder exposed, black half-pants with some accessories, and
black-and-white striped knee-high socks—she looked like a delinquent from head
to toe. And to top it off, she was smoking a cigarette... I didn't want to get
involved with her. She had a fierce look in her eyes.
"Tch, making me
wait... Rejoice, boy, you're going to another world!"
"Huh..."
"..."
""...?""
Since she had suddenly
said something so incomprehensible, I at least replied, but... she tilted her
head in confusion too. I mean, it's troubling when she does that.
And more importantly,
where am I?
Whether or not my
thoughts were conveyed, the woman who had suddenly appeared rested her elbow on
her arm and began to fiddle with her hair.
"...Ah, I see.
You're confused because you don't know where this is."
"Well,
yeah..."
"I apologize for
that. This is the afterlife. You're dead. You collapsed from malnutrition, and
since you fell behind a desk and weren't discovered, you died of starvation
over the weekend. And who am I, you ask? Well—I am what you would call a god,
the creator of this world—and a servant of that being. Am I clear so far?"
"………………Haa~."
"Alright. Let's
get back to the main point. Mutou Kushina, you have been chosen to go to
another world to maintain the balance of the world. Now, rejoice!"
Ah, that's my name.
How does she know my name...?
"…………Hey, why are
you so unresponsive? Rejoice, it's another world!"
"………"
Even if you say
that... I was suddenly told that I was [dead] and that I was going to another
world. It doesn't really make sense... Besides, the cause of death being
malnutrition... Indeed, I've been eating only one meal a week several times,
and most of my meals have been heavily biased towards carbohydrates like rice
and bread, and there have even been days when I didn't eat at all, so I can't
say there's nothing that comes to mind... Huh? Isn't that actually reasonable?
No, no, no, could I really die so easily?
Ugh... I can't, I
don't get it.
"Are you
listening? It's another world, aren't you happy? I heard that young people in
Japan these days long to go to another world. Is that not true?"
A dream...? No, I
don't think I'm dreaming. If this were a dream, I wouldn't be able to realize
that it's a dream, right? But I can currently suggest the possibility that this
is a dream. So it's not a dream.
Then, what the heck
is—
"Hey,
you!!!"
The woman suddenly
raised her voice, making my shouldes jump involuntarily.
"How dare you
ignore me!? Don't tell me you think this place is a dream or something! It
wasn't like you died from shock, so you must have memories just before you
died!!"
"Dying is a bit
of an exaggeration... I remember collapsing, though..."
"That's how you
died! I've been telling you!"
I mean, even if you
say so...
Seeing me like that,
the woman who had been panting caught her breath and took a deep breath.
"Hey, you, do you
like games?"
"Huh? Games?
Well, I guess..."
I've hardly ever
played it though
"Then you should
be more excited! The world you're going to is a fantasy world like those in
games and such!!"
"...Yay,
hooray."
"You're not
putting any emotion into it! Are you making fun of me?"
Even if you say so.
And besides, if
someone who calls themselves a god says [fantasy], doesn't that mean they know
that such phenomena exist? If they really existed, it wouldn't be a fantasy.
It's only natural to be suspicious when you hear something like that.
As I was thinking
about that, the woman in front of me, who claimed to be a god, seemed to change
her mood and blew the cigarette between her fingers with a [whoosh].
"This is no good.
You're the kind of person who won't understand no matter how much I tell you.
According to my policy, I wanted you to go there with some kind of
understanding, but I'm too tired to talk anymore.
It's already been
decided, so nothing can be changed anyway. I'll finish what I need to do and
send you off. You can just listen to what I have to say and think of it as
'that's just how it is'."
"Haa..."
"I'm going to
send you to another world—I told you that already. And the reason for that
is... managing the world is a lot of work, you know. Even worlds like Earth
that are barely in balance are rare. There are only a handful of worlds among
the countless worlds that are properly balanced. That's how few there are.
Well, you see... we
gods can't directly interfere with the world. That's our rule. So how do we
maintain balance? That's where you, the reincarnators, come in.
You will be
reincarnated into another world for our convenience. We'll also give you some
decent benefits as an apology. So, go to that world and do your best to make
that world balanced, just like the world you lived in. Five people from your
hometown have already been sent to the world you're going to."
This setting is oddly
well-thought-out. But I still don't understand it.
Well, for the time
being─
"Maintain
balance... What does that mean specifically?"
I decided to throw the
first question to clear up what I didn't understand.
"Well, let's
see... uh, you don't have to do anything."
"Huh?"
"No, you see,
just by [birthing] strong beings like you reincarnators, the balance of the
world is greatly maintained. So, you can just live freely in the other world.
That will maintain the balance of the world."
"..."
Suddenly, it became
kind of cheap.
Perhaps sensed it too,
the woman hurriedly tried to explain.
"A-And! I said I
would give you benefits, right? There are three benefits. First, you can keep
your current memories after reincarnation. Second, your current body will be
reproduced in the other world. And third, this is the main one..."
There's more to it.
"Ta-da! It's
gacha!"
I don't know where it
came from—behind her, a huge gacha machine had suddenly appeared—a gacha
machine several times the height of a person.
...Huh?
"You will have to
pull this three times. Inside this gacha machine are powerful abilities, and if
you have them, you'll have no problems in another world."
"He~e..."
A gacha machine, huh?
I've seen them before, but I've never pulled one.
"Okay, go ahead
and try it."
The woman pointed at
the gacha machine and made a gesture like "come on," inviting me.
Even if you tell me to
try it, how am I supposed to turn it? It's so huge.
"Hmm? What's
wrong? Just touch this handle. After that, the gacha will move automatically
and transfer the ability to you."
Ah, I see. So that's
how it works.
Since I was told to
"do it," I started walking towards the gacha machine.
As I approached the
gacha machine, I looked up at the case containing the prizes.
Behind me, for some
reason, the woman was watching me nervously, but... I ignored her.
I touched the handle.
Clickety-clack,
clickety-clack
Just as the woman
said, the gacha machine started moving automatically.
Pop
[Super Regeneration]
As the capsule came
out of the gacha machine, the capsule also opened automatically, and letters
floated in the air.
"Oh! Super
Regeneration, huh? You're lucky. This one will allow you to heal any wound
instantly.
You see, eight out of
ten of the abilities in this gacha are related to attacks. To draw a healing
ability on your first try is really lucky. With this ability, you can fight
without any problems, even without a healer."
"He~e…"
Apparently, I'm lucky.
...I don't really feel that way, though.
And besides, is this a
benefit? What does it mean to be granted regeneration? I'm even more confused.
I have more questions now.
"..."
Well, whatever. I
started to turn the gacha machine for the second time.
Clickety-clack,
clickety-clack
Pop
[Eternal Youth]
"Huh?"
The moment the second
capsule opened, the woman let out a startled cry.
Eternal Youth... so
that means I won't age? All living things have a lifespan. In contrast, I will
be free from that restriction? ...But how can you grant eternal youth?
"Wait, wait,
wait!"
The woman is agitated.
What's wrong?
"Another
non-combat ability?! This is strange... This is very strange! To miss the
combat ability twice in a row..."
Come to think of it,
wasn't it said that eight out of ten were combat abilities? Now that she
mentions it, it is strange.
But, after all, it's
just a matter of probability, and that doesn't mean the other abilities won't
come out. There's nothing as unreliable as the theory of probability.
"C-calm down...
calm down. That's right, you have one more chance. It's just that an unusual
thing happened twice in a row this time. There's no way a non-combat ability
will come out three times in a row..."
The woman is muttering
to herself. I feel like the next one won't be a combat ability because of what
she just said. And besides, I don't even understand what it means to be granted
a skill.
Well, anyway, it's the
last one, so I might as well pull it quickly. I touched the handle again.
Clickety-clack,
clickety-clack
Pop
[Grit: Indomitable
Spirit]
Huh? Indomitable
Spirit? What kind of ability is that?
I looked at the woman,
seeking an explanation.
But she looked down,
trembling, and didn't seem like she was in a mood to explain.
"Again... a
non-combat ability..."
Looks like it missed
again
"Um, what is
this...?"
"……………Eh? Oh...
well, that..."
She looks clearly
downcast.
"That is... an
ability that allows you to have one HP remaining forever as long as you don't
feel fear or despair. As long as this remains, you can survive. It's truly
'indomitable spirit'. Depending on how you use it, you could become
immortal."
What? Immortal!?
That's amazing. Combined with the [Eternal Youth] from earlier, I'll be
immortal! ...Well, I still don't get it, though.
"What's HP?"
"It's the
so-called life force. A force needed to live. In this case, it means that it
will never reach zero, no matter what. And you also have [Super Regeneration].
If you just look at the stats, you could be called a 'warrior who can revive
immediately even if you fall down', or even a living zombie. ...Well, if you
just look at the stats that is."
A living zombie
state... That's a harsh way to put it. But if I take her words at face value,
she might be right. I won't die, I won't age, and I'll keep regenerating...
Isn't that even more than a zombie?
But for some reason,
she's speaking with a hint of something.
Is there something
wrong?
If her story is true,
the main point is to send me to another world, and strictly speaking, she
shouldn't care how I live in that world... So why does she react like that?
"A~ a~... Why did
this happen... I wanted to see ordinary people who went to another world become
overpowered and get cocky—that was one of my few pleasures..."
What's that?
"Well, whatever.
Hey, do you have any questions? I'll answer just one now."
Huh? Questions? And
only one!?
"Um... what about
that cigarette?"
I just threw out the
question that came to mind.
"What? Why do you
want to know that? Well, to put it simply, it's a kind of tranquilizer. Being a
god is exhausting... A mortal like you wouldn't understand."
...Ha~a...?
"The reason it
looks like the cigarettes in your world is simply because I copied the shape
because it looks easy to smoke. Oh dear... I can't live without this
anymore."
Saying that, the girl
exhaled white smoke again.
She can't live without
it, she says... isn't that just a cigarette?
"Well then, it's
time to send you to another world. The place I send you will be random to ensure
fairness. See you then."
Hey, wait! What's with
that last part!? What do you mean by fairness? What do you mean by random!? And
then───
Before I could ask any
more questions, my vision was blocked by a blinding white light.
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