Chapter 1 — A New Beginning?
"Arrgh! Where am I? Why can't I feel my legs or my hands? W-w-wait... WHERE THE FUCK IS MY BODY?! AAAAAAARRRGHHH!!!"
I screamed in sheer panic.
"Hello!"
A feminine voice suddenly echoed through the seemingly endless void.
"AAAAARRRGHHH!!! What the hell is that?! Who's talking to me?!" I shouted, trembling with fear.
"Please, calm down and just listen to my voice!"
"Why should I?! Who are you?!" I demanded suspiciously.
"Because you're dead!"
"What?! How the fuck did I die?! I was just calling my mom to tell her I was coming for dinner, and then... Wait... Why can't I remember what happened?"
My voice began to tremble as an unsettling feeling crept over me.
"Oh, right! You were run over by a drunk driver!"
"Wait... Oh, no. NOW I REMEMBER!!! THAT MOTHERFUCKER!!!"
I suddenly recalled everything. The headlights, the deafening horn, and that bastard behind the wheel.
"But... how do you know all this? And who exactly are you?"
"Oh, ho, ho! My apologies! Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Celestia! I am... how should I put it? Hmm... The Almighty Goddess of Messengers!"
Celestia declared solemnly.
"What?! A goddess?!"
"Yes!"
"Okay... So, what the fuck am I doing here?"
"All right! First of all, stop swearing!"
"Oh! Okay. I'm sorry!"
"Much better! Now, where were we? Ah, yes! You're here because you died after being run over by a truck. And as the Goddess of Messengers, I simply cannot allow someone to lose their life because of one of my messengers—or transporters, if you prefer!"
"One of your... messengers?"
"Exactly! That's why you're here! I, Celestia, the benevolent Goddess of Messengers, have decided to grant you a second chance at life! A brand-new life, in a world of your choosing! And to make this opportunity even more special, I'm willing to grant you three wishes, which you may freely choose!"
"Really?"
"Of course! However, there's one little catch: you cannot return to your original world, since you're already dead there!"
"Oooookay... So, basically, I've become one of those cliché main characters from reincarnation stories, haven't I?"
"Well, yes!"
"YEEEEESSSS!!!"
I couldn't contain my excitement.
"I'm finally living my weeb/otaku dream! I'm going to be reincarnated—or transported—to a fantasy world, complete with cheat-level abilities!"
I threw my arms into the air, celebrating my newfound opportunity.
"Thank God! Cough, cough! I mean... thank you, Goddess!"
I quickly corrected myself, bowing respectfully.
"Now, about those three wishes!" Celestia announced.
"Right, right! Give me a moment to think."
I paused, trying to organize my thoughts.
"Okay, here we go... What do I really want? I only have three wishes, after all. Wait a minute..."
I suddenly turned my attention toward her.
"Lady Celestia, can I wish for more wishes? Hehe!"
I flashed her my most hopeful smile.
Suddenly, a shiver ran down my spine.
A crack appeared in the very fabric of space directly in front of me. The rift slowly widened, and an absolutely gorgeous figure emerged from within.
She had long, voluminous golden hair cascading down to her waist, a revealing, skin-tight white outfit, and pink fabric wrapped around both arms. Eight magnificent white wings spread behind her, resembling an elaborate cape. She also wore a helmet adorned with a cross-shaped design that completely concealed her eyes.
Honestly, she looked exactly like Angewomon.
My jaw dropped.
I couldn't help but stare, practically drooling at the sight of her.
However, something felt... wrong.
As I finally managed to look at her face, I noticed a rather unsettling detail.
She was wearing an absolutely evil grin.
"So... we have a clever one on our hands, do we?"
Her voice had taken on a noticeably threatening tone.
"Well, the answer is NO! You cannot wish for more wishes!"
She snapped her fingers.
"Hey! Wake up! Stop drooling!"
"Oh! I'm so sorry! I'm really, really sorry!"
I immediately bowed my head in embarrassment.
And that was when I finally noticed something peculiar about myself.
Apparently, I did have a body after all. It just wasn't exactly... normal.
My appearance resembled one of those articulated wooden mannequins used by artists, except my entire body was almost transparent. I could move freely, but I couldn't feel a thing.
It was incredibly weird.
But then, an absolutely brilliant—or perhaps incredibly stupid—idea crossed my mind.
"Cough, cough!"
"So... can I wish for YOU?"
"Ho, ho! I see that you've developed a death wish! Would you like me to kill you a second time, this time permanently?!"
Celestia cracked her knuckles menacingly.
"N-no! No, no, no! Please! How am I supposed to know what's allowed if I don't ask?! I'm sorry!"
I quickly bowed my head again.
"Tsk."
"Hmm?"
"Nothing! Nothing at all!"
"Well, you certainly can't have me! Now, hurry up and make those wishes. I don't have all day!"
She crossed her arms impatiently.
"Okay, okay! Just one more thing to make sure..."
I raised a finger.
"Are my wishes going to affect my appearance in the new world, or can I choose that separately? Also, are there any limitations on what I can wish for?"
Celestia let out a long, exasperated sigh.
"Sigh. Your appearance isn't included in the wishes, so you'll be able to choose that separately. As for limitations... you cannot wish for omnipotence, omnipresence, or omniscience. Everything else is up to you!"
"All right! Excellent! Then, my wishes will be..."
First Wish:
"I want to possess the power of Annihilation Maker!"
"All right! An interesting choice. Granted!"
Second Wish:
"I want a game-like dimensional storage ability, similar to the one in Skyrim, but without any weight limitations!"
"Okay! Granted!"
"Thank you!" I replied enthusiastically.
Hmm...
Now, for my third and final wish...
What do I really want?