'I've been out for five minutes. I think that's enough grass for the week.'
Cid, a young man pushing twenty years old, was returning from a supermarket after restocking his supplies.
Fresh air, sunlight, and responsibility. Three things he tolerated only in small doses.
He was eager to go home and continue gaming, barely noticing the bustle of his surroundings, a hotspot for monster attacks that naturally attracted Hunters.
With two bags in his hands, he waited for the traffic light's go-ahead so he could cross the road.
Once it changed, he moved to cross, only to hear a loud screech.
Turning to his left, he saw a yellow school bus barreling toward him at a concerning speed, panic written clearly on the driver's face, as though he already knew the bloody outcome.
Just then, the young man moved faster than human limits allowed.
He dived into the other lane, dropping a bag and earning a collection of bruises… but he evaded the bus.
The bus missed him by inches.
"I thought that was—"
He sighed, then heard another screech from his right.
Without even looking in that direction, he rolled forward.
Due to its supernatural speed, a truck slammed into him.
"…"
Soon, the young man's vision went blank.
Truck-kun successfully delivered the reincarnator after his partner, Sir Bus, failed the mission.
. . . . .
In a golden soul body, Cid found himself in a field of white roses that stretched endlessly before him and to either side.
'Is this heaven? I did live an innocent life.'
As he mused, he turned his head back, where red roses tainted with black devoured the plains.
'Huh, is heaven being corrupted? Or maybe it's actually hell… Now that I think about it, I was quite bitter for a while.'
Though he joked, this part of the realm made Cid shudder. In the blink of an eye, a fog rose, blurring that region.
Looking back at the white field and the black, starry skies, an island with a tall, vibrant castle floated.
As Cid expected some being to walk down from here, he sensed a presence behind him.
Someone had walked out of the realm of red roses.
Cid instinctively jumped back and turned towards the person, his gaze falling on a divine aura.
It belonged to a lady with flowing golden hair, fair skin, golden pupils, and a simple white dress.
"Welcome, player. This is what I call the prologue to Proxy Wars v2.0."
As Cid suspiciously studied her hair extending into the foggy red world, a strong sense of enlightenment washed over him.
"You're the dev of Proxy Wars? ThenNowSoon?"
As Cid said the name, he tried his best not to laugh, mimicking an expression of a popular streamer called Speed.
The lady calmly watched him while he instantly recollected himself.
"I am ThenNowSoon."
"It makes sense."
The reason why Cid set out for the supermarket was because of the fact that he unlocked another version of his favourite game and it was downloading.
The warnings the app gave before he chose to 'play' the new version were indeed suspicious.
"Permit me to say, if I were to reincarnate someone because they clicked a button, I'd either directly pull them into here or pull them indirectly through the game.
"I wouldn't wait for them to buy food, imagine how they'll devour it, try to murder them with a school bus before actually succeeding."
Although Cid knew that in his current situation, he was an important piece for this being who he assumed to be a god, he still bowed respectfully.
"Thank you for permitting me to say my piece."
The lady nodded and responded emotionlessly.
"That's how it's normally done. But, different situations call for different methods."
'It's normally done…' Cid mulled over that phrase as he listened.
"To matters at hand. Like I said through the game, the next version will be more complex and dangerous. But I'll reward you with what you want.
"This time, you don't have to make me win the Proxy War, just make the other Gods lose.
"What is your decision? Will you play this game?"
Cid scratched his head while wearing a pondering look.
"You say it so casually, making it hold less impact."
He asked before giving a response, "To confirm, I'll be going to the world which Proxy Wars v1 was set in? Same lore, same power system… same people?"
"The map, lore and power system are similar, but there'll be way more to explore in the real world. As for the people, there are around 60% similarities."
After a moment of thought, Cid chuckled.
"When I stabilize your domain in the war, I'll ask for my wish then. I'll take the experience you're granting me as the initial payment."
Cid had always imagined himself in a real-life proxy war. It offered a reality he was very interested in.
In such a world, he could bring about the fall of a god or two if he wished.
And he really wished!
He was certain some Gods were responsible for taking his family once, nearly ending the world in the process. If this was his chance to strike back, he wouldn't hesitate.
"Thank you for accepting."
"No problem, almighty Goddess of Change."
With the lady giving a curt nod, Cid was satisfied to know that this being was the same that he proxied for in the game.
"Unlike the game, you have a unique Blessing and a Unique Skill."
'Aren't you meant to put this on the table earlier to increase my chances of helping you?'
While Cid thought, a large tear in space appeared behind her, giving sight of a large orb that seemed to be the only entity in the realm behind the tear.
Without waiting for Cid to say anything, the orb compressed and darted out of the gap, merging with him.
As the orb hovered in midair, the link between it and Cid's now-floating soul body thickened with divinity.
The orb swelled, pulsing like a sun of divine energy, enhancing to almost twice its original size.
The roses in the environment began swaying heavily from the aura Cid was exuding.
- - -
Meanwhile, the fog was thickening in the red rose realm as the Goddess of Change looked up at the starry sky.
With a pulse of energy in her 'oversized' star-shaped pupil, the stars in the sky changed formation, a link appearing between them as they formed an ethereal barrier.
She then turned back to Cid, who reached the final stage of his merging with his blessing and skill.
She stretched her hand, a miniature figure of the character Cid used in the game positioned on it.
"Surprisingly, you awakened an interesting Path, crossing the boundaries of the game and peering across worlds.
"I won't let that hard work go to waste."
The miniature figure floated towards Cid, entering his soul body.
The Goddess of Change, at that moment, made the game Cid and real world Cid overlap, blurring the difference between real and fake for a moment.
Using the exuding energy of Cid's divinity, she made the Path fixed on the real world Cid.
At that moment, the golden hair of the Goddess dulled as the end of her hair that stretched into the red rose twitched.
Her eyes and overall aura were also dimmed, due to how much power she had used.
She didn't regret it, calmly watching Cid complete his merging.
- - - - -
As the orb began closing in on Cid's body, he felt ethereal… he felt complete.
He was almost tempted to say:
"Throughout the heavens and the earth, I alone am the honoured one."
He almost laughed at himself for thinking it.
After a fast process that somehow felt slow, Cid stood once more in the sea of white roses.
He bowed.
"I'll make sure we meet again soon, madam."
The Goddess also bowed forward curtly.
She then swung her hand open, a door of light appearing beside Cid.
"That is the door to Nexus, the cursed yet blessed world."
Without any further ado, Cid gave a salute and fell backwards into the door, consumed by light.
As he descended into the world, he heard the last whisper from Madam ThenNowSoon.
"Remember, the game world and the real world are still very different and you have more to experience... And sorry, for my power is insufficient to deliver you properly."
'Hold on… What do you mean by all that?'
While he wandered in slight worry, a wave of voices suddenly reached his ears.
"It's a boy!"
"Nysarra, you have been blessed by the Goddess!"
'Oh, yes. Her race… there are far more females than males. I wonder–'
As Cid tried pondering, he recalled his memories of the past were fading.
This was what ThenNowSoon meant when she said she won't deliver him properly.
The next moment...
"Waaaaahh!"
Tears of a baby resounded in the room.