It wasn't easy to believe. I mean… I'm not exactly the kind of guy who doubts everything, but a truck falling out of the sky and blowing up an entire city block? That's usually a sign we should probably spend less time on weird late-night forums, because we're clearly getting infected with some insane-ass ideas.
But the problem is, it actually happened… and I was walking home from school at that exact moment.
If it had stopped there, that would've already been weird enough. But apparently, it could still get worse.
In the afterlife, there was no divine judgment or some reincarnation bullshit with a big-titted goddess apologizing for her mistake.
Me, and everyone else who got killed by that truck, were recruited into Limbus Company, an afterlife corporation that sends dead people out to complete missions across the animeverse.
I almost suspected it was forced recruitment, since I wasn't given the option to refuse and a truck falling out of the sky wasn't exactly what I'd call "reasonable development"… but what the hell. At least I'd be alive again.
That's how I received my initial mission. And that's how I finally convinced myself I wasn't losing my damn mind.
–––
[Transport complete]
[100 Initial Bonus Points granted]
–––
I stared at the semi-transparent screen floating in front of me for a few seconds, watching the text shift to new information.
–––
[Current Missions:
Become a Hashira (Reward: 100 points)
Kill one of the Twelve Kizuki – Repeatable (Reward: 50~100 points)
Kill Kibutsuji Muzan (Reward: 200 points)]
–––
"Incredible…" was the only thing I managed to say.
From the missions, obviously my starting world was Demon Slayer. A massively successful anime, mainly because of its insane animation quality. But in terms of story… it was pretty simple and straightforward, if I had to say.
The problem was that the missions, at least for this world, were high difficulty. In other words, they were not easy to complete.
Of course, that's assuming you weren't cheating.
Soon, the semi-transparent screen shifted again.
–––
[Employee Profile]
Name: Hayato Misogi
Points: 100
Current Mission:
Become a Hashira (Incomplete)
Kill one of the Twelve Kizuki - Repeatable (Incomplete)
Kill Kibutsuji Muzan (Incomplete)
「Attributes」
Physical: Tier 0 <0/10> [+]
「Skills」
N/A
「Perks」
N/A
–––
I stared at the "Tier 0" listed there. "Does that mean I'm trash?"
No, thinking about it more calmly… it probably just means I'm the same as an average civilian. There's definitely nothing wrong with me!
But with that level of strength, I'd absolutely get slaughtered by the first Oni I ran into, let alone one of the Twelve Kizuki.
I looked up at the sky, where the sun was setting. "… Ah."
Starting on the night shift… the Company really believes in human potential!
"At least they gave me some bonus points…" Without them, I'd already be looking for a nice, comfy tree to lean against while I die. The kind of scene that would make for a memorable manga panel… for several reasons.
But with these points, none of that shit is happening!
"The best way to become a pro player is to start with pay-to-win!"
I tapped the [+] symbol next to Physical, and a new window popped up.
–––
[Do you wish to invest points into Physical?]
–––
"Yes, sir, I do. Please, go ahead! As fast as possible!" I confirmed the prompt.
–––
[10 points consumed]
[Physical raised to Tier 1]
–––
A warm wave ran through my body, making me feel lighter. But that was it. It didn't feel nearly as impressive as I'd imagined a power-up would.
"Hmm…"
I checked my Employee Profile again, and the cost to raise my Physical to Tier 2 had jumped to 25 points.
I still had 90 points left.
"It's still gonna be hard to survive, right?"
I don't have a Nichirin blade, or even a regular sword, not even a damn kitchen knife. So if I ran into an Oni right now… I'd have to deal with it using my fists, right?
At the very least, just to avoid getting eaten and survive until sunrise.
It'd be great if I stumbled across some wisteria flowers, since that's also one of the Oni's weaknesses, but there's no way something that convenient is just going to happen!
In that case, there's only one thing I can do!
"I already died once, so it's a bit early to be trying that shit again!"
Saving points when your own life is on the line is not recommended!
–––
[25 points consumed]
[Physical raised to Tier 2]
–––
"Ah…!!" This pay-to-win feeling is way too damn good!
Even without moving, I can feel the strength in my muscles! I'm miles ahead of my old sedentary self!
"This is seriously addictive!"
I looked at the cost to raise Physical to Tier 3, but now it was 50 points. I only had 65 left.
I wanted to keep riding this easy power-up high, I really did, but that didn't seem like a good idea at all…
"At least it's an instant upgrade… so if I need it, I can do it fast."
An unexpected burst of power was also a solid way to win a fight. At least, that's how I justified it to myself.
I closed the semi-transparent screen and finally took in the world around me. I was in a forest, tall trees everywhere, cold air brushing past.
For some suspicious reason, I didn't feel comfortable here at all.
"The Company could've at least given me a map…"
I'm japanese, sure, but from modern Japan. Wi-Fi, GPS, 24-hour convenience stores… there's no way in hell I can navigate a place like this. I have zero experience with this kind of stuff!
What? The position of the sun? Moss on tree trunks? Wind direction? How the hell would I have skills like that?! I can barely fold a damn map!
"Ahh… I miss my phone!"
But enough whining, Misogi! I heard one of the other new employees complaining that his starting world was Lord of Mysteries… so I'm definitely in a better situation than he is!
I took a deep breath. The sun was almost gone. "Alright… here we go!"
...
I ended up walking for a long time, surrounded by trees, loud-ass insects, and my own breathing, with absolutely no idea where I was going. I just kept heading downhill, because villages usually aren't built at the top of some random forest.
At least that's what my modern, completely unreliable brain decided.
The upside was that with my boosted Physical stats, I didn't get exhausted, even after all that walking.
Points very well spent, if you ask me.
And when I finally saw lights in the distance, I almost dropped to my knees and cried.
It was a small village with low buildings, a few lanterns lit up, smoke rising from chimneys…
"It's so damn good to see you, civilization…" I muttered gratefully, but my stomach growled so loudly I almost apologized.
I was hungry. The kind of hungry where if someone offered me a bowl of rice, I'd cry out of gratitude.
'I want sashimi too…'
I walked the rest of the way down trying to look like a normal person. No sprinting out of the forest like a murderer or someone who just escaped from one.
That would end with someone calling the cops… or whatever the equivalent was in this era.
I passed by the first food stall, and it smelled like hot broth. Looked like they were making udon…
Out of pure habit, I checked my pockets, but found nothing. Not a single yen… not even a crumpled bill conveniently forgotten for plot reasons.
"Couldn't the Company at least prepare a starter kit with some pocket money for us?"
Wait… was it even yen in this era? Or did I have to pay in raw materials or some shit?
Demon Slayer takes place in the Taishō Era, right? Early 20th century Japan, around the time of World War I.
"… I really should've paid more attention in class…"
But at least in the anime, in big cities like Tokyo, you could already see the beginning of industrialization and urbanization. There was even a steam train!
I kept staring at the stalls that were still open. Some people chatting, kids running around…
I slipped my hand into my pocket again, just to be sure, but yeah, still empty.
Looks like I'll have to write a formal complaint letter when I get back.
The most obvious solution that crossed my mind was stealing, since it'd probably be easy for me now. But that was out of the question. That's not the path I wanted to walk.
It might sound simple if you think about it objectively, but once you start making those little compromises… there's no telling where you'll end up drawing the line.
"Maybe I'll find some punks to beat up…" I muttered, looking around with zero subtlety.
There's always a group of idiots somewhere. If I beat up two or three of them and took their money, technically I'd be cleaning up society. Now that sounded more reasonable.
But what would Mom think if her wonderful son chose violence that easily?
"Ah… I'm not even that hungry. I can hold out for a while."
I'd better focus on surviving. That's what actually matters.
I mean, just because it was nighttime doesn't mean an Oni is going to pop up right in front of me immediately, but it's also not a coincidence that I started this whole thing exactly at sunset.
I also seriously doubt the Company is the type to support its employees living a peaceful slice-of-life existence.
'If I started right here, there's gotta be a reason… which means I need to stay on guard, right?'
Accepting that this was my reality now, I stepped away from the lights a bit and leaned against the side wall of a wooden warehouse.
My goal was simple. Achieve Total Concentration Breathing.
The foundation of every Demon Slayer.
Just because I'm feeling a little confident in my physical strength doesn't mean I'm going to ignore the basics. Anyone who's ever played high-level sports knows proper breathing is important.
Total Concentration Breathing takes that "importance" and cranks it up to another level. The goal is to inhale as much air as possible to accelerate blood flow and heart rate, strengthening the body, endurance, perception… basically boosting your overall physical performance.
But unlike the flashy Breathing Styles with all their dramatic visual effects, all you really have to do is keep training your lungs to handle the highest possible oxygen intake.
Which eventually leads to Constant Total Concentration Breathing.
Tanjiro and the others trained with physical conditioning and those giant gourds, but I don't have any of that here.
Even so, just imitating the basics would already help. And with my upgraded Physical stat, my starting foundation is way better.
"Alright… deep breath in… hold it… regulate…"
The idea wasn't to just stockpile air and hold it until I passed out, but to regulate that increased oxygen along with my breathing rhythm and create something sustainable and continuous.
Something that could keep running in the middle of a fight.
For the first few seconds, it felt easy. Then my chest started complaining, but I pushed through it. With my Tier 2 Physical, I felt like I had room to push harder.
After a few minutes, warmth started spreading from my lungs to my chest, then to my arms and legs.
I enjoyed that sensation until the rhythm I'd built fell apart, and I exhaled all the air at once.
"—Shit." I breathed normally for a few seconds, staring at the ground.
'Maintaining a constant rhythm is hard…'
That must be why anyone who truly masters it has already reached the minimum requirement to stand at Hashira level.
I was about to try again as soon as my breathing stabilized, but then a semi-transparent screen popped up in front of me again.
–––
[New Skill Acquired]
[Total Concentration Breathing <0/100>
Type: Technique
*Involves inhaling the maximum possible amount of oxygen through specific patterns to drastically increase blood flow and muscular strength.]
–––
"… I can do that too? That's convenient as hell."
Suddenly, this training felt way more interesting.
It was a shame it cost 100 points to fully master the skill. But if I could learn it this way, couldn't I just train it the normal way too?
"Sounds worth trying."
Grinding has its own charm.
I went back to focusing on Total Concentration Breathing, ignoring everything else.
This time, I focused less on force and more on rhythm. Blowing out my own lungs on day one didn't seem like a brilliant plan.
It was hard to notice any obvious physical change, but I felt a clear sense of sharpness, which told me I was on the right track.
'Stacking this enhancement on top of my naturally strong body…'
The prospect was exciting, but I kept training… that is, until a strong smell broke my concentration.
"… Of course. The Company really doesn't like slice of life."