'Well, I've read about stuff like this in novels and shit, but to think I'd actually experience it myself… Are the gods pitying me?' I thought, staring at the figure before me — a being so radiant it felt almost divine, like it had stepped straight out of some myth.
How did it come to this, you might ask?
About an hour earlier…
"With how weak my body is, it would be a miracle if I survived that hit. So… where the hell am I?" I muttered, voice trembling.
The place around me looked like something ripped from fiction. The room — if it even was a room — stretched out endlessly, pure white, without corners or walls. It felt like standing in nothingness, yet at the same time, being surrounded by something impossibly vast.
I'd opened my eyes only minutes ago to find myself here. Even stranger, my body was completely fine. No blood, no pain, no weakness. Just… me.
I didn't know what was happening or what I should even do, so I did the only thing that felt natural — I started walking, my footsteps echoing faintly against nothing.
As I moved forward, my thoughts spiraled. Is this the afterlife? Heaven? Hell? Some weird in-between? Or maybe I'd been kidnapped, though the idea felt absurd in a place like this.
Another thought crept in, soft and dangerous: Maybe I was lucky enough to get a second chance. But I shut it down quickly. That kind of stuff only happened in novels, right?
I walked. And walked. And walked some more. Minutes bled into what felt like eternity. Then, finally, something appeared in the distance — a break in the nothingness.
Three altars stood there, tall and imposing, each one carved out of the same blinding white material as the floor. On top of each altar was a single button, glowing faintly, as if waiting for me to make a choice.
"Uh…" The sound slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it. I stood there, frozen, eyes darting between the three altars like they might suddenly explode if I got too close.
I had no idea what would happen if I touched one of those buttons. Would it take me to heaven? Hell? Or something completely different—something I couldn't even begin to imagine?
For about five full minutes, I stood there like a statue, my thoughts looping in circles. Finally, I let out a shaky sigh and forced myself toward the middle altar.
"Well… here goes nothing," I muttered under my breath, trying to sound nonchalant even though my heart was hammering against my ribs. My hand hovered for a moment, then pressed down on the glowing white button.
In an instant, the air in front of me tore open. Out of the endless white came a shimmering outline, and then a gate—massive, ancient-looking, and impossible—formed out of nothingness.
I squinted, trying to make sense of it, but at this point everything had been so surreal that even my confusion had burned out. I wasn't shocked anymore; I was numb.
The gate creaked open faster than I expected, and from its light stepped an entity. It wasn't exactly human, but it wasn't not human either—its features blurred, like looking at someone through rippling water. Slowly, it walked toward me, every step echoing without sound, until it stood directly in front of me.
I tilted my head back to meet its gaze. At 158 cm—barely 5'2"—I looked like a child next to it, small and insignificant, like a shadow cast under a giant.
For a few seconds, neither of us spoke. We just stared at each other, its presence heavy enough to press down on my lungs. Then, at last, the entity's voice filled the emptiness, deep and resonant, yet strangely gentle:
"Speak, child. What do you desire? Do you wish to live again as yourself, or will you continue your cycle of life, your memories erased?"
'Is that even a question?' I thought bitterly, my gaze locked on its shifting face. Of course I'd want to live as myself. Getting my memories erased was no different than being erased from existence entirely, no?
"I… want to reincarnate in a different body, but still as myself," I said, my voice trembling at first but firming up at the end. I knew I was pushing my luck.
The entity's form flickered faintly, as if considering my words. Its eyes—or what I assumed were its eyes—glimmered with something unreadable. It stared at me for a long moment, silent enough that the space around us felt heavier with each passing second.
Finally, its voice rolled out, deep and resonant, yet as emotionless as a machine.
"That is… possible."
I continued to look at it, although my heart was raging with excitement.
Then it spoke again, its tone the same blank, echoing calm.
"Do you have a specific place in mind to reincarnate? And describe what powers you want as well."
It was like ordering off a menu, but the way it asked was so flat and indifferent.
This wasn't a game. Whatever I said next might decide the entire course of my new life.
"I… I've thought about it," I said, swallowing hard. The entity's empty gaze stayed fixed on me, and for a second I almost choked on my own words.
"If I'm really getting this chance, then… I want powers related to speed," I continued, my voice steadier now. "All my life I've been weak, slow, useless. Even in the one game I played, my build was based entirely on speed. It's the only thing that's ever felt like mine. So… give me that. Make me fast—no, faster than anything else."
The entity tilted its head slightly, like a teacher listening to a child recite a wish. Its body flickered faintly again, but it didn't speak.
"And as for the place…" I hesitated, my fingers curling into fists.
It wasn't because I was gonna ask for to reincarnate in a high or mighty world, but because it was dangerous as fuck, that I might die the moment I step in.
"I want to reincarnate in the world of Super Gene," I said at last. "That's… the novel I was reading recently. A world full of genetic powers, dangers, and chances to grow stronger. That's where I want to go."
Silence stretched for a moment. The entity's form shifted like mist, then it leaned forward just slightly, as though acknowledging me.
"Speed… the ability to surpass all limits. The world of Super Gene." Its voice was the same cold, emotionless rumble, but there was a weight to it now, like a promise being carved into stone.
"Your request," it said, "is acceptable."
A faint glow spread from the altar's button to the ground around me, the white space humming softly as if waking from a long sleep. My heart pounded harder with each second, my mind a blur of anticipation and disbelief.
Before I could even ask a single question, the space around me began to fold in on itself like a sheet of paper being crumpled by invisible hands. The pure white void twisted and warped, each fold closing in tighter and tighter until it felt as though the very air was swallowing me whole.
And before I knew it, my consciousness had faded entirely, slipping into darkness like a candle snuffed out in a storm.