The moment Ray awoke, he knew he wasn't on Earth anymore.
It wasn't the sight of dragons or fantasy creatures that told him this.
No, it was the fact that he stood in a circus tent, dressed in a ridiculous clown suit and mask.
His hands rose and took off the mask. That's when he got all the confirmation he needed.
He was no longer the black-haired, average-looking teenager he'd been on Earth. In his place stood a man with long, flowing white hair and a face so pretty that it made him look feminine.
With the shock of his new appearance came the memories that belonged to this body.
Solomon White. The newest clown in a world called Altearth.
Ray was no stranger to the concept of world-hopping. Back on Earth, it was a topic studied endlessly in books and forums. So, he didn't waste time wrestling with his identity.
From the moment he opened his eyes in this new body, he made a choice: he was Solomon White.
He was The Clown.
Alright… aside from the whole clown thing, I need to figure out what kind of world this is.
Solomon glanced around the tent. It was a simple looking space.
No grand stages for stunts, and no props. Just rows of audience stands, a wooden chair at the centre, and another chair facing it
Solomon walked over to the chair and took a seat, prepared to dive deeply into his thoughts.
However, it was at that exact moment that everything around him changed.
The circus tent began to fill with pink fog, covering the audience stands. The fog thickened until it covered the entire tent, turning it completely pink.
The seats, the ground, the fabrics of the tent. Everything was covered in mist.
Solomon even looked down at himself, finding that his body was covered by the same fog as well. It was as though he wore a clown suit made from fog, and all that could be seen was his handsome face!
Okay Altearth, are we done with the surprises?
As he asked himself this question, he was hit with the unexpected once again.
In the stands surrounding the chair at which he sat, a figure made from fog suddenly formed.
It sat calmly, its figure shrouded to the point where Solomon could tell nothing of its looks, or even its gender.
Silence hung in the air, as he stared out at the figure with many questions on his mind.
"Do... Do you want to come and sit?" He attempted, gesturing towards the seat opposite him.
As if on cue, the figure rose from its seat in the stands and slowly made its way over to the chair at the centre of the room and sat opposite Solomon.
At first, he simply looked at the figure, perhaps waiting for it to speak. Then, after a moment, the pink mist surrounding it started to fade.
First was the face. One of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. Thick orange curls sat atop her head, framing green eyes and a cute, freckled face. The woman's face remained calm as the pink mist faded from the rest of her body.
She was wearing a flowing orange dress that suited her hair. It revealed nothing of her body but her smooth, slender arms and delicate-looking hands.
Eventually, the mist had completely faded, leaving Solomon sitting opposite a beautiful woman. Her blue eyes looked around the space, surprised.
"I- I prayed to the God of Information..." She said in a delicate, posh accent. She seemed to speak the English language, which he was thankful for.
"Are you the God of Information?"
Caught by shock, Solomon remained silent for a while.
The God of Information? Do I look like a god? I'm a pink clown!
He looked around his room, reminding himself of his location, and what his role seemed to be in this world.
"Me? I'm just a clown?"
The words came naturally to him. The orange-haired woman tilted her hair slightly and blinked at the man in front of her.
"The Clown?" She said, using the name as though it were a title. "Are you not a god then?"
A god. Well, this pink tent definitely isn't normal. Not to mention she said that she arrived here after praying to the God of Information.
Could I truly have god like powers in this world?
Playing into this, Solomon leaned back on his chair and placed a smug look on his face. He then spoke in a confident tone.
"A god doesn't need to call themselves a god. If that is what you make of me, then that is what I am."
Hearing this, the woman's face suddenly lost all of its doubt. After all, only gods spoke in such manners.
She bowed her head slightly as if to show her respect, though from her face, it was clear that she was still confused.
"Apologies, um... Clown. I did not mean to disrespect you in any way. It's just, being a well-educated woman, I've never heard of your religion. I now know that I clearly wasn't educated enough."
After hearing such a beautiful woman speak to him with such respect, Solomon was excited. He couldn't recall ever experiencing such a thing in the past.
Keeping up with his godlike image, he didn't respond to her words and continued leaning in his chair.
"You prayed to the God of Information, correct? What did you wish to learn from him?"
For a moment, the woman seemed to shy away after hearing the questions. It was as though the knowledge she wished to obtain was something that she found embarrassing.
Eventually, she finally found the courage.
"I-I wanted to know why men did not find me attractive." She spoke in a hushed tone, catching Solomon by surprise.
He eyed her with a raised brow and said. "What do you mean?"
The woman twiddled her fingers.
"Despite being King Henry's third daughter, I am the only one who has yet to be courted for marriage. It makes me wonder... Am I not good enough?"
Solomon was stunned and silent for a moment. Although he had started to receive the memories of the body he now inhabited, he found that he was truly nothing but a travelling clown. His knowledge of the larger world was severely lacking.
But regardless of what world you were in, it is always a rare opportunity to somehow have a princess of an entire kingdom pray to a god, and you end up answering.
Especially when the princess was so beautiful.
Not good enough? Seriously princess, what on earth are you talking about?
Solomon's knowledge told him that although all sorts of magic existed in the world, he was not someone who had possessed such a thing.
Yet still, he knew that he was not going to waste such an opportunity.
Not only could he use this as an opportunity to gain power in this world and use it for his own benefit, but more importantly, it gave him direct access to one of the most gorgeous women he had ever seen.
Solomon's lips twisted into a smile. He clasped his hands together and crossed his legs as he looked the princess up at down.
"What is your name?"
"Princess Lucy."
Solomon nodded his head. "I see. Well, Princess Lucy. Your beauty is certainly attractive to me. But perhaps, to dive deeper into the reason that you've failed to find a relationship, we need to go further."
Princess Lucy cheeks blushed to a bright red as she struggled to meet the eyes of the clown.
"T-thank you, sir clown, but what do you mean by further?"
The clown's lips twisted into a wider smile as he spoke in a confident tone.
"I would like to see you naked."