Into the Void

Rudra, 18 years old and no stranger to hardship, sat in his small apartment flipping through the latest chapter of One Piece.

The dim light above flickered occasionally, a minor annoyance he'd long since learned to live with. His room was a reflection of his life—barely furnished, a single bed, a small table, and an old TV in the corner. It wasn't much, but it was his.

An orphan since he was a kid, Rudra had always been on his own. After aging out of the system, he scraped by with a part-time job, enough to pay rent and buy the essentials.

In his free time, he lost himself in the world of manga, where the wild adventures of characters like Luffy and Zoro kept him going. It was his escape, his way to forget the quiet loneliness that filled the corners of his small, empty life.

Tonight was no different. He was completely engrossed in the fight between Luffy and the Five Elders.

The stakes were high, and Rudra could feel his heart pounding with excitement as Luffy, battered but determined, threw another punch. "This is insane," Rudra muttered, turning the page, unable to stop reading despite the late hour.

But as the night wore on, exhaustion finally took its toll. The words on the screen blurred, and Rudra's eyelids grew heavier. Before he could reach the end of the chapter, he drifted off to sleep.

When Rudra opened his eyes again, he found himself in a vast, pure white space. No sky, no ground—just endless, empty whiteness. His first instinct was to panic.

"What the hell is this? Am I dreaming?" His breathing grew erratic as he looked around, seeing no sign of anything familiar.

Suddenly, a lazy, almost bored-sounding voice broke through the silence. "Yo, kid. Chill out. No need to freak out."

Startled, Rudra whipped around to see an old man sprawled on a floating couch. The man was casually munching on a cookie while watching some ancient TV show. He wore simple robes, and despite his relaxed demeanor, there was something immensely powerful about his presence.

"W-Where am I?" Rudra stammered, still trying to process what was going on.

The old man yawned and lazily stretched before sitting up. "You're dead, kid. Welcome to the void. My domain," he said with the same bored tone, taking another bite of his cookie. "It's the space between life and the afterlife."

Rudra's mind raced. "Dead?!" His voice wavered. "How? I was just reading my manga..."

"Yeah, yeah," the old man interrupted, waving his hand dismissively. "You fell asleep, maybe your heart gave out, or maybe your time was just up. Doesn't matter. Happens more often than you'd think."

Rudra was speechless. Was this some sort of sick joke?

The old man glanced over, noticing Rudra's bewildered expression. "So," he continued, "you've got two options. Stick around and watch reruns with me, or... I can reincarnate you into another world. You know, give you a fresh start."

Rudra blinked. "Wait a second… Reincarnate? Like those Isekai stories?" His brain was finally catching up.

"You're one of those ROBs, right? You know, the Random Omnipotent Beings who grant wishes and send people to other worlds?"

The old man raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Hmph. Close enough. But trust me, kid, I'm way above those guys." He gave a lazy shrug.

"But sure, I guess you could call me that."

Rudra's heart skipped a beat. This was it! This was his chance! "So... do I get any wishes?"

The old man sighed, clearly bored with the whole routine. "Alright, since you're the first soul in a long time to wander into my domain, I'll give you five wishes. But don't get too excited. There are restrictions."

"Restrictions?" Rudra's excitement dimmed slightly. "Like what?"

The old man straightened up, seemingly preparing for a long explanation. "You want to go to the One Piece world, right?" Rudra nodded eagerly.

"Well, here's the thing: One Piece is a fictional world, and the story isn't finished yet. The power scale? Completely undefined. It's all up to the author how far things go. Could be island-level, could be universal, or even multiversal. The power scaling is up in the air."

Rudra nodded, trying to keep up with the explanation.

"Because of that, I can't grant you something like, say, the power to destroy the universe with a snap of your fingers. It would break the balance of the world." The old man waved his hand in a dismissive gesture.

"So, no god-level powers that would make you some unbeatable entity. You have to keep it within reason, at least for that world's logic."

Rudra frowned, thinking. "So, no 'Thanos snap'?"

The old man chuckled. "Exactly. But don't worry—you can still ask for some pretty powerful stuff. Just not anything that ruins the entire world's flow."

Rudra thought for a moment, then nodded. "Got it. Okay, for my first wish, I want a body that's a mix of Saitama, Wukong, and Daniel Park's second body."

The old man nearly choked on his cookie. He let out a deep, tired sigh before looking Rudra dead in the eyes.

"Okay, kid. Saitama and Sun Wukong? That's going way above multiversal level. You might as well wish to become the One Above All. There's no way I can give you that."

Rudra groaned, already expecting this kind of response. "Yeah, I figured that might be too much to ask for," he muttered. "What about Daniel Park's body?"

The old man nodded thoughtfully. "Daniel Park's second body is fine. Cool choice, actually. But as for Saitama and Wukong, those guys are so far beyond the power level of any One Piece character that it'd be impossible to balance."

Rudra scratched his head. "So no ultra-god-tier body, huh? That's a bummer."

The old man smirked again. "Don't lose hope just yet. Here's what I can do. I can give you a body that's inspired by those three, but it'll be a bit inferior to their real forms. Think of it as a body that grows with the power scale of the One Piece world. As the verse's power increases, so will your potential. In time, you'll become absurdly strong, but without breaking the world's rules right out the gate."

Rudra's eyes lit up. "So you mean I can still have a body that starts strong but grows with the world?"

"Exactly," the old man said. "You won't be invincible from day one, but as Luffy's story unfolds and the power scale of the world expands, so will yours."

Rudra grinned. "Alright, but I want this body to have talents, too. Like, I want high IQ, perfect memory, critical thinking, and the ability to adapt quickly to any situation. Not just physically, but mentally as well. I want a body and mind that can evolve and respond to anything the world throws at me.

The old man raised an eyebrow. "You want the total package, huh?" He rubbed his chin, considering the request.

"Alright, that's reasonable. I can give you a body with extreme adaptability and a sharp mind to match. You'll have high IQ, critical thinking skills, perfect memory, and the ability to respond to any situation fluidly, both physically and mentally. It won't make you unbeatable, but you'll definitely have an edge over most people you encounter."

Rudra's grin widened. "Now that's what I'm talking about."

The old man snapped his fingers again. "Wish granted. One ultimate adaptable body coming right up.

"Done," the old man said with a snap of his fingers. "One wish down, four to go."