Pilot

"Is this it?" 

Michael clutched his chest, his breath shallow, as if death had gotten hold of him. The dim glow of his PC screen was the only light in the dark room, casting wavering shadows over his face.

Most people feared dying alone. But for Michael, this kind of ending was fine. In fact, it was more than fine. He was satisfied.

For him, a life spent playing games, watching anime, and eating delivery food was more than enough to be considered happy. As long as he had access to the internet, he could even live in the confines of his home forever.

But after 35 years of that lifestyle, his body seemed to have finally given up on him. Turns out, feeding his body with nothing but fast food coupled with zero exercise wasn't a good combination for a long life.

"Kuuukk!"

His vision blurred as if he was being forced to sleep.

And then darkness swallowed him.

… 

…

…

But something strange happened to him. 

He was still conscious! 

He couldn't move his body, couldn't feel anything on his skin, and neither could he see anything around him. But he could think.

Is this the afterlife?

He never really believed in any religion, but maybe they were right.

"Hello, Michael."

An ethereal yet distant voice echoed through the darkness, startling him.

"Who are you? Where am I?"

"First of all, I would like to apologize. Due to an error on my part, you left your original world too soon. You weren't supposed to die."

Michael processed the words, through which he rightly assumed that he was speaking to a Godlike being.

"You're a God, aren't you?"

"Yes. I am a God… aren't you angry?"

Michael's indifference to his death seemed to have intrigued this God.

"I'll assume that you can't just bring me back to life. If you could, you wouldn't have bothered to explain all that to me. You would have just fixed the mistake and revived me."

"…"

Michael never saw the reason for bothering himself with something he couldn't change.

Even if he were to shout at the God, would this entity be able to magically bring him back to life? Probably not.

"You're not even going to ask me why an Almighty God like me can't revive people? That's it? You're okay with this? Just accepting… it."

If he still had a body, Michael would have simply shrugged. 

"I'm just a chill guy," he replied.

He seemed to have heard an exhausted sigh in the void, likely from the God, but it might have just been his imagination.

"I was all set to be the enigmatic, all-knowing God who stays peaceful while you scream at me… whatever. Since this was my mistake, I am obliged to compensate you."

Michael barely paid attention. "Just take my soul, man. If I don't have a consciousness, I won't know that I'm missing out on the next anime releasing this season."

"Ahem… since I can't give you a life back in your original world, I will just grant you a new life in another one."

If the God had a body, he would have tried to take a peek at Michael's reaction, fully expecting excitement to fill his face.

Instead, all he got as a response from Michael was lackluster.

"Eh."

The God, being the omniscient being that he is, knew about Michael's love for anime. So, he thought that Michael would love the idea of being transported into another world.

"Why aren't you excited?! Weebs like you love isekai, right?"

Of course, Michael wasn't unfamiliar with the concept of being transported into another world. He was quite fond of it, given his love for anime and all fantasy entertainment, getting lost in the world of heroes, demons, and adventures.

But watching it was one thing, and living in it was an entirely different concept.

No, thanks.

Although he loved watching heroes fight against demon lords, Michael had no desire to waste his time fighting, slaying monsters, rescuing empires and breaking levels. He would rather sit on the TV and watch the hero fight the demon lord.

That was why he was so satisfied with his previous life. He didn't have to fight for survival; he had everything he needed.

If he was hungry, he could have his food delivered to his doorstep. If he was bored, he could just boot up his PC and play his games. If he was bored with that, he could simply watch movies on his TV.

If he were to be transported to another life, he would lose all of that.

He would rather just disappear than start over from the beginning.

"Just take my soul, man," Michael said, already feeling bored and fighting the urge to go on his phone and doomscroll for a good hour.

Of course, his attitude was very apparent to the God, and frankly, it left him speechless. 

An angry nonbeliever would have been easier to deal with than this guy.

"Sorry, not possible. I have to put your soul into another body in another world. That's the rule. And no matter how much you complain—"

"Well, if you have no choice, then so be it."

"That easy?! Hey! Don't just shrug your nonexistent shoulders!"

After dealing with Michael for only a few minutes, the God was already exhausted. Without another word, he cast a spell and sent Michael's soul down into another world.

A strange, warm feeling enveloped Michael's entire being as if he were submerged into a warm, viscous water.

Drifting in this unfamiliar 'water', Michael heard the annoyed God's voice fading into the distance.

"P.S. I gave you abilities based on your desires. You won't know what they are yet, but you'll find out soon enough."

"And since I took you away from your very comfortable life, I have decided to make it up to you. I have reincarnated you as the youngest son of the richest family in the entire world. So, live a life of luxury, Mr. Stoic."

…

…

…

"$)(*@#)(%$)*&$#)*&@"

")(*)% @)*(#@"

Michael heard a bunch of muffled, strange new sounds and excited noises. 

A moment later, he felt his head being pulled out of somewhere warm and slimy.

Then, a blinding light.

It took a couple of seconds before his eyes were able to adjust to the light.

"$(&@(*&@)(*"

Where am I? What are they saying?

[They seem to be congratulating you on your birth.]

Huh?! Who are you?

[I am ChatJK1, your personal AI assistant.]