Kazuki had exactly twelve seconds to process the fact that he was dying.
The truck wasn't slowing down. The world wasn't slowing down. But time inside his head absolutely was. He could see the glint of sunlight on the truck's windshield. He could see his phone flying out of his hand, bouncing once on the sidewalk before skittering into the gutter. And he could see the iced coffee he had just bought—double shot, soy milk, no whip—sailing majestically through the air like some sort of caffeinated phoenix.
It was almost poetic. Almost.
Then: impact. Then: darkness.
Kazuki expected oblivion. Eternal nothingness. Maybe some vague sense of floating, like in those weird meditation apps he'd tried once and immediately deleted.
Instead, he woke up lying on something cold, hard, and suspiciously glowy.
[System Booting…]
A voice echoed—not through his ears, but straight into his skull. It sounded like a chipper customer service rep, the kind that made you want to throw your phone.
[Welcome, User: Kazuki. You have been selected for the Infernal Path. Congratulations.]
"What?" he croaked, his voice dry and ragged.
[Initiating Rebirth Protocol… Stand by.]
"No, no, no. What the hell is an Infernal—"
Light surged around him. Symbols appeared in the air, circling his body like he was the protagonist of an anime he'd pirated in high school. His skin burned, then froze, then tingled in that pins-and-needles way that made him want to scream.
When it stopped, he was on the ground again, gasping.
Grass. Trees. A pale red sky that looked deeply wrong. And hovering just in front of his face:
[Starter Quest: Survive the First Day. Reward: 10 EXP, Basic Clothes, Slightly Rotten Apple.]
Kazuki blinked. "What the hell kind of messed-up video game is this?"
Behind him, something growled.