The panorama that surrounds me seems something out of a dream, to wherever the eye might land, there is nothing but white, a world with nothing else but plain ground, extending for apparently forever.
This is where I stand, not knowing why or how I ended up here. As I recall my memories, I try to find something of value, a clue of why I ended up here, but nothing comes to mind.
A second before I was in my room, a normal room for someone like me, an unemployed engineer and a part-time writer. My name is Michael Bianco, and I think I'm dead.
There is no other way to see this heavenly paradise that extends around me, empty to its core, not a soul nearby or in the distance, and it's difficult for me to accept it.
Don't take it badly, but I was always a non-believer, calling me agnostic would be a stretch. For me, our existence was not desired, we are just a set of coincidences stacked one after another that created the perfect conditions for life to bloom.
"Are you done with that fatalism of yours?"
A voice sounds behind me, startling me. I jump back, and fall on the floor, which is covered by a white fog. I look from where the voice came from, only to find a faceless head already too close to mine.
"ACK?! What the fuck?!"
I scream, moving my body away from that thing. I try to run, to even stand up, but it's meaningless, my body doesn't react, I can only see that glowing being walking toward me.
"Now, now, no need to get scared."
"Where...? What the hell is happening?!"
One could think that this was only a very bad fever dream, but for some reason, this didn't feel like one. It was so real that I was doubting my own sanity.
"I swear I was a good person! Please, I may not have believed in God, but I'm not bad enough to be in hell, right?!"
"Calm down, I'm not your God, nor are you dead, so don't get so erratic all of a sudden. Let me introduce myself."
The thing in front of me reassembled into a human figure, just that there wasn't a body, just a glow that exceeded the glow of the place we were in. He calmly got closer to me, lowering his body when he was a few inches apart and finally talking.
"My name is He Who Wanders, but you, Michael Bianco, can call me The Wanderer."
"How... do you know my name?"
His voice was calm, contrasting with my own nervous one, since he didn't have any eyes, I didn't know where exactly to look, but he kept talking.
"I know a lot of things about you, but that doesn't matter right now, you will get it later. What I want to talk about is something you cannot say no to, a deal that will change your life."
"Sorry, I'm not the type of dude to offer his firstborn that easily."
For the first time, this Wanderer laughed, a genuine laugh. I could only look at him, waiting for what he was about to say.
"Oh, you got me wrong, ha ha, I'm not here to take anything from you, so don't be so scared, I'm just curious. Tell me, Michael, are you familiar with a story called My Hero Academia?"
This, of all the things he said, was the most astonishing one, how could this God-like-looking being be asking about... a manga of all things?
"The... the Manga? Sure, I have read it... what about it?"
"I'm aware you, Michael, are a big fan of books and a writer too, so, haven't you read a story that you think needs a better ending?"
"I... I can think of a few, yeah. Wait, you want me to write a fanfic? Look, I'm a writer, but that is not really my cup of tea."
And he laughed, once again, very sincerely to my liking. After a few seconds he stopped, moving his head side to side.
"No, Michael Bianco, what I want from you, or rather, what I'm offering you, is to be reborn in a brand-new world, the world of this manga, and to accomplish a simple task, to change the story and the ending of it, with your own hands."
I stare at him, blinking in confusion, the whole situation was surreal to say the least, even if I was actually not dead, dreaming also seemed out of place, no, we are clearly beyond that, this being was offering me reincarnation? With me alive? How does that even work?!
"I mean... It's surely a tempting deal, but what... what do I get from all this? I mean, do I have to leave my whole life behind?"
The Wanderer stood up, walking a few steps away from me, and finally said calmly:
"This dimension is one where time flows at a much slower pace, one year in this, or the other world is translated into a second out in your world, so, if you spend, let's say, 30 years here, only half a minute will pass in your world."
He explained briefly, paused and then said:
"As for what I'm offering you, let's just say that it will be, without a doubt, the best experience you could ever imagine, and, of course, as a bonus, you will receive half of the money you have in your possession once the story is over."
Huh...
"Now we are really talking!"
With that, and before my consciousness could overpower my deep greed, I shook the hand of the Wanderer. An instant later, a circle of black liquid formed around me, and I started to sink into it.
"Just to clarify, Michael, you are free to do as you please, be a hero who saves the world, be a villain who burns wherever he may roam, whatever you might be, I'm going to delight myself in your wins, your losses, your happiness, or your despair, but don't forget, don't die out there."
His voice was full of emotion, his words held nothing but truth. As I sank into the pit of darkness, I could only ask myself where the hell I had gotten myself into.
And then, a distant cry enveloped my ears.
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A year has already past since I updated this story for the last time, Im going to review all the chapters and continue writing, its going to take a little so have fun reading this new version, sorry for the inconvience, school doesnt leave much time to write -The Author