"Are you indeed Rin, correct?"
In front of an eighteen-year-old teenager, a blonde woman in her late twenties was reviewing a file in her hands.
Occasionally, she glanced up at the young man, but her gaze never lingered for long.
She always returned to her papers, letting out a sigh of disappointment.
'This one probably won't last long, judging by his resume, but Eris-san's library is progressing well thanks to Earth's inhabitants,'she thought silently.
Athena thought quickly, and this time, she decided to try Aqua and Eris's method.
A simple idea, but one that sealed the young man's fate toward an unknown direction.
"Y-yes, I'm Rin Constantin."
Rin Constantin.
A soul from world number ####.
His world had been sold to the M.E.D.I.A corporation, which held the rights to certain souls possessing a unique trait: Fate Breaker.
This power only manifested in a few rare mortals capable of defying the script of a world's timeline.
That's why Athena's company sought out such souls, capable of providing fresh content to omniscient entities bored of knowing everything.
"Honestly, I'm always surprised that a soul like yours could possess the Fate Breaker trait," she said, removing her glasses and rubbing her temples wearily.
The file on her desk contained all of Rin's accomplishments from his life on Earth.
Was he exceptional?
Unfortunately, no.
Rin had achieved nothing remarkable.
As a shut-in taking online courses and working remotely, he had literally no means or time to become a hero.
His only notable feat was saving a young boy, but that act condemned him to a wheelchair until his recent suicide.
The inability to use his body had been too much for the once-healthy young man to bear.
"Is that a compliment?" he asked, with a hint of hope.
"No," Athena replied simply.
Her cold, emotionless voice shattered the young man's illusions, who had hoped for a touch of kindness from this inhumanly beautiful woman.
After that blunt rejection, Rin decided to avoid sparking conversation again, a reflex that pleasantly surprised the goddess.
She didn't much care for persistent men, thanks to her family, which was filled with people a bit too aggressive in romance.
"Alright, I know where you'll start your first scenario in my library," she said, handing Rin a form.
Athena settled on a simple theme, nothing too excessive like an *apocalypse* tag.
The scenarios in the library, which she made available to the young man, were deemed acceptable based on her standards and Rin's mediocre resume.
[You may select a scenario within Athena's Library]
[Warning: You have not yet completed the form]
[Please complete it]
[Ding!]
[You have received: Athena's Library Admission Form]
"You'll fill this out and return it to me. But be warned, this doesn't yet make you a true protagonist in my library."
She paused, then added with a faint smile: "If you complete a scenario, I'll give you others after your death, and you'll become an important protagonist in my library."
Athena didn't specify the quality of the scenario Rin needed to achieve for several reasons.
However, one was particularly significant: the young man was still too much of a novice.
Rin didn't dwell much on the possibility of a third life or Athena's final remarks.
The teenager felt a spark of hope ignite in his heart after confirming an isekai-like situation with the goddess.
'Damn, I need to make a good impression on my first job and secure another scenario for a third life,' he thought as he received the document.
He quickly scanned the paper, thanks to his experience as an online reader. His initially nervous expression gradually brightened.
As a protagonist, his duty would be to provide content for omniscient entities.
He already knew this from the basic information provided upon his arrival, but he learned something new: a power, or cheat, based on the value of his Earth scenario.
'This kid isn't bad-looking, but his expression makes me want to slap him,' the goddess thought silently, watching the teenager's face shift from fear to nonchalance.
Scenarios.
They are timelines fixed by causality, unchangeable by ordinary mortals.
For example: the prophecy of a hero destined to one day defeat the demon king.
Thus, they aren't a mere game for the protagonist, meant to be altered to create content for unknown entities.
Their life is at stake.
Recently, Athena had faced several setbacks and hadn't produced a masterpiece for her library.
Desperate, she had sought advice from Aqua, who recommended using an Earthling.
'They're resourceful,' she had said.
But no human came close to the level of the mythological heroes Athena had observed in ancient times.
'Not only is he the least talented in the library, he's also foolish,'she thought inwardly, her face betraying nothing.
A cruel thought, but not born of malice.
All of Athena's heroes were impressive on paper, but the audience of entities purchasing the content didn't always appreciate their scenarios.
"Excuse me, I've filled out my personal information, but I don't understand some of the details about creating my power or obtaining my new identity," Rin said, looking up.
"Just follow the instructions. What's the problem?" Athena replied, adjusting her glasses, a dangerous glint flashing across the lenses.
Rin couldn't help but compare her to an anime villain.
"I don't exactly understand the value of my scenario… or how I can obtain a power by selling it," he said, sounding embarrassed.
Athena sighed but took the time to explain.
The cheat is a power whose value depends on the soul's scenario. Every soul has a story, which some entities enjoy observing as a protagonist's backdrop.
A poor scenario yields a weak or altered power, while a rich scenario offers a complete one.
Earth itself could be considered a scenario, just as other worlds might perceive Earth as fictional.
Thus, Rin's story is fictional to Athena's clients, and he was now selling it as the basis for a starting cheat.
As for his new identity in the other world? It would be generated randomly, but Athena could tweak it slightly based on the protagonist's wishes.
"Hmm… you chose The Owl House? I see you're playing it safe," she said, nodding with satisfaction.
She had initially judged Rin as naive, but he had just proven her wrong.
'He didn't pick High School DxD or some erotic story, so that's a good start,'she thought, almost amused.
Her gaze quickly returned to indifference.
But Rin, used to this kind of attitude, didn't care.
'I led an ordinary life, what did she expect, Rambo?' he thought, mistaking Athena's silence for mockery.
The cheat he proposed was a holographic status menu, inspired by The Gamer.
He already knew his Earth scenario would never be compelling enough to earn a classic leveling System.
So, he opted for an extremely specialized System, equipped with an AI capable of providing potion recipes based on the ingredients of the world he was in.
Thus, Rin gained no real power and had to fight on his own to achieve the strength he aimed for.
'I even specified that the potion effects could weaken due to world laws to make the System's cost more affordable,'he thought.
The idea was to minimize the System's value so his scenario retained enough worth to be exchanged for this cheat.
'I just need a stable path to power and knowledge,' he analyzed, looking at the document.
Rin's idea was bold but balanced enough to avoid bad surprises or rejection.
"Is my cheat compatible with The Owl House scenario?" Rin asked after a long silence in the room.
"Yes, and I was even pleasantly surprised. Do you have an idea for your new identity?" Athena replied, this time with a hint of interest. She even decided to grant him a small bonus by using her own resources to adjust Rin's identity.
An option that was usually highly random without her intervention.
"Put me as a member of a prominent clan if possible. The Blight family wouldn't be a bad choice—"
Rin didn't have time to finish.
A glowing circle appeared beneath his feet, radiating golden energy. Before he could grasp what was happening, the ground gave way beneath him.