Takumi was walking along the sidewalk as the rain soaked his cheap suit.
He had his headphones on, though the music had ended a long time ago. He was thinking about how little his life had changed over the past few years.
He was twenty-four years old, had an office job that barely paid the rent, and a small apartment where the only thing waiting for him was a large number of half-read light novels.
For him, it wasn't a bad life. He didn't have a partner, nor friends to go out with on weekends, nor any great goals to accomplish.
That was why he spent his nights reading light novels, where ordinary protagonists ended up becoming important and powerful figures.
Lost in his thoughts, he crossed the street absentmindedly, convinced that the traffic light was green.
The sound of the truck's horn came too late.
He heard the brakes screeching against the wet asphalt. And in an instant, everything turned white.
He felt no pain at all, only an absurd thought that passed through his mind as he fell:
'Seriously… A truck? What a stupid cliché'.
After that, only darkness.
He didn't know how much time passed in that void; it could have been seconds or hours.
Suddenly, he felt as if he were opening his eyes, though he couldn't feel his body. He was floating in a white space that seemed endless.
All at once, a figure made entirely of light appeared before him, its contours blurred and indistinct.
"Takumi Nakamura," said a calm voice that resonated directly inside his head.
"Welcome. I am what you call a god. And I owe you a sincere apology."
Takumi tried to respond, but to his surprise, the words came out without any need to open his mouth.
"An apology? For the truck?"
The luminous figure seemed to shrink slightly, as if uncomfortable.
"It wasn't exactly because of the truck. Your death was an administrative error; it was not scheduled.
According to the records, you were supposed to live until the age of eighty-three. Get married at thirty-two and have two children…
Dying peacefully of old age, watching television.
The accident… was the negligence of a subordinate. Unacceptable, I know. That is why we are reviewing our procedures."
Takumi fell silent for a moment, processing what he had just heard.
Then he let out a dry laugh that echoed through the place.
"So what happens now? Do you give me my body back? Undo all of this?"
"Unfortunately, that is impossible. Your body is already… irreparable. But as fair compensation, I offer you reincarnation in another world with one reasonable wish.
Most ask for wealth, physical strength, or powerful magic. You decide."
Takumi didn't think twice; he had read hundreds of stories exactly like this.
He knew what he didn't want: to be born as a weak baby and spend years learning basic magic just to suffer humiliation from nobles, or have to struggle for decades to reach something merely decent.
"I want maximum potential," he said in a firm voice. "The highest possible level in magic and abilities. So that when I grow up, no one can stop me. SSS rank or whatever they call it there. I want absolute potential, without limits."
The god fell silent for a few seconds, as if consulting something within himself.
"Granted. Your soul will carry a Soul Core with an SSS rating. In that world, no one has been born with such potential in over a thousand years. You will be a unique anomaly.
But remember: potential is not immediate power. You need to make an effort, gain experience, and… form deep bonds with others to fully awaken it."
"Bonds?" Takumi asked, intrigued.
"They are secrets of the world you are going to. You will discover them in time. Do you desire anything else?"
Takumi simply shook his head.
"No. I just want to be the strongest, that's all."
"Very well. May your new life be long, prosperous, and full of purpose."
The light intensified until it completely blinded him.
Then he felt himself falling into what seemed like a deep vertigo, as if the entire universe were spinning around him.
And then, he began to feel cold. A damp cold that reached deep into his bones.
Without thinking, Takumi snapped his eyes open.
He was lying on a hard, damp straw mattress. The ceiling was made of old wood, with leaks dripping into a rusted bucket.
It smelled of poverty, of wet earth, and of something he couldn't identify.
Through a small window, a faint amount of light came in, from which he could see thatched roofs and chimneys releasing smoke into the overcast sky.
He tried to sit up, but something was wrong. Very wrong.
He noticed that his arms were thin, fragile-looking, with smooth skin and not a single hair.
His hands… were small, with fine, delicate fingers.
He slowly lowered his gaze, his heart pounding harder and harder.
He was wearing a tattered, dirty nightgown that covered a body that was not his own.
His chest was no longer flat; there were two small bulges visible beneath the thin fabric.
His hips were wider, and his legs shorter.
'No. This can't be'.
He brought his hands to his face with a slight tremble; his cheeks were soft, his lips fuller, and his nose small.
He felt a long strand of black hair fall over his shoulder and brush against his skin.
He ran—or rather, stumbled—toward a bucket of stagnant water that reflected like an improvised mirror.
The reflection hit him like a punch.
It was a girl, barely ten or eleven years old.
With a delicate face and large, light violet eyes that shone even under that poor light.
Her hair was black, long and messy, reaching down to her waist.
Her pale skin was marked by dirt and hunger.
It was a beauty that stood out despite all of that.
Takumi opened his mouth, and only a shrill, childish, strangled scream came out.
'The god said reincarnation… but he didn't say anything about this'.
Then, deep within his mind, a cold, mechanical voice resonated for the first time:
[Soul Core detected.Latent rating: SSS.Current status: Sealed.Effective rank: F-.Owner: Aria (unregistered orphan).Welcome to Elyria.]
Takumi—now in Aria's body—fell to his knees on the damp straw, his hands trembling.
'This is not what I asked for'.