Chapter 1: Death by Glowstick
The problem with dying, Kenji Tanaka discovered, was that you absolutely knew when it was happening.
One second, he was screaming his lungs raw at the Lumia-chan Final World Tour. The next, his chest felt like someone had replaced his heart with a supernova. The glowstick—bright pink, Lumia's signature color—slipped from his fingers. It hadn't even cracked yet. He'd snapped it too hard in the ecstasy of Lumia hitting that high note in "Starlight Revolution."
Worth it, he thought, and then the world went sideways.
The floor rushed up. No—he was falling. Someone screamed. A security guard? Another fan? The music didn't stop. Lumia kept singing. She was perfect, as always. Beautiful voice. Beautiful smile.
Beautiful—
And then nothing.
"Well," said a voice that sounded like honeyed sarcasm, "that's a new one."
Kenji opened his eyes.
He was sitting in a gamer chair. Not a cheap one, either—this was full RGB lighting, leather padding, the kind that cost three months' salary. The kind he'd looked at online at 3 AM and closed the tab because he was a responsible adult with rent to pay.
The room around him was... void. Not dark. Just nothing. Empty space that somehow had a floor.
And across from him, sitting in an even fancier chair, was a woman eating potato chips.
She was beautiful in that unreal, ethereal way that anime girls were. Long hair that shifted between pink and purple depending on the angle. Eyes that glowed faintly. A hoodie that said "I ROLLED A NAT 20 ON EXISTENCE" in sparkly letters.
She crunched another chip. Loudly.
"Uh," Kenji said. His voice worked. That was... weird. Wasn't he dead? "Is this—"
"Yep." She didn't even look up. "You're dead."
"Oh."
He processed this. Surprisingly, it wasn't that shocking. He'd felt his heart explode. Kind of hard to come back from that.
"So... Heaven?" he tried.
"Nope."
"Hell?"
"Also nope."
"...Customer service waiting room?"
She snorted. "Close enough." Finally, she looked at him, and her eyes were the color of galaxies. It was deeply uncomfortable. "I'm Velara. Goddess of Fate and Misfortune. You, Kenji Tanaka, age 30, just died simping for an idol."
"It was her final tour—"
"I'm not judging." Velara reached into a bag of chips that definitely hadn't been there a second ago. "Well. I am. But not about that."
She pulled out a tablet. Tapped it. Swiped.
Her expression went from amused to delighted.
"Oh," she said. "Oh, this is gold."
Kenji's stomach dropped. "What is?"
"Your browser history."
"WAIT—"
"'Top 10 Cat Girls in Anime, Ranked by Fluffiness.' 'Is it weird to want to be headpatted?' 'Gacha game addiction support forum.'" She kept scrolling. "'Why do I feel gender envy when I see cute girls?'"
Kenji wanted to die. Again. Permanently this time.
"That last one was—research," he stammered. "For a friend."
"You have no friends."
"Ouch."
"Just facts." Velara dismissed the tablet with a wave. It vanished in sparkles. "So. Here's the deal. You're dead. Normally, I'd just cycle you back into reincarnation roulette, but—" She leaned forward, grinning. "I'm bored. And you, Kenji, have a hilarious search history. So I'm giving you an offer."
This felt like a trap. "What kind of offer?"
"Reincarnation. New world. Fantasy setting, magic, all that good stuff." She ticked off fingers. "But here's the fun part: you get to make one wish. Anything you want. Power? Knowledge? A harem of cat girls?"
Kenji's brain short-circuited. "Wait. Seriously?"
"Seriously."
"That's... that's too good to be—"
"There's a catch."
There it is.
"Of course there is," Kenji muttered.
Velara's smile was the kind that gods wore when they were about to ruin someone's day. "Your new life will run on my rules. Think of it like..." She waved vaguely. "A gacha game. You'll have a system. Rewards. Quests. Tickets for random items."
"That doesn't sound bad."
"Did I mention it's rigged?"
"...How rigged?"
"However rigged I feel like making it." She leaned back, crossing her legs. "I'll be watching. And honestly? I think it'll be hilarious."
This was definitely a bad idea.
But also—
Kenji had died at an idol concert. His life had peaked in a stadium surrounded by glowsticks and screaming fans. If he said no, what, he'd just... vanish? Get recycled into some normal life as a tax accountant again?
"You said I get one wish," he said slowly.
"Yep."
"Anything?"
"Within reason. I'm not giving you godhood or anything."
Kenji took a breath.
Okay.
Okay.
What did he love most in the world? What made life worth living, even when he was exhausted from overtime and living off convenience store ramen?
"Cats," he said.
Velara blinked. "Cats."
"And idols. And gacha games." The words came faster now. He was committed. If he was going to live in a fantasy world, he was going all in. "I want—I want to experience all of that. I want to be someone amazing. Someone people look up to. I want fluff and excitement and—"
"Okay, okay, I get it." Velara waved a hand, and the gamer chair swiveled slightly. "Let me see... cats, idols, gacha..." She was grinning now. "Oh, yeah. I've got just the thing."
"Really?"
"Really." She stood, and suddenly she was ten feet tall, radiating divine energy that made Kenji's very soul vibrate. "Granted. You'll be a cat. You'll be an idol of the nobility. And your entire life will be RNG."
"Wait—"
"Have fun!" Velara snapped her fingers.
The void shattered into light.
"WAIT, WHAT DO YOU MEAN—"
—and Kenji woke up.
The first thing he noticed was the smell. Clean linen. Lavender. Something faintly sweet that his brain couldn't identify.
The second thing he noticed was that the bed was enormous.
The third thing—and this is where panic set in—was that his body felt wrong.
Not painful. Just... different. Lighter. Smaller. His center of gravity was off.
Kenji sat up.
His hair fell into his face. Long, silver hair that shimmered even in the dim morning light.
"What," he said.
His voice was higher. Softer.
"What."
He scrambled out of bed—graceful, which was wrong because Kenji tripped over his own feet on a good day—and stumbled toward the full-length mirror in the corner.
The girl staring back at him was beautiful.
She had long silver hair that cascaded down her back. Ice-blue eyes with slit pupils. Delicate features, pale skin, the kind of face that belonged on a magazine cover.
And cat ears.
Silver, twitching cat ears on top of her head.
Kenji reached up slowly. Touched one.
It was soft. Fluffy.
It was his.
"Okay," he said out loud, voice shaking. "Okay. Don't panic. This is—this is fine. This is—"
Something brushed his leg.
He looked down.
A tail. Long, fluffy, silver. His tail.
It swished.
"WHAT—"
A glowing blue screen materialized in front of his face.
[GODDESS'S WHIM GACHA SYSTEM v1.3.7]
[Initializing...]
[User Detected: Nyx Whiskerwind]
[Age: 16]
[Species: Felinoid Beastkin (Noble)]
[Level: 1]
[Welcome to Hard Mode.]
[Current Quest: Don't Freak Out]
[Status: FAILED]
[Dignity: 95/100]
Kenji—no, Nyx—stared at the screen.
Then at the mirror.
Then at the tail, which was now puffed up like a bottle brush.
"I'm a cat girl," she said.
[Congratulations! You've discovered Basic Self-Awareness!]
[Reward: +1 Common Gacha Ticket]
[Reminder: You wished for this.]
"I did not wish to be—"
[INCORRECT. Playback Requested?]
[> "Cats! And Idols! And Gacha Games!"]
[Working as intended :3]
The screen vanished.
Nyx stood there, staring at her reflection. The girl in the mirror stared back, ears flat against her head, tail lashing.
She was in a fantasy world.
She was a noble cat girl.
With a trolling goddess running a rigged gacha system.
And somewhere, in her new, unfamiliar memories, she could feel the weight of expectations pressing down like a boulder. The name "Nyx Whiskerwind" carried prestige. Fear. Respect.
The Silent Moonlight. Cold. Emotionless. Perfect.
Which would be great, except Kenji had never been cool a single day in his life.
"I'm so screwed," Nyx whispered.
Her tail swished anxiously.
From outside the door, she heard footsteps. Brisk. Purposeful.
Someone was coming.
[New Quest: Survive Your First Morning]
[Objective: Don't blow your cover]
[Penalty for Failure: Social Destruction]
[Reward: 1 Common Ticket, +10 EXP]
[Good luck~! (◕‿◕✿)]
Nyx took a slow, shaky breath.
She was a 30-year-old salaryman in the body of a 16-year-old noble cat girl in a world that expected her to be an emotionless prodigy.
The door handle turned.
Don't panic, she thought. Just act natural. You've seen anime. You know how this goes. Play it cool. Don't—
The door opened.
A maid stepped in.
And Nyx's new instincts—the ones wired into her stupid cat brain—locked onto the ties of the maid's apron as they swayed with her movement.
No, Kenji's human brain screamed.
The ties swayed again.
Her pupils dilated.
"Good morning, Lady Nyx," the maid said, curtseying. "Did you sleep well?"
Nyx's hand twitched.
[Cat Instinct Activated: MUST. SWAT. THE. THING.]
[Resist? Y/N]
She grabbed her own wrist with her other hand. Hard.
The maid—Martha, her memories supplied—raised an eyebrow.
"My Lady?"
"I'm fine," Nyx managed. Her voice came out clipped. Cold. The complete opposite of how she felt.
Martha nodded approvingly. "As composed as ever. Your father has requested your presence at breakfast."
The Duke.
The War God of the North.
Her father.
Nyx's tail puffed.
[Dignity -5: Cat Tail Betrayal]
[Current Dignity: 90/100]
"Of course," Nyx said, fighting to keep her voice steady. "I'll... prepare."
Martha smiled—a small, professional thing that somehow felt like she was reading Nyx's soul—and left to draw a bath.
The moment she was gone, Nyx slumped against the wall.
She looked at her hands. Soft. Delicate. Clawed fingers that could probably tear fabric if she wasn't careful.
She looked at the system screen, still hovering helpfully.
[Tutorial Tip: Maintain your persona! OOC behavior will be auto-corrected! (´• ω •`)]
"This is a nightmare," Nyx breathed.
Her ear twitched.
She reached up and touched it again.
Soft.
Fluffy.
...Okay, it's a little bit cool, Kenji's inner otaku admitted.
[Achievement Unlocked: Touched Fluffy Ears]
[Dignity -3: Self-Petting]
[Current Dignity: 87/100]
"I WASN'T—"
Someone knocked on the door.
"Lady Nyx?" Martha called. "The bath is ready."
Nyx straightened. Smoothed her nightgown. Tried to look composed.
"Coming," she said.
Her voice was steady. Cold. Perfect.
Inside, she was screaming.
[Day One, Morning: Survived]
[Current Objective: Breakfast with the War God]
[Recommended Strategy: Literally just don't talk]
[Dignity: 87/100]
[Sanity: 23/100]
[Good luck, Nyx Whiskerwind! (ノ◕ヮ◕)ノ*:・゚✧]
Nyx stared at the breakfast table.
It was long. Mahogany. Polished so thoroughly she could see her reflection in it. The kind of table that screamed "We have money and also probably political enemies."
At the head of the table sat her father.
Duke Cassian Whiskerwind was a wall of muscle in formal military attire. Silver hair, ice-blue eyes exactly like hers, and a scar across his jaw that somehow made him more intimidating. His cat ears were small, almost hidden in his hair, and he'd clearly bound his tail under his clothes.
He looked like he could kill a dragon with his bare hands.
He probably had.
Nyx sat across from him, spine straight, hands folded in her lap. Martha had dressed her in a formal gown—pale blue, elegant, with far too many layers. Her tail was doing its best to behave under the chair.
The silence was crushing.
"Nyx," the Duke said finally. His voice was deep. Commanding.
"Father," Nyx replied. Clipped. Formal.
So far so good, Kenji's brain whispered. Just don't say anything weird. Be the ice queen. You can do this.
The Duke studied her for a long moment.
Then he smiled.
It was subtle. Just a slight curve of his mouth. But the sheer pride in his eyes made Nyx want to crawl under the table.
"You've grown well," he said. "Your mother would be proud."
Nyx's throat tightened.
Right. The original Nyx's mother. The Duchess. Dead for years.
Say something appropriate, Kenji's brain screamed. Something cold but respectful. That's the character. You've got this.
"She is my inspiration," Nyx said.
The Duke's smile grew.
[Successful Dialog Check!]
[+1 Reputation: Duke Whiskerwind]
[He thinks you're being stoic and honoring her memory!]
[You're just terrified!]
[Dignity +2]
Breakfast was served. Some kind of roasted meat, eggs, bread that smelled heavenly.
Nyx's stomach growled.
Loudly.
The Duke chuckled. "Eat, daughter. You'll need your strength."
She nodded. Picked up a fork. Started eating.
The food was amazing.
Like, genuinely incredible. Better than anything Kenji had ever tasted in his previous life. Magic fantasy world food was no joke.
She was three bites in when she realized her tail was swishing happily under the chair.
[Cat Instinct: Happy Eating Mode]
[Dignity -2: Visible Contentment]
The Duke noticed.
"You seem pleased," he said.
Abort. Abort.
Nyx set down her fork. Wiped her mouth with a napkin. Tried to school her expression into something neutral.
"The meal is acceptable," she said.
[OOC Detected: Kenji wanted to say "This is the best thing I've ever eaten and I would die for your chef."]
[Auto-Corrected to: Polite Noble Speak]
[You're welcome.]
The Duke nodded. "Good. I wanted to discuss your enrollment at the Royal Academy."
Nyx's ears perked up.
Academy. Right. That's the next phase. Please let it be normal magic school stuff. Please.
"The entrance examination is in one week," the Duke continued. "But before you attend, I want to verify your magical aptitude."
Oh no.
"We'll test your mana core this afternoon."
Oh no no no.
"I've invited the family mage. He'll assess your element and rank."
Nyx's hand tightened on her fork.
I have zero mana. I'm going to get exposed in front of magical witnesses. The goddess rigged me.
[Quest Updated: Survive Breakfast → Survive Mana Test]
[难度: OH NO]
[Recommended Action: Panic Responsibly]
"I understand," Nyx said. Her voice didn't shake. Barely.
The Duke stood. Placed a hand on her shoulder.
"You carry your mother's legacy," he said. "I have no doubt you'll surpass even her brilliance."
The weight of expectation nearly crushed her spine.
"I won't disappoint you," Nyx managed.
The Duke nodded and left.
The moment he was gone, Nyx slumped in her chair.
Her tail wrapped around her own leg anxiously.
"I'm so dead," she whispered.
[Gacha Tickets Available: 2 Common]
[Would you like to roll for Salvation?]
[...or Despair?]
[Only one way to find out! (☞゚ヮ゚)☞]
Nyx stared at the screen.
Then at the empty dining hall.
Then back at the screen.
"I'm going to regret this," she muttered.
She mentally pressed [ROLL].
The screen exploded into sparkles.