Kenji Sato stared. He was nineteen years old, born in Tokyo but raised on the sun-baked, pothole-ridden streets of Los Angeles, and he considered himself a man of logic. Well, anime logic, mostly.
But right now, logic was failing him.
He was floating in a blank, white expanse, staring up at a towering, seven-foot-tall humanoid. The thing was completely featureless, a stark white silhouette that looked exactly like the 'Truth' from Fullmetal Alchemist, except its proportions were weirdly stretched and gangly.
Then, it opened a jagged hole where a mouth should be and spoke.
"What's the dilly-o, my skibidi rizzler?" the entity boomed, its voice sounding like a dial-up modem crashing into a TikTok compilation. "You got totally pwned back in the meat-space! Straight up unalived, no cap. Shizzle's crazy, dattebayo!"
Kenji's eye twitched. The sheer, concentrated cringe of mixing 90s hip-hop slang, Gen-Z brainrot, and a Naruto catchphrase hit his nervous system harder than a freight train.
He didn't blink. He just inhaled deeply, channeled the absolute peak of internet toxicity, and yelled, "You should kill yourself NOW!!!"
For a second, the white void was dead silent. Then, the giant entity threw its head back and let out a booming, glitchy laugh that vibrated in Kenji's teeth.
"Ahaha! Based! Totally tubular, my guy!" the entity cackled. "I like your vibe. Tell you what, I'm gonna bless you. Three wishes. You're getting the Isekai premium package."
"Wait, back up," Kenji interrupted, rubbing his temples. "I'm dead? I don't even remember dying. Was it Truck-kun? Did I get shanked outside the Burbank AMC? Because I swear to god, if I choked on a boba pearl, I'm going to—"
The entity completely ignored him. "So, my bodacious bro, what kind of anime world we talkin'? Give me the deets."
Kenji paused, his mind instantly shifting gears. If he couldn't change his dead status, he was going to optimize his next life. He pushed up imaginary glasses on the bridge of his nose, his analytical otaku brain firing on all cylinders.
"Alright. If we're doing this, I want a rom-com slice-of-life setting. Something sweet, peaceful, with a cool harem aesthetic. Like a highschool themed place" Kenji declared, pacing like a strategist. "Just clear-cut romance flags, high school festivals, and predictable character arcs. I love anime, but I refuse to deal with the actual trauma of a shonen protagonist."
The entity nodded sagely. "Word. A chillaxed harem timeline. Groovy. Now, what about your avatar? You want that gigachad jawline? The overpowered ikemen drip?"
"Absolutely not," Kenji scoffed, crossing his arms. "Make my body average. Maybe slightly above average, but keep me looking like a mob character. If you're too handsome, the heroines feel unearned, or worse, you attract the yandere trope. In a true romance anime, the average guys are the ones who win. It's all about building chemistry and letting your personality trigger the heroine's event flags. Being an 8/10 is statistically optimal for a peaceful harem."
"Big brain energy," the entity agreed, nodding its featureless head again. "And for your final wish? What's your cheat skill, fam?"
"A Medical System," Kenji said instantly. He'd thought about this before. "I want to be a doctor who can cure absolutely anything. Make it so my skills automatically max out my affinity and trust levels with people. It's the perfect passive power. You get universally loved, nobody wants to fight the guy who can cure cancer, and it practically guarantees I can unlock any girl's 'saving them from tragedy' route without throwing a single punch."
The entity stared down at him. It brought a long, white hand to its chin. "A pacifist healer with a rizz-building UI system... fascinating. Very mindful. Very demure."
"Exactly," Kenji smirked, feeling like he had just speed-run the afterlife.
Then, a sickening crack echoed through the void.
The entity's face split open in a horrifying, jagged smile. Thick, viscous black tears began leaking from its invisible eyes, streaming down its glowing white face. It slowly raised its hand and extended a massive, gangly middle finger right in Kenji's face.
"Psych."
Kenji's smirk vanished. "Wait, what?"
"I'm sending your basic, plain-looking ass to a random, horrific, ultra-dangerous death-world!" the entity cackled, crying black tears as it kept flipping him off. "You're staying entirely average! And guess what? Your pacifist doctor power isn't gonna help you for shit where you're going!"
"Hold on! We had a verbal contract!" Kenji panicked, taking a step back.
"Catch you on the flippity-flop, loser!"
The entity snapped its fingers. The white floor beneath Kenji shattered like glass, opening up into a swirling, violent portal of dark purple energy. Gravity inverted, and Kenji was yanked downward by an invisible force.
"NO! YOU BASTARD!" Kenji screamed as he plummeted into the abyss. He looked up at the shrinking white light of the void, where the entity was still flipping him the bird. In a final act of pure spite, Kenji roared at the top of his lungs:
"I HOPE YOU DIED A VIRGIN!!!"
From a million miles above, the entity's booming voice snapped back down the portal.
"I DIIIIIIIIID!!!"
The portal snapped shut.
Kenji was left free-falling through a pitch-black void, the wind roaring in his ears. His heart pounded against his ribs as sheer, unadulterated panic set in. The ultimate betrayal. No slice-of-life. No high school festivals. No predictable event flags.
"What world..." Kenji hyperventilated, clutching his head as he spun through the dark.
———
Kenji jolted awake, his heart hammering against his ribs. Tangled in unfamiliar bedsheets, he scrambled out of bed, his center of gravity feeling entirely off, and rushed to a nearby floor mirror.
His breath hitched. Staring back at him was a teenager with pale, sandy-blonde hair and soft, refined features. He recognized that face immediately. It was Arthur Pendragon from Fate/Prototype—specifically, some kind of Alter version of him. His eyes, devoid of Arthur's usual green, were a striking, soft golden hue.
"No," Kenji whispered, his hands gripping the sides of his face.
True, primal panic set in. If he looked exactly like Arthur Pendragon, and this was the Type-Moon universe, he was in grave danger.
"Manaka Sajyou," he gasped to the empty room, referencing the terrifying, omnipotent yandere. "If she sees my face..."
He paced the room before forcefully hitting the brakes. He quickly checked the backs of his hands. Flawless skin. No Command Seals.
A laugh bubbled up in his chest. "I'm not a Master. I'm just a civilian doppelgänger. I am entirely safe."
PING.
A translucent blue screen materialized in his vision.
[MEDICAL SYSTEM INITIALIZED]
[Host Status: Physical Age: 14 | Mental Age: 19]
Kenji blinked at the blue panel. "Fourteen? I lost five years of my life?"
He sighed, scrolling past the status bar.
[Starting Doctor Skills:]
- Basic Anatomy (Lv 10/100)
- Symptom Diagnosis (Lv 10/100)
- First Aid (Lv 10/100)
[System Note: Host may acquire and level up skills simply by reading literature or observing the actions of others.]
Kenji read the prompt, his golden eyes scanning the text. "A system that allows for continuous growth through mere observation... That is rather pleasant."
He paused, blinking again. Pleasant? He frowned. Why did he just say it like that? Where did the refined vocabulary come from? It seemed the innate elegance of the King of Knights came packaged with the vocal cords and the brain chemistry.
He scrolled further down.
[Bonus Skills Acquired:]
- Cooking (Lv 1)
- Lover of Weapons (Lv 1)
A smaller window popped up, shaped like a slot machine.
[Rolling Sub-System Module...]
The icons blurred together before locking into place with a bright chime.
[Acquired Sub-System: Multiversal Groupchat]
Kenji sighed softly, dismissing the screens. "A multiversal groupchat... I suppose I can analyze that later."
His stomach gave a soft rumble. Deciding that investigating his new reality required calories, he headed downstairs into the quiet house. He navigated to the kitchen, pulled a carton of eggs from the fridge, and instinctively flicked on the small television resting on the counter.
He began whisking the eggs with a smooth, practiced elegance as the morning news anchor spoke.
"—and it's shaping up to be a beautiful, clear morning here in Fuyuki City. Mayor Kotone has announced the approval of the new park renovations near the residential district, and traffic across the Fuyuki Bridge remains light..."
Kenji's whisking slowed to a halt.
Fuyuki City.
The television's date in the corner confirmed it was the 1990s. Fuyuki. The realization washed over him like a bucket of ice water. The Holy Grail War hadn't started yet—there were no reports of mysterious gas leaks or serial killings—but he was standing at ground zero of the fourth grail war timeline.
He stared down at the bowl of eggs. If his system allowed him to gain skills just by watching or reading, the possibilities were vast. Could he read a textbook on neurology and become a master surgeon? Could he watch documentaries and learn enough to survive the absolute chaos that was about to descend on this city?
"I will have to test the limits of this," he murmured to himself, regaining his composure. He poured the mixture into the hot pan. In a city destined to become a warzone for legendary heroes, maintaining a low profile was his top priority.
With a flick of his wrist, Kenji perfectly flipped the omelet into the air, catching it flawlessly in the pan. Regardless of his new face, his refined vocabulary, or the deadly city he resided in, some things never changed—he always preferred an omelet for breakfast.
Regardless of his new face, his refined vocabulary, or the deadly city he resided in, some things never changed—he always preferred an omelet for breakfast.
Plating the food with surprising culinary grace, Kenji sat at the small kitchen table. He poured himself a glass of cold water, took a bite of the perfectly fluffy eggs, and let out a content sigh. For a brief, fleeting moment, everything felt normal.
"Now," he murmured, setting his chopsticks down. "Let us examine this secondary anomaly."
With a mental command, he opened the Multiversal Groupchat sub-system. A sleek, semi-transparent chat box expanded in his vision, hovering just above his plate.
[Initializing Multiversal Groupchat...]
[Host: Kenji Sato (Designation: Group Administrator) has logged in.]
[Sending 3 Random Multiversal Invitations...]
Kenji took a sip of his water, watching the screen with mild curiosity. If it really crossed universes, who would he get? Shonen heroes? Slice-of-life side characters?
[User 'Kobayashi' has joined the chat.]
[Kobayashi:...The hell is this? A new company Slack channel? Takiya, if you're messing with my monitor again, I swear to god... I'm too drunk for this right now.]
Kenji blinked. Miss Kobayashi? From the Dragon Maid anime? That was unexpected, but certainly harmless. A mundane, albeit magically-adjacent, programmer.
[User 'Subaru Natsuki' has joined the chat.]
[Subaru Natsuki: WHOA! Is this it?! My Isekai cheat skill?! A chat window! Awesome!]
Kenji pinched the bridge of his nose. Subaru. Re:Zero. The poor guy was probably fresh in his new world, completely oblivious to the endless cycle of brutal suffering awaiting him. Kenji almost felt bad for him.
[User 'Saki Yoshida' has joined the chat.]
Kenji froze. The glass of water stopped halfway to his mouth.
[Saki Yoshida: U-Um... hello? Is this a prank text? How did this get on my phone? I... I don't understand...]
The glass slipped from Kenji's hand.
It shattered against the kitchen floor, water splashing across the linoleum, but he didn't even flinch. His golden eyes were locked onto that name.
Saki Yoshida.
His mind raced through his vast catalog of anime and manga, desperately hoping it was just a coincidence, a common name in some obscure, fluffy rom-com.
Kenji gripped the edges of the kitchen table, his knuckles turning white. His breathing grew shallow. First, he gets randomly murdered in his past life. Then, he's reincarnated by a deeply offensive, trolling entity. He wakes up with the face of a Nasuverse protagonist, trapped in Fuyuki City right before the most destructive Holy Grail War in history. He gets saddled with a medical system and a chat interface, and now... this.
"This is too much," Kenji whispered, rubbing his temples as a massive migraine began to form. "Dying... waking up here... two entirely different systems... and now I have to somehow manage a depressed time-looper, a drunk programmer, and..."
He looked back at Saki's nervous text bubble. He had a Doctor System that required him to heal people.
Kenji slumped forward, resting his head against the cold wood of the table, entirely overwhelmed by the sheer, unadulterated stress of his new existence.