Chapter 1: Arrival


    I opened my eyes with a start.


    I sat up, squinting against the bright light of the surrounding world. With perfect precision, the moment before the truck struck me replayed in my mind. Amazed to find myself alive, I waited for my vision to adjust to what was clearly the artificial lighting of a hospital.


    I made to sit up, but instead of a hospital bed’s sheets, I felt cool grass between my fingers. A soft breeze blew, raising goose-bumps and causing the grass to tickle my exposed sections of skin.


    Rolling over and getting to my knees, I stared down with astonishment at the grass beneath my open hands. The sound of trees blowing in the wind drew my attention, and I looked up—my eyes finally adjusted to the luminous surroundings.


    I was in a clearing.


    Only patches of sunlight filtered down through the canopy of tall trees above. Another gust blew, and the branches far above swayed hypnotically.


    I looked down, seeing I was wearing three-quarter pants made of a simple beige fabric. A similar shirt covered my torso, with loose sleeves going just past the elbows.


    I wiggled my toes, and feeling resistance there, checked and confirmed that I wore shoes made of the same material, with a thin, artificially made sole sewn into them.


    “Where... where am I?” My voice sounded hoarse and deep.


    The smell of the earthy forest hit me, a stark contrast to the salt-spray I’d been inhaling what felt like only a moment ago. I breathed deeply, enjoying the sensation of cool, damp air as it passed through my nostrils.


    Is this the afterlife?


    I had delved into the theories of Buddhism, Taoism, and a number of other religious and philosophical beliefs in my search for myself, but I’d never truly believed in rebirth—or an afterlife at all, for that matter.Ne/w novel chapters are published at novelhall.com


    An odd sensation pulsed in my mind, and I became aware of something attempting to make itself known.


    With no small amount of hesitation, I leaned into the feeling, my brain subconsciously knowing how to acknowledge it.


    [Error: Insufficient power. Superfluous systems offline.]


    Please select a name.


    I stared at the prompt in my vision, becoming stuck at the situation I found myself in. I dismissed the messages in the same way I’d acknowledged them, and the words cleared from my field of view.


    God, I need a coffee before I can adequately handle this.


    That thought brought on another creative whim—thinking of the Nobel Prize recipient that discovered caffeine, a substance with which I was very much dependent, I entered a name.


    Name “Fischer” has been accepted. Welcome to the Kallis Realm.


    A sensation akin to euphoria radiated from somewhere within, but was gone as soon as it had come. I felt different somehow—as if indulging the blinking cursor and providing a name had fundamentally changed an aspect of myself.


    Assuming this wasn’t a dream, and I had in fact been isekai’d—something I noted, with no small amount of amusement, was entirely possible given my fateful encounter with truck-kun—I waited for another message to populate.


    A quest, a hint—anything.


    Nothing came.


    I stood, my body stiff and sluggish as if waking from a long sleep.


    I stretched my hands towards the sky, the extension of my muscles bringing an unbidden smile to my face. Even given the situation I found myself in, some aspects of the human experience were simply too pleasant to ignore. Bending over, I curled down towards my toes—there was something on the ground beside my feet.


    I picked up the small leather pouch, noting its heavy weight and the metallic jingle of its contents.


    I undid the drawstring and peered inside.


    It was filled with gold coins—a total of twenty-five—that had an unfamiliar face printed on one side, and a scythe on the other. I bit a coin; it was made of genuine gold.


    I cast my eyes around the clearing, looking for any other starting equipment if this was truly a game world.


    I found nothing.


    Alright. So I have starter clothes, the same body, and a bag of gold. No weapon, no abilities, and no means of defending myself. Well, except for a handful of Muay Thai lessons, and two Brazilian Jiu Jitsu classes run at a corporate event.


    “Quake in fear, monsters of this world—the fist of death has arrived!”


    Shaking my head and laughing at myself, I picked a random direction and started walking.