The Reception Room

When the door opened, the first thing I noticed was how empty the room was. Luxurious decorations adorned the reception area. A tall counter stood at the back, and behind it was a woman who looked about twenty-five. She had silver hair and light blue eyes, and wore a long white and green shirt vest paired with a black skirt. Her expression was a mix of surprise and anger.

Legath hesitated for a moment before striding up to the counter, with me trailing behind. The woman spoke, her tone barely suppressing her irritation. "You're early. Weren't you supposed to take the scenic route through the main road?"

"Sorry about that, Ann. The kid's got some legs on him, and I couldn't resist trying to outpace him," Legath replied. He turned to me and explained, "It's very rare for a mortal to come here, and it's become even rarer as the ages have passed. You're only the second Hero I've seen in my time, but as I said, I'm a new god. No one expected you to show up, so the gods aren't here yet. It's quite baffling, as no god has claimed any significant prayers or offerings from you. Lady Hestia, Lord Sobek, and Lord Loki, among others, have mentioned feeling a faint whisper from you, but none received your strongest faith."

I pondered his words. It didn't make sense to me. I'd always prayed to four gods daily since I was young and never failed to make offerings. Occasionally, I'd pray to other gods, but I never neglected my daily prayers to those four.

Legath continued, "Gods are born and die by faith. A new god is born when a mortal imagines and starts worshiping them. Similarly, gods die if they have no believers left. However, if mortals don't truly believe in them anymore, simply being in stories is enough to sustain them, though they lose most of their powers. A god can also be resurrected in a weakened state if a forgotten story is rediscovered. If mortals take the story as true and have faith in it, the god can be fully restored."

"Normally, when you die, one of two things happen. If you had faith, you'd go to the afterlife of your belief system. If you follow multiple religions, you're sent to the one you subconsciously lean toward. If you lack faith, you're sent to the Lifestream, where your soul is scrubbed of memories and reincarnated until you live a life with faith. Special cases, like Heroes, are sent here to this pocket dimension we call the Festival of the Gods. Only those with absolute, unshakable faith in at least one god can become Heroes."

Finally, I understood why I saw a girl in a yukata and not a toga when I first arrived. This wasn't the place I expected after death, but it wasn't all bad. 'Maybe I can make this work too. After all, I get to meet the gods here. I really hope he's here,' I thought, a mix of anticipation, excitement, and anxiety swelling within me.

Legath smiled and asked, "Do you have any questions about my explanation?"

I shook my head, indicating no.

Legath turned to Ann with a sly smile. "Well, we still have some time, Ms. Ann. Why don't you teach the boy about the system while we wait?"

Ann eyed me like a predator sizing up its prey. "Yeah, I guess we can skip a step temporarily and let him work on it. It'll be a big part of his new life, after all. It's been a long time since I've seen this." She pulled what looked like a disk from a drawer and threw it at my chest.

Instinctively, I raised my hand to shield myself but was too slow. The disk collided with my chest. Instead of being thrown back, my body absorbed it as if I were a vacuum. The disk embedded itself in my chest, but I felt no pain. I lifted my shirt and rubbed the skin around the area, finding no wound. Slowly, I looked at Ann and Legath with a puzzled expression.

Ann laughed at my confusion. "You're only a soul right now. This is your true astral body. What I threw at you was an upgrade disk. It merged with your soul and gives you access to the faith system."

"Faith system? What the hell is a faith system?" I muttered, still confused.

Ann laughed again. "The faith system will allow you to do many things, which shall be explained in time. For now, let's focus on the Re-Me screen. Remember, this screen is a one-time thing. What you choose is permanent—no do-overs. Okay?"

"Okay," I replied. "But before that, can you answer some questions? You said we have time, right?"

Ann sighed. "Alright, let's get this over with. What do you want to know? And remember, no god is truly omnipotent or omnipresent."

For a moment, I was shocked. I hadn't realized Ann was a goddess, but thinking about it, she did have a commanding presence. "Well, I just got a new one. First, what are you the goddess of? Second, can I choose a god who is not here? Third, if I choose not to take the reincarnation route, can I still go to an afterlife of my faith?"

Both of their eyes widened at my last question. With a timid and shy demeanor, Ann answered, "Why would you not want to be a Hero? This is a great honor. But yes, if you wish, you can choose to go to the afterlife. If a god is not here, they are not seeking a champion, so no, you cannot choose a god who isn't at the festival."

She continued, "I am the Goddess of Overworked Receptionists. Like Legath, I am also a newer god. I was born from the prayers of a woman who eventually succumbed to her exhaustion, much like you did. I would have ceased to exist upon her death, as she was my only follower. But prayers to unnamed gods by receptionists all over helped sustain me."

I was saddened by her story. She had lived a life of hardship, much like me, and her only follower died of exhaustion. I decided that in my next life, I would offer prayers to her occasionally. 'Lady Ann, you've gained a follower today, though I cannot accept you as my patron deity,' I thought.

"Thank you for answering my questions. I'm curious about this Re-Me screen. How do I begin?" I asked, determined.

Ann regained her composure, her face brightening into a grin. "You'll need to boot the system for your first use. After that, it will be as natural as breathing and will integrate itself into the system of any world that has one. Use this phrase to initialize the system: 'Begin new life sequence, engage.'"