Chapter 1

Life is full of surprises. The last thing I remember is getting stabbed by a jealous ex-girlfriend. Even after five years, she is still obsessed with me. Her obsessiveness is what made me break up with her.

She easily gets jealous of something that is not worth getting jealous of. She is quick to suspect me of cheating on her when I speak with someone, especially when conversing with my female co-worker or friend.

One night, after I celebrated a promotion with my girlfriend, she came to our private karaoke booth and stabbed us both.

So here I'm, floating in the middle of darkness. I can still move around, but I don't know how long since I arrived in this place. I cannot see anything. I can feel something. The darkness around me is like thick water, and moving around is very hard.

At first, I could not move, but after continuously throwing my hands and feet like swimming, I could move around.

This activity is the only thing that makes me sane. When they say extended sensory deprivation can make you crazy is not a lie. There is nothing worse than leaving humans alone without anything to do but think.

For what felt like three days, I was only floating there thinking about life, and the more I thought about it, the more depressed I got.

That is why I have been swimming for who knows how long to ensure my mind is not going anywhere.

I blink for a few seconds when I see a glimmer of light in the distance. Hope starts to bloom inside of me, and I quickly swim through the thick water. I keep swimming and swimming. I continue to swim even when all of my energy leaves my body.

I keep swimming until I finally reach the light.

I blink for a few seconds when I see that I'm standing inside a room of pure white. As far as my eyes can see, I can only see white.

"Oh my. I never thought that someone would arrive in this place."

I look back and see an older man standing in front of a cage. I look at him from his feet to his hair. The man in front of me is around 185 cm tall. He has long white hair and a beard of the same color. He gives me a kind smile, but I can see him confused by my presence.

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"Can I ask who you are?"

"My name is Jordan. Who are you? And where am I?"

"Well, Jordan, my name is Slaont. I cannot give you my real name because your brain will be fried when you hear it."

Really? A name that can fry my brain? Well, I guess that might as well happen after what I have experienced.

"As for this place… Well, in your language, it is called Limbo. This is the place in between, the void and the forbidden place where time loses meaning."

"How did I get here?"

"And that is the mystery I don't know. I'm the ruler of this place, and I don't know how you get in here."

"Wait. You are the ruler of this place?"

"Yup. You are not much of a ruler when you don't have any subject, right? I will not call myself a ruler but rather an observer."

"Observer?"

"This place lets me observe all creation in the universe—humans, elves, dwarves, or even a species that did not even have a name yet. Time did not have any meaning in this place, and I can observe anything in the past, future, and present."

"Huh"

"Huh? Just that?"

"What do you want me to do? Scream? I'm shocked, don't get me wrong, but after swimming around in that pitch-black place, I would rather not do that."

"And that is another thing I don't understand. How can you move in the void?"

"The void? That pitch-black place?"

"Yes. Limbo is located inside the void. Moving around in that place should be impossible."

"Why? At first, moving was a bit hard, but after knowing how long, I could move around it."

"Hmmmm. That must be something unique in you that makes your soul resist the crushing weight of the void."

"Wait! I'm a soul?!"

"Look down."

I look down and notice that I no longer have my legs. I try to raise my hand, but there is nothing there. I can feel my hand rising, but I cannot see it.

"Huh. That is weird. I can feel my body, but I cannot see them. Fascinating."

"You are really an interesting human, Jordan. You are shocked, but you did not show it. Can I check something?"

"Checking what?"

"Can I touch your soul? I want to know how you survive the void, as even a divine being cannot survive the void."

"Sure"

I can see Slaont get close to me and touch my head. His eyes glow for a few seconds before the light disappears.

"I see! I see! That is how you can survive in the void."

"What? What happened?"

"I don't know how you can arrive here, but I know how you survive the void. When you arrive here, for some reason, you absorb all the souls that are identical to you from across the Omniverse."

"What? Can you simplify it?"

"When you arrive here, your soul is desperate enough to absorb all the souls identical to yours. That means all the people who have an identical soul as yours are combined into one being, you."

"Wait! Does that mean I kill them all?!"

"No. You absorb the one who dies and will die. As I said earlier, time would not affect this place. When you are there, you spend a long time, maybe a millennium, maybe even more, but all the souls that are identical to you are gone. Now they are one, and you are the holder of them."

I-I don't know how to respond to that.

"Your soul is even more powerful than a divine being in your world. It is powerful enough to resist the weight of the void long enough for you to arrive in this place. Fascinating."

I let him touch my head for a few more seconds before saying.

"Are you done?"

"Oh, right! I'm sorry about that. It has been a while since something exciting appeared in front of me. Your case is not impossible, as I have encountered it twice before, but you are the first to survive the void. The other two died after staying in the void for too long and never once stepped into this place. It is a shame; I found them when their souls were already destroyed."

"Huh? Did you not notice them? You observe the past, future, and present, right?"

"Sadly, I have my limitations. This place is where I was born, the place that gives me my power, but this place also limits me. Anything that gets inside the void will be separated from my view, and I cannot see them any longer, just like you. I can't see your future any longer. The only reason why I can see your past is that you let me touch your soul."

"I see."

I release a sigh and think about what I can do from now on.

"Hmmm, by the look on your face, you want to get out of this place, huh?"

"You are a pleasant person, Slaont. However, I don't think my sanity can survive staying in this place for long. I almost lose my sanity when I'm in the void."

"I have a solution for you."

I look at him with a surprised expression. When he said he was an observer, I thought he would not help me. That is how it happens in the novel and movie.

"Really?"

"Of course. I can see you back to the living zone, and in return, you do something for me."

"What is it?"

He snaps his finger, and we are suddenly in the middle of the void again. However, unlike before, I can see a golden energy around me, protecting me from the void. Slaont and I float through the never-ending void. After what feels like an hour or two, I can see a gloopy shadow tower in front of me.

"What is that?"

While the void hides it well, I can see its silhouette up close.

"That is the chaotic energy of the void. This energy keeps growing for some reason, and I know why."

"Really?"

"Yes. They are mainly coming from Earth but from different universes. The first one is the place where an Apocalypse Dragon awakens and tries to restart that Earth."

"Restart?"

"Yes. Many planets have their restart button born from the planet's will. Most Earth in the Omniverse has Humans as their reset button, but some of them have others like this Apocalypse Dragon."

"I see. So what with this dragon?"

"Right! The divine being of that world decided to seal the dragon, but he overlooked one thing. He locked that thing near the border between the void and their reality. The dragon's energy combined with the void creates that goop."

"What is that goop anyway? Is it dangerous?"

"At the moment. No. However, if left alone for far too long, they will expand and give birth to an abomination. I don't want another outer god to appear and seal some part of the universe. That is too much work."

"Wait. Outer God? Like Cthulhu?"

"Yup. When they are born, that universe must be contained or sealed from the rest of the universe if need be. It is only a matter of time before they die and the universe survives. However, sometimes you need to exterminate them but to do so, I need to delete the universe and build them back from the ground up."

"Wait. I thought you were just an observer."

"Yup. However, I cannot ignore the problem that appears on my doorstep, you know? One time I was too lazy to do it, and suddenly, four creatures called themselves the Chaos Gods made havoc near this place. It takes me quite a bit of time to recreate that universe."

Huh, he is a responsible god. Good to know.

"What I want you to do is to fix the problem causing this. In return, I will make a new body for you, and I will even give you a power or two like in the novel and anime you saw in your past life. What do you think? That is a good offer, right?"

I look at him for a few seconds and say.

"Sure. Sounds fun."

"Great!"

He claps his hand, and suddenly we are back in the white room.

"And this will be your body!"

Before I can even register what happens, Slaont claps his hand again, and this time, I can see a hologram appear before me. On it, I can see a human male standing while giving me a cocky smile. The human inside the hologram is a young adult, maybe in his early 20s. What caught my attention was the strange markings around his body.

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"What is with the strange marking?"

"Hmmm? That? That mark is a seal that lets your soul get inside this body. Now you have an even more powerful soul than a divine being; a normal body is insufficient to contain your soul."

"What does that make me?"

"Hmmm? Nothing really. It only protects you from any kind of divination. The other cannot predict your future, cannot read your past, and only can see you in the present. Also, any soul attack will fail as your soul is more powerful than theirs. However, you must beware of anyone who likes to eat souls, as yours is the most delicious thing in their mind."

"I see."

He nods and says.

"In this body, I shall give you something called [Grace]."

"[Grace]?"

"Yup. You will know about them when you arrive in the first world. What do you think?"

I look at him for a second and then look at the body in the hologram. I think about it for a few seconds and nod.

"I accept!"

"Perfect! The world I will send you is the place where this dragon comes from, the apocalypse dragon."

"Right. What kind of world is this? Modern? Medieval? Futuristic?"

"Modern, a decade older than your previous one. This place also has active supernatural races, by your definition, like Youkai, Angel, Devil, and even Gods. Your previous world did not have active supernatural races, and they prefer to stay in their pocket dimension."

"A lot of supernatural stuff, gotcha. That means there are high chances of a vampire appearing in front of me and trying to suck my blood."

"Well, they stay inside their territory, but yeah, there are chances of that happening."

"You know what? Fuck it. This place is boring, no offense."

"None taken. This place is boring to anyone who does not have my eyes."

"I prefer to see the world. I accept. What you need me to do, and I will do it."

"You don't need to give your life for the mission, Jordan. If you think that you can't do it, then don't. I prefer your presence in this place rather than die once again. I cannot move your soul easily because of how powerful it is. Once you die, the Gods of that place will have the authority to mess with your soul and even use it to make themselves more powerful."

I look at him for a few seconds and smile. He is just a lonely man, huh? I can respect that.

"Very well. I will not get myself killed."

"Thank you. So? Are you ready?"

"Yes. Let's do this."

"Great!"

He steps back and claps his hand. Suddenly, my vision was surrounded by white light.

"Right! I almost forgot! Jordan! Search for the Dragon of Infinity! She will know the location of the Apocalypse Dragon!"

That is the last thing I hear before I arrive in the middle of the forest.

Well, my new life starts now.