Web, the God of Webnovel

A young man opened his eyes to find himself floating in a chilling void, absent of all light. However, a minuscule speck of light spawned just in front of him, growing and transforming into the shape of a human; though it lacked basic features such as eyes, ears, or a nose. It was the silhouette of a man with a large grin stretched across his blank face.

"Hello, young man. My name is Web. As of now, you are in the afterlife that I have created for all Webnovel users," the deity said to the young man.

"So any person who used the app comes here when they die?" the young man asked with furrowed brows.

"Precisely." said Web, flourishing his arms. "All Webnovel users are reincarnated into a story of their own." The giant god still had that gargantuan grin as he spoke.

The young man's shoulders sunk and his facial expression turned empty. "Oh... so that's why almost all of the stories are reincarnation stories? That makes sense... though I don't like reading those. They're kinda boring." The young man's words made that everlasting smile on the god's face instantly dissipate. Though he lacked other facial features, the skin on his face was visibly contorted.

"What!?" he shouted, trembling the void around them. "But they're the pinnacle of all writing!" He was a big fan of his website's most popular genre. There was a reason why those books gained more attention from the algorithm than those that were outside of the genre.

"I don't know..." the young man muttered. "It's boring to me. There's no real backstory. They don't have any long-lasting relationships or friends. The main characters sometimes feel like vessels for the story rather than people. I just prefer when the character is already in that universe."

"Some books have the main character reincarnate into a baby! Therefore, you can have a backstory with the main character that is relevant to the universe." Web spoke as if he had one-upped the young man, folding his arms across his chest, but the young man thought the opposite.

"Well, why make it reincarnation then? Just make it an original story that takes place in that universe. That's just adding an extra step and wasting time," after the young man said this, Web was dumbfounded.

'Damn, he's right.' Web wouldn't admit it out loud, but it was true. It doesn't make a difference. Or does it?

"Aha! They retain their memories, that's what's different!"

"Well, yeah... but then it's boring because they know everything that's going to happen. Then they say stuff like 'Oh, I saw this movie so I know exactly how to beat the villain!'. It removes all tension in my opinion."

Web's face was still warped, even more so then. "How could that be boring? That's cool!"

"For you maybe," said the young man-- arms still folded across his chest.

"Well," Web paused for a moment, then he snapped his fingers at the boy. "With reincarnation stories, you can put yourself in the main character's shoes!" 

"I don't think it has to be a reincarnation story for someone to do that though..." the young man said-- his voice trailing off.

"But it helps," added Web.

"I mean, I guess it can," the young man said reluctantly.

Victorious, Web crossed his arms and blew a puff of air from his nose. "Exactly," he told the young man. "Anyway, it's time to roll for your story's premise."

A wheel with millions of options spawned just behind Web, one of light just like his body. The wheel began to spin, and though it was so large, it took a while until it began to slow down. Web looked around as if there were sights to see inside the void in which he resided; there were none. The young man rolled his eyes and an impatient gust of air shot from his mouth. 

"You couldn't have spun that thing when we were talking?" he asked.

"I forgot," Web admitted, running his hand through his baldness.

Again, with arms still folded, the young man sighed. "How long does this usually take?" he asked. Web shrugged. "Depends how hard I spin it," Web said. "Usually, we talk about stuff, but you aren't very likable."

"Because I don't like a genre?" the young man asked.

"Yeah, you have no taste," Web said, scoffing and turning his invisible nose away from the young man. "At least tell me what type of world you'd like to go to. I'm curious."

'Why is god acting like some tsundere? Maybe it gets lonely in here,' the young man thought.

"I don't know. Maybe Marvel or DC. Naruto would be cool too I guess. I don't like the genre to read, but living the genre might be cool. The MC usually gets all the girls and stuff; can't say that's something I've experienced myself."

Web chuckled. "So you'd like a harem then?" Web teased. 

The young man glared back at the god standoffishly. "I mean, narratively harems are stupid but I wouldn't mind having one. Big deal, I'm a dude who likes women. Put me in Naruto and I couldn't choose just one."

Web raised his fists like an excited child. "You know, sometimes I act as the MC for stories when I'm bored. So, I completely get it. Speaking of Naruto, who's your top five women? Go."

The young man looked toward the void's ceiling, placing his hands behind his head as if he were lounging. "Hinata is for sure number one...."

"Yes! Same!" Web interrupted.

The young man laughed and shook his head as he continued. "Temari is in there. Lady Tsunade, of course. Anko before she was fat. And I guess I'll throw in...Kaguya, honestly."

With a hand on his chin, Web nodded. "Good choices, good choices. I'd take TenTen over Temari and replace Kaguya with Kurenai. Other than that, we pretty much agree."

"I didn't think god was into ranking waifus," the young man said.

"I have literally nothing better to do," Web mumbled. "Oh, hey, the wheel is slowing down." 

The wheel behind him was just about to come to a halt and the young man's heart was beating against his ribcage. Just when the tension became unbearable, the wheel stopped. 

"The Reader's Choice System. Interesting, I don't think I've seen this one." Web looked at the young man, his grin no longer stretched across his face, though a softened version was still present. "You know, I was starting to warm up to you, kid. Well, congratulations. I hope you enjoy your second life." Web snapped his fingers-- instantly disappearing before the young man's eyes. Once again, he was floating in nothingness, though this time, there was something floating just in front of him.

"A screen?" he said, reaching toward the see-through display that hovered in front of him.

[Welcome to the Reader's Choice System!] 

[Like any system, you will be rewarded with power upon meeting certain requirements.]

[However,]

[Unlike most systems, your missions will be decided by the readers themselves!]

'The readers?' the young man thought. Upon having this thought, his body jolted and his face turned toward the ceiling of nothingness. "Hello!?" he called out to the strange voice echoing throughout the void. 'Is that the narrator?' he questioned.

The young man was correct, the voice he was hearing was in fact the narrator, describing the story as it happens. As these words reverberated around the unending nothingness, the young man's eyes widened and quivered. 

"My eyes are not quivering at all!" he lied. "I'm not lying!"

His eyes were in fact quivering. Regardless of that fact, the young man redirected his attention toward the screen, ignoring the booming voice describing his every move.

[These decisions are called Canon Shifts. Rather than explaining what a Canon Shift is, your first Canon Shift will commence now.]

[Which world shall this story take place in? Readers, make your choice by leaving a paragraph comment on your desired outcome. Every power stone given will count as an extra vote for that person. For example, if one were to vote for DC and then give three Power Stones, that will count as four total votes! Comments left on this paragraph will be discarded.]

[Marvel - Comment Here]

[DC - Comment Here]

"What? That's stupid, I don't get to choose!?" 

[Choose wisely, readers. The main character's fate is in your hands.]