POV: OMNISCIENT*

This scene felt oddly familiar, and why wouldn't it? Leo, like any normal NEET, otaku, comic reader, or whatever label you might use, did not find what was happening in front of him strange. In fact, it felt too normal.

Anyone who had done enough research would have realized that he was drawing inspiration from various forms of media. For instance, he had named the cure for diseases the "Extremis Cure," the first AI he created was called "Cortana," the next one was named "Red Queen," and the fully immersive virtual reality he developed was called "Aincrad," with the machine used for it referred to as "Nerve Gear."

Yes, his choices had brought their own set of problems—people feared he would start the next apocalypse or trap them in a virtual world. However, in the end, these issues had all been resolved. Was a problem that could be solved with money truly a problem at the start? No, it was not. And if it was, you simply weren't using enough money.

Or perhaps those stories were created to prepare the general population for such scenarios! That was an interesting theory. "Yes," he thought, nodding his head. Using such a simple method to get the public ready for an afterlife experience was indeed very efficient.

"Hey, stop ignoring me!" proclaimed the goddess of love, quickly attracting his attention, which Leo snapped to. "Sorry." Yes, it was rude to ignore someone, but he had to clarify something before they could continue. The goddess, who could easily tell he wanted to speak, waited patiently.

"So, in short, due to my past good deeds and actions that helped the world, you wish to give me a second chance at life or, more likely, reincarnate me."

"Yes," she answered simply, without any pretenses. Leo felt that she was unusually easy to talk to. Or was this normal? He didn't have a reference for any of this.

"No, it's just that I'm nicer than the others," she replied, and Leo nodded in acceptance. What else could he really do?

"What happens if I reject the offer?" he asked, curious. What would occur if he said no? Would he be obliterated, or perhaps go to heaven? The goddess had said he had done a lot for his world.

"I don't know." Leo felt as if she shrugged while saying that, and he could feel a tick develop on his forehead. Shouldn't she at least try to assure him?

"Hey, excuse me, you're the goddess here!" he wished he could scold her for answering so nonchalantly, but he held himself back. He would rather not upset the 'kind goddess.'

"Hey! I'm the Goddess of Love, not death or reincarnation. How do you expect me to know what happens if you refuse?" she pouted.

Leo was not impressed, and his face clearly showed it. However, he easily accepted her explanation; it made sense in its own weird way.

"I have one last question before I give you my answer..." Leo felt her nodding, urging him to continue. "...how about my father? Could I... meet him?" Despite asking the question, Leo sensed he already knew the answer. Strangely, in his heart, the answer was obvious.

"Your father, due to his role in raising you to be the person you are, played a part in everything you did. As a result, he was offered the same opportunity you're receiving... and he chose to accept it."

Yes, that sounded like him. No, that was him; Leo was sure of it. Such an offer he would never let go.

"Could you tell me where he went?" Now he was curious. Where would that old man go with his great luck? Yes, his father had always been lucky. He had managed to adopt someone like Leo, which clearly showed his fortune.

"I'm not sure. I'm not the deity who presided over him, but I heard him mention something about a bombshell red-haired devil and wanting to be the greatest harem king..." There was an awkward silence, but he chose to believe her words.

'That is definitely him.' Only he could say something so shameless, and how lucky he was to go to that world. Truly unfair!

"Huh." He sighed, but he was happy. Yes, that was okay for him. It was enough to know that his father was embarking on the adventure he had always promised would happen after death.

"I accept the offer. Let me take part in my own adventure!" Leo was excited, and why not? He could have chosen to decline the offer and live with the consequences, but that would be too boring. He wanted to feel his heart race with excitement, the warmth of the sun on his skin, and the adrenaline in his veins. Yes, Leo wanted to live once more!

"Yesss! That's great. At least I don't have to force you anymore. Phew!" She practically breathed a sigh of relief, and Leo felt a mix of anger and relief. Was she implying that she would have forced him to choose what she wanted? He felt like crying tears of bitterness at the goddess's bluntness. Couldn't she have said that after he had left? How rude!

"Now to continue—snap! It's time to spin that wheel!" —boom, boom—

She snapped her fingers, and three large spinning wheels appeared, greeted by fireworks as the lady cheered.

Curiously, Leo now saw a silhouette of the goddess—or what he assumed was her. He didn't know why this was happening, but it didn't change the fact that he was about to spin a wheel! No matter how unscientific this seemed, who was he to question the laws of science while speaking to a goddess?

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Okay, now pay close attention. The first wheel will decide what item you will acquire, from the strongest to the weakest. The second wheel will determine an ability, also following the same logic, and the final wheel will decide the world you'll be going to. That's it. I hope you're feeling lucky."

Leo was always lucky; he was confident of that. But wasn't it more reasonable to let a more beautiful, powerful, and very kind goddess spin the wheel for him? He thought shamelessly and without hesitation. Logically, who between a deity and a mortal would have higher luck? His bet was on the goddess!

"Flattery will get you nowhere," she said. Her words were no, but the pitch of her voice said yes—and Leo counted that as a win. He could tell that the goddess was flattered by his words, and that was good enough for him.

"Yes, I've waited for this opportunity for a very long time." 'Whoosh!'

Or maybe she was just happy to be able to spin the wheel. Leo felt dumbfounded by her actions, but whatever— the deed was already done.

He refocused his attention on the three wheels, and even he was praying for his success. There were certain items he saw the wheel land on, like the Omnitrix. Yes, he wouldn't mind having that. His mouth was practically watering at the thought of certain abilities he would kill for, such as the vector control he was seeing.

An extremely useful ability. Yes, his moment to become the strongest had finally arrived!

The first wheel slowed down and came to a stop, and Leo jumped with joy, but he had yet to see the item.

"Pumparum! And you have gotten... the full ninja package from the Randy Cunningham Ninja World." She sounded excited, but Leo couldn't feel more lost. Was this the best luck a goddess could give him? He felt cheated.

"My disappointment is immeasurable, and my day is ruined." He felt like crying, but he was given no chance as the second wheel soon also came to a stop.

"And for the second prize, we have... Haki from the One-Piece world!" That was a good prize irrespective of the world he went to. Yes, his luck was turning around once again. Maybe letting the goddess do the spinning wasn't all that bad.

The final wheel was still spinning, and Leo saw some worlds that made him shiver—Resident Evil, World War Z, Berserk! He wanted to experience an adventure, but he did not want to die. Most of these worlds he would rather leave than continue existing in.

Running zombies?! Hell, no!

The wheel finally stopped, and from the goddess's tone, he could tell that he was in trouble. "For your final prize... your world of choice is..." She seemed to be dragging it out on purpose, and Leo felt his anger rising.

"Spit it out!" She merely laughed at his agitation, sending chills down his spine.

"Your world is Adventure Time, and you will be reincarnated as the main character, Finn Campbell! Hurray!" Sounds of applause and confetti were present as the goddess celebrated.

Leo felt his body weaken, and his knees began to touch the ground. It didn't matter. Yes, he knew that world. And with that knowledge, he could confidently say he was screwed—cooked, and any other expression that meant he was dead.

Gods, primordial beings, ancient entities, catastrophic artifacts, magic, and world-ending threats—this was a post-apocalyptic world where anything that could go wrong would go wrong. But wait, he was going to be the main character; maybe he would survive. All hope was still not lost. Didn't every main character have extreme luck on their side? What was it called? Plot armor!

He looked up at the wheel again, confirming what the goddess had said when something caught his eye that filled him with dread—like a hidden knife piercing his heart. His head spun as he turned back to the goddess.

And where he assumed her head should be, he saw an outline of a smile. It was something he might have found enchanting under any other circumstance, but right now, it was sheer horror to him.

"What does the plus at the end mean!?" His voice slightly broke. What mess had he gotten himself into? He regretted letting the goddess spin the wheel at this very moment.

"I think you already know what it means, Leo. A plus, as clearly defined in the dictionary, signifies an addition. An extra value. Extra features! Ha ha!" At least she found humor in the situation.

"Just send me away." Had he accepted himself? No, not at all! He was still indignant. But he was the type of person who accepted their situations, no matter how hard.

Yes, he could do this. No, he would do this. He had the ninja package, and more importantly, he had Haki—the power of kings, the ability of a conqueror! With that power, he could be a ruler. A supreme ruler. He could do this!

The goddess had stopped laughing and approached his prone body as he was regaining his spirit.

She lifted his head, gently and... lovingly? It was strange, but he could feel it. The transparent silhouette had changed once more as if he were being allowed to see more. From what little he could see; he could tell the woman was extremely beautiful.

He felt her fingers run against his lips, and her smile, which he could now see, was even more beautiful.

Her head lowered, and he felt her lips touch his forehead in a quick peck that felt like it lasted an eternity before she pulled back.

"That was my blessing—a blessing for your future relationships and wives. Make sure you make all of them happy." Her voice was sweet, and her tone even more mesmerizing.

For the first time in as long as he could remember, Leo felt his cheeks redden and blood rush to his face. The goddess of love herself had blessed his future love life, and he didn't know how to feel about that other than embarrassed and maybe a little smug.

"Goodbye, Leonardo Stormborn." A blue light began to cover him, and Leo felt himself start to float from where he was as if the light were lifting him to his next great adventure—the adventure his father always talked about.

"Before you leave, there was one last message your father wanted to pass to you: 'Make sure you live your life to its fullest... and bring me a lot of daughters-in-law.'"

"Ha ha ha ha!" Leo couldn't help himself. Even in death, his father never failed to disappoint, and he was happy with that.

His eyes remained fixed on the goddess; his gaze never left her.

"Thank you!" He did his best to smile warmly, putting as much emotion as he could into that goodbye. In that last moment, just before he disappeared, he caught a glimpse of the most beautiful face he had ever seen—an enchanting aura he would never forget.

Blonde, short hair, and striking red ruby eyes. What truly confused him was why she looked so shocked, but he didn't have time to comprehend what happened before he vanished.

— — — — — — —

POV: Goddess of Love*

The goddess had witnessed something impossible. A mortal had managed to gaze at her and survive. A mortal had looked upon her beauty and remained sane. How!?

The goddess was shocked by the event, but there was something of utmost importance that required her immediate attention.

"Why don't you come out now, Adara?" Her voice was soft but commanding, and instantly, a face that Leo would have recognized appeared in this strange realm.

The pink eyes that had enchanted him looked longingly at the spot where Leo had been.

"We have a lot to talk about... daughter."

— — — — — — —