Woman: "First off, the reason all this is happening. As you might have guessed, this is not exactly a common occurrence. This world, just one of many, has just under half an hour ago went from level one to level two. I am not going to explain the intricacies of the multiverse to you, so just know that this level up had brought many changes, one of which being that there must be gods. That means you six. I will get to that again later, but the other major change is that there is now a "status screen" system in place, which everyone on the planet will have access to in two weeks time. Any questions? No? Good."

Well maybe if we could speak, we could ask questions. And status screen? Is the world going to be like those stories that Emily and I read? And yes, Emily does read litrpg, in fact she is the one who introduced me to them. It seems weird to think that a girl reads this stuff. Anyway, back to the lecture on gods.

Woman: "Now back to how you are now gods. There are always six major gods in a world that is past level one. The gods of the eight affinities. There are the four gods of fire, earth, air, and water. And the two gods of light and holy, and dark and demonic. Now as one might guess, there are billions of people to choose from, so why is it that you six were chosen? There are several qualifications that go towards your chance of becoming gods, the most important being affinity. The gods must have a maximum level in their affinity, or affinities in the case of the light and dark gods. There is also the most difficult one to achieve, having a maximum luck stat. And yes, stats existed before the change, they just meant different things."

The Woman took a breath, and then continued. Though considering she said all that without taking a breath before, it was probably just for show.

Woman: "There are many benefits to being gods, the first one being immortality. You can die, but you will not age past where you are now. That is another requirement for the gods; they must be in their late teens or early twenties, the most suitable age for a god. Your appearances will be improved to be better than that of supermodels and actors on your planet, though only over time, as instant changes would arouse suspicion. You will never get dirty, sweaty, or scar. Gods must maintain appearances after all. These are just cosmetic benefits though, and there are more that I will not mention."

Woman: "Now, the most important changes are that you will get god exclusive skills, that are the cause of what I have previously mentioned, as well as some things that you can find out on your own. The rest that you need to know about yourselves can be found out by simply reading your status screens when you return to your original places. Now, any questions, for real this time?"

We can speak again, and instantly, someone shouts out.

Idiot: "What are you, if not a god, and also why do we need these other... people, when you have me? I could be the god for all six affinity things."

(I am aware that people like this are extremely commonly used in stories like these, however there is a reason for his personality)

While I do somewhat agree with his questions, the rest of him is a very different story. First off, he doesn't seem to give a shit that we are right here and can hear him, and also he has blond hair and blue eyes. And he is wearing expensive looking clothing, head tilted slightly back all the time, trying to look down on everyone. Classic asshole looks.

Woman: "You do not need to know what I am, and the others are just as, if not more, qualified than you to be gods. And one person can not have all of the affinities at their maximum, as their very nature would be too conflicting, and they would most likely go insane and die. Therefore, there can not be only one god. Any other, more practical, questions?"

When he heard that he might not be the most amazing person here, he looked simultaneously angry and embarrassed. Take that, you narcissist, you aren't the only important thing. Now, what story is this going to be similar to. I have high hopes for whoever created this world!

Jack: "What should we expect to happen once the world completes it's upgrade? And also, how does the system function?"

Woman: "Everything that can be considered alive, or anything that has concious thought will have access to the system. So for the first little while, humanity should be fine. But then, animals in the wild will start to become very powerful from hunting and killing other animals. Eventually, they can evolve into what you might consider to be mythological creatures, though that is likely to take much longer. The system functions similar to a game that you can only play once. There are no extra lives, and there is no difficulty setting. There are several stats that you can learn the effects of on your own. You can level up, and gain skills. Some other things I will not tell you for now, I advise you to experiment a bit and learn some things on your own."

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

What, is the creator of the multiverse this lazy? Whoever it is really doesn't seem particularly creative. And what's with all the stories on the internet being so similar to the way the world actually works? Whatever, somebody else is talking. This time it is someone who sounds much more reasonable. They are the same age as the rest of us, roughly, and she is wearing something that reminds me of a buddhist monk's robes. She has black hair and brown skin, and does not speak English. But, strangely enough, I can still understand her. Maybe more magic like the silencing?

Monk Girl: "I have two questions."

She pauses, I guess waiting for permission to speak.

Woman: "Yes?"

Monk Girl: "Why can I understand what all of you are talking about, even though I know you do not speak English? And also, I suppose that this means that my religion is not correct?"

Woman: "You can understand us because you currently have a comprehension spell on you all. You can temporarily understand all languages, for instance I am speaking English, and not all of you understand it. As for your religion, Buddhism is not any more incorrect than any other at the moment. Though you may continue to have faith, it may help you deal with what is to come."

I want to ask if there were any measures in place to help reduce the chaos among the general population, but found that after asking my questions, my speech was sealed once more. Apparently she only has time, or patience, for a couple queries from each individual. Luckily though, someone else realized what she said about the world going to shit. This time it was a person speaking... French, I think. This one was a somewhat short and round man wearing a chefs outfit, who looked like he was straight out of Ratatouille.

Frenchman: "Is there anything we can do to help the rest of humanity? Or is there something that you have already done?"

It's a shame that the spell doesn't just convert all languages to one you understand, because all my years of trying to learn French in school left me with an understanding equal to a three year old, and a tendency to get headaches when I hear it.

(That is actually true for me. I get a headache and hearing french just irritates me. I have nothing against the language, it's just the hours upon hours I've spent being forced to hear it.)

Woman: "While you are free to try to assist those in your area, I do not think that the human race will simply die out right away. Technology will continue to function almost completely normally, though most beings of higher levels will be mostly immune to many modern weapons. But until the animals level up enough to do that, the humans will have an overwhelming advantage in most scenarios. Many people will die, but many more will live and grow stronger. This may seem heartless to many, however when you have lived since the literal start of this Universe, it is difficult to retain much compassion to those you barely know. Life becomes too painful otherwise."

The Woman does not show anything indicating that she is remembering people who died, but her words certainly point in that direction.

Woman: "Anyway, nothing is ever completely lost. It is possible, though not in any way easy, to bring back anyone who has ever died. This will make more sense when the world goes through it's second level up, though that will not be for many, many centuries."

The French chef's face starts to turn into a tentative smile upon hearing the Woman speak. He must have lost at least one person very close to him, and hopes to evetually resurrect them.

Two more people can ask questions. Let's hope they are good ones. Emily still appears to be thinking, so the last unknown person speaks up. This one is a very, shall we say, large girl. Not the fat kind of large. She has ass length white blond hair, and an extremely noticeable amoung of makeup on. The combination makes her look like kind of a slut. Sorry if you are actually not, but I'm going o go ahead and call you a bimbo, because you look about as intelligent as a brick. Anyway, she raises her hand to speak and lowers it several times until she finally seems to remember what she was going to ask.

Bimbo: "Ummm, do we have to fight things? Because I don't know if I really want to do that. The last time I got in a fight with anything, I broke three of my nails. Any my boyfriend can probs do all the fighting for me anyway, he's, like, super tough."

Woman: "While you are not required to fight and level up, many people will likely target you if they know about your status as gods, so it would be wise to strengthen yourself. Though even if you do die, the next time someone who meets the requirements appears, they will become the next god of your element."

Well that wasn't mentioned earlier, I suppose she wants us to learn to ask the right questions and look for answers on our own. And I can see why many people would want to blame the people chosen as gods for the "apocalypse". People will rationalize almost anything, especially if it helps them to alleviate some of their guilt and pain. They can even convince themselves that something that they know to be true, is actually false.

Emily finally looks ready to ask her question after the Woman is finished speaking. Go ahead, this should be good, considering you took this long to ask it.

Emily: "What are our elements, and will the element that we got change us?"

Okay... not what I would have asked, but still a decent question nonetheless. I am a bit disappointed though, all that buildup for a simple question.

Woman: "I am not willing nor able to tell you the other chosen ones affinity, however for the second question. No, you will not be changed by your element, because only those that fit the element can actually become the god of it."

Woman: "Now, that is it for questions, the rest you can read in the information section of your status screen, or find it through your own efforts. You will all find that everything is exactly as you left it, as time was frozen in the rest of the world. I would advise you to only show that anything happened once you get back to a less public place."

Once again, after she finishes speaking, the same light appears for just a bit, and then dies down. But Emily and I are still in the castle, even though the others are gone. I wonder why?

Woman: "Now, onto the explanation for you, gods of Light and Dark, Holy and Demonic."