Chapter 1
Demon Lord : “I will remember you, and your very soul…”
With a stab into the heart, the demon lord was finally slain.
Nameless Swordsman: “I’ve finally done it… Luke… Emily… Mi’er… Ilnor… Rionir… everyone… I’ve finally avenged you…”
With that said, the nameless swordsman lost his strength and fell to the ground beside the demon lord’s body. He may have slain the demon lord and his army by himself, but he used up all his energy in the process.
Nameless Swordsman: “I have nothing else I want to do now… Gods, you may take me now.”
And as the nameless swordsman laid on the ground, the mana that naturally gathered around the body of a powerful living swordsman started to dissipate…
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Suddenly, the nameless swordsman opens his eyes. In his surroundings was an area similar to the taverns he stayed in during his times as an adventurer.
Nameless Swordsman: “This is nostalgic… Or was it all a terrible nightmare?”
He spoke while thinking of long-gone memories, before a male voice came from the counter.
Man?: “They were no nightmares, mortal. They were all reality, up to the point you killed the demon lord and died after him. This is just a place or memory that you hold dear in your heart.”
A man in odd clothes sat sideways there with his hand on his chin, with half-opened eyes looking at him as though he was bored.
Nameless Swordsman: “That’s some odd clothes you are wearing.”
Man? : “Ah, they don’t come from your world, that’s why. Or rather, that’s the first thing you ask?”
The man in odd clothes answered with a slightly more amused expression.
Man: “Anyway, long story short, you killed the demon lord and his army, gained lots of merit, and thus earned the right to speak with a god, me. Now you get to choose a few things for your reincarnation.”
The man spoke as though he wants to get this over and done with quickly, but the nameless swordsman didn’t really care.
After all, the man mentioned that he is supposedly a “god”. The nameless swordsman had a quick thinking mind, unlike most others.
Nameless Swordsman: “What do I get to choose?”
God? : “Wait, no other questions? This is a first for me, but it’s amusing. Hang on, I gotta call the others.”
The “god” said as he took out what looks like a thin slab of metal and put it to his ear.
God? : “Hey guys, this mortal immediately asked what he gets to choose without asking any other questions. Eh? I still have to tell him everything? You guys are no fun, making me do so much work…”
The “god” said dejectedly while keeping the slab of metal back into his pocket.
God? : “You mortals sure a resourceful bunch, making a bunch of useful things that we gods would never have thought of.”
The nameless swordsman still didn’t understand what the “god” was talking about, but he asked the same question again.
Nameless Swordsman: “What do I get to choose for my reincarnation?”
God? : “Hold on, I have to explain everything to you. Get ready because I’ll explain everything in one shot and answer any questions afterwards.”
The “god” waited for a few seconds before starting his speech and speaking like an experienced mage rapid-firing the most basic form of magic, magic bolt.
God? : “Basically, because you slayed the demon lord and most of his army that was terrorizing your world, you’ve earned lots of merit. Let’s call them points shall we? So you killed about 1,302,204 regular demons, 6,414 commander demons, 6 demon generals, and 1 demon lord. Each regular demon is worth about 3 points, commander demons are 500 points, demon generals are 50,000 points, and the demon lord was worth 10,000,000 points. Also, add in your time as an adventurer, you have another 1,238 points. So basically you’ve earned 17,414,850 points for your feats. To speak with a god, you need to have 5,000,000 points at least. So you would be here anyway even if you didn’t kill the demon lord. Got everything so far?”
The nameless swordsman almost couldn’t follow, as he was unable to calculate the astronomical sum. But he understood that it was due to him slaying the demon lord and his army that he was here now. But something was still bugging him.
Nameless Swordsman: “Yeah, but how did you managed to calculate all that?”
God? : “…Well, isn’t it because I’m a god? And once again, you ask an interesting question.”
The “god” answered with a slight delay, but the man ignored that.
God? : “Anyway, to continue, normally you would only see me, a god, when you die long after accomplishing such feats, but you died immediately after you did so. Well, that could be a good thing anyway, as “heroes” who did almost the same thing as you did usually end up losing most of the merit they’ve got by doing other atrocities after being heralded as heroes when they get home.”
Nameless Swordsman: “Right… So what do I get to choose?”
God? : “You’re an impatient one… I would normally like that but I have to explain everything to you before you can go on to your next life. Are you ready for the next chunk of information?”
Once again, the “god” paused before starting his speech again.
God? : “So your body has died, but I took your soul here to speak with you. All souls will naturally return to a cycle of reincarnation, but only those with lots of merit like yours would meet us. And I guess I should introduce myself. I am Acedia, a god of sloth and laziness, though I’m not being lazy right now no thanks to the other gods… “
The man immediately understood why Acedia wanted to end things quickly. He let Acedia continue.
Acedia : “Now then, on to the topic of your reincarnation. You can spend your merit points to make your next life easier. Some choose to be born in a rich family, others choose to have a great talent in magic or swordsmanship. There are also a few that want to be royalty. But I personally recommend keeping your memories. After all, knowledge from your previous life could be indispensable to your next life. Also, you don’t have to learn things again, and everyone would think you are a genius. By the way, all the things I’ve mentioned cost at least 1,000,000 each. You can also choose others. Just ask and see if it’s available.”
The man finally got what he asked for. His mind was still thinking of that metal slab that Acedia pulled out earlier, as well as his clothes.
Nameless Swordsman: “Can I choose to be born in another world? A peaceful world.”
Acedia: “Sure, but a peaceful world? You don’t have enough points for that.”
The man, shocked for the first time since a long time ago, raised his voice.
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Nameless Swordsman: “What?! How?! How much is that?!”
Acedia: “Geez, calm down. A truly peaceful world without war, poverty, hunger, and all the random little things that can cause chaos is very, very, very expensive. It about 10,000,000,000,000,000 points, and no mortal can earn that much merit in a single lifetime. If you want peaceful, I can throw you into a relatively peaceful neighbourhood, or society, or country. It’s 100,000 points, 500,000 points, and 1,000,000 points for each one.”
The man, now a bit more calm, decided to make his decision immediately.
Nameless Swordsman: “I’ll take the peaceful country. And I want to keep my memories. Also, can I spend my merit for… “
Acedia: “Stop. That would be taboo. You can only spend your merit points for yourself. Anyway, you’ve spent 4,000,000 points. Also, don’t think about others. Souls reincarnate after a random amount of time. It could be hours, or days. Even years to centuries. Except cases like yours. We usually settle them within hours.”
The man, feeling a bit more dejected, decided to move on. His objective was to make fewer mistakes and make things easier in his next life. And roughly 13,000,000 points was a large amount to work with.
Nameless Swordsman: “I want to name my next life. I want to call myself “Lemir” in my next life.”
“Lemir” was an abbreviation of the names of 5 of his closest friends and family. Luke, Emily, Mi’er, Ilnor, Rionir. It was a name he thought of dearly, but Acedia seemed to think otherwise.
Acedia: “Haha! That’s a really funny and random name. But I won’t make fun of it anymore. Anyway, that is a cheap price, but I’ll take off half since you made me laugh. That means another 50,000 was spent. You still have 13,364,850 points to spend.”
Lemir was a little angry, as Acedia laughed at his name. But it was cancelled out by the god giving it to him for half the price.
Lemir : “I want to have a strong body, but not full of muscle. Somewhat like my body now. And it needs to start from a young age.”
Acedia: “Of course, but since you made specifications, it would be a bit more expensive, okay? It would also take time for your body to grow into it. It wouldn’t matter what you eat, as it will restrict your body to that anyway, meaning, you will never grow any fatter than you are now. A popular choice by women, who never want to grow fat. That’s 5,000,000 points.”
Lemir was surprised at the huge cost, but he felt it was necessary to make his next life easy. He didn’t always have a strong body, and had to steadily train for years to reach his level. Having a strong body as a child would mean he wouldn’t be easily bullied either, like in his own childhood.
Lemir : “Can I have a less “mean-looking” face? Enough that people would approach me by their own free will.”
Acedia: “Oh, that is possible. That’s another 3,000,000. To have a handsome face.”
Lemir : “Wait, I didn’t wa…”
Acedia: “No can do, I’ve already put it in. Just live with it. And you’re taking a really long time you know… “
Lemir wanted to protest, but this thought quickly disappeared from his mind, as it was a being that could possibly cancel everything he had if he angered him. He decided to move on and make his other choices.
Lemir : “Although I couldn’t choose a peaceful world, can I still choose another world? Preferably the one where your clothes and that… thin slab of metal you used just now.”
Hearing this, Acedia seemed to have a slightly more amused expression again, and began speaking.
Acedia: “Sure, why not? That’s cheap compared to what you initially wanted. Just 3,000,000. It is relatively peaceful, save for a couple of countries. We can’t see the future though, after all, we are technically at the end of time, and the end of time is always moving forward.”
Lemir didn’t understand this at all, but felt that he had no need to understand it either. With about 2,000,000 points left, he asked what he could do with it.
Acedia: “Well, you could get an intelligent mind, since there are so many things that are different in that world. It is much, much more technologically advanced than your own. That way, you wouldn’t be an idiot with machines.”
Lemir had heard of the word “machines” before, but it only meant crude objects that he could cut through with his sword anyway, and thus never cared.
Lemir : “I’ll take that then. Anymore suggestions?”
Acedia: “That will be 1,500,000 points, with 864,850 points left. I suggest you get “Decent Household” and “Good Luck”. After all, the things you don’t set or ask for will be randomly chosen in your next life.”
Lemir’s gut feeling immediately told him something was fishy with that last sentence. It was something that had saved him many times in his life, and he trusted it greatly.
Lemir: “Does that include gender and species? If so, I want to stay as a male and human, thank you.”
Acedia: “Damn, you found out. Well, those two are cheap. That’s another 50,000. Man, you took away all my fun.”
Lemir immediately sighed with relief that he wasn’t tricked by this bored god.
Lemir : “What about the previous two you mentioned? Is it still enough?”
Acedia: “Sure, it is enough. That’s exactly 800,000. With 14,850 points left, you can’t really do much. Well, you can save it for your next reincarnation for all I care. You’re done as far as I can tell.”
Lemir was indeed finished with his options. Now, all he had to do was get reincarnated.
Acedia: “Now, step into this door.”
A door of white suddenly appeared out of nowhere in the tavern, that seemed to beckon him to enter it.
Acedia: “Right, do note that merit points can be earned in many different ways. Consider this a bit of titbit for you.”
Lemir kept that in his mind, and stepped through the door. As he did, everything went dark for him.
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The moment Lemir entered the door, it disappeared and a new door appeared in front of Acedia. It leads to a place similar to where Lemir had fought the demon lord, the demon lord’s throne room. A figure similar to the demon lord was sitting on the throne.
Acedia : “I’ve kept you waiting for a long time, eh? Well don’t worry; we will have a long time for discussion…”
End Chapter 1
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