“Ugh, where am I?” I muttered into the darkness. “Hello, is anybody there?”

Amidst the abyss of a darkened chamber, I found myself stranded, clueless about my whereabouts or the circumstances that led me here. Yet, an unexpected calm enveloped me, despite the eerie surroundings. In the distance, a mysterious figure emerged, slowly drawing closer. Suddenly, the figure halted and spoke.

"Welcome to my domain, ■■■," she declared, her voice carrying an air of authority. "I am the almighty Goddess of death and souls, Psyche."

Despite the strangeness of the situation, I couldn't help but believe her assertion. "I'm not claiming to be a Goddess," she corrected me firmly. "I am a Goddess."

A surge of doubt flooded my mind. Was she truly a goddess? And if so, what was my purpose in a realm of divinity? I questioned myself, my panic rising.

"In a panic," I yelled, "Who are you? Where is this? And why is it so dark?"

With a hint of impatience, she responded, "Are you stupid? I told you, this is my domain, and I prefer it dark because I am the Goddess of death and souls."

“With an annoyed sigh, she snapped her fingers, conjuring light that barely illuminated the chamber, leaving her face shrouded in darkness.

Her words and actions hit me with a chilling realisation. "I know you're the Goddess of death and souls, and I understand that this is your domain. But why am I here?"

With a sigh, she delivered the unsettling truth, "Well... sorry to break it to you, but you are dead.”

“What?” I yelled. “That can't be, the last thing I remember was, wait-”

“Yupsi,” she interrupted, a hint of amusement in her voice. "Unfortunately, you did die, trying to save a stranded cat in a tree,” she said between laughs.

“Noo…Did I really die from falling down a tree?”

“Yes, and it was hilarious,” she chuckled, holding her stomach as tears of laughter streamed down her face.

“I mean, you should've seen your face when you died,” she continued, laughter bubbling uncontrollably. “Not to mention the position of your body when you fell, hahaha.”

The revelation hit me like a ton of bricks, mingling disbelief with the surreal situation.

“Wait, so if I died and you're the goddess of death and souls, does that mean I'm in hell?” I ventured cautiously.

“No, you buffoon,” she replied, her tone tinged with annoyance. “If this were hell, you'd be meeting Hades himself.”

“So where am I?” I asked, confusion evident in my voice.

“Ugh,” she exclaimed, exasperated. “Once again, you're in my domain, and-”

“So what am I doing here?” I interrupted impatiently.

“Huh,” she exclaimed, taken aback. “Calm down, will you? Okay, look, currently, you're not in hell nor heaven. As of now, you're in the process stage.”

“What's the process stage?” I inquired eagerly.

“Well, the process stage is when I, the Goddess of Death and Souls, check and process your life to see if you've lived an honest one.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“So, what are my results?" I inquired eagerly.

"Well, let's see," she responded, waving her arm to summon holograms depicting my entire life. "This will take some time," she explained before vanishing with a promise to return.

As time passed, she reappeared suddenly, causing me to jump in surprise. "Woah, you scared me!" I exclaimed.

"Oops, sorry to scare you there, princess," she teased.

"Ugh," I sighed, trying to regain my composure. "So, where am I going?"

With an intense expression, she began, "After my careful analysis of your entire life..." She paused for a moment before continuing, "I've come to the decision that you'll be going to-"

"Yes? So where am I going?" I interrupted, curiosity piqued.

"You'll be going to neither," she replied cryptically.

"Wait. What?!" I yelled in frustration.

She began her explanation, "You see, throughout your life..." She paused, searching for the right words. "Huh," she sighed, her annoyance evident. "How can I say this? You didn't particularly do any major bad things."

"So what's the problem?" I interrupted eagerly.

"Well, you didn't particularly do any major good things either," she replied bluntly.

"But I saved a cat from a tree!" I yelled urgently.

"That is true," she acknowledged.

"So if I'm not going to hell or heaven, where exactly am I going?" I asked in despair.

"Well, that'll be up to you," she replied cryptically.

"What do you mean?" I asked, curiosity piqued.

"What I mean is that your luck will be deciding your fate," she replied.

"Huh?" I questioned.

"Okay," she said as she proceeded to snap her fingers, conjuring a gumball machine out of thin air. Inside the machine, colourful marbles filled it to the brim.

She then explained, "Inside this gumball machine, those little marbles will determine where you'll reincarnate." Her excitement was palpable.

"Reincarnation," I asked in curiosity.

"Yes," she replied, "each of those marbles represents a world, and the colour of the marble will signify the setting of the specific world."

"Wait, what?" I asked, feeling confused.

"Okay, listen well. I'm going to say this just once," she said in annoyance. "Each marble represents a world, and its colour represents its setting." She paused for a moment. "So if you get, let's say, an all-black marble, then it's highly likely that you will be reincarnated into a world filled with demons and monsters, a world of chaos and danger. However, if you get an all-white marble, you will likely be reincarnated into a world filled with peace and harmony. Do you get it now?"

As I looked into the gumball machine, I noticed some marbles that were mixed in colours. With curiosity, I asked, "What about those mixed marbles?"

She sighed in annoyance. "It's the same, but they will have multiple different settings depending on the variations of colours."

"Oh, I see," I replied.

"Okay then, stop wasting time and turn the switch," she interrupted impatiently.

With a determined expression, I stepped forward towards the gumball machine. "Okay, please, my luck, don't let me down," I muttered as I placed my hand on the switch and turned it.

"Ding... Ding... Ding... Ding," the machine made noises. "Plop," the marble was out. With suspense, I slowly reached into the pocket of the machine, and as I pulled it out, a great sense of disappointment and fear washed over me.

"What?! Nooo, why is my marble black and grey!" I yelled in agony.

“Puh, hahaha," she laughed, clutching her stomach. "Wow, your luck isn't really good, is it?" she remarked cryptically.

"No, what have I done to deserve this?" I screamed in agony.

"Don't worry," she reassured me. "Some of these worlds contain magic, so if your world has magic, then I will be able to bless you with magical gifts."

"Like superpowers?" I asked eagerly.

"Exactly!" she exclaimed, cutting in with excitement.

With her comforting words, I felt a surge of motivation. "Okay, I'm ready to receive my magic powers now."

With a chuckle, she interjected, "Unfortunately, since your marble is black and grey, its world sadly doesn't contain any magic," she said between laughs.

Defeated, I uttered, "This can't be happening."

"Yup," she confirmed. "And since it's black and grey, your world also contains monsters, such as goblins, orcs, and even sea monsters."

"No way," I muttered in defeat.

“Huh," she sighed, attempting to comfort me. "Don't worry, even though I'm not supposed to do this," she paused, considering her words carefully. "I will grant you one magical ability."

"Really?" I exclaimed, excitement creeping back into my voice.

"Yes," she replied, "but it won't be a powerful one."

"It's okay," I interrupted eagerly. "I'll take anything at this point."

She chuckled, then approached me and placed her hands on my head, beginning to chant a spell. After a few seconds, she stopped. "Okay, I'm done."

"Really?" I asked, feeling confused. "I don't feel any different."

"Huh," she sighed in annoyance, "you're not supposed to," she said roughly, handing me my marble. "Now, get out of here."

"And how am I supposed to do that?" I asked.

"Hugh," she sighed with even more annoyance. "If you eat the marble, you will be automatically transported to the world."

"Oh, okay," I said, my energy deflating. "Well, thank you for everything, Miss Goddess," I said as I placed the marble in my mouth and broke it.

As the marble shattered, my consciousness began to fade, and at the last moment, I could hear the Goddess expressing her gratitude, saying, "Thank you for making me laugh for the first time in a long while." Then, suddenly, everything went blank.

CHAPTER 1 END