The time was ticking by, a slow cascade of never ending minutes that would disappear into hours that in turn would disappear into days. Day had gone past by the time I noticed.

Grey blended into the scenery until all I saw was black and white. All colors were gone by the time I noticed. There was nothing but a bland landscape that failed to thrill the artist in me.

I painted with colors of puke and digest.

I lived in colors of a dark room.

I breathed colors of someone trying to forget their dead.

Time was ticking by, a slow waterfall of never ending days that would disappear into weeks that in turn would disappear into months. Years had gone past by the time I realized.

And my life was shit.

There’s a point in your life that you have to look back and see what you did wrong, see where things went astray, see where you got screwed. I’m doing it now.

That little look back to a time when reality was not perceived to be fruitless. Back when happiness was effortless.

I’ve learned something recently, there’s a business for everything. And I mean everything. There’s nothing you can’t buy in this world if you just know where to look. That’s where I find myself now, in front of a strange old man whose hair is greying. That’s where I find myself now, ready and willing to give up my body to get back my time.

It’s strange how life seems to flow together, like it doesn’t want you to know that there’s a way to get all that time back. That’s right. You can get all the time you wasted on stupid stuff back. All at the low low cost of your body.

Now I didn’t say this deal was for everyone, people tend to be rather attached to their meat suits after all. But for me, whose will to live was as nonexistent as my ability to see colors, it was a simple choice.

Ditch the suit, pick up a new one. Memories intact. Easy-peasy.

There’s always complications though. Always. Whenever you find something that sounds just too good to be true, it probably is.

I had stood before the goddess of rebirth with an open mind, I really was, I swear. My mind was free and clear. But the way she looked at me. With dead eyes like she hated her job and she hated me and she hated that I was here and that I ever existed.

“Where do you want to go?” She had asked a simple question but lights exploded in front of my eyes. A thousand images and descriptions popped up. Like a freaking manual.

“What can I be?” I had asked.

“Anything.”

I was in awe for a long moment. “Really?”

She rolled her eyes, “Really really.”

“I want to be something cool, can I see a lists of things that aren’t often chosen?”

With a swipe of her finger, a box appeared in front of me.

Reincarnation ListSpiderAn eight legged creature.Ogre/OrcA large and hideous humanoid monster.CentipedeThey are elongated metameric creatures with one pair of legs per body segment.HouseflyTheir thorax is gray or sometimes even black, with four longitudinal dark lines on the back. The whole body is covered with hair-like projections.

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The first option was a spider. Yeah. Okay. Not only are you short lived but you’re also hated by anything that sets their eyes on you. Not a good idea. And yet, there are so many spiders.

The second was ogre/orc. Apparently, judging by the description, there was either one or the other in worlds they exists but they never existed in one world together. Maybe there was a reason for that.

I looked up at the goddess, “There’s no ogres or orcs on earth.”

“Do you think that only life on earth exists?”

“No,” I started. She cut me off.

“Then why do you expect to go to earth?”

I shrugged, “I just assumed.”

“Just hurry up and pick something.”

My attention went back to the screen. I read through many lines of many different insects. Really, it was amazing that anyone would choose to be an insect. I saw a scroll bar on the side and scrolled down. That’s when things got a little more outlandish.

“A dungeon?”

“Hmmm?” She picked something out from between her teeth.

“People can be reborn into a dungeon.”

“Oh yeah, it’s not very popular though seeing as you can’t move and you don’t get a personality only the instinct to eat.”

I nodded. That sounded like it sucked. What about memories staying intact? Didn’t the broker say that I’d get to keep my memories.

Another option was a slime. The description seemed to be playing up the abilities of the slime a bit much. Saying that while at the beginning they are very weak but with diligence and fortitude the slime can quickly become the most dangerous of all monster types. Seemed like a waste to me.

“What about the options in high demand?”

A list popped up and it contained what I suspected most. Elves, humans, demons, beastmen, as well as some other words that I had no idea were.

“Will I get to keep my memories of my past life?”

“No.” Her voice was so flat you could mistake her for a robot.

Well, I got ripped off. “Alright, I choose an elf.”

She looked at a box that popped up next to her. “Looks like Tri-alous is in need of a new god. So that’s where you’ll be going.”

“Wait, a god?”

She gave me a deadpan look, “It’s not as great as it sounds.”

“But it’s a god!” That sounded awesome, quite frankly. “I wasn’t aware that you could be reincarnated as a god.”

“You only can if you meet certain requirements.”

“What kind of god will I be?” Maybe a god of good harvest, I snickered to myself, maybe the god of fine wines and women. I tried to picture myself in that situation, surrounded by beautiful women, drinking my fill. What a wonderful life that would be. I turned back to the goddess, eagerness on my face.

“The god of death.”

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A/N Sorry about the table, this is my first time using it and I really don't understand what I'm doing. If anyone is willing to help I'd gladly listen. I'll try to perfect it in the chapters to come!