I ignored the building headache as I looked in the mirror once again. Cerulean blue eyes that were certainly not mine framed by ruby red hair peered back at me.
Red hair, blue eyes, and the body of a sex goddess (thankfully covered by a modest sweatshirt)? I looked like a dead ringer for Rias Gremory. Not something I thought I would be dealing with today.
To complicate suddenly having an entirely different body I also had a note from whoever had put me here.
'Greetings Participant no. [insert number here, I don't actually keep track],
You have been selected to participate in a Game of the Gods!
Various [playthings] participants have been selected with the ultimate goal of making our lives [the God's, that is, we don't really care that much about you] more interesting by inserting you all into a Grand Tournament!
How do you win this tournament you ask? Simple!
You must become the most famous figure among the participants by the end of the game's timer, a short 100 years, as determined by a final vote by the Gods. So go do stuff! Be a hero, conquer the world, become the founder of a new branch of science, or do something else! Just make it interesting for the rest of us.
Additionally, each of you has a patron that has sponsored your appearance and abilities along with one random item compatible with your new body. Some of you may notice you are familiar with these but don't worry, you do not need to act similarly to any templates. For instance there is nothing stopping someone recognised as having an 'evil' appearance from opening a bakery. [Someone did that once, looked like that Darth Maul guy and spent the whole time baking cupcakes. Man, was his patron pissed.]
Of course it would hardly be fitting to host this event in a peaceful world. To upset the residents by dropping in the chosen of the Gods. So, we have found a cluster of reality perfect for this wonderful game! [It's a Wormverse. And we picked it because it's easier to insert people than other realms.]
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Good luck Participant!
P.S. Your patron may or may not include details about themselves, their goals, your abilities, or any other such things below.
[Yo, I'm your Patron. Normally this would be where I try to influence you into doing what I think would be the most entertaining in exchange for more powers and stuff. Unfortunately for you I'm only participating in this game because a friend asked, but I'm too busy to really pay attention this time so you're on your own.
Now for the stuff you should actually care about. Your stuff.
If you haven't found a mirror yet, I made you into a Devil. Sorry not, sorry. The actual devil picked was done at random though so if you came out ugly blame your own bad luck. You should probably know that you don't get any special abilities belonging to only that demon. So if you pulled Beelzebub, sorry, but you aren't making Skitter look like a cheap knockoff.
Though in the probable case you now look like a creative biology experiment with a goat I did decide to give you an artifact from the template's home dimension again at random. This time it should be pretty decent though. I had it pick from the 50 most powerful items as a consolation prize.
Everything else is set to the default.
Have fun doing whatever, I guess.]
My eyebrow twitched in irritation as I read the letter for the third time.
Yep, I got drafted into some tournament, shoved into the body of an anime character, and then my 'patron' decided to fuck off right away because he didn't even want to play in the first place…
Deep breath in. Hold. Slow release.
Okay.
That was fine.
So let's focus on the facts.
I'm in the Wormverse if my patron's edits to the welcome letter could be trusted. Not great, but not unsurvivable. DXD devils could grow insanely strong and there was no reason I couldn't do the same. Compared to the cannon setting I was actually in the top percentages powerwise just based on my physical attributes. It was a shame the letter specifically mentioned I didn't get inherent special abilities because the Power of Destruction anime-Rias had would have put me in the top 10. That was slightly offset by the knowledge that it was only special abilities that were restricted. Devils from that setting were inherently magical and could learn more with time and practice.
Next, the items I was promised. Unfortunately, I didn't see anything matching the items described but I didn't worry immediately. It was possible those items wouldn't be immediately given to me since I knew 'items' occasionally were stored elsewhere or were things like home bases. Point is they weren't here right now, but no reason to freak out just yet.
I did find a wallet in my investigation though. A simple leather thing with some cash, a debit card, and an ID that actually had my name and picture as Rias Gremory, age 18.
That was it though. No supplies, no items, and no hint of what to do next.
Welp, no point sticking around then!
I idly brushed some imaginary dirt off my pant legs and headed for the door. If I was going to be stuck on a grimderp deathworld I should at least know when and where I was…