"W-What happened...?"
Raive felt puzzled as soon as he opened his eyes.
He should be on his way to college when all of a sudden, the sky turned from a peaceful blue to an ominous black. Just as he was running for cover, fearing that a guerrilla rain would start... The next moment, he was standing in a weird place.
Looking around, he could see he wasn’t alone.
About fifty people were gathered inside a small dome-shaped space.
It was dark, with the only light source being the railing-like ceiling above, where the moon was peeking gently.
"Where the fuck is this place?"
"What’s going on? I have an important meeting, you know?!"
"Mommy! Mommy, where are you...? Waaaah!"
Soon enough, everyone started to regain their senses, chattering as they pleased. Some were shouting angrily, asking those beside them as if they ruled the world.
Others were crying for help.
And only a few remained silent, as if trying to stay out of the chaos in between.
Raive was the latter group, staying quiet while observing what was going on.
[Humans of Earth, rejoice, for the gods have chosen a new god among you!]
Suddenly, something appeared.
No, it wasn’t something, but someone.
A figure clad in a brilliant light, with six pairs of pure white wings behind her. Just one look and everyone was convinced of her identity: an Archangel.
Her voice, as clear as a mountain breeze, echoed inside their heads. But for some reason, it didn’t come from their ears. Almost as if it was ringing literally in the middle of their skull.
Weirdly, everyone fell silent the moment she appeared, as if they were all unable to speak before her oppressive presence.
[Do not fret, as the selection is fair for everyone.] She said.
[Simply be the last surviving human on the entire planet, and you shall rise to the seat of gods. We can even grant you one wish, any wish.]
Raive furrowed his brows upon hearing this.
He was a skeptic and an atheist.
So to him, the words of the angel were nothing but a pretty lie to convince everyone to kill each other.
And from looking around, he could tell that a couple of them had good physiques, posing quite a lot of danger.
If they truly believed the angel’s words, then...
[But, of course, an ugly fight between powerless humans wouldn’t push you to become a god no matter what, so we shall provide you with assistance.]
"...!"
Right after the angel finished speaking, information flooded everyone’s heads.
There was no system panel or anything, but they all experienced something similar. A "skill" unique to them had been acquired.
To Raive, what he got was...
[Auto-Load System Activated.]
[You will automatically restart from checkpoints once your heart stops beating.]
[Setting first checkpoint... Success.]
A weird system.
’Does this mean I can’t die...?’
He thought at first, but then what unfolded before him made him change his mind.
A little girl was staring at her palm, where a giant ball of fire could be seen.
Someone was waving their hand, commanding what looked like blue, floating blades.
Someone punched the ground, causing it to crack instantly, extending a few meters around him.
Powers that boosted their potential to remain alive to the limit.
But Raive’s power didn’t give him such fancy moves. He only had his weak, human body to rely on, and a skill that he couldn’t even figure out how to use.
[It seems everyone had found their skills useful already. Then, I won’t delay the first trial anymore.]
The archangel spoke with a bright smile over her lips.
But to Raive, that smile reeked. Like the smile of a scammer about to hook an easy prey.
She snapped her fingers, causing the floor to suddenly begin collapsing from the edges. Those who were standing there and were slow to move ended up falling.
Raive, who also stood by the edge, included.
"Ah...!"
He could only release a faint sound before he hit the bottom.
It wasn’t ground, though. Rather, it was hot. Earth that was molten, flowing, and releasing substantial heat. A magma pool.
"GYAAAAH!"
"H-HELP!"
Cries of pain and begging for help echoed, but those above only peeked at them with fear in their eyes. None moved to save those who fell.
They just watched as they slowly burned away, burning to nothing but ashes in a matter of seconds.
And Raive, too, wasn’t immune to it.
He fell, and got burned.
It was hot.
He felt every breath he took to stay alive burn his lungs from the inside instead.
He could feel his eyeballs dry up, making it painful to even just keep them open.
He felt how his legs melted away, from the flesh up to his bones.
His organs were getting cooked by the magma within seconds.
It hurts.
It hurts, it hurts it hurts, it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts!
He cried in his mind, begging for mercy, to end it fast, but as if the gods were playing tricks with him, his suffering felt like hours instead.
The pain lingered almost as if a punishment.
And then...
[User’s Heart had Stopped Beating.]
[Auto-Load activating...]
[Success.]
"Gasp...! AAAAAAGH!"
The next moment, he was screaming to the top of his lungs. So loud that it felt as if his vocal cords were about to get ripped apart.
Though now, he was no longer within the magma, melting away.
The pain was still there, but he was back to safety.
Several dozen eyes stared at his hysterical screaming, filled with worry and fear. As if he was someone who had gone crazy.
No...
’I might’ve really gone crazy.’
He thought as the screaming fit ended. He panted hard, looking around, and figuring out what had happened.
The floor was still intact.
Everyone was still alive.
And the Archangel’s smile still felt as plastic as before.
Seeing this, Raive’s mind quickly came to a single conclusion.
What he just suffered wasn’t some illusion; it was reality. But thanks to his weird skill...
’I... Came back to life!’