----Prologue-----
If Kael had to describe his life in one word, it would be tiring. Thirty-five years old. Single. Overworked.
He had a stable job. A decent apartment. A few savings in the bank. But somehow, it always felt like he was just surviving.
Every day was the same.
Wake up. Go to work. Eat. Sleep and then repeat.
One day, while he was on his way to go to work, as part of his daily routine.
"…I should've invested in crypto back then," he muttered to himself as he walked down the sidewalk.
The traffic light ahead turned red. He stopped. A few students stood beside him, laughing loudly about something he didn't understand. Probably school stuff.
Ah… youth. Must be nice, he thought.
Several minutes had already passed and Kael was just patiently waiting for the traffic lights to change its color, glancing at his wrist watch.
But the light stayed red. Then it flickered.
From red to green. Suddenly it gets red again followed by changing into green once more.
He froze.
What's happening? Does the traffic lights malfunctioning?
Questions raises inside his mind while observing the traffic lights odd behaviour.
When suddenly, everything stopped.
There's, no sound. No movement. People frozen mid-step, including vehicles. Even the sky seemed dull and gray.
"…What.. seriously?" he muttered, rubbing his eyes.
The traffic light was the only thing still colored, bright green. Then he noticed the girl. Two steps into the road.
A white car already past the pedestrian lane, frozen mid-motion. He realized what could happen. So without hesitation, he ran. Grabbed her arm.
And pulled her onto the sidewalk.
Unfortunately, time snapped back.
The car moved again. The girl jerked, eyes wide in shock. In an instant, he found himself standing right in front of the raging car.
It was so fast that he couldn't move or react. His eyes widened.The headlights filled his vision. The roar of the engine drowned everything.
Too fast…
Then the car crashed into him, sending him flying before he slammed into the asphalt. Unbearable pain burned through his entire body.
He was bleeding heavily, lying on the cold, hard ground.
The world spun as everything turned blurry—even the sky.
"I... I can't see a thing…" he muttered weakly.
Then he felt a warm sensation over his head. It was too painful. He was bleeding terribly. Soon he was struck by unbareable agony, he couldn't breathe properly. He gasped for air.
Ah… so this is what dying feels like, he thought, his body turning heavy and cold.
In the end, he simply gave up.
But then he suddenly remembered something.
Damn it. I almost forgot. Did I really die single?
Then the ringing started in his ears.
There was no sound except that high-pitched ringing. Blood gushed around him, warm and sticky. He stared up at the sky.
Blue. Calm. Peaceful.
Feelings he had never truly noticed before. Not when he had spent all his days working tirelessly, so much that he had forgotten what the color of the sky even looked like.
And then… faces.
A crowd of strangers hovered over him, expressionless and silent.
Ah… pathetic.
Thirty-five years.
Thirty-five years of working, of trying, of failing…And it ended like this
He closed his eyes, finally accepting it.
Then one face caught his attention.
A man wearing a plain white mask with a twisted, laughing grin.
He froze.
The masked figure leaned toward him, and this time he could hear its voice.
"You violated the rules."
A single sentence. No explanation.
No context. But somehow, he knew.
He had defied something far greater than himself.
And somehow, his death… was the consequence of his actions.
It was the last thing he heard before his eyes finally closed.
And then—
In the blink of an eye, he found himself standing in an endless white space. A deafening heartbeat pounded inside his chest.
His eyes snapped open. There was nothing.
Only white. Endless white.
Wherever he looked, it was blinding.
No floor. No walls. No ceiling.
Just… nothing.
"Where the heck am I?" he asked, confused.
Before he could comprehend what was happening, a dark circle manifested beneath him. The solid ground he had been standing on vanished.
The next thing he knew, he was falling.
Fast.
Then—BAM!
He hit the ground hard.
"Attatata…!" he screamed, writhing in pain.
He had landed butt-first on something solid, grimacing.
"…What the hell was that for?" he groaned, rubbing his rear.
And then…
Before him stood a throne. A young man with long blonde hair sat lazily on it, picking his nose as if he had nothing better to do.
His robe was immaculate, pure white silk that draped over his shoulders and flowed around him, gleaming softly in the dim chamber. It hugged his form perfectly, giving him an aura of absolute authority, yet he wore it with such casual ease it almost felt like loungewear.
He blinked. Then, began scanning the area again. But this time, he wasn't standing in a vast white void like before.
Instead, he found himself inside a dark, gloomy chamber, with a boy sitting on a golden throne right in front of him.
"…Where in the world am I?" he asked, his voice tight with disbelief.
The mysterious blonde man yawned and stretched his arms.
"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter," he said casually.
His eyes widened.
"Doesn't matter? Are you for real?"
The man leaned back on the throne, utterly unbothered.
"You violated the rules," he said flatly, as if stating the obvious.
His jaw dropped.
"What does that mean?! Could you kindly explain? And that masked guy… what did he mean by that? And my death… everything! I feel like I'm being scammed here!"
The guy at throne smirked faintly, still lounging lazily.
"I already said… it doesn't matter. You'll figure it out on your own."
He groaned, frustration rising.
"What the hell is this? You can't just say stuff like that and leave me hanging!"
The blonde guy chuckled softly.
"Could you please shut up for a minute? Your entire fate, your second life, is entirely in my hands. So relax, or you won't get to see it."
He frowned.
"…Wait. Are you serious? Second life, you mean?"
The the entity in front of him waved it's hand vaguely.
"Yes. Just as you heard. You'll be given a second chance to live… but not in the world you came from."
I knew it… I've read this in novels before. The isekai thing…
"Yes. That's probably one way to explain it," the man on the throne said, as if reading Kael's thoughts directly.
"You'll get another chance. But I'll be giving you a task in exchange… for reviving you."
He stared at him intently.
Who is this guy? He acts like a god… but looking at him, he seems…
"Oy!! Are you mocking me!? You know I can hear what you're thinking!"
The guy on the throne stood up, clearly annoyed.
"Oh—sorry! Sorry! I didn't mean it that way," he said quickly.
"Tch. Never mind. I'm Severius. Make sure you remember my name."
Silence filled the room.
"So… what now?" He asked.
Severius closed his eyes.
"It's almost my nap time."
"Huh!? Are you freaking serious?"
Kael shouted, annoyed by how lazy and careless this god seemed.
Severius opened one eye.
"Stop the ongoing war. Most importantly, prove your existence. If you do that, we're even."
He crossed his arms, fuming as he slowly realized he couldn't argue with this guy called Severius.
"…Great. Just great. Fantastic. Lucky me. Stopping a war and proving I exist… what does that even mean?" he muttered under his breath.
He stared at Severius one last time, expecting something more.
"Okay… so now what? That's it?"
He crossed his arms.
"You're sending me back to life with nothing? No skills, abilities, or magic? How am I supposed to survive, and stop a war?"
Severius yawned lazily.
"Hey! You're being too loud and annoying! Yeah, yeah, I get it. You want a blessing. Fine, fine…"
His eyes suddenly sharpened as if scanning Kael's entire life.
"Oh… so you're good at observing other people."
Kael tilted his head, frowning.
"…Yeah, and so what? I'm a businessman. What else do I need to get a client?"
Severius waved his hand dismissively.
"Blah blah. I get it. Stop explaining everything."
Severius leaned back, cleaning his ear with his pinky finger before flicking the dirt away. Then he snapped his fingers.
Kael's body was suddenly enveloped in a faint glow.
"What… what did you just do?" he stammered.
"Gave you the blessing you wanted," Severius said lazily.
"Man… you're so difficult to please. You're literally the first person who argues with a god."
Kael rubbed the back of his neck.
"…I… I don't even know what to say to that."
"Doesn't matter. Just don't die early like the foolish ones I sent before you."
"…Huh? So it wasn't the first time?" Kael asked, narrowing his eyes.
"No. And they all died miserably."
Kael's stomach sank.
"Ah… I see. Wait… so I can literally die again? And what kind of blessing did you give me? Did I gain unlimited skill? Magic? Or—"
"Hey! Slow down!! Don't get too excited. None of that."
"None of that? Then… what is it?"
Severius smirked lazily.
"I just randomly upgraded the things you're already good at."
"…Huh? I'm good at…? And what exactly was it?"
Severius waved his hand.
"Okay, time's up!"
Kael blinked, glowing faintly as he felt something subtly different coursing through him.
"…Right. That was… helpful?" he muttered.
Then everything went dark.The last thing he saw was Severius waving his hand.
And the last words he heard were—
"Prove your existence."