Malang, 20##
In a run-down, painfully quiet boarding house room lived a man who had been rejected from job applications more times than he could count.
His name was Reno Raditya.
Twenty-five years old. Fresh graduate. Still unemployed.
In this country, he was the definition of average.
Average skills. Average face. A personality so unremarkable even background characters would outshine him.
"Rejected… again?!"
He stared at the email notification like it personally owed him money.
"That's the 25th time already!!"
Back in college, Reno had been ambitious. The type who believed effort would eventually pay off.
Now all his friends were working at top companies across Indonesia.
Meanwhile… he was still professionally unemployed.
RING…
His phone buzzed.
Caller ID: Yulianto.
His best friend since middle school. Currently employed at Tohbisa Corporation in Sidoarjo.
Yes, employed. A mythical status Reno had only read about online.
"Yo, No. How's the job hunt?"
Reno sighed like a dying NPC.
"Rejected again. Seriously, how did you even get hired?"
"Simple," Yulianto replied smugly.
"My networking skills are god-tier."
"Yeah right. Just say you had insider connections."
They both laughed.
Then Yulianto casually dropped a bomb.
"Hey, remember that company you applied to last week?
They went bankrupt."
"…Huh?"
"Yeah. Apparently someone embezzled company funds right after your interview."
Reno frowned.
"That's… weird."
"Even weirder?
The other 24 companies that rejected you?
They all went bankrupt too."
Silence.
Reno processed this information like a computer running Windows Vista.
Finally he groaned.
"Man… why am I so unlucky?
When am I gonna get anime luck? You know — power-ups, destiny, accidental harem…"
"How are you gonna get a job if you keep hallucinating?" Yulianto shot back.
"Hey, a little delusion is healthy, okay?
Being a guy sucks. You gotta be strong, competent, financially stable…
Honestly? If the world system flipped, I'd happily become some rich older lady's kept boy."
"Dude. Your mouth is gonna get you isekai'd someday.
Anyway I gotta go. Tell me if you somehow get hired."
Call ended.
Reno stared at the ceiling.
"…If that world really existed… I'd chill so hard."
He sighed, then opened his laptop again and sent out more CVs into the void.
Eventually he stretched.
"Alright, that's enough suffering for today.
Time for snacks and anime therapy."
He walked into the kitchen.
Opened the drawer.
Nothing.
Cabinet.
Nothing.
Only one instant noodle pack and a bottle of cola.
"…Again? Well… survival difficulty is already set to Hard Mode anyway."
Then he remembered.
He was out of drinking water.
And his usual convenience store owner was currently on vacation.
In Egypt.
"Seriously, Pak Zaen picked Egypt… he's hella rich now huh.. Fine. Guess I'll go to NusaMarket."
He stepped outside.
Halfway down the street, he noticed something strange.
A small shop he had never seen before.
It looked normal.
Too normal.
Suspiciously normal.
Water gallons stacked neatly.
Dim yellow lights.
No customers.
Then a voice.
"O lost sheep… are you searching for drinking water?"
A cloaked woman stood behind the counter.
Reno blinked.
"…Who even talks like that?"
"I am merely a humble merchant."
"Yeah no.
You expect me to believe someone dressed like a DLC boss is selling water?"
She clicked her tongue.
"Young man… as my first customer, this gallon is free."
Reno froze.
Free.
The most sacred word in boarding-house culture.
He scratched his head.
"…Okay but why?"
She pointed uphill.
"Grand opening promotion.
Simply deliver this gallon to the end of the road."
"Oh. So… DoorDash side quest?"
"Yes."
That sounded reasonable.
Too reasonable.
Which made it terrifying.
But dignity loses to survival.
Reno lifted the gallon.
"Whoa— why is this thing built like a gym membership?!"
He started walking.
Each step grew heavier.
The road that looked short… stretched endlessly.
The alley warped into a narrow unfamiliar corridor.
Streetlights flickered like horror-movie extras.
"…I swear this wasn't this far."
He looked back.
The mysterious shop…
Was gone.
Only a blank wall remained.
Decorated with a torn instant noodle poster.
"…Okay that's illegal."
He walked faster.
The gallon on his shoulder suddenly felt warm.
Then cold.
Then it began vibrating.
Like a phone on silent mode.
"…Don't tell me this gallon has notifications…"
Gluk… gluk… gluk…
Water inside started swirling on its own.
Reno sped up.
Without realizing, he reached the end of the road.
But it wasn't an intersection.
It was…
The edge of the world.
The asphalt simply stopped.
Ahead lay endless white fog.
"WHO DESIGNED THIS ROAD?!"
The gallon suddenly became weightless.
Too weightless.
He dropped it.
It hit the ground—
And sank straight through like liquid.
"HEY— MY WATER—"
Before he could step back, the ground beneath him melted too.
BLUP.
He slipped in.
It felt like falling into water…
Without getting wet.
He spun through a transparent tunnel filled with bizarre objects:
Flip-flops.
Shopping receipts.
Half-cooked instant noodles.
A fish wearing a construction helmet.
From far away, the cloaked woman's voice echoed like multiversal customer support.
"Delivery successful. Customer relocated."
PLOSH.
Reno was violently ejected onto stone ground.
He opened his eyes.
Purple sky.
Royal banners.
And dozens of armed women staring at him like they had just discovered a biological weapon.
"Who are you?!
Why is a terrifying man here?!" one knight shouted.
Beside him…
The gallon rose from the ground.
Perfect.
Shiny.
Glowing text appeared:
[Item Acquired: Trait Reversal Gallon — Used]
[Item Changed: Useless Gallon — Delivery Complete]
Then it exploded into thick white smoke.
Reno's body glowed briefly.
Then the light faded.
[Trait Updated: Unlucky Bastard → Lucky Bastard]
The knights drew their swords.
"You!
For using forbidden magic as a man,
By order of Queen Aleana — you will be executed!"
Reno stared blankly.
Life hanging by a thread.
"…Nice. My life got patched without consent."