Darkness.
It was not the kind of darkness that accompanied sleep, nor the comforting blackness behind closed eyes. This was an infinite, empty void — vast and cold, without air, without time, without memory. Yet within that void, something existed. A presence. A consciousness.
Muru Shan.
He had no body now, no heartbeat, no breath. But his mind… his mind was wide awake.
"Where… am I?"
The thought echoed in the vacuum of nothingness. There was no answer, no response, no movement — until, far in the distance, a small, flickering point of light emerged. At first, it was barely a pinprick in the black. But slowly, steadily, it grew brighter, larger, until its glow reached him.
Drawn by something indescribable, Muru drifted toward it — or perhaps the light drew toward him. He reached out instinctively.
As his fingers, now made of mere thought and soul, brushed the edge of the light, it shattered — no, transformed. It burst forth in radiant spirals of gold and silver, illuminating the void. And from within that brilliance, a form began to emerge.
A woman.
She stood barefoot on invisible space, her long silver-white hair floating in waves, her eyes deep as galaxies. Her body shimmered as though made of stars, wrapped in robes that shifted like the flow of time itself.
Muru stared. Something within him trembled — not fear, not awe, but recognition. As though his soul knew her name before it was spoken.
> "So… it's true," she said softly, her voice like the chime of ancient bells. "A soul born without sorrow. A mind untouched by chaos. Yet now… changed by desire."
"Who… are you?" Muru asked, his voice uncertain.
> "I am Shehira, the Goddess of Time and the Outer Layer," she replied. "One who walks between moments. One who once stood beside… Sha."
The name echoed through the void like thunder. Sha. The god of everything and nothing. The one who created the Sha Worlds, who shaped reality — and who now destroyed it for amusement.
Muru's eyes narrowed. "Wait. Are you saying… I'm dead?"
> She nodded once, solemn. "Yes. You died in your previous world. Your body is gone. But your soul… it remained whole. Strong. Untouched by corruption, yet now touched by longing — you asked for a harder life. That… was heard."
Muru's expression hardened. "So what is this? Some twisted isekai plot? You're going to reincarnate me with powers to fight the villain?"
Shehira's smile was sad. "Not a villain. A god. The god. Sha has gone beyond the edge of reason. I… tried to stop him. I failed. Now I hide, between layers of existence. And I search endlessly for one who might stand against him."
He laughed, bitterly. "So, I'm your final hope?"
> "You are not the final. You are the first that gives me hope in a million years."
That shut him up.
The space around them began to tremble. The darkness cracked — thin lines of iridescent light split the void like spiderweb fractures in glass.
"I don't understand," Muru whispered.
> "You will. Soon. I don't have long. You will be reborn into the first world — the World of Ni. The lowest of the ten universal realms. You must rise from there. Conquer. Evolve. Grow stronger. And… survive betrayal."
As she spoke, a small object appeared in her hand. It was an apple — glowing faintly with warmth, like a miniature sun.
> "Eat this when the time comes. It will awaken something ancient within you. A skill that should not exist."
"What kind of skill?" he asked, voice hoarse.
> "One that was never meant for mortals. One called… Emotion."
The light began to pulse violently. Cracks widened. Reality was tearing.
> "There isn't time," Shehira said quickly. "Know this — each world is a class. Each class has a core. If you absorb one, you gain the power of that entire world-class. But beware… the Core Guardians are merciless. And if fate is cruel… Sha himself may appear."
She reached forward and touched his forehead.
> "You are no longer Muru Shan the boy from Earth. You are the variable. The outlier. The threat. Remember this moment when the time comes."
The space shattered.
The void exploded in blinding light.
---
Pain.
A gasp escaped him.
His lungs filled with burning air. He coughed, choked, screamed. His eyes fluttered open — and he saw sky.
Red, fiery sky.
He lay naked in a field of black glass, cracked and steaming, under a sun that bled crimson. Around him were alien mountains, twisted like horns, and rivers of violet mist.
His body… was small. A child. He had been reborn.
Then came the voice.
> "Skill obtained: Emotion."
The words echoed not from outside, but inside — as though carved into his very soul.
He sat up slowly, shaking. He could feel something inside him — something strange. Something alien. For the first time in both lifetimes, he could feel… emotion. Not just boredom. Not just curiosity. But wonder. Fear. Hope.
And something darker.
> "So it begins," he whispered. "The climb through ten worlds. To face a god born of madness."
He looked down at his palm, flexing the small fingers of his new body.
> "Shehira… I don't know if I trust you. But I'll play this game."
His eyes hardened, gleaming under the strange light of the Ni world.
> "A hard life, huh? Then give me your worst."