CH 1

Prologue

It was the same road back as always.

A little ways off from the metropolitan area, but easy enough to access, which made it a decently popular district. There were quite a lot of cars going by, but not enough to cause traffic jams.

I was driving a light car that I didn’t have any particular fondness for. There had been a time in my past when I was more of an enthusiast, but now I only cared if they worked or not.

I finished my dinner shopping at the nearby supermarket. When I returned home, I would remove the 50% discount stickers off of the packs of side dishes and heat them in the microwave before eating.

After all, there was no one else waiting there in the apartment, as I lived alone. And so there was no point in putting any effort into cooking. I just needed to satiate my hunger, that was all. I was 46 years old and single. Once I became a temporary worker, the feeling of giving up was deep within me.

I didn’t care about my current job at all. It was just like my food. As long as I could live…

Oh, as I was monologuing, a light jumped out from the other lane.

A trailer was rushing towards me at a strange angle.

And to this, the only thing that I could do was…

“Huh?”

Raise my voice like that.

I closed my eyes, not even able to brace myself for the coming impact.

…Or so I thought. But the impact did not come no matter how long I waited.

And when I fearfully opened my eyes, I was suddenly floating in a white space.

“…What happened?”

I looked around but there was nothing but white. After some time had passed, a light suddenly appeared in the air.

At first it was just a small dot, but it slowly grew larger. Eventually, I had to squint in order to keep looking at it. And then, it spoke.

“Shinichi Saitou. I invite you to another world.”

It was like a soft woman’s voice.

…Hmm. So this is the ‘another world transfer’ thing I keep hearing about. No, it’s too ridiculous to believe that just yet.

“I’m sorry. Can I ask you a few questions?”

I said to the light.

“Yes, certainly.”

It replied.

Hmm. Apparently we could communicate. In that case, the first thing to do was understand the situation.

“What happened to me? I remember the moment before being hit by a truck… Did I die and come to the world of the dead?”

“No, you are not dead. You were invited to this place right before the accident.”

So I wasn’t actually dead. I felt relieved for now. Death would not have been strange in that situation. In fact, I should have died. And even if I survived by some miracle, I would not have come out unscathed. While I would avoid the worst kind of situation, it would still not be something to take lightly.

“It seems that you saved me then. Thank you. But why me? And is it possible for me to return to the world that I was in?”

A younger person might have jumped at the opportunity, saying, ‘Yes, another world!!’ However, I was just an old man. I was happy enough in a lukewarm modern world, rather than going to a place where I couldn’t tell left from right.

“I was looking for personnel to transfer to another world, when I found you right before death. And so you were invited. If you refuse, you will be sent right back to the moment before the accident.”

Are. You. Serious!

So I hadn’t avoided the worst outcome at all!

I held my head and threw myself to the ground, but as there wasn’t actually a ground, I just rotated in the air.

Uh, ugh. While I felt a light feeling of despair, at least I still had a chance left. But being thrown into another world like this would be no good at all. I needed to gather as much information as I could first.

“A-and what kind of world is it? And what am I supposed to do there?”

“Your people would call it a medieval world of swords and sorcery. There are many books that suggest worlds like this would be very entertaining to transfer to, and so I wanted to know what would happen if I put it to the test.”

So it was just out of interest!!

However, if returning meant death, then perhaps a medieval fantasy world was not bad. Besides, I had no hopes, dreams or family.

“…Very well. I think I’ll go to this world of yours.”

“Thank you for your cooperation. That being said, I think it will be very hard for you to be suddenly thrown into a world where you know nothing, and so I will grant you the minimum initial support. Now, are there any other questions you would like to ask?”

Minimum initial support…that wasn’t promising.

However, the books…light novels about other worlds, these were read by older men these days as well. Don’t underestimate us.

“Does this world have skills and stats?”

“Yes. It didn’t originally, but since I found them amusing in a book I read, I had a god assigned to work on them. And so you, Shinichi, will be given just one skill.”

They had the power to change worlds…it was scary how influential light novels could be…

So, just one. I would have to think about this carefully then.

“Will I be able to choose the skill? Also, will I have any other basic abilities aside from the skill? Some kind of transfer bonus? Also, will I be able to speak the same language as the inhabitants of this world?”

“You may choose the skill. As for your basic abilities, it will be based on the average for humans that are 46 years of age, and your own qualities. As for a transfer bonus, the ability to choose your skill is a tremendous bonus in itself. While you will not speak the same language, you will be given Eralt Lv1, which is the main language of humans.”

Oh, so I will be able to talk to them.

“When transfering to other worlds, ‘Appraisal’ and ‘Storage’ are usually part of the basics… Also, maybe you can make me 17 as a special service and…”

“Appraisal and Storage both require ultra powerful skills. Furthermore, we do not offer such special services.”

Well, she had read enough light novels to start changing the world, so she understood all about basic skills and cheat abilities. However, what was a 46 year old man supposed to do in another world? I would just bumble around and before I knew it I would be a senior citizen. Actually, I was not likely to even live that long. Surely there must be some way to keep myself from dying.

“Are there any skills for immortality?”

“There is one for never dying and one for never aging.”

Ah! So close! I could escape death with the first one, but if things went wrong, I might have to continue living forever as a wrinkled old man. That was something that I wanted to avoid. But with a skill that prevented aging, I could buy time. There might be problems if you wanted to live with people in society, but it was still worth considering.

Either that, or I could use a powerful combat skill to survive and create a place to live. Or perhaps I should get a skill more related to survival ability.

“Are there any skills that allow you to steal or copy other skills? Also, are there ways to acquire additional skills later on?”

“Acquiring skills from other people is against the skill system. Skills can be acquired later on through jobs, training, experience, aptitude, etcetera.”

So you couldn’t steal them. But you could acquire them. So it would be a terrible waste to get something like alchemy or smithing if you could get them later on.

So maybe the unaging one was the best…

However, if I’m being honest, starting something new at this age was quite difficult. My body didn’t move like it used to, and every time I was transferred to a new location at work, I had trouble relearning my job. If only I was just a little younger…

Hmm? Younger?

“Is there a skill that makes you younger?”

“There is not… But it is possible to create skills that do not interfere with the established skill system.”

Ohh! I can do it! The dream of humanity! My apologies to all the women in the world! I just found something better than an unaging skill!

“Alright, give me that skill!”

“Certainly. Well then, Shinichi. As there is no kanji in the other world, your name will be written as ‘Shinichi Saitou’ on your status. Will you keep it that way?”

Hmm. A Japanese sounding name would make me stick out in another world. Besides, it might get troublesome to have such a family name if I ever get involved with nobles. So I’ll change it to a name I once used in an RPG a long time ago.

“Change my name to ‘Ajifu.’”

Ajifurai is the best(fried mackerel). It’s not up for discussion.

Am I sure that I want that to be my name? Yes, I am(certain).

“Very well, Saitou Shinichi, now known as Ajifu. Your status has been set.”

“And how can I look at my status?”

“Say ‘Status open.’ You can say it out loud or just think it, but…”

“Status open!”

…? Nothing happened?

“…But, this place is out of bounds for the status system, so you will have to wait until you are on location.”

I had even posed for it, but it was a swing and a miss. It was quite embarrassing. It showed how important it was to listen until the speaker was finished. Yes.

In any case, let’s go to this world and check it out!

“…I understand. I will do it there.”

“Then you will be sent on your way. Are you ready?”

“Yes! Thank you!”

“I hope that your life in another world will be a pleasant one, Mister Ajifu.”

Said the light, and then it started to grow brighter until my vision was filled with white…