It was supposed to be just another gray, forgettable day.
Cold sky. Busy streets. Strangers pretending not to exist. The kind of day where nothing happens and nobody remembers.
A teenage boy, barely eighteen, shuffled down the sidewalk with a plastic bag hanging from one hand. Inside were two cups of instant noodles and a discount soda. He hated being outside. Hated people. Hated the sun. But the delivery service had crashed and his hunger had finally bullied him out of the apartment.
He was the kind of kid who had no real life. No friends. No goals. Just games, anime, and a dark room that smelled like old chips and lost potential. In school, he blended into the background so hard even the teachers forgot his name. His parents? Always working. Barely noticed if he was alive.
But on that day… the world noticed him. Just once.
It happened fast. Just half a block from the store.
A scream broke the quiet.
"Help! Somebody—please!"
His body froze. He wanted to turn around. He really did. This wasn't his problem. He didn't even like talking to people, let alone saving them. But something deep inside twisted. Something stupid. Something decent.
He ran toward the sound.
There she was. A girl, young and terrified, pressed against a wall. In front of her stood a man in a black hoodie, face half-covered, a gun in his shaking hands. He was shouting something — maybe threats, maybe demands — but none of it registered.
The boy didn't think. He moved.
He shoved the girl aside just as the man turned. The trigger was pulled.
Bang.
Time slowed.
He didn't feel the bullet exactly — just a sudden tightness in his chest. Like something punched through him and took the air with it.
He collapsed.
The girl screamed. The man ran. He didn't even check to see if he'd hit anyone.
As blood pooled beneath him, the boy looked up at the cloudy sky and smiled. It was strange. Peaceful. He'd never mattered before. Not really. But in that moment… he'd done something good. Something real.
Then everything went dark.
There was no light. No sky. No body. Just... floating.
He was aware. Conscious. But he wasn't breathing. Didn't have lungs. Didn't even know if he was anything.
Until a voice spoke.
[Welcome, new soul. You have died and been selected for reincarnation.]
The voice was clear. Calm. Almost mechanical. But not unfriendly.
[Initializing System… Connecting to Host… Loading Personality… Done.]
Confused, the boy tried to speak — but he had no mouth. He tried to move — but had no limbs.
[Do not be alarmed. You are currently within the Void. This is a transitional space. Your reincarnation will begin shortly.]
"…Am I dead?" his thoughts asked.
[Yes. You died saving another. A rare act of courage. You have been granted reincarnation… with bonuses.]
"Bonuses?" he asked.
[Correct. As your assistant, I will help guide you through your new life. You may call me Seek.]
"Seek?"
[Soul Enhancement and Evolution Kernel. S.E.E.K. I am your internal system.]
It was insane. He wasn't even sure this was real. Maybe he'd just watched too much anime. Maybe this was a coma dream.
But it felt real.
Menus appeared in the void, glowing softly.
Choose Your Race:
Human
Elf
Dwarf
Beastkin
Demon
Slime
Custom
He stared at the options, or… floated near them. Hard to say.
"What if I want to be something weird?" he asked.
[You may choose a custom form. However, your soul is unstable. A large or complex body may overload you. Smaller forms are recommended.]
"…Can I be an atom?"
[Interesting choice.]
Seek paused.
[Processing… You have been reincarnated as a Micro Core — a sentient, magical dot. Undetectable. Durable. Capable of absorbing and evolving.]
He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Then the Void shattered.
Light exploded.
Suddenly, he was underwater. Cold. Quiet. Drifting.
He was smaller than a grain of sand, but he could feel. Not with nerves. Not with eyes. But with… something.
[You are now in the world of Lethriya. A realm of magic, monsters, and kingdoms.] Seek informed him.
[As a Micro Core, your first goal is survival. Absorb what you can. Grow stronger. Evolve.]
"How do I do that?"
[You'll see.]
He floated for hours. Maybe days. Just drifting through the river, unseen and untouched. A speck in a vast new world.
Then something appeared nearby. A fish. Small. Old. Dying.
[Absorption available. Proceed?]
"Yes."
He didn't know how — only that it happened. The fish disappeared. Its energy flowed into him. Warm. Heavy.
[Progress: 1/100 to Evolution.]
"Only ninety-nine more," he thought.
He was still tiny. Still powerless. Still forgotten by the world.
But now… he had a path.
Not a sword. Not a name. Just a whisper of purpose and a quiet system in his head.
And somehow, that was enough.