Obviously, I realized I was dead as soon as I opened my eyes here. The last memory I have before appearing here is of seeing a store explode; there are few more obvious ways to say 'You're dead.'
But the fact that I have a choice to "proceed to the next existence," just like that, without any explanation of what that next existence is, because I still remember everything I lived before appearing here, what would happen if I chose No, what would happen if I pressed Yes.
I'm worrying too much and overthinking something that the vast majority of people would just accept and that's it, maybe, but I've always been a person who takes things at my own pace (for better or worse). This includes trying to have as much information as possible before making a decision.
Answering a question you might have after this huge monologue, yes, I consider myself difficult to deal with because of this quality; the people who lived with me deserve a medal for putting up with me for so long.
But anyway, I'm aware that just staring blankly at these options in this endless white expanse isn't getting me anywhere, so like everyone else (or at least those who probably still have some desire to live a little longer) in this situation, I obviously chose Yes. Then the panel displayed another message:
[Congratulations on choosing the best answer, preparing the user transfer]
Best answer? Okay, I'll be honest now, I'm really curious to know what would happen if I had chosen No. Hmm, is that how Neil felt after taking the pill?
And with that unnecessary thought, everything around me began to glow in a bluish-white color, emanating from the screen.
And then, everything went black again.
************************************************
When I regained consciousness (again), I found myself in what appeared to be a small stone room, the size of a storeroom, with no entrances of any kind—no door, no window, no hole, no crack in the wall, nothing.
Very strange things to note, besides my schizophrenia getting worse with each passing second.
1: I can see everything around me, including behind me, below me, and above me, all at the same time.
2: I am in a completely dark stone room, pitch black, and yet I can see every protrusion and concavity in the stones, walls, floor, and ceiling, without any effort.
3: Even though I am fully aware that my mind is functioning and that I can "move," I don't feel my body, and that is extremely frightening.
Putting that aside, I have questions: what should I do? Why did I end up here? Why am I not going crazy like I should "normally"? Wouldn't that already be proof that I've gone crazy? I thought with my arms on my head and...
'WAIT A MINUTE, since when do I have arms?'
I thought looking at them, then I saw that they weren't exactly "arms," they were more like wisps of smoke coming out of "me."
'Oh yeah, that's another important thing, what do I look like now?... That sounded much more vain than I intended.'
Regardless of how it sounded, right after thinking about "seeing" myself, my vision blurred for a moment and I was no longer in that stone room, but in another similar place where I "reincarnated," we could say. But instead of being white with a "water floor," this place was dome-shaped with a pale blue "ceiling" and a very firm, white floor. In front of me, something like a mirror appeared, and I could see my "form."
To be direct, I was a ghost, that's the simplest way to describe it. A humanoid shape almost completely transparent and undulating like vapor or incense smoke, without a face, legs, or hands.
'....'
'.....Seriously, is this my second existence?'
'Okay, let's be honest, I definitely wasn't a model of humanity. I spent most of my days in a bad mood, tried to interact as little as possible, complained a lot about doing various things, procrastinated, withheld information, etc. But I'm sure I wasn't bad enough to go from human to a... smoke ghost?'
I thought and lamented, looking at my reflection in the "mirror," in this place that... Where is this again?
[Synchronization completed, total transfer of soul and consciousness to new design concluded]
'????'
[Initiating complementary system, dungeon core system activated, welcome new user]
'???????????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!'
YEAHHHHH, THANK YOU MY GOD, or semi-omniscient cosmic entity(ies), who surely, out of a whim or pure and utter boredom, sent me here (which honestly makes no difference), THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE CLASSIC OF CLASSICS IN STORIES OF REINCARNATION AND TRANSMIGRATION.
Okay, okay, now that I know I'm not (completely) lost and directionless like a smoke-filled ghost, let's get back to "normal" and try to get some information.
[Confirmed intention: need for information. The dungeon core system is a system designed for the creation, maintenance, assistance, and improvement of the core parts necessary to give life and sustenance to dungeons.]
[The individual: Kaio. He was analyzed and found suitable for the role of dungeon core, however, the lack of knowledge about the system is a considerable disadvantage.] [Due to this, the system's main functions will be suspended until the individual goes through the initial operational phases to learn how to generate and manage their future dungeon.]
[A system helper function will remain active until these stages are completed. If the individual wishes to reactivate this function after the phases are finished, it will be available after the individual upgrades the dungeon to level 2.]
...Okay, what I understood from this was: I have to go through a kind of tutorial to learn how the system works. During this time, the system will have a help function (like a virtual assistant), and after I pass these stages, the system will unlock all the functions, and I will become, in fact, a dungeon core.
….Well…great (I gess), information obtained.
So let's get started now. I just needed to know a few things to feel a little more confident. Now that I have what I wanted, I'll do as always and just go with the flow as far as I can.