The regret still lingering within this man granted him to reincarnate from his former world to a different one.
For being reborn, he could wish for one thing.
Proficiency with swords, mastery of magic or any other power.
All of them are to cleanse his tainted feelings.
Some don’t seek for special abilities.
Some would ask for leisurely lives devoid of hardships.
It’s common for them to perish in an unfortunate accident.
Others, instead…
"Please, enslave me."
The Goddess who governed reincarnation tilted her head, puzzled at the man standing before her.
"Sorry, were you paying attention?"
"I didn’t miss a word. You were saying that you can grant me any wish."
"Yes, exactly. You know, there’s plenty of people who fail to grasp the situation, given how sudden and unrealistic reincarnation is…"
After a sigh of relief, she smiled again and asked:
"So, what do you wish for?"
"Please, enslave me."
"As. I. Said. You can ask for anything! Why do you keep saying that?!"
Annoyed, the Goddess raised her voice and pointed her finger at him.
He was very composed.
Moving her gaze from his lips, she looked into his eyes brimming with confidence.
She crossed both arms and legs admiring his astonishing beauty from the height of her throne.
It was clear that he firmly believed in himself.
"You’ve asked me if I had a wish. So hurry and enslave me now, please."
"No, wait a moment. There are times when I’d like to have some company, but I’d never gotten as far as wanting a slave…"
"I don’t want to be a slave of some God like you. I’m telling you to reincarnate me bound by chains, without properties or social status."
"You what? Isn’t this going too much toward bondage?!"
"Don’t get the wrong impression. I meant that I want people to look down on me. Fortune, status, authority… It would be pointless if I can’t start from zero."
The Goddess was at a loss for words and squatted desperately. Since she started her work, she helped many people, but no one asked to be enslaved before.
Then, an idea suddenly popped into her head.
"Oh, I see! You want to start as a slave and become the strongest with your hidden powers, right?! I get it, I get it. Now tell me which ability…"
"Try giving me anything special and next time we see each other I’m going to beat you to death."
"Why?! I just want the best for you as a Goddess!"
Her eyes welled with tears as she didn’t know how to deal with that man anymore.
He snorted bored at that reaction.
"If you help me in any way, my regret will never fade. Let me reincarnate with my memories and appearance, please."
"Eh…? Well, you’d keep your memories anyway… I could copy your body and make sure it grows accordingly, but…
"But? Is there any problem?"
"Well… to put it simply, you’d die. You’re going in a world where magic and magical creatures exist. If you don’t have any ability, I can’t help but think that you want to die…"
"It’s fine. I have a regret despite the fact I was surrounded by wealth."
The Goddess tilted her head, intrigued by the man smiling brightly.
"Err… By the way, what do you regret so much? You keep saying you want to start from zero, but wouldn’t it better to have a handy power?"
"What? You’re a Goddess, you should know this."
"Well, people depict Gods as high-ranked entities… but let’s say that actually we have a sort of people management role…"
"I couldn’t care less of your conditions, but thank you anyway. Keep up the hard work."
More than showing sympathy for the depressed Goddess, the man started explaining.
"My life was way too easy."
The Goddess couldn’t grasp the meaning of his words, hence she frowned and asked –
"You mean that… you regret the fact that you never had problems?"
As she looked at him suspiciously, the man started to tell his story…
"You know, I was good at everything. Once I decided to do something, it always turned out just like I wanted. To the point that I never regretted anything."
Those words sounded sarcastic, but his expression was dead serious.
As the man remembered his past, a gloomy shadow dropped over his eyes.
"But… before my death I realized that… I was ‘regretting’ it. The truth is, I haven’t achieved anything with my abilities alone. My circumstances simply let me be a step up other people."
He looked down, then wore his usual smile.
"That’s why I want to reincarnate in the most cruel environment. In order to know how far I can go on my own… Are you listening?"
As he played his monologue, the Goddess stared at him with a freezing gaze.
"Yes, of course I am. So, it is just the whim of a spoiled child. Holy me, people’s bragging is really boring. I got bored almost as much as listening to my superior’s stories of the old times."
"The world of gods is also tough, huh? In that case, please, let me reincarnate and sink in this insane hard-mode."
"I’d do it even if you hadn’t asked. Luckily, I found a world that fits your preferences. Go die in a hole or by the roadside as soon as you set foot in there, thanks."
"Can you refrain from wishing my death? It’s not cool. Anyhow, as long as I have my hope, everything will be all right."
She sighed as opposed to the man’s dazzling smile.
After a few moments, under his feet shone a faint blue light that enveloped him.
He started to vanish like he was being sucked by it.
The Goddess, who had been pouting for a while now, remembered that she had a duty to fulfill, so she cleared her throat and bid him farewell with a tender smile.
"Well then, I wish you a new life with no more regrets!"
He simply returned a smile.
After that… the man who regretted not having regrets started his new life.