Earth, 21st Century
On an ordinary evening, employees of a bustling company were slowly exiting the building. Among them was Richard, a man with a tired appearance and eyes that seemed to have never known joy. To others, there was nothing remarkable about him, but inside his mind, Richard wrestled with complex and unusual thoughts.
"This world is so boring. Why did I have to be born in such a dull world?"
He stared at the blue sky with his tired black eyes. But his gaze didn't linger for long; a man with brown hair and a cheerful smile approached him.
"Richard, we're going to a restaurant. Want to join us?"
Richard forced a smile. "Oh, no. I'm too tired. Maybe another time."
The man nodded. "Alright, but you promised to come next time."
Richard maintained his artificial smile. "Definitely."
Richard's home wasn't far from his workplace, so he always walked back and forth. As he strolled down the sidewalk, he watched the passersby laughing and chatting with their companions. He couldn't understand them.
"How can they be so happy in this boring world?"
The more he thought about it, the more he doubted himself.
"Maybe the problem is me. Maybe I've never truly fit into this world. The only things that give me a sense of normalcy are anime, manga, and novels. What if I could be like them? What if I could find joy in the simplest things?"
With these thoughts weighing on his mind, he arrived at his small apartment. He stepped into the elevator and, without any rush, reached his floor. Unlocking the door, he walked in, tossed his coat onto the couch, and headed straight for the bathroom.
As he soaked in the warm water of the bathtub, his mind began to wander again.
"If the world remains this boring after I'm 27, I'll kill myself.
His bath didn't last long. He changed into comfortable clothes, sat on the couch, and picked up his phone. As soon as he turned it on, the device began to glitch. Before he could do anything, a strange message appeared on the screen:
[Richard, if you could travel to another world, which would you choose? Marvel, Naruto, or Fate?]
Richard chuckled.
"A joke, huh? But honestly, if I had to pick, I'd choose Fate. The other two are way too dangerous."
With that thought, he tapped on Fate.
Another message appeared:
[If you could choose one power, what would it be?]
Richard paused for a moment.
"Anyone else would probably choose some godlike ability. But what's the point if there's no challenge? My answer: Ragna's pattern."
He selected his choice.
But it wasn't over yet. Another question appeared:
[Do you accept the transfer to the Fate world?]
Richard tilted his head.
"How long are you going to keep this joke up? Fine, I'll play along."
He tapped Yes.
Suddenly, a golden light burst from his phone, filling the entire room. Richard froze, staring at the light in silence.
"This… isn't a joke?"
His mind struggled to process what was happening. One final message appeared:
[We hope you have an exciting adventure, Richard.]
Before he could react, the light from the phone engulfed him completely. In an instant, Richard disappeared.
But for this world, Richard's disappearance didn't matter. He had no family, no close friends, and no one who would notice his absence. The gray, monotonous world continued to exist, as if nothing had changed.