章 1: Chapter 1: Death

|A/N: The story will start out a bit slow, especially this first arc, where there'll be a lot of info dumps, you are warned. Also, read the author's thoughts down below.|

Perseus POV

As I trudged towards my part-time job at the library, I felt something wrong, something ominous, I don't know how to explain it though. The day felt...eerie, the atmosphere tinged with an unsettling tension that sent shivers down my spine.

Oddly enough, it doesn't feel that unusual. From the earliest days of my existence, I found myself entangled in a web of near-death experiences. I can vividly recall the time when I was just a child, playing near a cliff's edge, blissfully unaware of the dangers below. The ground beneath my feet gave way, and I found myself hanging on the cliff.

I'm also sick a lot. It's not like I have any unknown or incurable diseases, but more like I can find myself in the ICU from a simple cough or something.

As I grew older, the threats became more diverse and frequent. A chance encounter with a venomous creature during a hike with friends, and an unexpected car crash in which a car almost hit me.

There was also that time when I lived next to a cannibal, but he backed off me simply because I said good morning and held the door open for her. Or that time I met a murderer at the library and she chose not to kill me because I seemed to be enjoying my meal.

As I crossed a busy intersection, I heard a horn blaring loudly at me, I turned to see a truck coming straight at me. Instinct kicked in, and with a surge of adrenaline, I leaped out of harm's way just in the nick of time. The rush of air, the screech of tires, and the thundering heartbeat in my ears echoed the close call.

The truck thundered past and crashed against a wall. I turned, wide-eyed, to witness the aftermath. The truck now lay crumpled against a nearby wall. The collision had shattered glass, twisted metal, and the scent of burning rubber.

Heart pounding, I stood on the sidewalk, shaken by the narrow escape.

I would say that I wanted to just sit right then and there, and get an absence for the day, but this kind of scene felt too familiar.

At least, this is the first truck I encountered, I almost got isekai'd right there.

"That's it!" an almost robotic voice screamed as everything around me seemed to freeze, "This bastard just refuses to fucking die!"

Then a cold and otherworldly presence descended upon me. From the twisted wreckage of the truck emerged an unexpected...scenario.

What once was a mangled heap of metal now unfolded, contorting and reshaping itself into a sentient robot entity...like a mecha or transformer, who then pointed directly straight at me!

"Seriously, why can't you just make it easy?!" it screamed in a very unflattering manner, "I've been trying to make it easy, but I've had it!"

I then looked around to make sure.

"Me?"

"Yes, you white-haired bastard!" it confirmed

"That's not very nice."

Why am I calm? I don't know, but things are happening so quickly that I think my brain is barely comprehending the situation and allowing me to remain calm.

The robot then charged at me and then tried to drop kick me, I dodged it somehow and rolled to the side as it then started to chase me and tried many times to swing at me. It tried to kick me and everything, but I managed to dodge them all and tried to escape.

"Ugh, I can't believe that I have to do this, just die already!" it shouted

"Tell me why first!"

"Just die!"

"Tch, rude."

So at least this explains why I've been so close to death all this time, I'm being chased by death who's in the form of a robot. Just what did my past life do to deserve this?

Just as I managed to almost get away, time seemed to move again as a truck collided with me right then and there. In that split second, a cold sweat broke across my forehead as I braced for impact. The metallic behemoth collided with me head-on.

The impact sent me hurtling through the air like a thrown ragdoll. The world became a blur as I flew through the air. I think I blacked out for a good while, but I then woke up with blood trickling all over my body, I felt pain in some parts of my body while numb in others.

I also heard a cheering noise in my dazed state, I turned my head slowly and saw the source of the voice. it was the robot...teabagging me?

"Hell yeah! I did it! Wow!" it cheered

Seriously, what did I do in my past life to deserve this?

I can feel it, the next time that I close my eyes...I'm going to die, but I can't stop it.

At least it's finally ending.

Though I'd never thought that my life was ended by some twerking robot.

*****

[Welcome, Perseus Silver.]

What?

How does it know my name?

Did...the truck actually isekai me?

[Commencing Reincarnation Process.]

Hmm, so it seemed that I would have reincarnated earlier if I died, huh? Well, that's...fun. But why am I needed? Like...I read novels, and I do like these kinds of things, but I personally wouldn't want to be reincarnated, I like the internet and proper toilets, but these fantasy worlds don't seem like something that I'd go for.

[ You are hereby assigned the mantle of Assistant Hero.]

...

Assistant hero? Why not an outright hero, this is weird, this all feels weird and wrong. So my life was taken from me, all to become an assistant?!

"Damn it! Give me my life back!"

[You are assigned to...Terra.]

[Go forth and embrace your destiny. Welcome, Perseus Silver. Welcome to Terra. May the stars be with you.]