1 Death and New Beginnings

The hot summer sun pressed down on Nate as he continued moving bags of concrete around the construction site where he was working.

The physical strain had taken its toll, and a sudden cramp seized his leg, causing him to halt in discomfort. Rubbing the affected muscle, he grimaced, oblivious to his impending doom.

Just as Nate was massaging away the cramp, a surreal silence enveloped the air. Before he could grasp the significance, a deafening crash shattered the silence.

A massive beam, dislodged from its precarious perch, plummeted toward him. Time seemed to freeze, the cramp that momentarily stalled him becoming an unwitting catalyst for a tragic end.

The world blurred, and with the impact of the falling beam, Nate's earthly existence came to an abrupt and unexpected close.

In the suspended silence that followed, Nate found himself gazing at his lifeless body and the pool of blood surrounding it.

"Well, this kind of sucks," he thought, acknowledging the finality of his demise as his soul began to drift away.

Yet, just as he approached the pool of reincarnation, a colossal hand seized him, pulling him into a semi-corporeal state within an enigmatic office, reminiscent of a dubious loan shark's establishment.

A hefty laugh sounded through the room "Worry not child I have no reason to scam you out of any money" an elderly man's voice said. Nate looked up and across the desk currently in front of him sat an old-looking man with long white hair and an even longer beard who would look like a kind and grandfatherly old man if it wasn't for his eyes that seemed to be screaming shameless. 'Definitely some sort of scammer' Nate thought to himself. The old man simply smiled like he did not have a single care in the world "Welcome Nate my name is Fred and I am the god of balance" he said in a welcoming tone. 

Nate's eyes narrowed as he apprised the old man "Fred is probably the lamest name for a god that I have ever heard" he stated freely. Fred simply smiled and laughed "Well we gods like to change things up now and then to make things more interesting this can include names". Nate at first wanted to deny that the old man in front of him was a god, but thinking about his current ghostly form and the brief image he saw of his dead body he decided to just go with it. "So Fred what do you want with me why am I here" Nate asked more than a little bit curious about this new predicament. The God waved his hand and suddenly a blue screen popped up in front of his eyes entitled Life Customization. "I have called your soul here to offer you the opportunity to be reborn with your memories intact as well as the option to customize what kind of life you want to be born with" the god stated with a playful tone. 

The offer Nate was just given sounded way too good to be true, especially with the playfulness the god was currently emitting while offering. "What is the catch" he asked suspicion laced in every word. Fred did not seem to mind he merely leaned back in his chair before explaining "I am not allowed to share all of the details but at some point, there is a task I will need you to accomplish for me it will not be an easy task which is why I am gifting you with the ability to customize your life". All of the playfulness had left the god's eyes replaced with a stern seriousness "You are free to decline this offer but know that if you can succeed then you will earn the goodwill of several gods".

Different thoughts ran inside Nate's head as he considered what Fred was telling him, but in all honesty, he did not have much to lose currently since he was already dead, so he decided to just go with the flow and nod his head while agreeing to the scammer God's deal. Fred clapped his hands together with a big grin on his wrinkled face "Great! alright kid that screen in front of you is similar to a character sheet you will have a total of 1,500 points to spend on the different available selections some prices will go up and down depending on the compatibility between items that you have already selected" he said nodding encouragingly as he gestured for the young man to begin his selections. 

Nate focused on the screen in front of him which read Life Customizer at the top with the points remaining being numbered at 1,500. He glanced and looked at the first section which was centered around race and appearance. Looking through the list of races Nate noticed that as he continued scrolling down the list; races started to appear that would have cost all of his points such as dragon after a while he discovered that he could save points by becoming a half-breed.

Taking a quick glance on the information tab Nate read about the fae which mainly pointed out their nature as tricksters with powerful magic type abilities.

Because being a pure fae would cost him most of his points; He settled for half-fae/half-random since the random part cut the cost down significantly to only 200. Satisfied with his first choices he then selected random for hair, and eye color since that wasn't worth spending points on.

Nate then turned his attention to prehaps the most important part of the customizer, the attractiveness scale which ranged from pig to Adonis-level looks.

A small hint of anger rose in Nate's chest as he noticed that even having just above average looks would cost him a whole 600 points "Old man what the heck is this about why is this so expensive" he grumbled out. 

Fred smirked with a satisfied look in his eyes "I can't let you become more handsome and good-looking than me now can I?" he said with a shit-eating grin on his face. 

Unbeknownst to both Fred and Nate the Goddess of beauty, love, and romance was sitting in her chamber with an orb in hand as she spied on the meeting. The goddess chuckled in amusement as Nate continued to argue with Fred about how much of a greedy old man he was. The Goddess understood that Fred was simply attempting to get the boy to become more focused on fighting than romance, but who was she if not a goddess that preferred good-looking individuals? She also thought about how amusing Fred's reaction would be -with that thought the beautiful goddess sent an air kiss to Nate. 

Nate was about to select an ordinary appearance which still cost 300 points when he suddenly felt something press against his cheek. A message then appeared on the screen [You have received a minor blessing from Anuria the Goddess of beauty, love, and romance because of this blessing your appearance will automatically be set to MAX for your level and race and will continue updating as you advance]. A broad smile illuminated Nate's face as he perused various sections, his gaze eventually fixating on magical affinity. The first segment, dedicated to quality, prompted him to swiftly choose "perfect" for his magic talent, a decision requiring 500 points. His excitement didn't wane as he delved into the affinity list, opting for both fae and spatial, investing an additional 200 points in these selections. Opting to further enhance his capabilities, Nate decided to allocate an additional 500 points to perfect quality physical ability, and the remaining 100 points went into a mysterious random bloodline legacy that Fred had hinted at being exceptionally advantageous. Exhausting all his points, Fred conjured a golden portal against the wall, signaling the beginning of Nate's new journey. "Walk through the portal, and your new life will begin," the god said with a smile, pointing towards the shimmering gateway. Just as Nate prepared to step through, the god halted him, grabbing his arm, tapping his forehead with a blessing, and then gently pushing him into the portal.

A minute later, Fred sighed as he observed the closed portal and settled back at his desk. Soon after, a radiant goddess with flowing blond hair and glowing pink eyes appeared, smiling at the seemingly cunning god. "You tricked me," Anuria said, a hint of amusement in her voice. Unfazed, Fred sported a shameless grin, confessing, "I felt you were watching, so I tampered with the screen a bit to double the prices." Anuria nodded in acknowledgment, her expression serious. "This will be your fifth attempt; are you sure this time it will work?" The atmosphere took on a gloomy and solemn tone before Fred replied, "If not, then we will all be doomed."