“Okay, I’ll keep that in mind.”
“That’d be great. Because it’s really a huge pain for us if we have to intervene.” It seemed the god of creation thought just about everything was a pain.
“You mentioned something about giving me abilities that would be like cheats, right? So what are you gonna give me?”
“Yeah! Well, we have to start with the basics, of course, so we’ll give you Identify! That one’s super useful. Also, I’m going to give you Growth Boost! That one increases all your growth—like the experience points you receive and stuff like that—by about ten times what the average person would receive. As for the rest...the gods and goddesses who like you will bestow you with various protections or cheat abilities. We’ve decided that those present will do that.”
“So, what am I gonna get?” Having grown up in modern times surrounded by manga, anime, and light novels, I was pretty interested in supernatural abilities.
“That’s a secret. You’ll have to wait until you’re reincarnated to find out. But you’re the first person to have ever received abilities from this many gods. Aren’t you lucky!”
“‘The first’? So you mean there have been other people who came to this world before?”
“Yeah. Maybe forty or fifty in all. But it wasn’t just people who came—there were dogs, cats, and strangely, even a fish...”
“A fish...” So my soul is in the same class as dogs, cats, and even fish...?
Unaware of my internal conflict, the god of creation continued speaking with a fond look on his face. “A Japanese koi, to be more specific. A huge koi with the name of Namitaro—more than two meters long! A fisherman caught it right after it was reincarnated, though...”
“Oh, that sucks.”
“The majority were humans, but some of them had such terrible personalities that none of the gods wanted to give them anything. Most received one or two abilities, though.”
“In that case, it does seem like I’ll be getting a lot. Thanks for that.”
“You’re welcome. It’s time for us to start now, though. Oh—what do you want me to do with the memories from your past life?”
“Leave them intact, please.”
“Got it. We’ll do this all while you sleep, so by the time you wake up, you’ll have been reincarnated. Also—I’m calling it ‘reincarnation,’ but we’re actually going to simply create a body for you, so you won’t have parents. We’ll just leave you near someone we think might raise you. Worst-case scenario, even if they don’t, you’ll still have the protection of the gods, so I’m sure you’ll manage.”
“That...feels pretty irresponsible, but okay, sure. Let’s get started.”
“You sure you’re ready? I’ll try to find the nicest people I can. We’ll start now, then. Tenma, I pray that your second life will be full of happiness. Good night.”
“Thanks. Good night.”
At once, Tenma fell asleep.
“All right, let’s give Tenma our protection and his cheat abilities. Besides Identify and Growth Boost, I’ll give him Creation Magic, Enchantment, and Conceal. And my protection too, of course.”
“I’ll give him the full power of my protection. That’s all I can give, anyway.”
“But having the full protection of the goddess of love means he’ll meet all kinds of great people! I’ll give him my protection and Detection.”
“I’ll give him Vitality Boost and Recovery Boost, I think. And my protection.”
“I’ll give him Instant Kill Resistance and Debuff Resistance. I won’t give him my protection.”
“I don’t really think he’d mind having your protection, or anyone else’s protection either...but it’s your choice, Death. I’m gonna give him Skill Acquisition Boost and my protection.”
“I’ll give him Omni-Elemental, Magic Boost, and my protection.”
“...I’ll give him Sensory Buff, Follower Buff...and my protection...”
“Oh, so Tenma can become a Tamer, then. I’ll give him Destruction Resistance, Destruction Boost, and my protection.”
“I think...I’ll give him ME!”
“Be serious!” everyone else cried out.
“Whaaat? You don’t have to yell at me. Fine, fine. I’ll give him...‘My Love’!”
“That’s the same thing!” everyone else yelled again.
“Fine... To help him gain combat skills faster, I’ll give him Combat Master, Physical Ability Boost, and my protection! There—are you satisfied?”
“That should do it. Now it’s time to cast the enchantment on Tenma.” There was a pause. “There, all done. Let’s check his current stats.”
Name: Tenma Otori
Age: 25
Class: Human
Title: Favorite Child of the Gods
HP: 15000 → 50000
MP: 15000 → 50000
Strength: B- → S+
Defense: B → SS
Agility: B → SS
Magic: C+ → S+
Mind: A → SSS-
Growth: C → SSS
Luck: D- → B
Skills
Sword: 8
Brawling: 8
Throwing: 8
Cooking: 8
Rod: 7
Endurance: 7
Dismantle Items: 7
Spear: 6
Traps: 6
Night Vision: 6
Archery: 5
Axe: 4
Gifts
Protection of the Gods: 10
Identify: 10
Conceal: 10
Detection: 10
Skill Acquisition Boost: 10
Follower Buff: 10
Growth Boost: 8
Vitality Boost: 8
Recovery Boost: 8
Debuff Resistance: 8
Sensory Buff: 7
Physical Ability Boost: 7
Destruction Boost: 5
Magic Boost: 5
Creation Magic: 5
Enchantment: 5
Destruction Resistance: 5
Instant Kill Resistance: 5
Omni-Elemental: 5
Combat Master: 5
“Think we overdid it?” the god of creation wondered aloud. The other gods just chuckled wryly.
“The abilities we promised him surpass those of even the strongest humans in his world. Plus, since we packed him full of protection, there’s no telling how strong he’ll get,” the goddess of nature said, sounding unusually panicked.
And it was no wonder. It was basically guaranteed that he’d be the strongest human out there if he had a normal childhood, but depending on his experience it was highly possible he’d become even stronger than that. That was how humans became gods...or became humans who could kill gods.
The goddess of nature wasn’t worried about the latter. She was more worried that Tenma’s emotional growth might not catch up to his physical growth. Most humans who got hold of superhuman powers ended up ruining themselves with them, after all.
“He’s got my Destruction Resistance, so I don’t think his physical body or his mind will break. Let’s just watch over him. If we think he’s in danger, we can simply take care of it. Let’s do what’s in our power, while at the same time respecting Tenma’s will.”
Everyone nodded in agreement with the god of destruction. Together, they all gazed at Tenma as he lay on the ground, each of them wondering what they could do to help him.