Kyle realized he was not in heaven the moment he opened his eyes and saw her. He expected pain or at least some shock to have faded, but nothing of the sort happened.
He stood up and observed his surroundings. It felt like he was in the sky, with bright white clouds surrounding him. A soft breeze brushed past. Suddenly, he noticed he wasn't alone.
All around him were his classmates—every single one of those on the bus was nearby, faces showing confusion and clear emotion.
"Where the hell are we?" Jayden asked sharply, fear obvious in his eyes.
"Calm down, babe," Amelia, Jayden's girlfriend, said softly, holding his hand. "Getting angry won't help."
"Are we dead?" Roy Badger blurted out, eyes wide with shock.
"Looks like it," someone nearby responded.
"You are exactly right, mortal," echoed a voice, causing everyone to turn. That's when she appeared.
Seated on a golden throne, dressed in a stunning white gown, with long flowing golden hair, sat the most beautiful woman Kyle had ever seen. Her golden eyes fixed on him.
"Holy shit!" Jayden exclaimed, causing everyone's world to shake.
"Jayden!" Amelia snapped, understanding the reaction.
The goddess looked at the students and smiled. "It's an honor to meet you, mortals. As Roy Badger said, you are all dead. A large tree fell over and crushed the bus, killing you instantly."
"What about the bus driver?" Selena asked, scanning around. "She's not here."
"I didn't need her," the goddess replied. "That's all I'll say about it."
A heavy silence followed, then a boy raised his hand. "Did she go to heaven or hell?"
The goddess glared. "Are you mentally impaired, or did you forget what I just said?"
The boy lowered his hand slowly. "Noted."
"Anyway," the goddess continued, "you're all dead, and I've brought you here to give you a better life—a life of full freedom and independence, for my amusement."
Kyle thought to himself, 'At least she didn't deny it.' He watched her carefully, trying to resist the urge to rebel. She was breathtaking—almost like living porn. Yet, he wondered what she would do next.
"That's why," the goddess said, "I will transmigrate you as background characters in different novels. Each of you will be placed in separate groups, entering stories of my choosing. Your role is to assist the protagonists, help complete the plot, and even outshine the main characters if you can. But, you must not reveal to anyone—main or background—who you are or what happened here. You can only communicate within your story group."
Kyle gasped softly, excited about the new beginning—a chance to be recognized, to stand out, and to escape the torment from his classmates.
"It seems we have no choice, goddess," Marcus said quietly. "But what about students in relationships? Surely, you have a plan for that?"
"Your partner will be placed in the same group as you are," the goddess replied. "But you'll have to find them. Also not that you will regain the memories of the past body."
"Now," the goddess continued. "Depending on your luck, as you transmigrate, you'll receive the ability meted out to you. If your luck is poor, a trash ability is what you get, if it's high, your talent and the ability will be exponentially high. Is that understood?"
Everybody nodded and the goddess smiled, pleased. "Now, you will be shared into groups."
As it commenced and the goddess stated them, somehow Kyle found himself with Marcus, Amelia, Jayden, Roy, and Selena and he felt sick.
"Oh, seriously." Jayden scoffed in anger. "Do we really need to have this loser with us?"
"Let it go, Jayden," Marcus replied. "He knows very well to stay out of our way. Don't you, you freak?"
"Yeah," Kyle nodded hurriedly. "Understood. I won't come anywhere near you."
"Alright, the goddess announced, 'Now that everyone is organized into groups, the portals are opening. Just a heads-up: I won't be helping you at all. You're here to enjoy yourselves and have fun.' Suddenly, four large portals appeared out of nowhere, each glowing a different color. Knowing their task, the students stepped forward. Kyle took a deep breath, ensuring his group went first. This was his chance to start anew, free from past ties, to live without conflict or hindrance. He inhaled deeply again and stepped into the portal, which closed behind him.
Suddenly, Kyle was enveloped in complete darkness. Bewildered, he wondered why he wasn't in the novel the goddess mentioned. A voice broke the silence behind him, and he turned around.
A sickly man was standing there—pale, yellowish, with short brown hair obscuring his face and glasses perched on his nose—smiling weakly at Kyle. "It's nice to meet you, Kyle," he said again.
"Who are you?" Kyle asked.
The man smiled. "I'm the god of this place, so I suppose you've met my wife?"
Kyle recoiled. "Wait, that woman is your..."
"Yes," the god interrupted, "she's my wife. It's hard to believe, but it's true."
"What do you want from me?" Kyle asked, intrigued by his presence here.
"I need your help," the god answered. "I sincerely request your assistance."
"Why me?" Kyle pressed.
"If you've noticed, the goddess was the only one you saw before I appeared. It's an unequal relationship—she rules, and this is a matriarchy. But that's not the worst part. I have no authority, no freedom—nothing—except this place you see now."
"And?" Kyle encouraged.
"The goddess lied," the god said grimly. "Those she considers perfect are granted powerful abilities. The others—disgusted by their age—will receive nothing, not even a weak ability. They will die quickly."
Kyle swallowed nervously. "Am I one of them?" he asked.
"Look into my eyes and say that the goddess will bless you. You've shown no personality at all—you look like a background character in a game."
Kyle knew it was true, so he stayed silent. "So, what do you want me to do?" he finally asked.
"Take my blessing and become my champion. I need you to get strong enough to persuade her to give me some freedom. Will you help?"
"Yes," Kyle responded without hesitation. He wasn't about to risk dying in the first chapter.
The god sighed with relief. "Thank you. Please succeed for me."
Suddenly, Kyle felt himself pulled into darkness. The next thing he knew, his consciousness was fading, and everything went black, quite literally.