…

  Two seconds after I arrived in the first virtual world, via force, I received that message from the system.

  Yo, system. Mind giving me actual instructions, so I can understand what the hell is going on? I thought to myself, as I surveyed the scene around me.

  A lively tavern.

  A bunch of drunk hooligans.

  And…an old man bartender.

  I sighed.

  No sexy nee-sans here at all…damn, what a dry world.

  I looked down at the table in front of me.

  Hmm…

  I picked up the cup, and took a whiff of the liquid instead.

  Smells like a month-old tuna…

  I grimaced, putting the cup down.

  Next, the bread-like thing in the plate.

  Tentatively, I took a tiny nibble.

  …

  “Oi, old man!? What the heck is this!?” I shouted, as the bartender looked up.

  “Bread.” he replied simply, his expression unchanged.

  “Don’t try to scam me! I know what bread tastes like…this…this is just a huge piece of wood that’s been left in the pantry for a decade!”

  He stopped wiping the wine glass that he was wiping earlier.

  Fixing me with a death glare, he muttered his next words beneath his breath.

  “Eat it, or leave it.”

  …

  I gulped.

  …This old man is on a higher level than me?

  As I set the bread back on the plate, the system made another announcement.

  Finally! I was waiting for this!

  I looked toward the entrance of the tavern, spotting the figure in question.

  Damn, Senpai. You are too good.

  …

  WHY ME.

  Oi, system, you do realize that he is a top-ranker, right? And I’m just an ordinary noob that probably can’t do s***? Plus, I don’t even have a name, I am that insignificant. If I go up to him right now, I’ll turn into a meat-loaf in less than three seconds.

  …

  So basically, the system just confirmed that I have a zero-percent chance of winning.

  …Yatta.

  But, if I had to choose between this and getting fired in real life, I’ll take death in a heartbeat.

  Plus, don’t all the characters in animes get stronger each time they reincarnate? It’s like there’s some sort of a multiplier effect. So I am a noob right now, I’ll be less noob next time, and normal the next…by the hundredth-or-so time, I should be demon-king level.

  Yep, don’t give up, Shin. Keep thinking this way, even though it’s obviously false. Yep, you got this.

  I got up.

  Walking over to the table that he was sitting at, I placed my hand on his shoulder.

  “Hey buddy, you-”

  What the flying heck!?

  When did he even-

  I found my new self sitting at a table just a short distance away from the main character.

  Looking down at his feet, I saw the corpse of my old self lying there, figure censored by the system.

  …Ouch.

  “Oi, you there. What the hell did you do to our aniki!”

  Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  I saw a group of five macho guys approach the main character.

  007 ignored them, drinking silently without even looking up.

  “We will avenge our aniki, Assassin A!”

  “Prepare to die!”

  …Wut.

  I watched as the tavern turned into a cage of chaos, as the five guys began trashing the place.

  Backup A flipped 007’s table, sending it straight into…

  Are you serious!? You five, your aniki just got reincarnated into a brand new life, and now you kill him again!? You fools! I don’t remember raising you five like this, you are all disowned, ya hear me, disown-

  …

  “Cut it out, you idiots-”

  What the heck!? You could’ve told me about the one-line rule earlier, you know!? Also, I didn’t even get to finish the sentence…why the hell did I get killed by an inanimate object again!? This is rigged isn’t it??? I’m suing this company, I swear-

  Now I’m not even a human anymore!? Plus, why is a chair a side character, what the hell is going on-

  Staph thissssss!!!

  Someone save me please!!!

  …

  Am I glitching or something?

  …

  I looked to the side to find five other bartenders all lined up, doing nothing.

  “You fools, what are you all doing here…run!!!” I shouted, as they all looked at me in confusion.

  “But, I’m your backup.” the first one replied, tilting his head to the side.

  “And I’m his backup.” the second one said.

  “And I’m his back-” the third one continued, but was interrupted by a flying beer bottle, which knocked him out flat.

  The rest of the bartenders took one look at their fallen comrade, and scattered, running out of the tavern.

  Gehhh, a bunch of idiots! Who needs that many backups anyway.

  I dodged a flying plate that came my way.

  Alright, Shin. Here’s the plan. You are going to bet everything on the next reincarnation. You will stop 007 no matter what you have to do.

  I was hit by the second flying plate.

  Now, I’m ready. I got this. Here I come, 007…your ultimate nemesis will arrive in 3…2…1…

  …

  --------

  Note: Yatta! Fixed! Finally, after an hour of editing, I finally got the formatting done. It was the [ Table] function, the codes after it got intertwined. Sorry for the confusion!