Tokyo, Japan. The year was 2009.
Ryan stared at the middle schoolers around him. Same skin tone as his, sure, but one glance told him they weren't locals from his neck of the woods.
No, wait. They were the locals. He was the outsider.
Years of, uh, cultural research through videos let him recognize them instantly: Japanese middle school girls. Otherwise, how could he be seeing so many JKs in their signature short skirts? Those old fogeys back home would never allow female students to wear skirts that short; they'd want them bundled up so tight you couldn't even see their toes.
"I really transmigrated?!" Smack! He slapped himself. It stung like hell, making him wince. Definitely not a dream.
Just a day ago, he was your average Joe, a run-of-the-mill office worker. He'd busted his ass for the company for years, on the cusp of a promotion, when some trainee—who hadn't even been there for two and a half years—swooped in and sniped it from him. What kind of skills did that guy have? Ryan wasn't having it. He asked around and found out the guy's uncle was the general manager of the marketing department.
That's when it hit Ryan, crystal clear. Hard work? Useless. Outperforming your colleagues? Pointless. Out here in the real world, it's all about your background, all about who you know. For crying out loud!
Every time something like this happened, Ryan was convinced everyone else felt the same way – that there was no such thing as fairness in this world. Sports were no different. Look at the national soccer team back home – you wanted playing time? That'll be a few million, cash on the table. No money? No money, no playing. Get lost!
Having a rich dad was just too damn important! Look at Bronny James. Played like crap, but because his dad was a Mount Rushmore candidate for GOAT, he still got "MVP" chants from the crowd, and his jersey sales hit a whopping 50 million. US dollars, mind you. Of course, the son of the actual GOAT on that Mount Rushmore wasn't much different. Jordan's eldest son played 59 college games and racked up a "staggering" 58 points. And the result? Even though he couldn't even average one point per game, because his dad was Michael Jordan, nobody ignored him. Some people were even holding out hope that one day, this "son of a god" would just magically 'get it' and dominate the court like his old man.
Still, the basketball court was, ultimately, a bit fairer than real life. Whether it was Bronny or Jeffrey, if they weren't good enough, they weren't good enough. No matter how legendary their fathers were, those skills couldn't just be inherited.
"But those guys are set for life, man," Ryan sighed. "All the women they could want, all the luxury cars they could drive..." You can laugh at Jeffrey for not even averaging a point, but Jeffrey's laughing at you for not even knowing what a Beverly Hills mansion looks like. Oh, and Jordan's other son, Marcus? Even more of a legend. He actually got with his dad's old teammate's ex-wife, and rumor had it, even knocked her up. God knows how Jordan and Pippen were supposed to address each other at reunions after that. Just… wow.
Ryan ruffled his own hair. "System? You alive in there? Give me a 'ding' or something!"
Ding!
"You actually dinged!" Ryan had a sarcastic remark on the tip of his tongue but didn't know where to begin. He asked, "So, what brand are you? Lay it on me."
"Welcome, Host, to the Popular Character System..."
"Hold up." Popular Character? Ryan had read his fair share of webnovels over the years. Hearing such a ridiculously over-the-top system name, something immediately clicked. "Is this one of those deals where everything I do here gets broadcast to some higher dimension, becoming a movie or even a TV series?"
"It's an anime!" the System corrected.
Even lower on the totem pole, huh? So, I've basically become some 2D paper character? The thought instantly killed his interest. Who would want to live in a Truman Show? His life was not some reality show for others' entertainment!
"We can make you a millionaire!" the System offered.
"I've already transmigrated. Becoming a millionaire doesn't seem that hard, does it?" Ryan touched his bangs. Silver-white. He couldn't resist rushing to the bathroom to look in the mirror. "Damn it, why'd I get stuck with such an unlucky face?" Fluffy, silver-white hair, a pair of sky-blue eyes… if he wore a Jujutsu High uniform, he'd be a dead ringer for Gojo Satoru. And I really don't want to end up sliced in half like Gojo!
Turning his head, he saw two girls nearby whispering to each other while looking at him. From their expressions, it was clear they weren't looking at a psycho. It was that drooling, starry-eyed look girls get when they see a hot guy. If you added some special effects, you'd probably see little hearts floating in their eyes.
Ryan walked over. "Hey girls, mind if I borrow a phone?" "Mm-hmm! Mm-hmm!" They didn't refuse, handing it over decisively. Ryan wasn't surprised. When the system activated a day ago, it had given him a universal language proficiency skill. Communicating with the locals was no problem at all.
Ryan opened a search engine and checked the current date: 2009. "2009… Lakers won the championship. After the Shaq-Kobe duo broke up, Kobe finally proved himself." Better be safe, let's see if history is still on track. 2008 NBA Champions: Boston Celtics. 2007 NBA Champions: San Antonio Spurs. 2006 NBA Champions: Miami Heat. Yep, no changes there. D-Wade's incredible scoring blitz in those playoffs, especially that rain of free throws, Ryan remembered it vividly.
Next, the World Cup. 2006 World Cup Champions: Italy. 2002 World Cup Champions: Brazil. And the upcoming 2010 World Cup Champions... The Matador Legion! Spain!
"It's 2009 now, which means next year..." "I'M GONNA BE RICH!" Ryan roared to the sky, startling the two young women. This devastatingly handsome guy might actually be crazy, huh? they thought.
System: "..."
Who cares about being some 'popular character'? I'm going to be a billionaire!Starting today, I'll work my butt off and aim to make a cool hundred million next year!
He handed the phone back, whistling as he walked away, leaving the two girls anxiously checking their contact list. They sighed in disappointment when they realized Ryan hadn't saved his number. They didn't mind if he was crazy; crazy guys were often easier to handle!
The System, however, was getting anxious. "Is that really all you aspire to?"
"Are you even listening to yourself? A billionaire! And you call that 'all' I aspire to?" Ryan retorted to the empty air. "Yeah, that's my aspiration. Got a problem with it?"
"Don't you wish for your life to be more… epic? More dramatic?"
"Getting hit by a truck and transmigrating to another world? My life is already dramatic enough, thank you very much." Ryan paused. "Speaking of which, I've been meaning to ask. Transmigration is one thing, but why'd it always have to be some generic delivery truck that did the deed?"