A Few Ripples of Fate

In Blood Port, a merchant had a bit of bad luck today. As he walked down an alley, a pole struck him on the head.

In a luxurious mansion, the duke stared blankly at the mulled wine simmering in a pot, forgetting all about his guests.

On a battlefield in the western Empire, a certain general angrily hurled the weapon in his hand straight into the sky.

In Gem Bay, in the Storm Ocean, the king of pirates spent the whole day inexplicably playing with water in his bathtub.

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The weather was clear today. Nothing happened.

Somewhere beyond this peaceful world, in a magnificent palace, a heavy, ornate table stood at the center of the room.

High-backed chairs lined both sides of the table. Several shadowy figures sat in them, heads bowed toward the tabletop, as if asleep.

At the head of the table stood an enormous throne.

Gold and gems covered the throne. The ancient figure seated upon it slowly opened his eyes.

He stared blankly at one side of the table.

A shadow sat there. Flickering candlelight illuminated his face.

Curly brown hair, clothes caked with mud, and a terrible hole in his chest.

It was Theus, who had just died.

The figure on the throne sat dazed for a moment. Suddenly, his face twitched, and he came to life, as if something were slowly entering his body.

The next moment, a voice full of shock came from above.

"Dead? I died again? Just like that, killed for no reason at all!?"

"Damn it, why did he kill me? That makes no sense! I'd already shown such talent for mechanics. He should at least have interrogated me for my knowledge before killing me! Wasn't he even curious?"

The figure on the throne cursed and lifted his head, looking at Theus, who sat motionless like a puppet. The dead boy looked back at him, his eyes vacant.

"I remember that strange priest saying I was a lackey of an evil god?"

"Well... that's probably a common tactic used by the Church. First brand someone as an evil god's lackey, then attack."

"Wait, the Church? Is the Church obstructing technological progress, so they kill anyone who can improve machinery? That makes no sense. That priest had plenty of metal limbs himself. He should understand how important mechanical technology is... Something's wrong."

He frowned.

That priest had appeared out of nowhere, and he was full of mysteries. Since arriving in this world, Theus had never encountered anyone so strange.

"Too bad. I've lost another vessel. I can only begin one new Descent."

He looked away. The boy Theus slowly lowered his head, staring lifelessly at the tabletop like a marionette.

There were already four such lifeless puppets seated along the table. They looked different and wore different clothes, but they all shared one thing...

They were all "Theus."

Theus was a transmigrator. In his previous life, he had lived on Blue Star. One time, after staying up late working overtime, he passed out. When he woke, he was in this strange, magnificent palace, seated high upon the throne.

The palace was lavishly decorated and filled with rare treasures, but Theus couldn't touch any of them. For some unknown reason, he was firmly pinned to the throne and couldn't move even half a step.

Fortunately, he—Theus on the throne—didn't seem to need food, drink, or a toilet.

But he wasn't forced to sit there and wait for death. Whenever he looked toward the figures seated in the high-backed chairs, those puppet-like shadows would raise their heads and meet his gaze. Then Theus could choose to [Descend].

A Descent was like transmigrating into a new body and beginning a new life. Theus looked over the figures seated in the chairs one by one. Among them were a brawny middle-aged man, an old man with a head of white hair, a priest in a white robe, and the young man who had just opened his heart to him.

They were all different, and every new vessel appeared at random.

Theus had no idea what these Descents were for. He had only tried them because he had no other choice.

But this time, he had a different idea.

"That priest from the Church was just too strange."

"In an instant, he attacked and pierced my chest. I couldn't even see him move. Could machinery installed in a human body really do that?"

Theus knew a little about the mechanical prosthetics used on Blue Star in his previous life. They could never achieve that kind of speed or strength. And the priest's mechanical components had been so crude. Theus could still picture those oversized gears.

"A priest... the Church... Now that's interesting..."

"The Church has supernatural powers. Maybe if I get involved with it, I can find a way to break free of this throne."

"No, perhaps it isn't just the Church."

A regretful look crossed Theus's face.

"Too bad. I finally descended into the Empire's capital this time. Who knows how long it'll take before my next vessel gets near a factory?"

This world had only just begun to industrialize. A handful of factories had recently started up—and those were in its most developed regions.

Most places had barely emerged from the Dark Ages. Some of the places Theus had descended into still had remnants of serfdom.

By that measure, workers, with an average life expectancy of barely thirty, actually had pretty decent prospects.

"So, what should I do next..."

He gazed in confusion at the vessels around the table. He had been in this world for some time now. At first, he had eagerly explored it. Now, all he wanted was to go home.

There was no helping it. The vessels appeared to be truly random—which meant a ninety-nine percent chance of ending up as one of the miserable lower classes.

No matter the era, the lower classes seemed to have no choice but to silently endure their suffering. Theus had all the scientific knowledge of the modern world in his head, but every attempt to put it to use had only left behind a lifeless vessel.

This world seemed to offer the lower classes no way forward.

Theus had almost given up on it. The supernatural was his last hope.

"Get involved with the supernatural. If possible, find a way home." Theus's eyes grew determined. "At the very least, I need to find a way to leave this Throne Room. I can't stay trapped here forever."

This world had neither phones nor the internet. He missed Blue Star.

"Time to begin my Descent."

He took a deep breath, made up his mind, and turned toward an empty high-backed chair.

Mist churned, and faint scraping sounds came from within it. Then a hand emerged from the fog and rested on the tabletop.

The mist quickly receded, revealing a handsome, gaunt young man seated in the chair. He smiled elegantly at Theus on the throne.

Theus's eyes lit up. This would be his new vessel.

"Judging by his clothes, he's probably a noble. I finally got lucky!"

"Soap, glass, gunpowder, factories—I'll send a flood of steel rolling across this fantasy world. I can't wait!"

"Behold the glory of science and truth!"

The next moment, Theus's vision went dark.

A new vessel, a new Descent. Everything began again.

Theus had left, and the Throne Room fell silent.

Who knew how long it had been when the discarded vessel—the boy Theus with the hole in his chest—suddenly twitched his lifeless puppet-like eyes.