-Unknown City, Protagonist's House-
We find ourselves in an unknown location in a large house, although it would be more accurate to call it a small mansion since it was enormous. It was located in a residential area, although it stood out among the other houses nearby due to its size.
It had a large front yard as well as a sprawling backyard with a beautiful flower garden of all kinds and hedges with various forms of strange creatures that, although they looked like animals, were not.
The place was at least three stories high, and in one of the highest rooms, on a huge bed that could fit more than 10 people, was a solitary figure sleeping peacefully. An alarm sounded at that moment, indicating it was time to wake up.
"Beep, beep, beep, beep."
The young man's eyelids twitched, signaling his awakening, so he moved his hand to turn off the alarm clock and got up, still somewhat groggy. He was a young man of about 15 years old with attractive features, short black hair, and because he slept shirtless, it was possible to see his well-toned physique with muscles that, unlike large, bulky muscles, had compact, stylized muscles that wouldn't be visible if he were wearing clothes.
"Damn, I thought I'd turned that thing off," the young man said as he got up and turned off the alarm.
"Although I don't remember having a tone like that, and I don't really remember this clock either, and why does my bed feel more comfortable than usual and wider," the young man wondered with curiosity and bewilderment.
It was also at that moment that he glanced around the room and finally realized something.
"Wait a minute! Where am I?!" I screamed in panic as I realized I wasn't where I was supposed to be as I jumped out of bed.
(Okay, calm down, think, breathe) The young man tried to calm down, trying to figure out what was going on here.
(Well, remember that was the last thing I did last night. I remember staying up all night playing on my PC, celebrating that I could finally afford a gaming PC, and then, what happened? Did they kidnap me while I was sleeping or something? Although if that's the case, I'd say these are the most hospitable kidnappers I've ever seen), he said, taking a good look around the room, realizing it was huge and very cozy, which puzzled him as to whether it was really a kidnapping.
"Wait a minute. Who's that?" The young man said, looking into a full-length mirror in the center of the room and seeing a reflection of a very attractive and handsome young man, someone who, according to him, could get girls as easily as breathing, and who made him jealous. But he realized something when he moved his hand, the reflection did the same, finally understanding that it was a mirror.
"Wait, it's me, but how?" the young man wondered. Although he wasn't ugly before, he was sure he wasn't that good-looking, so he didn't understand what was happening.
(Well, first this room, and now I look different. Wait, did the kidnappers then give me plastic surgery to sell me to some rich woman, and that's why I'm here?) He thought it made sense and would explain why he was in a room that looked like it belonged to someone with a lot of money. He had heard of kidnapped people who had facial surgery so they couldn't be recognized.
But the more he fell into that spiral of despair and began to wonder if there was any way out, he noticed something strange on a desk. There was a computer that was undoubtedly even better than the one he'd built, but that wasn't what caught his attention. What puzzled him were some small spheres near the computer and a stack of cards.
"What's this doing here?" he wondered, bewildered, as he approached and lifted one of the spheres and a card from the stack.
The card didn't look too special, except the material felt very solid and of good quality. On the front was an image of a demon-like creature with a skull, horns, and a huge scythe. When he touched the card, he felt something strange, as if the card was pulsing; it even seemed to glow slightly.
"So if it's what I thought, then this sphere is it?" He placed the card on the table and placed one of the spheres on top of it, and it opened automatically, revealing the same demon from the card, or at least some features. It opened at the sides, resembling a robe. Seeing the same skull-like face in the center, although not as detailed, it was clear that it was the same one. He realized it not only because of that, but also because he already knew it.
"Bakugan?" He had seen the series and played a few games, so he knew exactly what they were about. He also knew who the Bakugan was, the Reaper of the Darkus or dark attribute.
He lifted the Bakugan in his palm to take a closer look.
"It is more detailed than I remember. The material also feels different from the typical cheap plastic they were made of. Is it a new material or something?" He wondered, bewildered, wondering if the person he'd been sold to was a Bakugan fan who'd sent him to have special cards and figures made.
But before he could think further and continue coming up with a plan to escape, he heard something in his mind like a doorbell.
[Ding, system online, greetings to the host]
The young man was bewildered, looking around, thinking there might be cameras with microphones in the room.
"Who's there? Did you kidnap me?" The young man asked, looking everywhere to try to find the camera.
[Negative, host, I'm in your head, I'm your system, no one kidnapped you]
He was bewildered by this, but finally realized it was true. The voice inside his head was mechanical, emotionless. He couldn't tell if it was a man or a woman. Although he calmed down, he had a way to determine if it was true. In the end, it could still be a hoax.
(Then you should listen to me if you I speak like this because you're in my mind. He said that in his mind to check if what he was saying was true.
[Affirmative, host, I can hear you,] said the same voice in that flat tone.
With that, he understood that he had indeed spoken the truth. A voice in his head could be explained if whoever kidnapped him had put a speaker in his head, but he didn't think anyone would go to that much trouble just to deceive him. Besides, mind-reading shouldn't be possible unless one had superpowers. It could also be that he had gone crazy and was hallucinating, but he was sure it wasn't that since he had no history of schizophrenia or anything like that in himself or his family.
He also wondered if he was dreaming. Although this dream felt very real, he had heard of vivid dreams, but this one felt different, although he still pinched himself just in case.
"Ouch, okay, that pain felt very real." At that moment, he also heard the voice of the system again.
[Host, there are no speakers in your head, you're not going crazy, and this isn't a dream.] The system said this in its emotionless voice, but a slight tinge of impatience still lingered, though perhaps it was just her imagination.
"Okay, sorry, I had to make sure," she said, scratching her cheek where she'd pinched herself.
"Okay, then. I suppose you know what's going on here, and you can tell me where I am?" she asked the system in a puzzled tone.
[Affirmative, Host. Although it would be best if you knew for yourself. It seems your first dimensional transport affected your memories, downloading the host's memories from the past 15 years. This may take a while, so please wait.]
"Just a moment, like, memories. What do you mean..." She trailed off as she felt a horrible headache, as if she'd been hit hard. She collapsed to her knees, wrinkling her face in pain and gritting her teeth.
"Ghhhhhh!"
(Author: From here on, I'll switch to first-person narration)
After an hour, the pain finally subsided, and I finally got a sense of where I was and what happened. In short, I'm in the world of Bakugan. That's why I felt that strange sensation in the cards and the Bakugan on the table, as well as the fact that they seemed made of better material. It's because they were real, not things made by humans, but real beings.
I stood up when I finally felt better and picked Reaper up again, looking at him closely.
"So you're actually Reaper, not a toy, but the real Reaper." Or well, I guess I can't say that when he's in his sphere mode. I don't know how else to tell you. I'm not sure what material they're made of when they're spheres.
At that moment, I was finally able to reorganize my memories. This body is called Ryuzaki Himura. Although I say this body, it's actually me from what I remember, or at least how I acted. To do that, you first need to know how I got here. As I recall, it was after facing the last boss in Elden Ring. I was frustrated because I hadn't beaten it in a day and complaining about how unfair it was. (Author: I won't spoil anything in case anyone hasn't played it, but those who have will understand the unfair part.)
So, I went to watch some anime to relax and go rest when a strange window appeared in front of me.
[Welcome dear user, you have been chosen as the bearer of the Multiversal Reality Rewriting System. Please press the confirm button to choose your first world and begin your adventure.]
I found it strange. Although it looked like a typical online survey, the fact that a random window would pop up made me think that maybe it was the typical spam window that usually appears about you winning an exclusive prize and having to confirm to claim it. Honestly, I was going to close it, but something told me not to. I don't know if it was my instinct or something in that window that was appealing, but I clicked on the option to confirm.
Luckily, it didn't direct me to a spam page or give me a virus. It actually directed me to a page like those typical internet quizzes about what your personality is or what character you are.
There was a spinner with nothing on it. It was a solid color with an arrow next to it pointing toward the spinner, indicating the option to choose even if there was nothing. I thought the page had been bugged, but an ad about the spinner popped up.
[Please click on the spinner to select your first world]
It was weird that it would ask me that with a spinner with no options, but I did it anyway. I could see the spinner spinning because the arrow moved as if the spinner had bumps to stop it. So I waited for a moment, and about 5 minutes later, it stopped, and the spinner lit up with a single word.
BAKUGAN
[The host's first world has been successfully selected. Please indicate how you wish to enter the world. The restrictions are specified below.]
[1. The host cannot write the ability to become the protagonist directly.
2. Characters cannot be deleted or their established personalities changed.
3. It is not allowed to write actions for characters to perform. For example, you cannot write that a character falls in love, kills, hates, or any other similar actions.
4. The host cannot write that they have powers or become a different race unless they are already of that race.
5. All skills gained by the host in the world will be retained in the next world.
6. The host can choose when their character will appear in the world and when the host will take control]
There were certainly a lot of rules, although it was strange. It wasn't a survey; it seemed more like something to write about yourself or inventing a character in the chosen world. I thought it was a kind of joke, but it seemed interesting, so I chose to write something that could benefit me. It felt like writing your story in a role-playing game.
I wrote several things following the rules. The main ones were that the boy who saw a girl was me. I became Julie and Billie's childhood friend. Although I couldn't write that he liked me directly, I knew that the childhood friend identity was an advantage, considering the two of them ended up being a couple.
Although that seemed odd to me considering he was always throwing himself at Dan and was never seen doing that with Billie, maybe it had to do with him not being part of the fighters, so I also wrote to become part of them. That would guarantee me more time with her, and that fanboy mode would remain with me instead of Dan if there wasn't some kind of protagonist aura or some crap like that.
At the time, I didn't see anything wrong with basically trying to get a head start with Runo and Julie. It seemed harmless to me, so I just went with the flow. I made my character dominate the Darkus attribute, especially to fill out the team. Although that was supposed to be Alice or Masquerade, she didn't play much on the team until the end, so there was really a gap from a missing element. I also wrote myself as an orphan of wealthy parents who passed away, since that would give me more freedom.
Finally, by the time I arrived, I put it at the beginning of the series' canon. There were more things, but they were the most important changes in my opinion. After finishing, there was an option to accept at the end. I clicked yes, and then I don't remember anything. Everything just went black, and here I am.
Back to the present
"I see, so that was real. I'm really in Bakugan," I said in shock, with some excitement, but I also realized something else. I put that I was a Darkus master, but I didn't put my Bakugan in, so how did they get here?
[I can answer that, host. As a gift, considering the answers you gave, the system assigned you a backstory. I'm sure you remember that too.]
And you're right. I remembered that too. Apparently, Dan sees me as a rival for a reason. I'm the top 1 in the world, the best Bakugan fighter, at least according to the rankings. I guess it made sense, too.
In the end, although the one who lived here for 15 years wasn't exactly me, he acted like me, therefore he had my mentality. He knew about Bakugan and knew how to exploit the rules and strategies. Although, well, the anime tried to show that there was strategy, and while there were cards that allowed you to defeat stronger Bakugan without fighting, in the end, many fights were still decided by who had the most power.
I mean, there were those trap cards to easily defeat more than one Bakugan, but they only used them once and then suddenly seemed like they already existed. I mean, why not abuse cards like that?
Anyway, putting aside my internal complaints, I headed back to the system.
"So my reward is the background and being top 1," I said curiously to the system. I mean, it's like the best start, , so I'm not complaining either.
[Affirmative, but that's not all, host. The exact rewards are the Bakugan and cards present, but they are special since they are unique cards and Bakugan] the system said, and I don't know what he meant, so I wanted to see what he was talking about.
I picked up the Bakugan pod he had on the table to see what he meant and saw what he meant by special Bakugan. I was dumbfounded by what I saw.
Darkus Reaper: 450g
Darkus Laserman: 400g
Darkus Fear Ripper: 420g
"Holy crap, what's up with these levels!" I couldn't help but scream, but who wouldn't with those levels? Although it doesn't seem like much in the games, this is the anime and it's just the beginning, which means I'm completely broken.
Although power levels can be increased with cards, a Bakugan's base power is still key. Now I understand why I'm in the top 1. These power levels are a trap. The strongest Bakugan back then was the Hydranoid from Masquerade, and my Reaper has the same power level. A power level of 400 or more was considered the pinnacle back then, and I have three. Even with only these Bakugan, it's not like I need more. I couldn't help but think of something.
"Naga, these Bakugan are strong, but if that crazy dragon comes, I won't be able to do anything. Besides, in later seasons, power levels will skyrocket. I won't be able to do anything with just this." That's what I was thinking at the time. At this stage, I'm certainly almost invincible, but later on, when the protagonists' and villains' Bakugan start evolving, and we move on to other seasons, it won't be of much use.
Later on, it wasn't just a Bakugan team that mattered, it was just a single, very strong Bakugan. And while Reaper is impressive, I won't be able to do anything about it afterward.
"Am I going to stay stuck like this, being nothing but cannon fodder in the future?" I thought, a little depressed, thinking about what lay ahead, especially considering I'm part of the brawlers, and bigger and bigger problems will arise, and I don't have a way to deal with them.
[Those aren't all the host gifts yet; there are more things specially designed for the problems you mentioned.]