Chapter One: The "Ordinary" Homebody

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It was a radiant midday, yet, astonishingly, one floor remained shrouded in darkness despite the brilliant sunlight.

On the 34th and topmost floor of the Golden Scale Building, every window was concealed behind heavy curtains. This wasn’t because the people here were peculiar, but simply because the sole owner of this floor—Lance—detested the sun.

Orphaned at the age of eight, Lance had lost his father, a career soldier, to a fatal mission, while his mother had died giving birth to him. Yet it was from that moment his legendary life in the three-dimensional world truly began.

From early childhood, his father had trained him, bestowing upon him a body and mind far beyond the ordinary. At eighteen, he embarked on his first investment, funding it with his inheritance and earnings from various part-time jobs. Thus began his ruthless battle in the business world. After six years of relentless effort, his corporation was thriving, now ranked among the nation’s top five conglomerates, and he himself counted among the five richest men in the country. This, of course, was what the public knew. He held another, more secretive identity: a member of "Venom Sting," the Celestial Empire’s elite special forces. Each member had a distinct persona—businessman, student, teacher, soldier—and unique expertise, along with their own code names. His: "Viper," master of assassination and close combat, and one of the most hunted individuals in the world’s shadowy underworld.

However, he had already transferred all operating rights of his company to the state, earning him both official praise and public favor, and allowing him to indulge his whims without consequence. Still, he never went too far; at present, he was simply lazing about at home, living the life of a self-indulgent recluse.

“Uncle Wolf is really something else. I said I could participate, so why won’t he let me?” muttered a young man, wrapped in a comforter and wearing nothing but blue shorts, seated in front of his computer.

This was Lance, known far and wide as "the strongest shut-in of the three-dimensional world." The title was earned when, at a certain press conference, someone asked his thoughts on the two-dimensional realm, and he boldly declared before the cameras, “I am an otaku; the three-dimensional world is trash. I am a resident of the two-dimensional world.” Countless rivals groaned, “Did I really lose to this idiot?” while the otaku community hailed him as their champion.

Today, he was supposed to be on a mission to track foreign spies, but for some reason, his former captain, "Lone Wolf," had denied him the chance. Perhaps, in the eyes above, his true value lay not in his fearsome assassination skills, but in his unparalleled business acumen. Bored, he resumed watching anime, though the latest shows were all uninspired fanservice and held little appeal. “Forget it, I’ll nap. Fate’s getting a new episode tomorrow anyway.”

He fell asleep right there in his chair, oblivious to the strange turbulence in the sky outside, hidden by the curtains.

––––– Dimensional Rift –––––

“Ah, that was a great nap,” he yawned and stretched, but immediately sensed something was wrong. He had fallen asleep in a chair, yet now lay on the ground. Instincts honed as a master assassin had him leaping to his feet at once, scanning his surroundings warily. All around was dense mist, obscuring everything—except for a clear patch right around him.

“Anyone there? Say something if you’re here.” While no one had harmed him, he couldn’t help but feel tense; those who wished him dead far outnumbered those who wanted him alive. To ease his nerves, he decided to crack a joke.

“No one.”

What! “Is the other party an idiot?” he muttered involuntarily. He had no idea who was speaking, but the reply left him both exasperated and slightly relieved—after all, idiots were less threatening.

“I am not! Lianhua is not an idiot!” As the words fell, a petite girl in a black-and-white gothic lolita dress appeared, her wide eyes fixed on him, brimming with unshed tears.

“What on earth...” He clutched his forehead, too weary to even retort. Why a little girl? Was this some bizarre kidnapping plot? He could hardly believe it—she was clearly a natural-born airhead.

“Lianhua, can you tell me what’s going on?” He flashed a radiant smile at the little girl, though he was certain that, had anyone seen him, they’d have called the police on the spot. He looked every bit the suspicious grown man who’d offer candy at a kindergarten gate.

“Huh? How do you know my name?” She blinked innocently—no doubt about her being an airhead.

“You just said it, remember?” he replied, trying his best to appear the friendly neighborhood big brother. His aim was to lull her into a false sense of security—he needed to figure out where he was and what had happened.

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“Did I say that? Oh well, never mind. Big brother,” she said, fluttering her large eyes, “can you do me a favor?”

“No way!” Of course, that was only his internal monologue. In reality, he found himself overwhelmed by her legendary sparkling gaze. “Fine, whatever it is, leave it to me!” he blurted, immediately covering his face in exasperation. “Damn it! Why does my iron will crumble so easily?” Lance raged inwardly.

“Then, could you sign this?” The little girl produced a contract from behind her back.

“The signatory must assist Lianhua in gathering the ‘World Gems’ scattered across various realms, and Lianhua will, in turn, help the signatory.”

It looked like an ordinary contract, nothing suspicious in the wording. Without hesitation, Lance signed his name; after all, no self-respecting otaku could resist a little girl. Besides, the situation was so sudden that he barely registered the fact that she was floating just above the ground—a detail he only noticed now. Lance had no illusions about standing any chance against this otherworldly child. Still, he had his own principles: if things got truly out of hand, he wouldn’t go through with it, contract or not.

“Alright, since you’ve ‘signed the contract,’ let’s get to work!”

“What? Already? What work?” He hadn’t expected an assignment so soon after signing. Still clueless that he was now half a step into the underworld, Lance had officially become a slave—albeit to a sweet, airheaded little girl. Before anything else, he needed to understand his predicament.

“Tell me!” Lance demanded.

“What do you want to know?” This time, her eyes weren’t sparkling, but Lance still felt his resolve melting. “Am I really a lolicon?” he grumbled inwardly, but pressed on, “Where is this place?”

“The Gap. The space between spaces. Ever since the advent of so-called fantasy worlds imagined by humans, the previously fixed fabric of space began to evolve once more. While most gaps have been filled, some still exist. This is one of them.” Her answer was clear, if delivered with an air of distracted innocence—she might have been peeking at notes, but at least she explained it well.

“The Gap, huh? Alright, I get the gist. But why me? Why did you choose me?” He accepted now that he was no longer on Earth; his composure was remarkable—perhaps all Celestial otaku were truly something else.

“I don’t know. I just picked at random, and you happened to be the one.” She looked utterly unconcerned, as if abducting someone across worlds was no big deal.

“Just out of curiosity, how did you choose?”

“A lottery, of course! What else?” She wore an expression of smug pride, as if expecting praise.

“Right, I’m an idiot for even asking. Alright then, tell me—what are ‘World Gems’?” This was the most pressing question, for it concerned the very objects he’d be seeking. And since this was supposedly a gap in space, he’d already tried using his miniature communicator—unsurprisingly, there was no response.

“World Gems are the fruit of each world, like the flower and fruit of a tree. While they don’t affect the tree’s growth, they’re still very important. Every world that has existed for a long time will produce them. A world is born from humanity’s collective belief in something’s existence. They may not appear in your world, but they’re born in the fabric of space. Humanity may only have a few thousand years of history, but in the shifting currents of space, some worlds may have existed for millennia.” Lianhua explained all this with remarkable seriousness.

“Sounds impressive. But if they’re so important, how am I supposed to find them? And what if someone else already has them?”

“Don’t worry, ordinary people can’t perceive them.” She gave him a reassuring look.

Given everything so far, he clarified, “And by ‘ordinary people’, you mean...?”

“About the level of God, I suppose.”

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As expected. Now he was even more curious about this little girl’s identity—anyone who could speak of gods so casually must be extraordinary indeed. Nevertheless, he decided to accept; after all, as a passionate young man, he still looked forward to adventure.

“If these things are so important, I can’t do it alone.” As a warrior, he knew his own limits.

“No problem. I just watched ‘No Game No Life’ recently, so this is what will help you.” She handed him a crystalline ring.

“This is a spent World Gem. Going forward, much of your information will come through it.”

“Is this like ‘Unlimited’? If I fail, will I be erased?” He finally voiced his greatest concern; in that story, death was as common as drinking water.

“Why would you? I just borrowed the format, so don’t worry. You’re a good person—if you died, it’s not certain the next one would be as good as you.” He felt a tinge of melancholy at being given a “good person card” by a little girl.

“Alright, now you can use the ring to learn about yourself.” She made a gesture as if giving him free rein.

“How do I do that?” Lance asked.

“Just think of what you want to know and say the keyword in your mind. Set it yourself.” He hadn’t expected such advanced technology; he’d thought it would be something like a storage ring from a fantasy novel.

“I am a resident of the two-dimensional world.” That was his passphrase. Instantly, a screen appeared before his eyes. “Not bad, right? Only you and your ‘contractor’ can see it; no one else can,” she said. He also discovered that the ring contained a five-by-five-by-five-meter space.

“Since you know how to summon the screen, you can check the item exchange yourself. Now, it’s time for you to choose your first mission.”

“So soon?” “Of course! Go on, pick one.”

“These three!”

“The Strongest Disciple Kenichi—Rank E”

“Fist of the North Star—Rank E+”

“Holy Grail War Series—Rank D”

“Alright, I’ll choose—”