The Primary World Connection.
In other words, the world that I would use as my 'hub.'
The world that would become my new 'home' within the Multiverse.
I needed to consider my options carefully for this...
Firstly, it had to be a modern world. That was a criteria I wouldn't budge on.
The reason was because modern worlds were incredibly accessible. With the internet, you could buy damn near anything. Plus, I had no idea of knowing the prices in the shop yet. Who knew if the shop might jack up the prices for things, and instead make it cheaper to buy them from the worlds they originated in.
It was a precaution I had to take; I couldn't afford any fuck ups early on given I was now working with a pretty bad disadvantage.
Second, I needed the world to be somewhat supernatural. This would allow me to sell magical items I obtained from either the gacha or from the store to the right customers. I'd be able to jack up prices too, depending on what I was selling. Depending on the world, items that seemed boring could potentially become priceless.
My first immediate thought was the world of Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
I could potentially sell to gods, demigods, monsters, clear-sighted mortals... It was a big customer base. On top of that, monsters were always respawning. They didn't truly die; they would simply come back later on. In other words- they could be used as an eternal experience farm. Something important to keep in mind.
On top of that, things like healing potions would go for a lot. Especially for demigods, who's only healing options were Ambrosia and Nectar- something which they could only take so much of lest it ended up killing them.
Harry Potter was another potential option.
What Harry Potter lacked in some respects; they made up for in sheer versatility. There was a spell for essentially everything, a potion for every problem. The only things they couldn't cure were things caused by Dark Magic- but that was an infinitely minor problem compared to just how many answers they had to solutions.
On top of that, they had countless magical creatures who's body parts were in high demand. And, if a spell didn't exist for your problem, it was possible to create one using Arithmancy- or Math.
In terms of Magic, it was by far one of the most versatile worlds.
The only downside to Harry Potter, however, was the fact that it took place in the 90s. In other words, the internet was only in its infancy on a global scale. Phones were far bulkier and if they were mobile, and they costed practically a fortune.
While there were a lot of potential investment opportunities, I also recalled that Magic caused technology to act up around it in that world. That was a big problem given the internet was one of the reasons I wanted a modern world in the first place.
My Hero Academia was also a potential option.
While not supernatural in the strictest sense, Quirks were akin to magic- just more biological rather than mystical. I could brush off items I made as being a result of a quirk- though I would need a LOT of thought in order to come up with a suitable explanation.
The downside was that, because it wasn't supernatural, there were no 'mobs' to face off against. This meant levelling up would be difficult... While there was a chance I might get something like ID Create or ID Escape, it wasn't something that I could rely on. I had to plan around the idea that I wouldn't have anything like that.
The bright side to MHA, on the other hand, was the technology they had. They were able to make items that were capable of interacting with people on a biological level, enhancing their quirks or acting as restraints. They were even capable of making shock absorbing items so powerful that they were capable of nullifying the full power of One For All- which was capable of causing an upstream that changed the weather with a single punch.
While I acknowledged how good technology was, and I would love a prosthetic, any prosthetic would need to be at least Legendary in order to replace my missing limbs.
MHA was stricken from the record as a result.
The only other world that came to mind as fulfilling my requirements- off the top of my head at least- was High School DxD.
DxD was a modern world- set in the early 21st century. Sometime between 2010 and 2020 was implicated, which made it an ideal time frame. Internet was up and active, YouTube was up and about, along with other useful websites. There were also various game consoles already released, along with tons of great games like Legacy of Kain, Kingdom Hearts, and so on.
It also fulfilled a supernatural requirement. Stray devils were always a problem that needed solving, along with rogue units from various factions, so plenty of 'Mobs' were available for obtaining Experience from in order to Level Up.
On top of that, DxD also lacked Healing Potions- their only real options for healing were from Phenex Tears or from Healing Type Sacred Gears like Twilight Healing. This meant that there was a massive market open for me, though I'd have to be careful to not overstep and get the Phenex Family on my ass since they had dominated the market for thousands of years.
Furthermore, DxD had all sorts of legendary items in things like Sacred Gears... If I was able to obtain the Boosted Gear from Issei before canon, then I could potentially make a deal with Ddraig to replace my missing right arm and eye.
Though I wouldn't get my hopes up for that, a Sacred Gear extractor probably cost a hell of a lot. On top of that, I wasn't sure how I felt about killing Issei like that. Furthermore, the Boosted Gear might only be a Legendary Ranked Item. If I wanted to get back my arm and eye, then it would have to at least be God Level.
Still, even with that, DxD was a solid choice. While there was a lot of danger about, I felt like it was worth it. Plus, with my ability to warp back to the store at a moment's notice and bar people like Rizevim and even Ophis from entering the shop, I felt much more secure in my choice.
"I choose High School DxD," I said confidently.
You have chosen 'High School DxD' as your Primary World Connection.
We will now give you your backstory.
I blinked and tapped my chin... So, I would get a backstory into the world as well- to make me part of it. That made sense.
For reasons unknown, you were found on the steps of an orphanage at a very young age.
"... Of course there are secrets in my own backstory," I groaned.
When you were 8 years old, a dimensional fissure opened up and dragged you inside, resulting in you being hurled from world to world throughout the multiverse with no way to stop it, and lost both your arm and eye in the process of travelling from world to world.
Eventually, you figured out how to harness the energy and were able to create a 'Fixed' point between the Multiverse- your Interdimensional Shop- though you strained yourself so much in the process that you lost your memory of how to do so, and also many of your memories from travelling to different worlds. Before you lost the ability to control the energy, you were able to create a permanent link back to your home world- Draconic Deus.
With many of your memories missing, it will be up to you to decide if you want to piece together the broken fragments of your past and find out who you truly are.
I took a deep breath... It was a fairly simple backstory, all things considered, but it told a lot. One, my parents were unknown. Their fates were unknown as well, meaning there was a very good chance that they were, in fact, alive but I had been separated from them for whatever reason.
Next, I had lost my memories by overexerting my power over the Multiverse in order to create my shop. I had barely managed to create a link back to my own world before doing so, however.
It left a lot of room for interpretation, and a lot of unanswered questions. Still, it was at least something.
You will be placed inside of your shop the morning after you have finished setting it up- at 17 years old. You will retain memories of your past life, but your memories of your current life will be fractured as a result of your overexertion.
You have completed the Tutorial. You may now view your Status page by saying or thinking 'Status.'
I let out a sigh of relief... Finally, I'd reached the end of the Tutorial... It felt good, I would need a lot of time to process everything...
Honestly, how long had I been in this voice? It felt like I'd been here for like, 2 weeks...
"Status," I finally intoned. The screen opened up, revealing not only my equipment and the like, but it even showed me a 3D model of myself!
I ignored the words for a moment to focus on my 3D model, taking in my new appearance.
My hair was red and messy, looking as if I'd just woken up that morning. My eyes- eye- were purple. It may sound narcissistic to say, but I felt I was a fairly handsome young man for my age...
I couldn't help but feel the appearance was familiar, but I just couldn't put my finger on it. I shook my head and focused on the clothes.
A white shirt with a necklace- an upside down cross- around my neck. Along with a red jacket that was twisted around the right arm, perfectly cupping my missing limb to make it comfortable. I wore a pair of denim jeans with a brown belt, and simple black sneakers.
It was a simple appearance, but an undeniably handsome one. Maybe I'd actually have a nice time in this life, who was to say?
I finally turned my eye to the status screen itself.
Name: Lynx Tiberius
Age: 17
Race: Human(?)
Job: Dimensional Merchant Level 1
Class: Summoner Level 1
Skills: [Tap to Expand]
Magic: [Tap to Expand]
Perks: [Tap to Expand]
Traits: [Tap to Expand]
I hummed as I focused on my new name... Lynx Tiberius.
If I remembered correctly, a Lynx was a type of cat. And Tiberius... Wasn't that the last name of a Roman Emperor?
Well, it was a good name regardless. I could go by Lyn for short if I ever wanted to- though Lynx was a perfectly fine name, I had no complaints about it.
Not like I could remember my previous one anyway.
The question mark next to my Race caught my eye... This was likely something to do with the unanswered questions about my past. Human seemed to be just a placeholder for now until I learned what I actually was.
And, if I wasn't wrong, I wouldn't be able to just 'guess' what race I actually was. I'd need to find out with hard evidence or undergo some sort of bloodline awakening in order to access to traits and abilities of my actual race.
I looked down at my missing right arm and let out a sigh... Things were definitely going to be tricky from here on out, especially with an arm missing.
But even despite the potential dangers and difficulties, I couldn't help but be excited. I mean, who didn't want their own Isekai adventure in another world?
Right now, I was at the bottom of the food chain. But I had no intentions of staying there.
I would grow.
I would adapt.
I would overcome.
"My name is Lynx Tiberius," I intoned into the void. "And I'm going to live this new life to the fullest."
Are you ready to begin your new life?
"Damn right I am."
Then Good Luck and Have Fun!
My world vanished into pure white.