-??? POV-
Yup, I'm a reincarnator.
I'm sure you could already guess this, so I'm just saying it for the record.
Now, I bet you're wondering, "Then where did you get reincarnated?"
The answer is: I don't know...mostly because the village I had been reincarnated into was sealed away from the outside world in a Christmas wonderland.
Snow year-round, I tell 'ya.
I mean, I don't have anything against snow. In fact, it was my favorite thing to see in person for an individual who lived in the bone-dry deserts of California.
But when the snow falls every day, and you wake up with the constant fear of your balls falling off from hypothermia, snow becomes one of the items at the bottom of the tier list.
Wait, what was I talking about?
...Oh, right!
Back to what I was saying. Initially, I didn't know which world I had reincarnated into, which in itself is a big problem. So many issues can be avoided if I knew which world I was in. And I stayed like that for a few years until the day I was let outside to play.
Somehow, I ended up in some sort of church in the middle of town. Out of curiosity, I entered and was met with a statue of what seemed like a very bad statue of Danny DeVito.
But after looking closer, I noticed that it wasn't him, despite how wide the waist of the statue was. It was, in fact, a VERY crappy statue of Qliphoth, the Aeon of Preservation.
Yeah, I was reincarnated into [Honkai: Star Rail].
That knowledge alone was terrifying to me.
Like, what do you mean there's an interdimensional higher being hell-bent on bringing Destruction to the universe?!
Yeah, how about no?
But at this point, saying no wasn't really an option.
Another surprise, this one more welcome than the other, was that I was reincarnated as Kazuto Kirigaya, the protagonist of SAO, and also the MC of my favorite anime of all time.
I was more than ecstatic about this since it meant I'd be getting all the girls, and then ignore all of them and only date one like the original did. But the hoes don't want me, I guess. Perhaps that's because I'm still at the age where it won't go up, but that's besides the point!
I AM FUCKED!
Figuratively speaking, that is.
I could already tell that I was in Jarilo-VI from the god-forsaken, never-ending snow, meaning I'd have to deal with the psychotic MILF Cocolia.
Yeah, that's a good fucking joke.
If the sealed form of Evernight, the reincarnation of the Vidyadhara leader, and a main character carrying the power of a nuclear "fuck you" inside them hardly stood a chance against her, then what hope do I have?
I mean, they were still in base form, but that's beside the point!
But no matter how much I complain, things won't change at all. That's why I decided to go out there, go through my character arc, and get powerful enough to get out of Ullr's left nut sack.
The problem is, I'm sealed here like I'm Gojo.
We live in this MASSIVE crater that's surrounded by this insane snowstorm. The walls are also unclimbable, as once you get to a certain point, they begin to bend inwards, turning the wall climb into a roof climb.
The only exit out of this place is a small and narrow valley. But the problem is that it's blocked by a massive cedar tree that's been blessed by THEM. The Gigas Cedar was the only obstacle blocking my path.
And so, I took the only reasonable path...cut it down.
Now, you may think that my actions are selfish, as that would destroy the only protection of our small village. And you're right, they are.
The only difference is that my goals align with the current situation.
The blessing of the [Preservation] is dying. Each year that passes by, our special crops that can grow in winter produce fewer and fewer of their fruits.
Amber wood, which is a special wood that burns at a certain temperature for a long time and over a wide range, is growing less and less. We lose it, and we'll turn into ice sculptures in no time.
The only thing that isn't deteriorating is that damn fucking tree.
At this point, we'll end up running out of resources with nowhere to go.
Why? BECAUSE WE'RE STUCK HERE!!!
What's even worse is that the people here are absolutely delusional. They speak of "It will be fine, the Amber Lord will help us soon", but he isn't coming. They won't listen, so the only choice is to give them a huge reality check, rather than for them to realize that they fucked up too late.
I've got a family here after all, including my cousin and my friends.
Speaking of friends, Eugeo and Alice exist here as well, to my surprise. I bet that at one point, the whole cast will come together in this world.
But back to the main point, I made sure to befriend them. And with Eugeo's help (And now Alice's), cutting the tree should be faster now...I hope. A month in and no progress; the tree is just too damn sturdy.
Sigh~
The only other option we have is to find an exit via THAT place.
I'd rather not...
At the furthest north point of our cage, there is a cave entrance. Of course, people of our village have tried to explore that place for resources, but many have died. Not because of monsters lurking in there (that we know of), but because the cave is extremely unstable.
One small explosion, one frail pillar knocked down, and the whole thing comes crashing down.
But now, it seems like I'll have no choice.
It's either that, or continue cutting the Gigas tree for god knows how long...and I don't think we have the luxury of time.
Sigh...I really wish we could suspend the time.
===X===
A/N: Hope you got the reference at the end.