{Welcome to the world of Faust! This is a world of magic, swords, dragons, and fair maidens requiring rescue! A world of dreams, wishes, and fantasies that any living entity would want to partake in!}

{This world is now your home, Darius Stone! In this world, you are the protagonist, the pioneer, the chosen one! Forge a path through chaotic politics, troubled markets, and deadly battlefields to stand at the top and become a Supreme!}

{After all, this is the only way your damned soul will ever have a chance at reincarnation! This special privilege has been granted to you by Vena, The Goddess of Games and Recreation! Make sure your actions in this world impress her, otherwise she will strip you of this opportunity and present it to another evil soul!}

{Good luck!}

These were the first words Darius Stone heard as he woke up. He found himself slumped over a dining table that was as simple as they came, made of hardwood and covered with a very thin cloth.

He looked around and took stock of his environment. He appeared to be in a small cottage that could only realistically support two people living within at the most, with a single bedroom, one kitchen that was merged with the dining room, and one living room of sorts.

There was no bathroom that he could see straight away, so Darius wondered how the residents here took care of their hygiene. He next inspected himself to see if there were any changes.

He was astounded to discover that he appeared to be in the cradle of his youth, at age 13. As far as he could tell, he had the same body he did when he had been on Earth, which was a small comfort.

This meant that he should have his typical slicked-back black hair as well as his trademark spiky bangs, his sharp hazel eyes, and his angular jaw which was what had made him into a desirable bachelor as a young adult.

Darius noticed that he wore a neat, long-sleeved, black cotton shirt and slim-fitting black pants with calf-length black boots that gave him the look of a young nobleman who was taking a stroll through some medieval town.

After taking stock of himself, Darius stood up and walked around the cottage, carefully noting anything of interest and collecting it, placing it all on the dining table where he had ‘spawned’.

He then opened the door to head outside and see where he was located. Immediately, Darius was stunned into silence at the sight before him.

He was located in a beautiful glade in the midst of a dark forest, the sunlight barely able to pierce the canopy of leaves as it bathed him in its warm glow. Beside his small wooden cottage was a large pool of sparkling water that looked like the dew of the heavens.

If anything, Darius understood where one was supposed to bathe now. Still, he was totally enraptured by the sights and smells around him, as he came from a life in an urban society.

Anyone from such a place would be rendered speechless and awed by the sight of nature at its prime. Darius continued to absorb this sight for a few more seconds before casually making a lap around the cottage and the glade in general.

After he felt he had inspected it enough, he returned to the dining table and sat down on the chair he had been seated upon when he awoke. Darius silently began to ponder for a bit in silence.

Then, all of a sudden, he began to laugh. It was a startling act that would have made any onlooker stare at him with worry, fearful for his sanity, but there was no one here. Not only that, Darius laughed for a full minute, tears coming from his eyes, the reason for doing so not even apparent at the moment.

Soon, it came to an end, and the young man wiped his eyes and wore a slight smirk. He re-read the warning that had appeared within his vision when he first spawned and then picked up a quill he found.

Luckily, Darius had needed to learn how to use a quill and parchment as part of high society life. It was truly frightening how the true top 1% desperately clung to old traditions and activities from a bygone era, but for once he was glad about this previously useless skill.

He slowly wrote down upon the parchment as his thoughts moved in a flurry, calculations and realizations flashing through his cortex at light speed. Darius’ strength had never been physical, always mental.

Eidetic memory, genius-level intellect, and a high emotional quotient had allowed him to easily read people. All of that had bled into the profession he had chosen for himself in his past life, a businessman.

Darius smirked when he thought of that. ‘Past life’. Ha. Like he was some protagonist from those anime and web novels his son and nephews loved to consume.

Especially his youngest nephew and first grandson. Those two had loved those shounen anime and Darius had often been pulled to watch it with them. As an old man in his seventies, he naturally had had the mentality of one and had chosen to spend time with his family rather than work, even if it meant doing things he might not enjoy himself as much.

Yet, after he had closed his eyes for the last time, he had woken up in a body that was in the early stages of puberty and was greeted by a screen of notifications telling him a certain Goddess had reincarnated him to be her pet monkey and provide entertainment.

Most people… no, any sensible person would not be calm in such a situation, as only the mentally infirm could maintain their neutrality at a time like this. Darius didn’t think he was mad, but his mind certainly was different.

Darius’ train of thought was quite… scary. He had been revered worldwide as a man of kindness, solemnity, and honor. Even though the modern world hated the rich, people had nevertheless still loved him and had even nicknamed him as ‘Darius Wayne’ in relation to that billionaire superhero.

However, there was not a single member of the true top 1% that had climbed their way up by remaining pure and morally clean.

In fact, Darius was quite sure that his soul was blacker than all of the worst criminals in human history, for the things he had done behind the curtain were truly frightening.