While it should be apparent at this point, allow me to state the obvious anyways: Kazumi has visited other worlds before. Enough times, in fact, that by now he has a list of rules and tips for him to follow every time. Introducing...
The Kazumi Otherworld Survival Guide!
(Patent Pending)
1. Always go to bed with something on.
This might sound silly. Unnecessary even. But something you should know about Kazumi's dreams is that whatever he's wearing when he goes to bed is what he wears when he wakes up in another world.
...And he has sworn to never let an incident like that ever happen again.
2. Absolutely NO romance.
This one, a bit more obvious. Kazumi, eventually and inevitably, will wake back up in mundane reality. Any sort of romantic endeavor undertaken in these other worlds is just asking for additional heartache on top of the already existing emotional turmoil of abandoning your friends and comrades.
3. Allies are close.
While he doesn't exactly know how the whole condition he refuses to self-diagnose works, he does know this. Whenever he awakens in a new world, his "starting party" will be close by. His dream traveling is at least that merciful.
4. Don't eat random things off the ground.
This should also sound simple. But when you can't find allies and you get hungry...
Well, let's just say Kazumi isn't eating any random plants he finds in the forest, however close to Earth food they look. And it is absolutely his first priority now to always find his to-be companions.
5. Find your goal.
Every "dream" has a goal, a "win condition" he needs to meet to wake back up in "reality". Finding this out is usually not too difficult, but it is still priority number 2.
...This is relevant, because it sets your frame of reference for exactly how Kazumi got into his current predicament.
"C'mon, brat, just hand over your valuables. Not too difficult, is it?" Surrounding the modern-day boy is what appears to be a painfully generic group of bandits. The general vibe the group gives off is rancid, their gazes avaricious...
"...I want you to take a good-achoo!-look at me." Sniff. "And then consider if I actually have anything of value." And yet, these bandits and their rusty, chipped swords were better dressed than Kazumi. Their fur clothing didn't look like the warmest things, but they certainly guarded against this world's cold better than Kazumi's thin, loose pajamas. Said teen was shivering, and looked extremely miserable. "Why the hell did it have to be a cold climate?!" He thought. He was dressed, sure, but dressed for the usual nice and temperate fantasy worlds he visits. This land, while not snow-covered, was clearly lacking in both literal and emotional warmth. Filled with a chill that bit down to your soul...
YOU ARE READING
Isekai Complex
FantasyKazumi Strive is a teen like any other. He goes to school, spends time with his friend, helps his mother around the house, and everything else an average high schooler does. And in his dreams, he is a hero... A story about dreams, reality, and the e...
