Cozy Isekai Craftsman (reupload) ch .1

This chapter has some additions and changes.  I figured I'd upload it again.  Most of the changes are the new POV at the end.

I'm going to be uploading 10 chapters tonight. I'd really like to get opinions from the folks who read the story.  This one was a joint effort between myself and C. Cheesecake.  

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Joe turned off his work computer and exhaled. He zipped up his thick winter coat, pulled his woolen hat over his ears, and slid his feet into his sturdy boots. Peering out of the window, he could see the snowstorm brewing outside, the fat, fluffy flakes falling fast, blanketing everything in a pristine white.

With a heavy heart, he closed down his bookstore, switching off the lights one by one, until the shop was plunged into darkness. As he stepped out into the storm, the bitter wind whipped his coat and stung his cheeks. The snow, now knee-deep, crunched under his boots with every step.

Joe reached the door of his tiny little bookshop, “Ivy and Leaves,” and his heart sank as he saw the giant sign plastered on the glass doors. It read "foreclosure" in bold, red letters, a stark contrast against the snowy backdrop. He had seen the words on the sign several times over the past few weeks, but they still made his stomach knot up in fear and sadness.

Despite the gloomy situation, Joe couldn't help but admire the snow's beauty. Each snowflake was unique, sparkling in the streetlights like tiny diamonds. But the foreclosure sign loomed over him like a dark cloud, casting a shadow on his beloved bookstore.

Joe knew the shape of the letters on the sign by heart, but he couldn't stop himself from staring at it, feeling a sense of defeat wash over him. The bookstore had already been a lost cause, ever since his business partner had vanished from the face of the earth a few years ago, taking with him the other half of the funds needed to pay the bills.

Joe let out a deep sigh and trudged through the ankle-deep snow towards his small Toyota Corolla. He reached for the scraper and cleared off the snow and ice, the cold wind biting his fingers as he worked. Finally, he wiped his gloved hand across the windshield and peered inside. He sighed again as he saw the pile of envelopes on the passenger seat. Bills and "Get Well Soon" cards lay haphazardly in the stack, a testament to his mounting medical debt.

With a heavy heart, he slid into the driver's seat and put his hands on the cold steering wheel, his breath misting in the air. He turned the key in the ignition and the car roared to life. He put the car into gear and started driving towards the other side of Chicago, the snow swirling in his wake.

As he drove, he tried to keep his mind focused on the road, ignoring the envelopes beside him, but his thoughts kept wandering back to his financial troubles. He was only thirty two years old, but it felt like the weight of the world was bearing down on him.

Twenty minutes later, he arrived at his apartment complex and was relieved to find a parking spot, something that was becoming increasingly rare these days. When he got out of the car, he noticed that the entire street had been cleared of most of the snow, which was an unusual sight for a Friday afternoon.

As he walked towards his apartment, he saw a woman on the other side of the street. She stood on the very edge of the sidewalk, scanning the road as if waiting for someone or something. Joe couldn't help but stare at her, struck by her unusual appearance. Her white hair was a stark contrast against the colorful buildings behind her, and she looked like she had stepped out of one of the manga he used to read as a child.

She was dressed in an elegant blue and white dress and was pretty in a cute neighborly kind of way. Joe couldn't help but wonder if she was some kind of streamer or cosplayer headed to an anime convention.

He caught her gaze, and for a moment, their eyes locked in an intense stare.

She gave him an awkward wave.

Maybe she needed something, or she recognized him from somewhere, or from his bookshelf, or from his bookshop. But the way she was staring at him unnerved Joe. It was so intent and focused that it made him feel both a sense of familiarity and incredibly uncomfortable.

For some reason, he found himself walking towards her halfway down the street, in the middle of the road. He found himself saying, without any kind of thought, "Do I know you? Hi. Do you need me for something?"

The woman's expressionless face finally softened and she gave him a smile.

He shivered, and not from the winter cold. The closer he got to her, the more familiar she looked, as if she were a model he had seen in ads plastered against bus walls, or maybe she was in some sort of commercial. It was as if he felt like he was supposed to know her. But every instinct told him that this was the first time he had ever seen her.

As Joe stood before her, he couldn't help but feel like he was in a dream. The winter air around them seemed to have frozen in time, and he was the only one standing in the middle of it. He was transfixed by her features, her face like a work of art sculpted by a master artist. Her crystal blue eyes were like pools of water in a desert, and he found himself wanting to dive in and never come up for air.

He could see that she wasn't affected by the winter air. It was as if she had a force field around her that kept her warm, even in the bitter cold. Her skin had a healthy glow, and her hair was like a waterfall of honey, cascading down her back in soft, silky waves. Joe couldn't help but feel drawn to her, and he found himself wanting to know more about her.

As she spoke, her voice soothed Joe. She said, "Joe," and he felt his eyebrows furrow when he stopped in place right in front of her. Joe was certain it was the first time he met her. He would have remembered someone with such striking features.

She was not wearing a coat and did not seem to be affected by the winter air.

Joe blinked and said, "I'm sorry, do I know you?"

The woman's smile deepened. Even though she looked to be in her early twenties, her expression was almost motherly, as if she had been around for a very long time, and almost expectant. She didn't quite ignore his question but did ask, "How's the bookstore going?"

Joe recovered himself. Of course. That explained it.

She must have been one of his customers over the years. She was asking about the bookstore. That meant she didn't know about the foreclosure, which indicated that she hadn't been around recently. She must have been a customer from a few years ago, back when his business was liquid.

He gave a sheepish reply, rubbing his head, almost embarrassed. "Well, to be honest, it's going under foreclosure soon to take care of the bills."

She nodded as if she expected the answer, which was an odd response considering she asked the question.

She didn't wear any makeup, and her eyes were a deep crystal blue, the kind of blue one sees when staring at an open summer sky clear of clouds.

"I've been waiting for you," she said.

Joe found himself taking an involuntary step back. "Waiting for me? Like somebody gave you my address. Was it my sister?"

She laughed and replied, "No."

Joe was confused, but he was a polite man. At least his mother had raised him that way, and he didn't want to be rude by pressing too hard. Maybe that was one of his biggest weaknesses in life, he had never learned how to be assertive.

He asked, “Was it my mom?”

She said, "No, Darlene didn’t give me your address."

Joe's gaze remained fixed on the woman's face, searching for any hint or recognition. He couldn't quite remember where or when they had met, but her beauty had a way of captivating him, almost like a spell. It was as if the entire world around them had come to a stop, and they were the only two people left in the universe.

As he stood there, he felt a sense of calm wash over him, as if the chaotic city streets had melted away into nothingness. The howling winds that had been tormenting him just moments before had ceased to exist, and the snowflakes that had been pelting his face had disappeared. Instead, there was a peaceful silence, a stillness that was almost otherworldly.

He found himself lost in her crystal blue eyes, searching for answers that he couldn't quite put into words. And then, as if a switch had been flipped, he suddenly understood. He felt a sense of clarity wash over him, as if the fog that had been clouding his mind had lifted. He knew her, not in the way that one knows a stranger, but on a deeper level, as if they had been connected in another life.

In that moment, the world came back to life, and he found his voice. He asked the question that had been on his mind since the moment he had laid eyes on her.

"Is it time?" He asked, his throat dry.

His heart was beating faster than ever before, and his mind was racing, trying to comprehend the weight of his question.

The woman only smiled in response, and in that moment, Joe knew that whatever was about to happen would change his life forever. He could feel it in the stillness of the air and the calmness of her presence. He braced himself for what was to come, ready to face whatever was waiting for him on the other side.

She shook her head, her hair falling in waves around her face. "For you, not yet," she said, her voice melodic and soft. "You're supposed to die in a few months, but I made a deal with your God in this plane to look around."

Her eyes were the color of the ocean, and he found himself drowning in them. All the cars in the street that were there before, including his own, were completely gone. Even the snow had vanished.

He looked down at his gloves and found that they were gone, along with his jacket and coat. Instead, he was wearing a simple plain t-shirt with shorts. Despite the oddity of the situation, he felt completely at ease. Some part of him told him that he should probably panic in this situation - he was meeting with some sort of grim reaper or spirit to guide him in death - but he felt calm, at peace.

He asked her, "You know my name, but I don't know yours. It's strange to speak to somebody whose name you don't know." He felt like a fool for stating the obvious, but he couldn't help himself. Everything was so strange and surreal.

She giggled, a girlish laugh that made his heart skip a beat. "You can call me Quinn," she said. "Again, I spoke with the God of your plane for a deal. I asked him for someone of a pure spirit, and he told me to talk to you. That you didn't have much time left and that you might be interested in what it is I have to offer."

Joe took an involuntary step back, not out of fear, but just out of pure shock. He had learned so much in a few sentences from the woman. Apparently, there was a God in this world. He wanted to ask if it was the Christian one or one of the many other religions, but he felt that would have been a rude question. She had been waiting for him, after all, and he didn't like to waste other people's time.

"So you came here for a deal to offer me, is that right?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Well, ma'am, let's hear it," he said, his voice steady despite the racing of his heart.

Her face lit up with a radiant smile, and she flicked her wrist with a flourish.

Suddenly, the world around them dissolved into nothingness, leaving them standing in a boundless expanse of pure white. They seemed weightless, as though floating in an endless void, yet beneath Joe's bare feet, he felt a solid floor.

He glanced down and noticed his boots had disappeared, but at least he was still fully clothed. He didn't want to stand around stark naked, especially not in front of such a stunning woman. Joe couldn't help but wonder if she could read his thoughts.

"Joseph Johnson," she declared, her words ringing crystal clear in the emptiness. "You have only a few months left to live on your Earth. It will be a time of intense physical pain, but also one of beauty. You will reconnect with old friends and loved ones."

As she spoke, Joe felt a vivid vision of the coming months unfold before him. He experienced the joys and sorrows, the hardships and triumphs, all in a single instant.

He blinked and felt his throat constrict with emotion. "What's the other option?" he croaked.

She nodded solemnly. "The other option is that I take you to my world."

"Your world?" Joe repeated, incredulous.

"In my plane, we have a world that is ten times larger than Earth. We have air, and it's very similar to your Earth. Call it a parallel universe. There, we have different magic and technologies that your Earth has never seen."

Joe was swept away by a torrent of visions: fantastic creatures, sprawling towns, towering castles, and people wielding powers that he had only ever dreamed of. The images flickered before him like a dazzling array of colors, but the impression they left was indelible, filling him with a sense of wonder.

"Why are you offering me this?" he asked, awestruck.

"Again, I'm looking for a pure soul," she said softly, her eyes glowing with a deep, inner light. "You are one of the few who possess such a soul. I simply want you to come and live in my world."

Joe blinked, stunned. "That's it? I don't have to sign a contract with my own blood or sell my soul to you?"

She laughed, and the sound was like music. "No, Joseph. There are no such conditions. All you have to do is come with me."

He furrowed his brow as he questioned her, "What exactly do you want me to do over there? Do I need to become some kind of valiant warrior and fight against evil forces? We've got a whole genre of books for that kind of thing right here."

She blinked, looking perplexed and out of place for the first time. "You have a whole genre of stories about people traveling to other worlds and living entirely different lives?" she replied.

Joe couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Yeah, I know," he said. "But it stopped being my cup of tea when it became a parody of itself."

Despite his reservations, the idea of starting a new life in a new place thrilled him. He knew he would have to leave his family without warning, but the prospect of a fresh start was too tempting to ignore.

"So let me get this straight," he said, trying to make sense of it all. "I don't have to fight any evil or anything like that. You just want me to come and live there?"

She nodded, her smile unwavering. "It's hard for you, as a mortal, to understand," she explained. "But the mere presence of someone with a pure soul like yours can boost the energy of our world. A little bit of good can go a long way in the grand scheme of things."

Joe's suspicion kicked in. He asked, “Aren’t you concerned I might turn evil or something?"

Her eyes rolled slightly as she replied, "You're a pure soul. It's impossible for you to become a bad person and do harm."

Joe tried to think of as many dark thoughts as possible to contradict her, but he couldn't betray his upbringing. "Alright, you got me," he said with a chuckle. "So what are my options here? Live the rest of my life here in pain, or start anew and bring joy and love to my small community over there?"

She nodded, her smile growing even wider. "Those are your two choices," she confirmed. "But I promise, you won't regret the second one."

Joe's voice trembled with anticipation as he asked, "What happens if I come with you? What will become of the people I leave behind?"

Quinn's face contorted with sadness, and her eyes became watery. "They will move on, as all living things do after departing this world. And when they too depart, they will be presented with options, but not like the ones you're considering."

Joe exclaimed, "So this is an Isekai? I'll be transported to another world? Will I gain any cool powers or abilities?"

Quinn's grin was infectious as she replied, "Absolutely! You'll be able to choose from a plethora of incredible abilities. However, you can only select one if you decide to come and live here."

Joe furrowed his brow and pondered, "Will I be reborn as a baby or something like that?" Quinn shook her head, "No, you're thirty two now, but you'll be reborn as a twenty-year-old with a twenty-year-old's body. You'll look exactly the same as you do now, and you'll understand the local language, which happens to be nearly identical to modern-day English."

Joe ran his tongue over his front teeth, clicking it back and forth while he ruminated. He questioned, "Are you sure I don't have to do anything to gain these powers?"

Quinn inquired, "What do you wish to achieve in this new life if I grant your request?"

Joe thought back to his childhood dreams of being an astronaut or a firefighter, but how those ambitions had shifted over the years. By the time he hit his mid-twenties, he had only hoped to operate a quaint bookstore. However, in his early thirties, he realized his true aspiration was simply to lead a peaceful life as a good man.

Finally, he knew what he wanted. As he opened his mouth to speak, Quinn's face lit up, and Joe recognized that she was capable of reading his mind.

She knew. After all, she was a goddess, and he shouldn't have been surprised.

Quinn exclaimed, "So, you've made your decision."

Joe grinned and extended his hand, "Yes, ma'am. I just want to live a cozy life."

—

Quinn, the Goddess of Light, Life, and Rebirth, strode into the grand and luminous hall of the Over God. The colossal doors, as tall as a large star, opened before her with a reverent hum.

The room was infinitely vast, yet in its very center stood the Over God, faceless and featureless except for a body with two arms and two legs. He stood with his arms behind his back, turning to meet his daughter. His aura of immense power filled the space around them, making the goddess feel small and insignificant.

Quinn was a little nervous to see her father. It had been eons since they last met, and she wondered if he still remembered her. However, this was an important moment. She had just returned from a fellow lesser god's reality to meet with Joe, the odd little curiosity of a human.

With each step she took, planets withered and died beneath her feet, while others grew into beautiful, varied, and unique civilizations that would spread culture and knowledge throughout the stars. The weight of her actions rested heavy on her shoulders.

As she approached, her father's form seemed to loom even larger, but as she drew nearer, she felt his presence soften. Without words, he conveyed his love and pride in her. She basked in his warmth, feeling her nerves and worries slip away.

Soon, she reached the very presence of her father, the nameless one. Even though he had no face, no mouth, no eyes, or the witch to read his mood, she could tell that he was delighted to see her. She gave him a slight bow and curtsied with her dress.

"Father, I come before you, for I have made my decision," she said.

The Over God nodded and replied. When he spoke, his voice was deep and soft, and it reverberated throughout all of reality, even in the lands of the hidden doors. It was strong, confident, but soft. "Quinn, it seems you've chosen your taboo."

She gave a slow nod, her eyes clouded with memories of the havoc her brother had wrought. In a world where even the divine had their limits, each deity was granted one taboo to unleash upon the universe. And her brother, Gavin, reckless and impulsive as always, had chosen to merge the demon realm with their own plane of existence. The result? Death, destruction, and endless conflict.

It was hard to believe that all of this chaos had been spawned from boredom. Yet, as much as she tried to understand her brother's actions, she couldn't bring herself to forgive him. They had not spoken since that fateful day, and the silence between them was thick and suffocating.

Quinn stood tall, determination rising in her chest as she revealed her chosen taboo. She had struck a deal with a Lesser God, one that would bring Joe Johnson, into her own realm. As she explained her plan in detail and its possible pitfalls, her father listened intently, his featureless face fixed on her with a mix of pride and concern.

Suddenly, the vast expanse of space around them seemed to twist and contort, as if it were alive. Quinn's father cocked his head to the side, his head bent down in concentration. A kaleidoscope of colors swirled around them, a stream of knowledge flowing from Quinn's mind and into her father's.

After a quiet moment, Father nodded and said, "I see."

Quinn felt herself smiling. If anybody in all of existence, and even non-existence, could understand her, it was her father. Which made sense because he understood everything. However, it felt nice to be validated in her decision.

"Ezekiel called me crazy for using my taboo on a mortal, a human at that," she said, disappointed.

Father left a dismissive hand to solar systems and said, "Although he is your older brother, Ezekiel is short-sighted. He makes fun of mortal's emotions but is caught up in his own. For you, I see wisdom in your choice. A pure soul, indeed."

He nodded in approval.

Quinn said, "I got the idea from you, father. Your first world was created with a single light in mother's darkness. My light is Joe."

Father chuckled. "Good. Was this all that you came here for? To inform me of your taboo?"

She shook her head. "No. I wanted to catch up, Father. I haven't seen you in so long."

Without facial features, it was almost impossible to read her father's expression. However, she could feel a sense of warmth and happiness emanating from the Over God's presence. Finally, he said, clearly surprised, "You wanted to check up on me?"

Quinn smiled. "You are my father, and I am your daughter, after all."

If her father had a mouth, she knew that he would have smiled. Instead, he ushered her forward, turning so that his back was to her. "Well, come walk with me," he said.

And she did.

They walked alongside each other through the infinite cosmos together, discussing and sharing stories of the lives of mortals. With each step, universes died and were created anew.