Tensei Skill Shop Chapter 1

Chapter 1: 

‘Just went through customs. Boarding train now.’ I sent the message to my dad as the escalator carried me downwards.

‘Ok. Send msg when u arrive at living place’ The reply came after several seconds.

I stepped off the escalator and headed for the train terminal below, feeling a bit nervous about this new step of my life.

After resigning from my last job, I had been applying to many openings with only a few replies, and of those replies, the interviews hadn’t seen any success. Until the one from last month.

I had sent out so many applications that I honestly couldn’t remember this one, but it was for a retail role that promised a good deal of on the job (OTJ) training. It required me to move to Japan, but at least it allowed me to make use of my Japanese language proficiency, plus the salary was pretty good. The Japanese interviewer started out formal at first, but somehow we had gotten to talking about favorite animes and mangas, especially the whole isekai genre. I had come away from that interview feeling pretty good. 

Things progressed fast from there. The visa application went through quickly, I received emails about the various details, like the flight ticket that was bought for me, the location of the dormitory I was staying in, and so on. Everything was settled quite well, and my parents didn’t have any objection. 

So when the date arrived, I got on the plane, and flew off. After I landed, I went through the customs the same way I did before, showing my approved visa, getting my passport stamped, and receiving another residence card, this one showing my employment status. 

Which brought me to where I was now. I pulled out the reserved seat ticket for the train, and used it to pass through the gate.

Huh, not that many people on the platform… must be a slow period. I glanced around as I pulled my luggage, heading for the designated car. Rather odd considering the airport crowd.

The white train soon arrived, and once the door opened, I boarded it.

That, I think, was when it happened.

The moment I, Rick Steel, was isekai’d.

Between then and now, I had no memory of what happened to me, just my head being filled with knowledge on how to do my job. If I went upstairs where my bedroom was, I would see all of my unpacked luggage, even my phone, wallet and passport, but I had no memory of how I arrived in this shop and got settled in.

Currently, I was standing at attention behind the counter, waiting for the shop itself to admit my next customer. One of my hands was resting on a pad on top of it, as I idly passed the time by linking and delinking my thoughts to it, marveling at the technology that surpassed all conventional stuff I was familiar with.

Tick. Tick. Tick. The door opened.

“Welcome to Sano’s Skill Services!” I recited, “How may I serve you today?”

“A human here?” The deity wondered, before dismissing that issue. “Could I get a basic world transfer set?”

“Understood, divine one,” I responded quickly, “One basic world transfer set of skills, coming right up!”

I pressed down on the pad with my palm, calling on the packets stored within. Lifting my hand vertically up, a chain of multicolored glowing boxes came up together with it like on a chain. My other hand cupped the bottommost one, and I brought them together, compressing those boxes together between them.

[Compressing… Compression complete.]
[Basic Transfer Skill Set created.]

I rotated my hands ninety degrees, and opened them up just above the counter in front of the deity, revealing a larger sized glowing box. “One basic world transfer set, as requested. Please inspect to confirm the contents.”

They reached out with one glowing appendage and poked the box, which flickered through several colors before reverting back to its plain original white. “They are all there. I will accept this then.”

Nodding, I touched the pad again, but this time tracing a clockwise circle before making a flicking motion towards the customer. “This is the price for one basic world transfer set.”

“Very affordable prices. I see why Sano’s shop is so highly recommended.” They made a similar flicking motion back to me, causing the pad to flash momentarily. 

“Thank you for your business. We hope to serve you again,” I bowed as the deity took their leave.

And that was how a typical transaction in this shop went.

My job was a frontline retail one, but that’s the only normal thing about it. 

The shop was an interdimensional one, linking to multiple worlds.

The customer base were gods, goddesses, divinities, deities, etc. My employer himself was a god as well.

The product… was skills. The sort that reincarnators or transmigrators would be granted when they entered a new world.

[Appraise], [Observe], [Inventory], [Language Comprehension], [Mind Defense], [Fire Magic 1], [Death Magic 4], and so on… 

The various skills that you might expect to see in a LitRPG story, this shop supplies them to the divinities who, for whatever reason, wish to equip their chosen transferee with advantages. From the knowledge I was granted, I was aware that sometimes this wasn’t exactly prepared ahead of time.

Like now.

The door flew open, and a small girl in a floating robe flew into the shop.

“Welcome to Sano’s Skill Services!” I recited again, “How may I serve you today?”

“Um! Um, um, I need a- a- whatwasitwhatwasit…” She blabbered in a panic.

“Please calm down, goddess,” I said in a beseeching tone, “I’m here to help. Please let me know the details of your situation.”

That did the trick to help her get ahold of herself, and she explained her requirements. The natives of the world she was overseeing carried out a summoning ritual, which ended up piercing through the dimensional walls to another world and pulling in a person from there. It was something she didn’t expect, and felt bad for the person being summoned, so this goddess wanted to give the summoned person a blessing.

However, there were rules on what could be granted. It varied depending on the world, so they were more like guidelines, but basically there were limits as to what could be granted.

“Place your hand here on this scanner,” I requested politely, and she did so. “Understood. The setting of your world has been recorded. I will prepare the initial transmigrator set, and modify it from there.”

“Please do so. I don’t have much time.”

I repeated the same gathering and compressing process I did for the earlier customer, but with a different series of skills based on the specifications from the earlier scan. Instead of placing the resulting box in front of her, I put it off to the side. 

I drew another series of skills out from the pad, and this time I laid them out in a row before her. 

“These are the skills that I would recommend to add to the mix,” I told the goddess. “Just to confirm, this is the first time you are having someone transmigrated into your world?”

“Yes. I’ve heard about it from the other gods, but this took me by surprise!”

“I would recommend taking a look at this guide,” Reaching below the counter, I brought up a rolled up scroll. “This contains information on how to manage a transmigrator or reincarnator, as well as how to craft your own skills to meet their request. That is, if you want to.”

“Oh, um, then-” The goddess froze, “I’m out of time already! I’ll take them all!”

“Understood. One moment while I finish putting it all together.” I put the scroll aside, then swept all the small boxes into the large one, kneading them together until I felt the compilation stabilize.

[Compressing… Compression complete.]
[Custom Transmigrator Skill Set created.]

Placing the completed product next to the scroll, I sent the payment request. “Here’s the price.” 

“Done! Thank you!” 

The goddess swept the two items up and flew, literally flew, out the door, which opened and closed for her.

Time passed, and I continued to wait for another customer, but that appeared to be it for the day. The slow ringing of a bell marked the end of this sale period, and a curtain descended over the door, signaling that the shop was currently closed.

“Haaa…” I exhaled, stretching my body. This is going to take some getting used to.

One of the things in the knowledge included as part of accepting this job was the contract I signed for it. I went over the details once more in my head, since it was divinely enforced.

Divinely enforced indeed. The way my body was acting reminded me about Cyberpunk’s doll chips, like something was pulling my strings and making me play the role of customer service staff during working hours.

In exchange for giving up my body like that though, I would be handsomely compensated. There was a catalog where I could use my salary to purchase all sorts of things for myself, ranging from the shop’s stock of skills, to items and things from other worlds, even visits to those places, if that was what I wanted. I could honestly admit that I was tempted to aim for that last one.

Outside of that, my restrictions were not to disclose anything about the shop’s business to outsiders, so I couldn’t message my parents and tell them the details, other than saying it was retail stuff with regular customers. There was also a probation period, during which I was not allowed to leave the shop’s vicinity.

The phone on the wall rang, and I eyed it suspiciously for a few seconds before picking it up.

“Hello, hello!” The voice of my boss spoke through the speaker, actually speaking in Japanese. “Working hard? Hope you are, because I am! It’s tough work making skills to keep the stock up, you know!”

He continued on without giving me any time to answer. That was Sano, the god whose name was on the store.

“Anyway, you did pretty good for your first day, so I have high hopes for your future here in this shop! I’m counting on you to earn lots of DP!”

I knew that DP stood for Divinity Points, which was the currency used to pay within the shop. I had no idea about the economics between gods and deities though.

More importantly, I wanted to ask just what need was there for me to be a shop staff.

“I’m sure you’re wondering why I hired you instead of getting some robot, yeah? Well, the reason is because of your experience with all these otherworld stuff! Sure, it’s all fiction you read instead of actually experiencing it, but I’m interested in your potential.”

What potential? I wondered, but kept listening.

“Remember when I mentioned OTJ training during our interview? You’ll get the chance to visit other worlds, and you can report to me afterwards just what sort of skills would be useful, or appreciated, so I can craft them, and you can recommend them to the customers,” Sano suggested.

That’s actually a good point, and I can’t deny that I was interested in seeing what it was like. I continued to wait for my turn to speak.

“Well, it’s still early, so focus on doing your job first. Take a look at the worker’s manual when you’re free. It should explain most things. Now, do you have any questions?”

“Yeah, why do I-”

“If you do, sorry! I can’t answer them because this is a recording! That’s all for me now, I’ve gotta get back to work! Bye!”

I blinked as the call cut off, the dial tone beeping in my ear. Then I slammed the receiver back onto the cradle.

“Goddammit.” I cursed.

Still, there wasn’t much else to do, since this role cut me off from going outside for the time being. It made me question why I signed the contract, but then I recalled just how good the compensation was. 

Sighing, I decided to do what Sano said, and go read the manual. It was a rather thin-looking hardcover book, but as I flipped through it quickly, I realized that it was much, much thicker than it appeared, further proof of the godly setting I was stuck in. 

Well, ‘stuck’ might be pushing it a bit, I amended in my head, Since it was made clear that I can end my employment with him. 

I was a fast reader, so I skimmed through most of it before shutting the book. The manual had a lot of information about how to work the over-technology of the shop, something that I found difficult in using outside of my job persona. The more important part was the section detailing the rules, like what actions would see my employment here terminated. Since this job involved working for a deity, I did not want to find out if termination meant losing my life as well. Thankfully, it looked like the rules were pretty much common sense; maintaining job confidentiality, not attempting to steal from the store, or to cause damage to the business and those related to it, and so on. No hidden traps like touching something innocent-looking and getting punished for that.

The next important thing was my compensation, which had a rather large basic one, with possibility of commissions and bonuses depending on my job performance. By my estimations, I could enjoy expensive dinners three times a week on the value indicated there.

There were also instructions on what to do when some gods tried to do things like leave without paying, or trick me into leaving with them, but those were mostly handled by the defenses put in place within the shop. It made me ask myself again if I was really needed in this place.

Since I didn’t receive any answers, I eventually gave up and took another look at the shoproom I was in, even though I had already seen enough of it in my job persona. Currently, it was very barebones, since the skills themselves were stored in a separate space. Other than the counter, seats for waiting customers, and the doors, there really wasn’t anything else in the front area. The decor itself was rather plain too, if I had to describe it. 

I stomped a little hard on the floor, which felt rather comfortable despite looking like stone.

I went through the door leading to the back, to explore the rest of the shop. Beyond it was a corridor with two other doors. One of them led to the office that Sano would use when he was here, and that remained locked. I wasn’t going to try breaking into it anyway, so I proceeded to go through the other door.

The backroom was more of a living space for me, similar to a hotel room that I stayed at in Japan during a tour group package trip; there was a bed with a TV facing it, a large window with the curtains drawn, a pair of armchairs and a small table before the window, a dresser where my clothes were stored, and a small open cooking area with fridge and stove. Off to the side were two doors leading to a shower room and a toilet respectively.

I walked over to the window, and opened the curtains. I knew what I would see.

Instead of an urban environment set in modern Japan, I saw a sea of clouds, with what looked like dragons flying in the distance. I reached out and touched the glass, then slowly moved it to the right. The image faded into a different view, this one filled with a sea of trees instead. A multicolored bird broke through the canopy, and the sunlight caught its iridescent plumage in such a way that it looked like a brilliant firework. 

I tested it a few more times, changing the view through the mirror to many others, but eventually I just shut the curtains and decided that I had my mind blown enough for the time being.

That appeared to be it. This was going to be my life for the near future. 

I headed for the fridge and opened it, then shut it before heading back to the front to grab the manual. I remembered seeing a way to order food when I flipped through it earlier.

The only thing to do was to adapt to it.

…

The days passed in a cycle of work and rest; I woke up in the mornings, or what passed for it, ate a light breakfast, then carried out my job duties under the control of the worker persona. As the manual warned, there were a few deities who tried their chances with me or the shop, but as long as I kept acting according to the programming, there wasn’t anything they could do. When there weren’t any customers, I would take the time to review the contents of the various skills, properly learning the knowledge instead of relying on the persona’s inbuilt one. After the shop closed, I would have my dinner, and later relax in my room. Somehow there was Internet and TV access, so I could watch my anime and mingle in the online forums, as long as I didn’t mention anything about my current job.

I ended up spending quite a lot of time admiring some of the rarer skills in stock, mainly due to how overpowered or super-synergistic they could be. The price for those were at least twenty times that of a normal skill.

Then payday finally arrived, and Sano just appeared in the shop area without any warning. He was dressed in a smart casual style with long pants and short sleeves.

“Hello, sir,” I started, speaking in my job persona, “Business has been busy.”

“Oh, that’s good to hear.” Sano glanced at the pad, seemingly not doing anything, but I could tell he was inspecting the earnings. “I’ll be in my office. Come see me when you’re done for the day.”

“Yes, sir,” I acknowledged.

There were only two other customers after that; an old-looking geezer who ran out of skills to supply the large group that was being transferred, and a feline who wished to reward a cat lover who saved one of her precious kittens at great cost to himself. The transactions were concluded without any issue, and once the shop closed and I was freed from my puppet strings, I quickly headed for Sano’s office.

Rather than just opening the door, I knocked first, and it opened automatically for me.

“Come in, Rick,” Sano said from behind the desk, “Have a seat.”

“Yes, sir.”

“No need to follow that,” He waved a dismissive hand. “Now, here’s the payslip showing just how much you earned with your work.”

I glanced at the slip of paper he handed me before tucking it away, planning to confirm the deposit through my banking app later.

“Alright, so I’m sure you’re curious as to what you’re eligible to buy as a staff member, so have a look!” Sano gestured, making a catalog appear in front of me. “This one will show what you can afford, and what you can aim for.”

It took me several seconds of scanning through the list to realize the oddity.

“...there isn’t much I can get, why is that?” I asked, closing the catalog and pushing it back over to him.

“Well, the answer to that is simple.” Sano leaned forward with his elbows on the desk. “I deal with DP, Rick, and your pay doesn’t cover that. Hence…” He left the sentence unfinished, knowing I would get his meaning.

So that’s the trick, isn’t it? “And how can I earn DP in this job?” I asked directly. I want to try having skills, dammit.

“I’m glad you asked!” The way he said that was with the amusement of a hunter seeing the prey walk right into the prepared trap.

The short gist of his offer was as such: I would use some of my salary to purchase entry licenses to other worlds, and obtain skills from there, which I could sell to him for DP. The rarer the skill, the more DP I would earn. As for what I could do with the DP? Obviously I could buy skills from Sano’s stock! I could use the ones I obtained, but he would rework and modify skills based on the ones I sold, so it was likely his version would be better.

That sounds like earning points to unlock higher tiers of stuff, I thought to myself. 

I would lose access to the skill I sold, but I could just relearn them later and sell them once more if I put my mind to it. Naturally, doing that too often would see diminishing returns. Sano preferred to keep things fresh, which stimulated his creativity.

“So, how about it? Feel like taking on this expanded job role?” He asked me, smiling behind those glasses while in the Gendo Ikari pose.

You know that I will. “Sure, I’ll do it.”

“Great!” Sano said cheerfully, “I knew I could count on you. How about we discuss the details further?”

Yeah, saw that coming too. “Yes, sir.”

Eventually, we managed to hash out several points of our new agreement. I would continue to work for Sano in the shop, but only get paid for the hours worked like a part-timer. The money I earned could be used to purchase access to other worlds from which I could obtain skills, or I could use the more valuable DP earned from selling skills to do the same. Another point to note was that Sano only came by once a week, so if I passed up the chance to visit another world, I would have to wait for a week before the next opportunity arrived. There was some time flow difference involved, but he assured me that it would be taken care of on his end.

As for what worlds I could visit… Sano did suggest some well-known ones like Naruto or One Piece, but I rejected those as I felt the difficulty level was too high for a beginner.

“Oh well, tell me when you’ve thought of one, by… ten PM tonight,” Sano glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. “I’ll be in this office until then.”

“Okay. May I go now?”

“Go ahead.”

I got up from my chair, and nearly sprinted back to my room to go look up ideas on the Internet. There were so many attractive options I had thought of and recorded down when I found out that multiverse travel was a thing, but now I had something concrete to aim for, and that narrowed down my options greatly.

After an hour of searching and considering, I finally hit upon a simple one that I could exploit, and began collecting information to leverage in that world. I barely noticed what I ate for dinner with how engrossed I was, but by the time the last hour came, I was ready to go.

As before, the door opened automatically when I knocked on it.

“So, thought of a world to visit?” Sano inquired, getting straight down to business.

“Yeah, I think this would be a great one to start with.” I handed over the paper with my notes.

He took it and scanned over my scribbles quickly. “Oh, that definitely has potential. See if you can get me some of these items too, I think I can come up with something interesting from them.”

“Sure, I’ll try my best,” I promised.

“And so, I’ll be taking this much out from your pay,” Sano passed me another slip of paper, a bill for access to the requested world.

I winced. “Why does it cost that much?”

“It’s not just the cost of connecting to that world, you know?” Sano told me in a patient tone, “There’s a lot of other required things to make your insertion go well, like being able to understand the language, for example.”

The god went on to talk about how some worlds weren’t exactly compatible in their respective systems, requiring him to make tweaks and modifications to ensure things worked properly. Another thing responsible for adding to the cost was loading me with the required skills to facilitate that analysis. Since it was his labor that made my trip to the world possible, it was natural for him to charge me for it.

“So just wait a bit, while I prepare the skills you’ll need with you,” He instructed me, already pulling up skill boxes and combining them together.

“Alright.” I sat down in the chair and waited, occasionally glancing at his work.

After several minutes, Sano held up the completed skill set, and tossed it over to me. It sank straight into my chest, making me blink as I tried to see whether I felt any different.

“Well then, off you go!”

With that last word, I once more found myself in a whole new world entirely.

Afterword: Another interesting idea that came to me after seeing the lackluster reaction to my Holocure Spirit Refiner fic, this time working off the Merchant fic I had before, but with a more focused angle. Let’s see where this takes me, shall we?