"Shawn Miller. An interesting life you had back there," the Conductor said as he summoned a translucent screen displaying Shawn's details. "You were an inventor with many small projects noticed by the world. Your achievements are truly something."
He looked at Shawn, who tried to form a smug expression. Of course I was awesome, Shawn thought proudly.
"You also lived a nearly clean life," the Conductor continued as he scrolled through the screen. "Only a few small and petty misbehaviors."
Shawn nodded slightly, feeling relieved.
"Such as stealing your friend's boxers, lying to your uncle about going to school only to visit that same friend, and locking your teacher in the classroom. She almost spent the whole night there if the guards had not rescued her."
Shawn immediately turned red. Hearing those things listed one by one was embarrassing enough, but what made it worse was that the Conductor was announcing them loudly for everyone around to hear.
I hope I will not lose my chance at a good life because of these silly mistakes, Shawn thought nervously.
"Do not worry," the Conductor said as he continued scrolling through the screen. "Your mistakes are small compared to your potential. I can overlook them since I am in a good mood."
Shawn let out a quiet breath of relief while the Conductor kept reading through the screen.
"Cause of death… killed by a strange octopus." He raised an eyebrow.
"It's true," Shawn said quickly. "Something down there killed me. I'm sure that octopus had a vendetta against me or something."
The Conductor waved a hand dismissively. "No need to worry. How you died does not matter now. You are getting reincarnated, for heaven's sake. Stay calm."
Shawn blinked. Reincarnated meant a new beginning with zero embarrassment.
"For your judgment," the Conductor announced, and the entire land fell silent as everyone waited for the decision. "A peak tier reincarnation. You will be reborn as the son of a Divine Emperor in the Xuanhie Kingdom. You will possess peak talent according to the rules of that world and you will live a long life, provided you do not choose to cultivate."
Gasps spread across the area. This was the first peak tier reincarnation anyone had heard of in a long time, and it had been given to a kid. Recently, most souls had been assigned low tier paths, while some had even been sent to hell. Shawn was incredibly lucky.
"Will that world have a place where I can conduct experiments?" Shawn asked suddenly. "If not, I would rather just be born in a normal world."
The conductors exchanged looks, and even the Conductor judging him frowned slightly. But after a moment he remembered that he was dealing with a child obsessed with building things.
"Do not worry," he said. "That world has divine blacksmithing. It is even more advanced, with special runes and many other things. I believe you will find it interesting."
Shawn's eyes lit up, and the Conductor raised his hand, ready to send Shawn toward his carriage of reincarnation.
"Wait."
The single word echoed softly, and space froze. Time itself seemed to stop. A thin tear slowly formed in the air like a crack spreading across reality. Everything in the area was frozen in place, including the souls, conductors, and the flowing wind.
From the tear, a woman stepped out. She wore loose purple robes covered with faintly glowing stars and galaxies that seemed to move across the fabric. Her presence alone felt vast and distant, like staring into the endless night sky. Her black hair was tied neatly in a bun, and her eyes were calm yet impossibly deep. It felt as though a single glance from her could grant enlightenment.
She looked around and noticed that her words had frozen everyone. With a simple clap of her hands, time resumed.
"My lady." Every conductor immediately fell to their knees. "I apologize for not preparing something worthy for your arrival," one of them said nervously. "Please have mercy."
The woman waved her hand lightly, and the conductors rose back to their feet. "There is no need for that," she said calmly. "I only came here for one thing."
Her gaze moved across the area, then it stopped on Shawn. "I found something interesting."
Shawn froze the moment her eyes landed on him. His mind raced wildly as he tried to remember if he had done anything in life that could possibly attract the attention of someone like her.
"Do you mind selling that soul to me?" she asked casually.
Shawn's soul drifted toward her as if pulled by an invisible force. The conductors nodded without hesitation. Before Shawn could even react, the woman disappeared along with him, vanishing back into the tear in space. The crack in reality sealed itself, and silence returned.
One of the conductors frowned as he pulled up Shawn's records again. "What exactly did that kid do to attract her attention?"
Another conductor shook his head. "There is no point worrying about it. Let's just continue our work and hope something like this does not happen again."
And the judgments continued.