I was reborn-ish into a world where everyone have useless-kinda-skills

The Trio from Earth hurtled through the void, a silent descent toward the unfamiliar planet below. To an untrained eye, it might have looked like Earth—oceans, landmasses, clouds—but it was wrong. Different. The land sprawled out in bizarre, unsettling ways. They were falling fast now, like meteorites ripped from the sky, silent as the void, no scream to be heard. No god to save them from the black abyss swallowing their spirits.

Faster. Faster.

The castle courtyard came up to meet them—flags snapping in the wind, proud with their red stripes and golden dragons, oblivious to the violence about to be unleashed. With a bone-rattling boom, the trio slammed into the ground, kicking up a gritty storm of dust and gravel that stung the eyes. When the haze settled, the guy with red hair was on his feet, cool as a statue. The green-haired guy wasn’t so lucky, landing squarely on his backside. Niles, though, he’d made the worst of it—face-first into the hard earth, like the ground itself had reached up and yanked him down.

“She called herself a merciful goddess,” Niles groaned, his voice sounding like an old rag, beaten and frayed. “And we should be grateful?” He tried to laugh but only coughed. “For what? Face-planting into a new world? Could’ve done that at home without the jetlag.”

“Get up,” the red-haired one said, eyes scanning the courtyard, sharp as a knife. Knights—dozens of them—were closing in, swords and spears gleaming. “We’re not alone.”

From the far side of the courtyard, a voice boomed. “THE CHOSEN HEROES HAVE ARRIVED!” Another chimed in, quick and eager. “SEND WORD TO THE KING! THE GODDESS HAS FULFILLED HER PROMISE! PRAISE BE!”

As the echoes of that last shout bounced off the stone walls, Niles finally found his feet. Green-hair shuffled beside him, clearly rattled. He leaned in close. “They’ve got us mixed up with somebody else,” he whispered. “We should probably leave as soon as we can.”

Red-hair responded, a little too desperate. “Sounds good to me, we’ll try to leave when we have a chance.”

The guy with the red hair stepped forward, calm but tense, like a spring wound too tight. “Let me handle this.” His voice dropped, turning serious. “We come in peace,” he said loudly, projecting his voice for everyone in the courtyard to hear.

Niles, ever the wiseass, muttered, “Really? That’s the line? Couldn’t come up with something a little more original?”

“Shut up,” Red hissed. He raised his voice again. “We mean you no harm. We’re unarmed.”

Niles whispered again, “If you’re unarmed, how are you holding your hand up like that?”

“I said shut up.” Red reminded.

The knights were closing in, their hands drifting to the hilts of their weapons. The green-haired guy panicked. “Please!” he cried out. “We were sent here by a goddess—we don’t know anything!”

Niles leaned in again, a mischievous grin creeping across his face. “If we don’t know anything, how do we know we were sent here by a goddess?”

Green-hair’s eyes went wide, the color draining from his face with a look that said “You just ruined everything, didn’t you?”

Before things could spiral further, a new voice rang out. Calm. Soft, but with a weight that demanded attention. “Welcome, my honored guests.”

A woman stepped forward, gliding through the crowd like a phantom. She wore robes of silver and gold, her short black hair gleaming under the light, and her eyes—scarlet, burning with a kind of cold fire—scanned the trio. “I am Xemera, Princess of Suvenia. You must be weary after your journey, and I’m sure you have many questions. Rest assured, all will be answered in due time.”

The trio wasn’t sure when, but during her speech, a crowd had gathered, their faces a mask of quiet dread, as if they knew something the trio didn’t.

Niles, of course, wasted no time. “Hold on a second,” he said, stepping forward, not bothering to check with his “friends.” “We got a question for you first.” He paused dramatically, pointing at her. “You single?”

The courtyard went deathly silent.

Xemera didn’t even blink, staring at Niles with the cold precision of someone used to seeing dead bodies. “Dibs,” Niles muttered with a grin. Red-haired guy sighed, running a hand down his face, and Green-hair looked like he was about to faint.

“Why?” Green whispered in horror. “Why would you ask that?!”

Before Niles could answer, Xemera interrupted, clearing her throat loudly. “Perhaps,” she said coolly, “we could continue this conversation in a more private setting.” She gestured toward the castle doors. “Too many listening ears here.”

A knight nearby caught her eye, nodding silently. Niles, of course, thought the nod was meant for him and awkwardly nodded back. “Play it cool, guys,” he muttered, falling into step beside his bewildered companions.

As they moved toward the castle, a group of bodyguards surrounded them, their armor polished to a blinding shine, helmets shaped like snarling beasts. One of them, a knight wearing a wolf-shaped helmet, drifted toward Niles. Without warning, the knight’s metal fist shot out, slamming into Niles’ ribs. His knees hit the ground, air knocked from his lungs, eyes wide with shock.

The knight raised a sword, its blade catching the sunlight, poised to strike.

“STOP!” a voice cried. Familiar. Desperate.

The goddess appeared, rushing forward, her hood thrown back, revealing her face.

“Goddess,” Xemera said, her smile like ice. “How fortunate we are that you could join us.”

Niles, gasping for air, glanced at his friends. “Okay,” he wheezed while looking at Red-hair, “you do the talking from here on out.”

Red-haired guy just sighed. Green-hair muttered under his breath, “We’re gonna die. We’re all gonna die,” like it was a prayer.

And so, they walked on, toward the looming castle doors, deeper into the unknown.