One Wish to Own the World

Ken was used to having people grimace when looking at him since he remembered himself, which was since his birth. He understood his looks weren't pleasing to the eye, but he didn't really understand the implications of that, so he didn't mind.

He lived his life in solitude since nobody ever approached him, and although he remembered everything he had heard about everyone around him, he couldn't use the information to his advantage when making friends; he simply wasn't intelligent enough.

Everything changed when he met Leo. With his sharp mind and sharper tongue, nobody could stand being with Leo for a long time. However, there was one person who never understood his teases and insults, thus, he could be his friend comfortably. This person, you guessed it, was Ken.

At first, Leo couldn't stop raining insults on Ken, but as they got used to each other, he could accept Ken and found him predictable, which canceled his reasons to insult Ken; he wasn't getting frustrated by Ken's weird actions anymore when he knew how Ken would react to most situations.

Luckily, Ken didn't understand his insults and never tried to leave Leo because of them. They would often talk, or more precisely, Leo would often talk. He would talk about his dreams and hopes, his plans for the far future, and even theoretical situations.

"Remember, if you ever rub a random dirty lamp and a genie comes out it and offers you a wish, you must ask for endless wishes!"

He'd repeat in Ken's ears. One of his favorite hypothetical situations was in case someone granted him a wish, and he would describe his choices with various sets of limitations and rules each time.

What he liked the most about Ken was that he always remembered what he told him, so he never had to repeat himself twice. Even if Ken understood nothing, he could still recite his words one to one whenever he asked.

"What then?"

Ken knew Leo was going to tell him the next move and asked about it.

"Listen, you and I could be perfect if we were one. I'm a genius, and you have a perfect memory. Couldn't we help humanity step a millennium forward if our abilities combined?"

Ken nodded since it made sense when Leo said it.

"So your next wish should be to have the highest intelligence possible, an intelligence that would allow you to perceive and thoroughly understand to the fullest everything you see, even if you see it only superficially and only once, including strong points, weak points, and how to overcome them."

"Why can't I just ask to be as smart as you?"

Ken didn't really get the point of such a long wish. Didn't Leo say earlier they'd be perfect if their abilities were combined?

"Stupid! If you get a wish, you should use it to maximize your benefits. Although I'm a genius, there is an option for an even higher IQ, to which you should aspire."

Leo couldn't stop himself from throwing an insult, but Ken was already used to it and didn't mind it.

"But does it have to be so long?"

"Yes. I read that lawyers and genies have something in common. They search for a gap in your words and take advantage of it, so you must give a long description that they cannot misinterpret even when they try to."

"All right. What's next?"

"Isn't it obvious? You should ask to be hot, healthy, be in a safe environment all the time, and that's pretty much it. You can ask for money too, but I doubt money would be a problem for you with perfect intelligence and memory."

Leo nodded with satisfaction and continued to talk about what to do if the genie gave rules or banned him from asking for more wishes.

The days passed, and the duo graduated from high school, and it was time to separate. While Leo was accepted to a prestigious university due to his high grades at school, Ken could only get into a simple college. He chose to study linguistics and was accepted due to his memory.

However, his family decided they didn't want to invest more money into him. He had healthy younger sister and younger brother, and his parents wanted to invest their money in promising youths instead of investing in a sickly failure.

He didn't know it, but as compensation to his family, God gave them some extra stat points when they were born.

He couldn't find a job because of his repulsive looks, and he could only stay at home, scorned by his family and society. Now he felt the burn of loneliness after getting to taste friendship in the past few years.

He read books and watched movies to pass the time in his room, and came out only to eat his meals and get some drinks.

A year later, his brain was loaded with information. He remembered every sensation and experience he had gone through, and everything felt like it was just a few minutes ago.

One day, he felt sudden numbness in the left side of his body. He felt the room spinning, and he was getting really dizzy. He felt like his head was splitting from the pain. He was going through a stroke, and the pain ended fast.

He fell to the ground and slowly lost consciousness. His mind was drifting to the darkness as he lost sensation over his body and died.

In the darkness, Ken suddenly felt a strong pull and found himself standing in a large messy room. The floor was filled with manga, manhua, anime, and donghua. He could feel there was another entity in front of him, but he couldn't see an actual being.

"Hello Ken, I'm God. I've watched over you throughout your life, even if you couldn't feel it. You had a tough life, child. For your endurance, I've decided to gift you with a wish for your next life. What would you choose?"

God denied any part in Ken's miserable life and pretended nobody was at fault. It was just a bit of tough luck that brought Ken to where he was.