"Or perhaps be themself constrained by Fate, or some other power...

"There's a choice later on, a Perk you can take to go 'Off the Rails' - though that metaphor wouldn't translate to you; perhaps 'Off the Road'? - but what it means is to largely end Fate once the story starts."

"Does that mean there effectively isn't a story, just normal cause and effect? And maybe we should go over the full list of options before we dive deeper into the worldbuilding."

Oh yes, she did say that, didn't she?  Before being distracted by constructing theology.

"That's why I said mostly end Fate... but you're right.  Next up..."

"... is your Fiance!

"You'll start the story - when you regain your memories - engaged to him, and if you win, you'll end up married to him!  Whether or not that happens will, of course, depend on you.  The Heroine will have a strong advantage - we'll be talking about her next - but you will have a chance.

"You'll start with a polite friendly relationship with him - he'll want to make the engagement and marriage work.  Not love, of course; it's an arranged marriage.  Unless you select the Perk that says he actually is in love with you."

She looks like she really doesn't want him to pick Off the Rails. Why is it even an option? Organizational policy?

He nods along.

(Yes, organizational policy.  All these options are organizational policy.)

She turns the pages of her book and half-reads half-paraphrases with emotion, with a grin on her face.

"First up, 'Prince Charming.'  The heir to the throne, a heroic guy about your age, talented, romantic by generally-accepted standards, will take offense at any nefarious tactics...  By any conventional standards, his wife is going to be a lucky woman.

"Second, the Dark Rival.  He could be the king's son or a duke's.  He's more talented than Prince Charming at the start, exudes romantic danger and dominance, can be mean but never quite evil...  Of course, because this is a story, he's got a heart of gold outside for the right woman to unlock.

"Or third, the Noble Prodigy!  He's older than you, already graduated and made a name for himself - ascending from lesser nobility to the heights of society.  What exactly he's done depends on the setting.  He's cold and formal and unemotional at first due to some tragedy in his past... but the right woman will melt the armor around his soul."

She looks up.

"But according to the story, the right woman is the heroine.  Not you.  That's up to you to try to change if you can."

"Prince Charming sounds like the most appealing option. Will the reincarnation process make me attracted to men? I'm already mildly attracted to men but not to the point where I would expend a lot of effort trying to romance one." Hopefully the Angel isn't one of the weird people who thinks men liking men is immoral. Probably not, as far as he knows that's strictly a mortal problem.

He doesn't want a sexuality change but that isn't very important.

She quickly nods.  "Yes, you will be once you're reborn as a girl in Villarosa.  Anything else would be too disruptive to the story, I think?

"And Prince Charming?  All right."

He nods along, not feeling great about the whole thing. Presumably he'll enjoy the romance when he gets to it. Which is also irrelevant - Lac would sell his soul for the opportunity to design a world like this, so there isn't much point feeling bad about something as small as a sexuality change and forced romance.

"What's the next option?"

The Angel gives him a sympathetic smile and turns a few pages.  Hopefully this next one will be a more engaging choice to make... or if not, at least the Perks will be.

She turns a couple pages.

"Next up, you!  Who will you be?

"The first choice is the Royal Princess, the daughter of the King of Villarosa, the highest-ranking and most privileged girl in the Royal Academy!

"Second is the Duke's Daughter, the only daughter of the highest-ranking noble in the land.  The Worldbuilding Department's default choice is the Duke of Thorns, by the way, but that can of course change.  Your engagement will be an important part of your father's political plans, so you can call on his resources... as long as the politics make sense.

"Or the third is the Rich Heiress, untitled but the daughter of the wealthiest merchant in the land.  You'll have all the power he can give you... but you're technically a commoner, so that might not be protection enough at some points."

His first instinct is to grab as much wealth and power as he can. On the other hand, though, would he actually be good at the responsibilities that come with being a princess? Also, it would bring a lot of attention.

"I'm not sure yet, but put me down for the Duke's Daughter for now?"

She nods happily.

"The Duke's Daughter, marrying a Prince Charming.  An excellent match, if you can make it happen!"

"... which brings us to our next option, the Heroine!  Who, according to the canonical story, will be the one to end up married to Prince Charming.

"Fate will have arranged things to her strengths and weaknesses - she will face challenges, grave challenges, but in the canonical story she overcomes them to reach her happy ending.

"Of course, that's the canonical story you will be challenged to change.

"The first option is the Extraordinary Commoner.  Without any social status, she - very unusually - won admission to the Royal Academy on merit alone.  She's the most talented; she'll outshine most if not all of her noble classmates and will rise to meet any challenge or challenger.

"The second option is the Poor Princess.  Why she's neglected or powerless is up to you to choose in your worldbuilding - perhaps she's politically inconvenient; perhaps illegitimate; perhaps a refugee from another kingdom.  But she lacks most of the advantages and formidability of her nominal station.

"The third option is the Hero's Daughter.  Her heroic parent died accomplishing some great deed - you can specify what in your worldbuilding - which elevated her to the ranks of the nobility.  So, she has social status and talent but not the background expected of a noble young lady.  Instead, she has fame and connections."

What are even his interests here. Poor Princess sounds cruel, the Heroine would probably resent him if she knew that he'd chosen that for her. Besides that, does he want a less capable adversary? Both Hero's Daughter and Extraordinary Commoner have talent, but the Hero's Daughter also has connections. Oh, and having a parent die would suck, too.

"Probably Extraordinary Commoner."

"Ahh, you accept the challenge?"

"Challenge? She's a more difficult option?"

"Oh, it depends on how you think about it.  They're all difficult options, different challenges... but I've seen many people underestimate the Extraordinary Commoner's sheer talent.  If you're thinking of ending Fate, I do think that would make her a threat in many unexpected ways.

"Though if you do defeat her... that would make your victory all the more interesting."

He nods, a bit nervous. Don't underestimate the Extraordinary Commoner's talent. Great. And probably don't end Fate? Especially if he wants the Angel to have her story so she gives him more creative freedom with the parts that don't impact it.

She nods, trying to mix her happiness with supportiveness.  A challenge is always fun to watch.

Lila's smile fills him with the dread of a future main character. He makes a mental note to reconsider the other Heroine options.

"What's next?"

"Next up," she says with a grave expression, "is the canonical ending of the story.  In other words, this's the ending that happens when the Heroine wins and defeats you."

If Fate is present, it'll be pushing you toward this ending, and you won't find it easy to escape.  It isn't inevitable; it can be changed - but it'll take effort, and more innovative effort than you might think.

She pauses a moment to drive this home.

"But if you do reach the canonical ending - the Bad Ending for you - the story is over.  The bonds of Fate will tighten around you and it'll be all but impossible for you to escape.

"I'll be watching with bated breath hoping you'll avoid the Bad Ending."

Because she has his best interests at heart. He nods with appropriate seriousness.

"What are the bad endings?"

Yes, she has his interests at heart, as she does every protagonist's.

She gestures at the air, weaving her finger in a knot almost like she's a Golarion wizard preparing a spell.  Small stylized pictures appear in the air, one by one, as she names them.

"The first choice is, Death.  You can pick whether you're publicly executed for some crime, or you suffer death from the fallout of one of your schemes."

A picture appears of something that might be an execution block, or might be a Final Blade.  The victim's face is covered, but she has silver hair.

"If you choose Death, the Will of the Multiverse says you get any perk for free.

"The second choice is a Convent - you'll be forced to take some form of religious vows including hard work and poverty and service to the needy."

Another gesture; the robes look more like peasants' clothes than any religious order Lac knows, and the symbol is a blur.

"The third choice is Servitude - you'll be stripped of your rank and status and bound to the Heroine's service.  She won't treat you cruelly - that's not in her character - but you may or may not formally be a slave; you may or may not be magically bound."

Another gesture.  Lac may recognize the same sort of shackles carried on some slave ships captured by the Eagle Knights.

"The fourth choice is being Impoverished - you're stripped of your rank and status, but simply cast out onto the streets to fend for yourself without any allies and without any chance of becoming wealthy or a noble again."

Another gesture, and a picture of what might almost be orphans on an Andoran street.

"The fifth choice is Exile - being banished forever from Villarosa and being forced into a political marriage with an older nobleman abroad."

A picture of a wagon crossing mountains.

"The sixth choice is simple Disgrace - your social status will never recover from the humiliation of losing, but you'll still be a Duke's Daughter.  If you select this, the Will of the Multiverse says you must take an extra Flaw - and I agree at least."