I have a confession. Sometimes… I really wish I could wake up in an isekai. If you’re reading this and wondering whether I just sneezed while typing, let me explain.

For all the muggles out there, an isekai is a Japanese fantasy genre where the main character is suddenly transported, summoned, or reincarnated into another world. Usually it’s a world filled with magic, monsters, guilds, dragons, kingdoms, and adventures. Sometimes the character dies and is reborn there. Sometimes they simply disappear from their own world and wake up somewhere completely new.

And almost always… Their life changes forever. Now, before anyone starts worrying, no—this isn’t me wanting to disappear from my life. It’s something a little different.

I think.

Maybe.

Honestly… I’m still trying to figure that part out. Because when I really ask myself why I love isekai stories so much, the answer isn’t as simple as “magic is cool.”

Although… Magic is incredibly cool.

Who wouldn’t want to cast spells? Or summon a familiar? Or tame mythical beasts? Or join an adventurer’s guild and spend the day exploring enchanted forests instead of answering emails?

Imagine leveling up because you defeated a dragon instead of because you completed your mandatory workplace training. That sounds significantly more exciting. But beneath all of that…

I wonder if isekai stories scratch an itch that’s been living inside people for centuries. The same questions we’ve always asked. What happens after we die? Is there another world? Is there something beyond what we can see?

Maybe that’s part of why these stories resonate so deeply. They offer possibilities where real life offers uncertainty. Some isekai begin with death. Others begin with a mysterious portal. Some don’t explain it at all.

One moment the character is living an ordinary life… The next, everything they knew is gone. And instead of an ending… It’s the beginning. I don’t know what happens after we die. No one does. People have beliefs.

Faith.

Hope.

Theories.

Questions.

Lots and lots of questions.

Maybe that’s why these stories are comforting. They imagine that crossing into the unknown isn’t terrifying. It’s an adventure. Then again…maybe it has nothing to do with death. Maybe it’s about escape.

Life gets heavy sometimes.

Responsibilities pile up.

Bills need paying.

Laundry somehow reproduces overnight.

Your to-do list develops its own to-do list.

And occasionally your brain whispers, “Wouldn’t it be nice if today’s biggest problem was defeating a slime?”

Honestly? Yes. Yes, it would.

Not because I hate my life.

I don’t.

There are people I love.

Moments I treasure.

Dreams I’m still chasing.

But there are days when the weight of reality feels… well… heavy. On those days, escaping into another world for twenty minutes -or twenty episodes- feels like taking a deep breath. Maybe that’s why fantasy exists. Not to convince us to abandon reality. But to remind us that wonder still exists. That imagination still matters. That somewhere inside every adult is a child who still believes there might be dragons hiding just beyond the mountains.

Or mermaids beneath the waves.

Or secret doors that only open when no one else is looking.

Maybe wanting an isekai isn’t really about wanting to leave this world. Maybe it’s about wanting this world to feel a little more magical.

A little more hopeful.

A little more full of possibility.

Because let’s be honest…

If someone knocked on my front door tomorrow and said, “Congratulations! You’ve been summoned to another world. Please choose your starter familiar.” I’m not even pretending I’d hesitate. I’d probably ask if I could pack snacks. And books. Definitely books. Then I’d spend the next three hours trying to decide between a dragon, a phoenix, a giant wolf, or some ridiculously overpowered magical fox.

I’d absolutely overthink my character build.

I’d accidentally accept seventeen side quests before remembering what the main quest was.

I’d probably try to adopt every creature I met.

And I’d almost certainly become distracted by a mysterious bookstore before saving the kingdom.

Some things transcend worlds. But maybe that’s exactly why I love isekai. Not because I want to escape who I am. But because those stories remind me that life still has room for curiosity.

For hope.

For impossible dreams.

For asking “What if?”

Maybe there isn’t a portal waiting around the next corner. Maybe there isn’t a magical kingdom searching for its next reluctant hero. Or maybe there is.

Either way… I think it’s okay to dream. To imagine. To wonder. To believe that life can still surprise us. Because sometimes, long before we ever find another world…

We rediscover the magic in this one. And if I do happen to get summoned someday…

Just know I’ll be the one trying to pet the dragon before anyone confirms whether it’s friendly.

Some lessons are apparently universal.

-Bella Imperia

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