Gulp gulp gulp
"Oh my. You're drinking so eagerly. Is it really that tasty?"
—It's the best! What the heck is this? Is breast milk really this delicious!? All those thoughts like "I'm drinking breast milk from a beautiful woman's breasts" or "this is some humiliating play, drinking it with the mind of an adult"—they all just vanished in an instant!! Is this that saying? Hunger is the best seasoning? The milk is hitting hard on an empty stomach!! Please let me drink more!
Gulp gulp gulp… puuh.
"Alright. That's enough for now. Let's do a little burp, okay? There, pat pat."
Burp.
"Well done! You're such a good baby."
—Don't praise me so much, I'll get embarrassed.
…Okay. Now that I've calmed down a bit, let's think this through.
Who is this woman? She wasn't here a moment ago, then suddenly appeared. And what's more, she's not afraid of my aura at all. Even ordinary people who can barely sense aura should feel fear from it.
…From that, it's clear. This woman must be a nen beast I created. Most likely, my strong will to not die manifested unconsciously as this nen beast. The fact that it took the form of a woman must mean, deep down, I was yearning for a mother figure.
But no matter how much I will it, it moves on its own. Even when I try to erase it, it won't disappear. …So it's an autonomous nen beast? Maybe it's bound by some kind of restriction. …And to think, the very first nen I created after reincarnation ended up being a mother nen beast. …What a waste of memory.
Well, nothing to do about the memory issue. Gotta accept it.
Still, this means I can survive! If I had died back then, I might have spilled a nen curse all over this place as I went. But I lived through it. There's a lot I regret from my past life, but now I need to focus on the future.
My original goal—to lose my virginity to a canon character—well, that's gone. Even when I was under Geass, I realized: this isn't just a manga world. This world is another reality.
But! That doesn't mean I plan to stay a virgin forever!! I just won't obsess over sticking to the original story!! I'm going to stop being a virgin, Netero!!
With this overwhelming aura! With the martial arts I mastered in my past life! With these two powers, being popular with women shouldn't be just a dream!!! Wahahaha! I'll become the king of the harem!!!!!!
…Or so I once believed.
"Come now, Aisha-chan. It's boob time. Let's drink lots again today."
"Ah~ uu~."
...Aisha. That's my name now. Mom gave it to me. Sounds like a girl's name, doesn't it? If only I could shout back "What's wrong with Aisha being a boy's name, huh!!"—if only…
"Such a cutie you are, Aisha-chan. You'll grow up to be a beauty just like me. Oh, how wonderful. You'll be so popular with boys."
Yeah, not happy at all. Why the hell would I want to be popular with guys?
... And that was the third miscalculation after reincarnation… My gender is female.
How… How did it come to this…!?
Thinking about it carefully, it was obvious. There's no rule that you must reincarnate into the same sex as before. I should've created a nen ability to ensure that beforehand.
Honestly, I should count myself lucky I was even reborn human. After all, my ability was just "to be reborn as new life." I could've easily come back as an animal, or even an insect…
H-horrifying… What a low success-rate gamble I played…! Compared to reincarnating as an animal, being reborn as a girl is nothing!
…Sorry, nope. Can't fool myself. It's not "nothing" at all! Living as a girl means losing my virginity is impossible from the start—hell, I never even had it in the first place! Worse, guys might start hitting on me. …This is depressing. Maybe I should just die.
…No, wait. Think. I managed to reincarnate with nen. Then maybe with nen, I can change my sex too!?
Huh? …That reminds me, wasn't there such an ability somewhere? Damn it! If only I still had [Original Knowledge / Orishuno Tokuten]! I swear there was such an ability… I need to remember! If I don't remember now, I'll be stuck as a girl forever!
…Yes! I remember!! It was a game. A game made by a nen user! And in that game, there was definitely an item—like a drug—that could change your gender! If I can get that, then I can turn back into a guy!! I can still lose my virginity!!!
Alright! Once I've grown up, my first mission will be to get that game, and then get gender bender item! Thank goodness. Looks like things will work out.
Phew~… what a scare. For a while I really thought it was all over.
Yaaawn~. Now that I feel relieved, I'm getting sleepy. Baby bodies sure get tired fast.
"Oh my. Is it nap time already? Just wait a moment… There, all ready. Sleep well."
"Aa~ uu~."
Thank you very much for conjuring up a baby bed with a fancy canopy and all. Today's milk, strawberry-flavored, was especially delicious. Yesterday's was banana flavor, by the way.
…Mom, you're ridiculously high-performance.
...
◆
Time passed, and I—Aisha—grew up quickly and reached the age of five.
My body is very healthy. That's thanks to the breast milk I drink from Mom every day. …Yes, even now that my body has grown enough to eat solid food, my daily meals are still breast milk…
Of course, I want to eat normal food too. But everything around here is garbage. Nothing edible at all. There are rats and bugs, but I don't want to eat them…
So I put up with living off breast milk. …Though honestly, it's really delicious. I wonder what flavor today's afternoon milk will be? This morning's was yogurt flavor. Next, I'll ask for a fruit flavor.
I worried that my jaw wouldn't get enough exercise, but Mom solved that by manifesting chewing gum, which I chew often. I asked if she could manifest other foods, but she said breast milk is the most nutritious, so no… pretty strict.
Oh, and by the way, the gum's ingredients are apparently breast milk as well. Needlessly high-performance, as always.
As for shelter from the wind and rain—Mom manifested a whole baby's room. …I thought that was going overboard, but it really helped. I practiced crawling and standing in there, since it's safer than outside.
There's even a clock with year/month/day, so I can track the passage of time precisely. There's also running water, a bath, a toilet, a mirror, even a scale. Truly everything I could need.
Now that years have passed, my body grown, and life stabilized, I tried the water divination test to see what nen category I belong to. The result didn't match any of the five categories: the leaf spun as it sank into the water. Without doubt, I'm a Specialist.
Well, that makes sense. After all, my nen ability [Reincarnation / Stronger New Game+] succeeded. The leaf's movement probably reflects lingering Manipulator traits.
—So, five years living as a girl. My determination to return to being a boy hasn't wavered. Of course, neither has my resolve to lose my virginity. But my way of speaking and even my thought patterns have become girlish…
There's a reason for this. Once I grew enough to talk normally, I referred to myself as "Ore" when speaking to Mom. At first, she gently corrected me: "Girls shouldn't call themselves Ore." But even after repeated scolding, I didn't stop, until finally she got truly angry once…
That was terrifying…
Since then, somehow I've had this belief drilled into me: "Girls must act like girls" ... "Girls must act like girls" ... "Girls must act like girls."
At first I still tried to stick to masculine speech, but gradually that feeling faded. When I got corrected one last time, the stubbornness disappeared completely…
…I'm pretty sure this too is Mom's ability at work. It's clearly unnatural. If I'd lived as a girl for decades, then sure, my mindset might change. But for a boy's consciousness to shift into a girl's within just 2–3 years? Impossible.
Otaku mentality → training freak mentality → old man mentality → basically plant-level mentality → back to otaku mentality pre/post reincarnation → girlish mentality.…
Even I think my identity swings way too much.
Still, as long as I return to being a man! Then everything will be fine!! Because if "girls must act girly," then surely, as a boy, I'll have to act manly!!
At five years old, I can move my body quite a lot.
From experience, I've realized this body is high-spec. I haven't compared with others, but at the very least, compared to my past self, it's leagues stronger. When I was five before, there's no way I could've run nonstop for an hour. And I mean without using nen.
But this body could. With nothing better to do indoors, I tried exercising and testing my physical specs. I figured they were high, but for a five-year-old with no real training to manage that…
Maybe it's thanks to Mom's milk? It really is that nutritious. My body's been growing strong and fast. I'm probably already bigger than an average five-year-old—maybe around the size of a second or third grader.
Looking back, my past self trained ridiculously hard. My aura volume and both basic and advanced nen applications are absurdly high-level… [Absolute Command / Geass] can be called a huge success. Even a masochist couldn't endure that kind of training.
Well, since I worked so hard to gain it, I'll keep from losing my edge. Not like I have much else to do besides Mom's lessons anyway. …Who knew I'd be made to study basic arithmetic again at this age?
Even though I've grown enough to move around, I'm still in Meteor City. …Of course, aside from Mom and me, there's no one else here. Looks like this area is classified as an S-rank danger zone.
How rude. To call it dangerous, when such an adorable child and a beautiful mother live here…!
So then, why haven't I left Meteor City even though I can move freely now? Simple. People are terrified when I do.
When I was three, I once told Mom I wanted to leave. She readily agreed: "If Aisha-chan says so, let's go on a trip then."
I was overjoyed and headed outside Meteor City with her. As we approached another city, I immediately used Zetsu, to conceal my eerie aura. No one would come near if I leaked it. With Zetsu, it should be fine. Or so I thought, as we entered town.
The streets bustled with people and buildings. Ah, a proper city at last. The sound of footsteps. The cars driving by. The news anchor's voice from a TV. The screams flying through the air. All so nostalgic…
…Wait. Screams?
What's going on? A bank robbery? Looking around, people are clearly staring this way… Huh? Why? I'm using Zetsu. Why focus on me?
No… it's not me they're staring at. If it were, I'd notice the gazes. Who then? Of course—the person beside me. My mother. Why? Why are they trembling at the sight of her?
I glance at Mom, but she looks the same as always… no, a little shaken. She doesn't seem to understand either.
"What's wrong, everyone?"
"I don't know… let me ask someone. Wait here, okay?"
"Don't stray too far, Aisha-chan."
"I'll be fine. If I move more than ten meters, you'll be pulled along anyway, right?"
So I approached a nearby man. …The guy collapsed on his backside.
"Excuse me, what's going on?"
"Eek!? A— a child…? Don't scare me like that…"
Oh, right. I was using Zetsu. I startled him.
"Sorry for startling you. But why is everyone so frightened?"
"I—I don't know. Somehow… my body just shakes uncontrollably…"
He hugged himself tightly, trembling.
…Strange. With my aura suppressed, even nen users shouldn't feel fear. So why?
"What is this malevolent aura!? Who are you!!"
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
!? Someone sensed it! A nen user!
"She may appear a beautiful woman, but my eyes—those of First-Class Single Beast Hunter Dioh—cannot be deceived! You're some kind of magical beast, aren't you!? No human emits such an aura!"
—A Hunter!? And with a Single-star title!? And did he just call Mom a beast!?
"You must have disguised yourself to attack this city. But you won't succeed! Regret crossing paths with Dioh-sama!!"
This is bad…! A Hunter's dangerous. We need to run!
"Mom, let's go home!"
"Aisha-chan… okay."
"There's a child too!? Such perfect Zetsu…! But as First-Class Double Beast Hunter Dioh-sama, I cannot let you escape!!"
Why did his rank go up!?
"Stay back!"
I flared my aura with full Ren! If he tries to hurt Mom, I, Aisha, won't forgive him!!
…And the guy just foamed at the mouth and fainted. Was he really a Single-star Hunter? Anyway, let's escape while we can!
Phew. We should be safe now…
"Are you okay, Mom?"
"I'm fine, Aisha-chan. But you mustn't do such violent things."
"But he tried to hurt Mom…"
"I'll be alright. I've told you before, haven't I? You're a girl, so you must act like a girl."
"…I'm sorry."
"Good. As long as you understand. Thank you, though—for getting angry on my behalf."
"Mm!"
—That incident made me realize: maybe Mom's aura, like mine, is also sinister and terrifying to others.
To me, her aura feels calming, but that would explain everything. If only Mom could use Zetsu or In… But even after two years of practice, she couldn't. More accurately, she can't use any nen techniques except Hatsu.
And I've learned in these five years that she can't move more than ten meters away from me. At this rate, if we go to a city again, police or Hunters will definitely come. In that case, I don't know if I could even protect her…
So for now, I've given up on leaving. Until I come up with a good plan, this place will remain our home.
And so—Meteor City. I'll be in your care a while longer!