Novice Reincarnator

Even if my body suddenly became a girl, my heart was still that of a man. Go out with another man? Don’t joke with me! I liked girls.

Elizabeth’s dinner banquet had ended rather abruptly after Leo’s confession. It was impossible to continue when three fourths of the members had fainted. Those that remained awake saw Leo off together.

I couldn’t leave like Leo did when I was surrounded by scary smiles. In fact, Elizabeth began her attack the moment Leo’s limo disappeared from sight.

“Do you think Leo will give up just because you said no?”

“Everything will be fine if you turn me back into a man.”

Elizabeth and the others looked at me in pity. I got strangely defensive under their silent pressure.

“W-What? Nothing can happen if we are both guys.”

“I am afraid you are mistaken, Asta. If you return to being a guy, then Leo will take a potion to turn himself into a girl. He is that kind of man, after all.”

Leo, the school prince, would turn into a girl? My heart sank. Leo was really like that. Once he found something he liked, he grabbed onto it and wouldn’t let go. His persistence and the hard work that he put in to achieve his goals were something I always admired about him. Such traits were now being used against me.

“I won’t date Leo, even if he becomes a girl.”

“Your resolve is admirable, but you are underestimating the human named Leonhart Maxwell. He captured tens of girls' hearts on his own without even trying. How could you hope to resist his favor when he puts his mind into pursuing you?”

Elizabeth smiled at me and my words died in my throat. Elizabeth McDouglas, one of the proudest and noblest girls in the world, fell in love with my best friend. I’m sure she never thought she would fall for a man who had tens of girls after his favor, but here we were.

There was something supernatural about Leo’s charm that drew people to him. I wasn’t naive enough to believe I would somehow be different. I was still resistant to the idea now, but it was only a matter of time before Leo changed my mind. That had to be avoided at all costs. Unfortunately, my fate was no longer in my own hands.

“Why did you set this up, Elizabeth?”

“As the others have already said, I want what is best for Leo. That is all there is to it.”

“There were over twenty girls here. Any one of them would have been a better choice than me.”

Elizabeth laughed at my words. I couldn’t understand her. She loved Leo. His confession should have been the worst possible development, but she was acting like everything was going the way she wished.

“You are the biggest existence in Leo’s heart. Everything else is trivial in light of that.”

Game, set, and match. An ordinary commoner like me couldn’t beat the immense backgrounds both Elizabeth and Leo held. They were smarter, cunning, and knew how to use the power they were born with to get what they wanted.

I was nothing more than a pawn dancing on the chessboard between the two of them. Elizabeth spoke up as if sensing my thoughts.

“I know how much you like role playing games, Asta. Then, shall we play a game? Here is your first dialogue choice. Do you go back to being a man…”

Saying this, Elizabeth held out her left hand which had a red pill. I could take the pill and everything would go back to normal. Unfortunately, I couldn’t avert my eyes from the truth. There was no way Leo would be satisfied with our everyday normal anymore.

“...Or you could take this Explorer’s license and reincarnate to the Upper Realm.”

I flinched in shock when a floating, transparent blue card appeared above Elizabeth’s right hand. The only reason our world was so peaceful was because the Explorers in the Upper Realm protected us from invading dungeons.

The first dungeon appeared in our world 100 years ago and humanity was helpless to resist the monsters that poured out of it. Peace only returned to the lands when Explorers from the Upper Realm came down to destroy the dungeon. In return for protection, we offered our best and brightest up to the Upper Realm as Explorer candidates.

It was an immense honor to be chosen as an Explorer. A commoner like me would ordinarily never be granted this opportunity.

“What are you playing at?”

Leo would have ordinarily gone to the Upper Realm with his talents, but his grandfather explicitly forbade it. That was to say, Leo would never be able to follow me if I ran away to the Upper Realm.

“This is our little game. I believe Leo will be able to find you even if you change into a completely different person.”

“Leo’s grandfather will never permit him to go to the Upper Realm.”

“What Grandfather Maxwell wants doesn’t matter. I came down to this world explicitly to bring Leo to the Upper Realm. Falling in love with him was an unexpected, but welcome, development.”

Elizabeth had me right where she wanted. I would be playing into her hands if I chose to become an Explorer, but staying here meant that I would eventually end up in a relationship with Leo. I stalled for time while I thought my choices over.

“Why is someone from the Upper Realms interested in Leo?”

“You don’t know? Leo’s father was the first human in a thousand years to have a Legendary class talent. If he hadn’t died in an unfortunate accident, he would have become the strongest human in existence.”

I didn’t need Elizabeth to continue. I was already beginning to see the big picture.

“You think Leo might be the same.”

“An ordinary man doesn’t turn as many heads as Leo does.”

Could I really leave everything behind to run away from my best friend? I would be playing right into Elizabeth’s hands if I took the Explorer’s license.

I was a small person. While Leo might eventually persuade me to try out dating, the thought of dating him disgusted me right now. Due to his grandfather’s presence, our relationship couldn’t possibly end with just dating.

Both Elizabeth and Leo’s grandfather had shown a willingness to use forceful means to get what they wanted. I couldn’t imagine what kind of plans Leo would lay with his grandfather now that their goals were in alignment.

The thought of having a baby with Leo was so awful that I nearly threw up. Even if he was my best friend, that didn’t mean I could do it with a man. In the end, I was a horrible best friend. I couldn’t prioritize anyone but myself first.

“Fine. I will play your game, Elizabeth.”

I reached out and grabbed the Explorer’s license.