Novice Reincarnator

I woke up feeling refreshed and well rested for the first time in days. While my body was overjoyed with my activities, I couldn’t help but be disgusted with myself.

I couldn’t have a good night’s sleep if I didn’t comfort myself first. Each time I did that, I chipped away at the pride and resolve that made me run away from becoming Leo’s girlfriend in the first place.

Like every time I woke up with a clear mind, I took stock of my situation.

“Status.”

Name: Ash

Class: Novice

Level: 2/10

Personal Skills (3/3): [Weak Bladder], [Breast Binding], [Clumsy Fingering]

Racial Skills: [Contract I]

Class Skills: [Novice]

My mood sank even further at the addition of my newest skill. Every single skill slot was filled with garbage skills. There were two common ways to gain new skills. The first was to experience an event that was like a turning point in your life. I acquired [Weak Bladder] due to my traumatic encounter with a Crystalline Colossus.

The second way was to repeat the same action over again. My actions of binding my breasts every day and the importance I placed on that action manifested the [Breast Binding] skill.

My third skill, [Clumsy Fingering], told me that I had gone past the point of no return. Since today was the first time I went that far with my fingers, that meant my skill manifested due to the first category of skill acquisition.

My mind was beginning to change as I started to accept that my body had truly become a girl’s body. Would I even have a reason to reject Leo’s advances if my heart became a girl too?

“No, no, no. That will never happen!”

I shook my head. My status was the worst, but there was still a tiny thread of hope left to me. I would be able to reset my personal skills if I entered the dungeon and reached max level. The thought of starting over again had crossed my mind several times already, but I quickly gave up on it. I couldn't even step outside. How would I enter a dungeon?

I sighed and made my way to my laptop to look at the latest news in the Upper Realm. The news I had been waiting for the past month to see finally appeared. Several noisy article headlines jumped into my vision.

“The Birth of a New Hero!”

“The Human race welcomes a new Legendary talent.”

“What is the relationship of this new Hero to the old one?”

I clicked on one of the articles and froze in shock at the sight of two figures standing next to each other. I immediately recognized one of them.

Elizabeth stood on the right with her usual elegant appearance. Unfortunately for her, Elizabeth's honey wheat blonde hair paled in comparison to the girl next her. In the center of the image was a brilliant princess with long golden hair that sparkled like it was spun from threads of sunlight.

The girl's clear blue eyes contained an unmistakable, brilliant light. Her clothing brought out her radiant shine and accentuated her bountiful curves. Even though I had never seen her appearance before, I instantly knew who she was.

Leonhart Maxwell, or as the article called her, Leah Maxwell. Leo’s appearance was exactly within my strike zone. There was only one reason he would take on that form. My body grew hot and noisy.

“No good. That appearance is too much.”

I could barely think straight. It was like my ideal girl had appeared in front of me. Unfortunately, she was Leo. Did that matter when Leo looked like my dream girl? No, that girl was actually a guy on the inside. Physically, Leo was now female so it should be okay?

Leo would want kids. Ah, but that wouldn’t matter if he was the one that got pregnant?

I shut my laptop and ran away to the bathroom before I made an irreparable mistake. Unfortunately, the sight of Leo’s female form was burned into my eyes. Like a trained gacha addict, I was seized by the simple and single minded desire to acquire the girl of my dreams.

I wouldn’t even need to fork over all my possessions. All I needed to do was show up in front of her and she would be mine. My reflection in the bathroom mirror had a strange grin that couldn’t be shown to the public.

These lonely days would come to an end as long as I reached out to the girl of my dreams. What was I waiting for? Paradise was within arms reach.

It was clear from the smoldering hope in the eyes of the little demon girl in the mirror that she yearned for a different life.

She wanted someone to comfort her. The little demon girl wanted someone to tell her that everything would be okay. She wanted to feel the warmth of another person. The past month had shown her how miserable she was when she tried to live by herself. That weak, little girl in the mirror... was me.

It was time that I admitted defeat. Running away and living by myself wasn't working out for me. I was only a Common talent. No matter how hard I tried, I would never amount to anything. In a world full of monsters as frightening as a Crystalline Colossus, I needed a hero like Leo by my side. Meaningless pride would only get me killed.

I lost my smile. Traces of darkness crept into the golden eyes of my reflection. Leo had dozens of girls after his love, but I was different from those girls. I was his only best friend and I wanted it to stay that way. After all, nobody could contest my position.

No matter how superior they were to me, none of girls after Leo's love would ever have as special of a relationship with Leo as I did. To a harem hero like Leo, lovers were a dime a dozen but best friends were in short supply.

I wasn’t originally like this. We hard a rather ordinary friendship in the beginning. It was only when ridiculously beautiful girls started to show up one after the other that I began to feel a power trip whenever Leo turned down the girls to hang out with me. Even if we were both men, I wasn’t immune to Leo’s charm that made me wish to be someone special to him.

A nobody like me was more important to Leo than those attractive girls. That alone made me someone important. I would never have gotten the opportunity to reincarnate in the Upper Realm if I wasn’t friends with Leo.

If I became lovers with Leo, I would be kicked down from my pedestal and brought to the same position as every other girl that favored Leo. Sure, I might ahve his favor now, but there was no way I could compete against those amazing girls in the long run.

With only my own reflection left to judge me, I voiced the words buried deep within my heart.

“More importantly, I want to remain Leo’s equal.”

My wish had always sounded so ridiculous that I had never dared to voice it out loud before. It wasn't like Leo was my only friend. I had many friends that I could spend time with, but one of the things about Leo that drew me in was how he always treated me as his equal despite the vast gap in our abilities.

If I became Leo’s lover with how I am right now, then I would be completely and utterly dependent on him. Even if Leo tried to treat me as an equal, I would never feel that way myself.

“I want to change.”

A desire surged up from the bottom of my heart. I wanted to change. Right now, I was a shut in Hornless Demon that couldn’t get a good night’s sleep without comforting myself. I had no job and no income. I hadn’t met a person in almost a month and the online netizens liked to call me a Peeing Princess.

I wanted to change into a person who wouldn’t run away from the feelings of his best friend. I wanted to be someone who could hold their head high when they walked outside. I wanted to sleep at night knowing I had done my best.

“Ah, I want to change.”

That single desire drowned out everything else until it dominated my every thought. I nodded my head at the little demon girl in the bathroom mirror and came to a decision. I would head into the dungeon tonight.

It wasn’t for anyone else’s sake, but purely to fulfill my own selfish desire.

I wanted... No, I needed to change.