Content Warning: Sexual assault committed on a minor
Oh, I’m going to die.
I look up at the clouds in the hot and humid summer sky, then look down at the long, uninterrupted drop below me. I feel an unpleasant out-of-body experience beginning as I reflect on the past eighteen years of my rather crappy life.
After all, I can’t do anything else right now.
My parents died when I was young, and I was always alone because I had trouble communicating with other people. My only aunt became my guardian but as she was always busy with work, I was still as lonely as ever.
It was then that I discovered online games.
Even someone like me, who struggled with communicating with other people, could have a normal conversation on the internet. I was so happy that I got addicted to them. My aunt bought me anything, provided my grades didn’t start slipping; it was probably how I graduated at the top of my class despite my addiction.
Unfortunately, when it came time to apply to college, my aunt passed away from a stroke. Just before she died, she told me, “Go make some friends.”. She must have been so worried about how much of a loner I was, and I hated myself for making her feel that way in her last moments. It was then that I vowed to change myself.
“To change yourself, begin by changing your hobbies and your thoughts.”
It was written on someone’s blog, titled “How to Change Yourself”. So I decided to try mountain climbing; if you’re wondering why I didn’t choose similar hobbies like fishing or camping, it was because I was more interested in that. I even bought a lot of equipment like bags and shoes online and went off to climb a mountain near my house.
But it was here that the accident happened.
A bear stepped out of the grass on the side of the trail. As soon as it saw me, it growled and started chasing me. I ran away with everything I had; desperate to get away, I didn’t notice the sign saying “Cliff Ahead” and ran right off it.
And now here we are.
For some reason, I wasn’t afraid of dying in those five seconds that I was falling. Maybe it was because there was nothing in this world that made me want to keep on living. The only regret I have in my heart is that I couldn’t do anything but fall.
Haa, I really should have tried something safer.
Too late for that, though. I’m going to die soon. With no hope left, I closed my eyes and waited for my time to come. However…
…
… The impact never came. When I slowly opened my eyes, I found myself in a place I’d never seen before.
“Welcome!” a vendor called out. “We’ve got Pichi-Pichi fish, freshly caught this morning and for cheap~!”
“Freshly baked bread~!” another called out. “Better buy it while it’s hot~!”
The medieval streets often found in Another-World RPGs, the voices of the shopkeepers coming from all over the place, and the clothes worn by the people out in the streets, it was all straight from a High Fantasy.
“… Huh…?” I muttered, stunned. Then I noticed: my voice had changed. “Aah… aaah…”
This is strange, any way you cut it. My voice was like a little girl’s. I looked over myself and found my outfit has changed to some thin, tattered clothes. I was also really short.
What is going on?
I quickly tried to make sense of the situation. I remembered my final moments earlier, this world is far different from earth, and then there’s my change in appearance. With all these pieces of the puzzle, there was only one possible answer:
“I got it. Reincarnation.”
I was reincarnated into another world. But it’s weird. The classic reincarnated-in-another-world fantasy story should start with some kind of adviser telling the protagonist what to do, like a witch or a sage. But why is no one talking to me? What do I have to do now that I’m in this world?
Frustrated and impatient, I started exploring on my own. Then, I hear a gruff voice from behind my back:
“Hey, little girl. You’re pretty cute. Want to come play with us for a while?”
I looked back slowly, my whole body trembling. Right behind me was a trio of very large, very frightening men.
“Aah… ah… I-I-I-I I’m sorry…” I stutter. “C-c-could you… say that again…?”
My mind was blank from panic, so I couldn’t hear what the men were saying. “What are you? Stupid?” one of them growls, all three of them now even more upset and scarier than ever.
The passersby who notice me see them, mutter something to themselves, and walk on by as if nothing ever happened.
Ah… s-someone, please help!
My head was a mess. My heart was racing, I felt dizzy. I took a step back from fear.
“Oh, you’re not going anywhere, little girl!” a man barked as he forcefully grabbed my right arm and pulled me into a back alley.
My arm feels like it’s getting crushed, the skin is turning red. I tripped and started getting dragged along the ground. “He… help!” I whimper. “Somebody help!”
I was desperate. But still, no one from the streets would even look at me. It was then that I realized they had abandoned me to my fate.
I’m just a stranger, so I can’t blame them…
From everyone else’s reactions, I realized these men are terrifying people no one wants to get involved with. I didn’t even want to think of what they were going to do to me once they had me cornered. I gave up hope and prepared to die. Since this was my second time, it was surprisingly easy.
Well, maybe I’ll get another chance at reincarnation and a new life…
“Ehehehe… now let’s get started,” the leader said.
My blood ran cold. I decided to just quietly let them have their way. “If I’m lucky, I won’t be killed,” I told myself over and over again as I tried to stop trembling. I squeezed my eyes shut tight. Then when I felt a hand touch my waist–
“You three, stop right there!” a proud female voice echoes in the back alley.
Surprised, I opened my eyes and saw a cool, long-haired teenage girl.
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