NOVEL NEXT Chapter 31
“One-Step,” or “ワンステ” as it’s called, is the abbreviation for the popular smartphone game for women, *Project Wonder Stage*, that became a hit in Japan after I died.
The premise of the game is simple: you nurture various types of handsome boys with the goal of making them top idols. Princess Chris—or rather, in her previous life, a woman named Yui Sakakibara—was a huge fan of this “One-Step” game. She was so dedicated that she spent almost all of her free time and money on it in her past life.
…And apparently, I look exactly like one of the characters from that game, a man named Kazuhoshi Hakuba.
“You don’t just look alike! You’re his reincarnation, I swear! You’re as tall as Hakuba-kun was when he was in the basketball club, and that low baritone voice is identical!”
The girl, who had been glaring at me with cool detachment just moments ago, was now passionately proclaiming this in a voice so loud it could split eardrums. It was hard to believe she was the same person.
Princess Chris—or rather, Sakakibara, as I’ll call her here—had apparently adored Hakuba Kazuhoshi’s unit in *One-Step*.
“I-I see…”
The sheer intensity of her enthusiasm made me instinctively step back, but the moment I did, Sakakibara closed the distance.
We were now sitting side by side on a large sofa, our faces close enough that to an outsider, it might look like we were having an intimate moment. But the truth was, I was just being forcibly cornered by a woman in a state of utter confusion.
But she was the woman of the highest rank in this kingdom. The palpable pressure emanating from behind her, like the rumbling of the earth itself, was likely the result of her overflowing magical power, leaking out due to her excitement.
“It was tough suddenly ending up in this world, but just meeting Hakuba-kun here makes it all worth it!”
Despite looking as cool and composed as Saioji, her words made me feel strangely betrayed.
As she panted and flushed, moving her hands in an unsettling manner, I couldn’t help but wonder what Rey, who had been in this room just moments ago, would have thought.
“W-wait! I’m not this ‘Hakuba-kun’ guy, and first of all, you’re a princess! You can’t just be in a room like this with a strange man!”
“No need to worry! I’m the princess of this kingdom; I can easily squash any rumors!”
She grabbed my hands firmly, and though I tried to pull away, I couldn’t move an inch. Even though her grip wasn’t particularly strong, she held me down on the sofa with an incredible strength that I couldn’t even begin to resist.
“This isn’t funny!”
No matter how cute she was, like Saioji, I had no intention of going along with this. But even when I called for help, there was no response.
Not even her earlier scream had drawn any attention, so it seemed this room was well soundproofed.
“I may not have any experience, even counting my previous life, but I’ve done my homework! Now, just count the spots on the ceiling, and it’ll be over before you know it, so stop resisting!”
Her excitement seemed to have reached its peak as she gently but forcefully moved my arms above my head, leaving my upper body completely exposed.
I silently cursed, wondering how such slender arms could possess so much strength. Just as she was about to mount me and tear off my clothes—
The door clicked open.
“…”
“Ah.”
Whether by luck or persistence, Camille, who had stepped out earlier to catch her breath, returned and opened the door to the parlor.
Though she seemed a bit calmer after stepping outside, Camille was still somewhat dazed.
The first thing she saw upon reentering the room was the princess pinning me down on the sofa… Though the roles were reversed, from a third party’s perspective, it looked like something “naughty” was about to go down.
While Camille stared in stunned silence, Sakakibara and I both snapped back to reality with a short exclamation.
“Eek!”
Sakakibara and I turned to look at Camille at the same time, but before she could fully comprehend the situation, she rolled her eyes upward and let out a cute squeal before fainting on the spot.
Even though Camille hadn’t been much help during the audience, I was grateful I’d brought her along. She ended up saving me from the greatest crisis of my Asphial life, and I felt a bit guilty for having deceived her into coming along.
(Maybe I should buy her the fourth volume of *Yume-Koi* tomorrow…)
I gently laid Camille’s head on my lap, running my fingers through her silky blue hair. If she hadn’t intervened, I might have been assaulted by the girl sitting cross-legged across from me.
“What have I done… I can’t believe I lost control like that in front of my favorite character… What a disaster.”
With trembling hands, Sakakibara muttered to herself in disbelief, questioning her earlier actions.
(Lost control? What the hell…)
Now that she had regained her composure, Sakakibara was back to her usual cool demeanor, though her speech remained somewhat aloof. Maybe this laid-back manner was her true self all along.
“Sakakibara… Are you a reincarnator? Or a translocator?”
It was fine for her to self-reflect, but Camille might wake up at any moment, so I decided to get straight to the point.
“In my case, I guess it’s more like possession? When I was in my second year of university, I was suddenly transported to this world during lunch break. After that, my consciousness mixed with the original owner of this body, forming the personality I have now.”
“Possession, huh? I didn’t know that was a thing.”
“I’m not entirely sure, since I’ve never met anyone else like me. You’re the first person I’ve met from the same world.”
Reincarnators are rare, usually only one or two in a place the size of a city, so it’s not common to encounter them in everyday life.
You could live your entire life without ever meeting another.
Plus, Sakakibara was a member of the royal family, the most noble bloodline in this country.
Even though she wasn’t directly in line for the throne, she was still leagues above the common nobility. Given her limited interactions, it wasn’t surprising she had never met another reincarnator or translocator.
It wasn’t until I turned twenty that I met Saioji.
“I’ve been living in this world for nearly twenty years now, and I’ve only met one other person from our world. I think the chances of meeting another Japanese person are pretty low.”
I decided to keep Saioji’s existence a secret from Sakakibara. While telling her could turn her into a powerful ally, there was also the risk of unintended consequences. Instead, I shared the general knowledge I had about reincarnators.
In return, Sakakibara told me about her experiences in this world’s noble society.
“Well, you know, people from other worlds are often incredibly attractive, so I get nervous around them… It’s not that I’m socially awkward, but my sisters think I’m weird.”
“…I see.”
I matched Sakakibara’s relaxed tone with a noncommittal response. It was hard to imagine someone with social anxiety getting to the point of almost attacking someone, but if even her sisters considered her eccentric, it might be more of a unique trait of hers rather than something tied to being a reincarnator or translocator.