⟨ What.. What the f*ck.. I- I.. Huh.. Wh- i- Eehh.. ⟩. I was completely blown away. My brain had trouble processing this revelation. [ System Error. ]. An electronic voice, different from the usual feminine sounding voice, with a more deeper, baritone voice, rang out in my head, announcing such ominous things. I was sure my face would be a W*ndows crash screen if someone looked at it.
" Uuhh.. Please elaborate?? ". I asked in a daze.
" Okay, it all started when I had my fifteenth birthday, the coming of age ceremony in this world. ". He said.
~~~~<< Flashback time lmao >>~~~~
[ Luke's (?) POV ].
The day I've been waiting for had finally arrived, my fifteenth birthday, also my coming of age ceremony. Once I'm fifteen, I'll be able to do anything I wish, and today is the day I finally become a man, a young man, but a man nonetheless. I'm going to enroll into the knight training school and become as strong as father! My training with Alyssia was starting to bear it's fruits, I'm now able to take on opponents as strong as squires. But, I'm still no match against Alyssia herself, nor even father. As he was the kingdom's hero, he was known as the Red Dragon Slayer. A pretentious title, for sure, but a fitting one.
I'm getting off track. Anyways, today is my fifteenth birthday, the servants have been busy preparing for this day, the maids and butlers were working together to set up a beautiful party. The cooks have been busy planning and coming up with recipes to serve, and the messengers were working hard delivering invitations to all of my father's and mother's friends and family. Everyone was working hard, so I have to do my best today. I even woke up extra early to rehearse my speech for the ceremony, because I heard that Her Majesty the Queen will personally attend this occasion. I will not let anything sully my family's name.
At breakfast, big brother Al congratulated me and promised me a present later, he always gives his presents late, whether it's for big sister Christine or Alicia. He was always late, but he gives presents that I always wished, so I have no complaints. Father and mother were eager to see me perform my speech at the ceremony. Big sister Christine just patted me on the head, as she always does, and Alicia complained about when's her turn. She's already seven now, so it'll just be three years before she'll have her debut. I just hope that this evening will go as planned.
Like that, I spent the day training with Alyssia and big sister Christine. Around noon, I finished off the training then I freshened myself and continued to study with big brother Al. Then, Around afternoon, I started the preparations for my ceremony. It's finally time.. I rehearsed my speech again, and again, and again. I became confident that I have memorized everything. So I headed off to take a bath. After that, the servants helped me put on a complicated suit-robe hybrid thing, it was a real struggle, I wonder who came up with the design, Whoever it was, I'm going to smack them on the head if I ever met them. After the whole clothing debacle, a hairdresser did my hair perfectly, and my nails were done, it feels nice having neat nails.
Evening came, I can hear the clatters of tonight's guest's carriages arriving. My heart cannot calm itself down, I'm really nervous here, influential and powerful people are attending, how could I stay calm? Seemingly have noticed my unease, big brother Al said.
" It's okay, Luke, just imagine that they're your friends, and that you're just talking in front of old friends. ".
" Okay.. I'll try to.. ". I said.
" You can do it, I believe in you. ". He affirmed.
" Yeah, thank you big bro. ".
After that, he smiled, and then he got up and said.
" I'll go and greet the guests, you'll come out to the venue when you're called. ".
" Yeah, okay, I understand. ". I said.
With that, he left my room, leaving me alone. I'm feeling a mixture of anxiety and giddiness, an emotion that I certainly didn't feel before. So I waited patiently. And then, a servant knocked on my door, saying.
" It's time, young master, let's go. ".
" Okay, I'm coming. ".
I was then guided to the venue by the servant, big brother Al was there, he encouraged me backstage by saying.
" Come on, you can do this, I believe in you. ".
To that, I simply nodded with determination and headed on stage to deliver the speech. Everyone attending looked at me, I had their full attention. On a VIP table nearby, I can see my parents, together with Her Majesty the Queen and her royal consort, Archduke Nolan. Their eyes were full of expectations. I must not fail.
The speech was long, boring, and pretentious. But, I managed to deliver it perfectly fine, without much trouble. Everyone applauded once I finished that lengthy speech. So I gracefully bowed and ended it with. " Everyone, please enjoy yourselves to the fullest in this occasion. ".
Once I said that, as rehearsed, the live orchestra concert started playing, and everyone with a partner started the dance. Father and mother were certainly having fun, Her Majesty as well, was having fun. So I headed to the main venue to socialize, I talked with a few of my acquaintances, and some of my friends I knew from father. Then I talked with the parents of some young ladies.. They're really desperate to marry their daughter off, how deplorable..
After that, I excused myself to sit and rest because I have been feeling a little dizzy for a while, I felt it since noon, but I just shrugged it off as anxiety, but it seems that I have caught a cold or something. On my way to the table, the dizziness grew worse, my footing became increasingly unstable and my vision steadily grew hazier and my hearing became more and more distant. This isn't good, my head feels like something's applying pressure forcefully to it, like something is forcing it's way in. ⟨ Uughh.. What is this.. It feels like my head's burning. ⟩. I almost made it to the table, before finally collapsing, the last thing I saw was big sister Christine holding me up, frantically. And mother yelling something. Like that, my consciousness faded.
~~~~<< Still Flashback Time >>~~~~
[ The Reincarnator's POV ]
I'm Takeuchi Hinata. An ordinary school boy, I attend the local highschool here in my hometown. I could be categorized as a side character, or a "mob character", as the kids nowadays call it.. I sound like a boomer. Anyways, I'm currently in a bus, heading home after school with my friends. We were discussing this latest RPG game that came out, apparently, it has a great storyline and is very enjoyable. At least, that's what my friends say, I'm not really the type to game, but, I do occasionally play a little. I'm also not really into anime and manga, but I do enjoy some from time to time.
But, this moment of peace was disturbed by a sharp pain that assailed my chest, I feel my heart being constricted by an unseen force, I feel the blood draining from my face, and my vision grew hazier. My head feels light, and cold sweat precipitated from my back, my entire body is quaking as I feel strength leaving me. It looks like my friends were making quite the commotion because of my situation, ⟨ Guys, please, you're just embarrassing yourselves. ⟩. I thought.
Like that, my consciousness slipped as I was laying on my friend's arms.
But, I woke up in an empty, pure white room, with nothing in it.
⟨ Where is this?? This is certainly not a hospital, am I dead? no, it can't be, what kind of reality am I in to be in a light novel-ish development?? This has got to be a dream. ⟩. I thought.
But, suddenly, an old man came into view, he had a thick, white beard and mustache. His hair was white too, he was wearing a pure white robe and I feel this strange, divine aura from him. ⟨ No.. It can't be.. ⟩.
" Unfortunately, it CAN be, my poor child. ". He said.
⟨ Did he just read my mind?! ⟩.
" I indeed just read your mind. ". He affirmed.
⟨ HUUUHHH????? Does that mean he's.. ⟩.
" Yes, I am who you guess me to be, I am your world's god. ". He said.
" WHAT?! ". I audibly yelled.
" Remain calm, my child. For you are in no harm. ". He said.
" How could I be calm?! What happened?! ".
" What happened to you was a blunder on my part, I accidentally picked the wrong soul to be reaped. It was painful, wasn't it? ". He explained.
" Please explain it more simply. ".
" Let me word it so that young children like you understand, basically, you have died, lmao. ".
" WHAT IS THIISS?!! WHY AM I DEAD?! WHAT IS WITH THE "lmao" AT THE END?! IS THIS SOME SORT OF CRUEL JOKE?! WHERE'S THE PUNCHLINE?!! ". I yelled.
" This is not a joke, my child. ".
" What am I supposed to do?! ".
" Fear not, for you shall be reborn anew. ".
" Reborn? ".
" Indeed, reborn, not into an infantile body, but into an already adult body. ".
" Why into an adult body? ".
" Because your soul already passed the 15 year old mark. Therefore, it is too old to be contained in an infant. As it carries the risk of completely destroying the body. In other words, you'll be isekai'd, as the kids nowadays call it. ". He explained.
⟨ He's a boomer. ⟩.
" I'm still perfectly youthful thank you very much. ".
" Whatever you say. So, do I have some sort of objective? Do I have to kill the Demon King or something?? ".
" No, you'll be free to do anything you want, there's no specific task for you to do. You can still kill the Demon King if you wish. ". He explained.
" What'll happen to my old body, my old life?! ".
" Your previous life has come to an abrupt end, you are already pronounced dead. Even one of your friend will name his child Hinata as an homage to you. ".
⟨ What the hell? I thought my circle of friends said that they're going to be sages. ⟩.
" But I can't just transfer bodies willy-nilly, right?? ".
" I have made sure that your new body will be optimized to suit your soul. ".
"… ".
With nothing else to say, I accepted the offer to be reborn, when I asked for more information, the "god" said that the world I'm going to be in is a world of swords and magic, so fantasy-like, I almost didn't take this seriously at first. And he said he'll give me the general knowledge of the world I'm about to go to and the circumstances surrounding the new body I'll be using. The way he gave me those knowledge was by bonking my head with a squeaky hammer. This man is a weirdo. Anyways, once I've been deemed ready enough by this "god" I was immediately sent away, with my consciousness fading once again.
Waking up, I realized I was on a bed. Staring at an " Unfamiliar Ceiling ". Holy Sh*t, did I just unironically said that.. Whatever. All at once, memories and experiences that belong to someone else came flooding in. I knew this was not my memories, but it felt strangely familiar. I instinctively knew that my name was Lukas Vesner cecil Draculesti.. But also, I'm Takeuchi Hinata.. What a strange situation I'm in. I also knew that I apparently collapsed at my own birthday party, that must be embarrassing.
⟨ So.. This is it, huh, my new life as Lukas. I wonder what happened to the original Lukas ⟩.
Like that, my life as Lukas began, it was not until two years later that I came to realize that I was not the only other-worlder.
~~~~<< Flashback End >>~~~~
[ Evan's POV ].
" Soo.. That's the gist of it. ". Luke-, I mean, Hinata-, I mean, uhh.. Yeah, Luke, said.
" So you're telling me, that you have the memories of BOTH Lukas AND Hinata? ". I asked.
" Yeah.. You don't believe me, don't you? I must come off as a weirdo. ". He said, dejected.
Should I tell the truth about me too? It doesn't seem like he's lying to me, and I will be his attendant really soon.. Yeah, let's do that.
" No, no no, I do believe you, but, Would YOU believe ME if I not only say that I know of a country called Japan, but also, that I'm a fellow earthling? ".
" WHAAT?! ".
" Shhh! don't yell! ".
" Sorry! It's just, I.. I didn't expect to meet with someone else from Earth.. I thought that I was alone.. I'm just so glad. ". He said, as tears started to flow down his cheeks, so I moved to his side and hugged him in my best efforts to comfort him. He also embraced me in a bear hug, crying his eyes out.
We hugged for a while, then he pulled off the hug and smiled.
" Thanks, sorry for dirtying your clothes you're about to sleep in, I'll go get a new pair. ".
" No need, you'll have to go get some sleep, it's getting really late. ". I said.
" Yeah, let's discuss this some other time. ".
" I understand, master. ".
" Hahahaha~ Stop that~ ".
" No, I'll strive to become one hell of a butler~ ".
" Ahahahahahaha~ Okay, I'll go ahead and excuse myself then. ".
He then went on to return to his room. So, I headed over to the bed, and I further thought about my situation.
⟨ If people like Luke exist. Then, it's not going to be a stretch to think that other Earthlings are present here. Let's hope that they're all good people. But, to think that I'll encounter with another Earthling this early, and he's a Japanese student of all people.. Why do I feel like I'm the only one who is not from Japan? Like, it's always the Japanese that gets transferred, or "isekai'd" as they called it, also, why didn't I meet anyone when I was in that white space?! Is it because I'm not Japanese?! That's just plain racist man! Not cool! ⟩.
Aahh! Whatever, I don't care, I'll just go sleep! Engage sleep mode!
" Sleep mode engaged, wake up sequence will start at 05:30 hours. ".
Like that, I artificially went to sleep.
====[ Author's Note ]====
Who doesn't like exposition?? I know I don't!
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