Winter evenings always carried a chill.
Far from Tokyo lay the bustling city of Osaka.
Inside an old but tidy apartment.
The rapid clatter of a keyboard echoed nonstop.
Asai Touma sat in front of his computer, writing his latest novel while continuing to fantasize about one day buying a mansion with his royalties.
Still, it seemed Japanese readers weren’t particularly interested in the whole “Dragon King Returns After Three Years” formula.
His novel had only gained a handful of new bookmarks.
Come to think of it, today really hadn’t been his lucky day.
That morning, after beating up more than a dozen delinquents from the neighboring school while trying to help someone in need, he had been sent home by his teacher and ordered to study on his own for a month.
Then in the afternoon, while he was out, he ran into two girls, one older and one younger, who had fallen into the water.
He jumped in and rescued them.
Just as he was about to perform CPR after pulling them ashore…
The older girl suddenly woke up and slapped him across the face.
Was he supposed to just take that?!
He immediately returned the favor with ten slaps before walking away.
But because of all that, by the time he reached the convenience store, he was already hopelessly late for work.
So he got fired.
He returned home soaking wet.
The only things that brought him any comfort were the fact that he had saved a little girl from drowning, and the steaming cup of instant noodles waiting before him.
Well.
What’s done is done.
Time to eat.
After closing the webpage, Asai Touma lifted the lid off his instant noodles.
Then, by accident, he snagged the mouse cable.
The cup tipped over instantly, spilling all of its contents, and the soup splashed all over his keyboard.
Just end it already…
With a look of utter despair, Asai Touma collapsed onto his bed and hurriedly grabbed some tissues to salvage the situation.
It had only been half a month since he had transmigrated into this world.
Starting with nothing but a student ID, he had somehow managed to survive until now.
He had always thought his luck was actually pretty good.
So why was today such a disaster?
Asai Touma quietly pondered the meaning of life.
At that moment, a mechanical voice suddenly rang out in his mind.
[Ding] [Host detected to be deeply pessimistic about the future.] [Second Life Experience System loaded successfully.] [Please note the following: ] [This system allows the host to enter another person’s body and experience a heroine’s life.] [If the host causes the target to develop intense dislike toward them, the host will be forcibly ejected from the body.] [Daily experience time: 12 hours.] Looking at the words floating before his eyes, Asai Touma immediately sat upright.
The softness of the bedsheets beneath him told him that everything before him was real.
Half a month after transmigrating…
His system had finally arrived?
The Second Life Experience System?
Experience someone else’s life?
What kind of life?
A fantasy-world overpowered protagonist?
A gentle Tokyo rom-com lead?
And he only got twelve hours of experience each day?
Before Asai Touma could finish thinking it through, the system spoke again.
[During the experience, the target’s strongest ability will auToumatically be selected and enhanced.
The enhancement will be reflected on the host.] What did that mean?
Asai Touma frowned in confusion.
The system’s next explanation quickly made everything clear.
For example, if the target’s greatest talent was playing the guitar, then while experiencing that person’s life, any guitar practice would receive a genius-level bonus.
[Additional special functions await discovery by the host.] [Please draw an experience target.
Remaining draws: 1.] “Draw!
Draw!
Draw!” Without the slightest hesitation, Asai Touma pressed the draw button, unable to hide his anticipation.
[Drawing…] [Drawing complete.] [Experience duration: 12 hours.
This session will end at 12:00 tonight.
The experience cannot be exited midway.] [If the host causes the target to develop intense dislike toward them, the host will be forcibly ejected from the body.] […] [Please confirm whether to begin the experience.] It was seven in the evening.
Even if it only lasted until midnight, that was still five hours.
Not a bad deal.
Asai Touma nodded.
“Confirm!” The instant the words left his mouth, everything went black.
A few seconds later, a dizzying throbbing pain flooded his head.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself in a dim, shabby apartment.
Empty beer bottles lay scattered behind a sliding door.
Whose life was this?
It looked even worse than his.
A bad feeling immediately welled up inside him.
He suddenly missed his own cozy little room.
Supporting himself against the wall, he stood there for several seconds until the dizziness finally subsided.
[Selecting target ability for enhancement.] [Selection complete: Piano] [Enhancement obtained: Piano Enhancement Lv.1 (0/100)] [Enhancement duration per experience: 1 hour.] [Enjoy your experience.] As the system’s voice faded away, it was replaced by the frightened voice of an unfamiliar girl.
“I can’t move…
Who are you?!
Why are you inside my body?!” Togawa Sakiko’s voice trembled with fear.
It felt exactly like sleep paralysis.
She could clearly see everything around her, yet she had no control over her own body.
Could someone really possess another person’s body?
It’s a woman?!
– Touma Asai Touma thought the girl’s voice sounded strangely familiar, but before he could think about it further, another voice came from behind the sliding door, drawing his attention.
“Saki…
did you buy the beer…?” The hoarse voice came together with the stench of alcohol as the door slid open.
A middle-aged man appeared before Asai Touma.
He looked miserable.
His deeply sunken eye sockets and drooping eyelids concealed a pair of lifeless eyes.
“You didn’t bring anything back?
Even you look down on me now, Saki…?” Seeing that the blue-haired girl was empty-handed, Togawa Kiyotsugu’s face twisted with rage.
He grabbed a beer bottle from the floor and hurled it at her.
What the hell?!
Asai Touma hurried toward the bathroom door.
Whether by accident or on purpose, the bottle flew in exactly that direction.
If you can’t dodge it, you block it.
A dull thud rang out, followed by the crash of glass shattering against the wall.
Asai Touma felt his head spin violently.
Crap.
This feels like a brain hemorrhage.
Is this guy trying to kill me?!
Without any hesitation, Asai Touma picked up another beer bottle that had rolled to his feet and strode straight toward the middle-aged man.
At that moment, Togawa Sakiko’s voice sounded again in his mind.
“What are you doing?
No…
don’t…” Asai Touma ignored her.
Without another thought, he raised the bottle high with both hands and smashed it down onto the man’s head with all his strength.
Direct hit.
The hollow beer bottle shattered instantly.
Togawa Kiyotsugu sobered up on the spot.
“Saki…
I didn’t mean it…
W-wait…
Let’s talk this out…” By now, Asai Touma had figured everything out.
He was currently experiencing Togawa Sakiko’s life, the legendary girl who had single-handedly thrown both CRYCHIC and Ave Mujica into chaos.
The middle-aged man before him was Togawa Sakiko’s father, Togawa Kiyotsugu.
Without another thought, Asai Touma picked up yet another beer bottle from the floor.
“Just now…
N-no…
Please don’t hit him anymore!!” Togawa Sakiko’s desperate voice echoed inside his mind.
Suddenly, Asai Touma’s vision went black.
A few seconds later, when he opened his eyes again, he found himself back in his own apartment.
— [TL/N: Special thanks to @DerpyChest Gaming!
This fanfic was a ton of fun to read.
Ngl, this took me a whole day of non-stop translating and even did a power-nap just to push through.]