My consciousness is hazy.
It feels like... I have no strength in my body.
Yeah. It's a heavy sensation, like my whole body is drained of energy, as if I've come down with the flu.
They said I had infinite stamina, but I guess that didn't apply to my vitality. I feel completely spent.
I slowly sit up.
My head is throbbing. I feel mentally exhausted. There's no such thing as infinite mental strength, I guess. Just having infinite stamina is already an incredible gift, so I should be content.
Anyway, I was so out of it that I didn't notice, but I can feel a presence next to me. I glance over and see... flesh.
"Gah!"
Startled, I fall right off the bed.
The noise slowly wakes the person next to me—Ritsuka.
"Ah, did you sleep well, Sho?"
"You! Why were you sleeping next to me?! No, more importantly, why are you naked?!"
Completely naked. Not a single stitch of clothing, not even underwear.
"But this is how I sleep. Completely naked. Sometimes."
"Sometimes?!"
No, she definitely didn't have a habit like this before the regression. Not even after she became a girl. Wait, is it because she was a girl from the start in this timeline?
Damn it. I avert my eyes as much as possible. I'm so drained, it's hard to even stand up. The shock feels like it threw my back out. My lower body feels strangely weak.
"Could you please put something on?"
"Why? Are you embarrassed? You're a grown-up, don't you have any tolerance for this?"
"I've never even been in a relationship, Ritsuka. Besides, you shouldn't show yourself like this to a man you're not related to."
"Hmm~ But if it's you, Sho, I don't mind."
This is beyond teasing now, Ritsuka. You're being way too bold. What in the world happened to your sense of modesty?
=====================================
(Ritsuka's POV)
Sho woke up after a deep sleep.
Honestly, I think it would have been fine if he'd slept longer. Of course, nothing would have changed even if he had. We'd just be sleeping in the same bed together.
I've already had as much fun as I wanted for now. As for the main event, I'd rather do it together than have it be one-sided, so I put it off.
But more importantly, how can he be so cute? He should be more than used to seeing my naked body by now.
Is it because, in this timeline, he thinks I was originally a girl? Or is it because he still thinks of me as a stranger? Either way is a bit disappointing, but seeing his cute reaction was worth it.
"Are you okay? Do you not need to rest more?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I already rested plenty."
"I see. I've been a burden to you. I'm sorry for not being more considerate to the owner of the room."
Sho, with his usual tired face.
The Sho I knew always looked exhausted. I wish he had more energy sometimes. Did I drain him too much? Or is this just a time when he's supposed to be tired?
But I couldn't help it. My body is finally clean, after all. And besides, he was just too delicious.
I decided I was done teasing Sho for now and got dressed.
"Ritsuka, did you shower?"
"Yep, I did. Do you want to take one too, Sho?"
"No, I'll go to my own room. I need a change of clothes anyway."
"I see. Take care~"
"...I'll be right back. Let's get some food together later."
"You can take your time~"
As if worried about being apart for even a moment, Sho says he'll be right back and leaves the room. It's not exactly the kind of obsession I want, but I like the feeling of him focusing and fixating on me. It's nice to have him looking only at me like this.
Well, Sho will probably take a while. In the meantime, I have things to do, don't I?
A short while later, there's a knock at the door.
Whoosh~
"Senpai? Are you feeling alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, Mash."
It was Mash who came to my room. I'd sent her a message asking her to come. Mash had finished her examination a while ago, and while Sho was sleeping, I went to find her and exchanged contact info. I already knew hers, but she needed to register mine.
It wasn't a real cell phone, of course, just a device for communicating within Chaldea.
"Has Mr. Kuriyama gone back?"
"Yeah. He woke up a little while ago and went to take a shower. He looked healthy."
"I'm glad to hear he's alright. Ms. Da Vinci was asking if you wanted to get an examination too, Senpai. Are you not going to?"
"Nah, I'm good. I know my body best."
"If that's what you wish, Senpai, I understand, but I am worried."
Mash is genuinely worried about me. Of course, she is. That's Mash for you. But Da Vinci… no.
That man. It must have been his idea. Since Leonidas and the other Servants wouldn't be observing anymore, he was probably planning to make a move on me.
Honestly, I just want to kill him already. But for now, I'll follow Sho's way. The process is more important than the result.
"It's fine~ What could happen? Mash, do you like tea? Or coffee?"
"Ah, coffee, please."
Tea would have been nice, but this time she chose coffee.
It's instant coffee. Tea bags and coffee are standard issue in every Master's room. I put the coffee grounds in a cup, then take out a small packet of powder and add it in.
Ssssshh~
I pour in the hot water and stir well. Seeing that it has dissolved and blended in completely, I bring it to Mash.
"How was it, Mash? Your first Singularity."
"Um, I think it was better than I worried it would be. Mr. Kuriyama was also very skilled, even though he hadn't received any Master training. I think we benefited a lot from the two Servants he summoned."
"Right? Sho did a great job."
It was just small talk. We chatted about everyday things as Mash took a sip, then another, of her coffee. By the time she was about to finish it...
"And, and then…"
The strength faded from Mash's voice as she continued to speak. Her pupils gradually dilated, and her eyes glazed over.
"Mash, you must be tired, right? Let me massage your shoulders."
"Ah, yes. Thank you, Senpai."
Mash replies in a weak voice. Such a polite girl.
I move behind Mash and begin to massage her shoulders. I lean in close to her ear and whisper.
"Mash, you don't like people who are arrogant and act like delinquents, do you?"
"I do not... think I like them."
"There's someone like that here in Chaldea, you know. Do you know who I mean? That bald guy."
"Yes, that person. I know him. I've... spoken with him a few times before."
"He's a fundamentally bad person. My good Mash, my dear kouhai. You'll listen to what your Senpai says, won't you?"
"...Yes, I think... that's right."
A drug that temporarily weakens the ego, making one readily accept the words of others and planting suggestions.
Yes, this was his method. A common method of his. I wonder if Da Vinci made it for him, or if one of the magician staff did.
This is how he subjugated Mash and the other girls who, though physically conquered, never broke mentally.
I don't really need to use a drug, but it feels like a bit of turnabout is fair play. This time, I'll be the one using it.
"Mash. I like you. Yes, I still like you. Even when you betrayed me, when you trampled on me, I couldn't bring myself to completely hate or resent you. Because it wasn't your fault."
"What… do you mean? Did I… do that?"
"Not now. It's just some silly nonsense. Just listen quietly."
My hands, which had been massaging her shoulders, slowly move down and cup her breasts.
"I'm saying that I like you, Mash. You were my first love, and I believed in you and loved you until the very end, when you finally gave up. I wanted to save you. I failed in the end, though. There was a time when we cried and held each other, but when we met again, you had a tongue piercing and a tan, and you came back as a completely different person. Honestly, more than feeling betrayed, I just felt sorry."
There were those who went to his side willingly, but most, like Mash, resisted as much as they could. But in the end, they were all broken in and became his women, completely corrupted. Mash was no exception.
But Mash is one of the few people I can't bring myself to completely resent.
Yes, because Mash was a pure child. As pure as a blank canvas. And that man forcibly stained her.
Right. Mash is a victim. I was beaten by her a lot, mocked, and even after I became a girl, she played many pranks on me. But the problem was the man who made her that way, not Mash herself.
Just as Sho said, this world is just that kind of place.
It's not Mash's fault. It's his fault, the fault of those who betrayed me so easily, and the fault of this world.
That Mash is gone now.
"But now, you've come back to me as my cute kouhai, haven't you? I'm so happy."
I caress Mash's breasts and gently bite her ear. The untainted, pure Mash, as if she doesn't know what pleasure is, just flinches in confusion.
I was forced by that man, and I even did it with Mash a few times. My wish was granted, in a small way, but it was sad and humiliating.
I wanted to do it out of pure love, not like that.
Well, if Mash was my first love, then I've since found my true love, so it's just a meaningless story from the past now.
"After that incident, I became a woman in both body and mind. A woman who was once a man. The memories of my time as a man are clear, but ridiculously, it's a feeling where I can't believe I was ever a man. The sensation of having a penis, what the pleasure of masturbation felt like, the senses from my time living as a man have worn away and I can't remember them at all. All that's left is the memory that I was a man. The sensations are completely gone. Was I really broken in to that extent?"
"You were… a man?"
"I'm a woman now. That's not important, is it? My body and mind are both female now. Yes, that must be why. In the midst of losing myself, he was the one who kept supporting me. Right, that's why I fell in love with Sho. Now, having become a pure woman with no self-awareness of ever being a man, I love Sho. Yes, how could I not love him."
"You love… Mr. Kuriyama."
I love him. I've loved him since those days.
But, with this body that has been so thoroughly filthied, how could I hold Sho? How could I be held in his arms and confess my love? Even if I tried, I could never have reached him back then.
But it's different now. My heart is the same as it was then, but my body is clean. A clean body that has never been touched by such filth.
If Sho is the type who insists on a woman who is a virgin in heart and soul, will he hate me?
Well, Sho isn't that kind of weirdo. He can't be.
"Mash, you like Sho too, right? Sho is my hero, my pillar. You like Sho too, don't you, Mash?"
"Yes, I like him. Mr. Kuriyama… is a kind person."
"No, that's not what I mean. You love him romantically, right? You have to love him. Yes, I think you and Sho should be together, Mash. You think so too, right? Then Sho won't have to worry about you anymore. You and I, let's support Sho together. We'll be by his side, propping him up. What do you say?"
"Me, Mr. Kuriyama. Love? By his side, together."
I whisper in her ear, and slide my hand between Mash's thighs. Mash is starting to get wet.
"Yes. Let's love him together. I think you'll be happy that way too, Mash. I've given up on my first love, but I still like you, even if not as much as Sho. So, let's be together. Let's be happy together. You want that too, don't you, Mash?"
"...Yes, I do. I... I like Mr. Kuriyama... too. I love him."
I don't particularly like using these methods, but if I want to do this quickly, this is for the best, isn't it? I'm getting impatient too. I want to be with Sho as soon as possible.
"Yes. I love him. Sho is the most precious, most loved person in the world. For you, and for me. Both of us love Sho. Let's love him so much that we want to be tangled up with him in bed together every day, Mash."
Sho. It's because of you that I was able to survive in that hell. You always felt sorry for me, saying you could only offer me worthless comfort. You put yourself down, calling yourself a hypocrite. But every single one of those considerations brought me solace. So, now it's my turn to repay you. I'll make you happy. Let's all be happy.
In this filthy world, together. Let's be happy.
=====================================================
The author has shown the main character's appearance (just open the comments)