Wearing a flowing white-blueish dress, the figure's snow-white hand touched her face as she stared at the reflection in the mirror.
What greeted her was the face of someone 'he' never expected 'he' would become.
It was a delicate, fair-skinned face; her long white hair flowed softly behind her ears. Blue flowers decorated her dress and hair. Her soft oceanic pupils stared at the mirror.
'Wow! So the novels weren't exaggerating when they described those females as delicate jade beauties whose appearance was out of the world.'
Those were her only thoughts as she continued to stare at her reflection absentmindedly. Suddenly turning from an average-looking man into a beautiful woman had caused mental damage she didn't know she could experience. Only by staring at such a beautiful face could she carefully coax with this new identity.
Knock, knock, knock....
Soft repeated knocks coming from the door interrupted her session.
A soft, masculine voice came from outside the door, careful and coaxing.
"Honey, please don't be angry. I know you don't want to marry someone you've never met, but he must be a good kid if your grandfather personally arranged this for you."
Hearing the voice, she watched as the reflection made a face of confusion.
The major cause of confusion was the three different things flowing inside her mind: the assimilation of memories with the previous host, the voice outside the door, and the robotic voice inside her head.
[New Scene Detected: Conversation]
[Scene in progress; evaluation will be given after the end of the scene]
As the robotic voice faded, the sound of a doorknob being twisted creaked, as a muscular body carefully entered the room, staring at his daughter in guilt. The wind of time was kind to the man, as even in his 50s, he still carried the trace of his glory.
This was the father of her new body, August Wiltheim.
He carefully touched his sleek gray hair, waiting for his daughter to turn around and face him.
His face carried an immense amount of guilt. Guilt for not being able to help his daughter and guilt for not being able to fight back against his father's decision.
But all this went to the past as his daughter spun around, facing his eyes.
"You don't need to worry about it, Dad. I know it was not your decision."
"It was my fault for acting so childishly against you. I know you love me more than anything else in this world. It's just that I was confused and scared. Scared of suddenly being thrust into a marriage with someone I don't know about."
Contrary to his expectations, his daughter didn't lash out against him. She seemed more apologetic and confused than anything else.
Staring at his daughter's face, his guilt only increased.
"I'm sorry, honey bun, I wish I could help. But it's your Grandfather's decision, even I don't know what he is thinking sometimes."
"But rest assured, if that brat ever does something that you don't agree with, I'll tear his head off."
Hearing his last sentence, her face carried a bit of shock as a red and bloody aura appeared from her father's body. This bloody aura manifested into that of red petals surrounding his body.
'What the hell! So this is what the power in this world looks like.'
It was only because of the memories she inherited that Aurora didn't look entirely shocked. From those memories, she knew this world had superpowered humans. They were called the Gifted, individuals who awakened their Gift one way or another.
Unfortunately, unlike the novels she used to read, becoming a Gifted didn't instantly propel you into riches and fame. The government would terminate any Gifted seen using their power who weren't Licensed Users.
Pushing those thoughts aside, Aurora remembered to continue her act.
"It's okay, Dad, I believe in Grandpa's decision. The person he chose for me shouldn't be too bad, right?"
Contrary to her words, Aurora almost wanted to choke this grandfather of hers. Why the hell did she have to deal with an arranged marriage? She wasn't into guys! Just because she changed gender didn't mean she was suddenly into the opposite gender, too.
But because of the system's words, she would become the best actor if it meant she could get a good grade in this unknown evaluation system.
Hearing his daughter's words, August's boiling rage calmed down. She was right. There was no way that the person his father chose would be such a pig, right?
"Yes, I agree. Your grandfather must have a good reason for this. But if he ever lays his disgusting hands on you without your permission, tell me. I'll kill him. Even if it means going against your grandfather's decision."
Hearing her father's words, Aurora felt a quiet warmth. Back in her previous life, she was estranged from her family, so hearing such heartfelt words stirred something inside of her. Even if his words were a bit violent.
"Thank you, Dad. I'm just a bit confused about this fiancé, you haven't told me anything about him yet."
Scratching his head, August let out a wry chuckle as he replied.
"To be honest, even I don't know much about that fiancé of yours either. Your Grandfather's decision was abrupt, and even I barely have any information. But I was able to pry some information from his mouth."
"Your Grandfather knew the boy's master, as the master had saved his life before. Apparently the master had reached out to him recently out about his disciple, so your Grandfather decided to marry you off to him. He comes from the mountain, so he won't be used to city life."
Hearing her father's words, Aurora almost let out a grimace.
'Is this the typical genius protagonist from the mountain who comes down to the city to get married? What kind of nonsense is that? There's enough of that cliche already.'
Aurora had already made up her mind that she would destroy this marriage, no matter what she had to do.
"I see... when will I be able to meet my fiancé?"
"You'll be able to meet him tomorrow at the city governor's banquet."
"Banquet?"
Aurora was confused about what he meant.
Seeing his daughter's confused face, August almost reached out to pinch her cheeks.
"Did you already forget? I know you don't like going to these events, but you'll represent the Wiltheim family soon. You can't just avoid these events because you don't like them."
Aurora nodded, promising her father.
"Yes, Dad, I'll make sure to dress properly for the event tomorrow."
August smiled as he prepared to excuse himself from the room. The conversation had gone more smoothly than he expected. He had braced himself to see her in tears, luckily he wouldn't have to see such a sight today.
"I'll let your brother know that you're attending the event with him. It's a rare event for both of you to attend an event together. I'm sure he'll be happy to see you."
Seeing his intention to leave, Aurora helped him out of the room.
As the door closed, Aurora's smile faded into a frown.
[Scene End: Conversation]
[Grade: B-]
[Reward: Myriad Dreams Butterfly]
[Myriad Dreams Butterfly: There was a species of caterpillar that only fed on the delusional dreams of humans. As they consumed delusion after delusion, their desires swelled beyond control.
Believing they could become something greater than they were ever meant to be, they entered a metamorphosis.
A dream twisted by their delusions, where they would never spread their wing, lost eternally in their slumber.]
[Effect: Awakens your Gift regardless of conditions.]
[Caution: If the target possesses no Gift, they will fall into an eternal slumber, sharing the fate of those foolish butterflies.]
Opening her hand, she found a cocoon wrapped in ethereal silk. Looking at the cocoon, she could see a bluish silhouette constantly shifting inside the cocoon.
Matching the description of the item, it really was a caterpillar that was attempting to become the butterfly it desired to be. It looked beautiful, disgusting, and unsettling all at the same time.
The real question was, how was she supposed to use it?
And most importantly, should she use it?
Reading the drawback, she had no intention of putting herself into a permanent dream.
But then she thought about the world she was in now. This was no longer the same Earth she once lived in. Here, strength reigned supreme.
And it wasn't like she had any other choice. It was either eternal sleep or a forced marriage.
After a brief moment of hesitation, she made her decision.
She would use it.
As if sensing her resolve, the system responded to it.
[Consume the delusion]
Seeing the obvious hint, she lifted the cocoon. As it neared her lips, she closed her eyes.
The cocoon slipped into her mouth, down her throat, and into her stomach, leaving a faint bluish trail behind it. Surprisingly, she felt nothing as it travelled through her body.
Then a deep coldness spread within her. It was a coldness so deep that it made her want to sink into it and drift into an endless dream.
A dream where she was back on Earth, reading novels.
A dream where she stood atop this new world.
A dream where nothing mattered, and she wouldn't have to worry about anything.
As sleep approached, Aurora bit down on her tongue.
She refused to fall asleep.
Even if she had to bite off her tongue, she would stay awake no matter what.
As the passage of time crawled, Aurora endured the stinging pain of her tongue and the deep, biting cold. She endured in silence, as she always had.
She didn't know when it happened, but eventually, the pain stopped.
The cold was gone, and her tongue was no longer bleeding.
Dragging herself to the mirror, she stared at her reflection, laughing.
In her reflection, she saw her disheveled state...
And above her, two fish gracefully swam. A false moon hung behind them, as if they existed everywhere the false moon shone, casting a soft glow on their elusive bodies. Their bodies shimmered with an ghostly blue, trailing countless stars in their wake.
This was her Gift.
Ethereal Moonscape.