I am Elise. I used to be a man once, but now I’m living as a mother. That said, my eldest daughter is in high school and switching bodies with her friend Largo while they live in a dorm at a nearby school. My son is in middle school, attending some elite school in the big city, also living in a dorm.
I thought the time had passed when the kids needed constant care. Yet in the meantime, the nefarious hand of the EdgeShadow Corporation was steadily creeping closer to them.
I can’t just stand by and do nothing. I have to create magic to fight back against those villains.
“Whew. Looks like I’ve finished composing one piece.”
I look over the magical score. If performed according to plan, it should theoretically counter the magic used by the EdgeShadow Corporation.
“Resurrection Blues.”
It’s a high-powered melody that only the Cobalt Princess can play. In theory, it can oppose the hellish magic those people wield. Now all that’s left is to test it.
I head out to the garden to conduct an experiment. It’s written for saxophone, but it’s not impossible to play on a flute.
The sky has started to cloud over. It might pour soon. Even though I’ve just penned a new spell, my heart feels as gray as the clouds. I utter a small incantation and summon a flute from thin air.
In that very moment, I sense killing intent.
“Who’s there?”
“Well, if it isn’t the mother of Instrument Magic herself.”
A humanoid rabbit, standing at least 190 cm tall, approaches with a heavy tread, wearing what looks like a funeral suit—black tie, black jacket—and puffing on a carrot-brand cigar.
The intimidation is off the charts. His voice is deep and gravelly, and his character is just too intense.
“My, my. You look like a nasty little bunny. So, I’m guessing you’re from the EdgeShadow Corporation?”
I try to project a calm, mature-woman composure, but my voice cracks slightly.
“You’re shaking in your boots, lady—though I hear you used to be a man. You know why I’m here, don’t you?”
“Somehow, I doubt you’ve come for a friendly picnic with sandwiches and tea.”
“Do you regret what you did to Senator Amadeus?”
He casually drops the name of the major political figure I once exposed in a scandal, causing his downfall years ago. The rise of the EdgeShadow Corporation can be partly traced back to Amadeus losing his political clout. Even if I believed it was the right thing to do at the time, there are always two sides to every coin.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“I don’t regret my past actions. Because I fought him, I can live now as a mother with my family—my most precious treasures.”
“That so? Well, let’s cut to the chase. Time for you to drop dead!”
“La-la♪!”
I produce my magical flute. Although it’s pitched for higher ranges, I’ve enchanted it to pack the same punch as male-voice magic. Even women who lack physical power can stand on equal footing with male opponents, which is why this instrument—my own invention—is popular among frail female warriors. For now, it’s handcrafted, so I’m trying to improve the mass-production process.
I play the Master Earth melody. Plants sprout from the ground and entangle the rabbit’s feet.
“Interesting. Quite the magic you have there. La-la♪!”
The rabbit draws a violin out of thin air—an EdgeShadow-brand instrument, originally imported from an alternate Austria and further modified. Its reputation is solid because the base instrument is excellent, supposedly crafted from wood from the Fiemme region of Italy.
With a light performance of Advance Wind on his violin, the rabbit effortlessly mows down the plants, breaking free from their grasp.
“Not bad, lady. Looks like you’ve got fine taste. Your husband Akira must be proud. Come to think of it, he put up quite a fight.”
“Akira…!! You don’t mean—!”
Did my beloved lose? That’s impossible…
“Well, I haven’t killed him—yet. Your husband and you both have a ton of intellectual property we’d like to squeeze out of you.”
I take a step back. I was fighting assuming I would win, but I have to consider defeat as well.
“Summon! Usamofu!”
It’s Akira’s summoned beast, a little rabbit.
“Mofu-mofu! It’s terrible, mofu! Akira! Akira!”
It seems Usamofu was nearby and saw Akira’s battle firsthand.
“I understand. I need you to take this score to my daughter—my daughter Forte. Please!”
Usamofu’s eyes dart around, but he quickly composes himself, takes the musical score in his mouth without a word, and dashes off on all fours.
“Not so fast!”
The killer rabbit tries to block Usamofu’s path by swiftly casting Basic Wind, but I counter it with my own Basic Wind.
“Don’t you dare touch my sweet Usamofu! I won’t let you hurt him!”
“No matter. I’ll take care of Forte later and recover that score. Right now, I’m going to finish you off, for real. Take this: the Shadow Canon!”
The assassin clutches his violin and plays a dissonant tune.
“My vision…!”
A headache strikes, and my field of sight darkens.
“Control over music magic relies on one’s vision. Hahaha! How does it feel? Now you can’t use your magic.”
“I still have the eye of my heart…!”
When I was a child, I trained in female-voice magic. I was taught to listen carefully to the male voices of my singing partners. If I can pinpoint his location using that same technique…!
I switch to Advance Ice magic. Its chanting is quieter, so I can still hear the enemy’s movements without interference.
“Impressive. Then how about this: I’ll hit you with a roaring spell—Advance Thunder!”
Thunder crashes all around, and my body grows numb.
“Ugh…!!”
“It’d be easy to finish you off right now, but if you die so soon, that’d be a problem for us. So I’ll use my ultimate technique: the Prelude to Death. Anyone who hears this falls into a coma, like they’ve taken sleeping pills and truth serum at the same time. Then, slowly, over the course of a month, they die.”
“That’s…that’s forbidden magic! And isn’t EdgeShadow Corporation still a giant enterprise that should at least pretend to follow compliance regulations…?”
“Heh. Hiring assassins is already out of compliance. But if it means taking out the Cobalt Princess, they’ll do whatever it takes.”
The violin’s sweet tones reach my ears. If I didn’t know it was the devil’s melody, I might have kept listening. Forte… My daughter Forte, who’s sharing her body with Largo. My precious daughter, whom I once carried in my womb. Please… Run…!