I am Take Yuu, a seventeen years old high school student. Until today, I’ve lived a pretty regular life… Well, when I say regular I meant a regular otaku life without any girlfriends, in fact, I never even had a woman friend.

Maybe it is because I don’t know how to approach them, or perhaps because my body which I never really nurtured. Never until a few weeks ago, I recently started to improve my physique.

The reason? Well, I think you managed to deduce it… Because of HER.

Before me is a schoolgirl wearing a uniform, the same as mine. Her long brown hairs floated in the air as a refreshing little breeze of wind was blowing.

A beautiful girl with pale skin and large sparkling green eyes, she was rubbing her hands together trying to warm them up.

Sukiya Kazumi, despite her beauty she isn’t very popular with the boys and even after many researches I’ve never heard of someone confessing to her. Her shy and discreet personality definitely played a huge role in this. She always avoids being the center of attention, but today...

Today is finally the day I am confessing to her.

After following her for a dozen of days, I discovered which way she used to go back to her house. She is always walking alone when she return home and apart from the cars driving on the road, this street is most of the time desertic.

Looking at me standing immobile twenty meters in front of her, she probably noticed that I was here for her.

As expected even after preparing myself for many weeks, my heart's still beating like crazy. I am afraid that the moment I open my mouth words won’t come out. If they do come out, I’ll probably find myself stuttering helplessly.

I regret not opting for a love letter… It would have been much simpler. No, I can’t think like that. Slightly slapping my cheeks, I determinately walked toward her, my heartbeat becoming even more intense.

“Sukiya-san!” I nearly shouted.

“Y-Yes?...”

Her body slightly jumped up feeling surprised. She looked slightly troubled as she looked at me, her eyes were looking at the ground like she was afraid of looking at my eyes.

She looked like a fluffy little animal making people want to protect her… If she wasn’t so discreet, she would definitely be one of the most popular girls at school.

“I… I like you, please go out with me!”

I did it, my body feel so hot that I am sure my face is completely red. I am definitely even redder than a tomato.

In front of me, Sukiya’s face is also red, as I thought it’s probably the first time someone confessed to her. Her ears are especially even more colored than the rest, it look like smoke will come out of her brain.

After confessing it feel like a huge weight was taken off from my shoulders. But my heart was still beating like crazy.

“T-T-T-Taku-san…” She said as she clenched her hands with strength.

“I AM SORRY !!!”

She ran past me, pushing me aside as she ran toward her home so fast that I am sure that if she participated in the Olympic marathon, she would finish it first.

I never expected to be rejecting in such a way… My heart feels like it will break in the countless fragment, yet it also feel relieved. What a strange sensation.

“I guess that’s it… So this is how end my first love.” I muttered as I powerlessly fell to my knees.

Her running back suddenly stopped as turned toward me fifty meters away. She bowed from afar as she looked at me.

In the end, she was probably too good for me.

Seeing her like this slightly eased the pain in my heart.

“...N!!”

I feel like she said something, but I didn’t manage to hear it. Looking at her, she looked somewhat distraught while making a lot of gesture with her hands.

“RUN!!” She said as she raised her voice as she pointed toward the road.

But it was too late…

* * *

The moment I woke up, I felt my head hurt like crazy. Before me was a pitch black space where I couldn’t see anything.

In fact, I felt like I could see yet nothing there was nothing. I could see in the dark, yet I wasn’t able to see my own body.

Not even able to speak, all I could do was move my eyes, but the scenery around me was the same wherever I was looking, making me wonder if my eyes were even moving.

Ah… I remember. Maybe I am dead. This is probably that.

This dark place, what happened a few moments ago… Yeah, that make sense, I mean my body was crushed by a truck. No wonder she was making so many gestures… I didn’t realize it at all.

At least, if I am not dead then I am in a profound comatose.

As I was reflecting on what had happened, a small light attracted my attention. In this world of darkness, it was a very small light but it shone with great intensity.

I suddenly felt drawn toward that light, like it was attracting me. I had no way to resist, neither did I try to.

Surprisingly, I am calmer than I thought I would be. I always thought the moment died I would protest with all my might and curse the world, yet I feel relaxed.

The world of darkness around me existed no more, it was replaced with light. It was so bright that I felt like I was watching the sun, I couldn’t keep my eyes open.

*KRRRRRSH*

Something suddenly hit me in the torso as I was peacefully awaiting death.

“GUAAAAAH!!!”

My soul was being torn apart like a knife was slowly slicing it. I tried my best to resist, but the pain was enough to make me cry despite being a man.

I wasn’t drawn toward the bright light anymore, I was falling. The more I fell, the darker it became, I was slowly returning toward a world of darkness…

Around me, countless light were glowing like the first one as if they were trying to attract me as well, but it was useless, my body only fell and nothing could stop it.

I tried as hard as I could to move toward the lights, but it was useless.

Will I die here? Ah, I am already dead… I meant will I spend eternity here?... Alone?... I don’t know what crashed into me, but did this something prevent me from moving on?

I don’t want… I don’t want to spend eternity alone! Whenever it’s heaven or hell, I don’t care! I don’t want to stay here forever trapped in darkness!

I never ever managed to find love… Or even do it with a woman…

It didn’t matter how much I prayed, begged or cursed… The darkness kept attracting me like it wanted to keep me imprisoned… I returned to this world of darkness.

Or so I thought as I lost conscious…

* * *

Before falling unconscious, I felt like I hit something hard like the ground.

Opening my eyes, the world around me was slightly lighter than before. In fact, it wasn’t the dark world anymore but what looked like an immense cave with a roof of several hundred meters high. Perhaps this was actually the inside of a mountain.

My whole body was hurting and my head, hot and spinning. I felt dizzy as I tried to stand up.

Where was I?... I could remember everything from before, the truck, the ‘afterworld', and how I fell into the darkness.

But I don’t know how I got here…

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Waiting a few moments for my body to feel better, I somehow managed to stand up and walk. But it didn’t take long before I stumbled on the ground… Actually, how did I manage to stumble on a perfectly smooth ground?

It was only after I managed to once again stand up that I realized… The distance between my head and the ground was shorter than before.

Not only that, my body felt slightly weaker than normally. My arms were smaller than before and my skin smooth. My previously slightly inflated body now seemed very frail, like it was going to break with merely a little breeze of wind.

My back was suddenly soaked with cold sweat as I grabbed my private parts. Whew, I am still a man… I mean, with a girlish body like that I was wondering if I had become a girl.

But seriously, as I was looking at my body I couldn’t help but notice it… What with this shirt? It is soaked with blood.

Not only the shirt, but my arms and legs also are. Did I become a ghost or something like that? Can’t someone like god come and talk to me? If it was one of these light novels, that’s how it would be... I am a bit confused right now.

Right now, let’s look for an exit. It’s not in a cave like this that I’ll find answers.

But the question is…

“ WHERE IS THAT FUCKING EXIT?!”

I’ve been walking around for at least a few hours! (twenty minutes actually…) But nothing… Just how big is that cave?

‘WHERE IS THAT FUCKING EXIT?!... WHERE IS THAT FUCKING EXIT?!...’

Just how deep is this cave? My voice is totally resonating a few times inside.

Moreover, after walking just a little, this body is already exhausted and my breath rough. I’ll take a few minutes to rest before leaving.

Somehow I can still hear my shout in the cave, just how big is it?

*GRUUUMMBLLLL*

The cave suddenly started to shake like it was about to crumble. Some large sound echoed in the cave.

*BOOM BOOM BOOM*

But I couldn’t move… Not because I didn’t want to, but I because my body just couldn’t.

In front of me, a large chunk of rock fissured and fell to the ground, revealing a large red eye which was glaring at me. It looked at me with anger and one could see inside a glimpse of intelligence.

*ROAAAR*

The ground was shaking and I couldn’t stand up, I felt like I was about to pass out. Was I going to die just a second time? I know I asked for someone to give me explanations, but I don’t think this guy want to help me.

Gathering my courage, I started to run away in the opposite direction of this large beast. In his eyes, I was probably similar to a small ant. A pathetic ant which was running away from death.

I ran away while praying every god that I knew while running, begging for whatever miracle to save me.

Behind me, the large rising figure was hundreds of meters long. The wind propelled by his large wings nearly sent me flying. Every time he breathed out, a small flame purple came out of his mouth, illuminated his black skin covered by his scale.

It was a dragon… The moment I once again manage to reincarnate, it has to be in the lair of a fucking dragon!

It was looking at me indifferently while I was running away with all my might. He started to breathe a large amount of air.

This can only mean one thing…

As I was slowly losing hope I saw a few dozens of meters away a wooden door, probably the exit.

But with this body, I would, at least, need fifteen seconds to make it to the door and it looked like the dragon wouldn’t be willing to give them to me even if I asked him nicely with a smile.

I don’t care what or how I just want a miracle to APPEAR right now!

As if hearing my pray, a flying black window similar to those in computers suddenly appeared right in front of me.

Inside this window, there was only a small drawing with something written beneath. I didn’t think about it twice or even try to read it, I merely pushed the drawing.

The black window suddenly closed and a small card appeared in my hand.

The moment the dragon was about to breath out, the card was suddenly coated in a weak light before disappearing.

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!” I couldn’t help but curse out as I saw the card disappear.

This thing was useless, maybe I should have spend more time reading what was written…

The dragon is breathing out… I guess it’s the end.

Or so I thought, but the breath never came toward me. Instead, what came was an orange snake, it toward me with great speed.

By the time it caught up with me, I had already pushed the wooden door. Inside was a closed room with a large glowing blue circle on the ground.

“I don’t care what you are, but just get me out of here!” I shouted as I stepped into the circle.

At the same time, the orange snake pierced my back.

My vision became white as I faded away, the last thing I remembered was hearing someone yelling.

* * *

“WHERE IS THAT FUCKING EXIT?!”

This was the first thing I heard after waking up. It took me several hundreds of years to finally manage to fall asleep, and the first thing I hear is the voice of an annoying human.

Maybe I will play with him a little before killing him in order to relieve myself of my anger.

Just looking at him made his face pale and his knees shaking. He even stumbled a few times on the ground while trying to run away.

If I remember correctly, I installed a teleporter nearby where he is heading. Look like I won’t be able to play with him…

Maybe I’ll just kill him painlessly for making me laugh a little.

Gathering my breath, I prepared to unleash my flames on this little human.

But the moment I was about to burn him to ashes, I realized it…

“ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!”

This child… He was actually the one I had been waiting for so long. And I actually almost killed him.

Just a few more seconds and he would have been gone forever, what a grave mistake.

Such a tiny human, he looks so frail and defenseless, yet he is the one. But this is irrelevant.

Within the few seconds I spent thinking, the boy was already in front of the door. Not good! Will I make it in time?

I am afraid that if I use magic, I won’t gauge my strength and actually kill him. I have no choice, let’s use THIS magic.

Infusing my will in my flames, I converted them into an orange snake which I sent toward him

Perhaps the snake will manage to stop him in time…

But as expected, it didn’t manage to stop him. After so many years, I’ve let him escape… This is this one’s biggest blunder.

At least, IT managed to hit him, with this he probably won’t die easily. It doesn’t matter if I spend tens of thousands of years, I’ll find you.

“Because… You are mine!”