Chapter 1: New Day, New Me
...
I had the strangest dream. I dreamt of a woman, not at all surprising considering it was me, but I digress. In my dream the woman stood alone next to a healthy green tree in the middle of a wide, open grassy field under a bright blue sky. Soft winds pushed through the grass of the meadow, brushing softly against her figure as if even nature wanted to touch her.
She wore a light yellow sun hat, the brim fluttering in the wind as she used her hand to keep it from blowing away. Beneath it, her long white hair rippled in long, silky strands.
"Whoa…" My heart skipped a beat as I couldn't help but gawk at the sight of her amazing body.
She was lithe, and her well-shaped hips were utterly jaw-dropping, but standing out even more was her unnatural purple skin color, not like it was a dealbreaker for me. My eyes wandered further down her curves to her large butt without shame.
I almost drooled at the lack of pants, but that was quickly replaced with astonishment when I looked further down and saw that instead of legs there was a large red snake's tail with a neat black bow tied playfully near the end as if to make it appear cute despite it clearly looking about as big as my own body, perhaps bigger. Again, not a total dealbreaker.
Aside from learning a lot about myself at this moment, I couldn't make out her face. No matter how much I tried to focus, her face was veiled in soft light. "Hey!" I waved to her, trying to get her attention.
The woman turned her attention to me. I still couldn't see her face clearly, but I could tell she was absolutely drop-dead gorgeous, especially by the way she sent a smile at me. That made my heart skip another beat.
Wanting a closer look, I took my first step forward. She took a step too—
"COCK-A-DOODLE-D—"
"DAAAAAAGH!" I shot upright so fast I nearly flew off the bed. My own elbow smacked against the wall.
"WOH—?!" My head whipped around, still half in dreamland, half thinking a dinosaur broke into my house. "Wha—where am I!?" I swerved around as the sound of chickens continued. "Que?" I raised my brow in confusion.
Last I checked, I don't recall ever putting chicken sounds as my alarm, and I don't live on a farm. Then it hit me. I wasn't home. "Oh fuck, it wasn't a dream." I gave a tired sigh as I rubbed my eyes.
I died and got isekai'd as the protagonist of Monster Girl Quest. Simple, right? Well, if you knew the games like I did, this world was anything but.
Stretching my body, I let out a yawn, breathing in the warm morning air as I scratched my bare stomach. I slept yesterday in nothing but boxers, or what could be called boxers in this time period. What even was this fabric? It felt like wearing a potato sack over my butt. Glancing down, I could see they did little to hide my morning wood.
Chortling, I raked my hand through my light purple locks. I was still not used to having longer hair, much less with an unnatural light purple color. In my past life I was basically bald with very little hair. The only haircuts I could get where I looked decent were simple shaves with line-ups, so I couldn't complain about this blessing. I also had no problem with the anime color either. It made me feel fantastic.
"Yawn~. Mmgh, what time is it?" Instinctively, I reached to my bedside to grab my phone to check the hour and put on music like I always did, only to grab the empty sheets.
"...Oh, right." I almost forgot. Monster Girl Quest was an RPG set in medieval times. And since I was Isekaid, all the technology I had before was left behind. No phone. No internet. No shit.
I groaned loud enough for the entire village to hear. 'Whoever isekai'd me… just kill me for real, man. This is hell!' I almost cried as I slumped to the windows.
The sky outside was still dark, but dawn was rising, and I could see the same shrine from yesterday. If I didn't know monster girls were roaming around everywhere, I would have thought my time in this world would have been a walk in the park.
"I need a shower." I cracked the joints in my back and neck, already knowing what I had to do to clean myself up in this Lord of the Rings-esque society.
Heading down the stairs, I grab two empty buckets and leave my house in my shorts. The air was slightly cool, with the wind feeling very nice. I ran with my buckets to the nearest well. Running through a medieval village at what I had assumed was five or six in the morning in nothing but shorts and two buckets in hand made me feel like kind of a creep. Maybe I should've thought this through. Don't blame me. Even with Lukas's memories, I was still very new to all this.
The well wasn't far, only a couple of houses away from mine. In this region where it was warm year-round, people here bathed using one of two methods. One was to go to a river or simply dump water on yourself. I was doing the latter.
Reaching the well, I filled two buckets with water and quickly hustled back, carrying them on each shoulder like I was reenacting a military bootcamp scene. Believe it or not, I had prior experience doing something like this back in my previous life when I was in basic training for the military.
Returning to my place, I went behind my house. Setting the buckets down, I slipped out of my shorts and picked up a bucket before spilling it over my head. I was pretty comfortable bathing this way because I used to do this back home in the D.R., only instead of wooden buckets, I used half-torn water gallons or big plastic cups.
"Hahaha." I laughed as I pulled my wet hair back to keep it from sticking to my face. "I wonder if I can get a tan? It definitely wouldn't look bad with this face." I thought with a smirk to myself as I leaned over to reach the second bucket.
I stopped catching my reflection. I looked like I was from the U.K. A Hispanic man gets reincarnated inside the body of a European. I wonder if there is a joke in there somewhere.
Letting out a snicker, I take the second bucket and dump the water. Shaking the water from my hair, I headed back inside to dry off, unaware that a pair of green, glowing eyes in the bushes were watching with quiet curiosity before vanishing.
Back inside, the sun began to rise as I changed into a fresh set of clothes. The fabric felt coarser than anything I was used to back in my world, but at least it was clean. I planned on fixing that the first chance I got. Descending down the stairs, I approached the bag of food that the grannies had given me the day before and prepared a simple breakfast.
It wasn't bad for a medieval breakfast. At least the food in this time period wasn't as bad as I imagined. Things like pancakes, waffles, and fried eggs existed, but not bacon or sausage. 'I miss coffee and toast.' I bit into the apple and took it with me outside.
To distract myself from the incoming caffeine withdrawal, I rolled my shoulders and started stretching. Now that I had an athletic body, I felt like I was reborn. Pun intended. With a smile, I ready to start my second day in my new life.
I was going to get serious. My goals in this world were simple. Train until I become an absolute monster. Do my best to acquire funds for my future travels. Go on a journey to explore the world and find the Spirits. Find anything to empower me. Kick some monster girl ass. Get some monster girl ass. Build the greatest monster girl harem in history. Get a freaking castle. And kick Ilia's ass. Or, for short, get fit, get rich, get chicks, and win.
Was it ambitious? Absolutely. But if Ilias thinks I'm just some pawn for her to use and throw away, then she has another thing coming. And by that I mean these hands and my medieval boot up her ass.
Finishing my apple, I toss it away as my thoughts drift to Luka and how he usually spent his time. When he wasn't training with the sword, his days consisted of helping everyone with their chores and making himself useful everywhere he went. Whether it'd be cleaning the shrine of Ilias, fixing things, carrying heavy stuff, or simply babysitting the kids. He went around helping anyone with a smile on his face and making people happy.
'This guy is the textbook definition of a freaking boyscout. ' I rolled my eyes, but I couldn't hide the smile on my lips.
Luka had gone through a lot growing up, and despite that, he remained a good person willing to put others first. Luka was a good kid, and I respected that. That said, it didn't mean I agreed with it. While I didn't mind lending a helping hand, it wasn't to the level of Luka.
"I'm not him." My face hardened.
As good as he was, Luka had a major flaw. He was a huge martyr. He was the type who'd take a bullet to the chest for somebody he didn't know because he was selfless like that. Luka was a hero who would go above and beyond to help a person no matter who they were without any thought to himself. I had no intention of doing that.
I was not a hero. I was just a normal person before being forced into this by some unknown force. I had to think of myself.
My goal was to take down Ilias, a literal goddess. Getting myself killed in the process would accomplish absolutely nothing. This shit was real, and being a good boy wasn't going to help me make it out of this alive. I wanted to live free in this second life, but that blonde bimbo was in the way. She literally had an iron grip on me.
I needed to get stronger!
Walking through the village, I noted how life here was nice and quiet. Aside from the usual chores, most people here just lived in relative peace. Iliasville wasn't exactly bustling compared to cities. Farmers worked their land. Merchants passed through every week. The occasional hero wannabe visited the shrine to get blessed by Ilias before heading to bumfuck nowhere.
Everything ran smoothly enough. Food, water, resources, homes, and protection. People lived comfortably under the so-called righteous light of Ilias, but I knew it was a lie. Sooner or later Ilias would make her move and try to destroy the world, and this village was no exception.
As clichéd as it sounded, securing my survival hinged on one thing— 'Power.' My eyes hardened with determination, and for a fleeting moment, a spark ignited within my right eye before vanishing.
Lukas's days typically revolved around helping out or training. Given that I've already outlined my intentions, you can see where I was headed.
Before I dive into learning about my angel powers, I was going to start with the essentials. That's why I was beginning my day by heading to the training grounds just like Luka does. It was time to reacquaint myself with my best friend.
My wooden sword—and no, it's not a euphemism for my dong. I actually mean a wooden sword to spar with.
…
The training grounds lay just a little beyond the village. It was no more than a wide stretch of farmland the local farmer had no use for, so it made the perfect place for training. There weren't many of us, so the place was about as large as a quarter of a track field. Unlike the grassy meadows, the training ground was just a space of empty dirt. Multiple bagged dolls filled with grain that we used for target practice were lined up.
A faint sense of familiarity rose in me at the sight of the place where Luka was first taught to use a sword and learned he had a talent for it. This place was like a second home for him.
Going there, I met many other people my age who looked surprised to see me. They looked happy to see me. Well, except for one of them, but I simply ignored him to go see the man standing near the weapon rack.
The guy looked to be around his thirties but with a youthful smile on his face. With black hair and an average-looking face, dressed in regular village clothing just like me, except he had an actual sword on his waist and some light equipment like a spaulder on his shoulder. "Luka, it's you." He turned to me with a smile.
"Morning, Mr. Simon." I waved to the man.
Simon was both our sword instructor and one of the village guards. He had come all the way from the kingdom of San Ilia on the Natlia continent, a neighboring region to the north of the Ilias continent. Just like in the games, San Ilia was one of the biggest pure human kingdoms in the world, being home to the cathedral of Ilias and her loyal followers. Basically they were this world's equivalent to Vatican City, if you can believe it.
After the plague tore through this village many years ago, San Ilia had heard the news and sent aid. Monster sightings were rare in this region but never zero, so they only sent about four soldiers to protect and teach the children in case a monster were to ever show up. Simon was one of them.
Simon was in his mid-twenties, but the way he carried himself and how he trained us showed how vast his experience was. He'd stayed behind long after the others rotated out because he'd been invested in training me after he'd seen my potential.
For over a year, he'd trained me and nine other kids. Basic sword forms. Footwork. Balance. How not to panic when someone rushes you with a weapon. Anything we'd need to fight off a monster.
Not to brag, but I was the best among you, but even I couldn't beat Simon. The man had me beat in skill and strength, and every time we sparred with him, even if we ganged up on him, we'd still be sent to the ground. Out of everyone, I was the only one to give him somewhat of a fight.
"I heard you passed out yesterday." He studied me, trying to find out if there was a hint of anything wrong. "So how do you feel?"
"Like I could beat you." I smiled challengingly at him.
For a split second, Simon was left stunned, surprised by my new attitude. He then burst out laughing. "Hahaha, good, Luka. That's very good." He patted my shoulder. "A man should have confidence like that.
Without another word, Simon grabbed two wooden swords from the rack and tossed one my way. I caught it cleanly with one hand.
"Let's find out if you can back those words." He then motioned to one of the students. "Kem, I'd like you to begin this morning's spar with Luka." He tossed him the second wooden sword.
The boy hesitated for a moment before nodding and moving forward. As we took our places, I heard some of them whisper among themselves. Some were saying that the other guy might have a chance, and others made bets, thinking that because of yesterday I would not be at my best.
'Jokes on them. I feel amazing.' I rolled my shoulders, testing the weight of the wooden sword. I swung it once and twice to get a good feel for it. The air hummed faintly as it cut through.
My expression was relaxed, but inside my heart was running. I was so excited for this I couldn't wait. "Are you done?" My opponent snapped, looking at me hatefully.
I glanced up at him. 'Why is he looking at me like that?' I squinted my eyes, genuinely confused. Last I checked, wasn't Luka liked by everyone in the village? What was up this guy's ass?
Then the memory came to me. 'Oh, so that's it.'
Kem, like me, was one of the survivors from the plague that hit Iliasville. He was also Luka's former bully. Back when Luka was younger, Kem, along with his dad, was among the people who hated and ostracized him and his mom just for being outsiders. When the plague took his father too, the guy kept bullying him even after they both lost their parents. But that all stopped when Luka, shockingly enough, stood up for himself and beat him up. Not going to lie, that was pretty ballsy.
Long story short, the guy had resented Luka for years, and it didn't stop there. If it wasn't bad enough that he relentlessly bullied him, he was jelly too. Like Luka, he learned under Simon from the beginning, but Luka was the one Simon always praised. He was the best among the students, and Kem hated it because no matter what he did, he was always just behind him.
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at this childish drama. Maybe I'll talk to him about his issue later. For now, I just send him a slow, deliberate, conceding smirk.
"Ready whenever you are, buddy." I said the last word with sarcasm.
"Don't call me buddy." His jaw tightened, and the grip on his wooden weapon sharpened.
I did the same, remembering all of Simon's lessons through Lukas' memories and experiences. It was so effective that I held the weapon correctly purely through muscle memory.
Simon's voice cut in, getting both our attention."Alright,t everyone. The first spar of the day will begin with Luka and Kem."
"We're doing this with the same rules as usual." He said, his tone firm enough to make us heed his word. "To start, this is a spar, not a bar fight. Fight fairly." He raised one finger. "The first clean hit to any part of the body will count as a win." Then a second finger. "There will be no grappling or dirty tricks allowed. This is a test of your swordsmanship only. If I see biting or deliberate fouls of any kind, I will end the match immediately. "Then the third. "Running away or feigning defeat will count as a loss."
"Lastly," Simon said, lowering his hand, "you mustn't hurt your opponent beyond what is acceptable nor continue once they've gone fetal. Am I understood?" He looked to the both of us with a serious face befitting a soldier.
"Yes." We said in unison.
"Good." He nodded approvingly. "Now… begin!" He sounded.
Kem didn't wait a second. The moment Simon gave the go-ahead, he rushed forward immediately as he closed the gap on us. 'Talk about aggression.' I thought, not the least bit worried.
It was weird. I should have been nervous, but I wasn't. In my past life I didn't know jack shit about swords outside of the fact that they were cool and deadly. It's thanks to Lukas's memories. I had it all. His experience and sheer talent made it feel like holding a weapon was second nature to me, as demonstrated when my opponent's sword came down in a brutal overhead swing, fast and heavy, no doubt meant to catch me off guard.
I raised my blade swiftly.
The attack was blocked, forcing me back a step. My heels dug into the dirt, dust puffing up around my feet.
"Good start." Simon muttered calmly. "Though not surprising, Kem wants to get the drop first.
I wasn't surprised. Luka and Kem fought countless times before, and the guy would always begin the fight like this.
Kem didn't let up as he followed with a horizontal slash, then a quick upward cut, getting me to retreat further. I parried the first strike and twisted away from the second, the wooden blade grazing my shirt. "Tch, stop running away!" As he continued his onslaught.
'Kid really hates me.' My jaw tightened as I quickly regained my balance. I just wanted to start by easing into things, but he wasn't leaving me much choice.
He rushed again, this time feinting high before aiming low. It was a pretty nice move, but I saw through it. Before it landed, I snapped my sword down to intercept. "Nice try!" Stepping diagonally instead of back like my opponent would've preferred, I countered and pressed forward.
Kem growled. "Why you—" He pressed hard, trying to overwhelm me with momentum and disable mine in one fell swoop. His swings came faster now.
I parry and deflect each and every single one of them, making sure I move my feet in tandem so as to not put myself in a vulnerable position.
Our wooden swords made contact every single time. I felt each colliding stroke vibrating through my arms. My breathing stayed steady even as my heart pounded harder. The feeling of being in a real sword fight was so much more exhilarating than I thought.
Kem suddenly rushed in close, no doubt sick of me still standing at this point. He swung the sword sideways, aiming for my head.
I slid my lead foot back just enough for the weapon to whistle past my forehead, the wind of it brushing my hair. Before Kem knew it, I rotated my wrist and snapped my sword sideways.
CLACK!
I knocked his wooden sword out of the way and stepped inside his reach.
Kem snarled and shoved forward, swinging again in a wide horizontal arc to recover.
I simply ducked under the swing, dirt kicking up as I pivoted around him. His eyes widened as I had him right where I wanted him. Right here was my opportune moment to beat him. Reaching his ribs, I stopped inches away as I merely brushed my sword on his ribs lightly. It wasn't meant to end the fight but to be a reminder. I showed him that I could end this whenever I wanted.
"Quit dancing!" Kem, feeling humiliated, barked as he thrust his weapon down at me.
'That's right, get mad.' I evaded the hit. I could see his moves like the back of my hand. His anger only made it easier to read him.
He came at me harder now. Strike after strike. Vertical, diagonal, and thrusts. I retreated in short steps, letting his momentum burn itself out while my arms moved on reflex, deflecting, redirecting, and never meeting force with force. I was dictating this fight, not him.
'Time to finish this.' I thought as my hand hardened the grip on my sword. While this was a nice warm-up, I wanted to fight the more experienced Simon instead.
Kem overextended on a thrust, his weight shifting forward for just a moment too long. 'And there's my cue.' I stepped to the side, hooked his sword with mine, and twisted sharply with a lot more strength, getting his grip to slip.
CLACK—THUD.
Kem's wooden sword hit the dirt. Everyone gasped, except for Simon, who grinned at my display.
Before he could even register it, I moved. One step forward, I turned my hips and struck the end of my weapon perfectly on his sternum. "Kagh!" Kem reeled, clutching his stomach as he sucked in a deep breath.
Everyone went silent, staring at me standing over Kem's kneeling form. "That's enough." I heard Simon signal the fight.
I pulled my wooden sword back immediately and lowered it, stepping away as instructed. "The winner of this morning's match is Luka. Good job, the both of you."
Despite his congratulating us, Kem didn't look all too thrilled about getting beaten, but he didn't argue over the results. I should really clear the air between us. It's not like we have any reason to hate each other.
Simon approached us, arms crossed. He did this whenever we sparred with each other to give us his evaluations and what we should work on to better improve.
"Luka, unlike Kem, you didn't meet him head-on," he began. "Instead of rushing to get the drop on the opponent first, you bided your time to watch when your opponent slipped." He gave an approving nod. "It was an excellent demonstration of control, but I'd like to see a bit more aggression from you. Even if it's just a bit more. You have a lot more to offer than this."
As he said that, I could almost sense Kem's clenching his teeth. Clearly upset that I took it easy on him.
Simon was right. I wasn't nearly giving it my all. Can anyone blame me? Yesterday I punched a hole through my wall, and that wasn't even with my full strength. Naive as he was, Canon Luka wasn't clueless to how much stronger he was compared to everyone else and always made sure to hold back and focus more on technique so he wouldn't seriously injure someone. The only person he was comfortable going all out on was Simon, a literal grown adult with combat experience.
"Got it." I replied, getting a nod from the man, who then turned to Kem to tell him what he needed to work on.
...
..
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