'I died… right?'
My heart did stop, I was sure of that much, at least. I remember closing my eyes. That wouldn't be possible if I had just fallen asleep. Nothing happened after that, though. My line of thought hadn't been severed, so it still felt like I was awake.
I no longer feel exhausted, which is a plus, but I can't open my eyes. All around me, all I can see is… nothing. It sure is dark in here. Not that I would be able to tell whether there is light or not. Maybe I just had no eyes. If that is the case, I wouldn't be able to tell even if it was blindingly bright.
'C'mon, isn't this the part where a beautiful goddess shows up to send me to a different world?'
Just as the thought crossed my mind, something popped up in front of me. A translucent purple screen.
[
You hear a distant voice. It requests your assistance.
Would you like to answer the call?
>[Yes.] [No.]
]
'Hm? But… I'm not hearing anything…'
Before I could grasp what was happening, the [Yes.] option blinked, and the notification disappeared.
'Wait…' As I was hit with a sudden realization, light flooded my vision. 'Was that a system notification?'
~[ ]~
[You have chosen to answer the call.]
[Crossing dimensional border.]
[...]
[You have crossed the dimensional border.]
[You have entered a new world.]
[Title: «World Traveler» has been granted.]
[Title: «He Who Answers Her Call» has been granted.]
[Beginning soul conversion.]
[...]
[Due to the Title: «He Who Answers Her Call» the Incubus attribute has been granted.]
[Integrating the Incubus attribute.]
[...]
[Due to Title: «World Traveler» System Type 1 has been granted.]
[Integrating System Type 1.]
[...]
[Soul conversion complete.]
[Generating compatible physique.]
[…]
[Incubus physique has been generated.]
[Beginning Soul Integration.]
[...]
[Soul Integration complete.]
~[ ]~
'... huh? What… huh?'
The light vanished as suddenly as it had appeared, and I was thrown into darkness once again. Something was different this time, however. For one, I felt a solid surface under my feet. I felt a bit of a chill on my skin, too. I opened my eyes to check, but there was nothing.
'Wait… I have eyes?'
No sooner had I realized that than my surroundings brightened. Dozens of closely packed candles lit up at the same time, their flames forming a circle around me. When I looked down, I noticed strange engravings on the ground. Nothing about them made sense to me, but looking at the complex shapes and symbols, I realized that it was a magic circle.
"Did we… did we succeed?"
The soft whisper drew my attention, and when I glanced to the left, I saw a girl kneeling just beyond the ring of small flames. The instant our eyes met, she quickly lowered her head.
'Her hair… Is it purple?'
I sensed movement in the corner of my eye, and when I turned to look, I found another girl looking at me with wide eyes.
'Whoa… what a babe…'
Going by her bright blue eyes and lush blonde hair, I assumed she was a true European beauty. Before I could get a good look at her, though, she lowered her head just like the first did.
I noticed a third girl to my right. This one lowered her head before I could get a look at her face. Her hair was lustrous obsidian, and from the looks of it, she had it tied in a ponytail.
'Hold on…'
Short purple hair, lush blonde hair, and black hair tied into a ponytail. Where have I seen this before?
"O Great Spirit, my gratitude knows no bounds." The blonde one spoke just as I tried to recall. "Thank you. Thank you for granting me the privilege of answering my call."
Not gonna lie, I was a little taken aback. Her voice, the way she spoke, it all had weight to it, and it seemed overly serious. I turned to look behind me just in case. Turns out the ones kneeling to me were only those three. That didn't make the situation any less weird.
'Let's see…'
The system notifications, the magic circle, and now this girl. Everything points to me being summoned, and since magic wasn't real in my previous world, am I right to assume I have arrived at a different one?
'Another world…'
As I continued to ponder my situation, I noticed the blonde beauty doing her best to keep her head bowed. Was she waiting for me to respond? What am I even supposed to say?
[NEW QUEST RECEIVED!]
A small screen popped up, and I almost flinched back. Seeing that it was the same purple as the one I saw before, a spark of excitement coursed through my body.
'I knew it!' In my head, I pumped my fists in the air. 'It's a System!'
Systems were a staple of LitRPG and isekai. Having read my fair share of the genres, I had no trouble figuring out what to do. I gave the notification a mental click, and an instant later, a different screen took its place.
[«A Maiden's Call»
Type: Main Quest.
Difficulty: A
Description:
You have heard a maiden's call and chose to answer.
Hear her wish and dedicate yourself to granting it.
Clear conditions:
??????
??????
Clear Reward:
Title: «A Maiden's Savior.»
Failure Penalty:
Permanent Death.
]
'So that's what's happening…'
I remembered the notification that appeared after my death and began to understand what was happening. Long story short, it seems that I happened to respond to the summoning magic one of these three girls had used, and as a result, I have been isekai'd.
The quest I just received did a good job explaining what's happening, but there is a little problem.
'What's up with the clear conditions? And the hell do you mean permanent death!!?'
You mean to tell me I have to figure things out on my own or die?
'You got to be shitting me…'
Doesn't seem like I had other options. Reading through the description again, I got an idea of the direction I should take. All that's left is to decide how to go about it.
'Should I go with the classic are you my master?'
She did call me a "great spirit". Still, there is nothing that suggests I'm in a subservient position to whoever summoned me. The failure penalty makes it sound like I would die if I don't grant the girl's request, but that doesn't mean I have to serve her.
'Isn't it a bit vague, though? Depending on how she words her request, I might end up as a slave…'
I should probably try and establish myself as the higher authority in this situation, just in case things get messy later on.
'Time to make use of those acting lessons I took in college!'
Looking over the three girls one more time, I cleared my throat and spoke.
"Raise your heads."
The voice I heard didn't match the one in my head, which startled me a little.
'Hold on… why do I sound so… soft?'
The situation being the way it is didn't allow me to dwell on that matter. For now, I had to play my role well.
The three young women did as I said. I looked them over one more time, meeting their gazes one by one. The feeling that I recognized them from somewhere returned, and this time, I sensed that I was close to figuring it out.
My gaze returned to the one at the center. She had that ojou-sama look with the blonde hair styled like drills. In a trio like this, it was always safe to assume the one with such characteristics was the leader.
"State your name," I said, trying to sound as authoritative as I could. Unfortunately, my soft voice removed any intimidation I might have had.
'Wait… A trio like this…'
"My name is Liliana Aveline Goldlance."
The instant I heard the name, something clicked in my mind, and the girls suddenly became more recognizable. The first one had lush blonde hair styled into drills, the second had purple hair in a bob cut, and the third had long black hair tied into a long ponytail. I don't know how it took me this long to realize.
'No way… right?'
"Liliana Aveline Goldlance…"
That was the name I gave to the main heroine of my game, Rose of Valor. She was the daughter of a prominent noble family and the future leader of one of the kingdom's seven knight orders. As I looked at the girl kneeling in front of me, she started to seem like a very well-done cosplay of the character I had created.
'It can't be…'
My gaze turned to the second girl, the one with the short purple hair. She seemed to lose her composure as soon as our eyes met, casting her gaze down as a result.
"R-Rosalia Serenith Purplethorn."
'No way…'
When I turned to the third one, she remained calm, closed her eyes, and lowered her head as well.
"Daphne Isolde Nightreign."
'... I… I can't believe this…'
The names match, and so does their appearance and demeanor. Is this really happening? Did I really reincarnate into my own game?
'I'm not dreaming… right?'
As I felt my excitement grow, my gaze met the blonde one's eyes, and I instantly froze.
'Not good. I wasn't smiling just now, was I?'
Thankfully, it seems like I managed to catch myself before messing things up.
'Stay calm. Don't celebrate just yet.' I told myself. 'This might turn out to be-'
My thoughts came to a sudden halt. The names did match, and the girls shared elements close to the characters I have created. Those seemed like enough evidence of this being the world of Rose of Valor, and I felt like I would find more if I were to look. Nevertheless, there was one thing that caused the whole theory to collapse: the summoning magic.
As I came to that sudden realization, I noticed Liliana's gaze fall down, and whatever she saw, it caused her eyes to go wide and her face to turn crimson red. In the corner of my eye, I noticed that Rosalia had the same shocked expression. Only Daphne seemed to maintain her calm.
Even without looking, I could tell what drew those expressions out of them. I might have steeled myself to not celebrate just yet, but from the looks of it, a certain part of me was much more honest.