Reincarnation?

On the balcony of an apartment overlooking the beach, a husband let his wife sit on his lap, both enjoying the beautiful view of the slowly setting sun.

"Dear, thank you for not leaving me. I'm so grateful I chose a man like you as my husband."

"Why are you suddenly saying that, Dinda?"

"…"

Dinda's silence only made Charlie more worried.

"Do you not like the honeymoon in Bali? Then for our next holiday, let's go to Disneyland Japan! You love cherry blossoms, right? Let's go there for the next cherry blossom season."

"Did you forget who manages the family's finances, dear? We don't have much money to splurge. You're an honest police officer, you refuse bribes from various people and you reject extorting the public. Relying only on your monthly salary, domestic destinations are our limit."

"I…"

Charlie couldn't argue with his wife's statement.

"As long as I'm with you, it doesn't matter where we vacation, I'm happy. You're too anxious, dear."

Pressing her face against her husband's warm and firm chest, Dinda acted spoiled.

"So what's on your mind? We are husband and wife, openness and harmonious communication are the keys to maintaining a lasting household."

Charlie gently stroked Dinda's black hair.

"It's about mother-in-law…"

"Has mother complained that we don't have children yet?"

"Mm."

"I see."

"Sorry."

"What are you apologizing for? We've already been checked at the hospital, there's nothing wrong with either of our bodies. It's just a matter of fate, there's nothing we can do but keep trying and praying."

Feeling Dinda's body tremble slightly, Charlie hugged her tightly with affection.

"Dear."

"What is it?"

Releasing his embrace, Charlie looked at Dinda, who was covered in blood.

"Why didn't you save me? If only you hadn't been an honest cop with your foolish sense of justice, none of this would have ever happened!"

"I died because of your idealism!!!"

Dinda appeared terrifying like a ghost from horror movies, she held Charlie's face with both hands.

"You killed me and our unborn child!!!"

❀❀❀

In a small room, Charlie curled up like a shrimp, his breathing ragged, his cheeks flushed.

"Haah… Haah…"

Tormented by his nightmare, the clothes he wore were soaked in sweat.

Suddenly, a warm and soft light began to shine, enveloping his body, and then his breathing returned to normal.

Somehow, the nightmare that tormented his soul vanished, and the light covering his body disappeared with a gentle flicker.

"AHHH—"

Charlie cried out in sadness as he opened his eyes a few moments later.

Lying on his back, he blinked until his vision cleared, revealing a dim wooden ceiling. His mind was still in shock from the nightmare he had just experienced.

"Ugh…"

Pain throbbed in his muscles, making Charlie wince. Perhaps it was from landing in water after falling thousands of meters from the sky without a parachute, or maybe from sleeping on a hard mattress. A quick glance around showed a room with an old-fashioned look, filled with some antique furniture.

"Where is this? I remember holding a gun to my head and killing myself. When I woke up, I was already in the sky, falling. What is actually happening…"

"Huh… Wait, this voice… This isn't my voice!"

His response was delayed as he realized the change in his voice. With so many strange things happening to him in one day, his brain couldn't process it all without enough information.

"Not only has my voice changed, but my skin is also whiter, like a girl's, and my facial features are different."

Feeling his face, Charlie could confirm that his facial features were different from what he knew. Pulling the blanket aside, he opened his pants to make sure he was still a man and not a woman.

With his soft, white skin, a throat without an Adam's apple, and a strange voice, he feared that he might be a woman.

"Thank goodness, it's still there. I'm still a man."

After confirming that his manhood was intact, Charlie sighed in relief. Seeing a mirror lying on the table, he got out of bed and picked it up to look at his reflection.

"What the… Who is this handsome young man??? My hair is white…"

In the mirror was not the face he was used to seeing every time he looked at himself.

The handsome young man in the mirror had an androgynous face, a slim yet athletic build, asymmetrical white hair longer on the right side of his face, and caramel-colored eyes.

"This… Where have I seen this face before…"

Pinching his cheek, which gave a sharp pain, Charlie confirmed he was not dreaming. After all, he had just experienced a nightmare.

"I remember, this young man is Karasuki Rio, the protagonist of the light novel Seirei no Gensouki!"

Since there were some differences between fiction and reality, he didn't immediately recognize his appearance even though Karasuki Rio was his favorite character back when he was an otaku.

"Could I have reincarnated into Rio's body like in the novel's story? No, no, no, this doesn't make any sense at all."

"Could I be experiencing some kind of visual hallucination or something? There's no way reincarnating into a light novel could be real."

If it had been another otaku experiencing this situation, they would have jumped for joy and been grateful for the situation they were in. However, Charlie was different. He had been anticipating meeting Dinda in the afterlife, and now he found himself in an unknown situation, which frustrated him.

"Think about it again, the main prerequisite for someone to go to another world (Isekai) is that they were a loser in the real world. They get a chance to start a new life in another world and live a better life."

"Rudeus, Natsuki Subaru, Nagumo Hajime, etc. Whether it's a corporate slave, victim of bullying, a hikikomori, or a NEET, they're people who failed to adapt to social society."

"No, that's not necessarily true. It's true that most Isekai protagonists are losers in their original world, but there are also those who aren't losers who go to another world."

Of course, that type of Isekai protagonist is very rare. Charlie could only think of Sakamaki Izayoi, who fit that category.

Even though there had been many tragedies in his life, he had never considered himself to be living the life of a loser. On the contrary, his life was more colorful and intense compared to a normal person's life.

"Why!"

"I just wanted to die and meet Dinda to apologize…"

"Why was I given a second chance…"

"Why…"

Unable to hold back his sorrow, he sat down on the ground, tears unconsciously starting to flow from the corners of his eyes, wetting his handsome face.

*CREAK…*

The sound of a door opening echoed clearly in the room.

"It seems I've come at an inconvenient time. Meet me outside after you have let go of your sadness." Said a woman without any empathy.

Without any intention of comforting him, she closed the door again.

"…"

Charlie didn't even turn his head; he just shed tears in silence.

Men rarely cry, but when they do, it means they are experiencing extraordinary grief.

Of course, not all men have hearts of steel; some have soft hearts like tofu and will cry over trivial matters.

Charlie was in the first category.