Volume 4—Chapter 80: Reincarnated!!
Hello there, Aria here’s…
Did you miss me?
Huh? Why did I ask that… well, just in case you put this book down and continued reading again at this part. I know it’s a gamble, but hey, if it messes with your perspective on reality, that would be kind of fun, wouldn’t it?
So yeah… hello again.
Let’s talk about Carol, shall we?
No… actually, let’s talk about the whole situation.
I and Irana, my twin sister, for those of you just tuning in, are currently having secret meetings with different girls at the exact same moment. What are the odds? I guess we really are twins, after all. Even though lately, it feels like something’s drifting apart between us, in the end… some things stay the same. It’s fascinating, in a weirdly poetic kind of way.
Irana’s on the school rooftop right now, with Yukari-senpai.
And me? I’m tucked away in a secluded corner of the school grounds with Carol.
I kind of feel bad for Viola, to be honest. With both of us gone, she’s got no one to hang out with. Sorry, Viola. I’ll treat you to melon bread later. Probably. Maybe.
Anyway… where were we? Oh right. Carol.
“Say… I know I already asked this the other day… but have we met before?” Carol’s eyes narrowed slightly, scanning my face like she was trying to match it to a half-forgotten photograph.
“No… if we have, you’d surely remember my beautiful face, right?” I said, flashing her my best mock-smug grin.
“That narcissistic attitude is all too familiar to me… makes me believe even more that we have met. Yet, I don’t remember… and neither do I… unless…” Her voice trailed off, and her gaze shifted as if she was chasing a thought she wasn’t sure she wanted to catch.
“No, that’s impossible,” Carol murmured under her breath.
I heard it. Loud and clear.
“What’s impossible?” I asked, tilting my head.
She froze for a moment, eyes widening just slightly before she quickly turned away. “Nothing. Brush it off.”
Suspicious. Very suspicious.
“I think I know what’s going on… now,” Carol said suddenly, her tone changing as if she had pieced something together.
“Really? So… have we met before?” I asked again, leaning in slightly.
“No… we have yet to meet before. That day in front of the bookstore was our first time meeting each other,” she said with a calmness that felt rehearsed. Then, almost too quietly to catch, she whispered, “At least in this life.”
In this life? Don’t tell me… she’s a reincarnated person too?
I thought about confronting her right there, but… nah. That would be too much of a hassle. And if she is someone from my past life, I’d be damned if she figured out who I am, much less that I reincarnated as a girl. The contrast alone would guarantee endless teasing from her.
But the bigger problem is… I still don’t know exactly who she is.
Now that I know there are other reincarnated people in this world… could there be more? I’ll have to be careful not to reveal myself. And then there’s my diary, I’ve written in a language not from this world. Anyone who could read it would definitely be…
…Anyone who could read it…
I froze.
Wait.
Irana can read my diary.
“Shit…” I muttered before I could stop myself.
“Eh? What… why did you curse all of a sudden?” Carol tilted her head, clearly confused.
“Ah, nothing… I just remembered something,” I said, trying to sound casual.
“Anyway, so you don’t have business with me anymore, right?” I continued, brushing off the tension that had been hanging in the air.
“Well… certainly,” she replied, her tone calm… at least seemingly so.
“So, can I go now?” I asked, already leaning slightly back as if my body was preparing to leave before my mind had fully decided.
“Uh, sure… Aria.”
I froze for half a second. The way she said my name… it wasn’t normal. There was a softness there, an almost intimate curl to the syllables, like she had spoken it a hundred times before in some other place I couldn’t remember. It sent an unexpected shiver crawling up my spine, leaving goosebumps in its wake.
“Alright then… see ya. Need to eat. I’ll be in the cafeteria if you need me.”
Without waiting for a reply, I turned and started walking away, forcing myself not to glance back…
This is really weird. What do I even do now? I need to find out who Carol is. She acts like she already knows me, and that alone is unsettling. Worse, what if she is one of those people from my past life who only cared about my parents' money? I do not want that kind of attention again. The thought makes my stomach turn.
And then there is Irana. Today’s biggest discovery might be that she might be a reincarnated person. How do I confirm it without making things explosive?
As I head toward the cafeteria, my mind is caught in a loop, turning over questions with no good answers. The chatter of passing students fades in and out like background noise… until a sharp voice catches my attention.
"Napoleon is the greatest leader in history, I tell you."
I slow down without meaning to, my ears picking up the conversation.
"What are you talking about? It is clearly Alexander the Great. Look at how many cities are named after him."
"But Napoleon brought lasting peace in Europe."
"Lasting peace my ass, have you forgotten the Great War?"
"That is a century after his death, to be fair."
"Almost a century. Napoleon was a great general, sure, but as a leader, he sucked."
"So was Alexander the Great. He was just a glorified invader who attacked backwards tribesmen."
The group is still bickering as I pass them, but one line makes me pause mid-step.
"Napoleon's greatest battle at Waterloo is proof that he is the greatest. He managed to turn a losing situation into an overwhelming victory."
Huh… Napoleon's greatest battle at Waterloo? Aren’t Waterloo famously known for his defeat?… huh… wait. Right… the history of this world is vastly different yet uncannily the same. Little things are shifted, like a song with one wrong note, and that wrong note might be a clue. I can use that to bait something.
How would I even do it? Say the name casually, drop it in conversation like it is nothing, watch faces for a twitch, a pause, the way someone corrects you too quickly. Maybe bring it up when Irana is within earshot and see if she reacts. Maybe mention it in a story or a dumb trivia debate and note who tries to steer the talk.
But should I do that? My relationship with Irana is not terrible, but it is not what it used to be. We are drifting, and the last thing I want is to shove her further away with a clumsy confrontation. If I accuse her or force a reveal and she pulls back, I lose more than answers. I lose the girl who grew up beside me, the small comforts of being twin, even if we are fraying at the edges.
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