“Do you even know where we’re going,” Cassie asked condescendingly.

“Yeah, I have an ability that helps me navigate. We’ll get there in an hour or so.” Selene replied in a tired voice.

After Cassie went to bed, she spent a few hours mourning her past life and planning for the future. She wasn’t sure how she would do it, but she was determined to find people who would accept someone like her. She had already given up any hope that Cassie would want to stick around past them reaching town. Even though she wanted to get along with her reincarnation comrade, she couldn’t imagine a scenario in which Cassie wouldn’t be a brat.

“How can I learn abilities like that? There has to be some way to earn them by doing things, right?”

“For most abilities, you learn it after doing the thing. So, if you use a bow, you’ll learn that ability and you can improve that ability over time. Usually, there are places where you can buy abilities, or you can learn them at a library. You could also become an apprentice or enroll at an academy.”

“That’s not so different from my old world.”

“Yeah…” Selene’s voice trailed off as she fell into a malaise at the mention of her old life.

“…What was your old town like,” Cassie inquired.

Selene was shocked by the unexpected show of curiosity from Cassie. She wasn’t accustomed to people being interested in her enough to ask about her life. While she suspected it was just Cassie’s attempt to fill the silence, she still felt touched by the gesture.

“Huh? Oh, yeah, umm… It was quiet. I’m not a very social person so I didn’t really have any friends or anything. I didn’t leave my house much, and when I did, no one seemed to notice me.”

“Well, that’s boring and depressing. It also makes no sense. What about your family? Did you leave them behind so you could run to a faraway place?”

“…I haven’t seen them in years, and they never tried to contact me. I doubt they care that I’m gone…”

Selene had to fight to hold in her tears as she attempted to hide her true identity. She desperately wanted to get away from the one person who would always remind her of the kind of life she lived before. Splitting up would be beneficial to both, she believed.

“Loser.” Cassie muttered under her breath but still audible.

“What about you, what was your world like?”

“It was awesome! I had a bunch of friends, a nice apartment with tons of closet space, a wealthy family that got me whatever I wanted, and a job that was super easy because I would dump my work on other people.”

“Sounds about right,” Selene mumbled. “What about romance? Did you have a boyfriend or something?”

“Not at the time of my death, but I had a bunch of simps that would buy me whatever I wanted! Don’t get me wrong, I eventually wanted to settle down and marry a rich businessman, but it was nice to have fun. What about you, Ms. Gloomy?”

“Nope. I’ve never been in any kind of relationship, and I’ve never been in love… Stop walking.”

“Huh? Why?”

“Because we’re surrounded by wolves.”

Selene hadn’t been paying attention to her danger markers and only noticed when the red outline of a wolf flashed ahead of her. She had a detection spell active the whole time they were walking for this exact reason.

“Eh!? W-what are we going to do!?” Cassie asked in a panic. It was only her second day in her new world, and it was her second time threatened by wild animals.

“Wait here, I’ll take care of them.”

Selene opened her inventory and activated the ‘users’ choice’ weapon. A dialogue box opened up with multiple weapon options. She was in a hurry, and she couldn’t think hard on the choice, so she chose her default weapon: a longsword.

A glowing sword appeared in her right hand. It matched her armor set and a faint blue light pulsed along the entirety of the blade. It was obviously overpowered, just like everything she had received from God, and it would make quick work of the wolves. Despite its large size that would make most people use both hands, she could handle it with ease with only one hand.

She activated her speed skill and zoomed behind the wolves in an instant. Her arm moved in a frenzy of slashes as she dispatched the wolves in quick succession. The gaudy sword sliced through their bodies like it was a hot knife through butter.

“Ahhh! Selene, help me!” Cassie screamed in fear. One of the wolves had gotten past Selene’s slaughterous rampage and was advancing on the weak and defenseless Cassie.

Selene used her jump skill and flew through the air at incredible speed, landing in front of Cassie before she was attacked. The wolf clamped down on her free arm, a mistake that it wasn’t going to survive. Selene flipped the sword around in her hand and drove it straight down into the wolf’s back.

She tossed the limp carcass to the side and scanned the area for stragglers. Many years of RPG gaming had prepared her for this exact moment and the powers God had given her made her unstoppable. She hadn’t even broken a sweat and her breath was as calm as it was before the skirmish.

“A-are they all gone?” Cassie’s voice was shaky and uneven as she slowly recovered from the shock of the experience.

“Yeah, they’re gone. Let’s go.” She put her sword back into her inventory and headed on her way, absolutely unaffected by the events.

“W-wait up!”

“Ugh. Hop on my back. We’ll get to town faster if I carry you.”

Selene crouched down and picked up her traumatized traveling companion. Cassie wrapped her arms around her neck and squeezed her legs tightly as she clung to her savior like a baby monkey clinging to its mother.

Before Cassie could thank her for saving her again, Selene activated her boots’ ability and sped towards town. She didn’t want to linger around the bodies and risk predators being attracted to the smell of the corpses. They only lost five minutes of time, but she wanted to get rid of the deadweight that only complained about her presence as fast as possible.

Another reason she was so impatient was because killing the wolves had reminded her how fun RPGs were. The sooner they reached the town, the sooner she could join the adventurer’s guild and take contracts. She was eager to fight some real monsters, the bigger and stronger the better. She wanted to find out just how OP she was by taking on the hardest contracts available. She wanted to find out whether she was really immortal.

An hour later, Selene stopped on a hill that overlooked a large city. Large light-gray stone walls surrounded the majority of it, with a gap left to accommodate the river that ran through the center of the city. Smoke billowed from the stone chimneys that reached out of the thatch and wood tile roofs of the plaster and wood buildings. The city looked like the stereotypical fantasy metropolis that most games and anime depicted.

“Woah… I guess this world really is technologically stunted. They better have running water because I’m not living in a place where sewage lines the streets.”

Selene was sick of Cassie’s complaining and wanted nothing to do with her any longer. She let go of her legs, causing her to fall onto the ground.

“What was that for!?”

“You were annoying me. Come on, it’s not much further. Once we get there you can find your own way around.”

Selene headed towards the city, not worried at all about her companion. Cassie stood up in a huff and patted the dirt off her clothes. She had just about had it with the sulking heroine who saved her life and taken care of her. Even though she was no longer wealthy, nor did she have the kind of social status that she had before, she still kept the air of superiority that she had before. No one had ever been so dismissive of her, and she wasn’t going to take it sitting down.

“Blah, blah, blah. No wonder no one likes you, you’re a total buzzkill. At least you know you are and hide yourself away so that no one has to deal with you. You know something, you’re right about one thing: I do wish only you had died, Soto-san.”

An evil grin grew across Cassie’s face. She had been waiting for the perfect moment to throw that in Selene’s face. Every insecure thought that she had the night before, Cassie heard every one of them. She was surprised at first, but then she remembered how much of a loser Soto-san was. She figured that Soto-san knew so much about the world because she spent all her free time playing video games.

Selene glanced back in contempt at the smug face of her former colleague.

“Fair enough. Good luck with your new life.”

“Wha-“

Cassie couldn’t finish her question before Selene disappeared from sight. There was no sign of her at all and no indication of where she went. She simply vanished in a second, leaving Cassie to her own devices.

“…S-Soto-san? Selene? Where did you go,” she asked in bewilderment. “Why did she abandon me? Did I go too far? …I guess I did say that I wouldn’t care if she was dead. Oh geez, my big mouth has gotten me into trouble again. Why did I need to be so mean? She’s been helping me the whole time while knowing who I was. It’s hard to believe she’s actually Soto-san, she looks entirely different. She must have asked God to change her appearance along for all that other stuff… What now?”

Not knowing what else to do, she began to walk towards the city in the hopes she could find some help there. It was going to take a lot longer to get there without Selene’s help, but she had thoroughly burned that bridge.

In her previous life, she was used to telling people what to do and people rarely ever talked back to her. Those that did quickly learned that she had a bad temper and an even worse mouth. She would go after the things people felt the most insecure about until they were completely eviscerated.

Unfortunately, in this world, she had no one at all and nothing she could use to manipulate people to her benefit. While she was confident she could find a job that even she would do, she was worried about adjusting to life on her own. Even if she made friends, she would never be able to tell them about her past life without them thinking she was crazy. The only person who could understand her best, and who she could be herself around, just so happened to be the one person she never cared about before.

Now that I think about it, was all that stuff she said about not having friends or a family true, she asked herself. How long has she been alone? Was she really so unnoticeable? I suppose I treated her that way too. In our old world, she was a loser because she liked this kind of stuff. But now she probably knows this world better than anyone…

“I need to find her!”

With her mind made up, she hurried her pace so she could catch up to her as fast as possible.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Unbeknownst to Cassie, Selene had a teleportation ability that she activated the moment she wanted to run away. Now she was in front of the city and ready to move on with her life. She wanted nothing more than to forget about Cassie, Kitamura-san, and Soto-san. She was Selene and she was going to live her life without reservations.

“Do you have ID,” the gate guard inquired, interrupting her resolve.

“N-no, I don’t. I’m an aspiring adventurer and I came here to join the guild.”

“The toll is two silver to enter the city.”

“Oh, er, give me a second.”

She pulled up her inventory to check if God had given her any money. Fortunately for her, God took good care of her and gave her a thousand silver.

“Here you go… And here’s another two. A girl named Cassie is going to be here later and I want you to let her in.”

“Very well, ma’am.” The guard took the coins with a greedy grin.

“And if you’re thinking of pocketing that money and extorting her for more, I’ll find you and make you pay for more than just her entry fee.”

“Are you threatening me?”

Selene grabbed the blade of the guard’s spear and crushed it in her hand like it was a soda can. Her strength was off the charts, and she could heal herself continuously so there wasn’t a mark on her hand.

“I’m warning you not to get on my bad side.”

“Ahh! Y-yes, ma’am. Very good, ma’am. H-have a great day, ma’am,” the guard spouted nervously, trying his hardest to mask his trembling legs.

“Thank you.”

Selene walked through the gates and took in the layout of the city. It was remarkably clean, and the people were all friendly to each other. The aroma of freshly baked bread mixed with the scent of roasting meat and fried fish. The cobblestone roads stretched far in all directions, a clear indication of the immense size of the city.

As she looked around, she noticed the array of races that were in the city. In addition to humans, there were elves, dwarves, nekojin, fairies, and even a few orcs. Some of them looked like commonfolk, while others looked to be adventurers, mages, academics, students, or priests. The diversity made the city feel alive and welcoming to someone like her. There was no way she wouldn’t be able to find one person in the whole city that she got along with.

“Umm, Miss? Are you lost?”

Selene’s wandering mind was snapped back to the present by the sound of a cute voice. She looked down to find a short elf staring up at her.

“Y-yeah. I was looking for the adventurer’s guild, but this is my first time in the city.”

“Really? How serendipitous, I was just on my way there myself. My name is Rena, welcome to Norvaria! I’m a fellow adventurer, though I don’t get too many contracts. Come on, I’ll show you the way.”

The two headed down the main street towards the guild. On either side of the road were tall buildings, all two to three stories, that were a mix of small businesses and humble homes. The city was bustling with activity, people going between various shops and meeting up with friends and loved ones. There seemed to be a strong sense of community and a comradery that connected everyone.

“This is the capital of the country of Verosa. The city has the largest mage academy on the continent as well as the main trade hub that almost all goods go through. The adventurer’s guild has thousands of members, ranging from lowly F rank beginners to S rank legends. I’m D rank, which is pretty good for someone who’s self-taught! There’s the merchant’s guild and next to that is Hamuld’s general store. The market district is the next street over; you can get goods from all over the continent. That huge tower over there is the Mage Tower, where all aspiring and established mages commune. I’ll show you to a good inn later, it’s in the beast district, but the food is super good and the people there are really nice!”

“Oh, is this city segregated,” Selene asked. She wasn’t used to fantasy cities being separated by racial groups but maybe this world was different.

“No, no, nothing like that! The beast district is just a nickname for the area because a lot of nekojin live there. It’s not like they have to live there, they just seem to like it.”

“I see… H-hey, can I ask you a weird question?”

“Huh? Yeah, for sure! As long as it’s not about my height!”

“What kind of relationships are acceptable here? L-like, can humans and elves date? C-can girls date girls here?”

“Hmm… I’ve never really thought about it. I see a lot of elves dating nekojins and humans and I never thought it was weird. As for same-sex relations, I don’t see why they couldn’t. Why? Are you interested in a cute nekojin girl,” Rena asked with a sly smile.

“N-no! I was just curious because my old town wasn’t that accepting of those kinds of people.”

“Well, that sucks. Oh, here we are!”

They stood in front of a massive building that looked like a small keep. It was an imposing sight to behold and a drastic deviation from the unremarkable homes and shops. A large bronze sign was inlaid above the entrance with ‘Adventurer’s Guild’ written on it in an unknown language that Selene could somehow understand.

“Woah, this place is impressive.”

“I had the same reaction my first time seeing it. Let’s go, I’ll introduce you to the guild master!”

Rena grabbed her hand and dragged her into the building. The interior was brighter than Selene expected it would be. Magical lights illuminated the entire space, and the glossy tile floor made the entire room feel larger than it already was. Looking up, she could see the multiple floors that were abuzz with adventurers and the odd mage.

“Hey, Beatrice! I brought you an aspiring adventurer that I found by the gates!”

Beatrice popped up from behind the counter and grinned at the outgoing elf. She was strikingly pretty, decked out in a very skimpy armor set that didn’t seem like it would protect her from anything, but looked appealing all the same. Her long auburn hair complimented her bright green eye and gave her a kind aura.

“Heho, we got another one! Welcome! I’m Beatrice, the master of this guild. Would you like to register as an adventurer?”

“Uh, y-yeah, please.”

“Splendid! What’s your name and skill level?” She was such a positive person that it was intimidating.

“M-my name is Selene, and my level is, umm… What’s the highest possible?”

“Well, the highest known level is 99 but there may be higher levels.”

“Okay, then I’m level 100.”

“…Can you pull up your information?”

Selene couldn’t blame her for being skeptical of her level. She was so OP that her level wasn’t even on the scale and her abilities screen didn’t have enough space to list them all. If no one believed her after showing her information details, then she would have no choice but to prove it in another way.

“…T-this is… Amazing! I’ve never seen anyone with your level and abilities! I can’t make you S rank right off the bat, but you definitely qualify for A rank! Give me a moment to make your ID!”

“Hey! Beatrice,” a large orc with a permanent scowl and a large scar over his right eye interjected. “How come you’re giving some newbie the same rank as me? I spent years grinding contracts to reach this rank, why is she an exception?”

“Hello, Bryson,” she replied with a sigh. “She’s the highest level possible and has remarkable abilities, it would be a disservice to rank her anything lower than A.”

The orc named Bryson was skeptical of her explanation and decided to make things clear once and for all. “There’s no way a young girl in flashy armor is stronger than me. If she’s as strong as you say, then she wouldn’t mind-“

Before he could finish his proposition, he was sent flying across the room by a swift kick from Selene. He crashed against the stone wall, leaving an imprint from the impact. He had never felt something hit him with such force before. Even the wyvern that he killed didn’t hit him that hard.

Before he could peel himself off the wall, Selene appeared in front of him, grabbed him by the collar of his armor, and dragged him back to the registration desk.

“Do you think I’m worthy of A rank now,” Selene asked with a fire in her eye that sent chills down his spine.

“T-that was a cheap shot, it wasn’t a proper fight,” He argued pathetically.

“Oh? Do you want to fight me properly?” She drew her sword and rested the long blade on her shoulder jauntily.

“Ehhhh, on second thought, I wouldn’t want you to scratch your pretty face, s-so I’ll let you off this once.”

“That’s what I thought,” she replied as she healed his wounds. She had no intention of actually hurting him, she only wanted to shut him up. Obnoxious, overly confident men annoyed her more than anything, so she decided to teach him a valuable lesson.

Bryson scrambled to his feet and attempted to walk away with what dignity he had left. Unfortunately, the collar of his armor was bent where she had been gripping it, providing a lasting sign of his shame.

“Woah, I’ve never seen anything quite like that. How did you get to him so fast,” Rena asked, agape from the shock of what she had just witnessed.

“I teleported using an ability called Shadow Step. It was easier to intimidate him that way than running over there.”

“Well, well, well, it seems we have ourselves a legend in the making,” Beatrice remarked giddily. “I have a feeling that things are going to get a lot more interesting around here.”

She handed Selene her ID card with a chuckle and a wink. Being OP would be a boon to her popularity among the adventurers, but it could also frighten the majority of them half to death. The prevailing thought was that if what she did to Bryson was just a show of intimidation, what was she capable of if she was seriously trying to hurt someone? Beatrice, on the other hand, wasn’t at all affected by the events, and was more interested in seeing just what Selene was capable of.

Just as she was about to leave, a booming voice called out from the entrance.

“SELENE!!!!”

She rolled her eyes and groaned in annoyance. She figured this would happen eventually, but she thought she would have at least a day to herself. She glanced over at the weak girl panting for breath by the front doors. She looked exhausted and emotionally downtrodden, but still determined to find someone to protect her.

“Selene!” Cassie threw herself on her, embracing her with what little strength she had left.

“Oh-ho, and who might this be,” Rena asked with a smirk. She figured that this girl was why Selene had been asking about same-sex couples, but Selene’s face wasn’t matching up with her assumption.

“She’s no one.” Selene grabbed Cassie and placed her to the side, not interested at all in engaging with her further. “Can you show me to that inn you were telling me about, Rena?”

“Uhhh, sure. But what about her, isn’t she your friend or something?”

“No, she’s nothing to me, just some girl I saved once. Let’s go.”

“Selene, I’m really sorry for what I said, I didn’t mean it! Please, let me stay by your side,” Cassie called out to her desperately.

Without looking back, Selene gave her terse reply. “No.”

Selene and Rena disappeared from her sight, leaving Cassie alone and dejected. She really thought that Selene would take pity on her again and help her out, but it appeared that wouldn’t be the case.

While Cassie reeled from her rejection, Selene was unmoved and following Rena to the aforementioned inn. It didn’t matter to her that Cassie was alone and stranded in the center of an unknown city, it wasn’t her problem. There was no way she was going to let her manipulate and use her like she did in their old world.

“Umm… I’m gathering that you don’t get along with that woman,” Rena broke the awkward silence that had settled between them.

“Not particularly. She just wants to use me because she’s hopeless on her own. Enough about her, tell me about yourself.” Selene was ready to move on from that frustrating girl and get closer to the charming elf who helped her.

“Oh yeah! I’m from a small town outside the city, but I’ve wanted to be an adventurer ever since I was a kid, so I came here! Though… Most of the other adventurers don’t take me seriously because of the weapon I use. Being small doesn’t help either. No one ever lets me join their party, so I have to take easy contracts that I can do solo.”

“What kind of weapon do you use?”

Rena whipped out her weapon with a flourish, proud of her unusual choice. “A slingshot! It may not look it, but it’s just as capable as anything else. I’ve been practicing for years and I’m deadly accurate!”

“That’s so cool! Can you really defeat monsters with that!?”

Selene wasn’t as closed-minded as the battle-hardened adventurers at the guild. In her old world, she had the ability to test out different weapons and play styles across the many RPGs she played. While she had never seen a slingshot as an option, she didn’t doubt that it was a capable weapon.

“Well… I can beat slimes and gremlins. I’ve never tried anything larger than an ogre, which wasn’t affected by it.”

“Why don’t we team up! We can take on harder contracts and I may be able to make that slingshot of yours stronger. What do you say!?”

“Seriously!? You want to team up with someone like me!?”

“For sure! It would get really boring if I did everything on my own since I’m so OP. Plus, I could help improve your skills!”

Selene wasn’t just excited about making a friend, she was elated that she found a cute girl to team up with. Traveling with a cute elf was like a dream come true for the girl-obsessed otaku. Things were finally looking up for the once isolated office worker!

Perhaps this is what God meant when she told me that I wouldn’t be alone anymore, Selene thought.

“Yes, I would love to form a party with you! I can’t wait to go on a real contract! Maybe we can hunt a golem or a basilisk or a troll! I can’t wait!” Rena always wanted to go on a high rank contract, but Beatrice never let her take them.

“Sweet! I’ll rely on your knowledge of the area, since I’m still new here, and I’ll take care of monsters you can’t handle on your own.”

“Sounds like we’re a perfect match for each other,” Rena joked with a smile.

“It’s not nice to tease people, y’know!”

As the two laughed their way through the streets, Selene became aware that they were being followed. Cassie was nothing if not stubborn and she wasn’t going to give up that easily. She was fully aware that she had no chance of surviving in this world without Selene and she wasn’t going to accept her fate lying down.

“There’s the inn I was telling you about,” Rena announced.

A wooden sign hung over the door; the unusual language spelled out ‘The Kitty’s Paw’. Selene couldn’t resist giggling at the silly name, no matter how fitting it was for an inn in the beast district. It looked like a fine inn, but she didn’t have much experience with inns since she never left her home.

“Sweet! Are you coming in too or do you have a place in the city?”

“Oh, I actually have a room at the adventurer’s guild. I don’t make enough to afford to stay at an inn all the time, let alone a place of my own. A lot of newbie adventurers stay at the guild. In exchange, the guild takes a percentage of any rewards we receive for completing a contract.”

“Huh. We’ll need to take care of that. I can’t have my party member staying with newbs at the guild. How much are houses in this city?”

“You’d need at least five thousand silver for the cheapest house. Some of the larger parties build their own headquarters just outside the city. But don’t worry about me though, I’m fine staying at the guild.”

“Nope! That won’t do. Once we finish some high-rank contracts, and make some real money, we’ll find a proper place for us!”

Selene was eager to repay Rena’s kindness as well as help out her first friend. One of her favorite aspects of the games she used to play was the ability to buy and customize houses, and this was the perfect opportunity for that. The cottage God provided for her was nice, and she could easily return to it using a teleportation spell, but she wanted to stick around the city for a while.

“If you say so, Selene. Well, I better get back to the guild soon or else there won’t be any dinner left. I’ll see you later!”

Rena waved to her new friend and hurried back to the guild. She was in such a hurry that she never noticed the girl trying desperately to hide behind an empty market stall. Cassie had been waiting for a good moment to attempt to reconcile with her Isekai comrade. She still wasn’t sure how she was going to accomplish that feat, but she didn’t want to waste any time.

That short pointy-ear girl finally left! Now I just need to find the right moment to pounce, she thought.

She was just about to rush over when she noticed someone looming over her. She glanced up to find an evil-looking man glaring down at her. He was bald and half of his head showed obvious burn scars. His arms were covered in healed cuts and tattoos, and in his hand, he held a large dagger that was pointed at her neck.

“What do we have here? A pretty girl on her knees waiting for someone to take her home? Don’t mind if I do.”

He leaned forward and gripped her arm like a vice, pulling her stumbling to her feet. He rested the dagger against her throat and chuckled to himself. She was at his mercy, and he was going to take full advantage of the opportunity.

He turned to drag her back to his lair only to run into an extremely intimidating woman. The sword that she lazily rested on her shoulder had a blue glow to it, and despite its size, she seemed capable of wielding it with ease. While that may have been enough to make most people quake in fear, the man was a hardened criminal and was confident in his abilities.

“Just where do you think you’re taking her,” Selene asked menacingly.

“This doesn’t concern you! Mind your own business, you bitch!”

Selene cocked her head to the side and stared skeptically at him. “You talk big for someone too stupid to dodge attacks. You’re covered in scars, dude. How have you not learned how to avoid danger after all this time?”

“Shut up,” he shouted as he drove his blade deep into Selene’s chest.

If she had been a normal human, she would have died in an instant. Unfortunately for the man, she was far from normal. Instead of falling over or crying out in pain, a smirk grew across her lips.

“Thanks for attacking me first. Now, I can say I acted in self-defense.”

She moved the large sword like it was no heavier than a twig and swung down on the arm that was still holding onto the dagger. The man fell onto his back, one hand lighter than he was before.

“You really chose the wrong girl to mess with,” Selene commented as she pulled the dagger from her chest, tossing it to the side like it was nothing. “You’re lucky you just lost a hand and not your life.”

Before the man could respond, the city guards surrounded and restrained him. “Causing trouble again, Zander? Seems like you’ve finally picked on the wrong person. Let’s go.”

The guards dragged him away, not caring at all about his missing hand. Selene put her sword back into her inventory and brushed herself off. There was no sign at all that she had been stabbed just moments before, only the dagger that laid next to her acted as a reminder of what happened.

“Do you just attract danger naturally? Seriously. You die and then do everything you can to get yourself killed again. This may be a fantasy world to us but that doesn’t mean there aren’t bad people,” Selene lectured the traumatized girl who was staring at her chest.

“…Why are you staring at my boobs? I get that this armor doesn’t leave much to the imagination, but staring isn’t going to fill in those gaps.”

Cassie averted her eyes away from her chest, not wanting to embarrass herself any more than she already had. “I wasn’t looking at your breasts. I was just shocked that there wasn’t even a scar left on you.”

“Uh-huh. Let’s go inside before something else tries to kill you.”

Selene headed towards the inn nonchalantly, trying her best to stay in her roleplay mindset. The real her was nervous and shy, but she always roleplayed the dashing heroine in her games. So, she figured it would be easier to live in this world if she just thought of everything like she was roleplaying.

“Hey, wait for me!”

Selene walked up to the bar without waiting for her tagalong. The night was still young, and she had a feeling that it was going to be a long one.

“Welcome to The Kitty’s Paw inn! I’m Nekolin, the owner of this establishment. How can I be of service,” she asked with a smile.

“Nice to meet you, Nekolin, I’m Selene. Can I get a room for two and something to eat?”

“Of course! Will this just be for the night, or do you plan on staying with us for a while?”

Selene glanced back at Cassie who seemed to be reeling at the sight of a real nekojin. “Can I book the room for a week? I may extend it later, but I’m not sure how long I’ll be here.”

“Alright, that will be twenty-five silver coins. Meals are included and there’s bathrooms that are just for guests.”

Selene opened her inventory and withdrew the money, handing it to the innkeeper. “Here you go. Has dinner been served yet?”

“You’re just in time! Take a seat and I’ll bring food out for you,” the kind nekojin said. Her smile was made only slightly intimidating by her elongated incisors, but her voice was kind and warm.

Selene took a seat by the hearth and relaxed for the first time since she had been reincarnated. Cassie hesitantly sat across from her, still not sure how to talk to the girl who she once looked down on but now relied on.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t notice that you were following me,” she asked with a sigh.

“Well, you just left me at that weird place, what else was I supposed to do?”

“You could have done what you said you would and made a new life for yourself. I paid for you to enter the city, was that not enough?”

Nekolin came out with plates of some kind of roasted meat and bowls of stew. Another nekojin followed behind carrying mugs of ale for the tired pair.

“Please enjoy,” she said with a smile before returning to the bar.

The other nekojin lingered, nervously shifting her feet next to the table. She looked young but her body was more developed than most girls her age. She was ashen-haired, a striking color that made her stand out even among her kind.

“Is there something you need,” Selene asked in a gentler voice than she had been using.

“N-no. I-I just wanted to introduce myself. I’m Catarina, I work most evenings s-so you’ll probably see me around.”

Selene grinned at the shy girl, hoping to calm her nerves with kindness. “You have a pretty name, Catarina. I’m looking forward to getting to know you more.”

The young nekojin blushed from being complimented by a beautiful girl. She was used to the drunk patrons hitting on her, but there was something about hearing such kind words from someone so pretty.

“Y-yeah, me too. Please, don’t hesitate to call me if you need anything!” With that, Catarina rushed back to the bar and buried her face into hands in embarrassment.

“…The girls in this world seem to really like you,” Cassie observed.

“It’s because I don’t look like I used to,” Selene responded before tearing into the roasted meat that tasted vaguely like beef.

“You asked God to make you beautiful because you didn’t think you were, right?”

“Was I wrong? Why wouldn’t I take the opportunity to ask for everything I never had in my old life? I was weak, ugly, shy, gloomy, and totally alone in our world. Can you blame me for trying everything possible to erase that person?”

Cassie tentatively tasted the mystery stew, hoping that it didn’t taste awful. A rich savory flavor filled her mouth, which reminded her just how hungry she was. She greedily gobbled her stew before replying to Selene’s rebuttal.

“That was surprisingly good… Sorry for being such a bother to you. I’m sure you hate me for how I treated you before and for what I said to you today. I can understand why you would want to make the best of this chance, especially since it’s a world that you’re comfortable in… Would it be awful of me to say that I want to think of you as Selene and not who you used to be?”

“You can do whatever you like. Regardless of what you do, in this world I’m Selene. Since I look different, it should be easy for you to adjust. It’s not like you really cared about who I was before.”

“That’s true… Can we start over? Can we forget about Kitamura-san and Soto-san, and get to know each other as Cassie and Selene?”

“Sure. Either way you’re still a spoiled, entitled brat who is absolutely hopeless on your own. You have no interest in becoming an adventurer, so we have no reason to stick together. I’m going to do what I want, and what I want to do is fight strong monsters with my friends.”

Selene downed her stew and chugged her ale in quick succession. She hadn’t eaten since the night before and her OP body was able to take in staggering amounts of food.

“Is that all you want to do,” Cassie asked, trying not to think about Selene’s rapacious appetite.

“Well… You already know I like cute girls. Maybe I’ll indulge myself now that they think I’m attractive too.”

As if to put an emphasis on her statement, she looked over at Catarina who had been staring at her for a while. The shy nekojin tore her eyes away and tried to play off her objectively creepy behavior.

“Got a thing for cat-girls,” Cassie asked.

“They’re nekojin and they’re no different from you and I other than their appearance. But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t interested. What does it have to do with you? Aren’t you hoping to marry some rich businessman or something?”

“Eh? Didn’t you say I was cute the other day?”

“I mean, objectively, you’re cute. But you’re not interested in that sort of thing so what would be the point in pining for you when there are other cute girls in this city?”

“You’re such a strange girl. Were you like this before?”

“I never talked about it at work, it was just something I enjoyed on my own at home. When I was in college, I tried to go out and meet someone, but no one wanted to talk to me and those that did just insulted me. After that, I stuck with 2D girls.”

Cassie opened her mouth to respond when Selene stood and went over to the bar.

“Can I get another round? And is it possible for me to get seconds of dinner,” she asked the blushing barmaid.

“Y-yes! Of course, you can,” Catarina stuttered before putting in her order.

“Thank you so much! How late is this place open? I hope you aren’t walking alone late at night.”

“The bar closes at midnight, but I usually have to stick around for another hour to clean up. It’s fine, I know the area well enough to avoid danger.”

“Hmm… Well, if you ever feel uncomfortable, I can make sure you get home safely.”

Selene was trying her hardest to stay in character and act like the suave heroines from her games, but she was afraid she was being too overt. She wasn’t naturally confident, nor was she good at talking to girls she found attractive. But she wanted to fight her shy nature and experience new things now that she had the opportunity.

“T-thank you, Ms. Selene, you’re very kind,” she stammered out as she handed the mugs of ale to the attractive stranger.

Selene grabbed the ales and shot Catarina a smile. “Thank you so much, Catarina!”

She went back to join Cassie whose mouth had dropped from watching her flirting. Selene knocked back one mug of ale and took a big swig of the other before digging into the food she asked for.

“…You’re a totally different person from what I thought. She was practically swooning over you! I thought she was going to take you up to your room because she couldn’t hold back. And you have a much bigger appetite than I thought you would.”

Selene rolled her eyes at Cassie’s observation. “You’re exaggerating. She’s a shy girl so we’re kindred spirits in a way. Also, I haven’t eaten since last night, of course I’m hungry! Need I remind you that I killed a pack of wolves, carried you for an hour, fought some idiot at the guild, and saved you yet again, all in the same day. Anyone would be hungry after all that!”

“Oh please, you so want to take that girl home. Even after you asked that shortie to live with you, you’re still on the prowl for more.”

“Shut up. Rena is a friend and we’re forming a party; it would be convenient for us to live together. Catarina is a young girl who goes home late at night by herself, it’s only natural that I would offer to keep her safe considering my abilities. Besides, the only person I’m sharing a room with is you. Aren’t you lucky?”

Cassie blushed at the thought of spending the night in the same room as Selene. She wasn’t bothered by her obsession with cute girls, and she wasn’t afraid that she’d do anything to her. But there was something about sleeping next to the beautiful girl who had taken care of her that made her feel uneasy.

They spent the rest of the time in silence as Selene devoured her food. By the time Selene was ready for bed, she had eaten five servings of roasted meat and drank nine mugs of ale, which had no effect on her whatsoever.

Once her hunger was satiated, she led Cassie upstairs to their room. It was a simple space; a pair of beds were separated by a shared nightstand that sat between them. A mirror sat next to a short dresser, and a wardrobe in the corner offered a space for guests to hang their clothes for the night.

“Yeah, this isn’t bad at all. Finally, I can take this armor off.”

Selene pulled up her inventory and unequipped her armor, leaving her in unnecessarily cute underwear. She couldn’t help but think that God was some kind of pervert, especially since her armor was so sexy that it lost all practicality.

She walked over to the mirror to look at herself without clothes for the first time. She was surprised by how toned her body was despite her gorging on meat not too long before. God had really out done herself with her appearance. It was like God made her to not only be the most powerful, but also the most beautiful woman in the world. She never asked her for that! She just wanted to be more attractive than she was.

“Ugh, I’m too pretty,” she groaned, flopping down on the bed behind her. “No wonder that girl was staring at me. I’m still not used to looking like this and I’m not sure I ever will.”

“God gave you underwear,” Cassie questioned in angry disbelief. “All she gave me were these damn rags! What the hell!?”

“Calm down. We’ll get you some clothes tomorrow, alright? I have a feeling that God gave me so much because she figured I would share with you. Why else would she place you in the woods behind the cottage she gave me?”

“…Seriously? Why would she do that!? Why couldn’t she just give me something that I could use to survive!?”

“It probably had something to do with my dying words, so I guess it’s my fault. Why don’t you just sleep in the nude? I promise I won’t do anything to you.”

“…Your dying words? What were your dying words,” she asked, purposely ignoring the second part of Selene’s response.

“I don’t remember saying it, but apparently, I said something about not being alone anymore. It’s funny, isn’t it? I didn’t think it bothered me as much as it did. I’d been alone since I was a kid, you’d think I was used to it.”

“That’s just how it is, I suppose. Maybe God wouldn’t have reincarnated me if you hadn’t said that, so I should be thankful… Hey, this is going to sound weird, but if it means I can stay with you, I’ll become an adventurer as well. I know I’ll be dead weight until I can improve my abilities and it may take some time for me to get used to killing things, but I want to stay with someone I know.”

Selene considered her proposal for a moment. While she wasn’t a fan of Cassie’s attitude, she also wouldn’t feel right abandoning her after she asked for help so sincerely. Selene knew that she would be able to thrive in a world that mirrored the things she did for fun in her past life, but Cassie was completely lost in it. Without her, Cassie wouldn’t survive a week in a world full of villains and monsters, let alone adjust to living without the technology she relied on before.

“Tomorrow, Rena and I will take you out to the field to kill some slimes. They’re weak and a good way for beginners to practice their skills. Before that, I’ll take you to get some armor and a weapon. It won’t be anything fancy, but they’ll be better than those rags. The only stipulation is no complaining. This world can be a lot of fun, but you need to work to get to the point where things are easy.”

“Thank you so much, Selene! I promise I’ll work hard and contribute as much as I can! You know this world better than I do, so I’m okay putting my trust in you.”

Cassie was beyond relieved. Not only was she able to convince Selene to forgive her, but also found a way to stay with her. It hurt her pride a bit to ask for so much, but she knew that life would be a lot easier if she stuck with her. If she had to be saved three times in two days, there was no way she would survive without Selene watching over her.

“…So you asked God to make you young and unageing as well. At least you were smart enough to ask for that. Unfortunately, I have a feeling your undying ability isn’t the same as my immortality. It protects you from dying, but you can still get hurt, unlike me.”

“Damn. I really didn’t think of my wording when I asked God for that stuff. Did you ask her for that crazy gear you got?”

“It was a suggestion, but I didn’t ask her for such an overpowered set. Which reminds me; I haven’t checked out the swords effects.”

She pulled up her inventory and tapped on the sword for more details.

“Hmm… When activated, blade is wreathed in a blue flame hot enough to cut through the strongest walls… So OP! The gear was strong enough, but this sword is ridiculous! And to think, she left more stuff for me to find around the world.”

“Really? That’s cool. When you find stuff she gave you that you don’t need, you can just give them to me!”

“Unfortunately, my gear is non-transferable, meaning only I can use them. Don’t worry, once I gather enough rare materials, I can craft you your own set. Until then, I’ll protect you. The weapons will depend on whether you know how to wield them well enough to be useful.”

“Ugh, you have all the luck,” Cassie groaned before falling into the adjacent bed. “Well, whatever. I suppose you now have two cute girls in your party. You must be thrilled.”

“Eh. At the end of the day, the only girl I’ll probably end up spending my life with is you since neither of us can die. That’s not to say I don’t love having more cute girls to look at, but that fact is always going to be looming over everything.”

“When you put it like that you make it sound like you want us to be romantically involved.”

“Pfft, yeah right. Just because I agreed to help you doesn’t mean I like you. We may be starting fresh but that just means we’re at zero right now.”

“Well that’s better than nothing I suppose. Then you won’t mind if I do this,” she said as she removed her clothes in the hopes of flustering her stoic companion.

“Nope, not at all. Now go to sleep. Tomorrow will be a busy day so you need plenty of rest.”

Cassie was annoyed by Selene’s total lack of interest in her body. She was proud of her figure so she assumed it would be enough to snap Selene back to her shy and nervous state. It made no sense to her, didn’t she like cute girls? If she liked cute girls then why wasn’t she all over her!?

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. Goodnight, Selene.”

“Night,” she replied dismissively as she turned on her side to obscure her blushing cheeks.