Princess Connect: The Gender-Swap Curse - A Romantic Comedy of Maidens and Men - Forest of the Cursed Tome — The Gender-Reversal Curse, Activated

"...Nothing. Not anywhere." Yuuki looked up at the deep green canopy and sighed. The sword at his hip felt heavier than usual. The Forest of Frostvale—a vast woodland of five-hundred-year-old trees surrounding a frontier town of eight thousand souls. How many times had he come here now? (Mushrooms for Mom's stew... I'm pretty sure they grow around here.) His name was Yuuki. Seventeen years old. His short black hair had its usual slight bedhead, and his bright brown round eyes were currently downcast, crawling along the ground in disappointment. His slim but adventure-toned body was clad in worn leather light armor, a white shirt, and easy-to-move-in brown trousers. Around his neck hung a wooden carved spoon—a good-luck charm. He was a member of the "Gourmet Adventure Party Grimoire"—a five-person adventurer team operating out of this town. Their main work was procuring ingredients and slaying monsters. And for Yuuki, adventure had always been inseparable from "eating." "The phantom mushroom... the 'Moonlit Mushroom.' I heard it only glows near old ruins on the night of a full moon." His muttering was swallowed by the damp air. The forest was cool, the scent of soil and moss tickling his nose. Dappled sunlight scattered small patterns of light at his feet. Birdsong came from far away, and the wind rustled the leaves. (Haa... Another miss today. I guess I'll have Baldr make me that Rune Bear stew again.) He pictured the shopkeeper's face. Baldr the dwarf was the owner of the town tavern "The Golden Pot," and also the landlord of Grimoire's base. His Rune Bear stew cost three silver coins. Yuuki's absolute favorite. (But still, it can't beat Mom's.) A sharp little pain pricked deep in his chest. Yuuki gently gripped the wooden spoon around his neck. When he was still small, his mother had always stood in the kitchen. Beyond the steam, smiling gently, stirring a big pot. That smell. That taste. That warmth. (...No good. Thinking about this is no good.) He shook his head and started walking. "...Hm?" Stone paving appeared at his feet. Moss-covered, cracked, half-buried in soil—old stone paving. It continued off the animal trail, deeper into the grass. (Was this path always here?) Curiosity pushed his feet forward. Following the stone paving, the view eventually opened up. There, an old ruin stood. Several crumbling stone pillars lined the area, and in the center was a small shrine-like structure covered in moss. "Whoa... There was a place like this?" Yuuki's eyes sparkled. (Maybe the Moonlit Mushroom is near these ruins...!) He stepped into the shrine. Inside was dim, with a cool breeze flowing through. Only a thin sliver of outside light came in from the entrance. As his eyes adjusted, he could see something like a stone pedestal at the back of the shrine. "...Something's placed here." On the pedestal was a book. An old leather cover. The corners were worn, the gold ornamentation tarnished. Even so, the book had a strange presence. Yuuki approached as if drawn by a magnet and reached out. (What is this book...) The moment his fingers touched the leather cover— A zap. A small shock, like static electricity, ran through his fingertips. "Whoa!" He instinctively pulled his hand back. His heart was pounding. (What was that just now...?) Cautiously, he touched the book again. This time, nothing happened. Yuuki lifted the book and stared at the cover. Unfamiliar characters were engraved on it. "Is this... runic script?" On the continent of Astria, magic is activated through "runic script" as a medium. By drawing the seventy-two types of characters in the air with magical power, one can produce fire or water. Yuuki could use simple fire runes himself. (But these characters... I've never seen them. A very old script.) He slowly read the characters engraved on the cover aloud. "If you wish to break my curse, find true love..." In that instant. The book emitted a faint light. "Wha...!?" The light vanished immediately. But a cold sensation clung stickily to Yuuki's spine. His heart pounded like a drum, and sweat seeped into his palms. (...What was that? Isn't this book bad news?) He closed the book and stretched his arm to return it to the pedestal. ...But. (...No, wait.) His arm stopped. (It might be useful for something. Besides... the fact that it's in a place like this means it must be a valuable book.) He hesitated. Yuuki had an indecisive personality. Decisions took him time. But on the other hand, he couldn't abandon people in trouble, and once something caught his interest, he had to investigate it thoroughly. "...Alright." He put the book in his backpack. (If I figure something out, I'll deal with it then.) Telling himself that, he left the shrine. When he stepped outside, the sun had begun to set without him noticing. The forest was being dyed in the orange of dusk. "In the end, I didn't find the mushrooms..." He slumped his shoulders and started walking down the road to town. The tavern "The Golden Pot" was a two-story building facing Frostvale's main street. The first floor was the tavern, and the second floor served as Grimoire's base and lodging. In the evening, it bustled with adventurers returning from monster subjugation. When he opened the door with a clatter, the smell of meat and herbs enveloped Yuuki. "Oh, Yuuki. You're early today." A low, vigorous voice flew from behind the counter. Baldr was a sturdy-built dwarf. Fifty-eight years old. Short-cropped white hair and a magnificent white beard. His arms were thick as logs, and beneath his apron was a well-trained body. He was the owner of this tavern, the cook, and also a good friend of Grimoire. "Baldr, good evening. Do you have Rune Bear stew today?" "Ah, plenty. Just took down a young Rune Bear yesterday." "Yes! I'll have some, please!" Yuuki sat down at the counter seat. The wooden chair creaked. About ten regulars were already in the shop. Rough-looking men were laughing loudly with ale in hand. Monster fangs and faded request forms decorated the walls. Lamps hanging from the ceiling bathed the interior in warm orange light. "Here you go, it's hot so be careful." Baldr placed a steaming deep dish on the counter. Rune Bear stew. The chunks of meat were so tender they fell apart with a spoon. The rich soup was full of forest-picked mushrooms and root vegetables. The herbs scattered on top gave off an appetite-stimulating aroma. "Thanks for the food!" Yuuki picked up the wooden spoon hanging from his neck. It was a little small, with clumsy carvings on the handle. This was made for him by a companion he'd lived with back in the orphanage. (I wonder if everyone's doing well.) He dipped the spoon into the soup, scooped up some meat, and brought it to his mouth. "...Delicious." The words slipped out. Rune Bear meat overflowed with umami the more you chewed. The herb aroma passed through his nose, warming him from the core. (Ah, this is it. This taste.) Yuuki closed his eyes. What came to mind was his mother's stew. Back then, he still had a family. A small house, a small kitchen. The sound of his mother stirring the pot. The sound of his father splitting firewood. And the laughter around the dinner table. (...Though I can never go back.) He remembered why he'd learned to cook. Because at the orphanage, he wanted to "let the younger kids eat something delicious." And because the only connection to the family he'd lost was the taste of that stew. (That's why I learned to cook. To taste that flavor once more...) Yuuki moved his spoon slowly. "...Yuuki? Hey, what's wrong, you're spacing out." "Huh? Oh, sorry. I was just remembering something from a while back." "I see. Well, take your time eating." Baldr wiped the counter with a cloth, his eyes gentle. (Baldr's always looking out for me.) As Yuuki continued eating his stew, something in his pocket grew hot. "...Ow, hot!" He hurriedly searched his pocket. What his hand touched was that old book—the Gender-Swap Curse Tome. (Why...? It wasn't doing anything until now.) The book was faintly warm. As if it were alive. "What's wrong, Yuuki? You look pale." "...No, it's nothing. I'm just a little tired, maybe." He pushed the book deep into his pocket and wolfed down the rest of his stew. That night. Yuuki lay on his bed in his second-floor room. Moonlight streamed through the window. Outside was quiet, only the sound of wind. (That book... I can't stop thinking about it.) He took the curse tome from the backpack by his pillow. The leather cover, illuminated by moonlight, looked more ominous than it had during the day. Yuuki swallowed hard and opened the pages. Inside, runic script was packed densely. Some parts he could read, but most was indecipherable. Here and there, strange diagrams and drawings of what looked like human bodies were depicted. "...'Find true love'—what does that even mean?" Just as he muttered that— The book suddenly blazed with intense light. "Wha...!?" Yuuki sprang up. The book opened on its own, pages flipping wildly though there was no wind. The runic characters rose from the book and began floating in the air. "Uwaaaah!?" The blinding light spilled out the window. The light spread like a wave, covering the entire town of Frostvale. It crossed the rooftops, flowed through the streets, and seeped into the bedrooms where people slept. "What is this... What's happening...!" Yuuki was frozen with fear. His legs wouldn't move, as if glued to the floor. His heart pounded so hard it felt like it would burst from his throat. It was several dozen seconds later that the light subsided. The room was wrapped in silence once more. The book was closed as before, lying on the floor. "...Hah, hah..." Yuuki finally exhaled. Cold sweat covered his entire body. (What... was that...) He fearfully checked his body. His hands, his feet—normal. He touched his chest. Flat, as always. "...No change...?" He looked outside the window. The town was wrapped in an eerie silence. Even the night wind that should have been audible was gone. As if sound itself had been removed from the world. "...What the hell is this." Yuuki didn't sleep a wink until morning. The next morning. Yuuki dragged his heavy body downstairs. "...Good morning, Baldr—" The words stopped mid-sentence. Standing behind the counter was an unfamiliar young woman. Around twenty years old. Her abundant silver hair was tied up carelessly, and her large eyes wavered with confusion. Her body was slender, yet somehow gave off a sense of strength. She was wearing the same oversized apron Baldr always wore. "...Who are you?" The woman, upon seeing Yuuki's face, cried out with an expression close to tears. "Yuuki! It's me, Baldr!" "...Huh?" The voice was a woman's. But the way she spoke, her tone—it was unmistakably Baldr's. "I woke up this morning and here I am! My body turned into a woman! My beard's gone too!" Baldr—the former dwarf woman—pointed at her own body and shouted. "W-wait a minute. What do you mean!?" As Yuuki stood there in confusion, the tavern door burst open. "Hey, Baldr! You didn't feed us something weird, did you!?" What came flying in was supposed to be the rough-looking man who was always at the tavern. But standing there was a young woman with a muscular, powerful build. There were scars on her face, and her hair was cropped short. Her clothes were still men's, but the body beneath was clearly female. "Y-you... You too!?" "Of course! Look around, the whole town's in chaos!" Yuuki went outside on trembling legs. The street was a hellish sight. People who had been men until yesterday stood frozen in women's bodies. Conversely, people who had been women were shouting in men's bodies. Their clothes were unchanged, so no one could tell who was who. "My voice... My voice sounds like a woman's...!" "My body's t

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Episode 1

Name: Princess Connect: The Gender-Swap Curse - A Romantic Comedy of Maidens and Men
Author: Novelia

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