Seraph Squad Gender-Bender Panic! ~The Day My Girlfriend Became My Boyfriend~
One morning, Cadet Karen wakes up to find the world has turned upside down.
She looks in the mirror and screams. The face staring back is sharper, with a faint stubble on the chin. In a panic, she checks under her shirt—her chest is flat. And there's something extra down below. "Wait, does this mean... I'm a guy?!"
Out in the hallway, the entire military dormitory is in chaos. The cool female instructor Yui has become a muscle-bound man, and the gentle senior Ryo is now a cute girl. Boys are g
Seraph Squad Gender-Bender Panic! ~The Day My Girlfriend Became My Boyfriend~ - Friday's the Worst! I Absolutely Refuse to Let Ryou Leave!
The air was cold.
Friday morning. Even the promised scent of curry cutlets drifting through the mess hall only tightened the knot in Karen's chest.
Karen stopped at the entrance, tray in hand.
(Ryou...)
There, in front of the serving counter. Waist-length black hair swayed gently in the morning light. Ryou, now feminized, stood with head bowed, holding a tray.
Last night's argument in the conference room echoed in Karen's ears.
—I don't care anymore! I hate you, Ryou!
Their own voice stabbed into their chest like a blade.
No. That's not what I meant.
"You're in the way."
A low voice from behind made Karen jump. Instructor Yui, now transformed into a hulking giant of a man, stood there looking displeased.
"S-sorry!"
Karen hastily stepped aside. They watched the instructor's back, then looked toward Ryou again.
Their eyes met for just a moment.
Ryou's large black eyes wavered, as if wanting to say something. But they were quickly cast down.
Without a word, Ryou took their tray and walked to the seat farthest from Karen.
Karen clenched their fists.
(Apologize. Just do it.)
Say something. Tell them you went too far yesterday.
But their feet wouldn't move. Their throat seized up, and no words came.
In the end, Karen said nothing. They turned their back on Ryou and slumped heavily into an empty seat.
The menu was toast and scrambled eggs. Warm, but tasteless.
That's when the entire mess hall fell silent, as if a wave had washed over it.
A group in suits stood at the entrance.
The woman at the front wore silver-rimmed glasses, her posture ramrod straight. Mid-forties. Her cold gaze slowly swept across the room.
Shimada Reika. AVO 7th District, Operations Director. A notorious rationalist who despised waste and inefficiency above all else.
"Well, well. What a quiet little breakfast you're all having together."
Shimada's sharp voice sliced through the silence.
Everyone held their breath.
"Director Shimada, we've been expecting you!"
Instructor Yui's voice boomed out, nearly splitting at the seams, as they snapped a salute. Their bulging muscles made the instructor uniform look ready to burst.
Shimada looked Yui over from head to toe, as if appraising merchandise.
"...Ah, so you're Instructor Yui. Quite the impressive physique. Like a bear, really. Nothing like the photo in the reports."
A vein pulsed visibly on Yui's temple.
Here and there around the mess hall, several cadets trembled, stifling laughter.
"Now then. I'm short on time. Show me the facilities at once. I'll be evaluating the morale and discipline here—"
Shimada's eyes landed on Hasegawa Miki, seated in the corner of the counter, slurping coffee in the form of a dignified middle-aged man.
"—thoroughly."
"The inspectors are here."
Unfazed, Miki waved cheerfully.
"Alright, training starts now! Everyone, assemble at the training building in five minutes! Anyone late crawls!"
At the instructor's roar, the mess hall erupted into frantic motion. Karen shoved the half-eaten toast into their mouth and stood.
They searched for Ryou.
But Ryou was already gone.
Training was hell.
With Shimada watching with folded arms, Instructor Yui was three times harsher than usual. Every time they demonstrated a breakfall with their muscle-bound body, the floor shook with a thud.
The cadets endured desperately, but the absurd spectacle drew involuntary laughter.
"Don't laugh! You lack spirit!"
Shimada merely directed a frigid gaze at the instructor's shouting.
During a break in training, Karen couldn't stop thinking about Ryou and slipped away into the dormitory hallway.
They stopped in front of Ryou's room.
"...Ryou? You in there? I need to talk."
They knocked.
No answer.
They knocked again, harder.
"Ryou?"
They tried the doorknob. It wasn't locked.
The door creaked open.
The room was immaculately tidy.
The bed was made, the desk bare. As if no one had ever used it.
A cold sweat ran down Karen's spine.
They approached the desk.
In the center sat a single white envelope.
They picked it up.
With trembling fingers, they opened it.
'It's all my responsibility. Sorry for the trouble.'
A short message, scrawled in haste.
And when they shook the letter—a small metallic clink.
A star earring.
The matching pair to the one in Karen's left ear.
The one Ryou always wore, never taking it off.
—This has nothing to do with you, Karen.
Ryou's cold voice from last night replayed in their head.
No. That's not it. They were trying to protect me. Carrying it all alone.
They crushed the letter in their grip.
The paper crumpled loudly.
Karen bolted from the room as if launched.
"Instructor Yui! Instructor!"
They tumbled into the training area. Yui was in the middle of desperately explaining something to Shimada.
"Karen! We're in the middle of an inspection!"
"Ryou—Ryou's gone! I found this in their room!"
Karen held out the crumpled letter and the earring.
Yui's expression shifted instantly.
"Turning themselves in...? That idiot!"
"What's that letter? Let me see it."
Shimada snatched the letter from Yui.
"Hmph... This is clearly a confession from someone involved in the gender-reversal incident. To have this thrust upon me during an inspection. Instructor Yui, your management is sorely lacking."
"...I have no excuse."
Yui bit their lip and bowed deeply.
The strength drained from Karen's knees.
They collapsed to the floor with a soft thud.
Ryou was gone. They'd gone to end it all alone.
Would they never hear that voice again? That gentle smile?
Regret erupted from deep in their chest like lava.
"Ryou..."
Tears overflowed endlessly.
The inspectors, Yui's predicament—none of it mattered anymore.
Karen sat in the middle of the training floor and wailed like a child.
They'd hurt Ryou. They'd failed to say they were on their side. The last words they'd spoken had been such a cruel lie.
"Uu... uwaaah! Ryou! Ryou...!"
They pounded the floor with their fists. They couldn't even feel the pain.
Just a hollow hole in the center of their chest, with a cold wind blowing through.
It was too late. It was all over.
Then, from behind, a large, thick hand gently rested on Karen's shoulder.
"Now, now. No need for a young one to cry like that. Ruining such a fine crying face."
Karen looked up. There stood Hasegawa Miki in middle-aged male form, looking troubled but deeply kind.
"Miki... Ryou... I... to Ryou..."
"Ah, I heard most of it. That kid was trying to protect you. Being too kind is their flaw."
Miki wrapped a sturdy arm around Karen's shoulders.
They smelled like the mess hall. Onions, dashi, and a hint of burnt soy sauce.
"But listen, Karen. At times like this, if you don't move yourself, the things that matter won't ever come back. Waiting for someone else to fix it won't work."
Miki's voice was a low, deep man's voice, yet it was as warm as a mother's.
"Ryou used to go to Komachi Shopping Street a lot. If you search around there, you might still make it in time."
Komachi Shopping Street. That lively thoroughfare in Tachibana City.
In Karen's head, the tangled mess of thoughts snapped into a single line.
"But... they hate me."
"You fool! They like you so much they'd rather disappear alone than have you hate them. Go. And knock some sense into them!"
Karen lifted their tear-streaked face.
They stared at the two star earrings in their palm.
One was theirs. The other was Ryou's.
(It's not over yet.)
Karen stood. Their knees trembled.
"Wait, cadet! Leaving the base without permission is—"
"Shut up! I'm bringing Ryou back! Nothing else matters right now!"
Karen glared straight at Director Shimada and shouted.
It was a louder voice than they'd ever thought they had.
Instructor Yui looked startled for just a moment—then let out a small breath.
"...Go."
The instructor murmured it, barely audible.
Shimada stared at Yui in disbelief.
"I'll take responsibility! Go, Karen! Bring Ryou back, no matter what!"
The instructor's roar struck their back.
Karen clutched Ryou's earring and sprinted at full speed.
They tore down the hallway and burst out of the dormitory exit.
The sky, nearing dusk, burned red.
They raced down the animal trail through the Evergreen Forest at top speed.
Their lungs ached. Their heart felt ready to burst. Still, they didn't stop.
"Wait for me, Ryou! I'm coming! I'll definitely catch up to you!"
The wind dried the tracks of their tears.
The earring in their hand grew warm with body heat.
Down the long slope leading to Tachibana City, Karen ran alone, chasing a shadow.
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