This Is What Happened When I Reincarnated

Why did this happen?

No, really, why did this happen?

It was a white room.

The ceiling was white, the floor was white, the walls were white. The space was about the size of a gymnasium. There was myself and one other person.

She was a beautiful woman dressed in something like an Indian sari, with a bindi on her forehead. You could call her a woman of peerless beauty.

"Umm, my condolences. You have died."

She told me this sympathetically.

There had been a major disaster.

I was caught up in it.

I saved many people, and in the end, my strength gave out.

"Honestly, the strength of your tempered soul is magnificent. Because you saved so many people in that situation, you will be able to start your next life with a considerably large Gift."

Reincarnation exists, she told me. Come to think of it, who is she? Could she possibly be a god?

"No, I am merely a General Administrator. In Japanese terms, I might be considered one of the myriad of gods, though just a minor one."

Returning to the topic, she continued.

"You will be reincarnated into another world."

I was surprised.

When I asked if I couldn't return to Earth, she explained with a regretful expression.

"Currently, there are too many humans on Earth. Even if we tried to reincarnate you, a strong soul like yours would be rejected. Furthermore, washing away the memories engraved in a soul requires a great deal of power."

She said something I couldn't let slip by.

"Yes, if you reincarnate to another world at our request, you can be reborn while retaining a certain degree of your memories. It's not that unusual in that world, and many people have already been reincarnated there from Earth."

I see. Then what kind of world would I be reincarnating into?

"I cannot say in detail, but it is a world of swords and magic."

Swords.

My heart stirred. Memories resurfaced.

Skills I had spent roughly my entire life polishing.

Swinging a bamboo sword, swinging a wooden sword, swinging a blunted katana, training with a spear. Dancing with a short blade.

In that peaceful Japan, I had fought to the death twice by my own choice. Both were mortal struggles, and they were fulfilling times.

Yes, that was how I had lived. It was ironic that someone who had honed the art of killing ended up saving many lives at the end.

If it was a world at war, this time I would surely take the lives of others.

Magic was somewhat intriguing, but everything would come after I was reborn.

"You seem to have no objections? Then, please select your Gifts."

In that world, there appeared to be things called Gifts and Skills.

Gifts are, as the name suggests, abilities bestowed at birth, while Skills are acquired later in life.

The former ranged from straightforward things like a constitution that builds muscle easily, to resistance against poison and disease, and even things like immortality.

The latter was simple. Swordsmanship techniques, magic techniques. These could only be gained through effort after birth, but reincarnators had their memories, so they already had an advantage.

"Your Gift points total 1012. Please go ahead and choose."

A semi-transparent screen appeared before my eyes. It displayed various items that seemed to be Gifts, with numbers beside them. These were probably the required points.

Physical enhancement, magic enhancement. There were also levels next to these, indicating the degree of strengthening. The 1012 points I had received was quite substantial. For example, even if I took physical enhancement to the maximum, it would only consume about ten percent.

The screen scrolled just by thinking. Along the way, I saw things like eternal youth and disease immunity. Even those would only cost just over half my points. There was also something like natural talent for swordsmanship, but I ignored it. In a world at war, talent with swords alone would not be that important.

And then I came to entries that cost 1000 points, and my jaw dropped.

Demi-God. Immortal. Revolution. Ascension. Seed of the Overlord. These were the Gifts that could be acquired for 1000 points.

However, the Gifts available for acquisition differ based on the quality of one's soul, so this apparently wasn't the complete list.

"The strength of your soul, tempered in life, the bonus for reincarnating to another world, and the lives you saved just before death. Your Gift points are exceptional."

Ordinary people apparently had around 50 points at most. I wondered if it was really okay to receive such a bonus, but she said nothing more. Well, I would accept what was being offered.

And there was one more, among the Gifts that required 1000 points.

Dragon's Bloodline

"You would be born into a lineage that inherits the blood of dragons. Physical robustness, vast magical power, and various other merits besides. It's like multiple Gifts combined into one."

However, she explained belatedly, this Gift would not manifest immediately at birth, but only after going through a process. There were also cases where mastering Skills could produce effects equivalent to Gifts.

For now, I had decided on the Gift I would acquire.

"Are you sure? You could take many Gifts with fewer points, and I think there are other Gifts that might suit your preferences better."

According to her, Japanese people who reincarnated recently tended to choose more carefully. Some even took an entire day without finishing, and the administrators assigned to such people had it rough.

But this sort of thing should be chosen by intuition.

"Is that so? Then, for your remaining 12 points, allow me to give you some special advice."

She smiled brightly. It was a friendly smile, not befitting a goddess.

"Please use 2 points to raise your vitality and endurance by 1 each. Then use 10 points to take the Self Check Gift. You can also acquire this as a Skill, but having it from the start is definitely convenient."

She also explained how it was convenient.

"It's the ability to perceive all of your abilities. How much has your strength increased? How much has your swordsmanship improved? How much stamina do you have left? If you know these things, you can understand how advantageous it would be in battle."

Indeed, clearly knowing the results of training was certainly an advantage.

"Well then, it is time for your reincarnation. Unfortunately, I cannot answer many questions. That in itself is part of the Gift, you see."

Having information was indeed a benefit. When I nodded, the room began to fade as if shrouded in mist.

"I pray that your next life fulfills your wishes."

The goddess said this at the end.

"You gave her divine protection? How generous of you."

In the room where no one should have been, another person — no, another god — had appeared at some point. Though possessing a beauty so striking one might mistake him for a woman, his true nature was that of a War God.

"It was nothing much. Just a token of thanks for finishing the reincarnation process so quickly."

Indeed, not wasting a god's time earned a small divine protection. Rather than painstakingly selecting lesser Gifts, this was a far greater blessing.

"However, what brings you here?"

"Well, I had given that person divine protection in the life before last. I was a bit curious."

The life before last. Normally, souls are bleached clean after each life ends and recycled. Some wear away and disappear, and new souls are born, but that cycle is long.

"What kind of divine protection was it?"

"The Divine Protection of War, of course. It seems to have been used quite effectively. Unfortunately, that person died young from illness."

It was an ordinary divine protection, one might say. But it would undoubtedly be useful in the next world. Divine protection is carved into the soul, so it does not disappear even through reincarnation.

"Oh? Then combining my guardian's protection, the Divine Protection of War, and that Gift…"

"Hmm, might become a terrifyingly powerful monster. This life was unfortunate for that one, but the next should be interesting. That world is approaching another Millennium, after all."

As the male god laughed heartily, the goddess furrowed her elegant brows.

"For reference, what was that person's name?"

Abruptly, the male god stopped laughing, and his movements froze as well.

"Hm? Did you perhaps forget?"

"N-no, I am certainly the God of War, but I'm not like those so-called muscle-heads! I used my wits in the Kumaso subjugation too… Yes! Right! It was a samurai from where the Kumaso were! Wait! If I use the mirror, I'll definitely remember!"

"No, you don't have to go that far to remember… I was simply curious."

With a single sigh, the goddess bestowed an additional Divine Protection of Intelligence upon the soul she had just sent off.

Within the void of consciousness, there was only the desire to sleep and the desire to eat.

This continued and repeated… and when I finally became aware of the passage of time, my memories began to replay.

My previous life. And the conversation with the god. My thoughts finally began to work properly, and then came a sense of wrongness.

Sleep, eat, excrete. Even for a baby whose life consists almost entirely of these three things, perhaps due to experience from a previous life, I acquired the language quite quickly.

A sense of wrongness.

And then, certainty.

"Alri～ght Ria, let's change your diaper～"

(W-WHAAAAAAT! I've become a womaaaaaaaaaan!!!!)

Why did this happen?