Becoming a beautiful girl is a dream shared by all humanity.

Since ancient times, since the era of the Tower of Babel, it has been spoken of in a universal language.

—A world with nothing but cute girls sounds amazing, right?

There’s nothing better than becoming a beautiful girl.
That’s why, in my final moments, I wished for it.
In the less-than-a-second before the runaway truck, ignoring the red light, turned my body into mincemeat—

“Please, God—next time, make me a beautiful girl, a beautiful girl, a beautiful girl—!”

If I pour a fortune into reincarnation, give me a plan where I can become a beautiful girl!!!

“…And yet…”

I sighed for what felt like the umpteenth time since being born into this world.

Let me cut to the chase.

I didn’t become a beautiful girl.

There’s bad news, and then there’s bad news. Which do you want to hear first?

Fine. First, the bad news.
I was born as a guy. No, more accurately, I woke up as one.

Now for the other bad news—

“I’m the stepping stone!?”

Seems like I possessed some early-game cannon fodder dude.
And worse—after he’d already been stomped into the ground.

■

I reincarnated via possession.
My host? A guy named Narou Kei.
Judging by the name, you’d think he was some lifetime honorary protagonist-wannabe, but no.

This guy was the type of early-game punching bag you’d see in those SNS ads where the results are obvious from the start.

“I recognize this face.”

There was a manga I used to read, set in a modern dungeon-themed world.
The title was 『Lutra of the Mirror Realm』.
The premise was pretty generic for a web novel, but the artist’s skill made it worth following weekly. I even bought a few volumes of the novel spin-offs, that’s how hooked I was.

The gist of it?
A protagonist exiled from a prestigious family contracts with a special girl who can turn into a weapon, then rises to power in a fast-paced, exhilarating adventure.

And me? I’m the rich kid cannon fodder who sets it all in motion.
He tries to kill the weak protagonist by throwing him into a dungeon—only for the guy to find a girl sealed inside, form a contract, and clear the dungeon like a champ.

Kei challenges the protagonist to a duel after he emerges but gets humiliatingly crushed. All his past bullying gets exposed, and he’s publicly condemned.
His family cuts off all support, and he loses everything.
Redemption? Don’t make me laugh. That doesn’t exist here.

“My account balance… 1,300 yen.”

I toss the bankbook aside.

It’s been three days since I possessed this body.
After the truck’s impact, the next thing I knew, I was standing here in this form.

His room—now mine—was a complete wreck. Probably from him raging after losing to the protagonist.
I spent the last three days cleaning up while piecing together this world’s common sense.

“I’m… pretty much screwed.”

Usually, these things start from birth, y’know? Being told “Ready, go!” after everything’s already over is just unfair!
What am I supposed to do with a save file where I’ve already lost!?

And worst of all—

“WHY AM I NOT A GIRL!? AAAAAAH!”

I’m furious.
Being cannon fodder? Fine, I’ll accept that.
The harsh reality? Yeah, I can tolerate it to some extent.

But why, in this amazing world, did I have to be born as a guy!?

“I wanted to be a girl…! I wanted to join a mysterious club and sparkle in a Kirara Jump manga…!”

That was all I ever wished for in life.

“DAMN IT, DAMN IT, DAMN IT! WHY ME!?”

Given how much I look like a jobber right now, this kind of dialogue suits me perfectly.
How wonderful. Not.

“Ugh… The original protagonist’s got it good. Even if he’s not a girl, he’s got a harem to enjoy… But I know how hard he worked, so I can’t even resent him…”

The protagonist, Gatou Touraku, is a hardworking guy. Plus, he’s a real man—facing the heroines’ feelings head-on. Directing negativity at a saint like him would be wrong. Be happy, Touraku.

“Since Kei’s already been condemned, it must be around May of his first year in high school… The main story’s about to kick off. So much happened. So many fun events.”

I reminisce about the original story.
The battles against secretly developed bioweapon-type dungeons.
The school tournament for the right to challenge an S-rank dungeon. The war against beings called “angels.”
The all-out war against a dungeon replicating the entire academy city itself.

As a reader, it was packed with entertaining events.
Though, Touraku nearly died every time. Fans joked that it was rarer to see him not injured.

“There were lucky harem events too. Hell, even Touraku himself turned into a girl once… …Wait.”

A shock runs through my brain.
Like a massive bolt of lightning, the realization strikes.

“Th-That’s right! There’s still a chance…!”

I’ve figured it out.
The once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that arrives in a year.

“A special dungeon that triggers gender-swapping is supposed to appear! One year from now, in this world!”

In the original, it was treated as a gag event.
But for me? It’s different!

“This… This might actually work!”

I don’t need to rise to power or clear my name.
I just have one colossal dream—to become a beautiful girl.
And now, it might actually be within reach.

“Time to begin… my academy life aiming for gender-swapping in a modern dungeon world!”

Before I know it, my fists are clenched.
The dream I’ve yearned for is just a year away.

Then all that’s left is to charge forward for that dream!

“First step—transfer schools!”

I immediately decide on my course of action.

The story’s setting is Hinotsuchi, a massive artificial island floating in the Pacific—an academy city.
Home to well over a thousand schools, this city is also a colossal educational facility for dungeon-exploring Seekers.
Its defining feature? Most of its districts are self-governed by the students themselves.
They collaborate with outside corporations to operate independently.

And me—Narou Kei—currently attends Mikage Academy.
One of Hinotsuchi’s “Big Four” mega-schools, with a student population exceeding 500,000—basically a small city.

Though the academy demands decent combat skills and knowledge as a Seeker, Kei got in through money and connections.
He’s from a prestigious Seeker family, so he’s got some talent, but he never bothered to train. In the story, he’s bottom-tier in strength.

“This guy relied on family funds to attend, so he’s not on any scholarship or tuition waiver.”

Living alone in a ridiculously huge apartment already costs a fortune, and he threw money around like it was nothing. Individually, there’s no fixing this.

In the original, he couldn’t pay tuition, got expelled, and joined a delinquent group of dropouts. Then he tried to get revenge on Touraku, only to get killed instead.

But I won’t let that happen. And I refuse to stay a guy.

“Cheapest option, cheapest option…”

I scroll through school listings on my phone.

First, transferring.
In this academy city, switching schools is pretty common.
It’s less like changing schools and more like switching clubs or circles.

With so many different school cultures and self-governing systems, finding the cheapest option isn’t hard.

“Found it! Lowest tuition, free dorm, total cost—ZERO yen!? …ZERO YEN!?!?!?”

What kind of school is this?

“N-No way it’s real, right? Wait, do they make you buy overpriced stuff later??”

I check the details.
Apparently, the student count plummeted, and they’ve gone full desperation mode.
But if it lasts just one more year—long enough for me to reach the gender-swap event—that’s all I need.

To challenge dungeons, you have to be enrolled in a school.
As long as I get that student status, I don’t care about the rest.

“Fectom Academy… Never heard of it.”

It’s unfamiliar.
It didn’t appear in the original—a school I know nothing about.

But that doesn’t matter.

“Let’s go—Fectom!”

For the sake of gender-swapping, I’ll do anything.