Good morning! This is Narou Kei!

This morning, I was still undeniably a guy! Damn it.

Every morning, I make it a habit to check my crotch as soon as I wake up.

There’s only one reason for this.

I’m holding out hope that one day, I’ll wake up as a girl.

“Damn it, still a guy today,” I muttered.

The face staring back at me in the mirror was the same old side-character ♂ face. Ugh, so depressing.

But at least I’ve learned that even this face can look somewhat decent with makeup and proper grooming. That realization was a relief.

Man, yesterday was fun. My skin’s looking smoother and shinier than usual, if I do say so myself.

For a second, I panicked when I blew up the dungeon wall, but after sleeping on it, I remembered:

Oh yeah, beginner dungeons are set to regenerate.

Since the academy manages them, they won’t stay broken. If it were an unmanaged, pre-conquest dungeon, that’d be a different story—but this one’s under tight control.

It’ll fix itself… right?

Yeah, let’s just focus on the positives here.

“They saw me, but didn’t realize it was me… My crossdressing must be pretty damn good,” I mused.

I recalled the Kisou Academy students who’d spotted me.

No clue what they were up to, but I don’t care about anything outside of my gender-bending interests. Do whatever. Just admire my outfit!

“Now that I’ve cleared the beginner dungeon, maybe I should tag along with Mizuhi-senpai for some dungeon rescues.”

Dungeon rescues pay well.

Though, ideally, dungeon conquests are more profitable.

But we don’t have the manpower to scout dungeons or the funds to buy conquest rights afterward.

So, scavenging rescue missions is all we’ve got.

“Alright, let’s do some rescues!”

Usually, the two senpais and my classmate Toa-chan are in the student council room.

They probably have nothing better to do.

They either study there or occasionally head out for rescue requests when Mizuhi-senpai gets called.

I changed into Fectom Comprehensive Academy’s navy-blue uniform and headed to the student council room.

“Good morni—… Huh?”

There, I found Miroku-senpai and Toa-chan, both looking exhausted.

What happened this early? Should I ask?

“We’ve been getting nonstop calls,” Miroku-senpai explained.

“Calls?”

She pointed to two slightly outdated landline phones. Probably couldn’t afford upgrades.

Just then, one of them rang again.

Instantly, Miroku-senpai grabbed it and spoke without even listening.

“Fectom Comprehensive Academy had no involvement in yesterday’s broadcast. Further details will be released by the Apis Board at a later date. Also, Sorciera is not one of our students.”

Like reciting a spell, she rattled it off and hung up.

Beside her, Toa-chan was near tears as she handled another call, repeating the same script.

“Uh… what’s going on?”

“Apparently, a student from another school was livestreaming in Fectom’s beginner dungeon yesterday, and it’s caused quite a stir…”

“Beginner dungeon?”

“Yes. Come to think of it, Kei-kun, you were there too, right? Everything okay?”

Trying to reassure the worried Miroku-senpai, I puffed out my chest.

“All good! Yesterday, I just took down a creepy dungeon boss and… oh, right, there was a Kisou Academy student there.”

“Yeah, that’s the one.”

“Did that student cause trouble?”

Kisou Academy students really are trash!

How dare they cause trouble for the student council president of the academy that took me in? Unbelievable!

“No, not the student—it’s the illegal Dive Gear they filmed and an unidentified girl that’s the problem.”

“Oh, really? (Not interested.)”

I guess even Kisou Academy has decent people!

Sorry for doubting!

Last night, I just beat a dungeon boss and showed off my crossdressing to a Kisou student.

…Wait, did Miroku-senpai mention a livestream? Now that I think about it, that student did say something about streaming—

“This girl, though…”

“Ah.”

The image on Miroku-senpai’s phone was a clip from the stream.

A cute girl in gothic lolita attire and a gas mask, fighting elegantly.

In other words… me.

…I’M the troublemaker?!

“The streamer was apparently pretty strong, but even they couldn’t defeat the monster this girl took down, so it’s gone viral.”

“…What rank was the streamer?”

“B-rank.”

Explorers are ranked from D to S.

Higher ranks get priority access to high-difficulty dungeons.

B-rank is considered top-tier among general students—the peak achievable through hard work, as mentioned in the original story.

So, pretty strong.

Though, unless they’re A or S, they’re not complete monsters.

B-ranks losing isn’t unheard of in the original, so isn’t this overblown?

“Oh, apparently, they’ve got too many violations to take the rank-up exam, so their actual strength is A-rank.”

“Wow.”

This is getting kinda crazy (not my problem).

“Rumors say this mystery student might even be S-rank.”

“Hahaha, no way.”

“Do you know something?”

“Eh?! N-no, why would an S-rank explorer bother with a beginner dungeon?”

Miroku-senpai shook her head.

Then, she dropped a bombshell that only someone who knew the original story would find shocking.

“Apparently, they came to destroy a Demonsgear testing facility. Sounded like they had a purpose.”

D-D-D-Demonsgear?!

Give me credit for not screaming in shock.

Outwardly, I stayed calm, but my heart was pounding.

Demonsgear—the root of all the trouble Gatou Touraku gets dragged into in the original.

These things take the form of girls turned into experimental weapons, transforming into weapons during battle.

That’s right—before I possessed this body, the original side-character got thrown into a dungeon where Touraku contracted with a Demonsgear!

So, getting involved with Demonsgear risks major plot derailment. This is bad.

It’s too early for them to be exposed.

In the original, the public doesn’t learn about Demonsgear until much later—during an event where the protagonist fights an overpowered “Executor” from Kisou Academy.

What happens if it’s revealed this early? Too scary to think about.

“Kei-kun?”

“Y-yes?”

“Did you just say, ‘Too early’?”

“Huh?”

Crap, did I think out loud?

Oopsie ☆ …I’ll be more careful next time.

“Must’ve imagined it? …By the way, I came looking for Mizuhi-senpai.”

“Mizuhi?”

“Yeah. Since I cleared the beginner dungeon, I thought I’d tag along on rescue missions.”

It was a forced topic change, but Miroku-senpai played along without question. So kind.

When I asked where Mizuhi-senpai was, Miroku-senpai gave a wry smile.

“Mizuhi went to that beginner dungeon. Said she wanted to recover the Demonsgear.”

“Eh?!”

She’s going full plot-destruction mode!

Demonsgear can only be wielded by those chosen—specifically, those who resonate with the girl inside.

So even if Mizuhi-senpai is crazy strong, it’s meaningless.

Plus, the girl floating in the tank from the footage? I don’t recognize her.

Only six Demonsgear are confirmed in the original, with four having known appearances and names—and this isn’t one of them.

Meaning, that Demonsgear shouldn’t awaken for a while, and Mizuhi-senpai wouldn’t resonate with it anyway.

Oh, and if you try to force it, it fries your brain with poison signals. Scary stuff.

…Wait, so Mizuhi-senpai’s in danger?!

“G-gotta go!!”

“Kei-kun? What’s wro—”

“I’m suddenly super interested in Demonsgear too!”

Spouting nonsense, I bolted for the beginner dungeon.

Mizuhi-senpai is this academy’s top earner.

We can’t afford to lose her, and more importantly—I hate seeing pretty girls get hurt!

■

“He’s gone…”

Toa looked at Miroku with a troubled expression.

Whether it was due to the endless calls or Kei’s strange panic was unclear.

Miroku exhaled lightly, watching the door he’d just left through, then leaned back in her chair.

“He clearly knew something.”

During their conversation, Kei had muttered:

『—It’s too early for them to be exposed.』

She’d immediately understood what it meant.

“Kei-kun probably knew about the Demonsgear’s existence.”

“Eh?! How? Even we didn’t know until now!”

Miroku’s response was simple.

“—Sakuraba Rakka.”

“Wh-what about Rakka-chan?”

“That girl likely knew Demonsgear were in this academy too. And she kept that secret… until she died.”

The image of Rakka’s pink hair fluttering in the wind was seared into Miroku’s mind.

She’d known Rakka—two years her senior—was fighting something alone to protect them.

She’d known… and done nothing.

(Back then, I was ignorant and powerless. I couldn’t rely on the teachers. But…)

Miroku glanced at the bracer on her wrist.

The well-worn, blue Dive Gear was covered in fine scratches, reflecting the morning light as if responding to its owner’s will.

“…Let’s go, Toa-chan.”

“Eh? Where?”

“We’re heading to the beginner dungeon too.”

“W-what about the phones… Wait, you unplugged them?!”

“The answers won’t change anyway.”

With that, Miroku tossed the cord aside and left the student council room.

Toa glanced between the phones and Miroku’s retreating figure before scrambling after her, half-crying.

“W-wait for me!”

“Don’t worry, I won’t leave you behind. This time… we’ll all go together.”

Miroku steeled herself.

That boy carried Sakuraba Rakka’s will.

This time, she wouldn’t let a tragedy like that day repeat itself.

■

About ten minutes later, I reached Mizuhi-senpai—and found myself facing a certain someone.

“Well, well… Never thought a no-name school like Fectom would have two this interesting.”

A man with fiery red hair and predatory eyes smirked.

Clad in Kisou Academy’s uniform with the Executor’s signature red cape on his left shoulder, he toyed with twin swords in his hands.

Mizuhi and I stood ready, weapons drawn.

“Don’t let your guard down, Kei. He’s a monster.”

“…Got it, Mizuhi-senpai.”

I tightened my grip on my dagger, a cold sweat running down my back as I screamed internally:

WHY IS ONE OF THE ORIGINAL STORY’S STRONGEST CHARACTERS HERE?!