Volume 1 Chapter 7 Switching
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
I had been conscious until Sannomiya Station on the Kobe Line, but after that, my awareness became clouded and unclear. I felt as if I were dreaming. Dreams of crying loudly because my diaper wasn’t changed, dreams of having many siblings, dreams of climbing a stone tower and getting scolded-all of them felt devoid of any sense of reality.
The first thing I accepted as a definitive reality was when the mother of a boy named Larry died. It seems I have possessed this boy named Larry. For just a short while, I can see the world where young Larry exists through his eyes.
Since then, whenever a member of his family dies, a world with a sense of reality somehow appears before my eyes, only for my consciousness to cut out after a while. Though fragmentary, there was a continuous passage of time.
Suddenly, I realized a beautiful woman, Sister-in-law Teressa, was standing in front of me, and we were practicing sparring. She explained it was training to circulate our mana¹ into each other to make the flow stronger and larger. I believe mana is a type of energy unique to this world.
When we did this training, for some reason, I could sense things through not just sight, but hearing, smell, and even touch, likely in the same way Larry did. Rather than the fact that this was a world of magic, the shock of my sense of reality returning was more impactful.
The climax was this morning’s sparring; I shared the pulsation, the heaviness of breath, the state of perspiration-everything Larry felt. I was even synchronized with his mental state when he, excited and disregarding Sister-in-law Teressa’s condition, increased the mana flow at will.
This was more a feeling of joy than surprise. I formed a hypothesis: perhaps when Larry activates the mana inside his body, I, lurking within him, receive that energy and my consciousness is sparked.
Oh, did he use magic for a second time today? My consciousness woke up (returned?), and I was rejoicing at being able to catch another glimpse of this interesting world. I wondered if I would get to see that beautiful older sister again this time. My focus sharpened, and what entered my view was…
The villainous face of an enraged older brother, looking as if his hair might stand on end, was closing in as if to seize me, while a large red-haired man acted as a shield to block him. Hey, what is this situation? It is like watching a pro-wrestling brawl outside the ring from up close.
Besides, the sensation of the body is different than usual. Is Larry in autism mode²? (Hey now, I can move this body… even in this situation. What should I do?)
Hans-niisan is, at a low estimate, over 190 cm tall-nearly two meters-and easily weighs over 100 kg. Alberto-san is about 20 cm taller than that and seems to weigh even more. Both are seventeen years old; are they monsters? Those two are seriously grappling with each other.
In contrast, this body, which hasn’t hit puberty yet, is only about 150 cm tall. The specs are too different; it is like being thrown into the world of a special effects show. Even the surrounding delinquents are recoiling.
”Nothing you say matters if you don’t know a damn thing! I’ll make your body understand!” Hans-niisan shouted, spraying spit as he reached out his hand toward me.
”You, go home!” Alberto-san, the large man, shouted toward me, his voice not losing out to Hans-niisan’s.
(That’s right, let’s go home.)
However, perhaps because it was my first time or due to fear, my lower body wouldn’t move well; I felt like I might wet myself. Managing to move my leaden feet, terrified of the noisy scene behind me, I finally made it through the main house when a manservant called out, “What happened?”
”Ju-just something,” I gave a half-baked answer and passed through the gate. When I stopped to untie Carpaccio’s reins, my legs were shaking, and the hand I reached toward the rope wouldn’t listen to me. I couldn’t even grasp it. I struck my thigh with my hand several times to bring back sensation, and I finally managed to untie it, but my legs were shaking so much I couldn’t mount the horse.
For a while, I clung to Carpaccio to calm my feelings.
The leadership of the body has swapped for the first time; it seems that if the conditions are right, I can move of my own will. I feel the condition is Larry becoming desperate and entering autism mode-not the developmental disorder, but a state of withdrawing into his own shell. (But still, don’t close off your consciousness just because ‘it doesn’t matter anymore!’ If you’re going to close off, I want to tell him to do it in front of Sister-in-law Teressa.)
Regardless, this world is scary. The men and women in that place earlier were casually holding long-bladed knives stained with blood. If a fight breaks out and they swing those around, people will die. Maybe it was because they were butchering a deer, but they still have them in their possession.
Anyway, I don’t want to experience anything scary. Looking through Larry’s memories, there is no police organization either. As someone without brothers, I have never been in a physical fight. Since long ago, my legs would freeze whenever I was yelled at face-to-face. I could somehow move my mouth, so I wasn’t often beaten up unilaterally, but the body is honest.
Wait a minute. Without realizing it, I am sharing memories with him. Come to think of it, it had already started before. Even without being conscious of it, I can use Larry’s knowledge. I haven’t struggled with the language from the start. The same goes for identifying people. Even if they are villagers I am meeting for the first time, if Larry knows them, I recognize their names, relationships, and even words exchanged in the past as if they were old acquaintances.
Could it be that we aren’t just sharing memories, but our personalities and consciousness are… merging? Even if personalities are shared, there must be a master and servant; there is only one body, so we can’t exactly be equal. The level of reality has increased, but that is just because the amount of mana Larry moves has risen; the initiative remains mostly with him.
(If I’m unlucky, will this boy just take my memories and my own personality will be absorbed and vanish? No, thinking about the ‘now,’ my consciousness only wakes up as if out of pity when magic is used, and the right to control the body is handed over only when it is convenient. Furthermore, it seems the senses are determined by the amount of mana he can freely use. It’s like I’m a ‘doormat character,’ and a ‘disposable’ one at that. Ah, I guess I don’t even qualify as a background character. If you’re going to absorb me, just do it quickly. That would be easier on my mind in a world like this.)
I couldn’t sort out my thoughts, but my fear was subsiding. When I opened my eyes, the commotion behind me had settled, and my shaking had stopped. Worried, I peeked inside the gate, but it was quiet; the manservant from earlier was sitting on the ground repairing farm tools. (It looks like it’s okay.)
Once more, seeking reassurance, I clung to Carpaccio. Had I become someone who ‘wants to read ahead and run away’ just like before my reincarnation? I haven’t changed. Even so, Carpaccio’s body temperature feels pleasant. (If it’s no good, then it’s no good, right?) Having calmed down, those words came to mind.
However, even when feeling down, surprising things happen. To my amazement, even though it was my first time, I was able to ride the bareback horse and even make it move forward. It was as if Larry’s experience had been copied into my own. Being atop a horse is high up and scary, but moving my field of vision by my own will and feeling the world expand feels good.
(Come to think of it, there were some good things back there too, like my first time at a brothel… or something.) At the same time, the unpleasant words ‘Rapid Cycler’ came to mind, but I was able to push them into the depths of my memory.
(It might be for a short time, but I should enjoy it. It’s my second life anyway, and if he wants my memories, I’ll give them to him.)
As I approached the village central square, the control of the body shifted back to Larry, who had snapped out of his autism mode. (Hey, I’m begging you, please stop doing scary things.)
When we entered the square, Nico forced her way onto the horse. I have no control over the body, but my five senses are still active. (Well, this innocent boy’s heart is pounding. That freshness is nostalgic, kid.) While still feeling happy, my consciousness gradually faded away.
Larry, having emerged from his autism mode, still had a lingering sense of discomfort in his head, but he had returned to his usual self. When we arrived home, I was told to look after the livestock. I had to groom the horse, Carpaccio, but the main task was changing the straw bedding in the stable.
Since the plague, there had been a labor shortage, so even as a child of the Village Head, I worked hard. The stable was almost entirely my domain; though the burden lessened when Yutia came, it was work I was used to. Thanks to Uncle Klaus’s arrangements, we were able to prioritize gathering servants and cattle, so the labor force had improved, but even now there are many fallow lands and fields left abandoned without care, so I am working too.
In the evening, by the time I brought back the sheep I had let out into the fallow land and finished feeding the chickens, the shadows had grown quite long. When I returned to the main house through the side door, it seemed the Elders’ Council had finished, as the members of the meeting were just leaving through the front entrance.
Among the elders was Alberto-san, whom Hans-niisan had told to attend. He had a textbook circular blue bruise around his left eye, and his thin eye was further crushed by his swollen eyelid. Since the older sisters were seeing them off, I hurried to join the line and bowed my head. When I looked up, only Alberto-san had stopped and was facing my way. He looked at me with his uninjured right eye, jerked his chin for me to follow, and began walking once I drew near.
When we reached the square together, Alberto-san stopped. “What you said was right.”
”I’m sorry, I caused you trouble,” Larry replied.
”It’s fine. That guy understands too,” Alberto-san said.
Cooking smoke was rising here and there into the sunset sky. On the second floor of Grandmother Ferris’s place, it sounded like a banquet was being held; it was unusually lively. “He says he’s going to cool his head for a while. He said he’s leaving the village tomorrow morning,” Alberto-san added.
”Is it to the town?” Larry asked.
”No, it seems it’s the provincial capital,” Alberto-san answered.
(I couldn’t read what my brother was thinking or why he chose that destination, even as his younger brother. I just understood that he had no intention of returning for a while.) On a sudden whim, I removed the amulet bag hanging from my neck and offered it to Alberto-san.
”Give this to my brother,” Larry said.
”Yeah,” Alberto-san nodded.
He seemed to understand without me saying what was inside. This was something my late father had given me on my fifth birthday, and it contains one gold coin (equivalent to ten silver coins).
In this village along the highway, kidnappings of children used to happen often in the past. Parents would naturally go searching, and when they asked around, there were several traces of children having attempted to run away. In the end, almost none were found, but at some point, people in this village began giving children amulets containing money, thinking that having even a little gold might allow them to escape successfully.
Now, because the village of Seiren to the west of the highway has come under direct royal control and a checkpoint was established, the passage of suspicious individuals has almost vanished, and kidnappings haven’t occurred for a long time. However, the custom of giving an amulet with money to a child who has reached their fifth birthday remains. Incidentally, the amount of money in the amulet varies by household.
(I’m no longer at an age where I need to rely on this money, and the father who gave me the amulet would surely forgive me.)
Alberto-san’s large hand suddenly landed on my head, and he gave it a rough rub. “You’re a good guy,” he said. Saying that, he took a few steps forward but stopped and turned around.
Alberto Kessler had a heavy, rugged build. With a nasty bruise around his left eye, he looked absolutely terrifying, yet his expression was surprisingly gentle.
”Don’t you go dying on me now,” he said.
(Wait, what? Was that a total death flag or what?)
That night, for the first time, I was invited to the formal dinner held for Uncle Klaus-san’s visit.
”Larry, there is something I must tell you,” my uncle said.
The silent prayer before the meal had ended, and we had just finished the ale toast. Ever since we sat down, Sister-in-law Teressa’s face had been tight with tension, and Nico’s movements were jerky and awkward. I had a bad feeling about this.
”You are being called up,” Klaus-san continued. “You will serve as a member of the militia.”
It hadn’t even been a month since Iffens-niisan died in battle. It took a long time for the words to actually sink in. Beside me, Sister-in-law Teressa looked away, burying her face in her hands.
My uncle laid out the situation: Vod Fortress, the stronghold Iffens-niisan and his men had bled to capture, had been retaken by the Kiridal Kingdom in less than ten days. During the fall, the Fourth Prince Oscar had been killed. Now, the Royal Army was mobilizing a massive force-likely for a full-scale retaliation to reclaim the fort. Eight supply-line militiamen were to be conscripted, four from our village and four from Mauer Village.
”Beginning tomorrow at sunrise, you will undergo joint training,” Klaus-san added. “Bours-san, a former Royal officer living in the village, will be your instructor.”
My first thought was bitter: Did Iffens-niisan and his men die for nothing? When my brother inherited the Village Head title, I used to think he looked so dignified in his armor whenever he left for his quarterly drills at the capital. As the eldest, he knew exactly when to praise and when to scold. Even a delinquent like Hans-niisan never dared talk back to him. I never could have imagined that a perfect, upright man like Iffens-niisan would actually die.
I didn’t understand the politics of why the fort they gave their lives for was lost so quickly. But if I had to go to the front to win it back, then it was worth it. Even if I was just a gopher in the supply corps, I would do it-if only for Sister-in-law Teressa, who was now sobbing quietly beside me.
I felt the weight of anxiety, but no resentment. I knew why they picked me. The family holding the Village Head position couldn’t exactly skip the draft, and I was technically becoming a man next month.
”If he’s coming of age, we ought to celebrate,” Village Head Johann Rosen said with a greasy, lecherous grin. “What are your plans for his Rite of Passage?”
”His birthday is November third,” Klaus-san replied curtly. “He’ll be in the middle of training then. We’ll worry about that after he returns.”
(He’s acting all solemn, but he clearly has zero intention of ever holding a ceremony.)
As it turned out, my uncle had been on his way to the village to assist with the Monthly Market-the three days at the end of the month where the Fee family handles the administrative books-but the news of the war had derailed everything. He had brought along Johann Rosen as a substitute to handle the paperwork while he dealt with the mobilization.
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Summary:
The secondary consciousness inhabiting Larry wakes up during a mana surge, discovering he can control the body when Larry withdraws mentally. After witnessing the fallout between Hans and Alberto, the soul retreats as Larry returns to his chores. Hans decides to leave for the capital, and Larry offering him his childhood survival amulet as a gesture of goodwill.
Larry is officially conscripted into the supply militia following the disastrous loss of Vod Fortress and the death of a Prince. Despite his young age, his status as a member of the Village Head’s family makes his participation mandatory for the upcoming retaliation. The chapter highlights the somber atmosphere of the village and the pragmatic, almost cold, nature of the regional administration.
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Trivia:
- The narrator recognizes Sannomiya Station, implying a modern Japanese origin.
- Mana training involves physical synchronization of senses (touch, smell, etc.).
- Alberto is significantly larger than a normal 17-year-old (210cm+).
- The ‘amulet bag’ tradition arose from a history of child kidnappings in the village.
- Seiren village’s royal checkpoint stopped the kidnappings but not the custom.
- The Fourth Prince Oscar’s death is a major political escalation.
- Uncle Klaus is a ‘陪臣’ (Baishin), meaning a vassal of a vassal, specifically handling finance.
- Larry is 13 but approaching his 14th birthday/adulthood.
- Mauer Village is the neighboring village, and their leader Johann Rosen is fat and lecherous.
- Monthly Market is the only time the Fee family acts as ‘officials’ for the government
—
Character Insight:
The narrator feels like a ‘disposable character,’ yet he shows more empathy toward Larry’s family than Larry’s own brother Hans. Larry’s choice to give away his gold coin marks a transition from childhood survival to a more stable, yet complicated, adolescence.
Larry demonstrates a mix of modern cynicism (identifying ‘death flags’) and traditional loyalty, deciding to accept the draft to protect Teressa’s feelings.
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Lore And Worldbuilding Context:
The author uses ‘autism mode’ as a specific fantasy-mechanical term for mental dissociation that allows the possessor to take over.
The author used this chapter to shift the genre from slice-of-life/village management into a military-themed arc.
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Glossary:
Notes:
• Larry – 13‑year‑old third son of the Strock headman, reddish‑white skin, bronze eyes, curly bronze hair, faint Showa memories and minor fire magic. Inside his body lives a 40‑year‑old bachelor salaryman, backup heir of the Village Head’s house, analyzing tech gaps, conscripted, parasitized, crushing on his sister‑in‑law, doing chores despite quasi‑noble status.
• Teressa – The widow of Iffens and Larry’s sister-in-law. Currently serving as the deputy village head. Larry’s sister-in-law and widow of the deceased eldest brother. She has an infant daughter. Has blonde short hair and big chests, and big sister/motherly aura. Wears a wool jacket over her blouse, which its button almost split.
• Alberto – The eldest son of the Kessler family; a large, intimidating former delinquent. Over 210cm.
• Hans – Rugged, wild‑eyed delinquent known as the ‘Mad Dog’ of Strock Village, he is the second son of the Fee family, a chronic alcoholic with a record of assault and extortion. Larry’s older brother and primary heir to the Kessler estate, he now shirks his duties.
• Max – Uncle Klaus’s second son and Larry’s cousin.
• Tim – A 14‑year‑old village youth, the eldest son of the Dvorak family, has just ‘graduated’ into adulthood. With short dark hair, a lean build and thoughtful eyes, he recently traveled to the riverside town of Obernbach accompanied by his father.
• Ed – A local village youth and acquaintance of Larry’s.
• Nico – An elderly manservant with silver hair and a faded livery, dignified and trusted by the headman, revered by staff; and a stern young maid from the Village Head’s house, outspoken, protective of Teressa and Yutia, wielding authority over local children.
• Klaus – Larry’s maternal uncle, head of the Thalbach family and a vassal to Viscount Bizan. He dislikes Larry and Hans. He is described as a thin, grumpy-looking man, wears a light grey cloak and a black hat with gold ornaments signifying his rank in a Viscount’s house.
• Yutia – A servant girl with a hunched back and muscular abnormality, suffering a severe speech impediment and lingering muscle tension after a near‑fatal fever; she once served as lady’s maid to Teressa.
• Ferris – An Elf pharmacy owner over 200 years old who looks like she is in her 30s. She is a veteran healer. An Elven healer over two hundred years old. Claims to have known Larry’s grandfather.
• Iffens – Larry’s older brother, the eldest son of the Fee family, fell in battle; his death leaves a heavy emotional shadow over the household and fuels Yutia’s fear. He is remembered as a solemn, battle‑scarred figure.
• Mauer – A stout man from the Rosen family with thin, downy white hair. He wears a beige dalmatica.
• Bours – A former Captain of the Royal Army and current military instructor. Known as a legend of the Western Front.
• Johann – The Village Head of Strock and Larry’s father. A stern and pragmatic leader who enforces harsh military realities without sugarcoating them.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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