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Translator: penny
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Hello, They Call Me a Genius
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Hey? They say I'm a genius.
So.... what was the title again?
I honestly can't remember it all that well.
It was probably something like 'The Reincarnated Count's Young Lady Hates the Sub-Male Lead.' You know, something along those lines.
The protagonist reincarnates into the body of this amazing villainous count's daughter.
She pushes aside the original heroine and hero, hooks up with this rude but sword-genius powerhouse of a sub-male lead, and they hit it off big time.
No, whatever, you get the idea.
That kind of story.
They go through events, their affection deepens, they end up dating and getting married.
A few side stories, then complete.
Something like that, right? I didn't even finish reading it, so I wouldn't know.
"But why."
But seriously.
"Why the hell am I here?"
Why am I inside that world?
"Whoa.... what the fuck is this?"
Why am I here?
I really have no clue.
"Why me?"
I've been seriously pondering this since day one.
I'm not exactly a die-hard fan.
I bailed after about episode 60.
The reason? Nothing big.
My sister kept whining for me to read it with her, so I did. I don't even like romance fantasies to begin with.
The fact that I made it to 60 episodes is impressive in itself. It was kinda fun, though.
That's as far as I got.
Then I figured I had to go to work, so I stopped. And that's when the accident happened.
When I opened my eyes after that, I was in some random place.
'Where am I? Who am I?'
My name wasn't Jin Yumin anymore. I woke up in the body of some kid named Ruin, with no idea about his roots.
No roots meaning exactly that.
This kid was an orphan.
The kind who doesn't even know who his parents are, raised in an orphanage.
That's the body where I regained memories of my past life.
No, aren't romance fantasies supposed to be these fluffy, happy worlds full of nobles getting cozy?
Why am I an orphan? This is so fucking unfair.
And get this.
"Cough! Cough!"
"Ru-Ruin! Are you okay?"
My body's weak as hell too. Look, I'm coughing up blood after just a few hacks.
'Ah, shit. The reincarnation gacha screwed me over.'
Of all the bodies to land in, why this one? Even the moment I regained my past life's memories was like that.
I was burning up with fever, my breathing stopped for a bit.
That's when I got my memories back and barely started breathing again.
So, in simple terms.
'I've already died once.'
It's more accurate to say I died and came back to life, regaining my memories.
And right now, I'm on the verge of dying again.
"Haa, ha...."
I wipe away the sweat. Ah, it hurts like hell.
Even just breathing feels like my throat's clogged up tight.
And why's my heart pounding so fast? Feels like it'll burst if I poke it.
"J-Just hold on a little...! The director said he's calling a priest...!"
Elaine. A girl from the same orphanage.
Hearing that, I laughed inwardly.
'Yeah, right.'
Ruin's head was full of this world's common knowledge and info.
That's how I knew this was the romance fantasy world I'd read about.
This was the Lehart Empire's outskirts. Connected to the north, no less.
Meaning, it's freezing cold as shit.
You know, the kind of place where snow falls and piles up.
It's ridiculous to think a priest would come to a place like this.
'What orphanage director calls a priest to save some orphan kid?'
Priest. Those expensive bastards, calling one just to save me?
What a load of crap.
Besides, the director here wasn't even that kind of person.
'Not by a long shot.'
The more orphans they cram in, the more subsidies they get.
He was exploiting the policy the Lehart Emperor put out like that.
I don't think there was outright abuse or anything.
But I remember they just let sick kids like this die without treatment and tossed the bodies.
In places where directors straight-up kill off the sick ones, this is practically merciful.
"Cough-!!"
"Ruin...!!"
If this keeps up, I'm done for.
I knew it. No priest was coming.
And today felt like the critical point.
'Ah, fuck.'
I thought it wouldn't be today, but my plans went to shit.
A month since I awakened to my past life. I'd figured out my body's condition pretty well.
A walking corpse.
That's the perfect term. Don't know the exact disease name.
I'm no doctor; how would I?
All I know is natural recovery's impossible.
And the director sure as hell isn't treating me.
So, what can I do?
'If I wanna live, I gotta struggle.'
I can't just die like this.
I don't even know why I reincarnated or why I ended up in this godforsaken world.
'Fuck it.'
No matter how much they screw me over, I'm gonna live. That's the point.
"Ru-Ruin! Where are you going!"
I forced my unsteady body to move.
Did I even have the strength to run? Fever crushing me, but I bolted anyway.
In the chaos, I grabbed the pouch in the corner of my room.
Money inside. What I'd scraped together over the month by doing all sorts of shit with this body.
Not much, just rat-shit amounts, but I took it first.
'When is it?'
One plan.
A priest shows up in town soon.
Heard a priest from the Holy Kingdom was coming for some North Sea schedule. And not just any priest.
'The Saintess.'
Saintess.
The new Saintess who's appeared in the Holy Kingdom is coming here herself.
Today.
Didn't hear why.
The orphanage gossip network isn't that great.
Anyway, the director's words about fetching a priest were half-true.
A priest is coming. Just not for me.
One target.
'Meet the priest.'
Priests in this world are noble-tier, but if this is the romance fantasy I know.
'Holy Kingdom priests are pure, flawless beings.'
The holy ones who declared they'd maintain a world of white.
If they're like in the novel, this could be my shot.
Meet them, beg to be saved.
Simple-minded and straightforward, but the highest odds.
The problem?
'Ah, goddamn it...'
My body can't hold out.
This frail kid's body wrecked by some dogshit disease—I couldn't do jack.
'Cold...'
The northern continent's chill was too much for this weak-ass body.
Just a short run, and I'm freezing solid.
My mind's already fuzzy.
Still, I made it out of the orphanage to the streets.
'Priest.... where's the priest...?'
Where? No procession in sight.
They said crowds were gathering to see the Holy Kingdom's Saintess?
Bullshit. Nothing.
"Ah.... ugh...."
Legs shaking.
Can't run. Vision's been blurry white for ages.
"Ahh...."
Even my breath hurts coming out.
Not here? Please not...
"Huff... haa...."
Drip. Something runs from my mouth. Blood.
I wipe it with the back of my hand.
'Walk, you crazy bastard. Walk.'
I gaslight my thighs hard.
Move, damn it. That's the pep talk.
Can't die here. Even in this shitty body, I'll survive.
I swallow the bloody spit and walk. That's when it happened.
"..."
I turn my head.
Something sweet hits my nose.
"This is...?"
What? Scent aside, I see something.
A blue light.
Like heat haze blooming in the air, connected in a line.
I have no idea what it is.
Staring at the line, I see it's connected to someone.
Everything's foggy and hazy, but that flow stands out crystal clear, weirdly.
Got to find the priest.
Thinking that, my feet move on their own.
The line leads to someone in a robe.
Confirming it connects there, I muster my last burst of heat and run.
Don't know why.
Just followed instinct.
"Hm?"
I grab the robe.
"What the heck is this?"
A slender voice. Can't see her face well.
"What's this kid? How'd you even grab me?"
"...Haa... haa.... P-Please... save... me."
"What?"
The woman reacts to my words.
"Well, look at this? Mana sickness? In this backwater? Clearly a commoner too."
"Haa.... huff...."
"Fun.... You even managed to grab me?"
She leans down. My knees buckled ages ago.
Splatter-!!!
Can't hold back the blood anymore; it soaks the ground.
"You're gonna die soon. You know that, right?"
"Huff... haa."
Can't even answer properly.
"If someone from the Empire touched my body, I'd have their head. But you're showing me something interesting, so I'll let it slide. Ah, right, you asked to be saved?"
Laughter in her voice. Sounds around us stop.
But hers cuts through clear as day.
Strangely.
"Fine. Guess right, and I'll save you."
Something appears before my eyes.
Looks like the woman's finger.
"What do you feel?"
What am I supposed to see? I look at her finger.
"Guess. Then I'll save you."
"..."
Looking at it, something shows on her finger.
The blue energy from before gathers, forming something.
But.
'More than that...'
I look past the number on her finger. Something deeper, more profound.
Vaster, capturing my gaze since earlier.
Seeing it, my hand moves this time.
I point with my trembling index finger.
"Hm?"
"...Eight... "
"Huh?"
My finger passes her hand, pointing to her chest.
Right at her heart.
"Eight and a half."
I say it exactly like that.
Thud.
I black out and collapse.
My cut-off body heads for the ground.
Woooong-!!!
But it doesn't hit.
"Ahaha...."
Energy envelops me, lifting me into the air.
"Ahahahahaha."
The woman laughs.
"Wow, this is insane."
Interest sparks in her magenta eyes.
"What is this?"
She pointed not at her hand, but her chest.
Not even eight.
"Half?"
Eight and a half.
That vague number hooked her.
"You."
It was clear.
"You can see it?"
Not sense—see.
Seeing my life fading, her lips curl up.
Eight and a half.
The number of rings bound to her heart.
Something no one in the entire Empire could see, this kid saw.
"Fun."
The woman smiled.
"I'll save you, as promised."
Not the answer she wanted, but something else. She was satisfied anyway.
She'd seen something precious in this backwater, so this much was fine.
Besides.
"Thanks to you, the Saintess lives."
This little thing sparked her whim.
The Saintess who should've died by her hand today survived.
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⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙◆ An anomaly has occurred. ◆ You have caused confusion in the world line. ◆ The 'Saintess Death' episode has been altered. ◆ You have obtained a reward. ◆ Your damaged Mana Circuit has been healed. ◆ Talent has blossomed. ◆ Heaven-touching talent has descended. ◆ The Demon King of the demon realm has taken interest in you.