I finally reached the comparative safety of the apartment. The first thing I did after closing the door wasn't to rest, but to seek answers. I went straight to her laptop, the previous owner's, and began my desperate search for information about this utterly bizarre world.
"Damn, so I was right…" I muttered, leaning closer to the screen.
The search results were… illuminating. Highlights of brainwashing apps, possession pills, and various other horrifying-yet-horny devices confirmed my worst fears. This wasn't just like a smutty manga I was living in a Hentai World.
"I need things to counter this. After all, I'm a high-priority target, being a young, female doctor, or whatever 'Rin' was," I said, the gravity of my situation sinking in.
I frantically searched for any countermeasures, antidotes, or defensive artifacts, but the results were depressingly sparse.
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing useful."
A wave of exhaustion finally hit me. My muscles ached from the sheer stress of the past one day i have been reborn in this new world.
"Maybe a quick rest won't hurt. I haven't properly rested since I got here," I sighed, stretching my arms high above my head as I stood up from the couch.
"Alright... Wait." I paused, looking down at my current attire the previous owner's doctor coat and pants. "Right… I need to change."
A deep breath. This was it. The next hurdle.
"You know what? I can do this. I need to adapt." I said, trying to psych myself up with a strained voice of determination.
"…"
"I can't do it," I admitted, sulking near the bathroom door, clutching my collar.
"Come on, Rin. You need to do this!" I forced myself.
With a mental push, I started. The coat came off, then the tie. They landed on the floor with a soft thud. My face was burning red, a full-body blush of embarrassment.
"Come on," I muttered, stripping down to my underwear. I quickly stepped into the bathroom, turning on the water.
Under the steaming spray, I ran my hands through the long hair. "This hair is too long," I commented, applying shampoo and then conditioner. Once that was done, I braced myself.
"Okay, that's done. Now for the hard part: soap."
I quickly washed my arms, legs, and back, trying my best not to look down. This body was still so alien.
"This feels weird," I mumbled, focused entirely on the task at hand.
Ten minutes later, I was finally free.
"That was the hardest shower I have taken in my life," I declared, stepping out and wrapping myself in a towel. I opened the closet and looked through the clothes. My eyes landed on a cute outfit—a light, pastel dress with a small ribbon.
"This is cute… wait!" I slapped my cheek lightly, snapping myself out of the mental drift. "Man… I feel weird anyway," I said, shaking my head.
I quickly put on the outfit.
"Well, it is comfy," I said, appreciating the soft fabric.
"Anyways, bed!" I shouted, launching myself towards the soft mattress.
"Ah~ so soft~" I sighed contentedly, feeling my body finally relax.
"That's right, my bed is comfy," a voice said, startling me.
"Uh? Who said that?" I looked around the room, seeing nothing. I was too tired to process it. I ignored the voice and, within moments, fell asleep.
I woke up the next morning feeling slightly more refreshed. I went to the kitchen, made some coffee, and grabbed a bento box from the fridge, heating it up in the microwave.
"I love my morning like this," I mused, taking a sip of the hot coffee. I checked my phone while I ate. "Nothing new here." I turned it off and headed back to the laptop.
"Eh!?" My coffee cup almost slipped from my hand.
The screen showed a news report detailing a massive increase in possession pills and brainwashing app usage across the city.
"How hasn't society collapsed yet?!" I yelled, bewildered. I started checking again for anything that could protect me.
"Nothing… I am screwed!" I sank back into the couch, sulking.
"Maybe a walk outside could cheer me up," I thought, stopping myself mid-movement. "Wait… I ain't going outside! What am I, crazy!?"
I immediately retreated back to the safety of my laptop.
Sigh. "What can I do?" I looked at the screen.
"Maybe some eye wear… to protect my eyes from any visual apps," I reasoned. I quickly ordered a pair of sturdy sunglasses online.
"Mhm. Sunglasses alone won't protect me, but I can modify them," I thought, ordering various electronic components and specialized lenses.
"This will work for the visual stuff. Now I just need… something for possession." I tapped my chin. "I could become an exorcist? No, too complicated. But I could also make the glasses detect ghosts or entities." I quickly ordered the necessary materials for an infrared and spiritual-field sensor.
"Okay, that's done. Now…" I paused, noticing my bag on the floor was unusually light. "Wait, where did the other materials go? Never mind." I shook my head, grabbed a canister of pepper spray, and headed out.
"I need to explore this city and maybe also go to the hospital I work at," I decided, walking towards the general direction of the hospital.
As I walked, i saw a Magical Girl fighting some grotesque monster on a distant rooftop, people conducting shady business in alleyways involving glowing vials, and, most alarmingly, a naked woman running around who was subsequently arrested by strangely indifferent cops.
"Yep. Hentai World confirmed," I said, gripping the pepper spray tightly.
"Wait, do I have a car?" I realized I hadn't checked. "I will check later," I decided, continuing on foot.
After an hour of walking, I found the hospital a large, modern building.
"Well, my apartment building is very close, just a one-to-two-hour walk. Then again, I will still check if I have a car," I mused before heading in.
As I walked through the automatic doors, a nurse called out to me.
"Hey, Rin! Why are you here? Aren't you on a long break?" she asked, looking genuinely confused.
"Yes, I am. I'm just checking the hospital, I missed you guys," I replied with a small, forced smile, relying on Rin's ingrained social memories.
"Sure, but Doctor, enjoy your rest! You shouldn't worry about us," she insisted kindly.
"Yes, of course. I'm just visiting," I said.
"Mhm," the nurse nodded before leaving to check on a patient.
'Thanks to these memories, I can interact with people here. Good. But still, I felt sorry for taking her body,' I thought, feeling a pang of guilt.
I stayed for ten minutes, chatting briefly with a few nurses, which helped me piece together what kind of person the original Rin was caring, but perhaps a bit overworked.
Well, the conversations also revealed that I was originally practicing in Europe before transferring here. That explains the name, but it raises a bigger question why did I move?
'Well, that was fun,' I thought, walking back towards my apartment.
While I was walking, I saw yet another monster destroying the road I needed to cross.
"Just my luck," I sighed.
A Magical Girl appeared, but almost instantly, she was captured by the massive creature.
"I think I know what will happen next, so I'm just going to head out," I decided, turning around and taking a sharp left into a dark alleyway as a shortcut.
"Smells bad in here," I muttered, covering my nose.
As I walked, a blinding light suddenly appeared right in front of me, coalescing into a small, fluffy creature.
"Hello! I am a Mascot, and you will be a Magical Girl! <3" it chirped with unsettling cuteness.
"Nope," I said immediately, turning around and trying to walk away.
"Wait! Don't go!" it zipped through the air, reappearing in front of me. "I am giving you a contract to be a Magical Girl!"
"And I said no. And don't you only accept little girls?" I asked, trying to sound reasonable.
"No! We accept high school to college girls!" it declared proudly.
"I already graduated, and plus, I have a job," I countered, attempting to sneak past it.
"Still! Your magic power is so powerful! You could become the greatest Magical Girl ever!" it insisted, waving a glowing piece of paper in front of my face.
"Sign it, please, please, please!" it begged.
"Ugh! Be quiet, you thing!" I screamed, my nerves frayed.
"I won't stop if you don't sign it," it said, a smug look crossing its tiny face. "And besides, only you can see me screaming like that makes you look crazy."
That was the last straw. I grabbed its fluffy head.
"Die in hell!" I screamed, throwing it as far as I could.
It just teleported right back next to my ear. "You can't get rid of me," it said, puffing out its chest.
"I won't sign it," I stated firmly, trying to sidestep the persistent creature.
"Sign it!" it demanded.
"Like hell I would do it," I spat back.