What Is This Adorable Creature?

Once, there was a renowned open-world game franchise known as Assassin Project.

The premise revolved around operating as a lethal assassin within a rich fantasy setting. Defined by an extraordinary degree of player freedom, its signature draw was how the narrative branched and evolved with every single choice. When the series first debuted, it offered a modest five endings. With each subsequent release, however, that number multiplied exponentially until rumors eventually circulated that the later installments featured dozens of distinct conclusions.

Moreover, because it was set in a fantasy universe, players were free to construct characters across an astonishing variety of concepts. You could build a standard hooded dagger assassin, a dual-axe berserker who resembled a bloodthirsty Viking far more than a stealth operative, an assassin specializing in lethal poison magic, a pyromancer capable of leveling an entire fortress, an eagle-eyed sniper archer, or even a weapon master proficient in every blade under the sun.

Truthfully, many of them only bore the title of "assassin" in name alone. The game naturally encouraged stealth, yet because leaving no witnesses alive meant your identity was never compromised, a total massacre technically counted as infiltration. Or perhaps the narrative freedom was simply so vast that the community's collective resistance toward bizarre fantasy assassins had long since melted away.

Regardless, propelled by such inventive concepts and unrivaled sandbox freedom, every new title in the franchise shattered sales records. It enjoyed immense popularity across the globe, particularly in Japan and North America.

Naturally, I was one of those devoted players captivated by the franchise—though calling myself a mere "fan" would be a gross understatement. I had practically surrendered my late teens and early twenties to the altar of Assassin Project. My mandatory military service had forced an unfortunate hiatus upon my gaming career, of course, but aside from that, I had poured my soul into it. Sometimes I played the quintessential rogue; other times, an unhinged one-man army carving through legions; and on occasion, a ghost walking a strict pacifist route. Whenever a new title launched, I experimented with countless builds, blitzing through roughly thirty playthroughs per game.

Perhaps that relentless dedication was why the community chatter resonated so deeply with me.

With news that the eleventh installment was on the horizon, my anticipation reached a fever pitch. This brand-new entry was set in a fictional empire called Avelino, and its overall aesthetic carried a markedly more opulent, aristocratic tone than its predecessors. Between the prestigious Avelino Academy attended exclusively by nobility, the Aria Imperial Family ruling over the realm, and the sinister cabal lurking in the shadows plotting to overturn the empire, the setting brimmed with high-society intrigue and grandeur, right down to the lavish title logo.

It promised an entirely different flavor from the tenth installment, which had taken place in the sacred Holy Kingdom of Elysium. How could I not count down the days?

"Hurry up and launch already," I muttered to the empty room.

Sitting by my desk, I passed the time obsessing over the upcoming adventure. What concept should I try for my very first run? How would the plot unfold? Should I aim for a strictly righteous path first? Replaying the previous game endlessly while lost in those daydreams, the release day arrived before I even realized it.

"Come on, you're taking forever... Envy Studios, are you planning to let me turn into an old man before the servers go live?"

Naturally, I had pre-ordered the most extravagant collector's edition available. The pre-load was long complete, and I had already launched the client beforehand to verify that everything ran smoothly. All that remained was for the clock to strike the hour and the servers to unlock. Having already decided on my first character's appearance and build concept down to the finest detail, all I had left to do was enjoy myself.

"Three minutes until launch..."

With a little time still on the clock, I opened the digital notepad where I had outlined the blueprint ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠for my starting character. Even though it was already burned into my brain, double-checking never hurt.

The finer nuances could always be calibrated as the story progressed, so sketching out the basic visual framework was plenty.

"Is this... a little too soft?"

Even though I had written the prompt myself, staring at it made me feel like I was flirting with danger. But make no mistake: this choice had absolutely nothing to do with any personal fondness for tiny girls. In games like this, cute, charming, or striking characters naturally garnered higher base disposition from NPCs, making dialogue checks and relationship-building dramatically easier. It smoothed out the early narrative flow considerably, and any physical stat shortcomings could easily be supplemented through mana cultivation down the line. Everything had a purely rational, pragmatic justification.

"Besides, the last character I made in 10 was a two-meter-tall giant elf. Going in the complete opposite direction is a nice change of pace."

As I glanced down from the notepad to the taskbar clock, it read 10:59:55 PM. Exactly five seconds remained. Executing a desk worker's essential survival skill—the lightning-fast Alt-Tab—I switched windows back to Assassin Project 11. The instant the digital numbers rolled over to 11:00 PM, I clicked into the game.

Having conquered every iteration from the first to the tenth and created hundreds of characters across my gaming life, carving out a face in the customization engine was child's play. Especially this time, when the aesthetic direction was already fully mapped out in advance.

"Done."

To match the delicate appearance, I set the vocal profile to a high, adorably sweet register. She certainly looked far too precious to be a seasoned killer, but wasn't a cute exterior concealing lethal, terrifying combat prowess one of the greatest tropes in fiction?

With race, appearance, and voice finalized, only one last input remained.

"Just as planned... Serena. Yep, all done..."

The second the setup was confirmed, I clicked the final progress button.

"Guh?!"

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

A blinding sensation overtook me, and my forehead slammed hard against the keyboard as the world went black.

Then, in an absurdly textbook cliché straight out of a web novel, I opened my eyes inside the very character I had just designed.

"...What in the world is this adorable creature?"

Reflected in the looking glass was a startlingly charming young girl. To make matters worse, whenever I parted my lips to speak, the voice that spilled out was every bit as precious and melodious as the face. The tall, sturdy frame I had possessed my entire adult life had vanished without a trace, replaced by a tiny, fragile body that barely reached 140 centimeters. My skin was porcelain white, complemented by sharp little fangs peeking out past my lips like an authentic bloodsucker.

Flowing down my shoulders was a cascade of silken silver hair so lustrous, soft, and naturally radiant that no dye in my former world could ever hope to replicate it, perfectly framing a pair of piercing, crimson eyes.

"...It's really Serena."

I was utterly speechless. Down to the finest detail, the reflection matched the customization preset I had spent my final minutes crafting. The undeniable reality crashed over me: I had somehow been dragged directly into Assassin Project 11.

"...I should've just made a male character."

Had I known this was going to happen, I would have rolled a guy just like I did at the start of 10. Back then, I had set out to play a paladin-assassin hybrid and picked an imposing male warrior. Why hadn't I stuck to that sensible instinct this time around?

"I'm so tiny. My skin is ridiculously soft, too..."

Even though I was the one who designed her, this body was excessively petite. Oddly enough, the drastically lowered vantage point didn't feel disorienting at all. It was as if I had observed the world from this height from the moment I drew breath—as though I had inhabited this delicate flesh since birth. Every sensation felt so disturbingly natural that it was almost unsettling.

"...Haaah."

My thoughts were a tangled mess, but the bottom line was painfully simple. I had possessed a new, unplayed game, and I was now trapped inside the body of a tiny half-vampire assassin.

"...Status window."

The words tumbled from my lips in a faint, melodic murmur—sounding impossibly cute, just as I had configured. It was a half-serious test. In stories where someone transmigrated into a video game, an interface always existed, didn't it? Besides, the Assassin Project franchise inherently featured an in-game status display.

"...Wow."

A translucent blue panel actually materialized right before my eyes. While ordinary people probably couldn't perceive it, the prompt drove home the reality of my predicament. Serena, Half-Vampire... everything mirrored the choices I had clicked. The collection of titles displayed at the bottom was deeply irritating, but since early-game titles were notoriously silly across the franchise, I tried not to let them get to me.

After all, this was entirely the consequence of my own customization. Because I had dialed the height slider down to the bare minimum of 140 centimeters, the system had saddlebagged me with titles that possessed zero intimidating aura whatsoever. Regret washed over me once more; I truly should have started with a male character.

"...Couldn't you have thrown me into the previous game instead?"

More than my physical form, that was the grievance that truly gnawed at my chest. Had I landed in the tenth installment, I would have possessed near-omniscient knowledge of the entire narrative, every hidden Easter egg, and the exact coordinates of legendary equipment. But this new game? I knew practically nothing.

"Aside from it being set in an empire... what else do I even know...?"

If I had foreseen this nightmare, maybe I should have combed through every leaked spoiler thread on the forums instead of avoiding them to preserve my first blind run. Desperately, I pushed my small, cute brain to scour every trace of memory it could unearth. I recalled the promotional trailers, the speculative posts flooding the community boards, the official developer notes, and the memes drifting across foreign social media. Yet when all the fragments coalesced, only a single prominent image surfaced.

"...The stunning Third Imperial Princess?"

It was the promotional illustration of the imperial princess. She had appeared only briefly in the official preview, showcased alongside the grand backdrop of the empire and a handful of other key figures. A girl blessed with golden locks, clear azure eyes, and an exceptionally generous bust. What had etched her into my memory, however, was how remarkably cynical and exhausted her gaze had appeared despite her lofty imperial pedigree—looking so thoroughly worn down that she almost seemed frail.

"...Haaah."

What in the world was going to happen to me now? As a dull ache throbbed behind my temples, a sharp, rhythmic rap echoed against the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wooden door of the room.

"Serena, the Guild Master is calling for you."

"Ah."

...It was time for the prologue to begin.