A Pawn Reaching the End of the Board Can Promote to a Queen
"Cough, cough...! Gasp, cough...!"
It was hard to breathe. Instinctively, I strained my throat to draw in air, but something was blocking it. As I tried to force it out, a violent fit of coughing erupted from my throat.
"Urgh, cough... gag... cough!!!"
I couldn't tell what was filling my mouth. The world was pitch-black, leaving me completely blind to what I had just spat out or what state my body was even in. Wait, what happened to me in the first place? Didn't that pink-haired girl kill me? Or was I mistaken?
"Cough...!"
The worst-case scenario flashed through my mind. I remembered the wretched souls who, accused of heinous crimes, were dragged to the town square, stripped naked, pelted with stones, and tied to horses to be dragged across the dirt. Was that to be my fate too? Was I to suffer such horrors for a crime I never committed—for supposedly being a bandit who attacked that noble lady? Was that why they kept me alive, throwing me into this pitch-black room instead of finishing me off?
"No... cough...!"
Breathing was agony. My throat burned, and even swallowing my own saliva felt like swallowing glass. Something kept oozing from my nose and mouth.
Rumble, crash!
A sudden flash of lightning illuminated the darkness, momentarily revealing my surroundings.
"Pant, pant...?"
I was in a room. I didn't know much about the world, but I could tell instantly that this was no filthy dungeon or dilapidated warehouse meant for criminals. Why? Because a pristine, plush-looking white bed sat just five paces away, and I was standing on polished wooden floors. Aside from the metallic tang of blood in the air, there wasn't a single foul odor.
"Why am I here... eep!"
As I reached down to steady myself on the floor, something brushed against my back, making me shriek like a little girl. I tumbled backward, landing with a dull thud, only then realizing that the thing against my back was a door.
Thud!
"Ow..."
A sharp pain throbbed at the back of my head. Rolling around on the floor in agony, my stomach bumped into something solid.
"Cough...!"
Zzap!
A sudden prickling sensation tingled at my fingertips, and the object my hand had brushed against began to emit a brilliant white light. What was this? Under the bridge where I used to live, there were no such complex, magical-looking contraptions. I had no idea what to even call this glowing thing. Still, it had a handle, so I picked it up to use as a lantern, allowing me to inspect the room in detail.
"...Crazy."
The room I was in wasn't just any room. It was a noble's bedroom. I had never seen one with my own eyes, but I had heard plenty of rumors. What else could a room with a massive wardrobe, a bookshelf crammed with books, and a plush, luxurious bed be?
"D-Demons... A devil..."
But more important than the furniture was the magic circle drawn on the floor in blood. I had never seen a real magic circle before, but some things you just know instinctively. Just as you know to run the moment you spot a terrifying monster in the mountains, I knew without a doubt that this crimson pattern on the floor was a magic circle.
"...Sigh."
My head spun. Why was I lying in a noble's bedroom? And besides, there was something even stranger.
"Something's... off... My voice... and my throat hurts so much..."
I turned around. Just as the rumors said, there was an attached bathroom. The novelty of stepping into a fabled noble bathroom made my heart flutter, but there was something else I desperately needed to check.
"A mirror... Right, a noble's bedroom would have a mirror!"
A luxury item used by nobles to gaze at their own reflections. Commoners like me just used lakes or rivers to see our faces, but nobles actually paid fortunes to have these things made. Standing before the fabled mirror, my hands instinctively crept up to trace my cheeks.
"W-What... What is this? How did this happen?"
Standing in the mirror was someone who was definitely not me.
"M-My hair is completely different... Is this why nobles use mirrors?"
The hair between my fingers was redder than blood. It felt incredibly soft and lustrous, easily rivaling the fine silks worn by highborn ladies. It felt amazing to touch, but I couldn't believe this hair was actually mine.
"No, wait, the hair is the least of my problems... Ah, ah, uh, eh, ah, heh."
Standing in the mirror was a beautiful young lady. A lady with crimson hair. When I touched my cheek, she touched hers. When I stuck out my tongue, she did the same. When I puffed out my cheeks, she mirrored me perfectly. Her face had a strangely gloomy, unsettling vibe to it, but there was no denying she was an absolute beauty.
"This girl... is me?"
I wasn't a frog. I wasn't stupid enough to look at a mirror and not realize the reflection was my own. This girl was me.
"No way..."
Unable to believe it, I slid my hands down to my chest. There, soft, distinct breasts met my palms.
"A girl... A girl...? I'm a girl?"
Laura. Did that insolent pink-haired girl turn me into a woman? But why would she do that? I couldn't begin to comprehend it. I didn't even need to grope my crotch to know that the appendage I'd had just yesterday was completely gone. It was something I could tell simply by shifting my legs.
"But... I don't... understand... What on earth happened?"
I couldn't wrap my head around the fact that I had become a girl. Nor could I understand why this girl's neck was drenched in blood. In fact, my entire body felt sticky, as if blood had splattered down from my neck, tracing my chest all the way down to my stomach.
"What in the world happened..."
Staring at the mirror all day wasn't going to give me answers. Feeling half-defeated, I walked out of the bathroom. Ironically, the sheer shock of becoming a girl allowed me to look past the bloody magic circle and examine the rest of the room with a calmer mind.
"A dagger... and a book?"
Beside the magic circle lay a dagger caked in thick, sticky blood. Next to it was a book, also drenched in gore. Though the bookshelves were lined with various volumes, this particular book was different. I could feel its sheer abnormality instinctively.
"Maybe this will tell me what this girl was up to..."
As I picked up the elegantly bound, crimson leather book, fresh blood dripped from its cover, splattering onto the floor.
"I can't read a single word..."
Of course, an illiterate beggar like me couldn't read a book. Just staring at the squiggly, foreign letters made my head throb.
"I don't know anything. What can I even do?"
I had hit a dead end. It reminded me of the times I had desperately clawed at the frozen mountain soil in the dead of winter just to find a scrap of food. There was absolutely nothing I could do.
Creak.
"Huh...?"
Suddenly, the sound of a door opening echoed through the room.
Flash!
At the same moment, a miniature sun seemed to ignite right above my head. Startled by the blinding glare, I looked up to see a round orb mounted on the ceiling, radiating a fierce, brilliant white light.
"Ugh...! W-Who's there!"
My eyes stung, but I could clearly sense someone stepping through the open doorway.
"Oh my."
The voice that drifted over was remarkably pure and elegant. As my eyes adjusted to the light, a woman wearing a black maid uniform with a crisp white apron came into focus. A maid? Did this girl have her own maid?
"Uh, wait..."
Am I completely screwed? I didn't know what this girl had been doing, but surely letting a maid see a magic circle drawn in blood was a terrible idea? There was no way this was fine. Forget being reported to the Holy Maiden's Church—even a beggar like me knew this was a massive red flag.
"U-Um, excuse me! You see, this is—"
"Welcome back, milady."
Unlike me, who was panicking, the maid calmly closed the door behind her, turned to face me, and bowed deeply at a perfect ninety-degree angle.
"U-Uh? Welcome back...?"
"It appears Lady Ramnusia has finally caused an incident. However, please do not fret. I, Keres, shall serve you to the very depths of hell."
Speaking in her elegant, refined voice, the maid, Keres, gently swept her black hair to the side and met my gaze.
"A-An incident... Haha, me? No, of course not, Miss Maid."
Keres offered a gentle smile.
"Lady Ramnusia would never address me as 'Miss Maid.' You must be careful with your words from now on. The other students at the Academy do not address their subordinates in such a manner, either."
What is this woman talking about? Is she... drawing a clear line between this body and the 'me' inside it?
"W-Who... are you?"
"I am Keres. I am the maid who serves Lady Ramnusia."
"B-But... just now, you spoke as if you knew I wasn't her..."
Unlike me, who was utterly bewildered, Keres maintained her serene smile. Surely, that expression was just a mask, right?
"It is an unfortunate turn of events, but since the Lady Ramnusia I once served has already met an untimely demise, I must now serve you."
"...Untimely demise?"
"Is the state of this room not explanation enough?"
Pointing toward the floor, Keres stepped closer. She pulled a small hand mirror from her apron and held it up to my neck. A dark, straight line of dried blood ran across my throat. A slit throat. Now that she pointed it out, it made perfect sense, and a hollow laugh escaped my lips.
"Lady Ramnusia, unable to bear her immense stress, committed self-harm—no, rather, she committed suicide."
"...What?"
"She slit her wrists to draw the magic circle, and then she slit her own throat. The reason your wounds have healed so cleanly is likely due to the effects of the magic circle."
She died? And my soul just slipped into a dead girl's body?
"A-Am I an undead?"
"No. You are currently occupying Lady Ramnusia's perfectly healthy body—one fully capable of even bearing children."
"S-So it's just a normal, healthy body? Then what about the real Lady Ramnusia?"
"Since she committed suicide, she is no longer of this world. The body remains intact thanks to the healing magic. A stray soul that lost its own vessel has simply settled into an empty shell."
Ramnusia is gone. I am Ramnusia. I understood that much, but...
"U-Uh... why?! Why are you helping me?"
Living on the streets teaches you one absolute truth: nothing in this world is free. Keres had to have a reason for helping me.
"It is a simple matter of principle."
"P-Please explain."
"Lady Ramnusia was my mistress. Is it not only natural that I seek vengeance on her behalf?"
Revenge... As the shock and confusion began to settle, a long-buried emotion slowly crept back into my mind. Didn't I have someone I wanted revenge on too? Laura! That pink-haired girl. I needed to pay her back for what she did to me.
"Earlier... you called me a soul that lost its vessel, right?"
"Indeed. You are—"
"Then you know who I am! And you know what kind of horrible things were done to me before I died!"
I grabbed Keres's arm tightly and shouted.
"I am well aware that you were once a man, and I know the life you led."
"In that case... I have someone I want to get revenge on too."
Surely she wouldn't say that Ramnusia's revenge is fine, but mine isn't? As if reading my mind, Keres smiled and nodded.
"From this moment forth, you shall live as Lady Ramnusia."
"S-So my revenge is out of the question? That's so unfair..."
"I never said it was out of the question."
Cutting me off, Keres gently took the crimson book from my hands and pressed it against my chest.
"You may live whatever life you desire from now on, milady."
"The life... I desire...?"
"I shall continue to serve you as Lady Ramnusia. I will help you adjust to the Academy and educate you so that you may speak with the flawless grace of a true noble lady."
Keres's eyes gleamed with a quiet intensity.
"W-What if I choose not to seek revenge...?"
"That is entirely your choice, Lady Ramnusia."
"And... if I say I want revenge? Will you help me?"
"If you choose the path of vengeance, I shall teach you everything I know and assist you in every way possible."
Smiling warmly, Keres gently took my hand and caressed it.
"A maid's duty is to always support her mistress. Please, choose whichever path brings you peace."
"...But... I don't know anything. How could someone like me ever get revenge?"
My question seemed to amuse Keres, as she let out a soft chuckle.
"The means for your revenge are already in your hands, milady."
"In my hands? You don't mean this book, do you? What, am I supposed to bash her head in with it?"
"That book is a grimoire filled with wicked spells that no student at the Academy could ever dream of learning."
This book is a grimoire? Why on earth did the original Lady Ramnusia have something like this?
"With that grimoire, you will be able to toy with the target of your vengeance as if they were nothing but a puppet."
And just like that, I unexpectedly came into possession of a power that could make me either a god or a devil.