The morning for Herscherik Gracis, the seventh prince of the kingdom of Gracis, started late. He got out of bed after the royal wives had finished their breakfast, just about when the kitchen staff began clearing the dishes.
...I want to go back to sleep.
Preferably until noon, thought Ryoko (or rather, Herscherik) sleepily. In his previous life, Ryoko was secretly proud of her personal record of seventeen hours for the longest consecutive sleep session. Herscherik was not an early bird by any means. In his previous life, she needed three alarm clocks and the alarm feature on her cell phone just to barely wake up in time for work.
“Weird. Why do I wake up with alarm clocks in my bed?” she used to say, puzzled.
She would retrieve her cell phone from under her comforter, too. With the alarm feature turned off, of course. For a while after she started living on her own, there were many mornings where she was nearly late for work.
I have to get changed...
Herscherik leisurely climbed out of his bed and stretched, holding back a yawn. The sun was already high, the gentle rays of spring illuminating the carpet through an opening in the curtains. Two years had passed since the day Herscherik had recovered his memories from his previous life—from the day he gained consciousness. For Herscherik, who never found it difficult to sleep in or spend days doing nothing, living in a baby’s body was heavenly. Whenever he felt tired, he climbed into bed no matter the time of day; when he felt bored, Meria—whom he later learned was his nanny—took him on walks or read him stories. When he felt hungry, there was food on the table. He was enjoying the baby-life in the lap of luxury. Only while he was a baby, though. As time passed, now that he could stand and walk on his own, Herscherik felt embarrassed about having his nanny do everything for him.
Just like that one comic, I’m an adult in a child’s body... A mid-thirties woman in a baby’s body, that is.
While he still couldn’t move his body correctly, he acted like any other baby. Meria graciously took care of him—changing his clothes, feeding him, bathing him, and even changing his diapers. As he grew up and gained more control over his body, though, he was eager to leave behind some of these silver spoons. After pondering how to convey that fact to Meria, Herscherik decided to employ the tactic that most toddlers used: the ‘I can do it myself’ tactic. Every time Meria tried to tend to him in some way, Herscherik threw a tantrum, saying, “No! I can do it!” When she tried to change him, he snatched the clothes out of her hands, and he begged to hold the spoon himself during meals. He went to the bathroom on his own and insisted on taking his own baths. While Meria seemed wary at first, as Herscherik gradually learned to dress himself, feed himself, and use the toilet himself, she began to relax and didn’t tend to him when it wasn’t necessary. She was by no means neglecting her job, though. Ready to jump in at any moment, she was always standing somewhere nearby. She never left anything like a knife or pair of scissors anywhere near him, and whenever Herscherik accomplished something, she praised him like he was her own.
I did have to play some tricks, though... Those were embarrassing.
Herscherik remembered how, in an effort to look more natural, he would skip a few buttons on his shirt on purpose, or try to put on his shoes on the opposite foot, as well as intentionally dropping his spoon or knocking over his glass. He silently apologized to Meria every time she let out a little sigh when he did these things, as he gradually improved at each task. Thanks to his efforts, Meria now didn’t help him at all with changing clothes in the morning, but she did bring breakfast with her when she arrived at his room. Herscherik told himself that his occasional genuine oversleeping just added to the act.
Herscherik jumped off of his bed and landed on the lush carpet. Unable to support his weight, he tumbled forward onto his palms but saved himself the embarrassment of falling flat on his face. Walking, which he struggled with at first, was now as natural as it had been in his previous life, save for the difference in the size of his stride.
Holding back another yawn, Herscherik headed to the sink. Stepping on the step stool prepared for him, he turned on the faucet to fill the bucket with water before washing his face. The refreshing, cold water snapped him right out of his drowsiness.
I wasn’t expecting any modern technology after being reborn in this kind of world...
Herscherik couldn’t help but be impressed all over again as he turned off the faucet. The appliances of this world were almost at the same caliber as modern-day Japan. Water came out of faucets, and toilets flushed. He could take a shower or soak in a bath. The utter convenience of it made it seem like he was living in a dream, but he’d passed hundreds of days and nights here without waking up from it.
After washing his face, Herscherik trotted into his closet.
And was this a big surprise...
The closet was a room of about 300 square feet, adjacent to his bedroom. When he stepped inside, he was greeted by overtly extravagant outfits hung up on either side of him. In addition to clothes, the closet held an array of shoes and accessories all tailor-made, without exception.
Still overwhelmed by the glittering selection, he picked out an outfit.
Let’s go with navy today.
Herscherik slowly took off his pajamas. While he could perform the task on his own, his three-year-old body only moved so fast. He put his arms through the sleeves of his blouse, pulled up his shorts, and put on his jacket. From how comfortable they felt, he could tell that they were made of quality fabric. Gold buttons gleamed on the jacket, indicating that it must have been detailed by a top-notch artisan.
After changing his clothes, Herscherik combed through his silky, blond hair to flatten his cowlicks. In his previous life, Ryoko had fought long, hard battles with her curly hair every morning, but this blond hair only took one satisfying comb to straighten out. Finally, Herscherik did one twirl in front of the floor-length mirror. Seeing the reflection of a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy as cute as a girl, he gave a satisfied nod.
Night and day, compared to before.
Herscherik thought back on his previous life. Ryoko had had no interest in clothes or jewelry, despite being a woman. She wore a uniform at work and sweatpants at home. When she went out, she usually wore jeans and a T-shirt or hoodie. The only time she’d dress up was when she went out with friends or family. As a sensible adult, she did make sure to be presentable during her commute, but that hardly classified as dressing up.
I sure pay more attention to my appearance now, Herscherik said, praising himself.
While he couldn’t help but think that he was wastefully growing out of his custom clothes, he would have felt guilty not wearing the outfits available to him.
“Good morning, Hersch. Where are you?”
When he heard a young man’s voice calling him, Herscherik peeked out of the closet to find Meria with his breakfast alongside the young man who had just called out.
“You got changed all by yourself? Good job, Hersch,” he said, smiling.
The smile was so bright that Herscherik couldn’t help but squint a little. The man had platinum blond hair that looked like it was woven out of moonlight and the same jade-colored eyes as Herscherik. His sunken and slightly downturned eyes gave off a gentle impression. All in all, he was an attractive young man that appeared to be in his twenties.