The World Is Mine For The Taking

Johanne and I lay together in a quiet aftermath, our bodies tangled beneath the still-warm sheets, basking in that serene glow of post-coital bliss.

The soft rise and fall of her chest matched the rhythm of her breaths with them being calm, steady, and full of satisfaction.

Her delicate frame rested against my arm, her head nestled perfectly into the crook of my shoulder, like it was always meant to be there.

Her eyes were closed, her expression peaceful, with the faintest smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

It felt... surreal.

Like the world outside had paused just for the two of us in this moment.

"So? What do you think?" I asked, breaking the silence with a voice that was both curious and careful.

Her eyes fluttered open slightly. "What do you mean, 'what do I think?'" she asked back, her tone soft and almost teasing.

"Well… you said you wanted to have sex with me so you could figure things out, right?" I said, looking at her face, trying to read her expression. "So, what's your decision?"

She shifted slightly, pulling away just enough to adjust the blanket that clung to her bare body.

The silky fabric had started to slip, threatening to reveal more of her skin, but she tugged it back up with gentle hands, keeping herself modest—if only barely.

"Well… for starters, I feel…"

"What?"

"Rejuvenated, I guess?" she answered after a short pause, as if searching for the right word to describe it.

"Rejuvenated how?" I asked, intrigued.

"It's just… it's who I am," she said quietly, gazing down at her hand resting on the sheets. "At my core, I've always been a woman. Even though my father forced that change on me and turned me into a man, my body still acted like a woman's. I had periods… I still felt emotions like love… deep, vulnerable love."

Her voice trembled slightly as she lifted her gaze to meet mine.

"And because of that... I really feel like I should live my life fully as a woman now," she continued, her voice steadier this time. "To leave behind who I was before… completely." Her eyes flickered with guilt. "Though… I still feel bad. Guilty, even. For doing this to Tris—she married me, after all. But…"

"But what?" I asked gently, brushing her hair back from her face.

She inhaled deeply, cheeks flushed with color. "The happiness I feel right now… it's making that guilt slowly disappear," she confessed with a shy blush. "I don't understand it all that well myself… It's just that, right now, being beside you like this… I'm genuinely happy."

She nestled her head closer to my chest again, resting against me with a softness that made my heart skip a beat.

There was something deeply comforting about having her body so close.

"So… are you going to stay like this forever?" I asked, my voice low.

"Well," she began, her tone a bit playful, "seeing as the entire kingdom probably knows the truth about me now, there's really no point in pretending anymore. I mean, would you prefer me to be some muscular guy instead?"

I didn't even allow myself to imagine that.

The thought of lying naked in bed with a man, pressed up against me like this—it was enough to make my brain scream in protest.

If that image got into my head, I knew I'd be haunted by it forever. No way in hell.

"Yeah… no thanks," I muttered.

"In the end, it's your choice," I told her after a moment. "Whether you stay as the man you once were, or live as the woman you were always meant to be. Either way, it's up to you."

She grinned.

And for some reason, that grin was radiant. It was full of confidence and something undeniably beautiful.

"I'm going to choose the real me," she said with conviction. "This right here… this is the real me. The me who is your woman."

Her body curled in closer once more, and her hand gently traced its way to my chest, resting there like it belonged.

She looked so calm… so content… like all the chaos and confusion of her past had melted away in the warmth of this bed.

Then suddenly—

"Heheheee~"

A bizarre giggle rang through the air.

I blinked, frowning. "Uh… what the fuck was that, Johanne?"

Her eyes widened a bit, and she scratched her cheek nervously with a finger.

"I-I'm sorry, Leon…" she mumbled.

I let out a long, slow sigh, already feeling that something ridiculous was about to happen.

I extended my hand and used wind magic to force open the nearby closet door.

A whoosh of air swept through the room—and out came a body tumbling forward.

"Uwaaaaaah!"

A shocked yelp echoed as the figure crashed onto the floor, landing forehead-first with a nasty thud.

There she was. A short-haired, wearing glasses, and sporting a sharp hime cut.

It was none other than Johanne's wife.

Tris.

"Ouch… That hurt…" she groaned, still face-down on the ground. Her voice was muffled against the floor, but her tone carried an odd sense of satisfaction. "Hehehe~ But man, that was a hell of a show! Premium content for my web novel, if I do say so myself!"

With an exaggerated motion, she pushed herself up and stood, laughing through her nose in that creepy, nasally way of hers.

Blood was dripping from her nose—and judging by the sparkle in her eyes, it wasn't from the fall.

"Oh, it's going to be amazing! My fans are going to love this!"

I stared at her, still completely naked under the blanket, trying to make sense of this fever dream.

"Tris, what the hell are you even doing here?" I asked, my voice tight. "Don't tell me… you watched the entire thing?"

"Hehehe! Of course I did! There's no way I'd pass up on the chance to witness some male-on-male action! Well, okay, since Johanne's technically a woman now, I guess it's not exactly man-on-man… but it still has that essence to it, you know? She used to be a guy, after all! That gives it the perfect spice! And with all the juicy stuff I got from watching this, I can finally update my story with some real heat!"

"Wait… did you just say you're writing a web novel now?"

I blinked in disbelief. No way this was real. Were things like that really starting to pop up in this world?

"Well, yeah!" she replied, like it was the most obvious thing ever. "I submitted my first draft to a publishing company, but they rejected it instantly—those snobs wouldn't know a masterpiece if it bit them in the ass. But then, I found this amazing site online where you can just post your stories directly! And people read them! I already have tons of fans! Look, look!"

She pulled out her phone with a proud grin, holding it up for me to see.

She didn't even acknowledge the fact that I was still lying there, completely naked.

I glanced at the screen.

And what I saw there made my heart stop.

My eyes widened in pure, undiluted horror.