The Convent of the Holy Maiden

Elwa stood in the center of the room, staring blankly at the figure in the mirror, his face filled with an expression of fear and disbelief.

In his eyes, he could clearly see a beautiful young girl ahead, appearing to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, with short black hair and pure, lovely features. She wore a long dress that seemed to be styled in the fashion of ancient Europe.

The girl exuded an aura of noble elegance, with her high, full chest and beautiful appearance, she was undoubtedly an exquisite beauty. In the past, Elwa would have drooled over her and secretly fantasized about her in his mind.

...If only she were not himself...

Elwa staggered forward with stiff steps, bumping into things as he moved to the vanity. He reached out with a trembling hand to touch the mirror, its surface cold to the touch—it was undeniably a large mirror.

Inside the mirror, the young girl also reached out her hand, mimicking Elwa's actions, with fear and shock clearly written on her face.

Elwa placed his hand on the mirror's surface, looking down at his prominent chest, and felt such anguish that he almost began to cry.

It turned out that what the book said was true...

He once read a novel about a boy who became so obsessed with reading novels that he stayed up several nights and eventually died from exhaustion. After being reincarnated, his soul ended up in the body of a young eunuch in an ancient palace, subjected to the whips and servitude of the emperor's concubines.

As a young man of the 21st century, Elwa always scoffed at such fantasy stories. Although he enjoyed reading fantasy novels, he never believed that the events described in them could actually happen.

Now, he finally faced retribution. After eagerly reading novels for several days, he met the same fate as the protagonist of that book—electrocuted to death. Upon waking, he found himself lying in a room filled with an ancient aura. When he struggled to get up and looked into the room's mirror, he saw a beautiful young girl, only to realize it was himself.

Reincarnating into another world was nothing new; many novels had similar precedents. But being reincarnated as a female was utterly tragic. The thought of being with a man in the future made Elwa shudder in disgust; he wished for death instead.

Suddenly, his eyes flashed as he keenly noticed a barely visible Adam's apple on the girl's neck in the mirror. If she were female, she shouldn't have such a thing, right?

Perhaps in this world, all females had Adam's apples? Or maybe the girl he reincarnated into was originally a man who was now cross-dressing?

The thought excited Elwa, making him tremble. He quickly lifted the skirt, reached into the underwear, and felt around, hoping to resolve his confusion.

He found nothing.

Elwa frantically rummaged his crotch multiple times but didn't grasp any handle at all. It bore no resemblance to how it felt before when touching himself.

Not finding anything confirmed everything. Elwa's vision went black, and he collapsed softly to the ground, fainting.

In the dim hotel room, a slender and beautiful young girl lay quietly on the floor, eyes closed, as if devoid of life's breath. Such a poignant scene was truly heart-wrenching.

While unconscious, Elwa's mind replayed the experiences of his short life.

He had lived on 21st-century Earth, dreaming like other young men that a super beautiful woman would fall in love with him. He fantasized about being sweetly in love, doing the things everyone loves with someone special.

But reality cruelly shattered his dreams. As an ordinary young man without money and not classically handsome, not even regular girls, let alone super beauties, paid him any attention. As a poor man, he couldn't even afford a one-night stand, so he died a miserable virgin.

Now, one of the wishes he made on a shooting star had finally come true: he had become very handsome. This would be advantageous in wooing women, but his body had turned female. Even if he succeeded in wooing a partner, how would he enjoy it? Engage in a lesbian relationship with another beauty?

After a long while, Elwa finally awoke slowly, trembling as he reached down and felt through the skirt, yet again failing to find what he hoped to touch. His vision darkened, and he almost fainted again.

However, he suddenly realized that if someone were to see such a beautiful young girl lying on the ground, she might be in danger of being violated. So Elwa gritted his teeth, refusing to pass out and risk being taken advantage of.

"Be strong!" Elwa mentally recited the earnest teachings of his school teachers, forcing himself to rise from the floor. He steadied himself on the vanity and surveyed the room's furnishings, eager to understand where he was and who he had become.

The furniture in the room was rather old, with just a few simple pieces, but their style was entirely different from what Elwa was used to—resembling European medieval furniture.

He painstakingly dragged his stiff body and stumbled to the window, opened it, and looked outside.

The window faced the street, bustling with people who filled the sidewalks. Their appearances resembled Europeans, with hair in a variety of colors. The architectural style of the street also seemed like something from medieval Europe.

Below the window, at the entrance of the building he was in, there was a large sign. Because it was placed at an angle, he could barely make out the words "Some Hotel" written on it.

It was a strange script that didn't look like German, French, English, or certainly Chinese. Elwa was sure he had never seen such peculiar writing before.

But what was stranger was that he could understand what the letters said, and they felt very familiar to him. If asked to write, he was sure he could easily produce a large amount of this strange script.

This the memory left in the body his soul now occupies! Elwa gave a wry smile. Although he couldn't recall the past of this body, the gift it left him could perhaps help him survive better in this world.

He turned around and slowly walked back to sit in front of the vanity, like a lady, silently contemplating.

He could now be fairly certain that after dying, he had been reincarnated into another world and possessed the body of a young girl, a very beautiful one, just like the girl of his dreams.

Looking at the girl in the mirror, Elwa unconsciously raised his hand, touching his cheek and body.

A mix of undeniable pain and excitement rose in his eyes because this was his first time touching a girl's body; it was just a pity that it was his own.

"It seems wishing on shooting stars really works. I used to stand in the fields every night, wishing on shooting stars to touch a beautiful girl's body, and now my wish has indeed come true!" Elwa's eyes began to water, as if moved to tears, or as if the pain was unbearable.

Human adaptability can be so strong it would embarrass cockroaches. In his extreme anguish, Elwa chose to find comfort in his sorrow, beginning to enjoy this unique experience.

He had read some transformation novels before and always found them unrealistic. A pure-hearted young man like himself, upon becoming female, would surely be curious to explore the mysteries of the female body once the initial pain and anxiety subsided, even using his hand to satisfy the sexual desire aroused by seeing a beautiful female body for the first time.

His hand, trembling, reached his body, unbuttoned his clothes, and revealed his chest. He then lowered his head, eyes wide open, hoping to see with his own eyes what he had only seen in computer images before—the female breasts.

However, whether due to his bad luck or not, disappointment met him once again.

His flat chest resembled a runway, merely more shapely than his previous body, entirely lacking the breasts he had longed for.

Elwa angrily jumped up, nearly swearing aloud. Turning into a woman without breasts was clearly a short change!

Suddenly, his expression changed drastically. He unbelievingly felt his chest again, pinching hard a couple of times, finally confirming he was a creature with the upper body of a man and the lower body of a woman.

His face began to turn pale as he fearfully thought, "What is this? A hermaphrodite?"

Arriving in another world, even more unacceptable than becoming a woman was becoming a hermaphrodite. Staring at his flat chest, Elwa finally tilted his head and fainted cleanly and swiftly.

Not knowing how long it had been, urgent calls echoed in Elwa's ears. He slowly awoke, unable to hold back tears of sorrow.

For a psychologically normal young man, being a man was his duty; being a woman was a disaster; and being a hermaphrodite was worse than death.

A wave of intense grief and anger surged within him. Elwa braced himself, about to throw himself against the wall to end it all and be reincarnated, hoping to be a pure man in his next life. Suddenly, a clear voice rang in his ear: "Your Highness the Prince, are you alright?"

Elwa's body froze suddenly. He turned his head, looking blankly at the beautiful woman holding him tightly, and gently said, "You've got it wrong, haven't you? Shouldn't it be Your Highness the Princess?"

The woman beside him wore a light blue tight-fitting outfit that Elwa thought looked like a warrior's attire. Her hair was ocean blue, and her appearance was charming, with a bold and heroic aura about her.

She seemed to be in her early twenties, with a great figure, slim and alluring, yet very fit, exuding a sense of immense strength. This blue-haired beauty knelt beside him, tears in her eyes as she held him tightly, trembling as she exclaimed, "Your Highness the Prince, you're finally awake, that's wonderful!"

She hugged Elwa tightly, burying her face in his neck, tears from her beautiful large eyes soaking his clothes and flowing down to his flat chest.

Elwa was stunned. It was the first time a girl had been so intimate with him, but he couldn't help feeling a mix of emotions, heavily leaning towards sorrow, especially since he had lost the tool for happiness.

After a long time, he asked softly, "You've got it wrong, haven't you? Or did you mean to say Your Highness the Princess?"

The lady warrior's face showed a horrified expression, shocked, she softly exclaimed, "Your Highness the Prince, why would you think that? You're just cross-dressing, why would you want to be a princess?"

Elwa's heart skipped a few beats and then calmed down again. With a bitter smile, he said, "Stop comforting me. Feel here, how can a man be like this?"

He guided the lady warrior's hand to his crotch, where it was empty, with nothing there.

Holding her smooth hand tightly, pressing it between his empty legs, feeling her gentle hand touch his lower body, tears welled up in his eyes once again, almost flowing out.

The Beautiful Swordswoman was completely stunned, her face turning as red as if it could drip blood. After a moment, she let out a sharp cry, quickly withdrew her hand, and whispered, "Your Highness the Prince, you've used the Shrinking Yang technique, haven't you forgotten?"

Elwa's eyes instantly lit up with a passionate glow, like a drowning man clutching at his last straw. He hugged her warm, soft body tightly and shouted, "Quick, tell me, what's going on? And why are you calling me Prince?"

The Beautiful Swordswoman quickly covered his mouth, speaking in fear, "Your Highness the Prince, don't shout so loudly. Have you forgotten? Or have you lost your memory due to a head injury?"

Amnesia is a staple for soul-transferred youths arriving in another world. Elwa quickly seized this opportunity, nodding eagerly and urging the Beautiful Swordswoman to recount his past experiences.

The Beautiful Swordswoman, too flustered by his urgency to feel sorrow for his amnesia and driven by her loyalty to the royal family, hurriedly and thoroughly told Elwa everything he wanted to know.

Elwa listened with excitement, gradually understanding his current situation.

He found himself on a vast continent with many countries. The country he was in was one of the major powers on the continent—the Kingdom of St. Ann. The body he had transferred into was that of Prince Edward of St. Ann, and his current condition was merely due to practicing the Shrinking Yang Technique.

As a prince, he naturally had many beautiful Handmaidens to serve him, offering plenty of opportunities to take advantage of the situation. But before Elwa could fully delight in the thought, the Beautiful Swordswoman's next words felt like a blow to the head!

Though a prince, a fallen phoenix is no match for a chicken; a prince who has been usurped is worse off than an ordinary citizen.

King Louis, the father of Prince Edward, was murdered by treacherous ministers a month ago, and the entire kingdom fell into the hands of these traitors. The Prince himself was rescued from the palace through the sacrificial efforts of his loyal followers, and is now living incognito, evading the traitors' pursuit.

After the usurper ascended the throne, he ordered his men to search everywhere for the Prince's whereabouts. To prevent discovery, the Prince's followers had him disguise himself as a woman to evade the usurper's ever-watchful spies.

To make the Prince appear more like a girl, his followers spared no effort. The prominent bust from earlier was the result of padding inside his clothes, which was ineffective once the clothes were removed.

However, the pursuit by the usurper's spies became increasingly intense, leaving them no safe haven in the entire kingdom. For the Prince's safety, his two most loyal subordinates devised a plan to actually turn the Prince into a woman, allowing him to blend into The Convent of the Holy Maiden until the danger passed.

One of the loyal subordinates was the Beautiful Swordswoman named Catherine, and the other was a Grand Magician skilled in Illusion technique and spellcraft.

The transformation of Prince Edward's body was Catherine's handiwork. She used the Yin-Yang spell on the Prince, causing him to experience Shrinking Yang, which could be reversed after about a year.

As for his less feminine upper body, there was no alternative but to explain it away as underdeveloped, hoping this would deceive the nuns who were unfamiliar with men.

Elwa felt relieved; being a woman for a year was uncomfortable, but it held the promise of returning to normal and was far preferable to being hunted down and killed. Moreover, posing as a girl in the convent meant plenty of pleasant sights to see, which for Elwa, who had never seen a real female body, was thrilling!

The place he was to hide was nominally just a convent, but in reality, it was the spiritual backbone and a place of high esteem and worship for the people of the Kingdom of St. Ann.

Most of the Kingdom of St. Ann's populace were followers of the Goddess of Life. Additionally, many people throughout the continent's countries were believers, and this was particularly true in the Kingdom of St. Ann.

Legend has it that during the founding of the nation, a great holy maiden devoted to the Goddess of Life aided the then-king in defeating enemies and establishing the kingdom. In gratitude, the king helped the holy maiden found the convent, where the Goddess of Life was worshipped, and declared the faith of the Goddess of Life as the state religion.

The nuns in The Convent of the Holy Maiden were devotees of the Goddess of Life, many of whom possessed various powerful and extraordinary abilities. With their support, other nations dared not casually invade the Kingdom of St. Ann.

Prince Edward's father was assassinated by traitors partially because he lacked the support of The Convent of the Holy Maiden, leading to the kingdom falling into the hands of traitors.

It so happens that the usurper king also came from a noble lineage; his grandfather was King Leer from a hundred years ago. However, after King Leer's death, his family's rule was overthrown by Edward's grandfather, who became the new king. The Convent of the Holy Maiden, though quietly acknowledging the facts, was never particularly warm towards Edward's family. When the Leer family launched their rebellion, The Convent of the Holy Maiden chose to ignore it and, after King Louis was assassinated, outright declared their support for the Leer family. This quickly quelled the opposition from various factions within the kingdom and significantly aided the Leer family in consolidating control over the realm.

Understandably, Catherine harbored some resentment towards The Convent of the Holy Maiden for this, but for the sake of the Prince's safety, she could only agree with the Grand Magician's suggestion to send the Prince to the convent for temporary refuge. A year later, when the commotion had subsided, they would retrieve him and prepare for a restoration.

However, just yesterday, after the Grand Magician exhausted his magic casting the Yin-Yang spell on Prince Edward, spies came in pursuit. Though Catherine managed to slay all the spies with her sword, Prince Edward suffered a heavy blow to the head during the skirmish and fell unconscious on the spot. With healing from the Grand Magician's spells, he awoke a day later, now with a new soul inside him—Elwa's consciousness encased in Edward's form.

Naturally, this was something Elwa did not reveal to Catherine. He could only claim he had suffered injuries leading to amnesia, leaving him familiar only with the language of this continent while forgetting all past events.

Catherine held him tightly, soothing him softly. As the Prince's Captain of the Guards and like an elder sister to him, she always took great care of the gentle-natured Prince.

Elwa lay in her embrace, feeling her soft chest pressing against him, his mind adrift as if in a dream.

However, doubts about his own body left him unable to enjoy such tender fortune. He struggled to his feet and requested a bath, feeling uncomfortable.

Catherine quickly called for the inn's Handmaiden to assist him and lead him to the bathroom.

Standing in the bathroom and looking at his body, Elwa felt a mix of joy and sorrow.

The joy was that his body was entirely male. Standing naked before the mirror, he saw that his physique was that of a fit young man, and his androgynous appearance was very handsome. With such looks, he would surely succeed in flirting with girls.

The sorrow was that the unusual state of his lower body shattered all his confidence. Though a virgin, he didn't know if the retracted lower body resembled female genitalia, but he was sure it wasn't the male organ it should be. This deeply shook his self-esteem, and after the bath, he couldn't even meet Catherine's eyes, despite her beauty and captivating demeanor.

"A man without a penis has no right to court beauties," Elwa thought sadly to himself. "My only hope is that the Grand Magician will keep his word and that I will naturally recover in a year. That would be a blessing."