First Experiences in Life

July in Tokyo was already beginning to feel stiflingly hot, with the piercing shrill of cicadas drifting from the trees lining the streets every now and then.

Strolling through the streets of Shinjuku, Kazakami Ritsu halted before a towering building, gazing up at the lettering on its facade with a heavy sigh.

It had been a week since she transmigrated into this world, and it had taken a considerable amount of effort to barely accept the earth-shattering reality of her transformation.

Her name was now Kazakami Ritsu. She would turn eighteen next week and was currently a freshman at the Japan Narration Institute.

She came from a relatively affluent background; with her parents working overseas, her life was quite free and unrestricted.

The voice acting agency she was currently affiliated with was Galactic·Sound, a long-established name in the industry.

Reminiscing about the past, he had once been a struggling writer known within the circle as the “Sister-Slaying Maniac,” widely popular among male readers; those glory days felt as if they were just yesterday.

It was a tragedy that a dignified, strapping man had now transformed into this petite young girl, standing less than 1.6 meters tall.

The reason she was here today was that her manager had secured a role audition for her.

The role in question was a supporting character in a recently explosive anime adaptation of a classic shonen battle manga.

It was a named supporting role with only a few sparse lines. The character’s life was quite brief, appearing only in the first half of the very first episode.

However, as a rookie, getting any suitable audition opportunity was already good enough—what right did she have to be picky?

After taking the elevator to the designated floor, she stepped out to see a young woman in a professional business suit.

Koconoe Tooru, her current manager.

The manager, who had been waiting there for some time, wore an expression that seemed rather impatient.

“Kazakami-san, you look like you’re in good shape. That’s the way. Don’t let the pressure get to you.”

“Mn. What’s the situation right now?”

“I’m not entirely sure, but including you, there are six people auditioning for this role. For a part like this, the competitive pressure isn’t too high.”

‘Heh, even a bit-part role has five competitors. You call that not much pressure…?’

Retorting silently in her heart, Kazakami Ritsu followed her manager down the corridor.

The hallway was packed with people. After leading her to a side waiting room, Koconoe Tooru went straight off to chat with a manager she knew.

Leaning against the wall in a quiet corner near a vending machine, Kazakami Ritsu silently observed the others in the room.

She didn’t seem to spot any particularly famous seniors, which was understandable; today was, after all, just for supporting role auditions.

With high-budget, high-profile projects like this, basically every role required surviving a brutal competition to secure.

By the time Koconoe Tooru returned to the waiting room, a young Sound Director walking out of the recording booth seemed to have just finished a session.

He glanced at everyone in the room, then turned his gaze toward Koconoe Tooru with a look of inquiry.

Koconoe Tooru smiled, stepped to the side, and began to introduce the talent under her charge.

“Director Haneda, this child is the rookie from GS we’re proposing for the role of Meihime.”

“Kazakami, this is the industry’s ace Sound Director, Haneda Tasuku. He’s been the Sound Director for many super-popular works.”

After the introductions were exchanged, Koconoe Tooru gave Haneda Tasuku a meaningful look.

Haneda Tasuku, who had been petitioned beforehand, raised an eyebrow as his gaze landed on Kazakami Ritsu.

This rookie’s appearance was quite outstanding, but he wondered how her professional skills would stack up.

Pondering for a moment, Haneda Tasuku decided to start with a simple segment to test the waters.

“Since you’re here, let’s give it a try. I’ll make it clear upfront: I am very strict.”

“We’ll start with you. Do you need time to prepare?”

Accompanying Haneda Tasuku’s words, Koconoe Tooru took a pre-prepared script from her bag and handed it to her.

Kazakami Ritsu took the script, glanced at the general content, and nodded.

“No further preparation needed. I’m ready.”

Haneda Tasuku nodded and gestured for her to enter the recording booth.

The layout inside the recording booth appeared quite simple: a pitch-black sound-absorbing wall with soundproof glass, a recording microphone suspended from the ceiling, and a monitor for viewing the demo footage.

After she entered, the heavy door capable of isolating all outside noise slowly closed shut.

At this moment, Kazakami Ritsu felt a bit nervous; this was, after all, her first time voice acting.

In the original manga, Meihime was a minor character at the start of the plot, serving mostly to establish the story’s background.

The original work, Tales of the Ten Thousand Blades, was a classic shonen battle manga, and its performance could be considered a benchmark for recent years.

Meihime was set up as the first famous sword to be granted a spirit. She had achieved victory in the decisive battle of the previous generation but had suffered heavy damage.

Therefore, after guiding the male protagonist, she was basically a character who would only appear in the flashback sequence before the opening theme, with very few lines.

Just as Kazakami Ritsu walked beneath the microphone and flipped through the script in her hand, Director Haneda issued his command.

“Alright, get a feel for it. Start directly from Line C!”

Hearing the instruction from Director Haneda, Kazakami Ritsu raised her script and locked onto the content of Line C.

“Was it you who found me…? Judging by your soul, you seem to be a gentle person.”

An ethereal voice passed through the high-quality microphone and into the headphones of Haneda Tasuku, who was sitting directly across the soundproof glass.

His brow twitched slightly, and the expression on his face was one of considerable surprise.

But before he could fully register his surprise, the girl behind the glass had already begun to speak again, following the sequence of the script.

‘Some things, you only know if you can do them after you try.’

The moment she opened her mouth, Kazakami Ritsu seemed to discover a peculiar sensation.

Despite being a pure rookie who had never worked in dubbing, broadcasting, or even hosting, she was able to articulate clearly and finish the lines with full emotional depth.

Not only that, but as she looked at the two scribbled stick figures on the demo screen, vivid scenes of the corresponding plot actually surfaced in her mind.

A black-haired youth gripped a broken sword that was only half its length. The instant he touched the hilt, a petite, beautiful spirit entity appeared by his side.

“I never imagined that I, the victor, would ultimately meet such an end. Hmm? You ask who I am?”

“Hmm… That guy always called me Meihime, so you may address me as such too. It is just that… my time is running out.”

As the ethereal, gentle voice delivered the final half of the sentence, a sense of relief permeated her tone.

Behind the soundproof glass, Haneda Tasuku’s expression remained unchanged as he slowly issued the next instruction.

“Let’s stop there for now. Next is Line A.”

Listening to the instruction, Kazakami Ritsu slightly adjusted her stance.

The methods for adjusting breath and vocalization were already deeply etched into her brain, like instinct.

“Nameless youth, you are the chosen one, shouldering the destiny of battle.”

“However, you are currently far too weak. Therefore, I entrust ‘Destiny’ to you. I believe that with ‘Destiny’ in hand, you will be able to achieve final victory, just as he and I once did.”

The warmth in her voice had completely vanished, replaced now by a tone thick with expectation.

Yet, Haneda Tasuku narrowed his eyes slightly, his expression unreadable.

“Repeat Line A. For the second half, try using a voice that leans more towards ‘Destiny’.”

Haneda Tasuku’s new instruction, devoid of any feedback, made Kazakami Ritsu pause for a moment.

“Destiny” was the new spirit entity that appeared after Meihime’s dissipation, possessing a similar appearance to her. She was also the super-popular female lead.

This Director Haneda really knew how to play games—making her voice the “Mother-in-law” and then the “Wife.”

Kazakami Ritsu took a deep breath, suppressing the distracting thoughts in her mind.

She closed her eyes, and information regarding “Destiny’s” character design and personality rapidly surfaced in her mind.

After a brief moment of contemplation, Kazakami Ritsu formed a new approach for this line.

After reciting the line again, Kazakami Ritsu began to wait anxiously for Haneda Tasuku’s new instruction within the deathly silent recording booth.

“Good work. Let’s stop here for now. I will give my answer after the others have finished their auditions.”

Haneda Tasuku’s voice rang out again, and Kazakami Ritsu nodded, obediently exiting the room.

Leaving the recording booth that had caused her mild anxiety, she felt as though she had just surfaced from the deep sea.

Koconoe Tooru noticed her complexion and smiled, offering her a cup of coffee.

“Ritsu-chan, you’ve worked hard. How was it? You didn’t get scolded too badly by Director Haneda, did you?”

“Uh… I don’t really know, but Director Haneda didn’t scold me at all.”

“You’re still young, so it’s actually quite normal to get scolded for a poor performance. After all, his standards for quality are very high. Even… Wait, what did you say? He didn’t scold you?”

Koconoe Tooru, who had originally intended to offer a few words of comfort, paused in astonishment, surprised by this outcome.

‘That’s not right. Isn’t Director Haneda famous for being a “Rookie Killer” and the “Incarnation of Enma”?!’

‘So why wasn’t this kid scolded during her first audition? Could it be because of her looks?’

Thinking of this, Koconoe Tooru cast a peculiar look toward Haneda Tasuku, who was wearing headphones and looking exceptionally serious.

“Well, it’s good that you weren’t scolded. It’s normal to be rejected on your first audition, so I hope you won’t take it too much to heart, Ritsu-chan.”

Kazakami Ritsu nodded. Since she hadn’t received any feedback, she actually had no idea how her performance had gone either.

After all, what you might think is appropriate isn’t necessarily correct in the eyes of others.

Soon, Haneda Tasuku took off his headphones and walked toward them with a stern face.

The expression on his face gave Kazakami Ritsu the feeling that the audition result wasn’t very promising.

However, the words he spoke next completely exceeded her expectations.

“Congratulations, you passed. It calls for a celebration.”