The Infinite World of Weapon Girls

These bizarre buildings, standing among hundreds of stories high skyscrapers, are just as incongruous as those mantis shrimps and Gundam robots mixed in with a sea of ​​speeding floating cars!

What kind of city of reincarnation is this...?

With a sudden jolt, the hovercar came to a stop and slowly descended from a height of 50 meters. Tina knew that they had arrived at the place J had mentioned.

What's reassuring is that the surrounding area consists of normal sci-fi buildings, and there's nothing strange about it.

Shortly after, the two appeared on a suspended platform of a circular building, which was labeled "Soul Reincarnation Research Institute." At the entrance, two armed robot guards stood watch.

"I've only heard about it, but this is my first time here."

As Uncle J spoke, he led the way, with Tina following closely behind. The robot's pupils emitted red light, and after checking for a few seconds, it allowed passage.

Strangely, Tina looked around at the quiet and secluded surroundings, but couldn't find a single reincarnator who had visited the place, which puzzled her.

J had already guessed, and with a low, cold laugh, he explained softly, "It's strange, isn't it? Indeed, this research institute is monopolized by a higher-ups, to the point that the fees are outrageously expensive and unaffordable for anyone... The water in the lower city is probably no shallower than that in the upper city."

“Monopoly…” Tina frowned in thought.

In the brief ten seconds of thought, the two had already entered the research institute. Inside, the girl witnessed all sorts of glass test tubes and genetic instruments, as well as some strange and unheard-of technological devices, which she assumed were related to 'souls'.

Standing behind the research table, a man in a white robe greeted the guests with a beaming smile: "May I ask, what kind of assistance do you two reincarnators require?"

"What is this...?" Tina asked in a low voice.

“He is also a Reincarnator… Outside the Reincarnation City, besides robots, there are only Reincarnators.”

Uncle J turned his head slightly, answered Tina's question in a low voice, and then immediately put on a smile as if he were meeting an old friend, took a step forward, and reached out to shake hands.

"Hello, I'm J from FE Tavern. I've long admired the name of the Soul Mage. I heard that your [Soul Reincarnation Technique] has been nominated for the 'Nobel Prize for Souls'? That's truly a cause for celebration. It seems you are the rising star in the field of black technology in the reincarnation world."

The young man, known as the Soul Mage, was taken aback. His professional smile vanished, but in an instant, an even greater expression of excitement appeared on his face. As if he had met a kindred spirit, he trembled and reached out his hands, tightly grasping Uncle J's outstretched right hand:

"So it's Manager J! Why didn't you let me know you were coming? Forgive me for not welcoming you properly! ... But compared to Manager J's soon-to-be-rising vast business empire, my achievements are utterly insignificant. I once thought Manager J was the real mastermind behind the scenes who would one day dominate the lower city..."

Lolita Tina quickly turned her head away, barely suppressing the urge to shoot those two shameless people who were complete strangers a second ago but were now fawning over each other with a shotgun.

Okay, enough with the pleasantries, J got straight to the point: "It's like this, my friend wants to reincarnate a soul... Tina?"

J called out to the girl, who then snapped out of her daze and carefully presented the transparent container to the soul mage with both hands.

Uncle J then realized that the seemingly empty container actually contained a soul.

This reincarnator, possessing the bloodline of a soul mage, could observe the seemingly weak yet incredibly powerful white soul entity through his passively granted Soul Eyes.

“That is indeed a very good soul power.” The soul mage narrowed his eyes and then said, “...but for a reincarnated soul, not only is the cost of reincarnation twice as expensive as other souls, but the memories will also be almost completely lost. Most importantly...it must take half of your lifespan as the price. This is the will of the main god.”

A suspicious gaze fell on Tina: "And another thing... young lady, can you afford to pay for reincarnation points?"

Upon hearing this, J was also taken aback. He turned his head and asked softly, "Indeed, the main god will not easily overlook matters such as the souls of those who are reincarnated. If half of one's lifespan must be deducted... Tina, do you still want to do this?"

Tina: "...Hmm"

"OK, then money is not a problem."

Having received a clear answer, J straightened his back and addressed the Soul Mage.

"Oh dear, I forgot. Since he's a friend of Manager J, he must be rich." The Soul Mage chuckled wickedly.

-

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

---

[Sorry, I'm late, Xiaoyue, you're such a jerk~_~]

【Ta48 Golden Legend!】

[Important Notes on Soul Reincarnation]

[Summary: I am a Soul Mage, only responsible for reincarnation, not for setting prices, so please don't make things difficult for me! And there's no room for negotiation! Thank you.]

[1: The customer selects/or randomly selects a 'body', and I will use magic to inscribe soul patterns to ensure a perfect fit between the soul and the body.]

[2: Please ensure that your soul is ≥90% intact, otherwise I will not be responsible for the reincarnation of a mentally challenged person.]

[3: Reincarnation points must be paid in full on the spot; no credit will be given.]

[4: The Supreme God stipulates that the soul of a reincarnated person must specify the reincarnated person to whom it will attach itself and take half of their lifespan.]

[5: The main god does not allow reincarnators to live in another form. Therefore, after a reincarnator's soul is reborn, it will lose all memories, including those of both lives... For humane reasons, some goodwill will be retained after reincarnation, depending on the level of affection in the previous life.]

The young man in the white research robes—the Soul Mage—solemnly held up a small blackboard for Tina to look at.

Tina read it carefully, nodded at the end, and then the Soul Mage smiled and put the blackboard behind him. He then connected to the internal network using his wristwatch, drew a light screen in the void, and activated information sharing.

A series of lifelike model illustrations appeared before the three of them in a nine-square grid, but this time they were not categorized by type, but by price and grade.

[500 Reincarnation Points - White]

[Slime, Wind-attribute Dire Wolf, Hundred-pace Snake, Lightning Chicken—etc.]

[1500 Reincarnation Points - Green]

[Gargoyles, auxiliary AI, evil/glorious hairy balls, half-spirit mochi—etc.]

Tina: "..."

J was originally an observer and naturally wanted to respect Tina's choice, but seeing the two bizarre reincarnations, white and green, he couldn't help but suddenly...

"Puha ...

J clutched her stomach desperately, but couldn't help bursting into a wicked laugh: "...Pfft, Tina, really... I think if this person knew she was reincarnated as one of these things, she'd immediately want to die again, hahaha..."

A slender, snow-white leg struck him like lightning behind the knee, catching him off guard and sending J sprawling to his knees... but that didn't stop him from continuing to laugh.

Tina ignored him, but the problem now was that reincarnation couldn't be done so hastily... White, green, and even blue—the effects they had would be minimal for Tina, who was already extremely powerful from the start.

Ahh—of course, the most important thing is that if the reincarnator knew that they would be unhappy to be reborn as a low-level, slacking-off pet, right?

So Tina skipped the [3500 Reincarnation Points - Blue] and [5000 Reincarnation Points - Purple Rare] tiers and asked the Soul Mage, "I want to see the Orange tier."

...Well, it's just something to look at, anyway, Tina can't even afford the blue one.

[10000 Reincarnation Points - Orange Epic]

[Shikigami Yingcao, Weapon Goddess, Ship Girl, Red-Eyes Black Dragon Baby - etc.]

"Aren't there any normal human models?" the girl asked, glancing at the soul mage out of the corner of her eye.

He pursed his lips, explaining generously yet helplessly, "Theoretically, it's possible. Give me a hair from my king, plus a cat demon's soul, and I can create an Artoria for you to be your R.BQ... But, our every move is under the watchful eye of the Supreme God. The Supreme God doesn't allow us to create people directly. But it doesn't matter at all. We can still get away with things like the Yingcao ship girl, who can fight, be cute, and even have sex. Isn't she much better than a mere vase?"

When it comes to things related to his main job (making RB.Q), the Soul Mage is always very enthusiastic and eager to explain.

J finally caught his breath and slowly stood up, but when he saw the price, his face turned bitter.

"Holy crap, 1? You guys are even more ruthless than God of War!?"

The Soul Mage sighed helplessly, "I made it clear beforehand that the price was set by the higher-ups, otherwise I wouldn't have gone a month without any business. Besides, no matter how high the price is, I don't take a cut... Damn it!!"

J had already heard about it, and could only awkwardly push Tina from behind, lowering his voice to say, "Hey... don't go too far. I can't come up with 1 Reincarnation Points unless you sell yourself..."

Tina bit her lip, but couldn't help asking, "Really, you can't buy it on credit?"

The soul mage was in a dilemma: "Girl, don't make things difficult for me."

"Are there other ways?"

“Of course there is,” the Soul Mage said, then he walked straight to a spot inside the research institute. “…Follow me.”

The three quickly arrived at a strange yet familiar device, much like a claw machine, but instead of plush toys, it contained pet eggs radiating a magical glow.

Outside the glass was a hand crank; as I recall, shaking it would randomly produce a pet egg.

The price is clearly stated in black next to it: [1000 Reincarnation Points per attempt, the Golden Legend awaits you!]

...I have to say, this lottery method is really down-to-earth!

But anyone who's played this kind of game knows that over 90% of the characters are white. Gold and orange? Have you ever seen a single SSR pull? Wake up, that's impossible.

J was startled, and pushed up her glasses with trembling hands: "Your lottery method... is quite unique."

"I want to smoke."

Tina didn't hesitate; she felt that at times like this, as long as she believed in herself, she could create miracles.

Before the soul mage could even reveal his sinister smile, J suddenly grabbed Tina's clothes and quickly dragged her out the door, her heels scraping the ground as she was pulled along like a rag doll.

The Soul Mage was left alone, bewildered and disoriented.

……

Outside the research institute, the little girl's voice was extremely cold.

Why did you drag me out?

"You're definitely better at probability than I am; you know that in your heart."

"But I have to smoke."

J pulled out two bottles of drinks from somewhere, tossed one to Tina, then unfastened the metal clasp and took a swig.

J wiped his mouth with his sleeve and smiled: "If I had known it would be this kind of lottery, I would have definitely called that guy over... but it's not too late now."

As he spoke, J raised his wristwatch and contacted someone. Tina, puzzled, asked, "...That guy?"

……

Ten minutes later, a young man arrived at the suspended platform in a hovercar, jumped off, and walked straight toward J.

The newcomer had a strange starfish hairstyle, just like 'Yugi Muto'. He smiled and walked towards him, raising his arms as if to give him a warm hug.

"Uncle J, that's not fair! You've been back for so long and only just now contacted me!"

J also warmly returned the hug, but it was just a pretense. At the last second, he turned to the side, and the naive young man ended up kissing the ground.

bang——

The young man rubbed his face with a pained cry, then got up and desperately gave J the middle finger.

J simply smiled faintly: "Let me introduce you first. This is Tina... my friend."