That Time I Got Reincarnated as an Overpowered Elf (Tensura x OC)

(1) Awakening To A New Reality

The last thing I could remember was someone mocking me about being an Esteemed Scientist, but after that, it felt like everything blurred together. There was no sound, no light, no smells, just an endless void.

I don't know how long I was there, floating absentmindedly, but it felt like hours, maybe even days. Just me and the dark. I had never feared being alone, in fact, I reveled in it, it gave the peace and quiet I needed to think. But this, this was something else. There was nowhere for me to write, nothing to experiment with, it was empty. There was nothing to keep me occupied.

As ashamed as I am to admit, it felt like I was about to lose it. My mind was ready to give in, driven numb by the silence, but then something came through to break through it. It was faint through the ringing in my ears but it was there. Something to bring me out of the mind-numbing silence.

It sounded like someone was humming. An oddly sweet melody that helped to calm my nerves. It relaxed me, helped me keep my mind together, and as such, I reached out for it. I'd had more than enough time drifting along in the void, so I reached, and reached, and the sound became more and more audible as I pressed forward.

Then, finally, I could feel my senses coming back to me. First my hearing which let me listen to the melody clearer, then my touch which let me feel the soft fabric covering me, then my smell which let in the soothing scent of perfume, then my taste which gave way to the odd flavor on my tongue.

And lastly, my vision. The light shone into my eyes so suddenly , it was almost blinding, but my eyes would eventually adjust. The first thing I saw was... a woman. One that I had never met before.

She looked down at me with sparkling gold eyes, brimming with some odd form of fondness, and a smile to match. Though her hair was ragged, it didn't take away from how well the silver locks framed her face. To say the least, she was attractive, but the current situation still put me off.

Her mouth moved, and she was definitely saying something, but the language was unfamiliar.

Not once in my life had I ever seen this woman, nor do I remember any of my family having pointed ears... Wait, pointed ears?

I understood that it was rude, especially coming from someone of my age, but my curiosity drove me more than etiquette. I reached up to prod at the pointed auricle, but found that I couldn't reach.

The woman seemed amused by the act but I couldn't share the enthusiasm, as I was far more concerned with the state of my arms. They had shrunken, and become more stubby and flabby. I gasped in surprise, but that only worsened it. My voice came as a high-pitched whine rather than a deep breath.

My confusion worsened as the sound of a door opening sounded past the woman's humming. I followed the noise to see a man. Dark-silver hair, velvet red eyes, dark skin, and pointed ears similar to the woman's. He carried a tray that held a pitcher of what looked like water and two glasses.

Setting the tray down on a nearby table, he filled one of the glasses before walking over and taking a seat to the woman's left.

Everything about the situation was baffling. If at all I woke up, I'd expect to wake up in a hospital room, or at the very least in my bed, but instead I find myself in the arms of someone I'd never met before with another complete stranger sitting to the side. To add to it, I had the body of an infant barely over 7 months old!

My mind couldn't wrap itself around the concept. I'd heard of the theory of reincarnation, in fact I'd taken an interest in it in my earlier days despite dropping the topic off as simple fiction. Yet here I am, born again in a land unknown.