Despite falling head over heels for Kou, a character from otome game Hear My Heart, Rika has never gotten a good ending. Her real-life doesn’t go any better considering she falls and presumably dies after falling into a manhole.
That is, until second grader Mashiro realizes she is — or rather, was — Rika, and that now she’s in the world of Hear My Heart as the remake’s heroine.
Suddenly, professing her love to a fictional character doesn’t seem so crazy.
As you may be able to gleam from this volume’s subtitle, the story here covers from when Mashiro is in second grade until she’s ready to start middle school. If you’re worried this light novel is too kiddish — or, on the other hand, are looking forward to a sweet little coming-of-age tale — let me assure you Mashiro is very conscious that she’s really 18. Although moments make her blush and internally squeal, she insists she has no interest in falling in love until she’s back to her original age.
Of course, that’s a little difficult considering she’s in a game world where romance is a key point.
Mashiro first gets her memory back after meeting a crying Sou, Hear My Heart‘s other hero. She then realizes Kou is probably around too, and so she starts playing the piano in order to meet him. Well, Mashiro gets two shocks shortly thereafter: haughty, prideful types aren’t that great when you actually have to deal with them, and she’s not the only girl who has found herself in this game world.
The latter aspect is what really sets Obsessions of an Otome Gamer apart from many other isekai stories. Mashiro has no idea why she’s in Hear My Heart, but Kon, the original game’s heroine and Kou’s sister, knows a lot about the game and their situation. She assists Mashiro as much as she can, but she is unable to reveal everything. The light novel drops hints about Kon’s past before confirming it to readers just before the end, and I kind of wish the revelation was either held off or less blatant. There are still many questions of how both girls ended up in this world in the first place though, and when combined with the elementary school setting, the light novel has a surprising freshness.
However, Kou and Sou are still at the center of the story. Over the years, they become even more transparent about their interest in Mashiro: Kou realizes Mashiro is not after his family’s fame and fortune, and Sou sees her as one of the few people who truly care about him. Since they are so young, the two are presumably not as edgy as their high school incarnations in Hear My Heart, but I still found Mashiro’s sudden turnabout regarding Kou strange and unnecessarily makes it more of a generic “I hated him at first” shoujo story. This is especially true as Sou is presented as the sweet, kind, almost-always-loses Love Triangle Option #2. It’s awkward for Mashiro as well as readers to see young boys pull off the typical “look only at me” fanservice, but at least Mashiro’s memories of being Rika slowly ebb out.
Plus, despite the discomfort of elementary boys flirtatiously winking, her current true love is the piano. She doesn’t want to trigger a bad ending with either of them, but Mashiro doesn’t want to give up the piano even if it would mean the two boys would disappear from her life. Classical music is a huge part of the story, and considering there’s no music or constant pictures, you might find it beneficial to stop and listen to the pieces being played. I have absolutely no musical talent, and the descriptions didn’t help the tone-deaf me “hear” the pieces.
The translation does use terms like “oresama” and “tsundere”, and Japanese-style nicknames like “Mashiron” are also kept. Sometimes the characters sound older than their age, but at least that can be explained because of Mashiro and Kon’s real ages and them living in a game world.
I admit Obsessions of an Otome Gamer was quite different than what I expected: a fun parody or self-aware reincarnation tale. Instead, it is more like La Corda d’Oro, a classical music-heavy story where the protagonist discovers a love for her instrument thanks to a supernatural incident. If you can get around the fact that Rika/Mashiro is both freaked out and fascinated by the “sexy air” around the boys, Obsessions of an Otome Gamer Volume 1 is an enjoyable read for those who want a good old-fashioned love triangle.