Prologue
The battle between Hero and Demon King.
It has occurred countless times in this world.
The Demon King, ruler of the Demon race.
One exists in every era.
When the Demon King of the current era is defeated, one among the demons and demon creatures possessing exceptional strength evolves into the next Demon King.
That is determined by the world.
Thus, the Demon King may be destroyed, but never extinguished.
Their natures vary widely.
A Demon King said to have shattered the ground with fists, carving valleys.
A Demon King said to have mastered magic, wielding a thousand spells.
Common to such Demon Kings is hostility toward humanity and overwhelming power.
The Hero is humanity's hope, destined to fight such Demon Kings.
The battle between Hero and Demon King is a constant push and pull.
The Hero has slain the Demon King. The Demon King has repelled the Hero.
Yet as the Demon King endures without end, so too does the Hero.
Their conflict spans generations, unbroken.
This is the world's fate.
If tragedy occurs, it is because the Hero and Demon King of that age were too well matched.
Both wielded rare dimensional magic.
Magic capable of manipulating dimensions and spacetime itself—equal to that of gods.
They followed their fates, unleashing this magic.
The two magics clashed. The world screamed.
The Hero and Demon King perished, unable to withstand their own power.
The shockwave reached beyond spacetime, erupting in another world.
That spacetime explosion detonated in a classroom at a high school in Japan, a world known as Earth.
Twenty-six students and the teacher in the classroom fell to their deaths from a direct magical strike.
The incident was reported as a mysterious large-scale explosion.
They will never know of the broadcast, having already died.
Even if reborn, there will be no such thing.
Because their souls had reversed flow across space-time, emerging into a world where heroes and villains wage eternal conflict.
Their souls散, and each is reborn as a new life in a new world.
This is the story of one among them.
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Gah—!
Intended to let out an incomprehensible groan, but no groan emerged.
Is my current state of being so dire?
OK, calm down, me.
No pain in the body.
I remember being in a Japanese class when suddenly a severe pain overwhelmed me.
Probably lost consciousness then, but now nothing aches.
But even with eyes open, it's pitch black. Can't tell where I am.
More precisely, it feels as if something is covering my body—can't move at all.
Could this be... a vegetative state?
Ugh.
I want to deny it, but the situation strongly suggests that possibility.
Don't know what happened, but I seem to have become a vegetative state.
No way.
Conscious, but unable to move the body, no senses...
That’s definitely a breakdown trajectory.
No way.
Just as I thought that, a faint rustling sound reaches me.
If I can hear it, then auditory function is still active.
Hmm.
But still, being able to hear nothing but sound is just as painful.
Gan!
Ah, ouch!?
What? What’s this?
Did something hit me?
Hmm?
If it hurts, then tactile sensation is still functional?
Wait—wait a moment.
Calm down, Sophia.
If I think clearly, there’s something off, but I can still feel my body!
No—this isn’t like being in a vegetative state.
Earlier I said my body felt covered by something, but that was exactly what it was.
Heh heh.
No, this isn’t funny!
What… is this situation?
Kidnapped and stuffed into a burlap sack?
No way.
Who would abduct someone like me, a bottom-tier woman, and gain anything?
Regardless, I must escape.
Pshh!
When I forced tension into my body, whatever was covering me began to break.
Not a burlap sack.
What is this?
Soft… but hard… strange sensation.
Anyway, if it’s breaking, that’s ideal.
Break it open and escape now!
Crack!
It’s open!
Crawling out from my head.
Now I am free!
An overwhelming swarm of spiders filled my vision.
Wha—!?
Eeeeeeek!?
Kisho!?
What is this giant spider army!?
Each one is as large as me!?
Wait—more are emerging from something like eggs!
That scratching sound earlier—was this it?!
I instinctively step back.
Something touches my leg. I turn.
Hmm?
Is this… that?
The thing I just crawled out of?
Does it look like a spider egg? Or is it just my imagination?
No—looks exactly like one.
I reexamine my own form.
My neck won’t move.
But in the corner of my vision—something resembling my feet appears.
Spider legs.
Oooooohhhhhhh—falling, falling, falling, falling—!!?
Could this be… the unthinkable?
Is this it!?
Is this the thing going viral online right now!?
No, no, no!
You know, in novels, you usually get perks from some godlike figure, right?
I didn’t get anything—definitely not this!
There are cases where the god doesn’t show up at all, but even so…
There are patterns—male characters as hero candidates, female ones as villainess heroines.
I glance sideways once more.
The legs around me—same as the spiders nearby—thin, wire-like.
I consciously try to move them.
They respond exactly as intended.
Hmm.
I’m skilled at escaping reality—but here, I must admit it clearly.
It appears I’ve been reincarnated as a spider.