The Demon Race—a lowly species forced to serve unconditionally under other races. This tragic fate persisted for thousands of years until a mysterious figure appeared and freed them from their enslavement. Under the leadership of a Goblin, the Demon Race rose up and conquered the entire world, turning the tables from being oppressed to becoming the dominant species at the top of the food chain. Thus began the era of the Demon Race and the Demon King—the leader of the Demons.
The prosperity of the Demon Race lasted for a century until a divine messenger appeared. She granted power to all other races, enabling them to defeat the Demon King. One might have expected that after the Demon King was slain, the Demon Race would be leaderless and forced to kneel before the other races once more. However, that was not the case. As soon as the first Goblin Demon King was killed, a new Demon King was born—more accurately, he had already been there.
Any Demon could become a Demon King if they met certain criteria: gaining the trust of the entire Demon Race and having the ability to lead them away from extinction. The Demon King didn’t necessarily have to be the strongest, but he certainly had to be the wisest.
Years passed, and the tension between the Demon Race and the rest of the world showed no signs of easing. Although the other races were under the protection of the Creators, most had a certain limit to their strength, whereas the Demon Race did not. Because of this, as time went on, the Demon King grew stronger, and the Demon Race began to challenge the notion that "the Demon King doesn’t need to be the strongest."
With a rapidly growing population and no limits to their power, the Demon Race gradually regained the upper hand, and victory seemed to lean heavily in their favor.
After witnessing the relentless expansion of the Demon Race and facing the provocative challenges from the previous Demon King, the gods once again intervened to save everyone from the brutal domination of the Demons.
The Heroes—warriors summoned by the gods from another world and bestowed with special powers—were entrusted with a noble mission: to defeat the Demon King and save the world from the Demon Race’s reign.
Thus began the war between the Demon King and the Heroes, a conflict that has raged on for thousands of years with no end in sight.
When one Demon King is defeated, another rises. When a Hero falls, another is summoned, creating an endless cycle of confrontation and war.
On a planet called Earth, a group of teenagers was "fortunate" enough to be chosen by the gods to become the Heroes of the next cycle. They were teleported to a shrine, granted power, and trained under the best conditions.
But among them, there was one peculiar case…
***
I haven’t paid my rent yet!
Pant, pant.
“H… ha…”
“Huh? Huh, huh?”
“Squeak, squeak…”
“This ferret! How dare you lick my face?!”
“Squeak!”
Phew, you’re lucky you ran away fast enough, or I wouldn’t have held back.
Wait, a ferret? Do I even own a ferret?
Uh… uh… uh…
“Where… am I?”
First, I was startled awake by a dream where the landlord was demanding rent, then I was licked by a ferret with dark circles around its eyes, and now I realize I’m not even on my bed anymore.
Oh dear, I just hit the jackpot of bad luck first thing in the morning.
Hmm… I must be in a forest. I guess it’s a forest because there’s nothing around but huge tree trunks, grass, and moss.
Yep, this is definitely a forest. But… why am I here?
Wait. Before thinking about that…
“Mm!”
I should cover my mouth, slowly lie down, and try not to make any noise. Since this is a forest, there’s a high chance there are wild animals like tigers, lions, wolves, or something else. Even the smallest sound might attract a big lion to come and make a meal out of me right away.
…
Phew...
Finally, I’m lying down safely. It seems like nothing has noticed me yet. I hope those animals didn’t hear me cursing that ferret earlier.
The grass here is pretty tall, tall enough to hide two people my size lying on top of each other. For now, I’m probably safe.
I hope so. I hope every living creature in this forest has a stuffed-up nose.
Alright, I’ve decided. I’ll stay here for a while to gather my thoughts and think of a way to get out of this damned place.
***
The last thing I remember was after school, it was pouring rain, with thunder rumbling, and I didn’t bring a raincoat. I was in a hurry and couldn’t wait for the rain to stop.
So I decided to use "Roni" as a rain shield and sprinted to the bus stop, about half a kilometer from school. FYI, "Roni" is the name I gave my backpack.
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Yes, I gave my backpack a name.
Back to my raincoat-less story.
After a few minutes of running like mad, I finally reached the bus stop. And luckily, a bus was pulling up just as I arrived. I signaled to the driver, then grabbed Roni and got on the bus, finding an empty seat to sit in. Even though I used Roni as a shield, I was still drenched from head to toe.
Soon after, I arrived at my shabby apartment.
As soon as I opened the door, I kicked off my shoes and headed straight for the bedroom, tossed Roni onto the desk, and jumped onto the bed, ready to sleep like a log. I was so tired that I didn’t even bother changing my clothes; I just left them on and figured I could sleep like that.
But after tossing and turning for a while without falling asleep, I got up and went to check the wardrobe to see if I had any clean clothes left.
Ugh… I’ll just wear this…
Opening the wardrobe, the only thing I found was a long white dress that I hadn’t worn yet. I remembered buying it at a clothing store because it was displayed right at the entrance.
Why did I buy this dress? Because it looked like the outfit of a character I loved in a game.
But after buying it, I just left it in the wardrobe since I didn’t actually buy it to wear. Dresses don’t really suit me.
Or at least, I think so? No one’s ever told me whether I look good or bad in a dress.
Can’t really blame them. I’ve never worn a dress outside, so how could anyone give me feedback? What, should I just drag someone into my room and ask, “Do I look good in this?”
Ugh… That sounds so awkward…
What about my parents? Why not ask them instead of bothering strangers? Well, I wouldn’t know what they look like. They dumped me in an orphanage right after I was born.
So what do you do with clothes you buy but don’t wear? Use them as rags? No, the correct answer is to put them in a display case and admire them. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a display case, so into the wardrobe it went.
There’s nothing better than admiring an outfit you’ve only ever seen in a game!
After some hesitation, I made up my mind.
I took off my rain-soaked uniform and put on the dress, then jumped back onto the bed and tried to sleep again. Unlike before, I felt more comfortable now, and after counting a few sheep, I finally drifted off to sleep.
You know what happens next: I woke up after a dream where the landlord demanded rent and found myself lying in a forest.
So, why am I here? The most likely explanation is that someone kidnapped me and dumped me here while I was sleeping.
What would the kidnappers gain from doing this?
They probably want me to get eaten by a lion, or tiger, or some other vicious animal.
Why would they want that?
I have no idea. Go ask the kidnappers!
But whatever, who cares about that when my life is in danger right now? The real problem is figuring out how to escape from here and get back home safely.
Alright. Let’s think!
…
…
…
TOO QUIET!!
If there are no lions or tigers in this forest, there should at least be a bird flying by and chirping! And if there aren’t any birds, surely there must be some kind of insect making noise, right?
It’s been nearly ten minutes, and I haven’t heard anything except the wind!
Oh, I can hear my own heartbeat, too. That’s how quiet this forest is. It’s so quiet that sometimes I think I’m the only one here along with that ferret.
The truth is, too much silence isn’t good either.
As someone who’s used to listening to remix music while working, I can tell you this is a fact. This forest is too quiet, so I can’t focus on thinking.
Aside from that, being in a forest that’s too quiet is kind of scary. Instead of being thankful I don’t have to hear the growls of big, hairy animals, I’m trembling because I can’t hear them.
Why is that?
Think about it. Suppose I had two choices: one, hearing the growl of a tiger or lion or whatever, or two, not hearing anything (except the wind and my heartbeat). Which would be better? I don’t know about others, but I’d choose the first.
Oh, why?
If I could hear those big, hairy creatures growling, I’d be able to estimate how far away they are. By figuring out the distance between myself and the predator, I could guess how much time I
have left to live. The distance between me and the lion (or tiger, or whatever) would correlate with how much time I have left on this earth.
But if I can’t hear any growling, then either they don’t find me appetizing, or there are no wild animals around here, or… they’re silently creeping up on me…
You get the idea. Between a death I can anticipate and a sudden death, I’d choose the former, simply because I don’t like surprises.
Disappointed by my convoluted explanation that leads nowhere? Sorry, that’s all I’ve got. Please bear with me!
It’s undeniable that choosing the second option—meaning not hearing any growls—would at least give me a better chance of survival than the first option. But sorry, I hate taking chances, especially when it’s a matter of life and death.
But why bother thinking about these options when I don’t have the luxury to choose?
There’s an old saying: “You often get what you hate the most,” and boy, does that ring true right now.
…
Hmm… now that I think about it, why would the kidnappers choose to abduct me of all people? What would they gain from capturing a girl who’s been compared to the wicked witch from fairy tales? Not to mention I have a huge appetite.
Someone must have hired them to do this.
But who could it be? There are many people who dislike me—no, it’s not “many,” it’s “everyone.” But I don’t think anyone hates me enough to pay someone to kidnap me. More accurately, I don’t think anyone would want to spend a large sum of money just to kill a nobody like me.
Let’s say someone like that does exist.
Even so, why didn’t they tie me up? I’m very comfortable right now; there aren’t any ropes binding my hands or feet.
Could it be they wanted to give me a chance to fight for my life? If so, they must be a bunch of perverts.
Damn it, the more I think, the more plausible scenarios come to mind. At this rate, my little brain is going to overload.
I told you not to think about this anymore! I’ll have to throw my brain out to stop thinking.
Just kidding, don’t take it seriously. If I threw my brain out, I wouldn’t survive.
In conclusion, it’s best not to think about anything. The one who doesn’t think wins.
***
Ah…
So bright!
The large cloud in the sky gradually dissipated, and the sun began to emerge. Its rays shone directly into my eyes, forcing me to cover them with my hand.
I’m not ready to go blind at 17 years old.
How is it that early in the morning, the sun is already directly overhead!? Did I oversleep until noon…?
Though a bit disappointed in myself, I guess that’s what happened…
H… huh?
I’m not seeing things, right? Or is this some kind of optical illusion?
I squint up at the sky, and you know what? There are actually two sun-like celestial bodies up there!
I remember reading an article about this phenomenon once; I think it’s called “Parhelion” or something like that. But this phenomenon usually only occurs at sunrise or sunset when the sun is near the horizon.
But it’s the middle of the day! The chance of a “Parhelion” occurring at noon is less than 1%, even lower than the global birth rate of twins!
Oh, dear god, now my head is coming up with another crazy theory.
Could it be… that I’ve been transported to another world?
Haha, who would believe something that only happens in movies is actually real?
Let’s pinch myself…
Ouch! That hurts!!
Damn it, this isn’t a dream.
[Integration process complete]
Hmm?
Did I just hear something?
Something just interrupted my story, didn’t it?
No, it must be my imagination.
In this godforsaken place, there are no sounds except for the wind and my heartbeat. I bet it’s because it’s too quiet that I’m having an “auditory hallucination.”
Yeah, let’s go with that.
[Initiating Mon AI]
Wha!? Again!? What is this!? What’s that sound!?
I really didn’t hear wrong. There’s a robotic voice echoing in my head. No, it sounds more like Google’s voice. So I’ll call this voice Big Sis Google.
And finally...
It seems… I really have been transported to another world.