In a small, cold room, two girls with golden hair and red eyes faced each other.
They looked so identical that it was impossible to tell them apart.
What were they? Twins?
The answer was simple—”me.”
They were both me!
In the barren white room, I lamented to myself as I clung to… myself.
“…This is so boring!”
In this dreary and stifling space, the only one I could confide in was the clone I created.
“Ughhh…”
I had become a beautiful girl.
My life as a man, which had spanned over twenty years, had ended abruptly when an air-conditioning unit fell on me as I walked down the street.
I thought that was the end of everything, but when I came to, I had turned into a young girl.
When I accidentally caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, I was shocked.
Inside the reflection was a stunning girl with golden hair, rabbit-like red eyes, and porcelain skin, dressed in nothing but a fluttering white patient gown.
The girl was like a delicate porcelain doll—a mix of youthful innocence and an incomplete, budding maturity balanced perfectly.
“So, this is me? Unbelievable!”
When I first realized I had become a girl, I couldn’t help but marvel. I was so pretty that even I was amazed.
My face was soft and flawless, and my figure was slender yet carried a natural allure in all the right places.
The sudden shock of gender identity crisis didn’t stand a chance against such an adorable, charming appearance.
I felt like my ability to think deeply had diminished a little since becoming a girl, but who cares?
As long as I looked good, wasn’t that enough?
Goodbye, dull life!
I was going to be a happy internet idol star! …or so I briefly dreamed.
“…But what does it matter when I’m trapped here?”
However, I couldn’t rejoice.
First, I was reincarnated inside a game. Not just any game, but into the body of a villainess who was destined to die at the protagonist’s hands.
Crimson Scholar, the global title for Deep Crimson Academia.
A notoriously shady gacha game created by a second-generation Chinese billionaire otaku who poured money into it.
The game was set in a dystopian world where players led students from an academy city to fight against the forces of another dimension.
For the record, the game had a rushed early closure after finishing just the first part of its story—a typical move for a game born of questionable management.
‘Of all characters, why did I have to be Violet, the Witch?’
Violet Dunhind Rugilinn, known as the Boundless Witch, was a sadistic murderer and an executive in a terrorist organization.
She piled up all the karma imaginable before being killed by the protagonist in a fit of rage.
‘This is going to be such a hassle.’
Why did it have to be such an evil character?
It was troublesome.
But there was still a glimmer of hope.
‘This is before the main story starts!’
The Violet seen committing heinous acts in the main game was a decadent, mature woman.
The girl standing in front of me now looked similar but younger and smaller.
In other words, I had landed in the past, during the villainess’s childhood.
If I avoided doing bad things, I wouldn’t become a villain, and I wouldn’t have to die.
But a second problem loomed.
Currently, I was imprisoned in a secret research facility owned by an evil pharmaceutical company called Laplaxia.
This corporation called me and others “test subjects,” monitoring us 24/7 and performing bizarre experiments. If we disobeyed, they’d beat us.
As if that wasn’t enough, they had strapped a stiff, thick collar around my fragile neck.
“This is suffocating.”
Unfortunately, the collar couldn’t be removed. It had an electric shock function, and having experienced it once, I knew it hurt terribly.
So, no matter how many noble resolutions I made about not becoming a villain, they were meaningless.
At worst, this facility or the company might enslave me.
The mere thought of being brainwashed or turned into a bio-weapon made my skin crawl.
Having traded the bottom half of my body to become a beautiful girl, all I wanted was to live comfortably for myself.
To achieve this modest dream, I resolved to escape this place, no matter what it took.
If I had been a regular girl, I might have given up, but I had a trump card.
To reassess my situation, I uttered the all-purpose keyword.
“Status window.”
A faint, translucent screen shimmered into view before me.
—
Name: Violet Dunhind Rugilinn
Alias: Test Subject 10-6-8
Status: Research Facility Test Subject
Health: 1000
Mana: 1500
Unique Abilities:
■■■■: ???
Level 1: Clone Technique
—
‘It’s true, I really am that Violet.’
In the world of Crimson Scholar, there were individuals called “Awakened.”
They wielded supernatural powers, manipulated magic, and exhibited unique abilities.
The body I had possessed had one of the more peculiar abilities.
It was the clone technique.
Like her name suggested, Violet could create and control numerous clones identical to herself. And I could use the same ability.
For now, I could only make one, but as I grew accustomed to my powers, I could create hundreds—no, thousands.
I planned to hone this ability, exploit any gaps in the research facility’s security, and escape.
‘What happens after that?’
I didn’t know.
Maybe I’d quietly live on the outskirts, hiding from the corporation’s gaze. If I got lucky, I might even attend an academy.
Thinking about it for too long made my head hurt.
“Come here!”
I called my clone, a girl identical to me, over to the bed and hugged her tightly.
Lying on the bed, holding my soft self close, brought me peace.
A faintly pleasant scent wafted from her.
My clone wrapped her arms around me, mimicking my actions.
Feeling her, I realized just how soft I was.
I decided I’d keep sleeping like this from now on.
Having someone to hold made me feel a bit more at ease.
In this stifling world, the only thing I could truly trust was myself.
While I was maintaining this fragile peace of mind, loud footsteps echoed from the corridor beyond my room’s door.
“Test Subject 10-6-8!”
Someone bellowed from outside.
The sturdy door rattled as they pounded on it.
I decided to just pretend I was asleep.
“Test Subject 10-6-8! I know you’re not sleeping! Get up immediately!”
“Ahhh!”
Startled, I shot upright.
I had completely forgotten—each test subject’s room was equipped with surveillance cameras!
-Clang!
The door opened, and armed guards stormed in.
They aimed their guns at me and my clone.
“Hey! Stay still!”
“Don’t move!”
A researcher with slicked-back hair and a white lab coat followed the guards into the room.
I immediately lowered my head with a frightened expression.
The researchers here treated test subjects like animals.
Any misstep could provoke them.
The less provoked they were, the less they would beat you.
“10-6-8! Get rid of your clone immediately! Who gave you permission to use your unique ability in your room?”
“I’m sorryyy…”
“You’ve disobeyed orders, so you’ll face punishment.”
The slick-haired researcher pulled out a small switch, no bigger than a car key, and pressed a button.
-Bzzzzzt!
“Ahhh!”
My clone and I collapsed to the floor, writhing from the electrifying pain that coursed through our bodies.
It hurt so much that I rolled on the ground in agony.
“Ughhh…”
Tears welled up in both our eyes.
Since becoming a girl, I had noticed one thing—I could endure pain far less than before.
“We’re always watching test subjects like you. Disobey again, and you’ll be punished even worse. Understand?”
The cruel researcher held the electric shock switch threateningly in front of my face.
Sniffling, I nodded.
With a snap of my fingers, the clone I had been hugging just moments ago disappeared.
Once the guards and the researcher left, I sat in the room and cried for a while.
When I finally calmed down, I wiped my tears and lay back down.
‘Escaping is important, but this is unbearable!’
As I lay still, trying to swallow my anger, a murderous intent began to swell within me.
‘If I ever get the chance, I won’t let any of them off the hook.’
In this dehumanizing, inhumane place, I tried to remember anyone who had treated me even slightly badly.
I didn’t know if I could pull it off, but if I got the opportunity, I wanted to destroy every last one of them.
For a moment, I imagined myself commanding hundreds of clones to take down everyone in my way.
In my mind’s eye, I led the survivors outside, humiliated them, and burned the entire research facility to the ground.
Smirking at the vivid imagery, I suddenly felt a wave of emptiness.
‘Sigh… First, I need to train my abilities.’
I hadn’t properly honed my skills yet, so all those thoughts were meaningless for now.
More importantly, there were too many people keeping watch in this facility. Too many cameras.
The first priority was to understand the layout of this place.
‘And I need to get a weapon.’
If possible, I’d prefer a hammer.
That way, I could bash the backs of the researchers’ and guards’ heads.
Lost in these thoughts, I couldn’t fall asleep.
My chest, which felt oddly heavy, made it uncomfortable to lie down, so I kept tossing and turning.
It felt nice to touch because it was soft, but lying on it was inconvenient as it shifted around too much.
I found myself wondering for a moment how I ended up in this world.