The room materialized from nothing.
One second there was nothing - just empty, infinite whiteness. The next second - a spacious hall with comfortable couches, armchairs, and seats arranged in a semicircle before a massive screen. The light was soft, pleasant, coming from nowhere and everywhere at once. In the air hung a feeling of something unnatural, but not threatening.
The first group materialized with a flash of light.
"What the—?!" Shun Zagan Analeit, now a mature man around twenty-five years old with a scar cutting across the left side of his face, instinctively reached for his sword. His eyes - once naive and full of idealism - were now sharpened by battles, betrayals, and the weight of the crown.
"Calm down, Shun." Katia Seri Anabald - still in a female body despite her male spirit - placed a hand on his shoulder. As a former otaku, she'd seen enough anime to recognize a "reaction room" scenario when she saw one. "I don't think we're in danger."
"We're not in danger?! WHERE ARE WE?!" Feirune - the majestic Earth Dragon, now in an elegant human form with long white hair - sniffed left and right like a dog searching for threats. Her dragon instincts screamed that something was wrong, but she couldn't detect an enemy.
Yugo Ogawa stood apart from the group, arms crossed, expression cold and closed. After everything - Hugo's betrayal, his own death, resurrection... he didn't trust anyone. Not even his former classmates.
Oka-chan - Hiiro Okazaki, the eternally young teacher of the reincarnations who looked fifteen despite her real age - stared at the room with wide eyes. "This... this isn't magic I know."
"It's not demon magic," added Anna Zagan Analeit - the Queen of Analeit, already a mother. She instinctively pressed a hand to her stomach, though her child wasn't here.
Yuri Urushihara - the quiet, introverted girl who had always stayed in the shadows - slumped into one of the chairs. "Maybe... we should just wait?"
Asaka Kushitsu - with her characteristically confident posture - nodded. "Agreed. If they wanted to hurt us, they wouldn't give us comfortable chairs."
Kunihiko and Kenichirou - the twins who survived together - sat next to each other, glancing at each other nervously.
At that moment, a second wave of light filled the room.
"Ara ara~" The smooth, dangerous voice of Ariel-sama resonated through the space. The Demon Lord - a dazzling woman with white hair and red eyes - materialized with grace that made gravity look like a suggestion, not a law. Beside her, the dark aura of Wrath - one of the demon generals - pulsed threateningly.
"What is this?" Wrath growled, his eyes flashing red.
"Interesting~" Ariel smiled, surveying the room. Her gaze landed on the reincarnated students. "Oh, the little human children are here too. How... charming."
Shun immediately stood, hand on his sword. "Ariel!"
"Tut-tut-tut~" Ariel wagged a finger. "No hostility, little boy. Even I can sense this place doesn't allow violence." She reclined elegantly on one of the sofas, crossing her legs. "Besides, the war's over, isn't it? How boring."
Sophia Keren - the former vampire and Kumoko's friend, now reborn as a Vampire True Ancestor in the body of a little girl - appeared next to Ariel, sucking on a lollipop. "Where's Shiro-chan?" she asked in a childish voice.
Before anyone could answer, a third wave brought the elves.
Potimas Harrifenas - the ancient, mad elven patriarch in the body of a young girl - appeared with an expression of extreme disgust. "What tiresome magic." His eyes - old, far older than the twelve-year-old-looking body - scanned the room. "Not mine. Not that damned goddess's. Then whose?"
Filimøs - the loyal Left General of Potimas who had served the patriarch for millennia - appeared beside him, alert. "Potimas-sama, there's no threat I can detect."
"Obviously, fool," Potimas hissed. His gaze fell on Ariel. "You."
"Me~" Ariel waved playfully. "How are you, disgusting old man in a little girl's body? Still making clones?"
"Demonic whor—"
"ENOUGH!" The Voice rang out from everywhere and nowhere.
Everyone froze.
"Sit. All of you."
The Voice wasn't male or female. It wasn't threatening, but it carried the weight of absolute authority.
One by one - even the prideful Potimas, even the dangerous Ariel - they sat.
"Good." The Voice sounded... pleased? "Now wait a moment. One last group."
Shun leaned toward Katia. "What's happening?"
"If my anime knowledge is correct..." Katia smiled nervously, "we're going to watch something on that screen. Probably... our past?"
"Our past?!" Fei jumped. "I don't want anyone to see me eating garbage in the forest!"
"You ate garbage?" Kenichirou blinked.
"I-it was only once! And I was REALLY hungry!"
While the group whispered and argued, the fourth and final wave appeared.
It was different from the others.
First came her parallel mind - Shiraori. Pale, with white hair and red eyes, looking about seventeen years old, dressed in a gothic dress. She materialized and immediately looked down at her hands, then at the room, then at the gathered people.
"...Oh, no." Her voice was quiet, almost a whisper. Her eyes widened in realization. "No, no, no, no, NO—"
"Shiro-chan!" Sophia jumped and hugged Kumoko's parallel mind. "Found you!"
"Sophia-chan, let me go, this is a nightmare, I need to escape—"
Then came her real problem.
With an explosion of light and dramatic effect that was completely unnecessary, Shiro appeared - the True Demon Lord, the former Spider Monster. White hair in twin tails, red eyes, dressed in a white and black battle dress, with an aura of power that made the air tremble.
"GYAHAHAHA!" She appeared in a dramatic pose, one hand on her hip, the other pointing upward. "I am here! I, the great—" Her gaze fell on the screen. Then on the gathered people. Then realization hit her like a truck. "...oh, god."
Shiraori - the parallel mind - covered her face with her hands. "I knew it. I knew it. This is punishment for all the bad things I've done."
"Shiro!" Ariel smiled widely. "How wonderful~"
Shun immediately stood. "You! You're—"
"Yes, yes, I'm the evil spider goddess who destroyed the Holy Fortress and killed tons of people, blah blah blah." Shiro waved dismissively. "Old news. Besides, look—" She pointed at Ariel. "She killed more than me."
"True~" Ariel nodded cheerfully.
Potimas stood, his eyes burning with hatred. "YOU! Cursed system! You destroyed—"
"AHA!" Shiro pointed at him. "YOU destroyed the planet! NOT ME! YOU with your MA energy reactors! YOU destroyed humanity! I'M ONLY—"
"SIT DOWN!" The Voice thundered.
Both sat, but continued throwing murderous glances at each other.
Shiraori quietly slipped to an empty chair in the corner, clearly hoping to become invisible.
The Voice sighed. "Alright. Now everyone's here. Time to explain."
The screen lit up, showing white letters on a black background:
TO ALL PRESENT:
YOU ARE GATHERED HERE TO WATCH EVENTS FROM THE PAST. SPECIFICALLY - YOU WILL WATCH THE STORY OF THE FORMER HIIRO WAKABA, KNOWN AS KUMOKO/SHIRO/DEMON LORD SHIRO.
THE STORY WILL SHOW BOTH HER PERSPECTIVE AND THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE HUMAN REINCARNATIONS.
YOU CANNOT LEAVE UNTIL IT'S FINISHED.
YOU CANNOT HARM EACH OTHER IN THIS SPACE.
FOOD AND DRINK WILL APPEAR ON REQUEST.
ENJOY THE VIEWING.
Pause.
Then chaos.
"WHAT?!" "Watch?!" "The spider's life?!" "I don't want to!"
Voices overlapped - shocked, angry, confused.
Shiro had fallen to her knees, hands on her head. "No. No, no, no. Everyone will see. Everyone will see how pathetic I was. Everyone will see me eating frogs. Everyone will see—"
"Shiro-chan come here~" Sophia pulled the Demon Lord to a sofa between her and Ariel.
"I don't want to watch! Let me go! I have Goddess work to do!"
Shiraori had simply curled up in her chair in fetal position, muttering "please end quickly please end quickly please end quickly..."
Shun turned to Katia. "Did she... did she create this? Did she make this space?"
"Doesn't look like it," Katia shook her head, observing Shiro's panic. "She seems just as confused as us."
Potimas gritted his teeth. "If this is a trap—"
"It's not." The Voice answered calmly. "This is simply... educational. Now be quiet. It's starting."
The lights in the room dimmed.
The screen came to life.