Awakening as Valentina, the Spider Nest's Worst Boss
I opened my eyes, and suddenly I was the young lady of the Bonyatelli Family? Uwaaaah! Finally cleared it, fuuuuck!!!! I killed that shitty cockroach bastard and finally snapped Rühen's neck. The game I was playing was Limbus Company, and I'd just beaten what you could call the latest chapter—Chapter 9. I felt so damn good!!! It had emotion, fun, and those boss fights with the charming spider nest arachs were way more enjoyable than I'd expected. Heh heh, not to brag, but my account was level 102, a veteran player who'd been grinding since the Health Chicken event, so I had every right to be proud. After seeing Chapter 9's ending, I went to bed at 3 a.m. with a happy heart.
...Huh...? Refreshing morning light filtered through the window cracks as I lifted my head from the cozy bed. Morning already? Alright, time to get ready for work today. With that thought, he headed to the bathroom, washed his face, and glanced in the mirror.
...?
Am I still half-asleep or something..? The mirror showed a woman with blue-green eyes and long blonde hair down to her waist, staring back in her pajamas.
"What the...? Guess I'm still playing Limbus. Dreaming like this and all."
But it wasn't a dream. It was too vivid for that. He hurriedly pinched his arm.
Ow, that hurts. Hmm. My conclusion: this ain't a dream.
Oh shit...
He—no, now she—Valentina screamed.
"Of all people... fuuuuck, why me possessing Valentina..? A normal guy like me with this... ugh... fuuuuck. It's fine, the Performance War is still far off... I'll figure something out."
Valentina stepped out of the bathroom. The Bonyatelli young lady who would later become a ThumbUnderboss, only to get kicked out in three days, disowned by her family. Doomed to a pathetic life drowning in booze, just waiting to be murdered by Yoshihide in the Spiderweb. Fuuuuck, no way I'm going through that bullshit. Out of all the arachs, I had to live as the one whose life got utterly wrecked. But the real silver lining? This was way before she became an Underboss. No matter what... I'm never setting foot in the Spiderweb. Go in there, and it's instant dog death. And if I get promoted to Underboss and screw up, that's death too. What I need to burn into my brain: win the Performance War, don't cause issues as Underboss, and stay the hell away from anything Spiderweb-related. Screw up even one, and I'm as good as dead. No mistakes, no matter what.
Valentina glanced around and opened the wardrobe in her room. Inside hung the standard Soldato uniform. She stripped to change into it.
"Whoa... even if it's my body now, this is... kinda insane..."
In-game, Valentina was such a standout character... those watermelons were huge. Her skin was perfectly pale too.
"This is straight-up villainess material."
She spent a good while admiring her body before slipping into the Soldato uniform. My body or not, nice view. She scowled at the mirror, and it formed the perfect villainess expression.
"This is kinda fun."
She grabbed the two swords by her bed. One with a revolver slot in the guard, the other a straight single-edged blade—the classic Palermo swordsmanship weapons Valentina used in the game. Nice, Thumb outfits are badass, but Soldato gear ain't bad either. She gripped both swords, assumed a stance, and swung through the motions.
Pretty damn cool.
(Knock knock)
Someone knocked.
"Come in."
The door opened to reveal a woman in a maid-butler uniform.
"Miss, the family heads are looking for you."
The butler's expression was a bit dark, but otherwise neutral. What would original Valentina do here? Yeah, you dare call my name, you bitch!? Smash!!! Or Slap—how dare you look at your mistress!? Total villainess move. Sure, I'm Valentina now, but I'm not pulling that crap. No point, and with all the hell coming my way, I need every ounce of energy to prepare.
"Got it, thanks for letting me know. Hey, what's your name?"
The butler bowed her head at Valentina's response.
"Line, miss."
"Right, nice to meet you. Looking forward to working with you."
With that, she patted Line's shoulder lightly and headed down the stairs.
??? Line felt something off. Miss Valentina was so stubborn and hot-tempered, always cursing at other butlers, throwing things, slapping them... Could it be...? Had the miss finally grown up? From what she'd heard from senior butlers, Valentina didn't drink, but she was crazy otherwise. Line hadn't served her long, so she didn't know well. She still seemed normal... and so brilliant, loved by the family head and elders for her exceptional swordsmanship.
"Guess I misjudged her."
Line resolved to judge people by their actions from now on.
....
Valentina descended the stairs, taking in her surroundings. For a back-alley mansion, the Bonyatelli Family Mansion interior was impressively antique. She stepped out through the door to the Training Ground, where people sparred one-on-one or drilled against scarecrows with swords. Most wore Bonyatelli family clothes or Thumb Soldato uniforms. Huh, thought as a young lady she'd wear something frilly like a skirt. Pants, though? Way better for me—comfier, easier to move in.
She'd meant to head straight to the elders, but they'd stepped out for some urgent business. Bored, Valentina wandered the training ground and spotted a burly man.
Is that him..? A figure from Valentina's memories. The one who could be called her master.
"Good morning, miss! Been waiting for you."
The man's first impression? Thick black beard like a Russian bear, bushy eyebrows—peak macho vibe.
"Uh... so you're my master, right..?"
"That's right, miss. Weren't the elders summoning you..?"
"Yeah, but something came up—they're out for a bit, might be hard to meet soon."
"I see."
He stroked his beard, eyeing Valentina.
"Something good happen?"
"Pardon?"
She looked back, puzzled.
"Haha, you don't usually talk so plainly, so I figured maybe something nice happened."
"No, nothing like that... well, the tea Line made this morning was tasty. That's about it..?"
"Is that so? I remember you always looking annoyed at me... I know it's rude to say, but you seem really happy today."
Valentina gave a wry smile at her master's words.
"Yeah... guess I was too harsh before..?"
Her changed demeanor left the master wide-eyed.
"I'm trying to turn over a new leaf now. I put everyone around me through hell—time to get my head straight and just do things that help the family and Thumb."
Her words burst laughter from the master.
"Hahaha, sorry! Just... this old man never imagined you'd say something like that.."
Valentina was a bit flustered by his sudden outburst of laughter but soon smiled too.
"Mind if your old disciple learns a move or two from her master today?"
She grinned back.
"Anytime."