Prologue: The Girl in the Mirror
A pretty girl was reflected in the mirror. I stared at her blankly. I'd been standing in front of it for quite a while, but the girl just kept wearing that dazed expression long after. Well, it made sense—who could snap out of something like this in an instant? The protagonists in novels who adapt right away are the weird ones.
"Ah."
As I opened my mouth, the girl in the mirror did the same. But only one voice echoed through the room. A mirror was supposed to reflect my appearance, so why was this girl staring back at me now?
"Why? Because I've possessed a body, obviously..."
I clutched my head, but there was no rough stubble like I'd felt back when I was a guy. Instead, there was just silky, smooth hair. At this point, there was no denying it. It was all too clear.
I'd transmigrated into Lee Sebin, the heroine of Hypnosis Game.
The game I'd transmigrated into was one that had been out for a while. But I didn't know much about it. Why? Because I'd never played it before. I'd stumbled across it by chance, skimmed the description, thought it sounded fun, and launched it—only to end up here. Why me? Weren't these things supposed to happen to hardcore veterans?
"Ugh..."
And what was driving me even crazier was that I'd possessed the female protagonist. Black hair, short bob cut. A tear mole under her left eye. Anyone could tell—this was Lee Sebin, the heroine of the game. If it were any other game, maybe being the protagonist meant things would work out somehow. But this one was different.
Why? Because it was a hypnosis eroge!
Lee Sebin—write "heroine," read "hiroin." She'd been turned into the character who gets subjected to every kind of hypnosis play imaginable!
"Holy..."
With her setting as someone extremely susceptible to hypnosis, she'd meet the male protagonist at XX School tomorrow on her first day and fall under his spell immediately. From there, it'd be a story of her getting gradually broken in through all sorts of plays. That's what the description had said.
By the way, XX School wasn't a regular high school. It was an adult school where enrollment started at age 20—so first-years were 20, second-years 21, third-years 22. Anyway, that wasn't the point. The real issue was figuring out how to avoid getting hypnotized tomorrow.
If I didn't, I'd end up enduring every single one of the game's hardcore plays. The dev must've been bullied by a girl like this back in school or something—they put her through everything. Fine if I were just watching, but doing it myself? No way in hell.
The silver lining was that I still had Lee Sebin's memories intact. If I combined them with my own from my guy days, maybe—just maybe—I could manage. It had to work. Please.
And so time passed, bringing me to the morning of the entrance ceremony. The day had come at last. The one good thing was that I remembered the protagonist's face. This game was unusual—unlike typical visual novels with a faceless male lead, he had a distinct appearance. That meant I could spot him and deal with it.
I was seated at the very back of the row labeled "Class 1-1, First-Years." Even a protagonist wouldn't pull something in a crowd this big, right? The reviews had praised the game for its plausible setup despite being an eroge, so I could trust that much, at least.
I gripped the hem of my short skirt, lost in thought. Man, this thing was really short. If I'd had at least a week, I could've lengthened it, but I'd only had one day. No choice but to wear it—and now that I was, it felt way too short. It barely covered my knees, exposing nearly half my thighs. I'd liked short skirts when I was just looking, but wearing one? Pure anxiety.
"Ugh..."
As I trembled in unease, more students started arriving. Once the seats in front and beside me filled up, the ceremony began.
"Ahem. We will now commence the entrance ceremony."
Nothing special about it. They welcomed the new students, introduced the homeroom teachers for each class, gave some speeches—and before long, it was wrapping up. Looked like I'd make it through without issue. I was starting to relax when suddenly, an announcement came.
"Finally, we will conclude the ceremony by viewing the guidance video."
Weeeeng.
A mechanical whir echoed as a beam projector descended from the ceiling. It started projecting onto the screen.
Geeeeng.
The video began with a countdown. Wait—what? Why was there a countdown on an entrance video?
3, 2, 1.
The countdown ended, and the video started. But it wasn't normal. Swirling geometric shapes in vivid colors. Bizarre sounds pouring from the speakers. Anyone could tell—it was a hypnosis video.
"What the—fuck, it was supposed to be plausible...!"
I panicked, trying to squeeze my eyes shut, but...
"..."
I lost consciousness anyway.