Pro Rice Bug and Defamation Charges
Pro rice bug, huh. …………… [I normalized it for you. I did everything for you.]
The noisy sound forcibly pulled my consciousness back. 'What the hell is that noise...'
The moment I opened my eyes, an unfamiliar ceiling came into view. This was the fourth time, so it wasn't all that surprising anymore. Unfamiliar body, unfamiliar space, unfamiliar life. Han Minseo, Yeoreum, Ma Hyuksu. And this time...
[I normalized it for you. I did everything for you.]
The bizarre bell tone kept ringing without stopping. I sat up and looked around. In one word... a cramped one-room. A bed, desk, and wardrobe—that was it. The whole place was yellowed and discolored, and all I could see out the window was the wall of another building.
'A studio apartment, huh.'
[I normalized――]
I picked up the smartphone vibrating on the desk.
"Hello?"
"Is this Moon Yujin?"
It was a man's voice. Calm, but with an undercurrent of exhaustion.
"Yes, that's me."
"I'm calling regarding the defamation and insult charges. We sent you a summons for questioning as a suspect—have you checked it?"
'Defamation? Insult?'
My mind went blank for a second. I had no idea what this was about. I hadn't even had a chance to properly dig through this body's memories yet.
"Uh... that is..."
"Looks like you haven't seen it. We mailed it last week. Please make sure to check it. The victim wants to meet you in person, though. If you're open to a settlement, come to the station at 3 p.m. today."
"Who's coming?"
"I don't have the exact details from the victim's side either. I'll pass on whatever they tell me. Can you make it by 3 p.m.?"
No choices here. Refusing would just make things worse.
"...Got it."
"See you later then."
The call ended.
"Haa..."
A sigh escaped me. My motivation evaporated, and I flopped back onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.
"Defamation and insult... what the hell has this body been up to?"
I'd died three times already. My mind melted from Choi Seori's drugs, my heart burst fleeing Kim Bom, got betrayed by Catalina and shot in a back alley. And now... starting off slapped with defamation and insult charges.
"This is fucking bullshit."
I had to get up eventually. As I did, the blanket fell to the floor.
'Moon Yujin.'
The name floated into my head. With it came a flood of memories from the owner's twenty-two years of life.
……………
Moon Yujin. Twenty-two years old. Graduate of Awakener Training Academy.
The Awakener Training Academy was like high school, but instead of just math and English, they trained your abilities too.
'Awakener? Ability training?'
Awakener. A concept that didn't exist in my original world, or in Han Minseo's, Yeoreum's, or Ma Hyuksu's. Superpowers, awakening, Awakeners. This world was vastly different from the parallel ones I'd experienced so far.
Awakeners existed here—people who'd awakened superpowers. One day, powers suddenly manifested, and your entire life changed based on the grade and type. From EX-grade down to S, A, B, C... all the way to the lowest F.
Some Awakeners joined the Awakener Association, contributing to society with their powers—firefighting, rescue, bodyguard work, exploration, combat, whatever fit.
But others turned to crime. Commonly called Villains—criminal Awakeners.
And there was another threat: Dimensional Gates. Portals randomly opening to unknown worlds, spilling out monsters. Awakeners fought those too.
'Wait, Moon Yujin graduated from Awakener Training Academy? So I'm an Awakener too?'
I dug deeper into the memories. Yeah. Moon Yujin was an Awakener. Awakened during puberty, went to the academy instead of regular high school, spent three years there. But...
His final ability grade? F-grade.
An F-grade wasn't useless depending on the power, but it was generally worthless in combat. Moon Yujin's was no exception.
Ability name: 'Harmless Cuteness.'
A passive that made people around him feel a slight fondness. It put them at ease, stirred protective instincts. Like... the charm of a puppy, kitten, or rabbit.
'Totally fucking useless.'
No help in fights. Monsters wouldn't stop attacking just because you were cute. Villains? Plenty of psychopaths who'd stomp a puppy flat and tap-dance on the corpse.
Didn't make money either. Bottom line: pointless.
He could've gone to a normal high school, figured out a career like everyone else. But he got his hopes up and wasted three years of his late teens at the academy. The cost was steep.
After graduation, tossed into society, he failed spectacularly at getting a job. Now he holed up at home, playing games all day.
The RPG Leaves. Farming its in-game currency to cash out—that was his only income. A pro rice bug in every sense.
Money per month? Barely enough for living expenses.
"No future at all."
I finally got fully out of bed and went to the mirror. The full-length reflection showed Moon Yujin—
"...Oh."
Even more of a pretty boy than Yeoreum. No, beyond that—gender was hard to pin down. Big round eyes, pale skin, soft-looking hair, small build. A real scared rabbit.
"How am I supposed to survive with this?"
I was seriously pissed at the Family Goddess. Promised special abilities, my ass. Not A or even B-grade—an F-grade Awakener.
'At least no congenital illness like Yeoreum...'
But Moon Yujin had it worse in other ways. Yeoreum had real drawing talent as an emoticon artist, and with my ideas, we'd made decent money—though she squandered it. This guy? No money, no future, useless power. And now sued.
"Right. Why'd he get sued?"
I delved deeper. And found the answer quick.
Back at Awakener Training Academy, one classmate bullied him hard. The bully? An EX-grade powerhouse. Top of humanity, basically superhuman. Overwhelming strength and durability.
Her name: Kang Haneul.
Kang Haneul had been the top talent since school, became an Association star after graduation, racking up feats like soloing Dimensional Gate monsters and capturing S-grade Villains.
Moon Yujin hated it. According to his memories and emotions, she bullied him almost daily. Following him, talking to him, wanting to eat together, showing up every break.
'...Is that really bullying?'
Oh, there was more. Hugs, cheek kisses, sometimes picking him up and carrying him like a pet dog or cat. And she hated him interacting with other girls.
Kang Haneul drew power from anger, had lived suppressing it her whole life. But one day, seeing another girl fawn over Moon Yujin made her explode. They called in tanks and armored vehicles to subdue her. Useless—they were no match. She smashed eight of them barehanded. Huge scandal, but the Association buried it.
After a few such incidents(?), Moon Yujin cut contact post-graduation. Changed his number, deleted SNS. He escaped her, but the resentment lingered.
So he started spamming malicious comments on her articles. As a pro NEET, he went hard—dozens of throwaways, VPNs, the works. Until he got caught, cue the phone call.
Police got serious; VPNs didn't help.
"Haa... seriously..."
I sighed like the world was ending. No words for it.
Sure, Moon Yujin was the victim. Bullied and all. But spamming hundreds, thousands of hate comments? Couldn't exactly say he was in the right.
His life, his waste. This one felt truly hopeless.
I opened the desk drawer, grabbed the wallet. Two 10,000-won bills. One debit card. Checked the bank app. Balance: 120,000 won.
"...Wow."
No settlement money. Fine? Forget it.
"This is insane... fuck it, I'll go see."
Head to the station, assess, try to settle. Dragging it out meant harsher punishment. Problem: facing Kang Haneul herself was the last thing I wanted... but no way an EX-grade shows for an F-grade troll.
'Yeah. No EX-grade's coming to a station for an F-rank commenter.'
Probably a lawyer or Association rep.
Stepping outside, sunlight dazzled. Four subway stops to the station. I started walking.
……………
The station was quieter than expected. Past the complaint desk, up to the second floor: "Cyber Investigation Team" office.
Knocked, heard a come-in.
"Moon Yujin?"
The guy at the desk asked. Late thirties detective.
"Yes."
"Have a seat. Coffee?"
"No, I'm good."
The plastic chair's hard back dug in. He pulled some papers.
"ID first. Got your resident card?"
Handed it over. He checked, gave it back.
"You know you're charged with defamation and insult, right?"
"Yes."
"Here's the evidence."
He turned his laptop, showed the screen. Captured comments scrolled by.
"These yours, right?"