Prologue
"This and... two packs of Dunhill Menthol, please."
I glanced over the customer while pulling out the cigarettes. Blonde hair, piercings. Surprisingly pale skin? Her unbuttoned blouse revealed a cleavage so deep it looked ready to burst. What a sight.
"15,700 won."
I deliberately placed the cigarettes as far back on the counter as possible. Why? So when she reached over, leaning in just a bit, I could rip that blouse right off.
Riiip!
"...Kyaaack?!"
"Holy shit, check out that bra."
I'd spotted it the moment her buttons came undone. A sheer black lace bra, sexy as hell. Front-hook style, too. I yanked hard on the center clasp, and her firm tits bounced right out, jiggling wildly.
She had a bit of pudge on her belly and waist, but her legs were slim and sleek.
"Tits this big and natural... insane."
"L-Let go! Kyaaack!"
Yeah, like you can do shit? My arms are longer than yours, right? With her clinging to my pant leg, she wasn't going anywhere. I kneaded those tits roughly, pinching and twisting her nipples like dough.
The way they clung to my fingers, all chewy and elastic like tteok... This is why I work the night shift at a convenience store near a women's university.
"What the—? What kind of clerk does that?!"
"Call the cops! Somebody call the cops!"
"Miss, you okay?"
"Eueugh...!"
The commotion drew the snack-munching customers from the tables to the counter. One burly asshole grabbed my collar, snarling.
"You fucking psycho?!"
"Next customer, please."
Acting all high and mighty. If those tits were in your face, you'd grope 'em too. Hell, you'd motorboat the shit out of them.
"Thanks for the meal."
"You little...!"
Ah, shut up. Before the guy's curse could finish, I snapped my fingers.
Snap!
My vision warped, the world unraveling around me. Time rewound like a video playing in reverse—a miracle only I could see, only I could perceive.
"15,700 won."
"Thanks."
"Have a good night."
Huh, surprisingly polite chick. Proper goodbye and everything. Guess she had a good heart after all.
And exactly five seconds later, I gritted my teeth and collapsed right there.
"Fuck...! Hah, hah."
This goddamn pain never gets easier, no matter how many times. My pinky toe throbbed like a motherfucker. Way worse than stubbing it on furniture—three times, no, five times the agony. Nail probably cracked, bruise swelling up. I couldn't even dream of taking off my shoe.
Just imagining shoving my foot back in had cold sweat pouring down.
"Hoo..."
As the pain subsided a bit, a sigh slipped out. Finally, I looked down at my hands and grinned.
"Best cost-performance ever."
Groping tits like that for this price? Total steal. If the same setup happened again, I could squeeze in one or two more. Still two hours till closing.
"Hyun-ho, good work today. Wanna take the discards again?"
"If you're offering, hell yeah."
"Don't thank me; they're just gonna get tossed."
This woman with her brown hair tied up in a ponytail was Kim Ju-hee, the convenience store owner. Twenty-five, two years older than me. She usually rocked baggy hoodies and jeans, but her hidden figure was top-tier. Weirdly, she was in a t-shirt today. Tiny waist, tits that'd overflow my hands—E-cup at least. Wide hips, perky ass, and get this: a virgin.
How do I know? 'Cause I've stripped her naked, of course. Spread her pussy and checked the hymen myself.
Cost me a cast on my ankle for over two weeks from the regression backlash, but... damn, tearing her hymen with my finger was its own kind of thrill.
Of course, Kim Ju-hee knows jack shit. To her, I'm just the diligent, polite part-timer.
I awakened this bullshit power back in my first year of high school. Got dragged to the rooftop by some delinquents for a shakedown, shoved against the railing, and fell. Next thing I knew, flailing mid-air, I was back in the classroom right before they grabbed me. About five minutes, time-wise?
Then I puked blood and got rushed to the ER. Something about internal injuries; had to stay over three weeks.
If I'd rewound just one or two more minutes there... I'd be dead for real.
Why not rewind in tiny increments? Tried that. Wounds from using the power don't vanish with time reversal. You just get more pain than the original injury. Turn a pinky-toe stub into a repeated loop, and your ankle might just fly off.
Stocks? Crypto? Fuck that—gotta be alive to spend the cash.
"See you tomorrow, then."
"Yeah, get home safe."
I grabbed a triangle kimbap, sandwich, and the drinks Kim Ju-hee packed for me. Got home around 3 a.m.
"I'm home."
"Son, you're back?"
"Why aren't you asleep?"
"Waiting to see my baby before bed. What's wrong with your foot again?"
"Haha, just bumped it carrying boxes..."
"I can't take this. What kind of convenience store job is this rough? You come home hurt every other week."
Mom grimaced at my bloodstained sock. I awkwardly bolted to the bathroom, but after my shower, there she was with the first-aid kit.
"Foot out."
"Just slap a band-aid on and crash."
"Won't listen to your mom?"
"Argh, fine—let go first!"
The soft warmth pressing against my arm. Not just hugging—she was rubbing up on me. Mom's idea of affection, I guess.
I'm gonna lose it, fuck.
No-bra, see-through nightie? Way too much. I shoved her off, and she pouted, glaring.
"All grown up and won't even hug your mom anymore."
"That's not it..."
Yoo Ji-hye. My "mom," barely sixteen years older. Not my bio mom, obviously. She married my dad after my real mom died in an accident, but Dad kicked it from illness soon after. Fun fact: they never even filed the marriage papers. Legally, no relation.
She fought the relatives in court for custody; I was too young to remember details.
"So, your foot?"
"...Here."
Her expression softened as she disinfected my toe meticulously and bandaged it. I snuck a sideways peek.
Tch, dangerous angle...
Her radiant face and model body could make idols cry. Yet she sticks to this mom-son charade... no clue why.
Where does 'late thirties' even fit that face?
Pharmacist job, too. Could snag any guy she wanted, but her world was just work and me.
"Lucky—no need to pull the nail. Disinfect morning and night, keep it dry."
"Got it—now go to bed, please."
"Not till my son gives me a kiss."
"Ugh, seriously..."
I grudgingly leaned in, and she pounced, wrapping her arms around my neck. Forehead, cheek, jaw—lips everywhere, aiming for my mouth.
"Hey, enough!"
"Sob... My Hyun-ho's love has cooled..."
Anyone'd think the world ended. I closed my eyes and endured. A loud smack, then my face plunged into her tits. Her faint scent and those hot, firm nipples grazed my cheek and jaw.
"Aww, so handsome. Whose son is this pretty boy?"
"Kim Myeong-sik and Choi Yeon-su's."
"You brat."
What? I didn't lie. Can't even picture their faces without photos anymore, but she's not my bio mom.
"Mom's got no one but you, got it?"
"I get it—so let go already..."
"Soup's on the stove—eat breakfast tomorrow."
"Good night."
Finally free, I headed to my second-floor room. Every damn day is a trial.
"...I'm the crazy one."
Staring at my rock-hard dick, I couldn't help but laugh. Realizing no blood ties and zero legal relation was the issue? Or catching her naked in puberty?
My low-key perversions? All her fault. Parading around defenseless like that—you gotta kill the urges to avoid mistakes.
"Not long now, though."
Three weeks till payday. Hang in there, and freedom from this torment.
I grinned, checking my shopping cart. Just looking made pre-cum leak... nah, stomach's full.
"...Gotta bust one first."
Can't sleep with this boner raging.
"So that's why you were saving so hard... You rascal."
Mom shook her head at the capsule in the empty second-floor room.
"Just ask me to buy you one."
"Can't do that when you work so hard. Took only eight months."
"Quitting the job now?"
"Just Mon-Wed mornings. Boss begged for part-time."
"...Boss who's two years older than you?"
"Yeah? Why?"
"Nothing... just wondering if she's into you."
"A woman running two stores at that age, crushing on her younger employee? No way."
Her doting's too much. I shoved her out.
"Gonna game now—out."
"I'll watch you log in."
"Gotta strip naked for this."
"Perfect chance to see how big my boy's grown!"
"Why the hell would you check?!"
Snarling, I locked the door. Already drained. No idea how my gut twists hearing that.
No more torment for me.
I beamed at the capsule bigger than my bed. Novel Continent, the VR open-world RPG. Twenty million won dedicated capsule for Earth's top online game.
Not a game—another world. Classes, quests, chat with players and NPCs. And this beast nailed 100% realism. Every real-life action possible inside.
Casual touch? Sex? Perfect sensation replication. Launch nuked 95% of prostitution. Sex rooms popping up downtown.
"I can nut as much as I want in there... Heh, heh."
Seduce or force—it's a game, no legal issues. Whatever it takes, I'm fucking everything.
Gonna play the game proper too. Good loot? Sell for cash.
"Let's dive!"
Heart pounding, I lay in the capsule.