Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Not an Anomalous Phenomenon
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"GyaAAAAAHHH!"
The day after resolving the Anomalous Phenomenon.
I woke up and immediately let out a scream.
My house was a rundown place with zero soundproofing, but it was already 1 p.m. Everyone who was heading out had already left, so no one from the neighboring apartments—next door, above, or below—reacted right away to my scream.
Thank goodness.
I could scream my lungs out.
With that in mind...
"GyaAAAAAHHH!"
I screamed at the top of my lungs once more.
Bang bang bang bang.
This time, there was a reaction.
Not from next door, but the one after that, maybe.
Or the one after that.
The reason I screamed was simple.
After the 'black smoke'...
Once again...
I'd encountered an Anomalous Phenomenon in the corner of my room.
I stared blankly at the new 'Anomalous Phenomenon' that had appeared in the corner of the room, my face utterly dazed.
What I saw was blood.
The bedsheet and pristine white blanket were soaked red.
This Anomalous Phenomenon seemed related to blood.
...Calm down.
I'm a Fervent Devotee blessed by Reflecting Myriad Stars.
Even if things go wrong, Reflecting Myriad Stars will save me.
My body's tougher now, and I have divine protection.
This is different from last time. Don't freak out—act boldly.
I cautiously lifted the blanket.
And then...
I figured out what this Anomalous Phenomenon really was.
"..."
It wasn't an Anomalous Phenomenon.
Today marked exactly one month since my gender changed.
Not an Anomalous Phenomenon.
It was a physiological one.
I'm not even human.
I'm a Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars.
Why treat me like a regular person only at times like this?
I felt so wronged, my heart shattered into pieces.
...
...
...
Wearing a sulky expression, I stripped the blanket and bedsheet, tossing them into the laundry basket.
Then I flung off the clothes and underwear I was wearing.
I wasn't sure if washing would get the blood out, but I couldn't just leave them either.
"This sucks."
Soon, I headed into the bathroom to take a bath.
Whoosh...
"Ahh, it's cold!"
The house I lived in was so shabby it had no soundproofing at all.
To get hot water, I had to let it run for at least a minute.
The cold water hitting my face snapped me awake.
According to the wiki, my gender was 'female.'
Not 'female animal,' but 'woman.'
'Woman' means a human female with XX chromosomes.
In other words...
The race 'Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars' was biologically no different from humans.
Getting my period was something I hadn't anticipated at all... but whatever.
I should be grateful my gender was 'woman' instead of just 'female animal.'
Compared to being disposed of as waste, a period is trivial.
Just take a bath.
Buy some pads outside.
Wash the bedding.
Problem solved.
"...Sigh."
Fine.
No matter how positively I tried to think, my mood didn't improve.
While waiting for the water to heat up, I sank into thought.
If they were going to change my race to Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars, they could've at least left my gender alone.
Why did Reflecting Myriad Stars make me a woman, of all things?
Divine taste?
Or some other intent?
I had no idea.
There were no side effects like cramps stabbing my lower belly or feeling drained.
I'd heard women with bad periods really suffer.
Take Ayase—she once ended a stream midway because her cramps were so intense.
Having a sturdy body was a blessing amid misfortune.
Whoosh...
Hot water was finally coming out.
Good, now I could properly wet my hair.
"Hng..."
This feels nice.
Bathing in hot water always felt great.
...
...
...
After finishing my bath, I headed to the convenience store to buy necessities.
...Gotta get pads, right?
I had no idea which were good, so I grabbed the expensive ones.
I wasn't short on cash right now.
It wasn't officially announced, but...
I was a registered Awakener.
Awakeners get paid by the Awakener Association.
Money came in regularly every month.
On top of the base salary, there were performance bonuses based on contributions to resolving Anomalous Phenomena and utilizing items.
Last month, at the Association's request, I'd appraised three items total.
And resolved one Anomalous Phenomenon.
The amount that came in...
It was a jaw-dropping fortune.
Makes sense.
It's life-risking work—you gotta get paid well.
Of course, more money is always better.
But having money didn't guarantee happiness.
So what if I had cash?
No one was resolving Anomalous Phenomena for me.
All that changed was swapping triangular kimbap for 5,000-won premium pollock roe kimbap,
or convenience store drumsticks for 20,000-won fried chicken.
"..."
Hmm.
That's pretty nice, actually?
Thinking it over, yeah—more money really is better.
Anyway, I checked out with a few packs of pads, some drinks and snacks to keep at home.
The part-timer's face was pretty familiar to me.
As far as I remembered, he'd been working in this neighborhood for about a year already.
This guy.
Usually deadpan, but today his face looked unusually bright.
"Oh, hello! It's been a while."
"...Yeah, sure."
He even greeted me.
Seemed a bit tense.
Or maybe blushing.
Something good happen?
"That's 35,700 won, ma'am!"
The part-timer said it with peppy cheer.
Guess something really great happened.
Maybe confessed to by his crush?
I had a basic awareness of my looks.
Eye-catching pink hair.
Dainty features.
Needlessly huge breasts.
Objectively, 'Lee Jia, Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars' was
beautiful enough to captivate any man's gaze at first sight.
Even strangers treated me warmly, which I got.
But this part-timer? We'd met plenty before.
After the black smoke incident,
'Lee Jia' had always been female—history rewritten.
Otherwise, my ID wouldn't have changed entirely.
I had no memory of taking a photo with a woman's face.
So this guy had seen 'female Lee Jia' countless times over nearly a year.
He knew my face well... so why the sudden friendliness today? No clue.
Not that I minded him being nice.
After paying...
I bowed to the part-timer.
"Thanks for always working hard."
Then he froze solid.
What's his deal?
As I headed for the door...
"H-Have a safe trip home!"
His voice came out super excited.
Hmm.
Whatever.
Way better than his usual deadpan checkout.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In front of Lee Jia's house, convenience store part-timer An Junyoung.
He had one secret he couldn't tell a soul.
He knew the true identity of the VTuber 'Lee Jia.'
Truth was, he had zero interest in VTuber culture.
What he truly cared about was
the pink-haired woman who occasionally stopped by for a few tens of thousands won in daily necessities.
She was closest to his dream girl.
They'd never properly talked, and she always checked out stone-faced and left without a word.
But An Junyoung was satisfied just seeing her face now and then.
It started by pure chance.
Your typical roter dude, he was lurking on Loader Gallery as usual when
he spotted a post titled [Legendary Shit-Troll Lee Jia (VTuber) <- Sniped].
The content was shocking.
The user 'Lee Jia (VTuber)' was a legendary shit-troll that'd slap most trolls silly.
Even more absurd: comments said she wasn't trolling—she was legit.
Could tell from VODs since she streamed.
Couldn't believe it.
An Junyoung had to see 'Lee Jia (VTuber)' play with his own eyes.
So he followed a comment link to her stream.
And soon...
Became a devotee.
He'd known from the start that the VTuber Lee Jia
was the same as the pink-haired regular at the store.
An Junyoung never told a soul his secret about her,
and never would.
He wanted to be a romanticist.
Even if no one acknowledged it.
Not even the pink-haired girl herself.
Still.
He wanted to be one.
He quietly became a devotee.
Quietly became her fan.
VTubers live or die by RP.
He couldn't fathom why she'd modeled her avatar after her real face.
Even if he saw her at the store again,
he swore never to be rude—ask for photos or autographs.
Ting-a-ling.
She arrived.
At the store.
...
...
...
He'd sworn not to get excited.
But...
"That's 35,700 won, ma'am!"
His voice naturally amped up—uncontrollable.
After checkout...
Suddenly.
She looked at An Junyoung and
bowed ninety degrees.
"Thanks for always working hard."
Bending over revealed a glimpse of cleavage.
Not that it mattered to him.
What mattered was...
She'd greeted him for the first time.
An Junyoung's mind shattered.
From devotee...
To fanatic.