Chapter 7
Chapter 7
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 7
Chapter Title: I, Awakened
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With the emergence of Anomalous Phenomena and items, a small portion of humanity evolved into Awakeners.
Awakeners possessed abilities that far surpassed those of ordinary humans, and these abilities could be broadly divided into three types.
First, physical-type Awakeners.
Just as the name implies, these were people whose physical strength had been enhanced by awakening.
If we're talking games, they'd be classified as warrior classes, right?
Superhuman strength.
Super high-speed movement.
Skin tougher than steel, and so on.
In a way, they were the simplest yet most powerful type of Awakeners.
Second, elemental-type Awakeners.
These were people who could freely manipulate natural elements.
In game terms, they'd be mages or elemental sorcerers.
Breathing fire from their mouths.
Shooting icicles from their hands.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say this was the least realistic type of awakening.
Third, mental-type Awakeners.
These were people with abilities related to the mind, or so I'd heard...
Not much was known about them in detail.
To begin with, mental abilities were pretty abstract.
Physical, elemental, mental.
To smoothly resolve Anomalous Phenomena,
all three types of abilities were necessary, so the standard composition for an Anomalous Phenomenon resolution party was three Awakeners with different abilities.
So.
What type of Awakener was I?
I might already know the answer.
Probably, I
wasn't an Awakener.
For starters, even after receiving the price of blasphemy, all I got was a bump on my forehead, which suggested my body was pretty tough.
And the ability to document target information in wiki form definitely wasn't something a normal human could do, so one might think I was an Awakener.
But no matter how I looked at it, my ability didn't fit into any of those three Awakener types.
I was the only one in a different genre, maybe.
The wiki only records facts.
According to the wiki's info, my race wasn't 'human'.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ 📛 Name: Lee Jia 👩 Age: 24 🧬 Race: Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars ♀️ Gender: Female 'Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars'.
...Yeah, no matter how many times I look at it, that race name just doesn't feel familiar.
No wonder viewers teased me, calling my race name a laugh trigger.
An Awakener
is a term meaning 'a human who has transcended human capabilities'.
I hadn't transcended human capabilities.
As the wiki states,
I just wasn't human, apparently.
In other words, the ability I had
was simply a basic ability of the 'Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars' race.
"..."
I'd like to deny the info on the wiki, too.
But I've verified it multiple times already.
The wiki doesn't lie.
It's all true.
Accepting the fact that I wasn't human was pretty easy.
Because the [Fervent Devotee of Reflecting Myriad Stars] race was, name aside,
identical to humans in appearance, personality, physiology, and habits.
If it hurt, it hurt.
If sleepy, sleep.
If hungry, eat.
If need to use the bathroom, go.
Just like humans.
Except,
unlike humans, committing blasphemy against the divine immediately brought the price of blasphemy.
Being able to check target info in wiki form.
And having a slightly tougher body than humans.
Those were the differences.
...Well.
No need to overthink it.
What mattered right now was whether I could discover a new Anomalous Phenomenon and item within a month to create a wiki entry.
I didn't want to die.
I didn't want to be disposed of.
The easiest way to discover new Anomalous Phenomena and items
was, obviously, to enter an Anomalous Phenomenon zone.
To enter an Anomalous Phenomenon zone, Awakener registration was mandatory.
It made sense.
If a normal person entered an Anomalous Phenomenon zone... it might not end with just that person dying.
Anomalous Phenomena were unpredictable unknowns.
No one knew what bizarre things might happen when a normal person encountered one.
In fact,
there were cases of people turning into women after encountering an Anomalous Phenomenon.
Hard to believe, but true. Ung.
"..."
Damn it.
Anyway, if I didn't want to live on a one-month death sentence,
I needed to register as an Awakener ASAP and document new Anomalous Phenomena and items.
I wasn't an Awakener,
but I could probably pass as one.
With that, I headed straight to the Awakener Association and
opened my mouth at the reception desk.
"I, I awakened!"
"Pardon?"
Didn't hear me?
Again.
"I, have awakened!"
"..."
Why the panic?
Isn't this how you register as an Awakener?
The reception staffer broke into a cold sweat for a moment,
then shook their head and asked me,
"Excuse me, but what type of ability do you have?"
"Ah, well."
I document target information in wiki form.
This ability... better not reveal it if possible.
So.
I'd register as a physical-type Awakener.
"My body's tough."
"...Pardon?"
"My body's tough. Hmm, for example."
With that, I pulled a hammer from my pocket.
The reception staffer freaked out and urgently radioed somewhere.
Why's she like that?
She's her, I'm me.
Don't tense up.
It doesn't hurt.
Doesn't hurt at all, so swing hard.
Then I placed my hand on the reception desk,
pulled my arm back as far as it would go, and went for a full swing with the hammer...
...or tried to.
"Guek!"
"Unknown female in her early 20s with pink hair. Subdued."
The guard subdued me.
No.
I'm not a terrorist, I'm an Awakener, damn it.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "So, while watching a VTuber stream."
"Yes."
"Black smoke of unknown origin—whether Anomalous Phenomenon or not—started emanating from the living room."
"Yes."
"That black smoke then enveloped you, Lee Jia."
"Yes."
"When you opened your eyes, the black smoke was gone, and you had awakened... is that correct?"
"Spot on!"
"Haa..."
The Awakener Association investigator let out a deep sigh.
Yeah.
I didn't expect anyone to believe me.
That's why I didn't mention turning into a woman because of the black smoke.
I did mention the 'black smoke', of course.
I'm saying it again.
I'm an ordinary citizen with at least a minimum of conscience.
If that black smoke really was an Anomalous Phenomenon... it would be the first case outside an Anomalous Phenomenon zone.
If I didn't report it and it caused a big problem later, what then?
Got to report what needs reporting.
The investigator sighed repeatedly and spoke.
"...Understood. This is a headache. For now, while you're under investigation, we'll search your home. It won't take long. Do you consent?"
"Yes, I con—wait, h-hold on."
"What's wrong?"
"You're believing me?"
"Yes."
"...Why?"
I'm genuinely asking.
No one would believe me unless their head was messed up.
"I'm a mental ability user. I can tell if what a target says is true or false."
"Ah..."
"That's why it's a headache. There were no lies in what you said, Lee Jia."
"..."
Exactly.
I didn't lie.
Though I did omit some things.
So.
Proof that my body was tough seemed confirmed, too.
"So, can I register as an Awakener now?"
"No, impossible."
"What?!"
I panicked and asked back at the investigator's response.
"Fuck, why?!"
This was life-or-death, so even swears slipped out.
At my sharp reaction, the investigator asked in surprise,
"Do you want to become an Awakener, Lee Jia?"
"Of course! It's my life on the line!"
"...! H-how is that true... no... anyway, rules are rules. Per Awakener Association internal regulations, you cannot register as an Awakener."
"So why? Give me a reason."
"Simply put, your ability is too weak."
"..."
The investigator then explained further.
Not everyone who awakens can register as an Awakener.
If deemed unhelpful for resolving Anomalous Phenomena, registration is denied.
Fair enough.
A slightly tougher body probably wouldn't help much with Anomalous Phenomena.
However,
if one had awakened, they had already transcended normal human limits, so they had to either live under strict Awakener Association surveillance
or join the Association.
One or the other.
"For reference, I chose the latter."
"..."
Come to think of it,
this investigator referred to himself as a 'mental ability user', not 'mental Awakener'.
The ability to distinguish truth from lies in a target's words would be incredibly useful for humans... but
useless for resolving Anomalous Phenomena.
"I think you've understood enough by now, Jia. So, please wait quietly here until the home search is done..."
"W-wait, stop!"
"...What now."
I
had to become an Awakener no matter what.
That was the only way to survive.
The only way to avoid disposal.
...No choice.
I'd have to take the risk.
Better than dying.
⚔ OMNIA WIKI PREVIEW ⚔ [Kim Jeonghwan (Mental Ability User)] 1. Overview 2. Details 3. Personality 4. Hobbies 4-1 Dislikes 4-2 Likes 5. Trivia "Name, Kim Jeonghwan! Age, twenty-seven!"
"...What are you doing? That's what I introduced myself as when we first met."
"Hobby, watching VTuber streams! You like VTubers too? Favorite female type, cat-like with big breasts and a plump butt!"
"Dislikes, cucumbers. Bugs. Lies. Ung, makes sense as a truth-discerner you'd hate lies."
"Trivia. His home has dozens of VTuber figures. A secret he's told no one."
"He's an Ayase Mitsuko fanboy. What, you're an Ayadong too? This is gonna click so well. I'm an Ayadong too!"
Never thought I'd meet an Ayadong here.
Nice to meet you, buddy.