Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: Astria Online
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"Thank you."
Jae-wook saw the customer off, then sat down in his chair and sighed.
"Hah."
It had already been three months since Jae-wook, a college student, started his part-time job at this convenience store.
Even in this age of the so-called technological singularity, with automated stores everywhere, there were still convenience stores staffed by actual people.
A prime example was this place, located in what was still called a 'shantytown' even in the highly developed nation of South Korea.
"At least the pay is decent."
Convenience stores near shantytowns like this one still stuck to the classic manned system, partly to prevent theft.
They even paid a proper late-night wage, despite the lack of customers.
They must be turning a profit to stay open, he figured.
Fiddling with his smartphone while watching over the quiet late-night store, Jae-wook had to greet the next customer just a few minutes later.
Jingle, jingle.
"Welcome."
The bell attached to the convenience store's door chimed, signaling someone had entered.
Jae-wook snapped back into his dedicated service-worker mode.
But when he stood up and scanned the store, he couldn't see any customers.
Ah, it must be *that* customer.
Whirr.
A faint mechanical hum.
Jae-wook rounded the corner of an aisle and stared at the customer's profile he'd glimpsed.
Pale white skin and snow-white hair.
Was she an albino, something he'd only ever heard about? But she didn't look particularly sickly.
Even in today's Korea, where the population had become more diverse due to immigration policies aimed at tackling low birth rates, her silvery-white hair was a rare sight.
A petite frame.
She was beautiful, but her looks were closer to cute than pretty.
She was the one ray of light in Jae-wook's tedious part-time schedule.
"But still..."
Though Jae-wook was the type to eagerly approach and chat up any pretty girl on campus, for some reason, he had no desire to ask this beautiful girl's number.
For one, she looked too young.
Jae-wook's strike zone was older women, not little kids like her.
Was she a middle schooler, maybe fourteen or fifteen? At most, a high schooler?
If a college student like him hit on her, it would be a crime.
She looked to be less than 150 cm tall.
The reason Jae-wook couldn't be sure was because of the fully automated wheelchair she was in.
South Korea's welfare system was pretty good, even on a global scale.
He figured that even for someone living in a shantytown, the government probably provided support for things like an automated wheelchair.
"Tsk."
Jae-wook clicked his tongue.
How did that girl end up like this?
Since he'd never seen her with a guardian despite her mobility issues, he could easily guess that she lived alone.
Her small frame stirred a protective instinct, and the first thing he felt when he saw her was pity.
The girl in the wheelchair had been a regular customer for the three months Jae-wook had worked here, and it wasn't that he hadn't tried to talk to her.
But he'd never properly heard her voice.
She only ever expressed herself with a small nod or shake of her head.
As a college student busy just trying to support himself, meddling any further without knowing her circumstances or being able to take responsibility would be nothing more than being nosy.
*Thud.*
It seemed the girl was done shopping.
She placed her items on the counter: a triangle kimbap and a cup of ramen, as usual. And her welfare card.
But there was one more item, something she didn't normally buy.
It was a can of beer.
"......?"
Jae-wook looked at the girl with questioning eyes.
The girl avoided his gaze.
Jae-wook was about to just ring her up, but he couldn't help but ask.
"Uh, excuse me, miss. Minors aren't allowed to buy alcohol..."
*Glare.*
From between the strands of silver hair that partially covered one eye, her obsidian-like pupils shone with a fierce light.
Jae-wook flinched under her gaze.
In the three months he'd seen her, it was the first time Jae-wook had ever witnessed the girl show any emotion.
Contrary to her cute appearance, her gaze was as sharp as a warrior's who had fought through battlefields.
*Tap.*
The girl silently took out another card.
"Gasp...!"
What she placed on the counter was her national ID card, complete with her photo.
[Iseulbi]
24xxxx-4xxxxxx
"Born in '24...!"
Judging by her birth year, the girl was clearly nineteen years old.
She was an adult, fully entitled to buy alcohol.
"I-I'm so sorry! You just look so young."
Startled by the fact that the young-looking girl was around his age, Jae-wook hurriedly finished the transaction.
*Nod.*
Her eyes returning to their usual vacant state as if she'd never glared at all, the girl gave Jae-wook a slight nod from her wheelchair.
Whirr.
Jingle, jingle.
"Phew!"
Hearing the convenience store door close, Jae-wook let out the breath he'd been holding and collapsed into his chair.
"Haha, an adult?"
There were many unbelievable things in the world, but today, Jae-wook was truly shocked.
Of course, Jae-wook had seen adult women shorter than 150 cm, but he'd never seen an adult woman who looked *that* young.
At the same time, he once again felt a pang of pity.
The reason she hadn't grown much despite her age was probably due to a lack of proper meals since she was a child.
"How awful."
He didn't know the girl's full story, but Jae-wook couldn't help but blame the country.
If you're going to support the vulnerable, at least do it properly.
Alone again, Jae-wook was lost in thought for a moment before opening his smartphone to watch a video.
[Full-Dive Virtual Reality, 'Astria Online' Official Launch Imminent.]
In this era of the singularity, it was a masterpiece acclaimed for brilliantly integrating the virtual reality systems—already deeply embedded in people's lives worldwide—into an RPG game.
'Astria Online'
The final promotional video for the game had just been released.
The global interest from gamers was so immense that even during the beta, they had to operate servers on a national level due to the sheer volume of concurrent users.
Thoughts of the girl completely vanished from his mind as Jae-wook grinned while watching the PV.
"I'll be a capsule owner soon, too."
That was the driving force that had kept Jae-wook working his part-time job near the shantytown for three months.
Of course, it was an age where one capsule per household was nearly standard, but for Jae-wook, who had left home early to cover his own living expenses and tuition, buying a personal capsule required a major commitment.
Jae-wook passed the boring hours of his shift imagining himself adventuring on the Astria Continent.
*
"Pfft! Blech! Ptui, ptui!"
Ugh, what is this?
The beer I drank in my previous body definitely didn't taste like this.
Has this body made me unable to even drink properly?
Then again, even back on the Astria Continent, I never got along well with the booze-loving Dwarf warrior, Ain.
I smiled, remembering the dwarf who would cheerfully raise a tankard and make a racket in the tavern.
Ain always told me I couldn't drink because my body was too young.
The new body I received after being summoned as a Hero by the god of another world wasn't an adult's to begin with.
Seven years old.
When I first arrived in that other world, the new body I received in place of the one that had died on Earth was that of a six or seven-year-old.
The body of a frail girl who didn't even have the strength to properly hold a spoon.
The fact that my gender had changed, too, no longer seemed important now.
The only reason this weak body became functional was largely due to the Holy Sword forced into my hands and the environment I was thrown into.
Dropped in front of a church with nothing but a Holy Sword, I was raised and revered by the priests as the Hero sent by the Supreme God.
And in the year I turned twelve, the church was burned down by demons.
I shook my head violently.
Even when I'm doing nothing, my old memories just pop up.
This is Earth.
Not the Astria Continent.
I completed my mission as the Hero and returned to Earth.
But, is that really true?
Were all the adventures I had on the Astria Continent real?
Or am I just a pitiful girl who had an accident and is now suffering from delusions?
That I was a man in my past life, died on Earth, received a new body in another world, spent over a decade adventuring to defeat the Demon King, and finally returned to Earth.
Really, if they were going to send me back, they should have provided some after-sales service.
Sending me back in the same damaged body from the fight with the Demon King... how am I supposed to make a living?
I poured the rest of the beer down the drain.
It was a waste, but it couldn't be helped.
*Gurgle.*
As I poured the beer, my thin wrist and pale white forearm came into view.
"Heh."
A laugh escaped me for some reason.
The thin, high-pitched voice I had now grown used to.
It didn't feel real.
But this is my voice.
Whirr.
I operated my electric wheelchair and headed for my humble abode, carrying today's provisions from the convenience store.
Legs that won't move as I wish.
This didn't feel real either.
But these are my legs.
That's right.
Right now, I was completely lacking a sense of reality.
To a terrible degree.