At a Moderate Pace

Moon Saebyeok, now twenty-one, had changed in many ways.

From his attitude toward life to his every single action.

Kim Jehak's worries had faded to the point where they only spoke on the phone occasionally, and Saebyeok's reliance on medication was completely gone.

His psychiatric treatment had also come to an end.

Except for the fact that he was still a bedroom musician.

There were still a few areas where he struggled slightly. Namely, redefining his understanding of relationships between men and women.

"...It's nice not having sasaeng fans, but wait, is this a different kind of sasaeng?"

Ed, who was reading the news out of habit, was still adjusting.

AirBeer was a five-member boy group with a massive fandom.

Knowing who they were in his original world, this gave him a lot to think about in many ways.

Where did the beast-like idols of intense performances and razor-sharp choreography go? Instead, their movements were closer to a girl group's dance!

It wasn't just fatal; it made his head spin.

"Over there, it would have been a scandal, but here, they just go ahead and seal the deal."

The problem was that most of the fan club's administrators were wives who had received their "royal grace."

Apparently, even the staff members were just waiting to receive his grace one day.

On the contrary, the general consensus among fans was to praise their idol for his incredible "sense of responsibility."

If they just had a child without marriage, that was lovely.

If he granted them his grace for just one night, that was good.

Unless it was sexual assault, trying to hold men accountable or raising objections was a losing battle.

Naturally, childbirth and childcare were the women's responsibility, and men had no duty of support whatsoever.

In short, it was a world where, if one so desired, pleasure without responsibility ran rampant.

Occasionally, there were miraculously "normal" (?) men who possessed a strong sense of responsibility and even a desire to support a family.

If they hit the jackpot (?) and fathered many baby boys, the government would award them medals, or foreign countries would offer them citizenship, begging them to just come and live there.

He heard that this sometimes even led to international disputes...

The YouTube videos showing the daily lives of these Alpha Males, their wives, and their children were enough to ensure ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠they never had to worry about making a living.

"....I wasn't exactly a Confucian boy back then. Have I become an isekai-style boomer?"

Dear Author.

Are you out of your mind?

Even with the mind of a forty-year-old man, it was useless.

The hormones of a twenty-one-year-old man were running wild.

His body, which he had spent quite some time toning, seemed angry, asserting itself at every opportunity.

On days when he had wet dreams, the sense of shame was...

Apparently, most men in this world had low sex drives, so he wondered what was wrong with his body.

Looking at his lower half, which seemed specialized for this sort of thing... well, he felt like he could trade thumbs-up with a well-endowed brother.

Bigger was better, anyway. It felt good.

Whether his mind was ruling over his body or he was just naturally gifted, he would find out one day.

With this happening repeatedly, he tried to borrow the power of adult videos.

But the videos he saw in this gender-reversed world...

To put it politely, they weren't his cup of tea.

"...Fuck."

"Ugh... you crazy bitch. Doing this first thing in the morning."

"I'm telling you, if you saw him in person, you'd freeze on the spot too."

"Even so, compared to my Oppas, everyone else is just an ugly squid!"

"You know you're a squid to those Oppas too, right?"

"...You're crossing the line."

"O-Oh my god! He's coming, he's coming!"

"Hey, you crazy bitch! That hurts!"

They weren't the only ones causing a fuss. For some time now, the neighborhood park would get crowded around the early morning hours.

They were all women, and they had all dressed up in sportswear.

The culprit behind this untimely fitness craze was Saebyeok.

It had already been six months since he started jogging as part of his daily routine, and he planned to keep it up.

As he ran, some women would shyly offer him sports drinks, while others would run along with him.

His superior proportions, stemming from his tall height of 185 centimeters, didn't just set the local women's hearts on fire—it completely devastated them.

Since the physical stamina of men in this world was generally poor, it had become a daily occurrence for women who underestimated him and tried to keep up to collapse from exhaustion.

Kim Miyoung, who had been dragged out in the early morning breeze by her friend, could only follow him with her eyes, her mouth hanging wide open.

"...You've been keeping this masterpiece to yourself every day?"

"Insane, right?"

"It's crazy... Look at those legs."

"I bet he's packed underneath too...?"

"You know how hard it is for guys to build muscle, right?"

"He runs every single day."

"There's a chance... I should have brought my business card."

"Look around. Do you think you're the only woman who's given him a card?"

Before they knew it, the area was crowded with women who had dressed to the nines first thing in the morning.

"See? I'm not the only one who can't even strike up a conversation."

"...Maybe I should start working out today."

Having practically become public property of the neighborhood, Saebyeok was fading into the distance.

It had been half a year since he started doing cardio outside and strength training at home.

"Damn it! Muscle is so hard to build."

Unfortunately, he had no idea that men in this world struggled to build muscle.

Still, thanks to his past experience of always managing his body with professional trainers, he didn't face too much difficulty.

It wasn't that there were no gyms, and he had looked into going to one, but they were overwhelmingly dominated by male-only Pilates and yoga.

He had no prejudice against those workouts, but to someone whose motto was that a real man should lift at least 500 kilograms across the big three lifts, it was ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠sorely lacking.

Here, his preconceptions were shattered once again.

The physical performance of the women was far superior to that of the men.

"...They can actually do that?"

Was it the mystery of genetics? There were far more physically superior women.

Unless they were in a profession specialized in physical labor, men didn't even have aesthetic muscles; they were lucky just to maintain a slim build.

It was still a world full of wonders.

For various reasons, his time was passing by quickly.

And today was finally the day he had decided to host his first broadcast.

July 14, 2023.

It was Moon Saebyeok's birthday.

10:00 PM sharp. Tweety TV.

Saebyeok's first broadcast began. On the screen visible to viewers, there was only a charming illustration of softly glowing stars and a crescent moon—his chosen symbol—resembling a late-night countryside sky.

Naturally, the viewer count was zero.

He played some soft background music and tested his microphone.

"Ah— Ah—"

Judging by the levels rising on his audio interface, it seemed to be connected properly.

The secondary monitor was also good.

Having practiced talking to himself for a year, he was already used to it. He was just about to warm up his throat and get started when—

A viewer already?

"Welcome, MangoSmoothie."

"Ahaha... Yes, I am. Today is my first broadcast."

"A stream where we listen to music, play instruments, and sing?"

"Yes. Do you have a song in mind?"

"Just a moment, please."

Saebyeok had listened to a lot of Korean songs in preparation for his broadcasts.

Since the selection was narrower compared to pop music, which was his main domain, he had been secretly worried, but fortunately, this was a song he knew.

A song by a legendary Korean singer is no problem. Since it's a ballad, a live accompaniment would be best.

Saebyeok opened the sheet music on his iPad and placed his hands on the keyboard.

Choi Seola, whose username was MangoSmoothie, loved exploring small, low-viewer streams. She was a self-proclaimed "first-broadcast killer."

As a fairly well-known figure on the streaming community forum, she was looking for a stream to recommend today when she stumbled upon Saebyeok's broadcast.

Seeing the pitch-black background and the overly innocent stream title, she instinctively clicked on it, thinking it was just another tiny stream.

"Oh? ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠The category is music. Ah! The title was Music Radio too."

The moment she entered, she was struck by the sweet, beautiful voice that greeted her.

It was a shame that the background was just a cute illustration, but since it was a first broadcast, it was normal not to show a face.

Besides, male streamers themselves were rare.

A good boy who sings without even turning on donations... I should listen to one song and then tease him a bit, right?

Her playful resolve shattered into pieces the moment she heard the very first line.

"W-What... Why is he so good?"

Before she knew it, her eyes welled up with tears.

And what about that sorrowful voice that tore at her heart?

It was a song with a lot of mid-range notes and was by no means easy, so people with mediocre singing skills wouldn't even dare to attempt it.

"Oh my god..."

Choi Seola whimpered, barely holding back her sobs.

"Waaah! I'm sorry..."

She finally burst into tears, and the song came to an end.

Saebyeok felt a warm sensation, thinking once again that music truly was a wonderful thing.

It was a song he was quite confident in, so he had been looking forward to the reaction, but the chat window was dead silent.

The viewer count is still one.

He was at least glad that MangoSmoothie hadn't left in the middle of it.

"It's been a while since I sang this, so I'm not sure if it sounded alright."

He turned the background music back on and waited for a moment.

Is she AFK...?

"MangoSmoothie—are you there?"

"I'm glad you liked it. But why are you crying?"

"Oh my! You're very emotional. You're a wonderful listener for a singer."

"Hmm... I'm not a singer, but who knows ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠what the future holds."

Choi Seola felt it.

She had fallen hard.

A streamer who was already playing hard to get!

Rationally, she wanted this stream to succeed so she could keep listening to good music, but emotionally, a desire to keep him all to herself began to creep in.

Should I hear his plans first?

"I plan to sing, stream, write and compose music, and play instruments—just like the stream title says. To do that, I'll need a lot of people who enjoy my broadcasts."

Choi Seola had to agree.

No matter how great a stream was, it meant nothing if there were no viewers.

She had seen far too many streamers end up that way.

"Thank you for the encouragement. Shall we do another song then?"

Choi Seola gasped at Saebyeok's words and hurriedly typed in the chat.

"Bringing in viewers...?"

"I don't know what you're planning, but don't push yourself."

Energized by Saebyeok's sweet voice, Choi Seola began posting on the streaming community forums.