Chapter 23
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: A Man? It's a Man?
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Everything that had happened was processed swiftly afterward.
First came the discussion about Yoo Seol's punishment.
No matter that she'd done it to save me, the fact remained that she'd broken out of prison.
And even though the one she killed during her escape was a criminal, it couldn't just be overlooked.
Normally, it would have been treated as a serious crime.
But perhaps because the prison side acknowledged their own fault in my kidnapping...
My opinion carried a lot of weight.
Fortunately, thanks to my vigorous defense...
It was decided that she'd lose her Model Prisoner title for a few months and return to her cell on the underground fourth floor.
'It's a shame, but I guess I have to be satisfied with this...'
I just felt sorry for her.
I kept receiving help from her and nothing else.
I couldn't do anything for her.
Not marriage... but if I got to see her again, I thought I should treat her a bit more kindly.
After that, I was forcibly put on vacation.
I could've kept working, but maybe because so much had happened to me, it was a semi-mandatory leave.
'Well... considering the Prison Warden's face, I have no choice but to accept it.'
I wouldn't see Seorin or Ian for about a week, but since it was vacation anyway, I decided to rest up plenty.
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For the first day of vacation, I already knew where I wanted to go.
The gym and the club.
I used to go to the gym without missing a single day, but since coming to this world, I hadn't gone once.
'Well... there were a lot of incidents, so...'
I'd been feeling my muscles wasting away lately, so the gym was a must.
The second stop was the club.
To be honest, it'd be a lie to say I had no ulterior motives.
But who am I?
A healthy young man from ordinary Korea.
Even if I had no impure intentions...
I couldn't help but be curious about a club full of mostly women.
'It's not impure thoughts; I just have a lot of curiosity.'
And I figured it probably wouldn't excite me much anyway.
Seeing faces like Seorin's, Ian's, Yoo Seol's every day—how could any other woman's face catch my eye?
This wasn't just an excuse to myself.
It was purely curiosity.
With that, I headed to the gym first.
-Ding
"Ah... the gym smell after so long..."
No.
This wasn't the gym smell I knew.
No smell of men's sweat. No smell of iron.
All that wafted toward me was perfume.
'What is this...? Did I come to the wrong place?'
I looked around suspiciously, but it was definitely the gym.
But something felt off.
The moment I walked in, the air in the gym seemed to change.
The lobby fell into complete silence the instant the door opened, then hushed gasps and whispers erupted.
"Whoa...... a real man?"
"Photo..... can I take a photo?"
It was attention bordering on overwhelming.
'And why is everyone dressed like that?'
The three women at the front desk were all topless.
One had her bare chest exposed without even a black sports bra, her sweat-slick nipples standing out sharply in the air.
The other two were wearing nothing at all up top.
Their large breasts jiggled freely with every movement, almost making a soft sound.
Below, they were all in thin T-backs, string panties, or transparent leggings.
One woman's pubic outline was visible right through her leggings.
"Excuse me, sir, what brings a man like you here?"
The staff member with "Gina" on her name tag approached.
She was bare-chested in just black string panties, her breasts bouncing heavily up and down as she walked.
"I came to sign up for the gym..."
I couldn't bring myself to meet her eyes easily.
My face felt burning hot.
"Sign up? For our gym?"
"Yes, that's right. Gym membership."
The counter staff exchanged glances and talked among themselves.
Then one woman approached me.
She stood in front of me and leaned forward slightly, her breasts dropping almost to my face.
"Whoa..... you even smell like a real man. Have a seat here, sit. I'll take care of everything for you."
The registration process went like clockwork.
"The gym is free to use, sir."
"Free?"
"Yes, because you're a man."
"No, no, you don't need to go that far."
I was once again struck by how this world had only 0.01% men.
Until now, stuck in a routine of home-office-home with delivery food, and no interactions even at work, I hadn't thought much about it.
Right after they sat me on the sofa, female members swarmed around me.
Most were mid-workout, sweat pouring like rain, their breasts, stomachs, and thighs glistening.
One came over during squats without pulling up her lowered leggings, sitting beside me with her pubic area slightly exposed.
"You look strong, sir.... Wanna do deadlifts together later? I'll spot you from below."
As I filled out the forms, women placed hands on my thighs.
"Special perks for male members. First month PT free, private shower room, and..... if you need, we'll keep the doors open late into the night."
She winked and whispered in my ear.
"Want me to wipe your sweat after your workout?"
It was bizarrely intense interest.
I felt like a monkey in a zoo.
"Ha... could you all tone down the attention? It's burdensome."
I didn't want this unnecessary focus even at the gym.
I wasn't here to do weird stuff in a sacred gym.
Threatening not to sign up if they kept it up got the women to back off.
'No matter how few men there are... it feels like their idea of men is all wrong somehow.'
I grew even more curious about what men were like in this world.
'I'll look into that later.'
Once I got my member card and entered, the main hall came into view.
Dozens of women in near-nude outfits moved between machines.
On the bench press, a topless woman shook her nipples in the air with every push of the barbell.
At the squat rack, women in leggings with asses nearly exposed smacked each other's butts and laughed.
In one corner, during group lessons, the instructor yelled, "Deeper! Thrust your hips forward!" and the women's breasts jiggled in unison.
"Guess I'll start with bench."
As I lay on the bench press rack, a PT instructor approached immediately.
She was completely nude.
Her breasts looked at least D-cup, sweat dripping from her nipples.
Below, just thin string panties.
Thin enough that her pubic hair peeked through.
"I'll check your form. I'll press from above."
"No, it's fine, don't worry about it. It's burdensome."
This was torture.
Working out here, I'd lose focus and end up hurting myself badly.
"No, sir. You're a male member. If you get hurt, our gym might have to shut down. Please understand."
If she put it like that, what could I do?
I didn't want to cause trouble.
"Ha... alright, spot me then."
"Yes!"
Her breasts hung right over my face.
Every barbell push, her nipples brushed near my lips.
'Agh, seriously.... distracting...'
"Good.... harder..... ah, these muscles are rock solid."
She kneaded my chest with her hands and whispered.
Next was deadlifts.
Every lift drew gasps from around me.
"Whoa, look at those man thighs..... so thick."
"Bet his ass is firm too. Wanna peel 'em off."
'Ha.... this won't do.'
I couldn't take it anymore and left the gym right then.
"Male member! See you tomorrow!"
No tomorrow.
This didn't match my expectations or common sense at all.
I thought it was just a world where gender roles were swapped, but no.
Men were definitely designated as protected subjects.
I'd experienced that already, so it was fact.
But their behavior was weird.
They treated me well, but there was too much unnecessary touching, like groping my chest.
'In my old world, a guy touching a woman's chest like that would've been straight to the police.'
Gender relations seemed reversed, but not entirely, leaving my head spinning.
'Ha.... even the gym gave me more to worry about.'
I'd have to investigate this world more closely later.
With that, I headed to the club this time.
'It's vacation anyway, so I'll look into it slowly after it ends.'
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The moment I stood in front of the black glass building in the heart of downtown, the air already felt different.
The entrance to Club 'Lunatic' blinked with red neon signs.
A long line stretched out, but I just stood there.
In this world, a lone man standing in front of a club was an event in itself.
The two touts at the door turned their heads at once.
Both women.
One in a black leather bra top with over half her breasts exposed, below just thin black string panties like thread and a garter belt.
The other in a sheer see-through mini-dress, nothing underneath visible in the neon light.
Her nipple and pubic outlines etched sharply in the glow.
"......Hey, look over there."
The tout scanned me up and down.
Her eyes flashed.
"It's a man?"