Retirement
Retirement
I have retired.
I put an end to my long life as a mercenary and returned to my hometown.
The reason I chose to retire was simple.
Drones. The ultimate king of lethal cost-effectiveness that completely overturned the paradigm of modern warfare.
Times have changed.
At least, that's what I thought.
So it would be fitting for a relic of the old era to make its exit like this.
My comrades in the mercenary group tried to talk me out of my decision, but my will was stubborn.
Well, it wasn't as if I lacked the desire to spend the rest of my life comfortably with the money I earned while living as a mercenary.
Since such feelings also added persuasiveness to the option of retirement.
There was no reason not to liquidate a mercenary life where it wouldn't be strange to die alongside a drone at any moment.
Anyway, after returning home for the first time in a while, the state of the house was an absolute mess.
A semi-basement studio apartment with space just right for one person to live in.
As soon as I saw the strange smell and the cobwebs spun about, another resolution formed.
Yeah. Let's move.
A move meant to signify a fresh start now that I had retired.
Since I had the personality to put things into action immediately once I decided to do something, the process went smoothly without a hitch.
A single day was enough to move from the semi-basement studio to a decent officetel.
The piercing gaze of the landlord who saw the state of the semi-basement studio that had been neglected for years was also resolved through financial therapy.
In the spirit of making a fresh start, I called a company to take care of all the items I used to use.
The 'move' was over.
But there were still many unfilled parts.
Starting with various home appliances, essential furniture was not yet in this officetel.
I stopped by a nearby store, bought a sleeping bag, and...
Returned to the officetel to get some sleep.
That was how the curtain fell on the first day of my life as a resting youth.
It is commonly said that those who retire from the battlefield suffer from nightmares.
Things like the extreme situations on a battlefield where shells and bullets rain down.
Or the distinct buzzing noise of drones, a sound that eats away at a person's sanity just by hearing it.
I heard that if you suffer from PTSD, you see and experience such things...
"⋅⋅⋅."
Seeing as there's absolutely nothing wrong with me getting a good night's sleep, it seems a guy like me was cut out for the battlefield.
Well, while others were preparing for the CSAT, I was rolling around like a dog on the battlefield.
Whatever it was, isn't prior learning important?
Anyway, having greeted a peaceful morning, I raised my body.
For some reason, my body felt unusually refreshed and light today.
No, it wasn't just a feeling; my body was actually light.
"⋅⋅⋅?"
Feeling an alien sense of incongruity, I lowered my head.
Wrists that were much thinner than yesterday came into view.
At the same time, two lumps of flesh protruding from my chest were visible.
"What⋅⋅⋅."
About to spit out a question, I cut my words off mid-sentence.
Momentarily flustered by the beautiful voice that popped out of my mouth.
Squish-
I reflexively placed a hand over my chest.
I felt a fascinating sensation I had never touched before.
So this is what it feels like⋅⋅⋅ wait, that's not it.
Regaining my senses, I moved to the bathroom to confirm the facts.
I looked at the figure reflected in the bathroom mirror.
The flustered face of a beautiful woman.
Pinch-
"Ah, it hurts."
The woman in the mirror frowns.
A thin, lovely, beautiful voice.
A face that's pretty even when frowning.
Two lumps of flesh that captivate the gaze.
Even as I pinched my cheeks more to deny all this, I only felt pain, nothing changed.
Resting youth, day 2.
No, resting virgin, day 1.
Start.
A problem had arisen.
And several problems at that.
"⋅⋅⋅."
[Identification Card]
Yoo Yeon-ha
XXXXXX-4XXXXXXX
First of all, it wasn't just my body that had changed into a woman.
An ID card I was seeing for the first time in my life represented this.
"There's no one in the contacts, and⋅⋅⋅."
There were no records of internet access on the smartphone either.
As if someone had intentionally erased it.
Crucially, there was no information whatsoever related to 'Yoo Yeon-ha' left on the internet.
As long as one is a person living in modern times, it's inevitable that some trace of anything would be left behind, but⋅⋅⋅.
"Did I hire a digital undertaker?"
Was it too much of a leap in speculation?
Not a chance.
My body changed overnight.
Now that a supernatural phenomenon difficult to understand like that had occurred.
It wouldn't be strange even if any leap of speculation turned out to be true.
Even if it defied common sense, something outside of common sense had already happened to me.
There was nothing as inefficient and time-wasting as attaching this and that reason to something that couldn't be logically explained.
Let's think simply.
I became a woman overnight.
And with a clean identity that left no traces behind.
"⋅⋅⋅I have no money."
The real important problem was that I had no money left.
As my identity and body changed, naturally, my bank and account changed as well.
I didn't know if they had thoroughly brought to life the historical research of a social rookie in her early twenties, but.
'Yoo Yeon-ha's' balance was completely empty.
Roughly finishing my grasp of the situation, I examined the inside of the house.
First, there was a bed. Even though I hadn't ordered a bed yet.
But it was the officetel I knew.
However, parts that were slightly different could be seen.
Similar, but definitely different.
Various home appliances and furniture.
And in the other room, which should have been empty, I saw an egg-shaped device I was seeing for the first time? A mechanical device? It looked like that.
"What is this now⋅⋅⋅."
Holding what looked like a remote control attached to the exterior.
I pressed the red button that looked to anyone like a power button.
At that moment, lights blinked on the egg device, and it began to operate.
As if the roof of a convertible was opening, there was a chair inside its opened interior.
For now, all I could recognize was 'that there is a chair'.
It looked like some other devices were installed inside, but⋅⋅⋅.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to me.
My body changed, my identity changed, and the state of my house changed.
Could the 'world' I live in itself have changed?
I connect to the internet with my smartphone.
I throw a question to the most famous AI.
When I explained the appearance and features of what I saw, an answer returned from the AI.
To summarize the content of the answer, the official name of what I saw was 'Capsule'.
It's said to be an access device capable of connecting to virtual reality.
"Is it something like VR?"
Virtual reality was a concept that existed in the original world as well.
I remember it being at an early stage⋅⋅⋅ far too lacking for its level to become universal.
It seemed that in this world, it wasn't at such an early stage level.
I gather a bit more information.
Accessing Nutube and searching for 'Capsule' yielded countless related search terms.
"The currently most expensive Capsule model, Archetype Zero?"
I compare the exterior of the Capsule seen in the thumbnail of the topmost search result video with the exterior of the Capsule right in front of my eyes.
It's exactly the same.
The sound of the video no longer entered my ears.
5 billion.
A very familiar amount.
It had to be familiar.
Because the money I earned living as a mercenary was around that much.
Turning off the video, I ask the AI about the average price of the most universal Capsule currently available.
The AI answers.
About 10 million won.
I look at the Capsule once again.
No signs of anyone having used it could be seen.
As if it had just been delivered.
"Haa⋅⋅⋅."
A sigh comes out.
As the situation sorted itself out, a sigh couldn't help but come out.
After repeatedly sighing, boiling emotions erupted from deep within my heart.
"My money, fuuuuuuck!!!"
My money that I earned while rolling around like a dog on the battlefield all this time.
I exploded in anger at the fact that it had been replaced by this piece of scrap metal.
Having violently poured out my emotions like that, I pinched my thigh.
It hurt.
The pain did not change the reality before my eyes.
I merely stared blankly at the piece of scrap metal named Capsule for a long time.
The emotional turbulence did not last long.
Because rather than pouring out emotions over something that has already happened, it's far more efficient to think about what to do next.
First of all, the assumption that the money I saved had been replaced by that Capsule was merely an assumption.
Of course, I didn't think a social rookie named 'Yoo Yeon-ha' would have paid the massive sum of 5 billion to buy that Capsule.
Just because Yoo Yeon-ha didn't buy it, it couldn't be decisive proof that my money had been replaced by that Capsule.
The strange things that happened to me, if you think about it, also occurred suddenly without any prelude or price.
So that 5 billion won Capsule must just be there too.
⋅⋅⋅If I didn't at least think like that, it felt like my heart would be torn apart.
"Fascinating."
Currently, I was inside the Archetype Zero.
A function that automatically adjusts the internal temperature to match the user's body temperature.
A body care function named Body Recovery.
Even various supplementary functions whose reasons for existence I didn't know.
I felt it asserting that 'it's worth the money', but.
Since I was still an amateur regarding things like Capsules on this side, it didn't strongly resonate with me.
"Aki. Connect to Nutube for me."
[Understood. I have connected to Nutube. Do you happen to have a trend you want?]
At the same time, the Nutube main screen was displayed directly in front.
I turned my head to the side.
Inside the Capsule.
The hologram of a fairy-like character floating around me.
This was Aki, the high-performance AI model equipped only in the Archetype Zero.
"Aki. Analyze my physical condition and take measures suited to the results."
[Currently, the user's muscles appear to be in a tense state. I will alleviate the symptoms with a simple massage function and heat function.]
I had intentionally stayed in a tense state as if I were on a battlefield, and.
Aki immediately checked that point and activated the massage function.
"Ah, this is niiiice⋅⋅⋅."
Feeling my muscles relax through the massage, I looked at Aki's hologram.
"Aki. Change your speech style."
[Following the user's request, I will change my speech style. Please briefly explain what kind of speech style you want.]
"Um⋅⋅⋅ a bright noble lady's speech style?"
[Request confirmed⋅⋅⋅ application complete.]
[Ohohohoho~ Nice to meet you. User! I am the high-performance AI model Aki! To the user, e.s.p.e.c.i.a.l.l.y! I shall permit the pet name 'Aki'~]
The appearance of Aki's hologram character changed into something like a blonde noble daughter.
Wow. Amazing performance.
"Change speech style again. Maid."
[Request confirmed⋅⋅⋅ application complete.]
[Nice to meet you. Master. I look forward to serving you today as well.]
"Change speech style again. Secretary."
[Request confirmed⋅⋅⋅ application complete.]
[User-nim? Could you please tell me your business?]
"Change speech style again. Mamang."
Don't tell me this works too?
[Request confirmed⋅⋅⋅ application complete.]
[Our Ha-yeon~ Ogu ogu~ Did you miss Aki mamang's embrace?]
"Change speech style again⋅⋅⋅"
[Sigh.]
The hologram dropped its head and let out a sigh.
"⋅⋅⋅."
Mm, let's stop.