Actually, I'm a Mage
Actually, I'm a mage. Normally, for adults, test results are only shared with the individual themselves. But if the patient wishes, companions can listen in too. I figured I knew my own body well enough and wanted to prove I was healthy, so I said it was fine for Ye-rim and Ye-won to sit in with me.
...Now I was slightly regretting that choice.
"I-is something wrong...?"
At the doctor's words, Ye-rim and Ye-won looked even more grave than I did. Ye-rim especially stared at me with anxious eyes, her pupils practically shaking like there was an earthquake.
"I-is it a big illness...?"
"Ah, no. I might have caused some misunderstanding by jumping straight to the results. Hmm... How should I explain this..."
The doctor looked troubled as he examined my fMRI scan.
"Well... If you look at this screen here, this is a typical person's brain."
The screen the doctor showed had the center lightly shaded red and yellow, with most of it in blue.
"So... the brighter shaded areas are, simply put, regions with superior brain activity. It means certain brain functions are more developed. But for you, Kim Juwon..."
"...Um."
My scan showed most of the brain shaded yellow and red.
"This indicates abnormally superior brain function. I've never seen a case like this before, so I'm not sure how to put it..."
"Is it bad?"
Ye-rim asked jitterily, shaking her leg, while Ye-won nodded as if she had a rough idea.
"It's not... bad. Not right now, at least. It just means your brain function is that good. Of course, since it's abnormally high, we don't know what effects it might have."
The doctor continued, flipping through my medical records.
"Juwon, you were receiving treatment for depression a few years ago. From yesterday's tests, the depression itself seems to be gone, but..."
I didn't know what to say and just sweated bullets. The depression treatment was before I turned into a woman, and now I was perfectly fine, of course.
I couldn't stand the increasingly serious atmosphere and finally spoke up.
"Th-then it's not a problem right now, right? Honestly, I've been living well lately, and my depression feels completely cured..."
The doctor shook his head at my words.
"I don't think it's something we can just brush off. Excessive brain activation could lead to mental disorders, depression, cognitive overload, and the like if we're not careful."
Man, I swear it's nothing like that...
I never imagined that maxing out my intelligence by raising a witch in the game would backfire like this. But if I explained that here, I'd be fast-tracked straight to the psych ward.
As I agonized, Ye-won spoke up.
"Um... couldn't we just monitor it for now? Unnie's been getting along fine with people... and it doesn't seem like something we can fix right away anyway."
"...Hmm. That's a fair point. This is completely unprecedented, after all."
Ye-won and I locked eyes, and she winked at me. What a good kid. I'd have to pat her head a ton after the checkup.
"Then we'll just add a depression self-diagnosis, and you can go today."
I let out a sigh of relief.
"Oh, and Ye-won, your nervous system tests are fine. You can head out."
I did the additional depression self-diagnosis. Things were going great at work and with relationships, so I breezed through every question.
...It's hitting me now, but I've really changed.
Along with my body, I'd grown mentally too.
"...Maybe I should just drop out and focus on streaming?"
I couldn't keep taking leaves forever. With my current intelligence, I'd pick up anything quickly no matter what I studied. I'd think on that more later.
After finishing the self-diagnosis, I stepped out of the hospital. Ye-rim and Ye-won were waiting outside.
"Juwon, all done with your checkup?"
"Yeah, of course."
Ye-rim still looked at me with a complicated expression. I didn't want to worry her anymore, so I planned to reveal my secret today.
"Unnie, can I come over to your place for a bit today?"
"Huh? Uh, yeah... sure."
We headed to the Yi sisters' house.
After a quick unpack, I sat on the wide sofa with Ye-rim and Ye-won.
"Unnie, should I tell Ye-rim unnie?"
I nodded to Ye-won. Ye-rim looked back and forth between us, totally confused.
"Unnie, let me show you something amazing."
Aqua
A small orb of water formed in my palm.
"...Huh? Wha-what...?"
Aqua Variant Chant: Rain
I snapped my fingers, and rain started falling outside. Ye-rim stared blankly before her face lit up with shock.
"...Wh-what... magic or something...?"
"Yeah, actually, I'm a mage."
I didn't mention becoming a super customized character. No way to prove it, and no need anyway.
"W-wait... I can't wrap my head around this..."
"Unnie, my illness was actually cured by Juwon unnie. She used healing magic on me."
"What? You knew about that...?"
"Yeah, Juwon unnie came over at dawn and healed me before leaving."
Ye-rim looked confused, then teary-eyed as she turned to me.
"...So... Juwon, you healed our Ye-won...?"
"...Yeah. I did."
Ye-rim rushed over and hugged me, sobbing.
"Thank you... sniffl... really... H-how can I ever repay this..."
I silently held her, patting her back until the tears stopped.
"...Sniff. No, this isn't the time. I need to repay you..."
"...Unnie?"
"How much should I give? Money's best, right? Or... do you need a servant or something? I'll devote my whole life if—"
"Uh, unnie...?"
To snap her out of her hysterical state, I splashed water on her face.
"Eek?!"
Clean
The water on Ye-rim's face vanished in an instant.
"I don't need anything. Really. I did it because I wanted to."
"But..."
"You think I do this for just anyone? You're my closest unnie, that's why. Plus, you've helped me so much before, so this was my way of paying you back."
This was sincere. When I was deep in depression, barely surviving day by day by throwing myself into Lost World, Ye-rim was the one who always reached out, keeping me from going astray.
Only then did Ye-rim's eyes soften as she hugged me silently.
"...Still, thank you. I'll never forget this."
"Oh, and that scan result earlier? Probably the same reason."
"Yeah, yeah. I trust our Juwon."
Now Ye-rim looked at me with blind faith.
"Whoa, really? Even your eye color was magic~"
"Hehe, yep. I can change hair color too."
Right in front of Ye-rim, I cycled my eyes and hair through red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet.
"Hahaha! What is that, gaming hair or something?"
We chatted away until the sky began darkening.
"Juwon unnie, stay for dinner?"
"Hmm... sure?"
"Great! What do you want? I'll order right now!"
"Ah, Juwon. We have tons of ingredients here..."
"Hehe, perfect. I'll cook for you."
"Eh? Juwon unnie can cook too?"
"Yeah, Juwon's amazing at it. You'll be shocked."
"Whoa..."
Ye-won gazed at me expectantly.
"What do you want?"
"Hmm... pasta?"
"Okay."
The kitchen warmed up. Olive oil sizzled in the pan as I added chopped onions and garlic. The fragrant aroma spread, and I tossed in the shrimp left at home. The browning sizzle sounded like a festival.
Meanwhile, I boiled pasta in water. As it absorbed moisture and swelled, anticipation built. Once the shrimp were fully cooked, I carefully poured in cream and paprika powder. The creamy sauce blended smoothly, deepening the flavor.
I transferred the boiled pasta to the pan and mixed it in—it was like they were embracing. Finally, a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and one last stir created perfect harmony.
The finished toomba pasta was plated like a warm hug.
"Done~"
"Smells so good...!"
I portioned it into bowls, and we sat at the table.
"Let's eat~"
Ye-won twirled a big bite onto her fork. Her puffed cheeks and wide eyes were adorable.
"Is it good?"
"Mmm~ Delicious..!"
Ye-rim and I burst out laughing at Ye-won chomping away with sparkling eyes. It felt like a family dinner after so long.
"I'll head out now."
"Okay, take care. Call anytime you wanna come over."
"Thanks for today, unnie!"
I waved goodbye and walked the night streets lit by building and car lights.
"Gotta visit OVEN HQ next week... level up... stream... so much to do."
Checking my phone on the way home, I got a message from Seo-hyeon.
She'd ignored my advice to rest and edited it anyway. I'd have to hurry home and check the video.
The video was fun, as expected. From what I'd heard, Hoon handled Lost World episode edits, while Seo-hyeon, with her clip channel experience, took the lead on chatty streams.
Smooth transitions, readable subtitles, perfect sound effects and BGM. It was flawless to me, so I uploaded it right away.
Checking views on previous ones: Episode 1 had passed 1 million, and Episode 2 was nearly there.
"...Maybe treat the editors to a group dinner later."
Subs were climbing steadily, nearing 200k.
"Gotta knock out everything before the next main quest push..."
I managed comments for a while before bed.