A Shut-In's Wish to TS into a Cute Girl
I stared blankly at the ceiling, mumbling to myself.
"Ahh, I wanna TS into a cute, busty beauty...."
Leaning back in my chair, I gazed up at the bare ceiling with nothing but the light fixture. It was just like my future. Hey, hope! You're nowhere in sight!
I lowered my gaze to my phone. A job rejection message flickered mockingly.
"Ha."
I let out a short sigh and tilted my head back further. Now I could see my room.
It was a tiny, cluttered one-room apartment. Instant noodle cups and unwashed clothes scattered everywhere...
Mom would've called this a pigsty for sure.
Oh, by the way, I don't have a mom. Or a dad.
No idea why. Birth secrets are supposed to be kept under wraps anyway.
Well, no need to hide it—they just ditched me. Probably living it up in hell, heaven, or this shithole of a world.
Maybe even hunting in the Tower.
That suit I bought for the interview. Damn, it was expensive.
I splurged on it for the interviews, but after nine rejections, even that motivation's gone.
At first, I cried. Now? Numb. Poetically speaking, my tears have dried up.
What am I even thinking? My unemployment benefits are running dry.
"Aah... Seriously, won't someone just TS me already? I wanna start a new life."
I muttered to myself. Who'd hear me in this dark one-room hellhole anyway?
I'd tilted my head back too long, and blood rushed to it.
"Ngh."
I struggled to sit up, and my monitor came into view.
With barely any furniture, the one thing I'd invested in was this computer—for browsing communities.
I'd dropped decent cash on a high-end build, but what do I use it for? Communities, videos, occasional Minesweeper. That's it.
But the performance slaps, right?
Just your average good-PC young guy.
I was habitually scrolling through crap posts when one caught my eye.
Hunter gigs seem pretty sweet.
Sure, the ones bragging about their hunter income every day pull aggro.
Around when I was born, the Tower appeared, turning Earth Online into a total mess.
Now we've adapted fast, and it's just part of daily life, but I heard it was chaos back then.
Anyway.
It's life-or-death work, and only a select few Awakeners can do it, so the pay is insane.
Of course, disappearances aren't rare, but sweep a dungeon and pocket billions? Bound to attract envy.
If only I could be a C-rank hunter. Don't need much.
Pfft.
A sneer curled my lips. Delusions are my specialty, but even I had to laugh.
What hunter? Me, glued to this room?
It nailed me. I was extremely bored right now.
I clicked. Inside was a hunter build simulator with limited points for traits and stats.
You know the type. I'll take average height but max out looks!
"...Huh? Switching gender gives a massive stat boost?"
I blinked. Even tilted my head.
Wait, isn't TS a good thing? Why the bonus stats?
Plus, bad traits like Anthropophobia or Hikikomori give even more points.
But I already have both!
Screw it—go full Transcendent rank and dump the bad traits!
An A-rank hunter rakes in bank deposits—what do debuffs matter?!
No idea what Transcendent is beyond S-rank, but it's gotta be top-tier!
Still had points left, so I dumped them into Charm.
Final build...
"Transcendent-rank cutie shut-in puppeteer...? Sounds perfect?"
It's god-tier.
Satisfied, I hit complete.
A girl in a dress appeared on screen.
[Please enter name:]
A name, huh.
My name's Lee Yang-seo, but something cuter...
After some thought, I typed.
[Please enter name: Elysia]
A pretty name that could exist somewhere. I hit enter. The computer hummed.
Gah?!
Virus? But it was just a browser tab—what the hell?
I fumbled for antivirus when...
It even mimicked the hunter Status Window perfectly.
Damn, this is spot-on!
I gave it a mental double thumbs-up and scanned the avatar.
Light pink hair, doll-like pale skin, overwhelmingly cute. Beyond expectations—ooh!
Then, something hit me.
Ah...
Forgot the rejection, chugged an energy drink, wasted time on nonsense.
Reality crashed in late. I bit my lip.
Supposed to change starting today...
I shut down the PC. With the monitor off, the room plunged into darkness.
I lay on my blanket-strewn floor—no mattress.
Ceiling was dark.
Business as usual.
...
"Yawwwn."
I stretched my mouth wide, yawning. Tears welled in my eyes.
Half-asleep, I staggered up. Had to start my "godlife" today.
Fix bedding, shower...
The bedding looked huge today. I shrugged, folded the blanket, headed to the bathroom.
Aah, shower's a pain... Just wash my face?
That motivational vid said cold showers are basic.
Ugh, too lazy. Pass.
Shivering, I went to the sink.
The mirror seemed higher than usual. I stared blearily. Same cute face as always.
M hazy. Same... same...
Huh?
Eyes flew wide. Sleep vanished.
The mirror showed yesterday's character: light pink hair, petite build, adorable face.
I've finally lost it!
They say desperation drives you mad. Guess my mind's cracked.
But this realistic?
I pinched my cheek. It stretched like mochi.
"Hyaaak!"
Screamed, let go. Cheek burned red. I clutched it.
Looked back. The girl—Elysia—clutched her cheek, eyes teary. Pitiful.
"Hngg...!"
Even my voice was girly-cute.
No guy could pull this off— it'd earn disgust. But Elysia? Artistic.
Anyway.
I'm definitely crazy.
Looked down. Frilly antique dress.
Fine, Awakening as hunter? Possible. But not for me. No way someone like me gets chosen.
And Awakening changes your looks? Never heard of that.
Probably my brain hallucinating denial.
F-First... gotta get out.
Stumbled out of bathroom in confusion.
Grabbed the front door handle—and froze.
"..."
Brain short-circuited.
Like a massive monster lurked beyond, my body trembled.
Stared at my shaking hand on the knob.
"Urk...!"
Something surged up inside. Nausea. Instinct screamed: don't open that door.
Countless human gazes piercing me.
Hundreds, thousands—no, tens of thousands of eyes.
Isn't this the Hikikomori trait?
Released the knob. Hand shook violently.
"Hahk... hahk..."
Panting, backed away. Never again.
Something I had to do but skipped.
I opened my mouth.
"Status Window."
Point Shop?
One thing clear: Can't live with these debuffs.
"P-Point Shop."
Trembling voice.
Yeah, I'm fucked.