I Enhanced a Teddy Bear and It Became a Teddy Bear!
"First of all, I'm not doing this for free. I may love enhancement, but I still have to make a living."
I opened the negotiation the way I'd learned to back in my office days, drawing on every contract talk I'd ever had with a client.
"Mmhm, figured as much~? Love anything free and you'll go bald~."
How amazing would it be to make a living just enhancing stuff without ever setting foot in an office? Beats crawling like a dog at some black-company sweatshop scraping by on two million won a month, when I could just tap-tap with a hammer and rake in hundreds of millions.
"I'd like to be compensated fairly. If it were up to me, I'd ask for one or two hundred million a job."
For once, CEO Hyun-ji's eyes went wide with genuine surprise.
"Ehhh...? Our office isn't exactly rolling in that kind of mooneey..."
"Which is exactly why I don't plan on demanding such a large sum all at once. Instead, how about I receive a portion of the earnings over a set period?"
Taking a huge cut up front was likely to provoke serious pushback. A subscription-style arrangement, income trickling in on a regular schedule, would go down far more smoothly.
And if I took it as a percentage? The stronger their weapons got, the more they earned — and the more they earned, the more I earned. Everybody won.
Having heard me out, CEO Hyun-ji let out a short, impressed ooh.
"Pretty clever, aren't ya~? The girls would totally accept a deal like that."
"Either way, I'll be charging enhancement fees for Seo-yoon, Danmuji, and Ji-yoon as well."
"Even the kiiids? Isn't that a biiit harsh?"
When CEO Hyun-ji voiced her concern, I snorted and waved it off.
"Obviously you'll be the one footing the bill. I'm not shameless enough to squeeze money out of a child."
"Oh myyy... already trying to skin the CEO alive, are we?"
"Call it a petit-bourgeois survival strategy."
"Hehhh, sly as a snake, you are. And sneaking Seo-yoon's enhancement into the deal like that was pretty funny too~."
...Busted.
"Still~ think of it as an initial validation cost. Your unnie here will invest in you, big and generous as I aaam."
CEO Hyun-ji said with a sly smile.
"I'll cover the advance payment myself."
Oho. A bold investment.
Anyway, that was that — there were more important matters on the table.
Turning back to CEO Hyun-ji, I laid out my next condition.
"Next: I need my identity laundered. If the name Yeon-seok keeps circulating, it'll eventually connect back to my past."
CEO Hyun-ji chuckled at that.
"Don't you worry~. The Magical Girl Administration handles that part brilliantly. I'll put in the request for you. If you don't have a name in mind, they'll pick one for yaa."
"...Yeon-sol."
Close to Yeon-seok, but with just enough of a twist to break the trail.
"And your family name?"
"...I'll change it."
No reason to cling to Choi. The orphanage director had slapped it on me without a second thought anyway.
"Jung Yeon-sol. I think that suits you nicely."
"Jung Yeon-sol, hm..."
CEO Hyun-ji glanced between my new name and my face, then smiled with satisfaction.
"Mm. It's a pretty name~. Suits your face a whole lot better than the old one."
"Names don't 'suit faces,' ma'am."
Haah. Fine. That was more or less settled.
"And lastly — I want a safe place to live. Somewhere the people from before can't reach."
As it happened, a few acquaintances knew where I used to live. For now they were only circling, deciding whether to show up or not — but it wouldn't be strange if they came knocking at any time.
At that, CEO Hyun-ji flashed her signature grin and made a proposal.
"When it comes to this sort of thing, speed is everything~ and I've got just the idea."
...That is terrifyingly ominous.
"Which is?"
"Move in with meee~!"
Is she insane?!
"No! How do you just casually move in with another woman out of nowhere!"
To be fair, if I were still a man, I'd have said yes on the spot to a cohabitation offer from a woman with that kind of mystifying charm.
But I'm a woman now. Not a man.
But you're both women, so what's the problem?
I still can't get used to my own body, and wearing women's underwear is mortifying enough as it is.
I like living alone, dammit!
Watching my reaction, CEO Hyun-ji explained in that same leisurely drawl.
"But you already know how crazy Seoul housing prices aaare, right? Moving anywhere near the office is going to burn through a chunk of change~ Not that money's exactly a problem for you, buuut... house-hunting itself could get you exposed all over again~."
"Then just have the office people handle it!"
Faced with my rising voice and thunderous expression, CEO Hyun-ji grinned slyly.
"Search, ask your opinion, sign the lease — that's an entire lifetime right there~? Wouldn't it be faster to come stay at my place and owe me one?"
...This goddamn snake.
"I really don't want to. I'm comfortable on my own..."
Just as I readied another round of resistance, CEO Hyun-ji's eyes turned unexpectedly serious.
"More than anything, you need someone right there who can spot it the instant something goes wrong with your ability. What if you push an enhancement too hard, collapse alone at home? What if first aid comes too late?"
...Okay, that's... actually worth thinking about. I still barely understand my own power.
No — no, wait, still not enough to convince me.
Then CEO Hyun-ji held up a photo.
A home in a league of its own compared to my one-room shoebox — vast, airy, with immaculate modern interiors.
"Forty-seven pyeong~ plenty of room for the two of uuus~."
That's not "plenty," that's a small palace!
The next photo she showed was of a single room.
...A room packed wall to wall with whiskey, wine, and every variety of luxurious booze imaginable.
Hold on. Why does one person own this much alcohol? What an absolute lush!
"Live with me and you can drink all of this whenever you liiike~."
...It is a little tempting, I'll admit.
I don't know much about wine, but some of those bottles have to run tens of thousands a pop, right?
"Plus, cleaning, cooking, all the housework — my mascot handles it aaaautomatically~."
Mascot? Magical girls get mascots?
...Well, either way, liberation from housework too. Tempting indeed.
"One month. If I want out after a month, I can leave. And I get my own room, right?"
"Of courseee. Separate rooms, and I won't set foot in yours without permission~. Stay one month, and if you hate it, you walk right out."
CEO Hyun-ji wore that same crafty smile.
Ha. Fine. One month. I'll try one month.
Absolutely not because the house is gorgeous or the booze is calling my name. Absolutely not.
And so I packed up my things and moved into CEO Hyun-ji's house.
Not that there was much to pack — a computer, some clothes, a handful of daily necessities, and a bed. That was the entire inventory of my life.
Her house was a detached home, not far from the White Trajectory Office. The exterior looked about as old and drab as the office building, but inside, as I'd already seen, everything was painted clean white and kept spotless.
I was still forming the impression that this wouldn't be an uncomfortable place to live when something came soaring at me with a whoosh.
"You've arrived, Miss Yeon-sol? The mistress said you were coming, so I've been waiting for you!"
...A rabbit plushie?
A rabbit plushie clutching a tiny spatula was floating in midair.
"...What are you?"
"Ah, I am Tokkaengi, the mascot assigned to assist Lady Bullseye! I'm in charge of housework, financial management, wine curation — the full range of domestic affairs!"
The mascot, Tokkaengi, folded its arms and puffed itself up proudly as it introduced itself.
...By the way, Tokkaengi. There's a distinct air of laziness in that naming sense.
"My, you're even cuter than the mistress described!"
...Excuse me?
"Hey. Don't call me cute. It's annoying."
At that, Tokkaengi put on an expression of utter, heartfelt apology.
"I'm terribly sorry. Lady Bullseye ordered me to tell Miss Yeon-sol that she is 'cute.' Furthermore, she has blocked my permissions from being overridden on that point."
...What did it just say? Blocked her permissions?
Just as that question began to form, a yawn sounded behind me and CEO Hyun-ji appeared.
"They're AI, y'know. Run on manaaa. Huaaam."
AI? What is she talking about?
"Mascots are high-performance AI dolls provided by the Magical Girl Administration~ Normally they assign them to protect and assist little girls who awaken as magical girls."
"...Then why do you have one, CEO—"
"Unnie."
Ugh, seriously. What is this woman's obsession with what I call her?
"'Unnie' is a bit of a stretch... you're not exactly young."
"Unnie is unnie~. Can't exactly call me nuna now, can you? You're a woman these days, Miss Yeon-sol."
Oh, for crying out loud.
I didn't feel like bickering any further, so I changed the subject.
"So what's the deal with that mascot, anyway? I thought those were for the kids."
"If you need one, you can just buy one~. They'll hand 'em out readily enough."
...Don't tell me she bought a mascot just because she couldn't be bothered to do her own housework.
"Lady Bullseye is very kind! She drinks at home every day and staggers around drunk, sleeps in fifty different spots, and suffers such terrible hangovers that honey water is a daily necessity — but at least she never says anything harsh to me!"
"...Ahem."
Wow, that really is high-performance AI. It throws shade so casually.
I was starting to warm up to Tokkaengi.
"Anyway, get reaaady. Our first customer will be here sooon."
"I'm sorry, what? Already?"
We're doing an enhancement today? She already had me do Danmuji's earlier!
"Mmhm. Ji-yoon's been begging and beggiiing."
"You could have at least warned me. I assumed I'd have at least a day to rest."
"It's also a chance to find out the limits of your usage~ We need to know how much you can enhance in a day, or problems will crop up later. So you'll dooo it, right?"
Haah. I can't win with this woman.
Well, it's no real loss to me. It's just a tap of a hammer, after all.
Still, rolling over that easily would make me a pushover, and I refuse to be played for a fool.
"Fine. But even if things go poorly, I stop when I decide to stop. If I get too worn out, or the enhancements start going badly, I'm postponing the rest."
"Oh, that goes without sayiiing."
"...And at least two bottles of alcohol. The expensive kind."
"Call me unnie and I'll make it three~."
Ah, damn it. This unnie obsession, I swear.
"...Unnie."
I'm milking her for the priciest bottles she owns.
"Okay, Yeon-sol~ I'll have them ready for later."
Oh great, she's dropped the honorifics on my name too... This absolute menace.
"Then I'll go unpack Miss Yeon-sol's luggage. Cute Miss Yeon-sol, please rest in the living room for a while!"
...That "cute." I swear on my life, I will find a way to make it stop.
While Tokkaengi carried my things away, I headed to the living room and sank into the plush sofa.
"Make yourself at hooome."
Uneased by CEO Hyun-ji's crafty grin and her eerily over-the-top hospitality, I finally asked.
"...Why are you doing all this for me?"
But CEO Hyun-ji just shrugged and answered with breezy nonchalance.
"I do this for all my kids~. You're nothing special, Miss Yeon-sol."
...She didn't look like she intended to elaborate.
The moment that thought crossed my mind, the doorbell chimed. Tokkaengi must have let her in, because the brown-haired girl from the other day stepped inside with shy little steps.
Apparently, the teddy bear she was hugging was today's enhancement job.
"Ji-yoon, welcome~! Go on, introduce yourself to Yeon-sol unnie~."
At CEO Hyun-ji's playfully coaxing tone, Ji-yoon scampered over and bowed at the waist.
"Hello, I'm Park Ji-yoon.... C-can you make my dollie strong too, unnie?"
Ji-yoon went on, her face crumpling like she was about to cry.
"The kids say Piyuu isn't even a real wand. They say if a monster hits him even once, the stuffing'll come out... They tease him for being a toy. Hic.... I want Piyuu to get stronger, so we can play together for a long, long time."
Well, fair enough — little kids are thoughtless, and of course they'd tease her over something like that.
The mascot behind her floated up and carefully explained the situation to me and CEO Hyun-ji.
"Our magical girl has never actually needed to fight an apparition. But once, an Extra Class apparition appeared at her school, and she stepped up because she wanted to impress her friends. That was when her doll suffered rather serious damage, you see."
...So something like that happened.
Still — teasing a friend who stepped up to protect them? That's going too far.
Hearing this, CEO Hyun-ji clicked her tongue softly and muttered.
"Extra Class is the weakest of the lot~ And kids will tease over nothing but rumors, too~."
Whatever the circumstances, if I strengthened this doll, the girl would never have to make that tearful face again.
"So I just have to make this teddy bear strong?"
"Yep! Make Piyuu strong, please!"
Ji-yoon nodded vigorously and held out the teddy bear called Piyuu.
Right. No way in hell was I letting her friends look down on her.
I'd make him sturdier.
Make him stronger, so he could actually fight.
And while I was at it, I'd give his appearance a cooler edge too — so the kids would never laugh at him again.
With that resolve carved into my mind, I gave Piyuu a light tap with the hammer — and a brown glow began to gather around him.
"Wow, Piyuu's getting stronger! Now Piyuu can play with me forever!"
Ji-yoon bounced up and down in excitement at the sight of the light.
Phew. Seeing a kid that happy — this already beat enhancing Danmuji's gear, honestly.
But when the brown glow faded and Piyuu's new form was revealed...
"Waaah! Piyuu got ugly! He's scary!"
...He looked exactly like a taxidermied bear that had just escaped a natural history museum.
Grotesque claws, glossy black glass eyes, and fur with an unsettlingly lifelike texture — a teddy bear no longer, but a bear.
"Pfft, khh...! Yeon-sol, you really do cause trouble wherever you go~."
CEO Hyun-ji, already fighting for her life to hold back her laughter, began mercilessly teasing me.
And then the gaze of the thing-that-had-been-Piyuu met Ji-yoon's —
"WAAAAH! That's not Piyuu! Give me back my Piyuu!"
— and Ji-yoon burst into fresh, louder sobs.
...I'm... I'm so screwed....