Chapter 5

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Translator: penny

Chapter: 5

Chapter Title: Clam Star (2)

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(Photo)

"……."

The views kept skyrocketing without end, and the likes continued to rack up.

On top of that, nearly a thousand comments were pouring in from languages all over the world. No wonder the notifications were going absolutely crazy.

"…Jeez, they know cute when they see it."

At first, I wondered if it was some kind of mistake or inflated numbers from bots, but Clam's system blocks that kind of unproductive nonsense thoroughly.

In the end, this all meant real people were reacting.

Of course, the reactions were unanimous.

The comment section was filled with praise: pretty, cute, lovable, the outfit suits her perfectly, and so on.

There were occasional gripes about heavy filters or AI compositing, but they were so few they barely stood out.

"Heh."

I'd faced hatred and disdain from random strangers before, but unconditional goodwill like this? Never.

A faint tingle, like electricity buzzing through my whole body, washed over me. Deep down, I had to admit these reactions felt pretty damn good.

[Mommy! Rainbow!]

[Oh… you're right. But it's not even raining. What's going on?]

"Gasp."

I snapped to attention at the voices drifting in through the slightly open window, dashed over, and quickly dispersed the rainbow before anyone could spot it.

Then I scrolled through the comments for a bit before making up my mind and rummaging in my closet for something.

"…If they wanna see it that bad, I'll show 'em."

I didn't care if they didn't call me cute, but dissing my transcendent cuteness? Unforgivable.

One fresh outfit pic, and all that filter/AI crap would shut right up.

Swish.

Swish.

This time, a light pink-based shirt and beige tennis skirt.

I even had some knee-high socks that were recommended as a perfect match, but they felt a bit ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠too embarrassing. After agonizing over it, I shoved them back in the drawer.

"Even so, this is kinda… pushing it."

It felt like crossing that final line. As someone who still saw myself as Bucheon's tough guy, the mental resistance was no joke.

Anyway, I finished the coord with plain white socks and started snapping pics.

Honestly, my photography skills were pure amateur, but with looks like mine carrying the load, that flaw didn't matter one bit.

Gazing fondly at the uploaded photo, I turned off all Clam notifications to dodge the hassle, then scratched that itch by spamming more pointless posts on the channel.

You know that feeling?

One meaningless post can make your day way better than you'd think.

And here I was, posting one pic, and the whole world loses it with likes, showering me in praise and acclaim I'd never heard in my life.

Naturally, as the star of the show, I was on cloud nine.

'This is addictive….'

But on the flip side, all that attention came with a twinge of pressure.

What if they get bored quick? Disappointed in my crappy photos? What if my self-esteem tanks and I end up making some thirst trap alt account without realizing it?

Those lame thoughts crept in, making me feel pathetic and blue again.

"Sigh, what's with me lately."

Ever since awakening into this girl's body, my emotions had been all over the place. Maybe the hormonal shift was messing with my head.

Anyway, positive thoughts, positive mindset—that's how I keep Bucheon's fresh daily lives safe.

With great power comes great responsibility. I had to protect my own mental health, rationalization or not.

Ding!

Right on cue, Mint Soboro Bread hit me up for a party invite. No hesitation—I plopped down at the PC and fired up the game.

Come to think of it, she tossed a 50-hour event item like trash, then casually hopped back in the next day for quests. Mental fortitude like that is next-level.

'Yeah, she was a counseling center employee before awakening, right?'

Three people together, one must be your teacher. Even Mint Soboro Bread might have something to teach me.

I figured I'd pry the secret to her ironclad mentality sometime, then propped my tiny legs up on the chair and hammered the keyboard.

"……."

Yeokgok-dong, Bucheon City. In the back corner table at Café Bernoulli.

Hunter Association public hunters Lee Cheol-joo and Cha Min-ah had been rushing around the area nonstop, investigating the bizarre weather phenomena popping up around Bucheon.

"These anomalous weather patterns starting from Bucheon… what's causing them?"

"Who knows. Could be mass hysteria, or maybe a sign of a powerful dungeon spawning."

Obviously, in modern society, most weird phenomena tied back to dungeons with high probability.

So when issues cropped up, they prioritized checking for dungeons—but this case felt a little off from the usual.

"Citizens aren't much help… No clue where to even start."

People agreed the weather had been erratic lately, but no one remembered details or spotted anything suspicious.

They'd scanned key spots with their gear, but no anomalies detected.

"Don't overthink it. Probably just paranoia. A few more days of reports, and HQ will buy it."

"Yeah, probably."

Cha Min-ah, the newbie, hadn't seen tons of field action, but she knew non-issues outnumbered real ones by far.

Feeling lighter, she sipped her coffee—when suddenly dark clouds rolled in, unleashing a downpour.

Drip.

Drip-drip.

Pour.

"Uh… sudden shower?"

"Definitely didn't look like rain a second ago…."

A twinge of unease passed between them, suspicions rising—but the rain stopped as abruptly as it started, vanishing in seconds.

"Guess it was nothing."

"Yeah."

Chuckling it off, they took another sip.

But the clearing sky darkened again, heavy rain battering the window. This time, it lasted until a puddle formed out front.

Pour.

"…This is weird."

"Happens with showers sometimes."

Yet when clouds gathered for a third round and unleashed another torrent, they finally realized they might need to rethink things.

Pour.

Pour.

"Okay, this feels iffy…."

"Weather here's definitely off. Something real going on?"

Staring blankly, they watched the clouds sprinkle for about ten minutes before vanishing completely.

Leaving behind the usual crystal-clear sky, as if nothing had happened.

(Photo)

Middle schooler girl blows up all 5 of her precious +13 weapons in a row and loses her mind lololololol

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

Splat.

Why did I do it? Why couldn't I hold back?

I pummeled the innocent pillow, tears streaming as I rolled around on the bed.

'Weird… Normally I'd never….'

Was this the body's fault too? But what was done was done.

My gold-farming lucky charms, painstakingly geared up, reduced to worthless scrap.

'Just wanna die.'

The weapons exploding was bad enough, but worse was my meltdown after.

Mint kept teasing my failed enhancements, and I got so mad I nearly teared up from feeling hurt.

Lies. I was super pissed.

I went to splash water on my face to calm down, and anyone could see I looked totally sulky.

"…This can't be real."

Me showing such a lame side? I did it myself, but I couldn't believe it.

This was… basically turning into a full-on 'girl'.

'Oh no.'

Thinking about it, my powers felt more varied and potent over time.

What if my body and mind were gradually shifting female too, right this second?

"Gasp."

That scary thought hit me. I shook my head wildly, desperately clinging to my inner masculinity.

This won't do. I have to protect my precious manhood myself.

I tossed the restored pillow onto the bed and, after deep deliberation, activated the long-forgotten 'Tough Guy Mode'.

Swish.

Swish.

Plop.

Pour.

Tough Guy Special #1: Cold showers year-round.

"Ack, freezing!!"

Slipping out of the tub and face-planting on the floor? That'd stay my lifelong secret to the grave.