Chapter 1
Chapter 1
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: A New Body
-----------------------------------------------------------------
At 28, I got testicular cancer.
“It has metastasized. We’ll have to remove everything, including the penis.”
And just like that, I said goodbye to my manhood, which had never even seen a woman's vagina in its entire life.
And then, five years of fighting the disease.
I fought cancer with everything I had, trying to live a full life.
“The cancer cells have spread to your bones. It’s time to get your affairs in order.”
The doctor was businesslike from beginning to end.
Even a fast-food part-timer would have more energy than him.
I cried continuously as I packed my things.
When I got tired of crying, my thoughts drifted to strange places.
If I'd known it would come to this, I would have hit up the brothels before the surgery.
I should have had sex as much as I could before they cut it off.
Back then, I was too scared of dying to even think about it.
Now, with death staring me in the face, I regret it every day.
Ah, I should have used it to my heart's content before they took it.
And then, a miracle happened to me.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Your earnest wish will be granted. Do you accept?] [Yes / Yes] A message suddenly appeared before my eyes.
At first, I thought I was hallucinating.
But more importantly, why were both buttons 'Yes'?
[Time has expired. A random selection will be applied.] [You have selected Yes.] My vision turned white.
When I opened my eyes again, I realized it hadn't been a hallucination.
“...Who are you?”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In the mirror was an incredibly handsome man I'd never seen before.
That's me? I couldn't believe it.
If this is a dream, please don't let me wake up.
But I didn't wake up.
After three hours, I accepted the miracle.
The life of 22-year-old Lee Chang-woo, who tried to commit suicide by taking sleeping pills, was now mine.
I found out his name and age from his ID card.
What did this guy do for a living? No, more importantly...
“Why on earth would a guy with this face want to die?”
It's my body now, but it still feels like someone else's, so it's not embarrassing to say this.
This guy, Lee Chang-woo, was seriously, breathtakingly handsome.
He had the aura of a celebrity.
He was about 185cm tall, boasting a perfect nine-head body proportion.
His skin was so pale it was almost translucent, making me wonder if he had some Northern European blood. And not a single blemish on it.
With visuals that would have A-list directors lining up to offer him leading roles, why would he want to die?
“Some of us, with our plain faces and chopped-off dicks, were fighting tooth and nail just to live.”
I really don't get it.
I checked his phone to see if he'd left anything behind, but it was completely wiped clean.
He must have done a factory reset before he died.
Not a single messaging app was installed. A completely clean slate.
“Why was it in airplane mode?”
The moment I turned off airplane mode, the message notification icon changed frighteningly.
From 0 to +999.
“A factory reset, but 999 unread messages?”
From the looks of it, he reset it right before he died.
And he got over 999 messages in that short time?
Curious, I opened the messages.
The first page alone made my head spin.
[Oppa, what are you doing? lol]
[Oppa, why aren't you answering?]
[Chang-woo, your phone was off. Noona is so worried...]
[Oppa, let's go see a musical.]
[A new Hanwoo-makase opened in Samsung-dong. Wanna go? You love Hanwoo...]
[Is something wrong? T_T]
[You deleted your Tok-app and your phone is off. Nothing bad happened, right???]
[Chang-woo]
[Chang-woo oppa]
[Wanna go to a motel with Noona? Or should I come to you?]
[Please answer your phone T_T]
“Fuck... Why the hell did he want to die.”
Wow, my head is spinning.
Shit, it wasn't just 999.
It's just showing +999 because that's the notification limit.
Even at a glance, the number of senders was in the double digits.
All the senders were women.
Is this what a handsome guy's phone is like?
Do handsome guys normally get flooded with messages from women like this?
Wait.
Maybe there's something on his Star-stagram?
Something that shows what kind of guy Lee Chang-woo was.
“Star-stagram account... find my account with phone number... reset password... Ah, I need his resident registration number.”
As I took the ID card out of the wallet again, I saw something I'd missed before.
No, wait a minute.
Why is there so much cash?
“What kind of guy carries around dozens of 50,000-won bills?”
It's a small studio apartment, so I wondered if he'd killed himself over financial struggles.
But looking at his wallet, that wasn't it either.
Then again, judging by the message bombardment, there were probably plenty of women who would have gladly supported him.
This guy... what was he really?
“Phew, done.”
As soon as I reset the Star-stagram password and logged in.
The +999 notification popped up again.
I opened his DMs and...
“Crazy.”
It was a feast of flesh tones.
All sorts of women had sent pictures of themselves in bikinis, naked, their breasts, their genitals.
There were even women who showed their faces while sending naked pictures in sexy poses.
But as soon as I read a few of the DMs...
[Oppa! You read my DM!]
[I saw you read Noona's DM. Please answer, I'm worried.]
[I thought something terrible had happened!]
What the hell is with these women?
Were they checking every second to see if I—no, if Lee Chang-woo—had read their DMs?
No way, right? They just happened to be online and saw the 'read' receipt, right?
I suddenly got scared and closed the DMs.
“He set everything to private except for one picture.”
I scrolled through his older photos.
Even his casually taken selfies overflowed with an 'I'm handsome' aura.
He really had the kind of visuals that belonged in acting—no, he *had* to be an actor.
Committing suicide with a face like this.
Chang-woo, you've truly committed a great sin against the world.
Do you know that?
“As time went on, he started covering his face with stickers.”
I could see the progression on his Star-stagram.
At some point, Lee Chang-woo had set all photos showing his face to private.
The photos he posted after that had stickers covering his face.
Looking at the occasional picture where his face was visible, it wasn't because he'd gotten injured or had plastic surgery.
It seems he started feeling burdened by showing his face.
Of course, this is just the guess of an average-looking virgin who died of cancer, so I could be off.
“And even then, he set all but the very last one to private.”
That one remaining photo was of food.
A picture of high-quality beef sizzling on a charcoal grill.
I guess it's true that he likes omakase.
He'd also disabled comments.
That must be why his DMs and messages were blowing up.
“Lee Chang-woo. What on earth did you do?”
Maybe I'll find something if I go through his belongings.
But it was strange.
Other than some simple bedding, there were almost no belongings.
Just a small, carry-on-sized suitcase.
The suitcase only contained some clothes, a towel, and toiletries.
There were no clues as to what Lee Chang-woo did.
He had a passport, but it was brand new with no travel stamps. The issue date was recent, too.
“Did he suddenly feel like traveling abroad? But the plan fell through?”
The wallet also had nothing but his ID, driver's license, and cash.
There were no business cards from other people, not even a common coupon.
“Seriously, what did this guy do?”
At this point, I was getting determined.
Wondering if there might be a clue in the women's messages, I sat down and started reading them.
Since the other person can't see read receipts on iMessage, I could browse through them without worry.
There were over a thousand of them, so the thought of reading them all was a bit daunting.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
Just then, I heard someone pressing the keypad lock on the front door.
Who is it? How do they know the passcode?
Startled, I frantically looked for something to use as a weapon, but froze when I saw the visitor.
“Oppa, I brought the hamburger you asked for.”
She was a ridiculously beautiful woman, so much so that I was speechless.
To the point where I wondered if a person could even look like that.
She was about 169cm tall, with long, slender limbs like a doll.
Long, straight hair that men go crazy for.
A voluminous figure and hip line that were just a little more than 'just right'.
The pale stomach peeking out from under her crop top was so slim and free of fat it was as if her fat cells had gone extinct.
This girl is insane too? She has the visuals of a celebrity.
Wait, are we living together? Is she Lee Chang-woo's girlfriend?
Wow, I'd better not say the wrong thing.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Are you unhappy with the hamburger? Or is there something else you'd like to eat?”
Wait, her tone is too polite.
It doesn't seem like they're living together.
I may be a former virgin who got his dick chopped off, but even I can tell.
The way she's treating Lee Chang-woo is definitely not how someone in a close relationship would act.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes? Oppa, why are you suddenly using formal speech? Did I do something wrong?”
“No, it's not that.”
“I'm sorry. If you tell me what I did wrong, I won't do it again. Are you angry because my text was too long? I'm really sorry. I won't do it again.”
Wait a minute.
Something suddenly clicked in my head, so I quickly turned on the phone and checked the messages.
<1 day ago>
[010 **** ****] It's Hye-na. I should bring a Double Bulgogi Burger set tomorrow at 4:30, right? I think I might be about 30 minutes early, is that okay?
[Me] Exactly 4:30.
[010 **** ****] Okay.
<Today>
[010 **** ****] I'm coming up now.
I remembered it because it was the only message Lee Chang-woo had replied to after the factory reset.
Anyway, she's asking if I'm mad because *that* text was too long?
She won't do it again?
Why does my heart ache seeing this beautiful girl acting like she's committed a mortal sin...
Ah, suddenly it all made sense.
I knew why he told her to come at exactly 4:30.
When the sleeping pills he'd stuffed into his stomach would have been fully absorbed.
He wanted her to arrive at a time when he couldn't possibly be saved, to discover his body.
That way, his body could be taken care of before it started to decompose.
I know because I've also thought about how to commit suicide without inconveniencing others.
“Okay. I'm not angry, so don't be so scared.”
“Oppa, I'm really sorry.”
Now she looked like she was about to cry.
What on earth did it mean to her for Lee Chang-woo to use formal speech?
I can't let this go on.
“Hye-na. I'm just a little dizzy right now, that's all.”
“Oppa? Why didn't you use my last name? You're really angry, aren't you?”
“No, don't people usually use last names when they're angry? Anyway, give me the hamburger. No, just... give it.”
Is she Pavlov's dog?
Anyway, Hye-na handed over the paper bag, obeying my words almost reflexively.
The moment our fingertips brushed, a message window suddenly appeared before my eyes.
Jung Hye-na
Age: 20 Stats: 169cm / 48kg / C-Cup Base Libido: F Affection Towards Me: S Special Note: No sexual experience. No kissing experience. Among the detailed information that popped up, one line in particular caught my eye.
[Special Note: No sexual experience. No kissing experience.]
You've got to be kidding me.
How could a girl with the visuals of a top-tier girl group's center be twenty years old without ever having been kissed?