Chapter 14
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Leaving Runein (2)
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Climbing out of the capsule, she felt utterly drained from head to toe.
Even back when she was a guy, her stamina hadn't been great, but after the body change, it had plummeted to what could only be called rock-bottom levels.
"Maybe I should start hitting the gym..."
She never imagined a VR game would push her to consider exercise, but if she planned to keep playing, she'd have to shore up her physical endurance somehow.
Seo-hwa flopped onto the sofa and closed her eyes for a quick nap.
What was meant to be a short break turned into eight full hours when she finally woke.
Greeting a bright morning against her will, Seo-hwa felt a twinge of resentment.
'...I slept the whole day away planning an overnight launch.'
She could've sworn she'd gotten over twenty hours before launch, yet she still felt sleep-deprived.
Her stamina really was abysmal.
No desire to sleep more, Seo-hwa splashed cold water on her face to wake up and prepped for day two of streaming.
Knocking to enter the capsule, a warning popped up on the interface.
Low IV Fluid Levels
Sure enough, the VR capsule's nutrient solution tank was bone-dry.
"...Guess I need to buy more fluids."
Seo-hwa decided to head out briefly.
But women's clothes? Fat chance. She dug out the smallest outfit she could find, rolled up the sleeves, changed, and stepped outside.
Her car sat in the parking lot, one she'd owned for ages.
As she inserted the key and moved to get in, a sudden thought stopped her cold.
'Driving like this...'
Her current look screamed teenager. Short stature, baby-faced—nobody would peg her for an adult.
If she took this out on the main road...
Oh my, a kid in the driver's seat?
How old are you?
Do you know the traffic laws?
'It'd be a total hassle...'
Ditching the car, Seo-hwa opted for public transit and her own two feet.
Perfectly good legs from her parents, so why bother with a car?
Though these legs didn't feel like her parents' gift anymore.
Seo-hwa hustled to the subway station. Destination: a VR game center selling capsule fluids. She'd already mapped the most efficient route.
"Oh dear, come here a sec."
Subway grannies calling her over, pulling candy from their pockets.
The K-granny assault—spot a cute kid, gotta spoil 'em—had struck.
"How old are ya, sweetie?"
"Tw-twenty-one..."
But what crushed Seo-hwa even more?
She knew she could just say she was busy and leave, yet the candy temptation kept her rooted.
And of all things, mackerel-shaped. She'd never known such candy existed.
Her instincts protested that twenty-one was too old for candy, but the lure wouldn't budge.
She wasn't the only one tempted, though.
"Aigoo, mind if I touch it just once?"
Those pointy, fluffy ears twitching—grannies figured it was fake, knew it was rude, but couldn't resist petting them!
Seo-hwa's cat ears had the grannies utterly enchanted.
Her gaze locked on the mackerel candy, theirs on the cat ears—a subtle battle of wits unfolded on the subway bench.
In the end, Seo-hwa and the K-grannies reached a mutual understanding.
Smack smack.
Squish squish.
Both sides got what they craved.
"Aigoo, so cute~."
"Fluffy like my housecat Fluffy. Amazing~."
After enduring the subway grannies, Seo-hwa finally bought her ticket and boarded the train.
Exiting the station, she headed to the VR game center.
Even early morning, it was packed.
Seo-hwa loaded a basket with dozens of VR nutrient fluids.
One pack per day—she aimed to stock a month's worth.
Glancing right, some guy was suddenly in front of her.
"Love at first sight. Gimme your number...!"
"Huh...?"
"I'm a huge nekomimi girl fan. Feels like we got the same tastes, so maybe..."
Speechless, Seo-hwa bolted to the counter, dumped the fluids, and asked to check out.
"Could you ring these up, please?"
Luckily, the guy didn't follow.
Beep. Beep.
The scanner beeped steadily as it tallied her fluids.
"Miss, you ever thought about part-time work?"
The manager, who'd been ringing her up, spoke to her.
"Pardon?"
"...Wondered if you'd consider working here at the game center."
Truth be told, the manager had watched from afar as the stranger confessed to her. He was convinced.
'Hire her, and it's a goldmine!'
VR game centers skewed heavily male clientele.
But from the moment Seo-hwa walked in, sidelong glances had swarmed her.
She was just picking items, yet she'd instantly magnetized every guy's attention.
"Uh, part-time...?"
Plus, whatever the deal with the tail and ears, she rocked them with effortless cuteness.
Hiring her as staff would hook the female customers too, no doubt.
The manager waited anxiously for her reply.
"I don't need money right now..."
"I see."
Seo-hwa turned it down flat.
The manager didn't lose heart.
'Right. Even Liu Bei visited Zhuge Liang three times. I'll be patient.'
Next time she came, he'd casually float the idea without pressure.
For a star part-timer like this, he'd do three visits—or thirteen if needed.
Poor enthusiastic manager; the girl herself had zero interest in the job.
'It'd mess with streaming.'
As a streamer, time was never truly free. No urgent need for cash, and her schedule was too packed anyway.
Heading home from the game center, Seo-hwa groaned inwardly.
'...Ugh.'
The outside world was way tougher than expected.
Unlike her guy days, the way the world treated her had shifted palpably.
With cat ears on top of not being a regular girl, it amplified everything.
Almost no one bought them as real, but the stares were endless annoyance.
'Gotta hide the ears and tail from now on...'
Worn out from the attention, Seo-hwa vowed to snag a hoodie to cover her ears. Tail? Shove it down her pants—no prep needed.
'Home, then stream.'
Truth was, she didn't care how the world saw her.
As long as she could stream.
Back home, Seo-hwa dove straight into broadcast prep.
Logging into Ariant World, she spawned at the sunny docks.
Cheisi first connected to Abyss and fired up the stream.
Day two broadcast pulled in about twenty viewers right off the bat.
'...Decent turnout.'
Yesterday, she'd started with three.
Twenty at launch might sound low, but for a newbie streamer? Solid numbers.
Cheisi cleared her throat to begin.
"Hey everyone."
-Cheha
-Been waiting
"Picking up from yesterday."
Yesterday's stream had ended with her exhausted from hauling crates and logging out.
Today, she'd start with using the ferry ticket from Adin at the docks.
But for some reason, the pier was swarming with players.
Crowded around something.
"Why so many people?"
-No clue
-Hidden event?
The center of attention: Adin.
"Excuse me, coming through...!"
Cheisi squeezed past the crowd to reach him.
"There you are."
"Yeah..."
After a quick exchange, the players nearby started buzzing.
Cheisi felt their stares shift to her.
'What's that about?'
No idea why, but she handed Adin the wooden ticket from yesterday.
"Good. Follow me."
Adin pocketed it and led her to the ferry.
Player eyes trailed Cheisi.
'...Seriously, why?'
The sudden spotlight baffled her. Hours ago, hauling crates, they'd avoided her gaze; now they tracked her every move.
Cheisi moved to board with Adin. A message appeared.
Board the ferry?
Current wind direction: Northwest.
Projected destination:
[???] *Undiscovered Area
"It says undiscovered area?"
-Go go
-This the right call?
-Won't come back?
-Board first, think later
The chat split on the perplexing popup.
Some pushed for new-area adventure; others worried about unfinished business in Runein Village.
Cheisi pondered, then decided.
"Let's go. New zone—how can I resist? Might snag a title too."
Adventure lust and title greed sealed it.
-Oh yeah
-Possible
-Can't pass up titles tho
"And if we need something, we can always head back to Runein."
-True
-Do you
Viewers bought it.
Cheisi boarded the ferry with Adin.
"Alright then..."
Adin gripped the oars.
"Let's head out—to where the wind blows."
The ferry left the dock, slicing through waves into the sea.
Sunlight sparkled across the water, filling Cheisi's view.
"The sea... Hard to believe it's VR."
She marveled.
Gently rippling blue, like a masterpiece landscape painting.
-Why you only
-Show us too
Cheisi's solo awe sparked chat protests.
"Can't you see it?"
-Nope
-Your head/back/ears blocking half
Checking chat and her stream view, Cheisi saw the sea awkwardly obscured.
She twisted every which way to show it, but the viewpoint followed, still blocking.
-Settings let you tweak viewpoint I heard
One chat tip.
Cheisi rummaged through Ariant World's settings.
Found it in broadcast mode:
Camera - Hidden State
Switching camera status, a round monster with a lens and wings popped into existence with a pop.
Tooltip: The beast broadcasting her playthrough till now.
Cheisi beckoned it. It flapped over.
Grabbing it, she aimed the lens at the sea.
Stream view now captured the glittering waves perfectly.
-Whoa pretty
-How is this VR
-Wanna vacation here... but no vacation time...
-Hot stuff confirmed. No wonder the hype, it's fire
"Right?"
Sharing awe at the impossibly real sea vista, Cheisi glanced at viewer count by chance.
"...Huh?"
Way beyond what a newbie catgirl streamer should draw.
Stunned by the unexpected surge, Cheisi froze.