Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: Now Who's the Big Sister?
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“I’m so full...”
“Eve, did you enjoy the meal?”
“Ah, yes! It was absolutely delicious. Thank you.”
“Alright, Eve. Give your big sister a deep bow!”
“A-a deep bow...”
That’s a phrase I hadn’t heard since I left the orphanage. It was something they made the kids under fourteen do when important people came to take promotional photos. And here I am, twenty-seven years old.
I don’t know if Kim Chae-ah is that much younger than me, but still... do I really have to do a deep bow at my age?! Huh?!
Bows.
“Thank you...”
“Aww, there, there. Your big sister will treat you again next time, okay?”
“Okay...”
Still, I got a delicious meal out of it, and it was definitely worth the high price. But it can’t beat the number one dessert, ‘Seolleim Cookies & Cream.’ There’s no other product that delivers that much flavor for the same price, you know?
“Oh, right. I heard you got a message from Maxy.”
“Ah, that’s right. She sent me a DM on Instagram.”
“What? Really?”
Chae-ah probably didn’t know about it since she doesn’t use the Awakening Gallery. I hadn’t posted it anywhere else, just a cropped screenshot on the gallery. Since Chae-ah was so eager to see it, I opened Instagram and showed her the DMs I exchanged with Maxy.
“Wow, it’s real. You exchanged photos too?”
“What, seriously? Let me see.”
Even Han Do-hee, who was driving, showed a surprised reaction as she looked at the photos I’d exchanged with Maxy.
“Hey, but isn’t this a bit... revealing for Eve to see?”
“Th-this much is fine...”
“Hmm, you’re right. Eve is mature.”
“Is she? Eve seems really young for her age.”
Han Do-hee, being a regular on the Awakening Gallery, remembered my old posts, while Chae-ah didn’t know that version of me, so their reactions were bound to be different. Chae-ah would probably be shocked if she saw the things I used to write, though they’re all deleted now.
“Eve, what is this picture? Why would you take a picture of your pretty face like this!”
“I-is it that weird...?”
“It looks like a photo a man in his forties who’s never taken a selfie before would post on a random chat app.”
“Ugh.”
To be honest, I kind of felt that way too. It’s not like I’ve ever taken a selfie before. My face wasn’t remarkable enough to be worth documenting.
“Here, look. You should never take a photo from below. Got it?”
“Gasp, I see.”
“Should I turn on a filter? How about the glitter one?”
“Glitter...?”
I was wondering what this ‘glitter filter’ I’d never heard of was, but then Chae-ah took my phone, fiddled with it, and something popped up.
‘Ah, this one.’
It’s one of the top filters that guys absolutely hate. The one with mysterious white dots all over your face. I have no idea why anyone uses it.
“Hmm, I think you look prettier without it, Eve.”
“Ehehe...”
“Get home safe! You too, Ophelia~!”
“Thank you for today.”
“Eve, hurry inside! We’re leaving!”
“G-goodbye, Do-hee!”
“Don’t forget we’re going to the gate in three days! You remember, right~?”
“Ah, yes!”
Hearing Chae-ah say that, it seemed to be a given that she was part of the raid squad for the gate in three days. That was somewhat reassuring.
I was a little nervous without Ophelia, but it was fine! I’ve managed just fine without her until now, right? It’s only been a few days since she appeared, surprisingly. Though it feels like I’ve known her for a very long time.
“Ophelia, the dessert was delicious, wasn’t it?”
“Indeed. The confections made with well-refined ingredients and advanced home appliances are superb.”
The kitchen from Ophelia’s time...? Or rather, the one in her memories must have been from a long, long time ago, so making desserts was probably much more difficult. The ingredients might have been poor, too.
“It is a pity that the residence lacks an oven. Even if we were to purchase one, there is no suitable place to install it.”
“I’m sorry the house is so small...”
“No, Your Highness has done more than enough.”
“Huh?”
I had no idea what I did right, but if Ophelia thought it was good, then it must be.
“It seems we will be able to relocate to a new residence soon, so you need not concern yourself with it.”
“What?! Already?!”
“That is correct.”
“Wh-what about the money...?”
“I have begun to get a grasp of the stock market.”
Wait, so you made that much money before you even had a proper grasp of it? How much are you going to make per day now that you do?
“Where are we going...?”
“It is difficult to gather precise information from photographs alone, so I plan to inspect the interior structures in three days. There are several candidates, but the primary principle was to remain within the capital area.”
“I see...”
Well, I’m fine with any normal house. To be honest, it was uncomfortable having Ophelia kneeling beside me with her eyes closed all night while I slept on the mattress.
It would be nice to have a place that isn’t a studio apartment so I can sleep alone, but I doubt we have enough money to buy a proper house in Seoul yet...
Ever since Ophelia and I got our own legal identities, our bank accounts were separated, and all the money I had was transferred to her. She gives me a steady 250,000 won, but it’s still a little sad...
“In addition, I plan to purchase a personal vehicle, but I have not yet been issued a driver’s license.”
“A license? Heh, I see.”
I’ve lived for twenty-seven years and still haven’t gotten my license. Why would I spend hundreds of thousands of won on a driving school when I don’t even have money to buy a car?
“Have you practiced driving, Ophelia?”
“Are you referring to me?”
“Hmm... on second thought, you probably don’t need to practice.”
Ophelia is like a super-powerful AI, so the written test would be no match for her even if it had 500 difficult legal questions. And she’d probably be amazing at the practical driving test too. I want to see Ophelia drive.
“Everyone! Your princess is back!”
Clank!
Beep!
After returning home, I greeted the golems. I washed my hands, brushed my teeth, changed into my indoor clothes (which are just pajamas), and sat down at my computer.
Ophelia bought a small softball for the doggo last time, and it looked like Minium and Suri were having fun throwing it to each other. I felt a little guilty, coming back after eating something delicious all by myself when I’m their master.
“12,000 followers... not at the next rank yet.”
Ophelia said it would be difficult to rank up from B-Rank. Did she say I needed around 25,000? On Instagram, the number of followers is your power level. It’s nice and intuitive.
I was looking around to see how many followers other people had.
“Heck, Maxy has a ton of followers.”
Maxy’s account has a whopping 4 million followers. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that a tenth of South Korea follows her.
I feel great all day just getting ten upvotes from the Awakening bros on the Awakening Gallery. I wonder what it would feel like to have 4 million people gathered to see my posts.
“I’m so jealous... This is what a superstar is.”
“Your Highness will be able to achieve that soon as well.”
“You think so...?”
Honestly, it doesn’t feel real. Me, with millions of Instagram followers? It seems completely impossible. Should I go for a MrBeast vibe? Or... maybe if I became a Minecraft YouTuber, it could work.
“How many does Chae-rin have?”
Chae-rin is one of only two S-Rank Hunters in Korea. The Ohsung Group’s reputation is already immense, and Chae-rin herself is objectively beautiful and very popular.
“Gasp...”
6.8 million Instagram followers. She has more than Maxy? Is that even a real number? On the Awakening Gallery, her image was like that of a famous neighborhood older sister. I can’t believe she’s such a global star.
“If I took over Chae-rin’s account... would I instantly become S-Rank...?”
“Those followers do not hold goodwill towards Your Highness, so that would not be the case.”
“Hmph. I was just saying.”
Anyway, I’m still a long way from becoming a global superstar. Come to think of it, I wonder which Hunter has the most Instagram followers.
Clack-clack.
Arjun lol
On the Awakening Gallery, they called him ‘Emperor Al’ or ‘Emperor Curry.’ His full name was Arjun Reddy.
He was an Indian Hunter, ranked 7th in the world.
I heard he rejected China’s offer of 1.5 billion won per day to participate in the Manchuria subjugation and was off dancing in Bollywood instead.
“Ah, this is the post.”
lol I can smell the curry from the pic
As expected of Emperor Al ㅇㅇ.. The dragon born from the Ganges Riverㄷㄷ
Does this guy even make money
“Arjun... Instagram...”
I searched and found Arjun’s Instagram. His followers... a whopping...
“800 million...? How can someone have 800 million followers...?”
India has a huge population, but still, 800 million followers is a bit much, isn’t it? Is it mandated by law or something? Like, all Indian accounts must follow Arjun...
“Sigh, I guess I’ll never be number one.”
To be honest, I never planned on being number one. 800 million is just ridiculous. It’s an impossible number even if the entire population of South Korea followed me.
As for other people with a lot of followers...
“Ah, Utaha.”
A pretty, Japanese, high school girl, S-Rank Hunter... she’s pretty much monopolized all the attributes that could possibly attract popularity.
She was a regular in those Hunter fight compilation videos that sometimes pop up on Instagram Reels. It felt like she was in almost every one.
“8 million? That’s less than I thought.”
Is it because of Arjun? 8 million is a huge number, but... why does it suddenly seem so small?
“Oh...”
She is pretty. A lot of her photos look like they were taken in a studio or something. Japan promotes its famous Hunters so diligently, almost like they’re idols.
Of course, Maxy is prettier.
“Aren’t you going to make an account, Ophelia?”
“My own account is unnecessary. It is Your Highness’s recognition that is required.”
“Then can I post a picture of you on my account?”
“That... for what reason?”
“Um...”
Well, I look too young. I mean, I’m an adult, but that’s how I appear on the outside.
It’s a bit awkward to say this, but you kind of need a bit of sexual appeal to get popular. But if I tried that, I’d get banned immediately... The international audience is much more sensitive about that stuff.
That’s not to say I’m going to use Ophelia’s pictures to get more Instagram followers...
“You’re very beautiful too, Ophelia, so if I post your picture, won’t I get more famous?”
“Is that so?”
“Or maybe not...”
Two days later. The day before the raid squad’s gate entry.
“Your Highness. I will be quite busy tomorrow, so would you like to give it a try?”
“Ah, you mean that?”
That thing where Minium and Ophelia swap magic stones. Now that my Issue Command skill was C+, I should be able to do it well.
“Um... Minium, come here!”
Clank!
Minium’s steps were light, as if it were delighted. Then again, if I were a golem, I’d be ecstatic if someone offered me high-grade magic stones too.
“Umm, how should I command it? How much?”
“Transferring three-fifths of the magic stones I possess to Minium should suffice.”
“Wow, that’s a lot.”
“It is to ensure Your Highness’s safety.”
“Umm... Yes! I understand!”
First, a deep breath. It probably wouldn’t cause a huge problem even if I messed up, but I was dealing with expensive magic stones that were rarely on the market. I needed to focus.
“Ophelia’s magic stones... uh...”
“Sixty percent.”
“S-sixty percent! To Minium!”
Fwaaa...!
It had been a while since I’d used my magic. Ophelia and Minium, who were kneeling side-by-side in front of me, began to glow simultaneously. A light started to move as if Ophelia’s magic power was transferring to Minium.
“W-woah...!”
After about a minute of flashing lights, Ophelia’s form was the first to be revealed...
“Huh...?”
“It seems to have worked well.”
“O-Ophelia...!”
Ophelia’s become a little kid...!