The Abyss Awaits
I had been overlooking something fundamental. Just how twisted this world truly was.
I had forgotten again.
How deeply perverted lust could become.
I had been careless.
And now, in a world where gender roles had completely inverted, that same perverted lust was turning into something truly horrifying right before my eyes.
The hellscape stretched out in front of me.
The abyss had descended here.
In the cosmic void where Nyarlathotep himself would have vomited blood at the mere mention of it, this level of insanity was gathering right now.
Why tear off the eyes and ears? And why shove them straight into the view? What the hell kind of lunatic were they?
Unable to wrap my head around the mental state of the person on the other end, I asked anyway, half in frustration.
I shouldn't have expected anything less from the person who was paying me. At the very least, they were a paying customer, so basic etiquette was the least I could expect.
But this... this was unacceptable!
Even if my need for money was that desperate, I had to draw the line.
And above all, I was dying to know how utterly fucked up the person's head actually was.
When I asked, they answered with the calmest possible tone.
As if they were casually stating the most obvious truth about the universe.
As if they were declaring that the sky is above us and the ground beneath our feet.
The sheer disbelief in their voice at my question made me realize I was dealing with a complete madwoman.
I was even more horrified to learn that this “they” was actually “she.”
The other person was gone.
···Hah.
I was exhausted.
I hadn't even started drawing yet and my mental energy was already at rock bottom. But there were still way too many applicants left...
The floodgates had opened because my ad had snagged into the gallery's hot list, and the views kept climbing steadily.
Thanks to that, there were quite a few people submitting half-jokingly. The majority were the ones who took me seriously when I casually mentioned “draw whatever you want.”
“Please, at least let me see something normal.”
I checked the remaining messages, hoping for at least one normal commission.
Oh... this one at least looked semi-reasonable.
It wasn't exactly my taste, but it was tame enough to accept. Way better than the previous hellish requests...
Just as I was about to accept it, I paused.
'···Wait a second.'
In this male-superiority world, a shota?
They said it so proudly.
“You crazy bastard!”
I immediately kicked the applicant out.
Phew, that was close.
I wasn't starving; my humanity was about to die instead.
“Why the hell... why is there no normal request...”
Half-sobbed, I checked the next message.
I collapsed over my desk and raked my fingers through my hair.
Every horrible thought came to mind.
“Heh heh...”
Maybe I should just starve.
This fucking world. Drawing a man's dick to stay alive felt like a worse fate than dying from hunger.
“Why can't I ever be happy...”
Other novels showed other men happily fucking women, right? But why was I stuck in a corner just drawing men's dicks and begging for commissions?
“This is so goddamn infuriating.”
Frustrated, I opened the gallery and posted one last message.
By now my sanity was completely shredded. I was willing to do anything.
So I seriously considered a random-line meetup.
In these communities, women were often treated with a strange sort of deference. Since lust was such a powerful urge, plenty of people would try to squeeze something out of any guy.
But the comments section was a complete dumpster fire.
Everyone clearly didn't believe me. Yeah, fair enough—without proof, who would trust a random guy claiming to be male?
I tried to keep it light.
I turned on my phone, snapped a quick upper-body shot, and posted it. At this point I needed mental healing.
I wanted to feel that strange mix of lust and admiration the “queen bee” types received...
···But.
“···No, forget it.”
Mid-pose, I shook my head.
I wasn't about to strip my own body just to get attention. I might get reported, and I was too deep in the underground to risk my image.
I was curious about a random-line meetup, but the odds of finding someone normal were slim.
Hah.
I sighed and set the phone down. I was too tired to keep going; maybe I should just drop the commissions and starve...
—Uung
At that exact moment, a notification pinged.
I unconsciously checked my phone again.
A plain message. I typed back half-heartedly.
Probably a commission. At least I had some breathing room after clearing most of the list.
I prayed with both hands that this one would be normal.
I opened the open chat and checked the newly created room.
Already drunk on their own ego.
“···Hah.”
Another sigh, but I had to answer. I greeted them kindly.
Surprisingly innocent for such a creepy username.
I gave them an easy tone.
I had already seen the abyss, so most dark stuff was bearable. I could handle anything they wanted to type.
So the woman would be forcing the man...?
Surprisingly tame. Fine, this was acceptable.
I considered it for a moment.
Then they continued, as if they had read my mind.
“Huh...?”
That was different from what I was thinking.
So... they wanted me to draw the reverse rape?
Was that even the right term? Ordinary rape?
I was confused. In this male-superiority world, reverse rape made sense.
Anyway, I decided it was fine.
“That's acceptable.”
This was tame enough. I had drawn characters like that before, so I was confident.
“Finally!”
I grinned wide. Finally, something I could actually draw!
It was a small thing, but the relief was overwhelming. How many rough days had I endured?
I was on the verge of tears.
You bastard, I liked it. Finally pulling me out of this abyss.
Unlike their creepy username, this was actually a decent person.
Good. Finally, my first real commission.
A five-hundred-thousand-won one.
My lifeline had been extended by five days. The sadness and relief were mixed together.
“I’d better start drawing.”
Time was ticking. I picked up my tablet pen with a little excitement.
And so my first commission turned out to be reverse rape.