Chapter 8
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 8
Chapter Title: Do You Have a Boyfriend?
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Sia, who had harbored some fantasies about Awakeners, couldn't hide her disappointment the moment she stepped into the Management Bureau.
Far from the impressive name of the Awakener Management Bureau, the interior was no different from an ordinary district office.
"...Well, what was I expecting, anyway."
Shaking off her disappointment in an instant, Sia pulled a number ticket and plopped down into a waiting seat.
Instead of looking around, she scrolled through the news that had piled up over the past month until her turn came.
The most eye-catching story was the casualties from sudden Gate outbreaks.
It hit close to home since she had been caught up in one herself, so it especially caught her attention.
The overall conclusion pointed to the possibility of an artificial invasion, unlike naturally occurring Gates.
'Amelia said something similar...'
Feeling uneasy, Sia pocketed her smartphone and quietly waited for her number to be called.
"Number 327, please!"
"Ah, coming!"
Hearing her number, Sia wiped the gloom from her face and headed straight to the counter.
The staff member locked eyes with Sia and stared intently.
Sia handed over her ID to the woman.
"Hello. About a month ago, I got caught in a Gate and returned last Friday. I turned into a woman there, so I'd like to update my ID and register as an Awakener. Is that possible? This is my original ID."
"Uh... uh... P-please wait a moment."
Flustered by Sia's sudden torrent of words, the staff member rolled her eyes as she gathered her thoughts.
"S-so, you were a guy before, right?"
The staff member's expression twisted as she looked at Sia.
As expected, it was the look you give a crazy person. Sia gave a wry smile.
"Yes, yes. I got swept into a Gate that opened in an alley near XX-dong's five-way intersection at dawn. This is how I look after awakening."
"One moment. Ah... Yes, records show several sudden Gates opened there that day."
Not only that, but the CCTV had clearly captured her being swept up.
Normally, accessing CCTV required various procedures, but Gate incidents were an exception.
Still, that wasn't the end of the verification. They needed to check if she had truly awakened.
"First... let's measure your mana."
Sia's face lit up at those words.
Rank measurement.
The cliché of clichés in returnee... no, hunter stories.
She had heard about it from Jiyu, but actually doing it made her heart race a little.
'Now for the S-rank reveal and guild scouts showering me with love calls?'
It was a clichéd development, but experiencing it firsthand felt completely different from reading it in a novel.
It was unlike the thrilling validation she felt rolling as a Hero in that other world, which was half-divine.
This was purer dopamine.
"I'll get the measurement device. Please wait a moment."
"Sure."
Sitting blankly in her chair, she watched as the staff brought over something that looked like a grip strength tester.
"Just grip this."
Sia took the device and hooked her fingers around the handle.
A small electronic beep sounded, and the numbers slowly climbed.
'Oh... I thought it might not work.'
In that other world, powers like mana and divine power were distinctly categorized.
She had worried a 'mana' measurement might not detect it properly, but the device worked fine.
'Well...'
It hadn't even been half a century since mana appeared worldwide, so maybe they didn't distinguish that finely yet.
The endlessly rising numbers finally stopped. Sia handed it back, and the staff tilted her head.
"...1627?"
"Is that high?"
S-rank?
She looked at the staff with eager anticipation.
But the response dashed her hopes in an unexpected way.
"Y-yeah... For someone returning after a month, you'd expect 30-40 at most, 100 if really high. But this value is..."
"Ah."
Sia understood from the staff's explanation.
It wasn't measuring the mana or divine power inside her.
'More like checking accumulated waste in the body?'
It lined up with the timeline, too.
Sia explained, and the staff nodded in understanding.
"Yes, mana measurement confirmed! If you hadn't awakened, it wouldn't accumulate."
"Ah..."
"By the way, you're the first I've seen whose gender completely changed. Outward changes happen sometimes, though."
"Is that all for proof?"
Sia asked with a hint of disappointment, and the staff trailed off.
"Uh... We check this because sometimes people impersonate Gate survivors... So it's a bit different from what you want... Yeah..."
Her awkward smile contrasted with her suddenly friendly gaze.
More precisely, it was the look you give a child.
Realizing what that shift meant, Sia's cheeks flushed slightly as she nodded.
"Then, please take a photo first for your ID card, and we'll head to physical measurements. If you fall below standards, there will be restrictions on Awakener activities."
It made sense; they couldn't send underqualified people against monsters.
Following the staff underground, Sia took her ID photo first, then headed to the measurement room at the end of the hall.
Given the tests involved, the room resembled a gym.
"I half-expected to fight some monster or something..."
Even her last shred of excitement crumbled.
The staff giggled at Sia's words as she filled out the exam sheet.
"A lot of people have that misconception."
Sia stripped off her outer clothes and followed the staff's guidance through the tests.
The physical tests were more underwhelming than expected.
After setting down a heavy barbell as the finale, all tests were done.
Not a drop of sweat on her, she dressed again.
"What's next? I heard from a friend there's more checks."
"...Pardon? Oh, yes! I'll input the records and guide you soon. Take a break."
"Sure."
Swallowing dryly, she reviewed Sia's records again.
Cardiovascular endurance, muscle endurance, explosiveness, raw strength, agility, reaction speed, flexibility, balance...
All jaw-dropping numbers.
And these were just basic tests, not pushed to limits.
"......"
Of course, the Management Bureau's physical tests were simpler than corporate ones.
They were for weeding out the unqualified, not for hiring.
But that didn't mean anyone could pass easily.
For instance, the barbell Sia had just lifted was a custom job weighing tons.
She suddenly recalled Sia's body hidden under her clothes.
As a fellow woman, it wasn't envy—it was an excitingly beautiful form.
All the more astonishing since it was far from bulky.
'They'll probably demand a retest later...'
Maybe even accuse her of bribery.
The staff vaguely understood why Sia had those childlike expectations.
It wasn't baseless fantasy from a newbie Awakener; she had the power to back it up.
'What on earth happened over there...'
No matter how she thought about it, this wasn't a level reachable in three years.
She desperately wanted to ask, but held back to avoid rudeness.
"Now, please head to the purification room, Miss Sia."
"Purification?"
"Yes. The earlier measurement was for waste accumulated from the Gate. It can be harmful if left in the body, so Awakeners get periodic purification."
'This must be what Jiyu mentioned.'
Thanks to her divine power, she wouldn't have issues, but it was a required step for registration, so no reason to refuse.
After a short wait, she knocked on the door of an empty purification room.
"Yes! Come in!"
"Hello."
"...Ah."
The waiting staff was momentarily stunned by Sia's appearance, losing her words.
She had heard via contact, but never imagined a former man could be this stunningly beautiful.
Even she, a woman, felt her heart skip.
But she quickly composed herself and greeted with her usual sweet tone.
"...Hello! You're Yu Sia, right?"
"Yes."
"I'm Mun Yerin."
Sia looked Yerin over slowly.
A cute beauty with light brown hair in a half-up style.
The buttons on her blouse looked ready to pop.
'Well... Better than clichéd love calls from scouts—being with a beauty like this is more fun.'
Sia chuckled and firmly closed the purification room door.
Sitting down, she asked Yerin,
"So, what exactly do I need to do?"
"Oh, nothing much. I just use my skill to channel power into you, so you can just sit there. Like applying full-body disinfectant?"
Skill.
The supernatural power people naturally gained upon awakening.
Separate from being treated as an Awakener, this was why Sia saw herself as fundamentally different from other Awakeners.
Not everyone who got swept into a Gate awakened.
Sia hadn't either.
She had desperately trained in that other world to survive, honing her combat ability and divine power.
Both granted superhuman strength, but her powers were fundamentally different from an Awakener's skills.
"Then, let's start the purification."
"Uh... Just sitting here?"
Sia glanced around.
Yerin at a small desk, Sia on the round chair beside it.
No different from a doctor's visit.
"Yes! The room has a barrier for purification too. Here we go. Stay still, please."
Yerin extended both hands toward Sia.
A gentle, warm glow gathered in her palms.
The light slowly moved, enveloping Sia's body.
"Wha... What's this?"
"What's wrong?"
Yerin looked puzzled and poured more mana into the skill.
"Something weird... There's strange mana clinging to your body..."
"You can feel that?"
"Yes... Not exactly, but... hm? A curse?"
Yerin's expression hardened; she had expected just mana purification.
"Can you lift curses too?"
"Y-yeah... To some extent..."
Her smile faded as sweat beaded on her brow while she maintained the skill.
No leisure to sneak peeks at Sia's face.
Sia, knowing Yerin couldn't handle it anyway, stayed relaxed.
Her little grunts with each push of power were adorable.
'A bit older than me?'
Not by Earth standards, but even by otherworld ones.
Probably mid-20s at most.
Yerin exhaled deeply and wiped her sweat.
"Hm... But this curse feels too tame?"
It was tame, relatively.
The two curses had long integrated into Sia's body, designed more to resist removal than attack.
'Even Amelia had to put in real effort.'
As Yerin's hands moved from upper to lower body, she suddenly hesitated.
Her skill hit an enormous presence dwarfing the curses clinging to Sia's body.
"Wh-what's this...?"
Yerin stared blankly at Sia's lower half in bewilderment.
Inevitably, unavoidably, Sia's body reacted to her heated gaze.
Partly because her blouse gaped, revealing cleavage and a glimpse of underwear.
Sia's cock swelled slightly, tenting her pants.
Yerin stared in confusion.
She knew what an erection was, but never imagined the now-woman Sia would still have one.
"Sorry."
"Y-yes? Wh-what for?"
"Actually... Right before I returned, I got hit with a weird curse."
"Pardon? Oh..."
'Sorry, Amelia.'
Turning her invaluable blessing into a curse without permission... But the magnanimous, flexible Goddess would probably let it slide with a scolding about not selling her out for some girl-on-girl fun.
Thinking that, Sia gave a slightly troubled smile.
"If it's weird..."
"Hm... You seem to know what it is."
"Gasp...!"
Yerin gawked, eyes darting between Sia and her crotch endlessly.
Her small, cute pink lips trembled as her face flushed.
"This thing's making my libido keep rising weirdly, so it's troublesome. So... can you handle this one too?"
"Y-yes?! H-handle it how... That..."
"Not like that."
Sia grinned brazenly at Yerin's startled reaction.
"As you felt, it's a pretty hefty curse. And inconvenient."
She became a woman upon awakening, but got the dick back.
Sia put it delicately.
Yerin nodded blankly.
"R-right?"
"Looks like removing it outright is tough right now... Maybe purification can at least dial back the libido a bit?"
"Ah, a-ah, yes... I'll try..."
Sia's words grew bolder.
Talk that could be sexual harassment regardless of gender.
Even more dangerous knowing Sia was originally a man.
But as Sia predicted, no such worry arose.
Yerin brought her trembling hands close to Sia's lower half.
The glow, now much larger, enveloped the space between Sia's legs.
Under the beaming light, the shape through her pants stood out more prominently.
"Ah...!"
Yerin's eyebrows quivered.
Sia spread her legs slightly for comfort.
Yerin's body leaned forward bit by bit.
From the moment the risqué talk started, Yerin felt strange changes in her body.
'Why am I... like this?'
Far from unpleasant, her heart raced with anticipation.
Self-loathing crept in: Am I this easy?'
But...
She didn't hate it.
Intentionally or not, Yerin's hands drew closer.
The nearer her palms, the more Sia's cock swelled.
Unlike moments ago when only the outline showed, its shape was now clearly visible.
"......"
At some point, conversation between them ceased.
Yerin's ragged breaths echoed heavily.
Her mind heated up, a heavy weight settling in her lower abdomen.
"Any CCTV here?"
Sia broke the silence, scanning around.
"...N-no. The barrier messes with it..."
"Hm... Then maybe..."
Yerin, bent over focusing on the lower half, looked up at Sia.
Sia could guess what her moist lips would say next.
Yerin swallowed repeatedly at Sia's teasing pause.
"...Can I take off my pants? It's getting tight... And direct skin contact should be more effective than through clothes, right?"
It was exactly what she had anticipated.
She wanted to nod immediately, but surging self-loathing made her hesitate.
"N-not necessarily..."
At that moment, Sia grabbed Yerin's denying hands, pulled them together, and asked cutely,
"Do you have a boyfriend?"
"N-no."
"Then no problem. Mind if I strip, sis?"
Sis—that cute emphasis crumbled her last defenses.
Yerin nodded, utterly enchanted.