Corrupted... into the Toy Queen?
Corrupted... into the Toy Queen?
The grueling convenience store part-time job finally ended.
I threw my body onto the damp mattress of the gosiwon.
"Aigoo... my legs are gonna break......."
The weekend part-timer called in sick, so I had to cover their shift.
And to think I have to go to work again tomorrow without a single day off.
I really want to cry.
"Ah, right."
My wallet is thin, but there's something I must do this month.
I turned on my banking app.
I transferred one million won to 'Mom'.
A reply buzzed in immediately.
Ttiring!
[Son, why did you send so much money?]
[Did your company give you a bonus?]
[I guess it's different because it's a big corporation...]
[Still, don't skimp on what you need, buy yourself something delicious. Mom is really okay.]
"Sseup, a big corporation, huh......."
A big corporation, my ass.
I'm just a guy stuck in a Seocho-dong gosiwon, living off expired triangle kimbap.
But I would die before I let this lie be exposed.
"Huu... still, gotta do what I gotta do."
I forced my heavy eyelids open.
I sat in front of the desk and turned on my old laptop.
My secret base reflected on the monitor.
It's the map-building screen for the game 'Minecraft'.
It might look like toddler blocks, but to me, it holds memories.......
It's safe to say it's another life for me.
This is a secret, though.
My hobby is uploading the flashy castles or complex mazes I build to a place called 'MindForge'.
No matter how much life fucking sucks.
You need an outlet to relieve stress, right?
But.......
The moment I clicked on the revenue settlement window for my pocket money.
[Cumulative downloads: 5 million]
"What the fuck?!"
Did I see that wrong?
The map I uploaded on Friday dawn.
Even if it's a world-famous platform.
Is this even possible in just two days?
I checked the overseas settlement app.
The exchange amount alone was a whopping 3.25 million won.
It was a bit stingy compared to the download count, but the real core was elsewhere.
Pure donations alone amounted to 7.3 million won.
On top of that, my inbox was flooded with high-value commission requests from big-name YouTubers I'd recognize just by hearing their names!
"Heuk, heueuk......."
This is the first time I've cried tears of being moved.
Finally, the sun is shining on my rat hole!
With this money, I can escape this hellish gosiwon right now.
I'll get a decent studio apartment.
And just like I'm actually employed at a big corporation.
I'll invite my parents to Seoul!
"Hehehe... cough, ahem......."
Is it because I'm excited?
My throat is parched.
"There shouldn't be anyone cooking in the kitchen at this hour, right?"
Thinking I'd cook some ramen for a late-night snack and plan out my new life, I opened the door.
Kkiiiiik―
The moment I stepped into the cramped gosiwon hallway.
Tadadadak!
A kid covered in rags came running fiercely from the other side of the dark hallway.
"Uh-uh?!"
There was no time to dodge.
Thud!
"Eut!"
I collided head-on and fell backward.
A stinging pain shot up my tailbone.
"Damn it......."
Who brought a kid to a gosiwon?
Huu....
Still, a kid is a kid.
Let's be understanding.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere...... hm?"
Something is weird.
Why is my voice.......
Why does it sound like a clear, high-pitched elementary school girl's voice, like marbles rolling on a silver tray?
"......."
There's no one else around.
......Did I really say that?
Startled, I looked down.
An oversized t-shirt swallowed my whole body, flapping around.
My loose pants had slipped down below my pelvis.
"Th-this makes no sense......."
My hand, which was on the floor.
My rough palm, full of calluses, had become a white, soft hand like an eraser.
"That can't be!"
I hurriedly crawled into the room's tiny bathroom and looked in the mirror.
"Hik!"
In the mirror, a 10-year-old kid with platinum blonde hair tied in twin tails was staring at me.
Round, big eyes.
Amethyst-like purple gaze trembling slightly.
A single strand of hair sticking up on my head swayed frantically, as if representing my state of mind.
On impulse, I pinched my cheek hard.
My soft cheek stretched out, and.......
"A-eut!"
It hurts!
No, why does it hurt?!
This isn't a dream?
Did I really become a little elementary school girl?
And a fucking cute one at that?
"How does this make sense?!"
Denying reality, I poked my head out of the bathroom.
But to make matters worse, the surrounding scenery was going crazy too.
When I came back from my part-time job.
The gosiwon hallway had definitely been gray, drab walls.
But now, tacky and flashy floral wallpaper covered everything.
The ragged kid I bumped into had also vanished without a trace.
Seriously.
It's enough to make a ghost cry.
"Where the hell am I supposed to report this?"
119?
If I report, "I suddenly became an elementary school girl......"
"Yeah, like they'd believe that, fuck off."
Just then, a hologram screen popped up in front of me.
【Witch Gallery】
-Established: 2004-04-04
-Introduction: An anonymous space only for witches who have corrupted into the antipodes of humanity. A place to share real-time information, talk behind the backs of territory defense, and discuss hunter hunting and point settlements.
-Manager: LifeLogout ♥
[General] [Tips/Guide] [Verification] [Snipe/Complaint] [Stolen Goods]
[Notice] Comprehensive Guide to Territory Defense and Point Farming [58]
[Notice] Manager Inquiry Room (Must verify status window code to prevent impersonation/trolling) [77]
[Notice] Complaint [85]
――――
[General] Help me, I just corrupted and it's so scary ㅠㅠ Are there any eonni who can come and help? [39]
[ㅇㅇ(112.150)]
[General] The newbie begging post that just went up is 100% bait ㅇㅇ [14]
[Tong-gui Boss]
[Snipe/Complaint] (112.150) If you don't verify your status window in 3 minutes, you're getting permabanned [42]
[LifeLogout ♥]
[Tips/Guide] Max efficiency route for farming bonus points for efficiency-freaks [3]
[Tribe-Fertilizer Factory]
[Stolen Goods] S-rank greatsword, cool deal, offer first [2]
[Success-in-Enhancement Wish]
[General] Got her pregnant on the 1st try, nice?
[FutanariNoona]
There seems to be something weird in the last post, but.
"......Witch Gallery?"
Isn't this a site called a 'community'?
"Why is this......."
Beyond the hologram screen that made my head spin, an unpleasant voice drifted through the hallway.
"Fuck, this room is just a civilian too. No crystal."
"They said there were signs of corruption in Seocho-dong, but it was all a waste of time. Ripping out just one Witch's Heart is a guaranteed awakening. Tsk......."
The smell of fish wafted through the door gap.
Two large men wearing masks were walking out of the room next door.
The doors they had passed were all open.
And bright red footprints trailed long on the floor.
Don't tell me.......
Are they all dead?
No, did they kill them all?
If so.
Serial killers?!
The men's gazes landed on me, standing in the hallway.
"Uh......?"
The man pointed at me, raising a knife dripping with blood.
"Found you, witch."
"......Hik!"
I hurriedly ran into my room and locked the door.
Click!
"Report, I need to report this to the police......!"
I turned my head to find the phone I had tossed aside, but it wasn't my familiar room.
The walls were plastered with anime posters showing off pale thighs.
And piles of tissues that reeked of semen were rolling on the floor.
"What the hell is going on?!"
Dalgak, dalgak!
The doorknob was shaking like crazy.
Those big guys would break a thin plywood door like that in an instant.
"What do I do? What should I......"
As I looked around, a narrow window caught my eye.
"Huh?"
If it were my original body, I would have already gotten stuck at the shoulders.
But with my current girl's physique, I might be able to squeeze through.
I stepped on the desk and jumped onto the window frame.
"Eut!"
A torrential downpour was pouring outside.
"Please... pleaaase!"
This kid!
She has no strength!
I'm pulling my body up.
My arms are trembling.
"Geu-eung. Kkeuk...."
Just as I had gotten half my body over, getting hit by the rain.
Kwaaang!
The door was smashed, and the masked men burst in.
"You rat-like bitch!"
"Catch her!!"
Just before their rough hands could graze my twin tails.
I threw my body into the air.
"Waaaaah!!"
Cheol-pudeok―
I fell from the 4th floor, but.
Thankfully, I survived thanks to the piles of trash bags stacked on the ground.
Tadadadadadadak!
Rough footsteps coming down the emergency stairs.
I looked around frantically.
"I, I need a weapon......."
I grabbed a red plastic toy hammer from the sewage.
Holding anything in my hand made me feel slightly relieved, but.
"Damn it! What am I supposed to do with this......!"
I felt like I was going to gag from the futility of it all.
I, I have to run away first!
I ran for my life into the corner of a dark alley, getting pelted by the downpour.
"Heok, heueok!"
Come to think of it, those bastards called me a witch earlier.
Witch, witch.......
Ah! Witch Gallery?!
In an instant, the translucent community screen flashed in my vision again.
Can I control it just by thinking?
No, now is not the time to worry about the details.
I immediately uploaded a post.
[General] Crazy guys with knives are chasing me, please save me
Author: ㅇㅇ(404.404)
They killed everyone in the gosiwon and are chasing me to kill me too. I jumped from the 4th floor and am running into an alley, what should I do?
Then, the comments were brutally posted.
Banguseok-Munyeo-Jjang: Ha-wa-wa... I think newbie cosplay is boring now... Troll.
ㄴ Tong-gui Boss: No verification means what? You're a troll trying to get our coordinates, 100%. lol
ㄴ LifeLogout ♥: 404, if you don't verify your status window in 3 minutes, you're getting permabanned.
'Permabanned'.
It means applying a ban continuously.......
You could say it's a 'permanent ban'.
But why?
I'm innocent too, damn it?!
ㄴ ㅇㅇ(404.404): No, what the fuck is a status window! How do I open it!
ㄴ Amheuk-Geu-Jache: Kekeke, foolish troll. It's pathetic to see you struggling like this.
ㄴ ㅇㅇ(404.404): I'm not a troll! Really! If you're not going to help, at least report it to the police. Please.
ㄴ Mirror-Therapy-Specialist: The police joke is fresh lol.
ㄴ Success-in-Enhancement Wish: It is a new pattern. Maybe she's a real newbie?
ㄴ Frostbitten-Harubang: Focus your consciousness,,, and bring up the status window,,, just like when you entered the gallery,,,,
ㄴ Corpse-Fucker: If it's really hard, try saying 'Status Window' out loud.
ㄴ ㅇㅇ(404.404): Okay, wait wait.
I gasped for air and shouted desperately.
"Status Window, Status Window, Status Window!"
Please come out, please!!
At that moment, a neon blue screen filled my vision.
【Status Window】
Connected IP: 404.404.404.404
Title: 《Dimension Stray》
Level: Lv. 01
Stats:
SRT: 1 / DEX: 9 / INT: 7
/ VIT: 2 / WIS: 4
Authority: 《NULL》
This must mean I should upload this, right?
I captured it and uploaded it to the Witch Gallery as is.
Then, the atmosphere in the comment section shifted instantly.
Tong-gui Boss: Huh? NULL...? It was a fresh, natural newbie, crazy lol.
ㄴ Mirror-Therapy-Specialist: Wow, lol. Does a newborn that survived the human-trash detection technology actually exist in this day and age?
ㄴ FutanariNoona: No wonder it smelled so lewd, sniff sniff.
ㄴ Sashimi-Deep-Sea-Fish: Look at you popping out after smelling it when it was quiet lol.
Corpse-Fucker: But what's with the title 'Dimension Stray'? How does a Lv 1 newbie have a unique title?
ㄴ Tribe-Fertilizer Factory: Forget the title, newbie, how's the situation right now?
ㄴ ㅇㅇ: Two men in masks are chasing me with knives! I think I'm really going to die now, please save me, guys.
ㄴ Tong-gui Boss: Masks and knives? If they were regular hunters, your head would have already exploded before you could even write here.
ㄴ Schizophrenia-Max: That's not a hunter. That's not a hunter. That's not a hunter. That's not a hunter.
Banguseok-Munyeo-Jjang: Ho-honestly, I think it's a miracle you met a Beater...
ㄴ ㅇㅇ(404.404): Beater?
ㄴ FutanariNoona: Beaters are losers who couldn't even awaken Ether. They're non-regular hunters who only received professional combat training... they're called Beaters, so they're just regular human-trash, you can rest easy.
Then, are hunters people who hunt witches?
But if regular people received professional combat training.......
That's just a killer!!
And you're telling me to rest easy?!
Just then, the Manager's comment was posted.
LifeLogout ♥: Looking at the status window, you haven't selected an Authority yet, so you can't use magic. So, crave the most ideal form to overcome this situation. If you just select an Authority, you can easily handle two Beaters.
ㄴ FutanariNoona: Newbie-jjang>< If you're scared, want eonni to help? Can you call out your coordinates?
ㄴ Corpse-Fucker: Transparent, so transparent...
ㄴ LifeLogout ♥: 'FutanariNoona' banned for 1 day for violating guidelines.
ㄴ FutanariNoona: Ah, why.
[You are a banned IP/ID in this gallery.]
What were they trying to do to get banned.......
I don't know, and I don't want to know.
Anyway.
The ideal form.
And craving, huh.......
Cheol-peok cheol-peok―
Through the sound of the rain, the sound of the men's combat boots approached the alley entrance.
"What should I crave......?"
I gripped the red toy hammer in my hand tightly.
The power to overturn this shitty situation.
I need a monstrous weapon to crush those crazy bastards.
Toys or whatever, I don't care.
Please, give me the power to destroy those bastards......!
The moment my heart pounded violently.
The screen in front of me emitted a crimson radiance.
[Responding to your unique aptitude, your Authority is confirmed.]
[Authority: Updated to 《Queen of the Toy Empire》.]
Turning the corner of the alley, the two masked men flashed their blood-stained blades.
"What, is the game of tag already over?"
They narrowed the distance toward me.