The World Is Not Equal
It had been about ten years since Polarity rescued me.
Ever since that day, one wall in my room had been covered with photos of Polarity.
S-class hero, Polarity.
At first, it was just a single small clipping from the newspaper that covered the incident.
A corner of the paper my mom had been reading—an article with a photo of Polarity subduing a monster.
As a child, I’d brought the newspaper to my mom and asked,
“Mom… can I have this newspaper?”
Mom nodded.
“Sure. I’m done reading it, so you can take it.”
I cut the paper out crookedly and taped it to the wall.
I pressed it down firmly with my palm so it wouldn’t fall.
“There…!”
That was the beginning of my Polarity fangirling.
Interviews cut from magazines, special hero features, screenshots of battle scenes from the internet, photos taken of news broadcasts, even her personal photoshoot spreads.
The texture of the paper, the sizes, the colors—they were all different, but every single one featured the same person.
Each time I added another, the empty spaces on the wall grew smaller.
“This spot’s still open.”
“This one would look good right here.”
I even enjoyed the time I spent muttering to myself while deciding where everything should go.
Before I knew it, the entire wall of my room was filled with Polarity.
The first thing I saw when I opened my eyes in the morning and the last thing I saw before falling asleep at night was that beautiful face.
When sunlight slipped through the curtains and lit up the photos on the wall, Polarity seemed to glow in a mysterious way.
In the many pictures, she floated in the sky, rescued people, or crushed monsters and villains beneath her.
When I woke up, I would often lie in bed for a while, staring blankly at those photos.
“…She’s seriously so cool. Hehe…”
I’d mumble in a tiny voice even though no one was listening.
No matter how many times I looked at them, I never got tired.
Sometimes I’d almost be late for school because of it.
Smoothing out crumpled photos, pressing down tape that was about to peel, or worrying about where to put a new one—time would fly by.
It was a short ritual, but it was my own little ceremony to start the day.
Even when I went out, my Polarity fangirling didn’t stop.
Stationery stores, convenience stores, big supermarkets—anywhere I spotted hero merchandise, I’d pause.
“Maybe… they have some?”
I’d scan the shelves with hopeful eyes.
If Polarity was there, my hand would automatically reach out.
Small stickers, keychains, photocards, mini figures—even the random goodies inside snacks or bread.
I would never give up on anything Polarity!
When I got home, Mom looked at the small box in my hand and asked.
Inside the box was a random hero figure.
I glanced around nervously before giving a small nod.
“…Yeah.”
“Didn’t you buy one last time?”
“That was a different one…”
I tried to defend myself, but my voice grew quieter and quieter.
Mom sighed and headed back to the kitchen to finish making dinner.
“I told you to save your allowance.”
She didn’t sound angry.
Back in my room, I carefully tore open the plastic on the box.
My fingertips were strangely tense.
A small capsule rolled out.
When I opened the lid, the figure appeared along with the smell of plastic.
For a second, my eyes sparkled.
“…!!”
It was Polarity.
And in a floating pose, no less.
I hurriedly checked the instruction sheet.
“A rare item…!?”
The corners of my mouth lifted on their own.
Mom peeked through the doorway, saw me, and shook her head with a smile.
“You really do love her, huh.”
I carefully made space for it among the other figures already lined up on the shelf.
I adjusted its position several times so it would look good from any angle.
“Is this spot… the best…?”
I stepped back to check from a distance, moved closer to tweak the angle slightly, then stepped back again.
In the end, I placed it closest to the center.
“…Perfect.”
Now anyone who walked in would notice it immediately.
It put me in a strangely good mood.
I looked around the room for a moment.
A row of small figures stood on the desk, the bookshelf was packed with related magazines.
Glass cups, pencil cases, notebooks—even the pillow cover—everything was Polarity merchandise.
My room had basically turned into a tiny exhibition hall.
My friends had been shocked when they came over and saw it.
Satisfying!
I sat down at the desk and turned on the computer to search for Polarity’s activities from today.
The first word I always typed into YouTube was the same.
Polarity.
Battle videos, interviews, civilian rescue scenes, fan-taken direct cams.
I rewatched videos I’d already seen countless times.
If an ad featuring Polarity appeared, I would never press the skip button even if it showed up.
Because I didn’t want to miss a single thing—her smiling on screen, explaining a product, or even a fleeting cut.
I watched Polarity videos until night fell.
Time to sleep now~
“Eun-ran! It’s morning! You have to go to school!”
That’s weird.
I just closed my eyes, but Mom’s already waking me up.
I guess I have to go to school.
On the way to school, Polarity’s song played through my earphones.
After entering high school, I started hearing awakening stories everywhere.
Kids in my class, students from the class next door, sunbaes from clubs.
Stories about gaining abilities were no longer special.
“Yo, I awakened yesterday.”
“For real? What’s your ability?”
“I can move water a little.”
Voices mixed with envy and congratulations floated around me.
I laughed along with them.
I want to awaken too…
But nothing happened to me all the way until my third year of high school.
And just like that, graduation day arrived.
The classroom was buzzing with talk of future plans right before graduation.
“I applied to the Hero Department.”
“Whoa, I’m jealous.”
“What about you?”
“Preparing for the civil service exam.”
“Very realistic.”
Questions flew back and forth as if everyone was confirming each other’s futures.
“Wah!”
A friend suddenly popped up from behind.
Her name was Han Bit-na, my childhood friend I’d known since kindergarten.
She had awakened in middle school.
And her ability had even received an all-range S-rank evaluation.
The name of her ability was Photon Armament.
She could convert light into solid matter with physical force. The stronger and more abundant the light, the more powerful it became.
“Bit-na, where did you apply?”
“Me? Sephirot Academy, obviously! I’m definitely going to become an S-class hero! What about you, Eun-ran?”
The sudden question made me freeze for a second.
“…I don’t know. If I don’t awaken, probably a regular university or something.”
It was just the truth.
“Even if we go to different colleges, we’ll still stay close, right?”
“Of course, my brother!”
“Brother? We’re both girls, shouldn’t it be sister?”
“The vibe’s better this way.”
“Do whatever you want~”
Bit-na headed off to talk with other friends.
“I really don’t know.”
Where I should go, what I should do.
I had no idea about anything.
The day ended just like any other.
I lay in bed staring at the ceiling before closing my eyes.
That dawn.
“Ugh…”
Even half-asleep, I could feel my heart racing abnormally fast.
My body felt hot.
I kicked off the blanket in my sleep-talking, but the heat wouldn’t subside.
It only grew hotter.
My muscles trembled with a tingling sensation.
The tips of my fingers felt electrified, like I’d lost all sensation.
My breathing grew ragged.
Something was wrong with my body.
It felt like something inside me was moving.
Twisting, flipping, being forcibly rearranged.
I was asleep so I didn’t know it at the time, but faint glowing letters had probably appeared in the air.
『Ding!』
The sudden alarm sound made my eyes flutter open in a daze.
Congratulations! You have awakened! Your ability name is Ya-eum! Due to the basic passive Optimized Body of Ya-eum, your body will be partially reconstructed!
“…..Huh…?”
The changes to my body began abruptly.
“Ugh….ah…!!”
Pain surged through me like electricity racing along my spine.
“Ughhh…!! Aaaarghhh…!!!”
The agony made me pass out immediately.
My muscles tore, repaired themselves, contracted, then expanded again in repetition.
The sound of my bones creaking was loud enough for even me to hear.
My fingers unconsciously gripped the bedsheet tightly.
The inside of my body was being forcibly reshaped.
As if it were being reassembled into a more efficient form.
The pain continued for a long time before suddenly stopping like a lie.
-----
Beep beep beep, beep beep beep.
My phone alarm rang.
My entire body was drenched in sweat.
My heart was still racing.
Yet I felt incredibly refreshed. Like the morning of New Year’s Day after putting on brand-new underwear.
“Ugh!”
A strong, stinging stench suddenly hit my nose and jolted me fully awake.
The bedsheet was soaked with foul-smelling black liquid.
“What the heck! Why is my bedsheet like this?!”
I jumped up quickly.
My underwear felt strangely tight.
I tossed the sheet into the washing machine and turned it on.
“I think I had a weird dream last night. Something about suddenly awakening.”
I had no idea. Time to go wash up.
As always, I looked in the mirror.
“Eh.”
My body had become… something incredible.
My hair had turned pink, my pupils had become heart-shaped, and my chest and hips were much larger than before. I wondered if I’d gained weight, but my waist was slim and cinched.
“Why am I like this?”
I’d heard that when you awaken, your body can change due to the influence of your ability. So that thing at dawn wasn’t a dream after all?
『Ding!』
“That scared me!”
Something strange suddenly appeared in the air. Was this a status window?
Hello. This system is a passive function granted for the user’s convenience. If you wish to call it, please say “status window”!
“St… status window…?”
“Ya-eum? What does Ya-eum even mean?”
The character 冶 means ‘forge’ or ‘smelt,’ and can also mean ‘beautiful’ or ‘seductive.’ 淫 is the character for ‘lewd’ or ‘obscene,’ meaning ‘lewd’ or ‘lascivious.’
“In context, it’s probably not forge or smelting… so beautiful or seductive? Combined with the second character, seductive and lewd?”
Correct!
“…..For real?”
Yes!
“…..”
……
“…No, why does my ability have to be like this!!!!”