The Guy Next Door to the Heroine

1 – I’ve Become the Neighbor

“Whew, cough!”

Whether it was because it had been so long since I smoked, or because my body had become younger, my encounter with the cigarette was the worst.

“Whew…”

Nonetheless, perhaps because the nicotine was circulating through my body, my head felt somewhat clearer.

“I said I wouldn’t smoke again.”

The hellish experience of quitting smoking once was enough. I had struggled so much to quit; I declared, with great momentum, I would never smoke again!

Yet, here I am again after having quit for who knows how long.

But then again, three years is a long time, isn’t it?

“There’s no helping it. The world is a mess.”

I muttered a tiny excuse. It was a day not much different from the usual.

Except for the family that moved into the long-vacant house a week ago, it was an ordinary day.

So, what’s the problem? I had discovered the secrets of the world.

I had attained enlightenment upon realizing the truth of the world. It doesn’t mean I have become some implausible sage.

“Really.”

Who would have known? I woke up and the world I was living in had changed, and I had tried to adapt in my own way.

Now, I realize this world is actually a webtoon.

“Whew…”

Yes, the changed world was the one from the webtoon I used to read. Although it took me three years to realize it.

How could I have been in my right mind, seeing the news headline about the Gate incident on the first day of the change? I was already startled by my rejuvenated body.

It was a win, but it was still startling.

Three years trying to adapt to these strange abilities and the Hunter world.

“It’s not… in vain, but…”

It was a bit unfair. If I had realized earlier, wouldn’t it have been a bit smoother? Well, I could have interfered…

But there’s nothing I can do. I’ve already spent three years, and there are still three years left until the original work.

If it weren’t for the neighbor, I would have realized this only after three years had passed.

Yes. After the original work started.

“But, really… I don’t understand.”

Three years ago from now, I went to sleep and woke up to find the world had changed. The Hunter worldview, rich and dense as a hearty broth. What I thought was a webtoon worldview.

So, how did I, who couldn’t realize this simple fact for three years, come to understand it?

“Hello!”

A friendly greeting from the balcony next door, from this tiny… no, a very sociable high school sophomore lady.

Her name is Kim Cheong, a young 18 years old. Many concerns with her name at the vibrant 18, not Shim Cheong, but Kim Cheong.

Kim Cheong, who wishes to not be called only by her family’s financial situation, is unlucky in various ways.

Her height is approximately 168 cm, and her weight is estimated to be in the mid-to-late 50s.

Does that seem like a lot? Prospective hunters need to eat well.

“Your eyes are indecent…!”

It seems she noticed me thinking about her weight.

I don’t understand the intuition of women. In a webtoon, it would naturally be possible, of course…

Anyway, saying ‘This world is a webtoon’ and ‘You’re an extra!’ now, after living quite comfortably for three years, doesn’t seem fitting.

That’s how I feel.

“Your thoughts are weird…!”

Although she speaks discontentedly, her head is still in a dream.

With her messy hair, dull eyes, and staggeringly walking towards me, it seems she hasn’t fully woken up yet. She still starts a conversation like this.

… It was not a name joke. But why has it become a joke?

Anyway, if Kim Cheong looked in the mirror, she would either bang her head, shake her blanket, or do something else because she would think of suicide, but from the observer’s point of view, it was to the extent that a reaction like ‘It’s actually nice!’ comes to mind.

Even if she hasn’t fully matured, her body makes a definite statement. When you see her physicality, a sound of acknowledgment escapes.

This girl, she’s actually the heroine. Yes, she is a high-being. Maybe not right now, but later, to the extent that it will be frightening to make eye contact.

Hmm, maybe not to that extent.

No matter how it turns out later. Perhaps because she is a heroine, she is warm, has high sociability, and her tension is burdensomely high.

So, have I fallen for this pretty and lively heroine?

Are you in your right mind right now?

The age difference is over 10. When I was in college, she was a little kid. What’s there to fall for?

Just a position of a jobless person watching a show. A jobless person who does not make broth! Hanging a sign.

“You woke up early again today.”

It’s best to ignore the grumbling. Cheong doesn’t remember what she said, anyway.

It’s like ‘I’m sorry, but I forgot.’

“Yes…”

But she’s really diligent. What is she doing waking up at 8 during vacation?

‘Latte is horse! When vacation starts, that’s when all-nighters begin, and waking up at 12 is the rule! You beast!’

If I said that, I would become a vile person from then on.

“Enjoy a bit more before becoming a senior. Your lifestyle will end once the vacation is over.”

Cheong’s family is a single-parent family. Her mother is a rather lenient person. She’s not too strict yet… but what will happen when the college entrance exams approach?

Well, I kind of know the future, so it’ll be alright somehow. I don’t know the detailed story.

“You talk like an old man!”

“Because I am an old man.”

Although I rejuvenated to a shocking degree when I looked in the mirror, my identification still remained the same, primarily my birth date and the last six digits.

Anyway, the world has changed, but I am satisfied. I got a beauty buff and acquired a special ability.

As for my appearance… even in a Hunter world, if 28 looks like a high school student, that’s saying something.

My body might be young, but my mental age is steadily advancing. What’s the difference between being in your late 20s and being an old man? Well, marriage… I can’t even date properly, let alone get married.

Maybe my mind matured quickly, so I feel that way. I’ve been labeled an old soul since I was young.

That was TMI.

“Go inside, it’s chilly.”

“Yes!”

I don’t know why she keeps talking to me, but it’s not a bad feeling. She’s a person and a woman, after all.

If such a pretty girl talks to me, it’s good for me.

“It’s not so bad, is it?”

In the previous world, where being alone became a habit to the point that talking to myself was routine, having someone like a heroine talk to me consistently wasn’t bad.

“I’m not entirely ordinary, either.”

Whatever sent me here didn’t send me here without any abilities. I had something that was far from

ordinary abilities on the level of bugs or cheats.

“I wonder how the story will turn.”

Imagine this world as a lake. When I, an alien substance, fall into it, it will create ripples.

But my existence has now become a power of a meteorite level, causing a massive splash.

Not just ripples; the entire water of the lake will erupt…

“The previous difficulty was high, though.”

It was a world where if two play, both die. But now that I’m here… who knows what will change.

“I have no idea.”

Running mindlessly whenever my head was cluttered was a good hobby. Physical training was secondary to the unobstructed view, which was refreshing.

Why run, you ask… because I can feel how much stronger I’ve become?

“Let’s run for now.”

I crumple the green tracksuit onto my body. I didn’t gain weight, but did I wash it wrong?

Then I put on my sneakers. Even though I can run barefoot without any problems, I am a modern man.

In a world where krakens exist in the sea, Nessie pops out of lakes, and griffins fly in the sky, it is still modern.

Shoes are basic props.

I opened the door.

Whoosh!

“I haven’t heard that Skadi popped out…”

The sound that reached my ears evoked the chilling wind of winter, extreme in its intensity.

Even so, it had no effect on me.

“Ugh…”

Perhaps I can feel the sorrow of office workers commuting through this brutal weather.

“I wouldn’t know, I’m unemployed.”

As I jog through the streets under the guise of exercise, now-familiar sights unfold before my eyes.

“What happens if you pour lava on a car!!”

A man, for reasons beyond comprehension, pouring lava on someone else’s vehicle with his power.

“You parked like a piece of sh*t!”

This hasn’t changed, even after the world has.

Still, normally, one doesn’t pour lava on a car over parking issues. Even for me, a three-year pro in this webtoon life, it’s a first.

A brief gawk, and then I run again.

The city was peaceful today, as always.

Villains are committing terror.

“This district is ruled by Desuternets, hahahahaha!”

Quite a severe case of second-year syndrome.

Elsewhere, a quarrel escalates to drawn blades.

“Then, let’s duel!”

“Wish upon the ocean!”

Let’s…let that one go.

‘Duel universalism here again…’

In the back alley, a passing adult is nonchalantly mugged.

“Spit, do you know who we are, mister? We’re not asking for much. Just give us a hundred thousand won, just a hundred thousand!”

He’s pretty good at spitting.

“Everyone, hands up! Move even a little, and this building and your lives are gone, got it?!”

And, slightly unique, but a bank is being robbed…wait a minute.

“Galaxy Bank?”

Galaxy Bank, operated by the Galaxy Group or something. Anyway, it was a very large bank.

So, the important thing isn’t the size.

“My money.”

My money is in there.

Although I am willingly unemployed right now, it’s the bank where the money I saved while being dragged into the army, and working part-time during my school days, is deposited.

“They’ve crossed the line.”

Moreover, it was the only bank in the City of Abigyuwan, Incheon Special Autonomous District.

So, if that place goes, I become destitute.