NOVEL WEB Chapter 0
Our family is strict.
Well, to be more precise, it’s Father and my older sister who are overly strict…
And not just a little.
“Nam-mi, shouldn’t you aim to get into Seoul National University just like your sister?”
“Hey, Hanam Mi, what’s with these test scores? Did you even study properly?”
But it seems I don’t have the same talent for studying as my sister.
And to begin with, it’s not even something I want to do…
What could I possibly do about the fact that I don’t have a talent for studying?
“Nam-mi, did you finish your homework? How about your studying?”
Maybe it was only natural that I, as Hanam Mi, the awkward outcast who got bullied at school, ended up this way.
Growing up constantly being compared to my sister and criticized by my family, that is.
“Hanam Mi, don’t waste your sister’s time. Just focus—right now!”
And it’s even worse when the person I’m compared to is the one criticizing me…
Then one day, Father called me over.
And to be honest, I already had an idea why Father had summoned me…
“Nam-mi…”
“…”
“Are you being bullied at school?”
Silently, I nodded.
In the end, after enduring it for so long, I ended up going to the teacher about it.
And naturally, Father found out.
“…”
The look on Father’s face when I told him—it was something indescribable, filled with shock.
Then came the tightly clenched fists and the burning anger in his eyes.
It was the first time I had ever seen Father lose control of his emotions.
“You damn bastards dare to mess with my son!”
That was the first time I understood Father’s true feelings.
‘Ah…’
Even though I thought Father was always scolding me, he still cared for me.
“Well… Nam-mi, you’ve been patient up until now. I’ll take care of this, so you just go rest in your room.”
Was that why?
It was the first time I felt a glimmer of courage.
With a trembling voice, I spoke to Father.
“Father…”
“Yeah? What is it?”
“I don’t want to go to school anymore…”
“…”
At my words, Father hesitated, his mouth opening and closing as if he wanted to say something but couldn’t.
His face was a mixture of confusion and concern, and in the end, he let out only one word.
“I see…”
* * *
Hanam Mi.
Grandfather was the one who gave me this name, but I don’t like it.
Firstly, it sounds like a name for a girl, and secondly, it was the reason I got bullied in school.
Though to be honest, even without the name, I probably would have been bullied because of my personality.
Father doesn’t know this yet, but I actually got bullied back in elementary and middle school as well.
But there is one good thing about this name—it gave me the life I’m satisfied with now.
I became a notorious sniper from the corner of my room.
[Charge Knight]: Rush Breath Form 1! Serpentinite Twin Peaks 「蛇紋岩・双極!」
Swishhh! Bang!!
“Ahh!! Please stop sniping me already!!”
[Charge Knight]: Demon-Slaying Upper Cut!
“What the hell is an ‘Upper Cut’? You psycho!!”
Without realizing, a snicker escaped me.
Ah, sniping really is fun.
Especially when it’s my favorite streamer.
“Report!! Report!! Report!! Ahh, moderators!! Please grab this psycho!!”
-haha Inaring-level skill
-What the-
-Is this skill real? Is this skill real? Is this skill real? Is this skill real? Is this skill real? Is this skill real? Is this skill real?
-How is this guy a Master?
-Moderators! There’s someone here boosting their score with proxies! Arrest them!
“No way! Everyone knows it’s my skill! You know this!”
-?
-???
-??
-????
-??
“Come on, you guys hate me!”
-We get it but change your room title first.
-Western Outlaw Expert(X) Western Outlaw Beginner(O)
“Ahhh!!!”
-LOL
-LOL
-LOLOLOLOLOLO
-LOL
The chat box filled with laughter.
And there goes my favorite VTuber, Inaring, getting into another heated argument.
Ah, I’m so happy.
Finding my talent was way too late.
Thrilling! So thrilling!
Because of my talent!
It’s me! Me!
I’m a notorious sniper!
“Oh, I’m going to sleep like a log tonight.”
Since my favorite VTuber Inaring had her heated argument, I can go to sleep early today.
It doesn’t happen often, but today she ended particularly early.
Now all I need to do is one of the daily chores: clipping videos.
Go to Inaring’s VOD channel, extract the highlight reels, edit them, then upload them to my own channel. Done.
Today was truly well spent!
“…”
I collapsed onto the bed with a thud.
To anyone else, my dark and messy room might smell unpleasant, and the space could be considered dirty, but to me, it’s cozy.
It’s been a year since I’ve been allowed to stay locked up in my room by Father.
I’m truly satisfied with my current life.
“Hmmm~ Tomorrow’s broadcast schedule…”
My eyes were slowly closing.
Wasn’t Inaring’s schedule slightly different tomorrow?
She mentioned starting the broadcast early, right?
That’s probably why she ended early today.
So tomorrow, I’ll probably need to get up a bit earlier…
“Zzz…”
* * *
You know how they say that every once in a while, life throws some truly unbelievable events your way?
Like, for example, winning the lottery three times or surviving getting struck by lightning twice?
To be honest, I always thought that maybe, just maybe, I’d experience something equally absurd in my lifetime.
Of course, I figured all of it would be based on pure chance.
Maybe one day I’d be incredibly lucky, or maybe, incredibly unlucky.
“But this can’t be explained by luck, right?”
The next morning, I woke up only to discover that something unbelievable had happened.
“Ah…”
I’ve become a girl.
* * *
Height somewhere between 140cm and 150cm.
Dark circles under my eyes, messy wavy hair reaching down to my waist.
“Uh, um…?”
How do I explain this?
What do I tell Father and Mother?
Honestly, I’m incredibly confused. How am I supposed to explain this transformation to my family?
Then, suddenly…
*Knock knock*
I jumped slightly!
It was a knock on the door.
My mother’s voice could be heard from the other side.
“Nam-mi, I’ve made you some food. Make sure to eat it, okay?”
Mother leaves food for me outside my door every morning, noon, and night.
There’s a rule, though—when Mother calls, I must acknowledge her.
Otherwise, she barges straight into my sanctuary like a bulldozer.
The problem now is that I’ve become a girl, and my voice has turned into a falsetto.
“Nam-mi?”
What do I do?
I can’t exactly speak, can I?
Truly confused, I anxiously fidgeted my feet.
*Creak*
“!?”
Mother had opened the door.
“…”
“…”
The two of us stared at each other.
I froze instantly, while Mother tilted her head in puzzlement.
“What are you doing?”
“Huh, huh?”
“I said at least respond when I call you, didn’t I?”
“Oh, I’m sorry…”
“Well, just make sure you eat your food properly and respond when I call.”
“Yes…”
And with that, Mother closed the door without another word.
I was stunned.
“Why isn’t she surprised?”
Even though her son has turned into a daughter, Mother didn’t seem to notice anything strange.
I scratched my head and opened my wallet to check my ID.
“…”
Wh-What…? The last digit of my Social Security number has changed from 3 to 4…
And the photo on my ID card is now of my current face.
It seems the world has changed.
I’ve been transported to a world where I am a girl.