Gu Ryong High School, along with nearby Gangnam’s 8th District High Schools, had already spread the fame of Cheon Saetbyeol far and wide.
The most common title attached to her was undoubtedly the “PC Bang Short-Haired Goddess.”
Whenever she used gaming devices like computers or PS consoles, all the male students would gather around her like wow!
Not only her looks but also her skills had briefly caught attention before.
She was a 17-year-old female challenger who made a surprise appearance in the National High School Wagal League.
Although she got eliminated in the preliminaries, this unexpected ecosystem destroyer left a strong impression on some students’ memories.
Rumors were rife that she was preparing for professional gaming or belonged to an entertainment agency.
Her acquaintances were careful not to mention anything about her Saetbyeol.
In exchange, Cheon Saetbyeol regularly supplied her friends with daily snapshots of Na-me.
She had become not just the mascot of Gu Ryong High but a living landmark of the school.
Every time Gu Ryong students were curious about who Na-me’s sister was, they felt a strange sense of intellectual fulfillment.
After all, they alone knew her identity.
[Hey, did you get confessed to by the player from the National Exchange Tournament? Spill the tea, LOL!]
[OIOI, you cheeky little rascal! How was Muscle Beach? Did you enjoy it? Why do you only have fun alone?]
[Take me too; I want to see the shark Na-me! T_T]
[I just saw Na-me on the broadcast, LOL! I thought she was a total weirdo!]
Thus, when the identity of Cheon Saetbyeol was revealed, the shock would undoubtedly be immense.
[I made Adella’s body.]
The next day, Gu Ryong High was completely turned upside down.
Students who usually slacked off during summer break, including those with academy schedules, all gathered at school from the first period.
The teachers, initially attempting to calm the chaos, ultimately joined in on the human transmutation gossip fest.
[Hey, have you heard Saetbyeol talking about her past? Or maybe her middle school friends.]
[No? I think she said she couldn’t even attend school because she was sick a lot back then.]
[What? That’s the first I’ve heard of that.]
[Yeah, I heard that too. She couldn’t even move well, but she got magic treatment recently and got a lot better.]
[Was that magic treatment human transmutation? What the…?]
After the press conference, Na-me’s family, who had suddenly disappeared in Paris, left the school teachers and friends worried, sending countless messages of concern.
Finally, when Na-me’s permission was granted, Saetbyeol shared her survival news in the group chat.
[Gu Ryong High School 2nd Grade 1 Class Group Chat (26)]
Cheon Saetbyeol: (Enjoying a glass of Romanée-Conti.jpg)
Cheon Saetbyeol: I hope everyone is having a great summer vacation! ^^
Cheon Saetbyeol: (Should I drink it or not.jpg)
Homeroom Teacher: Hey! Are you putting down alcohol right now?
That day, Saetbyeol ended up talking with her friends until dawn.
[Bonjour! You woke up early, Unni!]
Not having seen Na-me, who had turned into a puppy.
*
Along with Saetbyeol, at Ogam Jjukkumi Dogok Branch.
At the restaurant, she coincidentally ran into her school friends.
“Na-me, come sit in the middle! Right this way!”
The students hurriedly cleared the center seats for her.
The heat from the well-heated iron griddle mixed with the air conditioning.
Thick slices of pork belly and spicy-sweet seasoned octopus were sizzling away.
Surprisingly, Saetbyeol sat somewhat nervously on the cushion.
“What’s wrong?”
“Uh…”
She seemed to be deep in thought, fiddling with her lips.
During this time, Saetbyeol’s friends quickly set up plates and cups of water.
“Thanks!”
“Ahh, no! How can you be so cute! I’ll serve you more meat!”
“Oh, I can do it myself…”
After calming down somewhat, I picked up a piece of octopus with chopsticks and put it in my mouth.
The savory flavor, well-soaked in the spicy seasoning, exploded in my mouth, calling for a bowl of white rice.
‘Oh, this is really delicious. It’s a total gem.’
Thud—
Saetbyeol placed her hands on the table and buried her head.
“Sorry, guys, for deceiving you all! If I upset you this time, I sincerely apologize.”
“Huh?”
Then, Saetbyeol’s friends tilted their heads before bursting into laughter.
“What are you talking about? Just eat the octopus already.”
“Is this what Na-me ordered you to do?”
“No, it’s just that I’ve been deceiving everyone with lies. So I’m really sorry…”
“Why didn’t you just say the truth? You expect us to believe that?”
“I’m actually a character from a game! I was born into this world via human transmutation! Hm, that’s a bit too complicated? I would’ve been embarrassed if it were me.”
Pfft!
Saetbyeol chuckled, letting out a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, it seemed her friends still considered her a friend.
“Then, should that mean you’re one year old? Shouldn’t you be calling us older brothers and sisters?”
“Oh.”
“Hahahaha! Baek Yoo-geon, it seems you were genuinely expecting that! Ewww, that’s gross!”
“Oh, no! It just seemed somewhat right, so I was just agreeing for now.”
“Hey, Saetbyeol-chan. Try saying ‘Chae-eun unni,’ okay? Chae. Eun. Unni.”
“Wanna die? I can’t call you unni even if I die.”
“You call Na-me ‘Na-me Unni,’ don’t you?”
“Na-me Unni is Na-me Unni, so that’s an exception.”
The girl sitting next to me held my arm tightly and said.
“I’ll be counting on you to raise my younger sibling well, Saetbyeol-unnie.”
“Oh, sure. I’ll take good care of them.”
“Then tease them! I’ll flip the table!”
Saetbyeol glared at them, grinding her teeth.
Getting through the meal time was quite the struggle.
Everyone was busy claiming how delicious the food was while getting the red seasoning all over their lips.
Especially the male students were focused solely on calorie intake without saying a word.
“Na-me, Na-me.”
“Yes?”
“Are there any side effects from human transmutation magic? Is it possible that Saetbyeol has a limited lifespan? We don’t know anything about the principles.”
“Limited lifespan, you say?”
Saetbyeol suddenly perked up, her ears twitching.
“Well, if you exercise regularly and avoid drinking and smoking, wouldn’t you live longer than average?”
“What the heck, you startled me there! Why’s that limited lifespan! Just don’t worry, okay? There are no side effects.”
“Hey, Saetbyeol, can I shake your hand?”
“Suddenly?”
“Me too, me too.”
“Next is me.”
In an instant, Saetbyeol’s hands became busy.
“Can I touch your cheek?”
“They’re the same as yours, the same.”
“No, it’s just fascinating! You’ve always had such smooth, baby-like skin since back in the day.”
“So, Na-me, how did you perform human transmutation? Do you need 35 liters of water and 20kg of carbon like in the anime?”
“It’s not like that; you actually need a lot of high-purity magic stones. Since it requires a ton of mana, you’d probably need to rent out an entire magic power plant.”
“Wow, that costs a fortune! So that’s why everyone says you have a body worth 200 billion.”
“You should be grateful to Na-me for life. She made such a beautiful face and body for you for free.”
“I also had a hard time, you know…!”
“What had you gone through?”
Saetbyeol puffed up her cheeks.
She slammed her chopsticks down on the rice and said.
“Do you think getting a body is easy? It’s truly painful to the point of wanting to die. You have to endure a whole minute of agony as if your whole body is being chopped with a knife. Of course, I couldn’t be anesthetized because of the Aura Heart. I lack the expressiveness to convey that pain in words.”
Saetbyeol, frustrated, thumped her chest.
“Is that true?”
People looked at her with suspicious eyes as she nodded.
“It’s super painful, but it’s not to the degree that you can’t fathom it. Just think of it as about 1.5 to 2 times the CRPS.”
“What’s CRPS?”
“Or about five times the pain of your entire body burning? But you, Cheon Saetbyeol… Ah, never mind.”
Most of the time spent was me casting the pain synchronization magic for her.
Perhaps remembering that moment, she scooched closer to me.
Letting out an awkward giggle, she hugged me tightly.
“I always think of you with gratitude. I’ll pay back the 210 billion someday, okay? Okay?”
“The meat’s getting cold; let’s eat quickly.”
“Then let’s eat a lot and grow tall!”
After finishing the octopus and pork belly, we waited for fried rice while introducing ourselves.
Though it was slightly delayed, isn’t rice more important than real names?
After all, everything in the world is done to eat and live.
Problems arise because people always want to eat more than they deserve.
I shared a bowl of rice with Saetbyeol, just dividing it evenly.
My half bowl, Cheon Saetbyeol one and a half bowls.
“Hey, if you eat like that, won’t you get fat?”
“Surprisingly, I do gain well! Honestly, I want to take the side fat and stick it on my chest. If I’m going to be made, at least make me have a body that doesn’t gain weight.”
“Wow, where’s your conscience? You are being so deceitful!”
Since I got to meet school friends after a long time, I couldn’t help but ask the questions I was curious about Saetbyeol.
“Saetbyeol, have you had any boyfriends during this time?”
“Huh? That’s what we wanted to ask! Are you really serious, never had one?”
“I’m serious; I don’t lie easily.”
“Isn’t dating at one year old a bit much? Go drink milk.”
“Ugh.”
“But you’ve been on broadcasts like Love Castle and Heart My Life every morning with us.”
“I don’t know; it’s just that the dopamine released during that dating process is nice. What I do just isn’t that great?”
Everyone looked at her as if to say this was hilarious.
“This must be the side effect.”
“This was the side effect.”
“It’s not a side effect.”
“So, do you have any feelings for dating, like just a tiny little bit?”
“It’s not like there’s none, right? Just if there’s my ideal type.”
“What’s your ideal type?”
“I just like perfect people.”
“For example?”
Saetbyeol stared at me blankly.
Then she let out a chuckle and answered her friends.
“Uhm… I figure someone like me would be enough, right? Just wait a minute. Why are you all looking at me like that?”
Hahaha!
Everyone burst into laughter.
I nearly choked on my water as I tried to hold back my laughter.
Then, all of a sudden, I looked outside through the second-floor window.
People gathered on the street, bustling away.
“There are so many people.”
“Wow, why are there so many?”
At my words, everyone turned their gaze to the window.
“They’re all here to see Na-me.”
“Whoa, amazing.”
Now that I think about it, the restaurant owner hadn’t been around for a while. He probably went downstairs to control the crowd.
“Shall we head out?”
“It might be a disturbance if we stay any longer.”
After taking selfies with all of Saetbyeol’s friends and scribbling my signature in their notebooks.
“Thanks for the delicious lunch!”
“Thank you!”
“We always support Na-me! And you, the one with the white hair!”
“It’s silver hair, not white!”
Clap clap clap clap clap—
As we gradually prepared to leave, applause erupted from other tables.
“Where are you going?”
“We’re off to self-study now. Haah…”
“Oh, I want to go see friends again after a long time. Na-me, what do you want to do? Should we go together?”
“Me too?”
“Yeah! The high school self-study room is like a must-see in Korea, isn’t it? Let’s go together! I’ll ask the principal for permission. It won’t take long; I’ll be back in no time.”
Saetbyeol suddenly took out her phone and called someone.
“Are you really calling the principal?”
“How did you know my phone number?”
“Hello? Yes, it’s me. Yes. Ah, yes!”
Her friends were astonished at the situation.
“Now that I have permission, it’s your choice, Unni. To go or not.”
I took a moment to ponder.
School isn’t exactly a place I love.
But at the same time, I felt a desire to see the place where my family spends a long day.
I pulled out my hologram and turned on the broadcast.
[NoName]
[Just Chatting – Korean Trip Day1 – High School]
[Broadcasting Time – 0:00:07]
[Number of Viewers – 1,395]
“I was planning to broadcast later, but is it okay to do it now? Is everyone okay with their faces showing on the broadcast?”
Hehe. I knew you would want to come along!
Whooooa, really watching NoName live?
You’re a hero, Cheon Saetbyeol!
I always believed in you! Thanks!
Lies! You didn’t believe at all!
Receiving the cheers of the students, I exited the building.
Amidst the chaotic atmosphere, I launched into the opening statement.
“Hello, this is NoName. I’m now in the capital of Korea, Seoul.”
First, I needed to consider how to weave my way through the hundreds of people.
