Chapter 3

### Chapter 3: Back to Daily Life

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“...Are you really sure you don’t need to go to the hospital?”

Mother asked with a worried voice, but I slowly shook my head.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Logically, I should go to the hospital to check out the strange changes happening to me.

However, since I don’t feel any pain and have even regained health that I didn’t have before, I don’t really want to go.

Most importantly, I have already lived a life as a patient with a rare, unprecedented condition.

“‘Is this the patient?’”

“‘Yes, Professor.’”

“‘Hmm...’”

Although I haven’t directly suffered any harm, I often felt like a lab mouse when doctors looked at me.

Of course, I know they have no ill intentions. They are just doing their job and trying to find a way to help me.

But... I don’t want to feel that way again.

Especially this time, my gender has changed.

This case of gender reversal would undoubtedly attract far more attention and scrutiny than a rare muscle contraction disease.

“...I understand. But if you feel any pain, you must tell me. Got it?”

Mother, who seemed to agree that she didn’t want me to be treated like a lab rat, nodded.

“Yeah.”

“...Okay, let’s do that.”

Mother, standing at the door, looked back at me, as if hesitant to leave.

“If you need anything, call me. Got it?”

“Got it.”

“Ah, right.”

After a moment, as if remembering something, Mother approached me and grabbed a few strands of my hair.

“Hold on.”

Snap

“Ouch!”

And there, in Mother’s hand, was a strand of silver hair that shone in the light.

Even though I saw it with my own eyes, it felt incredibly unreal.

“Alright, go to sleep.”

Mother, holding the silver hair she had pulled from me, left the room as if being chased by something.

“...”

I could guess why Mother was in such a hurry and what she might use the hair for, but I didn’t want to point it out.

My son had suddenly become a girl.

It was only natural that Mother needed some convincing evidence.

‘Wait a minute...’

Suddenly, a foreboding thought crossed my mind.

The changes that have happened to me are not minor. My gender has changed, and my entire body has transformed.

Such a drastic change could mean that my original genes have completely disappeared.

‘Ah... it’ll be fine.’

But what if, just in case, a paternity test shows that I’m not related?

‘Will I be kicked out of the house?’

No, that would be a relief compared to the worst-case scenario.

In the worst case, I might be punished for being related to the missing ‘Yoo Jin.’

Since I have no identity, I could end up in prison as an unknown person.

“...I don’t know.”

I stopped thinking.

Somehow, it will work out.

If necessary, I’ll have to dredge up all the family memories stored in my mind and beg for forgiveness.

“Ugh.”

When I laid my head on the pillow, the unfamiliar silver hair tickled my nose.

I’ve never had hair this long, so it was hard to get used to.

“Achoo!”

After a few sneezes, I gave up on sleeping.

After all, I had been unconscious until now. It was unlikely that I would fall asleep again.

“Hmm...”

Slowly getting out of bed, I looked at the mirror hanging on the wall.

‘Can I do this...?’

The concept of walking on two legs was still very foreign to me.

But everything is difficult at first.

One step, one step.

I slowly put one foot in front of the other.

By now, I seemed to have gotten used to this body, and moving my legs didn’t feel as awkward as it did at first.

“Phew.”

After that short but intense journey, I finally stood in front of the mirror.

I wanted to see my appearance again, which I hadn’t been able to properly see before.

“...Is this really me?”

I’m about 160 cm tall.

Compared to my original height of 161 cm, there isn’t much difference.

‘I’ve never seen myself from this angle before.’

I felt a new sense of standing on two legs.

As I slowly reached out my hand, the silver-haired girl in the mirror did the same.

Silver hair that reached my shoulders.

Eyebrows that were also silver.

Mysterious eyes that combined red and brown.

It’s hard to describe how beautiful it is.

To think I’m looking at myself and finding myself beautiful... it feels a bit narcissistic, but I can’t deny it when I meet those red eyes.

“Hmm.”

My gaze slowly moved down to my neck.

The first thing I saw was the chest that bulged under the loose T-shirt.

Not too big, not too small, just the right size.

I’m not an expert on women’s bodies, but to me, they were perfect.

“Really beautiful.”

Not just my face, but my figure and the mysterious aura that I unconsciously exuded.

Everything is perfect.

If a goddess-like being existed and appeared in the world, it might feel like this.

If my vocabulary was a bit better, I might have used different expressions, but unfortunately, I wasn’t very enthusiastic during class.

How else could it be that even my private tutor would just pass the time and leave?

‘Well, that’s not important anyway.’

After finishing my contemplation, I slowly moved my gaze.

What would I do if I could walk again?

It was a hope I had always dreamed of, but also a despair I thought I could never achieve.

But now, that hope has become reality, and I have finally gained freedom.

In the past, I just wanted to run to the playground and play with other kids.

But now that I’m older, I don’t have that desire anymore.

“Of course, this is all I can do.”

After coming to this conclusion, I did what I always do: sit in front of the computer.

As the saying goes, “A man who has tasted meat knows how to eat it.” After living my whole life on a bed and in a chair, it’s not easy to change.

The biggest change is that I can now get out of bed and sit in a chair on my own.

‘And... there’s something I really want to do.’

After finishing my thoughts, I turned on the computer and logged into a past record search site.

This is something I always do first when I turn on the computer, a kind of ritual or habit.

+

[Prisoner]

Rank 4

Solo Queue

- Challenger

- 1,588 LP / 239 wins 172 losses

- Win Rate 58%

+

My ranking has dropped a bit since I haven’t played ranked games much lately.

‘It doesn’t matter.’

In the past, I would have tried hard to maintain the top rank, but after doing this for eight years, I no longer care.

If maintaining the top rank in solo queue was once a matter of pride, now it’s no longer necessary.

‘Should I play a game?’

It was already midnight.

Since most active pros finish their scrim and play solo queue around this time, it’s a good time to get a good game.

[Login]

The first thing I saw after logging into the Prisoner account was the friend list.

“Let’s see...”

+

[3MinTopGlory]

In Game

[SCV KING]

In Game

[CarryWell]

In Game

+

My main position is the jungle.

Originally, I was a mid laner, but since I was physically weaker than others, I had to change my position to advance.

Of course, I don’t dislike the jungle.

Although I was originally a mid laner, I find the reading of the game and team fights required in the jungle quite interesting, and I’m actually quite good at it.

That’s why my friend list is mostly top laners.

Since the positions are what they are, top laners often send friend requests first.

“They’re all in games.”

Of course, not all my friends are top laners.

There are friends in other positions, though relatively fewer.

For example... a proud Red Cup winner.

+

[SY Rainbow]

Searching for a game...

+

“Rainbow is also online.”

Rainbow.

A mid laner who recently won the Red Cup twice and mentioned me in an interview.

I had mixed feelings about the interview, but we are quite close.

“Will I meet him if I queue up now?”

Rainbow’s current score is 1400 points.

It’s hard to believe he just came back from an international tournament.

“Dropped to Challenger and got 1400 points in a few days? He’s really crazy...”

Winning the Red Cup twice is no small feat.

While I was thinking about this, the queue was finally matched.

[Game found!]

[Accept / Decline]

The game was finally matched, and the team members’ IDs started to appear.

Very familiar IDs.

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