Chapter 12

“Damn it….”

Thud.

Thud.

Hayoon, leaning against the bus stop sign, kicked the ground irritably.

“Why does this always happen to me…?”

Sure, she had taken a taxi on the way there, but being the savvy consumer that she was, she had planned to take the cheaper long-distance bus home.

So she waited at the bus stop, keeping her distance from the group of people who seemed to be with each other, getting ready to head home. But…

“Ah…”

She hadn’t considered the possibility that the bus might be full.

Had she thought of that, she would have rushed to the spot as soon as the bus stopped…

By the time she realized this, the bus had already left.

So here she was, destined to wait outside for a full 40 minutes on a freezing December night. As the warmth from her hand warmers slowly faded, her stress only grew.

In situations like these…

“Looks like it increased again, huh?”

What else could she possibly do but consider getting financial counseling? Standing alone at the bus stop opposite Kintex, Hayoon glanced at her phone and couldn’t help but smile when she saw nearly 100 new followers added to her Pixiv account in just a few hours.

100 new followers on Pixiv alone—how many new patrons would she have gained?

“Guess this trip wasn’t for nothing after all…”

In the chilly night of Ilsan, where even the hand warmers were losing their warmth, Hayoon felt a warm glow imagining the rising balance in her bank account. Encouraged, she opened the Girl’s War Gallery and typed “cosplay” into the search bar.

When people wrote about such convention reports, they sometimes referred to cosplayers not only as “cosplayers,” but also as “people doing cosplay.” She intended to check both search results to naturally verify if she had been mentioned anywhere.

-AGC Goods Showcase

“This is just a goods showcase…”

Truthfully, not many people were eager to post their faces online. It was obvious—once a photo was posted on the internet, it was nearly impossible to delete. That’s why even photos of cosplayers were rarely posted.

-AGC Was Super Fun!

“Hmm… my picture isn’t here.”

Even if there were photos of cosplayers, naturally, Hayoon wouldn’t have been mentioned if her photo hadn’t been taken.

Even someone as community-savvy as Hayoon struggled to quickly identify posts from people who had taken photos with her…

“Hmm…?”

-My Best Catch of the Day

For some reason, this post…

She had a feeling. Maybe, just maybe, she had been mentioned in this one.

-Had a blast meeting the Hyeonguk cosplayer today; she looked absolutely stunning. She posed for everyone’s requests, and her line was incredibly long, but I managed to snap one picture before the last train rushed her away.

“Hehe…”

And just as Hayoon had anticipated, she was spot on.

-Wow, is it possible to look both youthful and sexy at the same time…?

-Is it just the angle of the photo? Her eyes are insane!

-Reply: If Hyeonguk gave a bit more cynical vibe, I’d totally get why she looks so cool.

-Reply: Smart one, huh?

-Why is the overall quality of her outfit so impressive? It doesn’t seem like a basic prop, does it?

-Reply: I actually asked about that. Custom-painted BB gun and parts were modified, apparently.

-Reply: Whoa, so cool…

-Reply: Beautiful people always prepare well, huh? Yeah.

-Exactly.

“This one… Hmm…”

The adulation was overwhelming.

The adulation was flowing endlessly. Yes, cosplaying wouldn’t feel as rewarding without this level of admiration.

“Ah, damn… Why do I feel so happy?”

For the first time, Hayoon’s cheeks lifted into a broad grin, and she continued browsing the community until the long-distance bus arrived. Boarding it, she finally…

“Yikes…”

…felt true warmth from the warm heater inside and let out a moan, eventually falling asleep.

—

After about an hour and ten minutes on the long-distance bus,

another 15 minutes by city bus,

a total of 1 hour 30 minutes later, she returned home—or rather, to the place she was going back to…

“Breath… It’s getting blocked…”

Even just reaching the apartment complex entrance felt like arriving at the front of a Demon King’s castle. Her hands and feet tingled with tension.

The reason for Hayoon’s heightened sensitivity was simple.

[9 missed calls]

-Caller: Mom.

[6 messages]

-Caller: Mom.

While trying to check for any increase in her Pixiv followers and sponsors on her way home, she realized that the missed calls from Yusoohee had piled up unnoticed, having slept through the long-distance bus ride and semi-unconscious on the city bus. They felt like daggers piercing through her.

Thinking she had managed the event well until the end, believing her transition into being a woman marked a successful first doujin fair,

“Damn… Forgot to switch the phone back to normal mode…”

She had left the phone on silent mode for the talk show stage and failed to notice the repeated calls from Yusoohee.

But, what could she do…

Looking at the apartment in front of her, realizing that she needed a few more years of saving before being able to move out, she swallowed her dry mouth and approached the central entrance, then entered the elevator.

Today, the elevator felt like it was moving way too fast; after inputting the door lock password and entering her home…

“Why are you coming back so late?”

“Hyeuck…”

“‘Hyeuck’? What’s with the ‘hyeuck’? Answer me. Why are you back so late?”

Waiting at the door, Yusoohee leaned forward, bringing her face close to Hayoon’s, demanding the reason for her delayed return. Standing at about 170cm, Yusoohee towered over Hayoon, who was now barely over 160cm, further intensifying the sense of dread.

“Hmm… Fine. Come in first. Put your stuff down, and we’ll talk.”

“Neop…”

Seeing Hayoon’s reaction, Yusoohee assumed the worst and shook her head as she let her in.

“Finally home?”

“Ah, neop.”

“Did you get a boyfriend or something? You were always saying you slept late…”

“You!”

“Hmm… Alright, keep going.”

In the living room watching TV, Min Jeong-kyun, after contemplating throwing a light joke, quickly retreated to the study upon seeing Yusoohee’s stern reaction.

As for Hayoon…

‘Something’s off…’

She hastily hid her shopping bags filled with various collectible goods and cosplay items under the desk and began looking around frenetically.

‘Why…?’

Min Jeong-kyun’s reaction was not that different from when she was male.

But Yusoohee’s was far more intense than she had imagined.

She had thought that, as a woman now, the minimum expectation was to come home before sunset.

“Min Ha-yoon!”

“I’m leaving!”

She hadn’t anticipated this.

Swallowing the dry lump in her throat, Hayoon entered the living room and quickly stood in front of the sofa where Yusoohee was seated.

“What did you do wrong? Speak up.”

“Eh… Came home too late?”

“That’s not the problem.”

“Didn’t answer your calls…?”

Even as a grown woman in her mid-twenties, parents were always parents. With her head down, Hayoon nervously read Yusoohee’s facial cues…

“Yes! Calls! What? Is it that hard to answer a call? Do you even know how many times I’ve called? Twenty times so far, huh?”

“Th…”

“What!”

“Not even ten…”

“Aha!”

“…”

Sweating profusely, her head deeply bowed.

This…

If she argued back even slightly, the situation would surely escalate beyond any hope of resolution.

“Why didn’t you answer the calls? Where did you go?”

“That… Slept for a little while on the bus…”

“You! Are you crazy? A baby with wet hair sleeping on the bus?”

“That… Went to Ilsan…”

“Ilsan? Why there?”

“That… There was a festival I’ve been interested in, so I wanted to participate…”

“What kind of festival?”

“Uh… AGC…”

“An abbreviation! Spell it out.”

“It’s called Animation, Game, Convention…”

And thus, Hayoon meticulously briefed Yusoohee on all the information she wanted.

Fortunately, she managed to avoid mentioning that she dressed up in cosplay.

“Alright, good. It’s fine to enjoy your hobbies, but…”

“Yeah, but…?”

“It’s not right for a middle school girl to go all the way to Ilsan alone and come back at this hour. Next time, go with your dad.”

“Huh?”

“Huh? What’s with the ‘huh’? You should know by now.”

Going together with Min Jeong-kyun, holding hands, to events was unavoidable.

And Hayoon…

was the booth operator scheduled to attend the next Sunfest in Ilsan just two weekends away.

“Oh…”

“No, what?”

“Neop! Ah, understood.”

“Come on, you’re probably tired. Go take a bath and go to sleep.”

“Neop.”

At this point, it was clear that a proper plan was needed.

—

“What should I do…?”

A week had passed, and with it came another weekend.

Sitting in the corner of her room, Hayoon’s face, drawing exclusive illustrations for her patrons, was far from cheerful.

“Ssshhh…”

Although she had plenty of boxes of goods stacked in the corner of her room, carrying all of it to Ilsan meant she would need to hire a large taxi. And since she planned to eat dinner during her return from Ilsan, she would likely come back late, just like after AGC. Then Yusoohee would surely ask if she had been to Ilsan again…

“A feasible method…”

Frowning, Hayoon began the final color touches of the illustration she had started—an image of the HK-M4 posed in an M-shape, showcasing pure white underwear.

“Ah.”

As if struck by inspiration,

Hayoon abruptly slapped her thighs and stood up, heading straight to the study where Min Jeong-kyun was organizing books.

“Yes, it’s you Hayoon?”

Clack.

Closing the door behind her naturally, Hayoon even locked it before…

She declared,

“I’m making money with my drawings.”

Since Yusoohee had stipulated that if Hayoon attended events in places like Ilsan, she must go with Min Jeong-kyun, Hayoon intended to skillfully leverage this situation.

“Is that so? Money? How much? How?”

Materialism…

More accurately, Min Jeong-kyun’s close alignment with a material-first ideology meant he couldn’t help but be intrigued by the prospect of his 16-year-old daughter earning money. She was using this as leverage to bring Min Jeong-kyun to her side.

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