Chapter 262

“……?”

What could it be, I wonder?

Tilting my head slightly in confusion, I began to sort through the questions rising within me.

It was certainly the parallel world I hadn’t connected to in a long time? Anyway, it’s a strange dream. Even though my mind isn’t fully awake yet, this unique feeling is hard to mistake.

The blurry interior like a room behind a drawn curtain is the same. The sensation of wearing protective gear made of rubber all over my body, making everything seem dull, is similar too… but the oppressive air that used to feel strangely heavy seems lighter now.

No, it’s not just a feeling — something has actually changed.

I can’t put my finger on it right away because I don’t know exactly what it is, and I don’t have the right words to describe it, so I just move my limbs around a little, staring down.

“…Ah.”

It’s not like I’m playing ‘Spot the Difference’, but I’ve finally spotted what’s changed.

It’s still small and delicate, but my body and my eye level are now familiar to the point where even the slight awkwardness is gone.

Before, all I could do was barely recognize myself as ‘me’, and the outline of my body was always vague. Now, should I say that the boundary of my body has become clearer?

I know this must sound bizarre, but I’m fully aware of that. Even as I try to explain it now, my words keep tangling into a jumbled mess.

To put it as simply as possible… until now, I’ve been moving solely by a sense of controlling my body in this space.

Even though my limbs were intact and there was a faint reaction when something felt uncomfortable like my back or eyes, I was only chasing information with a computer. Whenever I tried to learn more about this phenomenon or my mind in this place, everything appeared foggy, like my thoughts were covered in mist.

…And all of a sudden, that veil is gone. What the hell?

Is it because I learned that my old male body got shredded by an automatic turret?

Does this mean that my consciousness has shifted slightly toward Anastasia and become more feminine?

Or maybe my resistance to information distortion has slowly developed, allowing me to perceive this nonscientific space more clearly?

Hmm, I really don’t know.

Here’s the problem now – the intervals between these dreams are too wide, making it almost impossible to figure out the causes or conditions for such changes.

I’ve done everything — bought a house, got kidnapped, narrowly avoided brain research, messed up on a loan, you name it — but it’s impossible to pinpoint exactly what changed my perception.

“Ah… Maybe it doesn’t matter after all…”

After hesitating briefly, I shook off those troublesome thoughts, sat on the edge of my dorm bed, and rested my chin in my hand lazily.

What? Shouldn’t I be scrambling to run up to the computer right this second and try to extract whatever vague pieces of future information I can?

Let’s take a breath and carefully review the changed situation.

In the past, I would desperately try to find even the faintest glimmer of light amidst an impenetrable darkness.

But now, I’ve deeply learned through experience that every day I’m kicked out at the doorstep no matter how hard I try to snoop on the future or important information. Since the prologue is nearly over, it’s time to start preparing to stretch out and engage in external activities again. Is there really a reason to rush and grab a few fragmented meaningless words now?

Hmm… I don’t think so.

…Damn. Because the potential benefits here have dropped so much, and I’ve accepted that it doesn’t matter either way, I’ve ironically become more relaxed.

So, what realistic options do I have?

I could either remain here, using this as an opportunity to meditate until I get booted, or… take this time to reminisce more vividly about my hometown’s memories, indulge in nostalgia, and then move.

“…….”

Swish.

I ran my hand across the surface of the bedsheet, which was neither particularly high quality nor separated between summer and winter, making for an awkward texture.

My mood is so… restless.

Even if I succeed in going back, I’ll still be in a woman’s body. Physically, it won’t change, something I learned from studying my background, and mentally, it’s obvious I can’t be the same as before, so I admit that.

That said, it means I need to recalculate things: One scale has just lost a weight.

Here I am, on one side, terrified of the dangerous environment, yearning to see my parents, missing all of Korea, leaning more toward safety rather than being a pacifist. That’s the girl Anastasia.

Then there’s the other side, where I suspect the intentions of the entity that handed me the return device as soon as I arrived. There’s also a part of me, the one who grew tired of wanting to escape, who finds it hard to leave all the groundwork laid here and the relationships I’ve built. There’s the mercenary Anastasia who has grown accustomed to the sharp, gritty taste of cyberpunk.

As there is no correct answer to this problem, it’s even more of a headache.

The life I have in Neo Haven, which is getting closer to riches, is honestly not bad, and lately, it’s even been pretty fun. What would be the point of throwing it all away and going back to become just the world’s top hacker and security expert?

“…But isn’t that not bad either?”

I quickly straightened my slightly crooked head and shaking mouth, shaking off strange thoughts.

I’m not a kid anymore. Any wild daydreams of a superior future version of myself wandering off have gone far enough.

If I’m connecting to the dream this time, my plan is to find out if the Korean friend who escaped somehow turned out to be a character I didn’t know in the Neo Haven Prime side of the game and the implications of his arrival.

With a gentle thud, I grabbed the chair’s backrest and slid directly in front of the computer.

No matter how cramped the dorm room may have been, who in their right mind designs it so the bed and the computer are barely zero units apart? Cough! Sorry. This was just too convenient for me. Yes.

While enjoying the warm air from the heated computer that had been on for too long, I opened a new internet tab skillfully.

Of course, if I interfere directly, the original future changes. That’s an obvious and unavoidable premise.

Then, if I ask whether the only difference between Neo Haven and the Prime version comes from me… isn’t that also one of those unprovable topics? Hence, I should proceed cautiously on a checked stone.

“Alright, alright~”

Just as I was about to move my hand on the keyboard, I hesitated.

What keywords should I look for, really? Even if I open an encyclopedia wiki, if I don’t use my ability, how do I find someone whose name and appearance I don’t know… Ah.

Tap, click!

I searched for ‘Korea’ and ‘Korea’ using an ‘or’ condition, and references (mentions) in Neo Haven that were somewhat like Easter eggs or cultural leftovers popped up, but not in overwhelming numbers.

[Category: Consumables – Food, Kimchi Soup. Though the official name ‘jjigae’ might be lost, it’s an awkwardly named legacy of our country. It does fill you up as a soup does, but comes with a negative effect (debuff) that damages stamina, so it’s not preferred unless done for thematic gameplay…]

[Category: Miscellaneous – Odds and Ends, Nail clipper. An antique relic. Though it doesn’t serve its intended purpose anymore, it can be sold. Most models feature ‘Made in Korea’ in tiny print.]

[Category: Weapons – Firearms, Enhanced K2C4. By surviving documents, it’s likely the last standard rifle used by the old Korea military of the Neo Haven world. It seems they mass-produced it in the millions, and occasionally desert low-level outlaws can be seen equipped with them…]

…

…

Scrolling down the Neo Haven Prime wiki page, there were only similar statements like in the Neo Haven game I used to enjoy.

Everything is so familiar, already in my head. Nothing new.

Even though they’re parallel worlds, the descriptions might be a little different if examined closely, but with the items bearing the same names, there’s not much hope for finding anything significant.

Moreover, as I scrolled, if there were any critical information, I should have seen a blur indicating a blockage, but that wasn’t happening… so I took that as an indirect hint.

But is everything completely the same? Or is he so irregular that he isn’t properly reflected?

Well, unless information available to player characters isn’t directly attainable and instead is pieced together from data chips scattered across the map… If it were all written here right away, it might have made me more suspicious instead.

So while thinking about what other keywords might yield useful information…

[Category: Companion Characters – Romance Possible, Anastasia Valentine. Occasionally, when you talk casually to her waiting at Schneider’s bar,

“If you have a lot of miscellaneous worries, isn’t it better to eat something spicy?” She can recommend a good place, unlocking a funny mini-event where she adds a Korean restaurant to your contacts.

However, her event reveals a different story; a scene where she chokes on chili paste, tears streaming, biting her tongue and panting, is a sort of ‘pretend-to-be-tough’ act, making her brusque attitude even cuter…]

“Ahack?! What the hell, you bastard…!”

Since the applicable keyword was included in only some parts of the text and judged to have low relevance, I nearly choked upon seeing my name near the end.

For someone here to reference Korean food this way… although I want to strongly deny it, given my history of regularly searching for it, it’s not entirely impossible, making me even angrier.

And what’s this about being romance possible? Who stuck me with this label?

Of course, I knew long ago that there were adult scenes related to me and that I was called a sub-heroine, so the filtering isn’t technically wrong. But who’s the person throwing this in my face saying, “This is about you, apparently~”?

…Ah, damn. The back of my neck feels stiff. Is it because my blood and embarrassment rushed upward?

Let’s stop checking the wiki. This feels like a serious emotional attack.

I originally intended to confirm whether the ‘Prologue’ was proceeding as usual, but rather than torturing myself further, I’ll just play the installed Neo Haven Prime game directly.

So I went to close the window. But then… why is there a prompt asking to close all tabs? Even though I only opened one.

“Uhhh…”

The URL of the previously opened window was a famous online shopping mall.

Though the latter parts were filled with a chaotic array of special characters and unreadable links, it didn’t matter much.

Additionally, as I moved the cursor to preview, the list of open items appeared slightly.

Statuary, games, toys. In short, figurines.

The images… were an unbearable feast of pale skin tones, with a faint touch of blue-tinted black cloth barely covering anything as a sort of excuse.

A girl was sitting dejectedly on the floor, one leg bent awkwardly, one arm covering the torn upper garment, the other propping herself up.

In subculture circles, it’s typically referred to as the defeated maid pose with a grand title… let’s check…

[NHP Unofficial Adult Figure, Anastasia Defeated Pose, Equipment-Damaged Premium Edition (Clothing Parts Detachable).]

“Damn, this is ridiculous!!”

– Lady Ahsa?! Are you alright?! –

The connection is weakening and will cut off? My vision is gradually blurring??? Hell!

Without any warning in the process, as my mind hit the absolute limit, it gave up and instantly ejected me back to reality.

“I am not alright at all!”

First, my eyes are burning horribly.

I was lying in bed sound asleep until I abruptly sat up in a seizure-like manner. Zero must’ve been startled and turned all the indoor lights on, making it worse.

It’s still early in the morning. Even though waking up this early is tough for me normally, if I had a nightmare that shocked me awake, I wouldn’t have been able to stay asleep anyway.

…Okay, I’ve made up my mind.

Even as I handed my wrist over to the butler droid fussing about taking my pulse and blood pressure, I resolved.

I haven’t successfully returned home, nor have I fully decided to do so, but for the sake of never having to see myself like that, I need to focus harder and take action.

And if one day, should I return, to find a world where things like that exist… I’ll sue or accuse anyone responsible for creating such filth on any legal charge and hold them accountable.

Gah! Just wait, you character rights-abusing bastards…

How dare you do something this terrible without paying me royalties!

…