“By the way, for operational convenience, only males and females are allowed to participate. Other genders are not permitted to join. We appreciate your understanding.”
Following the receptionist’s guidance, Amon and Sonia headed to the waiting room.
Since it was a cosplay competition in the form of a social movement challenge, cosmetics, wigs, and other items were prepared in the waiting room.
They looked cheap, but they seemed to have some effect in setting the mood.
With limited resources, Sonia dressed as a boy, and Amon dressed as a girl.
After finishing their makeup, the two evaluated each other’s results.
Amon looked at Sonia.
Her male disguise was passable.
However, the quality of the cosmetics wasn’t great, and her long hair made it difficult to pull off the male look.
The cheap wig also added to the awkwardness.
And above all, her overflowing femininity made it impossible to see her as a boy.
Perhaps aware of this, she awkwardly smiled, pretending to be a boy, but soon gave up and slumped her shoulders.
Next, it was time to evaluate Amon’s female disguise.
“Uh… um… uh…”
Sonia couldn’t close her mouth after seeing Amon’s female disguise.
Beautiful.
There was no other word to describe his female disguise.
While Sonia looked awkward in a wig, Amon’s wig suited him perfectly.
Sonia had always thought Amon’s thick eyebrows and droopy eyes were masculine.
But with a little touch-up on his eyebrows and eyeliner, his femininity shone through.
His naturally flawless skin, combined with women’s cosmetics, made his masculinity disappear entirely.
To top it off, with tinted lips and earrings, there stood a flawless girl.
“Girl” wasn’t enough.
A peerless beauty stood there.
With that face, even if he were to act as a female lead, no one would notice anything awkward.
Dumbfounded, Sonia finally regained her composure and spoke.
“Uh… sis?”
“…”
Amon was at a loss for words.
He had decided to give it his all, but he never imagined he had a talent for crossdressing… or rather, disguise.
He had gotten carried away and went all out, but even he was stunned by the result.
The quality was so high that he seriously doubted his own masculinity.
But the result was too good to just wash off, so he reluctantly decided to reveal it.
“Let’s go quickly…”
The longer they stayed, the more humiliating it would be for him.
It was better to get the evaluation over with and move on for the sake of his mental health.
He urged Sonia and stepped onto the stage.
The judging rules were simple.
The judges and participants would score how well they portrayed the opposite gender.
Prizes would be awarded based on the scores.
First, Sonia.
She received the “Effort Award.”
It was clear she had tried, but her femininity was impossible to hide.
Even she admitted it.
She left the stage with a doll, the prize for the Effort Award.
Next, Amon.
“What the hell? Isn’t this too much?”
As soon as they saw Amon, he was unanimously disqualified.
They said a girl shouldn’t come up without even trying to disguise as a boy.
But when Amon revealed he was actually a man, the reaction flipped.
“Full marks… full marks…”
Unanimous full marks.
He was the champion of the day.
As Amon pondered whether he should be happy about this, a man in a suit approached him.
He handed over a business card and said,
“Our entertainment agency—”
“Please, just go away.”
A curse almost slipped out, but as a devout believer, he managed to hold it back.
The scout reluctantly left, clicking his tongue.
Returning to the waiting room, Amon immediately slumped to the floor and muttered,
“Damn it…”
Sonia patted his back.
***
“Let me make this clear… I’m not going to be an actor.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
On the way back to the orphanage, on the bus, Amon repeatedly emphasized this to Sonia.
He hadn’t decided on a career path yet, but acting was definitely not his interest.
Especially crossdressing acting—he would never do it.
Sonia nodded at Amon’s repeated declarations.
“Got it. I won’t make you do it.”
‘What a shame…’
Though she said that, Sonia secretly wanted to see him crossdress again.
Of course, he would probably hate it, so it was unlikely to happen again.
As Sonia reminisced about Amon’s crossdressing, Amon shivered from the chill running down his spine.
‘Becoming a TS actor as the true ending is a bit much…’
Unless it was a comedic ending, he had no intention of living as a woman.
He wanted to become a legend, but not through crossdressing.
After a long meditation, Amon overcame the mental demon gnawing at him.
Although his masculinity had been shaken, there were still some gains.
He had discovered his talent.
‘First, check disguise.’
After checking the <Disguise> skill, Amon looked at other talents connected to it.
Talents were like a mind map, where related skills provided slight bonuses.
For example, high swordsmanship skill would also boost combat skills.
In other words, mediocre skills could help trace back to the main skill tree and talents.
Amon listed his mediocre and outstanding talents.
Guns were mediocre.
Disguise and charm were outstanding.
Combining these, his path became clear.
‘Assassin? Scout? Agent? Or fixer?’
Whichever it was, he had a direction.
Amon was quite satisfied with his chosen path.
If he didn’t care about the ending, he could choose many skill trees.
Even the most absurd skill tree he knew looked like this:
<Health higher than the final boss, 85% physical damage reduction, 95% magic damage reduction, 70% status effect reduction. A 2-second cooldown, 15-second duration unstoppable skill. Attack power increases when freed from immobilization, all damage lifesteal, slow on basic attacks, stun and knockback on melee attacks, and an area-wide EMP when health drops by one bar...>
In short, the long one.
A balance-breaking skill tree that, once completed, could annihilate an entire city.
But completing something like that would ruin many relationships, mess up ending branches, and involve sacrificing many good NPCs, ensuring a bad ending.
Naturally, Amon wasn’t interested.
He wanted a happy ending.
And for a happy ending, information gathering and minimal combat skills were essential.
Especially without a guide, careful information gathering was crucial.
Scouting or hacking fit this direction.
Discovering that his path was related to scouting was great news for Amon.
‘I’ll check other scouting-related skills later.’
Satisfied with today’s gains, he closed his notebook.
Turning his gaze, he saw a girl nodding off.
She must have been really tired.
Her head tilted toward Amon’s shoulder.
Amon gently supported her head.
Feeling the warmth on his shoulder, he looked out the window.
Technology had advanced, but the city was bleak.
The occasional sound of sirens and gunfire.
A world some would call a city of sin.
But Amon’s heart raced.
The unknown was a primal element that tickled human curiosity.
Amon looked forward to the world he would face after graduating from the orphanage.
***
The day after Thanksgiving.
America was still in celebration.
In fact, the next day was the main event.
The day America goes wildest—Black Friday.
Almost everything was 90% off, and 80% of American companies’ sales came from this period.
The blessing of Black Friday reached the orphanage.
With a tight budget, the orphanage couldn’t miss this opportunity.
The orphanage director’s tightly sealed wallet opened.
She bought everything the orphans and nuns would need for the next year.
Amon and Sonia were also busy.
The bustling flow of goods meant there was never enough manpower.
During this period, there were so many errands that they ran around the city until their feet ached.
Even better, errands during this time came with extra bonuses, so they eagerly took on the tasks.
The chaotic Black Friday holiday passed.
The frenzy of impulse buying that started on Friday continued until Sunday.
By Monday, people returned to work, freed from the madness.
Remembering how hard it was to earn money, they sat at their desks, regretting, “Why did I buy this?” and looked for ways to get rid of unnecessary items.
Whether giving them to friends, selling them at flea markets, or returning them.
Another wave of logistics movement began.
In this movement, the orphanage also caught a happy fever.
They didn’t have items to return or sell at flea markets.
Their fever was caused by the flood of items pouring in from outside.
Impulse buys that were hard to dispose of came to the orphanage as donations.
Donating killed three birds with one stone: showing off, getting tax deductions, and clearing out unwanted stock.
The orphanage, always struggling with shortages, had no reason to refuse.
After the director and nuns’ initial screening, the items were piled in the center of the orphanage’s playground.
The children then swarmed the playground, picking out items for their rooms and beds.
The nuns, who had to control the children, were busy screening items and entertaining donors.
As a result, the playground was as chaotic as a market.
Usually, the older kids grabbed the good items first, and the younger ones got the leftovers.
If the younger ones wanted something, they had to butter up the older kids.
However, Amon and Sonia’s presence added a bit of refinement to the disorder.
Though “refinement” might be an overstatement.
“Tom, you wanted this, right? Big bro got it for you.”
“Rumi, sis doesn’t need this doll, so you can have it.”
They made giving to the younger kids look like a virtue.
With gentle voices and kind smiles, they set an example.
There was no coercion or violence.
They simply inspired the children’s admiration, creating a voluntary atmosphere.
Like children learning from parents and siblings, the other kids began to follow Amon and Sonia’s example, sharing with the younger ones.
– Thanks, bro!
– Love you, sis!
A heartwarming scene of love and sharing unfolded on the playground.
But as an ancient sage from the far east once said, “Where five people gather, there is always one piece of trash.”
Even as the world changed, his theory held true.
“Hey, why don’t you scram? The kids are leaving.”
As expected.
Right after Amon left, Jimmy and his gang appeared.
Under the threat of Jimmy and his delinquent friends, the younger orphans quietly made way.
Jimmy strutted through the crowd like a king.
Jimmy and his friends gathered items they wanted and headed back to their room.
Not satisfied, they headed to the warehouse next to the playground.
Confirming that the nuns were too busy with guests, Jimmy’s gang climbed through the warehouse window.
Sonia’s eyebrows furrowed as she saw this.
She stood behind the group conspiring at the warehouse door and said,
“That’s the warehouse where the nuns sorted out dangerous items.”
“Hmph. How old are you to believe that? They probably sorted out stuff for themselves.”
“The nuns wouldn’t do that.”
“Naive kid. I’ll show you.”
Jimmy scoffed and climbed through the warehouse window.
Clank, clank.
Soon, the sound of a latch being undone was heard, and the warehouse door opened.
Jimmy’s friends, thinking they were some special ops team, entered the warehouse in perfect sync.
About five minutes later, Jimmy’s gang emerged.
Under their arms were the spoils of their great adventure.
The smug group cradled their treasures.
Sonia frowned at the items.
“Put those back.”
“You talk too much. Once they’re in our room, the nuns won’t notice. Just don’t snitch.”
“They’re dangerous.”
“So you’re snitching?”
“Sigh…”
Sonia glared at Jimmy, then turned away.
Unlike Amon, she had little patience for humanity.
She wasn’t the type to persuade someone who wouldn’t listen.
She ignored Jimmy and returned to the younger kids.
But that wasn’t what Jimmy wanted.
At the age of puberty, when boys can’t resist pretty girls.
Jimmy, who wanted to talk to Sonia, softened his attitude and called her.
He handed her a black vase he had and said,
“You’ve always needed this, right?”
“No, I haven’t.”
But Sonia’s response was cold, rendering Jimmy’s goodwill meaningless.
“I wanted a flower bed.”
“It’s the same thing.”
“I don’t have space for a vase in my room.”
“Ugh, seriously! Why are you so socially inept? Just take it and shut up.”
At Jimmy’s outburst, Sonia’s eyebrows twitched.
But she still refused to take the vase.
The vase Jimmy chose was something she wouldn’t want even if someone else gave it to her.
The pattern was too tacky and dark…
Even if the vase were pretty, she wouldn’t want it from Jimmy.
If Amon gave it to her, maybe.
At Sonia’s cold refusal, Jimmy grumbled.
“Fine, if you don’t want it, I’ll keep it in my room. Bitch.”
Jimmy, feeling hurt, threw a tantrum.
Whether he intended to play the bad boy or not, it wasn’t Sonia’s type.
Sonia’s eyebrows twitched again.
Jimmy cradled the vase and headed to his room.
On the way, he spotted a young child holding a wallet.
Jimmy took out his frustration on the child.
He reached for the wallet the child was holding and said,
“Hand it over.”
The child hesitated.
Jimmy, annoyed, held the vase under his left arm and clenched his right fist.
He raised his fist as if to strike the child and said,
“Idiot, are you deaf? Hand it over.”
Reluctantly, the child handed over the wallet.
Jimmy reached for it.
Not forgetting to scold the child.
“Learn some manners. You should know when to… Ugh!?”
Just then,
Jimmy’s knees were forced to the ground.
“Ugh… I turn my back for a second, and you start acting up.”
Behind the kneeling Jimmy stood Amon, looking very displeased.
One of Amon’s legs was still in the air, making it clear he had kicked the back of Jimmy’s knee.
Amon had said violence shouldn’t be used against people, right?
It didn’t matter.
Amon called this act a non-verbal expression for smooth communication.
It was definitely not violence.
Jimmy’s pain wasn’t from Amon’s kick, but because his knee happened to be where Amon’s leg was.
“You damn brat!”
Jimmy grimaced and turned to face Amon.
But when Amon pressed his thumb against Jimmy’s collarbone, he quickly complied.
“Ahh! Damn it! I got it!”
“Stop with the damn cursing. This isn’t some punk rock concert.”
Amon, having subdued Jimmy in an instant, returned the wallet to the child.
He told the child to let him know if Jimmy tried anything later and sent the child back to their room.
“Grow up. Why are you acting like this at 17?”
After sending the child off, Amon took the wallet from Jimmy’s hand and tapped his head with it.
The wallet opened and closed like a fan, hitting Jimmy’s head.
An action as rude as slapping someone’s face.
Of course, it was meant to be offensive, so there was no misunderstanding.
Jimmy glared at Amon, but—
“Can’t you open your eyes nicely?”
Under Amon’s threat, Jimmy lowered his gaze.
In the past, Jimmy, being older, could win fights, but after Amon hit puberty, he was no match.
Moreover, the director always sided with Amon.
Even if they both fought, she would scold Jimmy, saying Amon wouldn’t have thrown a punch if Jimmy hadn’t provoked him.
This made Jimmy unable to stand up to Amon.
After a few minutes of public humiliation in front of the orphans, Amon returned to his room.
Left alone on the playground, Jimmy watched Amon’s retreating back and gritted his teeth.
Beside him, the black vase seemed to resonate with his ominous mood.
![[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come](https://i3.wp.com/darkmtl.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/1737407792-8993-TS-The-end-of-magical-girls-has-come.png?resize=85,105 "[TS] The End of Magical Girls Has Come")
