Chapter 41
The Active Hunter Gallery is currently buzzing about me as the hot topic. The question is whether the verification post on Awakener Gallery is real or fake—one side thinks something's fishy, while the other still insists it's fabricated.
[Mugami : But why would an A-rank hunter with that kind of connection even be on Awakener Gallery
These are the kind of people who always pick at hunters' accomplishments and bicker over them.. If they really had any sense, an A-rank hunter wouldn't be hanging around Awakener Gallery]
-Jeonju1Ddakjot : Apparently they were on Awakener Gallery all along and only recently awakened as an A-rank.
ㄴ Mugami : Then isn't that even weirder? If someone only recently awakened as an A-rank, how did they meet an overseas S-rank hunter?
-DaechangWolf : Supposedly Utaha is at the Nova Guild right now, so maybe the new A-rank joined Nova right away.
ㄴ Maejul : That also doesn't make much sense. Nova doesn't hide its A-ranks like crazy?
ㄴ 20YearsDumeRestaurant : No matter how you look at it, they're a guild newbie. Meeting a foreign hunter and posting a proof shot? Hm.
"Mwahaha."
Right! Go ahead and talk about me all day. In the end, it'll come out that I really did meet Utaha unnie and Maxi..
"Gasp..?"
Wait, come to think of it, that's right. Most people already know somehow that Utaha and Maxi are together, and I posted a verification photo on Awakener Gallery after asking Utaha unnie for help..?
Then if Maxi later posts the photo she took with me on SNS, won't 'InsaengAnMangHetta's' face be exposed..?
"Umm...."
"Eve! Is something wrong?"
As I sat at the table, worrying to myself, Maxi, who had piled a mountain of plates beside her, suddenly shoved her face right in close to mine. If the photo taken with Maxi gets posted on SNS, the promotional effect is definitely going to be huge....
"Maxi.. when are you going to upload the photo?"
"The one we took together? Hmm~ let's see? When should I post it?"
If possible, after I get back to Mexico.. But since the background is the Shilla Hotel, maybe that doesn't matter much. What am I supposed to do? Of course I want to get famous, and I do need to build recognition because of my abilities, but....
The biggest problem is that I don't want to do gallery posting with my face out there. No matter how famous you are, gallery posting is supposed to be something you do casually, without knowing each other's faces.
Besides, I can't ask Maxi not to post the photo we went to all that trouble to take.. and more than that, me getting permanently plastered on Maxi's SNS account? As a fan of Maxi, that's truly unbearable.
"Eve, are you worrying about something?"
"Ah, Dohee unnie...."
"Why, did those people in Active Hunter Gallery say something about you?"
The Active Hunter Gallery is always saying things like, 'What about that Awakener Gallery,' 'These guys are fighting over hunters' achievements,' 'Here comes the murder-step,' and all sorts of other nasty things.. But in the end, the people there are just as busy going after hunters they don't like by following their clique, so.
And I'm not so weak that I'd fall apart over a doxxing!
"No, it's fine. It's not that...."
"Why don't you go and talk to them yourself?"
"Huh? Talk to who?"
"Active Hunter Gallery. You're a hunter, aren't you?"
"Ah..?"
Come to think of it, that's right. Active Hunter Gallery is for people who are actually active as hunters. Unlike what the name suggests, even former hunters can post there.
And me? I'm an A-rank hunter recognized by the Yongsan branch, right? Back when I wasn't an awakener, if I'd posted on Active Hunter Gallery I'd have been instantly 31'd, but not anymore.
"Then you can just go and post there directly, can't you?"
Han Dohee remembers most of my years lurking in Awakener Gallery. Dosyongjwak has been a pretty old fixed-nick for ages..
A long time ago, probably when I was in my first or second year, I once got into a one-on-one grudge match with some fixed-nick who liked male hunters and was dead serious about opening a Gallog.. and I beat them with my ultimate, super-duper keyboard battle, thwack-thwack.
Active Hunter Gallery has a slightly more formal atmosphere, so with all the sarcasm, veiled digs, provocations, and no-win traps I've been through, there's no reason I'd lose a keyboard fight.
More importantly, I really did meet Maxi and Utaha unnie and even ate with them, so what are those Active Hunter Gallery bastards going to do about it—turn green with envy?
"Uu, um...."
But then again, should I really be stirring up trouble and poking a hornet's nest when I need to build public goodwill? Whatever the case, because of the photo with Maxi, it's only a matter of time before my face is exposed.
Then 'InsaengAnMangHetta' will get tied to the real-world 'Eve,' so I need to keep the keyboard fights to a minimum and not make enemies. I also can't go around insulting the people who like male hunters by calling them gay.
"Ophelia, what should I do..?"
"Is this a question about Active Hunter Gallery?"
"Yeah...."
Ophelia quietly closed her eyes for a moment and thoroughly read through Active Hunter Gallery in her mental internet. Then she nodded immediately.
"If you wish, young lady, I can take care of it."
"Huh? Take care of what?"
"I can carry out what's known as 'doxxing' on the 12 fixed-nick accounts that left negative comments on the Princess. I have their personal information and past records on hand."
"Uh...."
Han Dohee, who had been listening from the side, suddenly bit her tongue.
* * * * *
"Maxi! Utaha unnie! It was so nice meeting you today!"
"Eve! See you again next time! Come visit Mexico!"
"Ahaha.. if possible...."
Utaha unnie's SNS account is managed together with the guild she's in, so it's kind of like a shared account. Since it's not a personal account, apparently she can't just post whatever she wants.
After she gets back to Japan and looks things over, she'll decide whether or not to upload the 'InsaengAnMangHetta' I gave her.
"Eve, see you next time."
"Huh? Next time?"
"If there's a reason to meet."
"Ah.. yes! Got it!"
I'm going home after eating at the Shilla Hotel, so now it's time to part ways. Chaea unnie was busy and left first, and we headed home in Han Dohee's car (Max Cruise, or whatever).
"But Dohee unnie, do you meet other S-rank hunters often..?"
"Not especially often, right? Just.. something like once in a while."
"I see."
Han Dohee is way more of a show-off than I expected. She has one of only two S-rank hunters in Korea as a cousin, she's a B-rank hunter herself, and on top of that she's part of the Active Hunter Gallery clique I thought didn't even exist.
Then what was I even doing, fighting a lonely battle all this time..!!
"Um, unnie. By the way, about the gallery posting I used to do."
"Ah.. uh, go ahead."
"What kind of image was I..?"
"Hmm."
Han Dohee gripped the steering wheel and thought for a moment, then glanced sideways at Ophelia.
"Ophelia, please cover your ears. We're having a very private conversation."
"Yes, understood."
The blue light at the tips of Ophelia's ear antennas flickered and sparkled, then clicked off. After that, Han Dohee spent a moment going, hmm..., and then finally opened her mouth with difficulty.
"That.. what's the word. I thought, 'This is the real deal.'"
"The real deal?"
"Yeah, like, 'Wow, this kid's really had it rough. I shouldn't mess with her,' that kind of feeling?"
"Sob."
"No, no, there are plenty of people who have it worse than you.. and besides, you're young, right? What was it.. on the gallery you had that whole 'I did my military service' persona, but."
Actually, that wasn't just a persona—it was real, but Han Dohee probably doesn't know that. And now that I've ended up in this body, I have no way to explain it.
"Is that why you're so easy with me too? Because of the things I did on the gallery?"
"Hmm.. honestly, I was a little surprised, but yeah? I never would've guessed that the girl always saying her life was ruined, hanging out in the late-night gallery and throwing keyboard fights all the time, would turn out to be such a cute elementary schooler."
"Hmphmmmm...."
"Pfft, what was that? Cute."
* * * * *
About three days passed. The Active Hunter Gallery topic didn't last long and quickly died down. I kept posting as usual without mentioning Utaha unnie or Maxi, and the gallery regulars seemed to forget about it after not saying much.
After Maxi returned to her home country, she posted the photo she took with me on SNS and tagged me, and as a result my follower count increased at an incredible speed.
Mexico City, where Maxi is, is 15 hours behind Korea, but by Korean time it went up around 9:30 in the morning. I'd just woken up, finished showering, and was still super dazed and sleepy when I suddenly started getting tons of DMs from people I didn't know.
"Uuugh.. what..?"
[_camila_MAXY]
What a Doll!! #KOREA #HotelShilla @_Princess_Eve
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17 minutes ago
While I was drying my hair under the warm, cozy air from Ophelia's hair dryer, I saw the post that had gone up on Maxi's SNS. It was the photo from the other day. The post said it went up 17 minutes ago, but shockingly, my follower count was..
"32,000..!"
"Congratulations."
By simple calculation, nearly 5,000 people had been added in just 20 minutes. Then that meant the rank of my Command Issuance skill had gone up by a lot too..!
[ Status Window / Name : Eve
Age : 10 / Gender : Female
Occupation : {Princess of a Fallen Nation}
Rank : A
Skills : {Golem Creation : EX}, {Powerless Princess : F}, {Command Issuance : B}, {Summons : D+} ]
"Gasp..! It's B-rank!"
"Yes, that's an amazing result. The Summons skill also seems to have risen by one level."
"Ehehe."
It wasn't like I desperately wanted to use SNS or anything. I mean, I'm a gallery lurker, and SNS is totally something only social butterflies use, right? Honestly, I thought I had nothing to do with it.
At 32,000 or so followers, I was basically an influencer. Then maybe I should start posting Roblox screenshots in earnest. Lately I've been into Dragon Adventures, so it'd be nice if I had someone to play with.
"Princess, how about going out for a bit?"
"Go out? Why? Where to?"
"Since there's now a path for new followers to come in, it seems best to post an update along with some new photos."
"Umm.. just take some simple photos?"
"That's right."
Well, it's getting fun for me too, so okay. Watching my SNS followers keep going up feels nice.
A selection of women's autumn clothes carefully chosen to suit Your Highness is ready. Since SNS is a place many people will see, we've prepared several safe, universally acceptable outfits, so please don't worry.
"M-many outfits?"
"Isn't one or two enough..?"
In addition, I've already scouted several photo-friendly spots and picked out candidates. We can take the photos, return, change clothes, and then move on to another candidate spot.
"S-so many places..?"
"There are 83 candidate spots."
"Uung."
* * * * *
[_Princess_Eve]
Hello ⸜(◍'꒳'◍)⸝
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2 minutes ago.