Woohoo!

...What?

I said, staring at the mirror in front of me.

I hadn't cut my hair, and my bangs had grown long enough to poke me in the eyes, but had my hair always been this long?

Before I knew it, the hair at the back and sides had grown long enough to fall below my shoulders.

My face, darkened by booze, cigarettes, and hiking, had turned as pale as an idol's, and all my acne scars and blemishes had disappeared.

I... I... I... Yippee!!!!!!!!!!!!“

I jumped up and down in place, overjoyed.

I was a woman. I had become the woman I had always wanted to be.

In other words, I could finally say goodbye to that disgusting club hanging between my legs...

No, out of respect for my conscience, let's call it a stick. Anyway, I was saying goodbye to the stick.

I looked at my body in the mirror.

“Oho, oh, ugh, khh—! Woohoo!“

I made all kinds of strange noises as I examined my body.

I couldn't help laughing. Just looking at myself made me happy. Was this the value of being a beautiful woman?

Even if a woman is ugly, as long as she's got a pussy, men with dicks where their brains should be will come running—even if she has an STD, weighs so much she can hardly be called a woman, or is in a life-threatening situation!

“Heh, heh. Hahaha!“

I jumped around with joy, then collapsed onto the floor, wheezing.

“Ah, I should stop.”

This could be a dream. Or maybe it was a hidden-camera prank. Or maybe, like in a comic, they'd switched my brain with someone else's.

I lifted my hair and looked at my forehead.

I couldn't see anything like a pinprick, so I hadn't taken over some innocent woman's body.

'Even though I've become a woman, the idea of being possessed or having my brain switched still creeps me out.‘

Anyway, I was a woman now. I felt my lower stomach to make sure I really had a uterus and everything.

'With sensations this sharp, it really is there. So that potion I drank yesterday... was it real?‘

My parents had both worked, so I never got presents from Santa. This year, I was getting decades' worth all at once.

I stopped wheezing and got up off the floor to look at myself.

Let's think about this. I'm an otaku now. I'm an otaku looking at women.

There are all kinds of female characters, but right now, I'm a female streamer.

Would an otaku not watch female streamers? No, the more of an otaku you are, the more obsessed you get with them.

But showing my face? Unless I'm practically celebrity-tier, people might actually be disappointed.

I need to be a Durahan.

I could use a pretty avatar with a busty character as my model. Dirty jokes or a boyish vibe with a laid-back charm would be nice, too.

Or... maybe I should spend some money upfront and start as a VTuber instead? With a VTuber avatar, people could easily read my expressions and emotions.

So, Durahan? VTuber? Durahan VTuber, Durahan VTuber, Durahan VTuber—!

Knock, knock, knock—

When I suddenly heard someone at the front door, I hurriedly threw on a hoodie and pants and rushed over.

“Hey, Jiho, you need to send this month's rent today... Huh? Who are you?“

It was the landlady's daughter.

The annoying woman who'd come to my place to demand rent, flying into a rage if it was even a day late.

She'd come over, and suddenly some strange woman in a hoodie and pants had appeared at the door. But I only ever went back and forth between work and home, and never went out on my days off, so I couldn't have a girlfriend.

Besides, hadn't I already told her I was an only child...?

“Oh. Are you the landlady, by any chance?“

I asked her, eyes wide.

“Oh, yes. Do you happen to know where Jiho... is?“

“Oh, Jiho-oppa? He said he was just going to the convenience store. Is there something you need?“

“Oh... to tell him to pay the rent.“

“Ah, got it! I'll tell him myself, so don't worry!“

When I said that with a bright smile, she blushed, thanked me, and hurriedly left.

Bang—

The door closed, leaving me alone in the quiet room.

“Heh, heh. Hahaha. Hahahaha! My face works on women too!“

One of the titles given to beautiful women: the so-called 'handsome-pretty.'

A blessed face, beautiful yet with a refined, masculine handsomeness to it. A face that both men and women could praise as pretty.

There was definitely a saying like that.

People trusted what handsome, beautiful men and women said more than what ugly people said.

If I'd still had my usual scruffy, ugly face, she'd have nagged and pressured me with every kind of complaint. But a beautiful woman came out and offered to pay the rent for me, so she'd backed off right away.

As expected, the power of women—and beautiful women in particular—was beyond anything I'd imagined.

'First things first, I need to quit my job.‘

I'd already told the company I would be leaving soon, and after I announced my resignation, they asked me to work diligently for one more month. I'd even attended company dinners and everything.

[Manager, I'm quitting now.]

Then the manager suddenly called me.

When I casually declined the call, messages started coming in with a ding, ding.

[Listen, Jiho, there's still a lot of work left. What do you mean by suddenly sending a message saying you're quitting?]

[I told you a month ago that I was quitting. I've attended the company dinners and taken care of other work, so I think I've done enough.]

[Come on, isn't this awfully sudden?]

[If you have a problem, sue me. I'm confident I'll win. Anyway, I'm blocking your number, so don't contact me.]

I immediately blocked the manager and all my other coworkers.

Then I tossed my phone onto the bed and threw myself down after it.

“Sigh. Damn it.“

I did feel relieved, but somehow my heart wasn't entirely at ease.

“What am I supposed to do now?“

My ID, bank account, phone number—everything would be different. What was I supposed to do?

“Huh?“

When I pulled out my wallet to check my old ID, it had already changed completely.

“Lee Jia, age... Why am I younger? Twenty-three. And the first digit of the second half of my ID number is 4, not 3?“

It was a little strange that taking just one pill had neatly resolved all the issues with my ID and bank accounts...

“But is becoming a woman just from taking a pill not weird?“

I decided not to worry about it.

“Well, no point questioning a good thing... Heave-ho!“

I stretched, then flopped down on the bed.

Back when I was a man, I used to sing about wanting to be a woman... Now that I actually am one, I have no goals.

“How much money did I have in my account again?“

[Seoul Bank Account—Ordinary Deposit 9,112,391 won]

Nine million, huh. Rent is 250,000 won a month, and utilities are another 100,000. Then there's 500,000 for food. Add my mother's allowance, and I'll be spending a million a month.

'Nine months, then.‘

Nine months—a short time if you looked at it one way, a long time if you looked at it another.

Should I look for a new job during that time?

“I'm 24, but would my old company's experience even count as my work history? Or would it count under Lee Jiho's name?“

I didn't want to get back in touch just to check.

There was no reason to poke the beehive.

'So what should I do now?‘

I looked in the mirror.

I had such a beautiful, cute face that I could pass for a high schooler, and my voice was somewhat boyish.

“Maybe I should be a female streamer.“

I started looking up computer builds on my phone.

#

“First, I need to set a goal. There are a few possibilities.“

First, I'd choose to be a Durahan—in other words, stream using only my voice without showing my face.

'People who start as VTubers and then switch to Durahan, or start as female streamers and then switch to Durahan, are rare. But plenty of people start as Durahan and then become VTubers or female streamers,‘

It felt like the beginner route in a game, so my first goal was set.

There were three main streaming platforms.

The soothing, honey-voiced radio style, like Spoon.

The clown role, like Afreeca, where you broadcast knowing you'll have to make a fool of yourself.

Or the Twitch-style simp-tamer, using a cutesy voice to train your simps.

“Still, Twitch is better.“

After all, people are better off doing what they know, so the platform I'd watched streams on would be the best place to stream.

I'd make a separate Twitch account for streaming. My old username and account gave off too much of a guy vibe, and since I already had some name recognition in other streams, starting out could get me caught up in cliquish relationships.

“Let's see, apparently I need a two-PC setup for streaming.“

Since I already had the computer I normally used, it seemed right to make that the streaming PC and buy a separate gaming PC and monitor.

'A 144-Hz monitor for 300,000 won, and a headset for around 30,000—not an expensive one. I might as well start cheaply with a headset mic. Then all I need to buy is the computer.‘

If I subtracted the monitor and headset from my bank balance, I'd have around nine million won left.

If I assumed I wouldn't make much money for the first three months of streaming, my remaining budget would be six million won.

And streaming could add a few hundred thousand won to my electricity bill compared to casually gaming like I used to, so to be safe, let's budget 5.4 million.

“Then I'll take out a loan, get my deposit back, move somewhere else, and... Wait, wait. Hold on!!!“

A thought suddenly flashed through my mind, and I got up from the bed, sweating profusely.

“W-what about the security deposit?“

I'd gotten the deposit under Lee Jiho's name, and I'd have to get it back under Lee Jiho's name.

But I was Lee Jia.

“Ah. I'm fucked.”