The changing room door closed.
And the moment I was alone…
Ding.
A shower of blue windows exploded in front of my face.
[Mission Complete.]
[Reward Delivered: ¥20,000]
[Current Funds Updated]
[Digital Camouflage Lv2] [Camera Instinct Lv2] [Porcelain Skin Lv2] [Silky Hair Lv2] [Posture Correction Lv2]
I stared at the floating windows for a few seconds.
"…Level two? I don't feel any different."
I quickly pocketed the phone and looked at myself in the small changing room mirror.
…
…
Hm.
Okay.
Maybe I did look a tiny bit better.
My skin looked smoother.
My hair less messy.
And even my posture seemed more… elegant.
"This is terrifying…"
I adjusted Yuuna's oversized hoodie and slowly walked out of the changing room.
The auditorium was still empty.
Only the rain hitting the windows could be heard.
And on the stage…
Yuuna was still practicing.
Alone.
Repeating lines while pacing slowly under the dim auditorium lights.
She looked absurdly serious.
Almost like a different person.
I watched her for a few seconds.
Until she turned her head.
And our eyes met.
"Did the clothes fit okay?"
I automatically looked down.
"O-Oh… yeah."
I pulled the sleeves down a little.
"The hoodie is comfortable…"
Very comfortable.
Too comfortable.
It felt like a portable blanket.
"Although…"
I pulled the zipper down a little to look at the white sports shirt underneath.
Bad idea.
The fabric pulled tight against my chest immediately.
And the sports shorts weren't helping either.
My legs were way too visible.
And honestly…
Everything felt strangely inappropriate without me wanting it to.
Yuuna looked away almost instantly.
"…Something's going to fall out if you keep doing that."
"HUH?!"
I zipped it back up immediately.
Critical heat.
Severe emotional damage.
Yuuna watched me for a few seconds.
"I thought we were roughly the same size."
"W-We are! I think…"
I looked at my clothes again.
…
Now that I thought about it…
All of Aika's clothes were huge.
The shirts.
The blazer.
The hoodies.
Everything.
Like she'd wanted to hide inside the fabric.
[The original Aika Shimizu wore oversized clothing to reduce male and social visual attention.]
"…"
That sounded sad.
[System Suggestion: acquire properly fitting clothing.]
"I don't need that."
[Recommendation elevated.]
The screen turned red.
[I SUGGEST YOU ACCEPT THE SUGGESTION.]
"Is that a threat?!"
Yuuna frowned.
"…Who are you talking to?"
"Huh?"
Cold sweat.
"N-Nobody!"
She sighed slowly.
The look she gave me said clearly: this girl definitely has problems.
…And honestly I couldn't blame her.
I looked toward the windows.
The rain was still heavy.
Yuuna closed her script.
"You should wait until it stops raining."
"You don't mind if I stay?"
She looked at me completely seriously.
"Of course I do."
"Huh?"
"Who wouldn't feel uncomfortable being stared at like that?"
My soul left my body.
"S-Sorry! Then I'll leave!"
I took half a step back.
Yuuna raised an eyebrow.
"Don't you need to rehearse too?"
"…"
"I already told you. If you're not going to take the play seriously, you'd better go."
That stung a little.
I looked down.
"I am taking it seriously…"
"It doesn't look like it."
"I just… find it hard."
She was quiet for a few seconds.
Then pointed at the stage.
"Get up there."
"Huh?"
"We're going to practice."
I blinked.
"You… with me?"
"Do you see anyone else here?"
…No.
I climbed nervously onto the stage.
And right then—
BZZT. BZZT. BZZT. BZZT.
My phone started vibrating like it was possessed.
Instant freeze.
Damn.
I forgot to put it on silent!
Yuuna slowly turned her head toward me.
And then her eyes opened a little wider.
"You…"
I swallowed.
"…"
"Don't tell me…"
Maximum panic.
"WHAT?!"
Yuuna pointed at me accusingly.
"What did you do with those photos?!"
"NOTHING!!"
I grabbed the phone so fast I nearly launched it off the stage.
"T-They're supermarket deals!"
"…"
"Milk was on sale!"
Silence.
Yuuna stared at me with an indescribable expression.
"…What a suspicious excuse."
"IT'S TRUE!"
She pressed a hand to her forehead.
Clearly regretting ever interacting with me.
Then she sighed.
"Get your script out."
My smile died.
"About that…"
"…"
"It died heroically in the rain."
Yuuna looked at me with narrowed eyes.
The disappointment on her face went straight through my soul.
"Unbelievable."
"It wasn't on purpose!"
She opened her bag.
And pulled out another script.
I froze.
"…You had a spare?"
"Obviously."
"What are you, Doraemon?"
Silence.
Yuuna slowly pulled the script back.
"Then I won't give it to you."
"NOOO!"
I bowed quickly.
"Sorry! I was joking! I want it!"
She held out for a few seconds.
Clearly enjoying it.
And then finally tossed the script to me.
I caught it in the air.
"Thank you…"
"Don't compare me to a robot cat again."
"Yes, Kanzaki-sama."
"That also bothers me."
What a complicated woman.
Yuuna opened her own script.
"Which part do you struggle with most?"
"Uh…"
I thought for a moment.
"The emotional scenes."
"The garden scene?"
"Yeah."
Yuuna nodded.
And then…
Her expression changed completely.
"'Sometimes I wish you would take me with you… and we could run far away from all of this…'"
Her voice went soft.
Painful.
Elegant.
My back straightened slightly.
"That line is… Ayaka's… you know her lines too?"
"Of course. What kind of mother would I be if I didn't know my daughter well?"
She answered with a small smile.
Ah.
I think I understand what Mei meant now.
Yuuna kept speaking as if Ayaka's role were truly hers.
"'Even if the whole world calls you a failure… I never will.'"
The atmosphere shifted.
Even the rain seemed quieter.
I swallowed.
"What are you waiting for?"
I snapped back.
"Oh! Right!"
I quickly looked at the script.
"'I… don't need anyone's pity.'"
…
…
…
It sounded awful.
Yuuna slowly closed her eyes.
"That was terrible."
"I know!"
"You sounded like a background NPC in a cheap video game."
"WHY ARE YOUR INSULTS SO SPECIFIC?!"
"Because it was specifically bad."
Massive emotional damage.
We kept practicing.
Over and over.
Yuuna corrected every detail — my posture, my gaze, my breathing, my tone.
At some point I ended up collapsed on the stage floor.
"My self-esteem is dead…"
Yuuna calmly took a sip from her water bottle.
"It's not like you had much to begin with."
"THAT WAS CRUEL!"
She let out a small nasal laugh.
Very small.
But real.
And honestly…
That surprised me more than any insult.
…
By the time we noticed, the rain had let up.
Yuuna closed the script.
"That's enough for today."
I got to my feet slowly.
"Thank you for helping me."
She looked away slightly.
"Just make sure you don't ruin the play."
"I'll do my best."
"And practice more."
"Yes, mom."
Yuuna shot me a death glare.
"I will hit you."
"Sorry!"
I grabbed my things quickly and left the auditorium before I died.
…
The air outside still smelled like rain.
I walked slowly down the street thinking about the play, Haruto, Yuuna, and the fact that apparently I now needed to buy clothes.
Because honestly…
I had no idea how a normal girl bought clothes.
[You can look up popular female fashion trends.]
"I'm not becoming a fashion influencer."
[Statistically advisable.]
"Shut up."
I walked into an ATM.
Slowly withdrew some money while watching the numbers on the screen.
And honestly…
It still felt unreal.
All of it.
The photos. The streams. The donations. The missions. My new face. My new life.
…My new chest.
I sighed.
"What the hell am I even supposed to be doing…"
I pocketed the money and kept walking.
A group of guys passed nearby.
One of them glanced over at me.
My body tensed immediately.
Did they recognize me?
But they kept walking normally.
…
The digital camouflage was probably working.
Still…
Every time someone stared a little too long, my heart stopped.
I ended up buying hot food from a small street stall.
Left feeling way happier than cheap food had any right to make me.
I was even humming a little on the way home.
And then—
"Hey, brat!"
I jumped so hard I nearly launched the bag into the street.
Old lady Chie was standing in front of the building.
Watching me like a tax-collecting evil spirit.
"D-Damn it! Don't just appear like that!"
"Did you bring my rent or do I have to kick you out?"
But this time…
I smiled.
I reached into my bag.
Pulled out the envelope.
And handed it to her.
"I was actually just about to give it to you."
The old woman blinked, surprised.
She opened the envelope.
Counted the money.
Counted it again.
Then looked at me.
"I thought I'd have to throw you out this month."
"So did I."
"Hmph."
She put the money away.
"I suppose you're good for something after all."
What an adorable woman.
Then she walked off muttering to herself.
And I…
Let out a long, relieved sigh.
One less thing to worry about.
I went inside.
Closed the door.
And for the first time in days…
I smiled for real.
Small relief.
Small peace.
Maybe…
Maybe I really could survive all of this.
Ding.
I pulled out my phone absently.
Notifications.
Likes.
Comments.
Degenerate spam.
And then…
ShadowKing:
"That expression suits you better."
…
…
…
My smile faded slowly.
I blinked.
"…Huh?"
I looked at the screen again.
Then slowly looked up.
The window.
The door.
The curtains.
The empty apartment.
Silence.
"…No."
I swallowed.
"He's talking about the photo."
Obviously he was talking about the photo.
What else would he be talking about?
…
…
…
I went and closed the curtains anyway.