In Cyberpunk, There are Just Too Many Unbelievers

“By the way, for operational convenience, only males and females can participate. Other genders are unfortunately not allowed to participate, so please understand.”

After receiving the receptionist’s guidance, Amon and Sonia headed to the waiting room.

Since this was a cosplay contest in the form of a social movement challenge, makeup and wigs were provided in the waiting room.

Though cheap, they seemed effective enough for setting the mood.

Within the limited resources, Sonia did male cosplay while Amon did female cosplay.

After finishing their makeup, the two evaluated each other’s results.

Amon looked at Sonia.

Her male cosplay was decent enough.

But the quality of the makeup wasn’t great, and since she had long hair, it was difficult to pull off the male look.

The low-quality wig also added to the awkwardness.

More than anything, her overflowing femininity made it hard to see her as a man.

As if she knew it herself, she tried an awkward smile acting like a man, but soon gave up and slumped her shoulders.

Next, it was time to evaluate Amon’s female cosplay.

“Uh… Um… Uh…”

Sonia couldn’t close her mouth after seeing Amon’s female cosplay.

Beautiful.

There were no other words to describe his female cosplay beyond that.

Sonia had felt awkward wearing the wig herself, but Amon’s wig suited him too well.

Sonia had thought Amon’s thick eyebrows and droopy eyes looked masculine.

But with some adjustment to the eyebrow color and eyeliner, his femininity burst forth.

On top of his originally flawless skin without any facial hair or blemishes, adding feminine makeup removed any trace of masculinity.

With the finishing touches of lip tint and earrings, a true maiden stood there.

No, “maiden” was an understatement.

A peerless beauty was present.

With that face, if he became a female actress, no one would find it awkward.

Sonia, who had been staring in a daze, finally came to her senses and spoke.

“Uh… Sister?”

“…..”

Amon was at a loss for words.

He had put in a bit of effort intending to do his best, but never dreamed he would have a talent for female… no, for disguise in general.

He had just gone all out for fun without thinking, but the result left even himself breathless.

It was a quality that made him seriously question his own masculinity.

Yet he couldn’t bear to remove the makeup either, as the completion was too high for him to bring himself to ruin it.

That’s why he had closed his eyes and revealed the result.

“Let’s go quickly…”

The longer he stayed here, the longer his time of humiliation would drag on.

It would be better for his mental health to get evaluated quickly and discard this as soon as possible.

He urged Sonia and ascended to the stage.

The judging rules for the contest were simple.

The judges and participants would score how well the opposite gender was portrayed.

And prizes would be awarded based on the scores.

First was Sonia.

She received an Effort Award.

Her effort showed, but her femininity could not be concealed at all.

She acknowledged this herself.

Holding the doll prize for the Effort Award against her side, she came down from the stage.

And next was Amon.

“What? This is just too much, isn’t it?”

As soon as they saw Amon, everyone unanimously declared his disqualification.

“Why is a girl coming up without even doing male cosplay?”

But when Amon revealed he was actually male, their reactions flipped.

“Full marks… full marks…”

Everyone gave him full marks.

He was the champion of the day.

As Amon pondered whether he should feel happy about this or not, a man in a suit approached him.

Taking out a business card, he said:

“Our entertainment agency would like to – ”

“Please leave.”

In an instant, a curse almost shot out of his throat, but as a devout believer, he barely held it back.

The scout left with a regretful look, smacking his lips.

Back in the waiting room, Amon immediately sat down on the floor and muttered:

“Fuck…”

Sonia patted Amon’s back consolingly.

“Let me be absolutely clear, I… I’m not really going to become an actor.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

On the way back to the orphanage, on the bus, Amon repeatedly emphasized to Sonia.

He might not have decided his career path yet, but he definitely had no interest in acting.

Especially not as a female actor – he would never do that even if he died.

Sonia nodded at Amon’s repeated assertions.

“Got it. I won’t ask you to.”

‘What a shame…’

While she said that, Sonia actually wanted to see him in female cosplay one more time.

Of course, since he would flatly refuse, she probably wouldn’t get another chance.

As Sonia chewed over Amon’s female cosplay, Amon suppressed the chill running down his spine.

‘Having a TS actor as the true ending is a bit much…’

Unless it was a comedy ending, he definitely did not want to live as a woman.

When he said he wanted to become a legend, he meant in a field he could proudly show others, not as a female legend.

After some lengthy contemplation, Amon overcame the demon that had been gnawing at his mind.

Although there had been an incident that shook his masculinity, it was not without harvest.

Thanks to it, he had discovered his talent.

‘First, check off Disguise.’

After checking off the entry, Amon examined the other talents connected to it by lines.

Talents were like a mind map, providing some bonuses to related talents as well.

For example, if one’s talent in swordsmanship was high, it would provide some bonus to martial arts as well.

In other words, through mediocre talents, one could trace back to the main skill tree and talent.

Amon listed his mediocre talents and outstanding talents.

Firearms was a mediocre talent.

Disguise and charm were outstanding talents.

Combining these, the path he should take became somewhat clear.

‘Assassin? Scout? Agent? Or maybe a fixer?’

Whichever it was, at least the path was set.

Amon was quite satisfied with the determined career path.

If he had no intention of pursuing an ending and just wanted to cause chaos, there were many skill trees Amon could choose.

Just one of the most outrageous skill trees he knew went something like this:

The so-called “that long one.”

A balance-breaking skill tree that, if completed, would allow you to commit genocide against an entire city alone.

But to complete something like that, you’d have to destroy multiple human relationships, lock yourself out of ending branches, and even kill off kind NPCs, guaranteeing a bad ending.

Naturally, Amon declined that path.

He wanted a happy ending.

And for a happy ending, information gathering was essential, and at least some combat ability was necessary.

Especially when the strategy was unknown, cautious information gathering was crucial.

In that situation, the scout or hacker-related skill trees suited Amon’s path.

So the fact that the scout-related skill tree seemed to be his career path was quite welcome news for Amon.

‘I’ll confirm the other scout-related talents later.’

Satisfied with today’s harvest, he closed the notebook listing his talents.

And turning his gaze to the side, there was a girl nodding off, her head bobbing up and down.

She must have been exhausted.

The girl’s bobbing head leaned toward Amon’s shoulder.

Amon properly supported her head.

Feeling the warmth on his shoulder, he looked out the window.

Although technology had advanced, the city was gloomy.

Amidst it, the occasional siren and gunshot could be heard.

Some called this world a city of sin.

But Amon’s heart raced with excitement.

The unknown was a primal element that piqued human curiosity,

And Amon looked forward to the world he would face after graduating from the orphanage.

The very next day after Thanksgiving.

That day too, America was celebrating a festival.

Rather, the following day was more like the main event.

America’s maddest Friday.

Black Friday.

It was a period when almost everything was discounted by 90 percent, and 80 percent of American companies’ annual sales were made.

The blessing of Black Friday reached the orphanage as well.

For the cash-strapped orphanage, this period could never be missed.

The orphanage director’s wallet, which had been shut as tightly as a safe, opened up.

She indiscriminately bought items that the orphans and nuns would use for the next year.

During that time, Amon and Sonia were also busy.

Bustling logistics meant there were never enough hands no matter how many were brought in.

So during that period, they were constantly running around the city with an overabundance of errands to do.

Moreover, the errands during this period offered the prospect of additional bonuses, so they eagerly ran about doing them.

And so the frantic Black Friday holiday passed by.

The frenzy of impulsive buying that began on Friday continued until Sunday.

When Monday came around, those people returned to their workplaces, freed from the madness.

Remembering how difficult it was to earn money, they sat at their desks regretting “Why did I buy this?” and looked for ways to get rid of their unnecessary purchases.

Whether giving them to acquaintances, selling at a flea market, or returning them for a refund.

Another major logistics movement occurred.

Amid this movement, the orphanage also suffered a delightful fever.

It wasn’t a matter of having items to return or sell at a flea market.

The cause of their fever was the items pouring in from outside.

Items that were difficult to dispose of due to impulsive buying had come to the orphanage in the form of donations.

With a single donation, they could show off their generosity, receive tax deductions, and get rid of unsold inventory – it was killing three birds with one stone.

The orphanage, always struggling with scarcity, had no reason to refuse those items.

After passing the director and nuns’ initial screening, the items were piled up in the central playground of the orphanage.

Then the children would flock to the playground and pick out donated items to take to their rooms and beds.

The nuns who had to control the children were busy screening the items as well as entertaining the donors.

As a result, the playground was chaotic like a market floor.

Usually in such cases, the relatively older brothers and sisters would pick out the good items first, and the younger siblings would receive what was left.

If the younger ones really wanted something, they had no choice but to plead desperately to their older siblings.

However, the presence of Amon and Sonia added a touch of civility to this disorder.

Not grandiose civility, but still.

“Tom, you wanted this, right? Big bro got it for you.”

“Rumi, sis doesn’t need this doll, so you take it.”

They made giving to the younger siblings seem like a ‘virtue.’

With gentle voices and affectionate smiles, they set an example.

There was no coercion or violence there.

They simply stimulated the children’s admiration, fostering a voluntary atmosphere.

Then, just as children grow by observing their parents and siblings, the other children began giving to the younger ones, following Amon and Sonia’s lead.

“Thank you, bro!”
“Love you, sis!”

A heartwarming scene of trickle-down love unfolded in the playground.

However, as the ancient sage of the Far East said, “Where five people gather, there is bound to be at least one piece of trash.”

No matter how the world changed, his theory still applied.

“Hey, you punks not finished yet? Scram.”

As expected, of course.

Right after Amon briefly left his spot, Jimmy’s group appeared.

Led by Jimmy, the ruffian group’s swagger made the younger orphans silently make way for them.

With the air of a king, Jimmy strutted through the parted crowd of orphans.

Jimmy and his friends grabbed an armful of items for him to use and headed back to his room.

Not satisfied with that, they then headed toward the storage shed next to the playground.

Confirming that the nuns were too busy entertaining guests to pay attention, Jimmy’s group climbed through the storage shed’s window.

Sonia’s brows furrowed at the sight.

Standing in front of the storage shed door, Sonia confronted the group conspiring behind her back.

“That’s the storage shed where the nuns sort out dangerous items, you know.”

“Heh. And you actually believe that at your age? They probably just pre-sorted the stuff they want to use for themselves.”

“The nuns wouldn’t do that.”

“Naive kid. I’ll show you.”

With a snort, Jimmy climbed straight through the storage shed window.

Rattle rattle

Soon after, the sound of a latch being slid open came from inside the door, and the storage shed door opened.

Jimmy’s friends entered the shed with practiced movements, as if they were some special ops unit.

About 5 minutes later, Jimmy’s group emerged from the shed.

At their sides were armfuls of spoils, as if from some great adventure.

Looking rather smug, the group hugged those items preciously.

Sonia scrunched her face at the sight of those items.

“Return those.”

“You’ve been really mouthy lately. Even if we take them to our rooms, the nuns won’t know. As long as you don’t snitch.”

“They’re dangerous.”

“So are you gonna snitch?”

“Haah…”

After glaring at Jimmy, Sonia averted her gaze.

Unlike Amon, she was rather lacking in human compassion.

It meant she didn’t have the personality to persuade people who wouldn’t listen to advice.

She lost interest in Jimmy and returned to her younger siblings.

But that wasn’t what Jimmy wanted.

At that rebellious age of adolescence, a boy couldn’t help but run his mouth to a pretty girl.

Wanting to converse with Sonia a bit more, Jimmy softened his curt attitude slightly and called out to her.

Then, holding out a black vase he had taken, he said to her:

“You’ve wanted this for a long time, haven’t you?”

“No, I haven’t?”

But contrary to Jimmy’s goodwill gesture, Sonia’s reaction was cold.

“I wanted a flower pot, not a vase.”

“It’s the same thing.”

“I don’t have space in my room for a vase.”

“Ah, seriously! Why are you so unsociable? When someone gives you something like this, just take it and say thanks.”

Jimmy’s abusive language made Sonia’s brow twitch.

But until the very end, she did not accept the vase.

The vase Jimmy had picked out was not something she wanted to receive, even if it had been given by someone other than Jimmy.

The pattern was too tacky and gaudy, one could say…

Even if the vase had been pretty from the start, she didn’t want to receive anything Jimmy gave.

She might have accepted it if Amon had given it to her, but only then.

Faced with Sonia’s adamant refusal, Jimmy grumbled.

“If you don’t want it, then forget it. I’ll keep it in my room, bitch.”

Feeling unreasonably upset, Jimmy threw a tantrum like a child.

He might have intended a bad boy image, but it definitely wasn’t Sonia’s type.

Sonia’s brow twitched again.

Hugging the vase preciously, Jimmy headed back to his room.

But on his way, his gaze fell upon a young child clutching a wallet.

For no particular reason, Jimmy vented his frustration on the child.

Reaching his hand toward the wallet the child was clutching so dearly, Jimmy opened his mouth:

“Han

d it over.”

The child hesitated.

Seeing that unsavory reaction, Jimmy squeezed his right fist and lifted it above his head, as if about to punch the daylights out of the child, looking down at them and saying:

“You deaf, retard? I said hand it over.”

The child reluctantly held out the wallet.

As Jimmy reached for the wallet, he didn’t forget to scold the child further.

“You should behave more properly. With stuff like this, you should just… Ughk!?”

Right at that moment,

Jimmy’s knees bent against his will, forcing him to kneel.

“Aish… I just looked away for a bit and you’re already pulling this crap.”

Right behind the kneeling Jimmy stood Amon, looking extremely displeased.

Judging from one of Amon’s legs still hanging in the air, it wasn’t difficult to deduce that he had swept Jimmy’s groin area.

According to Amon’s words, violence should not 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 was in pain not because Amon had swept him, but simply because Amon happened to stretch out his leg in the same spot where Jimmy’s groin area was located.

“You f*cking bastard!”

Distorting his face in pain, Jimmy turned toward Amon.

But when Amon firmly pressed his collarbone with his thumb, he immediately became obedient.

“Aahh! F*ck! Alright, I get it!”

“Stop swearing with that fcking already. This isn’t some Fckpunk.”

Having subdued Jimmy in an instant, Amon handed the wallet he had retrieved to the child.

Then he sent the child back to their room, telling them to speak up if Jimmy tried to bully them again later.

“You need to learn some discipline. Why are you acting like a brat at 17 years old?”

After seeing off the child, Amon snatched the wallet from Jimmy’s hand and tapped his head with it as he knelt on the floor.

The wallet opened and closed like a folding fan, slapping Jimmy’s head.

It was quite a rude action, no less disrespectful than a slap to the face.

Of course, there was no room for misunderstanding since it was an intentionally unpleasant act.

Squinting his eyes, Jimmy glared at Amon, but –

“You gonna open those eyes properly or what?”

Under Amon’s threat, he lowered his gaze again.

In the past, when Jimmy was older, he could beat Amon in a fight, but ever since Amon hit puberty, Jimmy was no match.

Moreover, the director was always on Amon’s side.

Even if they fought equally, she would only scold Jimmy, saying “How could Amon have thrown a punch unless you really deserved it?”

That’s why Jimmy couldn’t retaliate against Amon.

After publicly humiliating Jimmy in front of the other orphans for a few more minutes, Amon returned to his room.

Left alone in the playground, Jimmy gritted his teeth as he watched Amon’s retreating back.

The black vase at his side seemed to emit an ominous aura in unison with him.