Twinkle Star

* * *

Opening his eyes, Val was currently in the newbie village, standing in front of a simple wooden house.

"Val, over here!"

A girlish, childish voice came from the side. Turning his sight to the source, Val was left confused and dazed.

"Hey, what took you so long? Don't tell me you read all of those introductions, whatnot, you damned nerd."

It was a small, cute fairy with her exquisite butterfly wings that had many distinct patterns.

With a purple dress, and a white porcelain face that looked like a living doll. She was flying closer to Val.

The voice was a girl's, no doubt about it.

But that expression and that intonation, though, were too much familiar to him.

"Are you… Are you Eric?" Val hesitated.

"Of course, who else?" and as if realizing something, her unfamiliar and uncannily beautiful face flushed red in shame. She or he glared at Val. "Don't you dare laugh!!!"

Val needed to tighten his lips so as not to let out a laugh. Unfortunately, he still failed by the end.

"Whahahha, what's happen to you? Hahahahah…" Val's eyes curved, fingers pointed at Eric's current form and gender. It feels like his inside was shaking from how funny it was.

"I still remember how someone told me that fairies' races were only for girls. I see, I see. So, you become a girl instead, brilliant. Hahahahha…"

Infuriated, Eric flew to Val's shoulder and punched him as hard as she could.

"Ouch…"

He bounced away, his hand was red. There were tears at the corner of her eyes, drawing pity from a young NPC Villager who just happened to pass by.

"Are you okay, beautiful fairy. Need some help?"

"Get lost!!!" Eric shouted at the NPC in rage. Though with his appearance, he still looked cute and harmless.

"Oh, okay…" the NPC retreated, while smiling kindly at him.

Meanwhile, Val laughed even harder, almost down on his knees.

* * *

"What actually happened???" Val asked after done laughing.

Eric harrumphed, still rather mad, but replied regardless. "It's because that damn NPC. You know, that goddess at the start."

"Oh, what's up with her?" knowing that what Eric meant was Kaylessa, Val was eager to know more.

"You know, I just-I just wanted to talk with her," his eyes looking left and right, and Val immediately guessed as to what exactly happened.

Eric resumed, now in anger, "But then, she refused to talk with me. So, I just go directly to the selection screen. Of course, I chose the mighty Orc Warrior. But then, before I was sent here, she got closer and slapped me in the face. Me, Eric, slapped in the face? Unbelievable."

"Not done yet, there was also a system voice in my head, saying I was granted SS grade talent. At first, of course, I'm happy."

"But then, I wake up here in this. You see this. I've become a fairy instead. A girl, too. Who else―who else was the culprit if not that damn NPC. I'm done, I'm done, I'm so done with this," despair plastered on Eric's face.

"Is it because of that talent?" Val asked curiously.

"Yes. Here, let me show you…" Eric wanted to share his data statistics.

Yet, a red warning panel flashed in front of him.

[WARNING: Sharing personal attributes may compromise your privacy. The information regarding the talents of each individual is classified and should not be disclosed without a thorough evaluation. Please confirm your decision to proceed.]

Without even reading the message, Eric, growing increasingly annoyed, repeatedly tapped "Yes," six times in a row.

"Skip it, skip it, skip it. What the hell. It's just a game. Why so serious!!!" Eric commented after having a slight glimpse of that warning.

Val, who didn't see anything from his perspective, tilted his head at Eric's other outrage.

Finally, he managed to share his attributes with Val, including his talent.

- - - -

Twinkle Star

Race: Fairy [Female/Earthling] ― Class: Mage

Level: 1 ― Grade: Normal

- Base Stats:

HP: 150 ― Attack: 4–6

Strength: 2, Intelligence: 20, Agility: 12, Perception: 4, Armor: 8 (Physical Damage Reduction), Resistance: 8 (Magical Damage Reduction), Charisma: 7, Luck: 3

Free Attributes: 2

- Special Skill: [F Grade; Active; Upgradeable] Pixie Dust: Increases Agility and Evasion by 20% for 5 seconds to self and allies up to 3, allowing for better dodging of attacks. CD: 45 seconds.

- Talent:

[SS Grade; Passive] Curse and Gift from the Goddess: What you wish will be randomly granted at a random time, but more often than not, what is realized will be the exact opposite of what you desire. Everything is up to the Goddess.]

Reputation Bonus (Hidden Attribute): Successfully offending the Goddess, despite her nature, grants the user a unique status among peers, symbolizing their exceptional ability to navigate divine interactions.

(Note: The Goddess of Light and Order is one of the kindest of her kind; rarely can anyone ever offend her. For someone to manage to do that regardless is an achievement in itself. Everyone in the Realm of the Gods respects that about you, a testament to your unique capabilities. Congratulations!!!)

- - - -

"See, even my name changed to this. I goddamn choose Storm Bloodrage at first. Not this, what the hell, Twinkle Star. And in the first place, how did I even become a girl…"

Val chuckled, seeing his distressed look.

"Damn it, I'll going to delete this account and create a new one," Eric gritted his teeth. He floated in the air while his twin ponytail swung left and right, drawing even more laughter from Val.

"Kkekekekeke… ahahaha…"

"Stop laughing, damn it," Eric looked at his dress, feeling even more miserable.

"Anyway, are you sure about that? You know, SS Talent seems to be rare?" Val pointed out, trying to regain his composure.

"Of course it's rare. It's extremely rare. But who cares about that? No talent can't compare to me losing my dignity," Eric retorted, crossing his arms defiantly.

Thought about that for a bit, Val added, "But other than me, no one knows this is your account. So, I think it'll be fine…"

"Hmmm… you are right. Whatever… this is just their beta version anyway. A lot of options aren't even complete in the starting zone. Especially that NPC," once again, Eric gritted his teeth, remembering that mocking smile from Kaylessa before he was sent here.

"What did you even do to get cursed like this?" Val finally asked the question that had long formed inside his mind when he read the whole description of Eric's talent.

"Mmmmhh, cough. Let's go. You need to accept your log quest first. We need to retrieve our basic weapon." Eric immediately dodged the question and slowly flew away.

"Wait. You didn't tell me anything yet…" Val called out, hurrying to catch up from behind.

While doing so, he checked into his own status screen.

* * *