Chapter 33 - First step. Fame. - Entertainment Prodigy

I'll post an extra chapter every 300 Power Stones. Good luck with that!

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As soon as I got out of the taxi, I headed straight to the street where the food stalls were. There were a lot of tourists around, and I could hear many different languages—including English. I understood them perfectly, which even made me feel like talking to them.

"Hey, hey, look at that guy— isn't he handsome? I've never seen anyone that good-looking before."

"Wow, how can he be that handsome? Why don't we try talking to him?"

"He probably doesn't understand English. Do you still want to try?"

"Hold this, I'll go."

While I was waiting in line at a takoyaki stand, I overheard two women talking right behind me. They were speaking in English, but I could understand them.

Suddenly, one of them called out to me.

"Hello! Good afternoon!" she said in completely broken Japanese. Then she pulled out her phone and added, "Number, number. Can I have your phone number?" She looked panicked.

The people around us looked over, and I almost burst out laughing.

"Don't worry, I can understand you," I told her.

"Huff~~" She let out a relieved sigh. "What a relief! I must've looked like an idiot!"

The woman was blonde with dark eyes—a somewhat unusual combination. Her hair looks dyed. Judging by her face, she was definitely over twenty.

"So, can you give me your number? I'm just here visiting—I'll be going back home next week. We could talk until then, what do you think?" She looked at me intently.

Honestly, I felt like giving it to her—but that could cause problems for her.

Even though I'm mentally older, I'm legally still a child. If she were caught interacting with me in a suspicious way, it could get her into trouble.

Well, people do think I'm older than I actually am. It would only become a problem if someone who knows me saw us together.

No… it's better not.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do that."

The woman looked visibly disappointed.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" she asked.

I smiled and said, "It's just that I'm too young. I don't want to be in a relationship right now."

Hearing that, she looked shocked. Staring at me closely, she asked, "How old are you?"

I gave her an innocent smile and replied, "I'm turning 13 soon."

Hearing that, she quickly stepped back.

"12… You're 12 years old? I just hit on a 12-year-old boy?" She panicked and ran away.

I gave a bitter smile as the people nearby stared at me.

Some who understood English started talking.

"12 years old? That kid is 12? No way."

"I can't believe it."

I ignored them, bought my takoyaki, and walked away. I kept walking while eating, and thankfully no other women approached me—despite the looks they were giving me, as if they were devouring me with their eyes.

After finishing, I bought some ice cream and then headed toward a nearby department store that had many clothing shops.

However, as I approached the store, I noticed that on the large screens outside, photos from Uniqlo's new spring collection were being displayed. Of course, the person wearing those clothes in the photos was me.

There were many people on the street, and some nearby started to notice.

"Hey, isn't that the guy from the photos?"

"Is he a model? He's really handsome."

"He looks even better in person."

I ignored them and entered the department store to buy some clothes.

Even though some people recognized me, they didn't approach me. I'm not really famous, after all. I'm just a model who participated in a photoshoot once.

It's a famous brand, sure—but it was only once.

There's no way I'd become famous from a single photoshoot. It is just the first step in my career to become a star!

…Or so I thought.

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As soon as I entered the department store and started looking for a specific shop to buy clothes, I noticed there were many photos of me everywhere. Ads on the walls, ads on screens—everywhere.

Since I naturally attract attention, it was impossible for people not to recognize me.

When they saw me, first they wondered, "Isn't that the model from those ads?"

Then they asked themselves, "Is he really famous? I've never seen his face before, even though he's so handsome."

After that, they would either ignore me… or—

"Excuse me, may I have your autograph?"

Suddenly, people started approaching me asking for autographs.

???

I didn't understand at all.

Just because I look good and appear in an ad, they're asking for my autograph?

"Why?" I asked an older woman who approached me.

Her answer was… "My granddaughter definitely knows you! You must be famous, right?"

I was speechless.

Even though I felt embarrassed, I still gave them my autograph—of course, only to those who had a pen.

I even took a photo with someone!

However, I refused to touch her. It felt like that woman just wanted to take a picture so she could touch me.

"What a headache…"

I'm sure it's not just because my face is everywhere in this place—it's probably also because of my appearance. Some women clearly want to get closer because of that.

I quickened my pace as more people started paying attention to me.

I rushed into a store and bumped into an older woman who looked to be over forty.

She looked behind me and saw that some people were following.

"Come this way." She grabbed my hand and pulled me away.

I hid inside the store, and then she said:

"Ara, you're that model who became popular recently."

"Popular? Me?"

"Don't you see how your face is everywhere?"

"Well, that's thanks to the company investing heavily in marketing."

"You're partially right, but they only invested that much because they knew it would pay off. Haven't you seen how your face is all over the internet?"

She took out her phone and showed me her Instagram.

The Uniqlo post had over one million likes—and it had been posted less than a day ago.

"What the hell…?"

I guess I underestimated the power of my appearance.

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Chapter 33 - Chapter 33 - First step. Fame.