Reset Life with Infinite Talents - Chapter 7

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Infinite Talent Reset Life Episode 7

 

 

3. THE BODY

 

 

“W-wait a moment!”

The Black Female Employee who guided Johann urgently explains Johann’s identity.

“Ah, this kid is that…”

‘He’s not Mowgli?’

Except for his wolf-like impression, he doesn’t give off any feeling of having lived in the wilderness for long.

But what does that matter.

“Larry’s… adopted son, you mean?”

The son of this Company’s CEO.

A legal slave they could use as much as they wanted.

The Sales Team Employees’ eyes light up.

“Wait here. I’ll go to the CEO Office.”

“Wait! Just wait a second!”

The Staff Members glare at the employee who’s killing their excitement.

“Is it okay to take this kid and make him do economic activities?”

“Of course… it’s not okay? It wouldn’t be okay, would it?”

From what they heard yesterday, he hasn’t even gone through the adoption process yet. They were only granted temporary custody recognizing the special circumstances.

“This… could be seen as child exploitation.”

Child exploitation.

The moment this issue came up, they’d have to consider the adoption over.

“That can’t happen!”

Even though he had done something stupid like getting lost in the Rocky Mountains, he was still a boss they trusted and followed. They couldn’t betray Larry.

But…

‘What a waste.’

Such a waste.

A diamond in the rough that would shine brilliantly with just a little polishing.

The unique atmosphere that couldn’t be felt from other child models his age fanned their desires.

“What’s going on?”

“Johnny!”

Johnny, the boss of their Sales Team. Their expressions brightening, they rush to Johnny.

After hearing the explanation, Johnny looks at Johann.

“…I’m desperate too, but no.”

“Ugh.”

“Come on, everyone calm down and go inside to work.”

At the firm answer, they sigh deeply and turn away.

Johnny approaches Johann and kneels on one knee.

‘Still such a waste.’

But it can’t be helped. Larry would absolutely not allow it.

“Did you finish touring the Company? Did you take pictures?”

“Pictures?”

He didn’t take any.

“Should I have… taken some?”

“Oh! No, you don’t have to.”

He was just asking if he had captured this moment, which was probably his first time, in photos.

“Pictures are like bookmarks.”

This moment, this feeling.

Pictures were like bookmarks that helped you easily revisit this moment when you wanted to remember it again in the future.

That’s why Johnny also tends to capture special experiences in photos.

“Bookmarks…”

Words that seemed to tug at his heart.

It might be because of the Library.

Johann falls into thought.

“Actually, with that hairstyle, it might be better not to capture it?”

Hair that came down to the middle of his spine. The color was mysterious, but the split and stiff hair obscured Johann’s beauty.

“Do you treasure it by any chance?”

“No…?”

If anything, it was bothersome. It got in the way when running, and sometimes got caught on trees.

If it wasn’t for protecting body temperature, he would have cut it off long ago.

At those words, Johnny’s eyes light up.

‘If I handle this well?’

“Haha. Really? Then shall we go to Larry now?”

The CEO Office located on the top 4th Floor, same as the Sales Team.

Johann nodded, and Johnny guided him to the CEO Office.

 

“Larry!”

Larry, who had frowned at the door opening without a knock, looks puzzled.

Why is Johann coming while holding Johnny’s hand?

“Did you enjoy touring the Company?”

“Yeah.”

It was good.

Because he felt like he learned more about Larry.

Because the Staff Members seemed like good people.

“The Employee who guided me was kind too!”

At the brief but sincere answer, Larry’s lips twitch.

It seems his intention to let Johann know that Larry himself was a wonderful person had worked.

‘Though it’s regrettable I couldn’t show him around personally…’

“Larry! Isn’t this too much?!”

“…Johnny?”

“Someone who’s going to be a Father doesn’t even groom his son’s hair! What did you do yesterday?”

Larry is flustered by the sudden scolding.

“Uh… I was actually planning to…”

“We decided to go today, Johnny. Yesterday was too late.”

“Ada!”

It was already lunchtime.

Ada looked at Johann, who was smiling brightly in welcome.

“Johann. Do you want to eat a Hamburger then cut your hair, or cut your hair then eat a Hamburger?”

“…Good heavens.”

Ada was posing a tremendous dilemma.

 

* * *

 

Swoosh!

As they open the shop door and enter, Staff Members in Uniforms and luxurious interior welcome them.

And the chemical smell that stimulates the nose along with lavender fragrance.

People sitting in front of mirrors and people moving Scissors.

‘This is a hair salon.’

A place he had only seen through Reading at the library.

‘So this is what it feels like.’

Quiet yet passionate.

Both the people wearing silk gowns and the hair designers were all radiating some kind of fervor.

Johann’s eyes sparkled.

“Are you really going to be okay?”

Johann, the hamburger ghost, had chosen a hair salon over hamburgers. Larry and Ada couldn’t help but worry.

Johann snorted.

“Don’t you know that waiting is the best seasoning?”

Even wolves don’t succeed in every hunt.

Johann would always store part of his hunted prey for such times, and when he woke up hungry, eating it bit by bit after roasting it couldn’t have tasted better.

In the forest where seasoning was unavailable, waiting was the best seasoning.

“R-really?”

Ada and Johnny’s sharp gazes pierced painfully.

Johnny had come along to prevent Larry from backing out midway.

“T-then let’s hurry up and get the haircut, then go to the hamburger shop! I’ll let you try a new burger today!”

“A new burger?! Don’t tell me it’s a cheeseburger?”

One of the two menu items at the department store basement hamburger shop, a cheeseburger with cheese added to the patty.

The hamburger was already so delicious, how much more delicious would a cheeseburger be.

His body stirred with excitement. Saliva naturally flowed.

“It’s not just any cheeseburger, but the ultimate cheeseburger.”

“Good heavens.”

Watching Johann’s shock, Larry, Ada, and Johnny burst into laughter.

Now he finally looked somewhat like a kid his age.

“I made a reservation under Ada Wong.”

“Confirmed. Please give me your valuables and coat…”

“It’s been a while, Larry, Johnny.”

Click-clack!

A tall Latina woman in her twenties approached from behind.

Larry and Johnny frowned.

“How dare you so shamelessly greet us…”

“Yeah. It’s been a while, Ellie. You’ve been well, right?”

Larry smiled bitterly while stopping Johnny.

The woman called Ellie lifted her chin.

“I’ve been doing well. It’s been a while, Ms. Ada.”

“Wow. How long has it been! I heard the news. But to think you’d reach the level to frequent this shop! Congratulations, Ellie!”

Ellie’s face crumpled then smoothed out.

“Hoho. It’s all thanks to the agency’s excellent support! Unlike some places!”

“Oh! Larry, Johnny!”

A pot-bellied man in his fifties approached and wrapped his arm around Ellie’s waist. Ellie’s nose rose even higher.

“I heard you were in distress. Are you alright?”

“We’re safe like this, Beck.”

“Thank goodness! You don’t know how worried I was… But what’s wrong with my company’s star? Oh right. She was originally with your company, wasn’t she Larry?”

‘Ah.’

Now he seemed to understand the situation.

“Hoho. This kid…”

Greed filled the pot-bellied middle-aged man’s eyes.

‘A wolf boy from the wilderness.’

Full of publicity potential. His expression became gentle.

“Hello, kid. I’m Beck. I’m the representative of LA’s best model agency.”

“Wait. What are you doing?”

“Can’t even introduce yourself? You’ve gotten really uptight since I last saw you!”

Johann looked at the business card in his hand, then at Ada.

“Ada, I suddenly became curious about something.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“When doing business, you record sales status, right? But why do some people record it differently?”

Flinch!

The middle-aged man who had been moving boldly closed his mouth.

Ada twisted her lips.

“That’s called double bookkeeping. It’s a method commonly used for tax evasion or creating slush funds.”

“Is it a crime?”

“Of course. Hm? What’s wrong, Beck?”

“Ahem. Nothing, Lawyer Wong. Well, get to your business. Let’s go, Ellie.”

“Tch!”

As the pot-bellied middle-aged man and Ellie left, Larry, Johnny, and Ada looked at Johann with strange eyes.

Johann tilted his head sideways.

“When am I getting my haircut?”

“…Where is the changing room?”

“Ah! I’ll guide you!”

 

‘I remembered. Ellis Burma.’

A person he had seen when Reading Larry’s life, and the first model Rocky Management sent to New York Fashion Week.

New York Fashion Week, one of the fashion shows called the world’s big four fashion weeks. A glorious stage where only a few hundred out of hundreds of thousands of fashion models worldwide could stand.

Rocky Management had put all their efforts at the time to send Ellis Burma to New York Fashion Week, but she suddenly broke her contract and transferred to Star Model Agency.

‘People like this always don’t end well…’

Most of the people he had Read so far were like that.

Johann looked at Ellis Burma who had sat next to him as if by chance.

“You’d better not trust Larry. He’s incompetent.”

“Models are called has-beens once they pass their mid-twenties, right?”

“Eek!”

‘How dare you.’

Such petty tricks were laughable.

‘More importantly… who is that person?’

At the far end of the hair salon where everyone radiated their own presence, there was a ghost-like figure. A presence so faint that he would have passed by without noticing if not for The One Who Became a Star’s Observational Power.

‘I’ve seen them somewhere… hmm.’

“Are you uncomfortable, young gentleman?”

“Yes. I’m fine.”

The beauty gown was choking his neck, but it was rather comfortable.

When living in the forest, he had lived wrapped in animal hides even tighter than this. To protect his neck from the fangs of predators.

“Then I’ll begin.”

Swoosh!

Mist was sprayed on his hair.

His first haircut experience.

Johann’s eyes sparkled with anticipation.

 

* * *

 

Snip!

“Tsk. You can’t move.”

‘Ugh.’

I thought wrong.

This isn’t right.

The sensation of a blade brushing against the nape of my neck.

Even wolves who bite heads as a sign of affection don’t touch the neck. The neck is a vital spot. Touching the neck means I’ll kill you.

But the weapon called scissors is touching my neck.

‘Of course they won’t attack me, but…’

This is an unavoidable instinct built up over time.

Johann looked at Larry restlessly, and Larry and Johnny sitting behind raised their mobile phones at that cute sight.

Click!

‘Should I hit them, really!’

Larry was incredibly annoying.

 

“…Wow.”

Larry is stunned.

So is Ada, and so is the designer who touched Johann’s hair.

‘What kind of creature is this?’

A puppy.

The short wave perm reaching mid-neck transforms Johann, who looked like a fairly grown wolf, into a cute puppy raised with plenty of love.

Everyone in the shop stares blankly.

Something fluffy tickles their hearts.

“How is it? Do I look okay?”

It feels quite awkward since his long hair became short.

Even that shy gesture stimulates their peripheral nerves.

Johann observes the expressions of people who don’t answer, Ellis Burma who’s biting her lips for some reason, then looks in the mirror.

‘It should be fine, right?’

Though it’s the result of enduring torture-like time, Johann only wonders if this is good.

A life where he never cared about hairstyles.

Of course, among the lives he accessed, there weren’t none who cared about hairstyles. Some even risked their lives for it.

But he ignored it. Because it didn’t help with survival.

‘Hmm.’

Johann searches his pockets.

“Huh? Why the mobile phone?”

“Johnny said so. Photos are like bookmarks.”

“…D-don’t tell me you want to preserve this moment we’re sharing together?”

“Yeah, well…”

“Jo, Johann!”

Something hot wells up.

Larry, his face contorted, hugs Johann. Ada also approaches Johann.

Is this the feeling of raising a child?

Why is this child suddenly saying such lovely things?

At this moment they forget that Ellis Burma is beside them.

‘Can’t breathe…’

“Right! We should take photos! And post them on social media too!”

“Why social media? Ah, so Emily can see too?”

“That’s right!”

There’s that reason too, but Johann still has to wait a long time before going to school.

Larry wanted Johann to communicate with as many people as possible during that waiting time.

‘Who wouldn’t follow this child!’

Once word spreads, the follower count will increase quickly. He can guarantee it as a management representative.

“Then shall we take some pretty photos? Johann, can you try posing?”

“Posing? Like a model?”

“That’s right! Like a model!”

‘Hmm. A model…’

He knows what kind of job a model is.

But he doesn’t know how to pose. No, precisely, he doesn’t know how to pose prettily.

This is the first photo they’re taking together.

‘I want to do well.’

Johann closes his eyes.

‘Search. Fashion model.’

Rumble!

The galactic river surges as countless orbs fly over.

Orbs flying from nearby surround Johann, shouting to access them quickly. Orbs from distant celestial bodies speed up, telling him to wait.

But…

‘I don’t have time to choose leisurely.’

Larry, Ada, and Johnny are waiting.

Johann’s gaze falls on a beige orb that’s slightly larger than half a head size, glowing cheerfully.

The maximum size he can currently accept.

‘It’s a woman, but…’

Anyway, he’s only absorbing it for the brief moment of taking photos together.

Johann pulled out ‘The One Who Became a Star’ and thrust the beige orb into his chest.

“Why are you suddenly closing your eyes… Huh?!”

Larry, who was puzzled by the sudden eye-closing action, gasps.

It’s being erased.

Johann, who was full of vitality just moments ago, begins to fade like a doll, his presence becoming blurry.

“La, Larry…”

“Shh.”

Larry’s expression becomes serious as he stops Johnny and Ada.

He observes Johann’s transformation.

Shoulders writhing and drooping.

Neck losing strength.

Spine straightening upright.

He’s seen it before. He’s felt it before.

This sight of presence being erased from the world.

This wondrous shock.

‘Top-tier models…’

The sight he’d seen from top-tier models concentrating before entering shows or shoots. The sight he’d seen from high fashion models in their prime.

The emotion he could only feel from them is now felt from Johann too.

‘Why?’

While he’s confused, Johann’s eyes open.

Two topazes look directly at Larry through the mirror.

“I’m ready. Is this kind of pose okay?”

His two eyes curve lovingly as his lips smile shyly.

‘My goodness.’

Click!

His hand moved instinctively.

 

* * *

 

‘Oh?’

The innermost seat of the hair salon.

The blonde woman who turned her head sensing something looks at Johann in surprise.

“…There was an interesting child in LA?”

A boy who looked to be barely 10 years old.

Such a boy was displaying to the extreme the beginning and end of a fashion model who erases themselves to reveal what they wear.

A realm that even she had barely reached when she turned twenty.

What kind of monster was that.

“W, wait a moment, Giselle.”

The woman called Giselle ignored the surprised designer’s words and raised her tall frame.

And she approached Johann, revealing her presence.

A heavy aura silenced the hair salon.

“Hello, little one? Do you happen to know me?”

“…I know. The Body.”

I didn’t know before, but now I do.

The Body, Giselle Buncheon.

She was undoubtedly the greatest model of the current generation, a legend.

 

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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