Chapter 33: Are you cursing me or something?
“When did you grow chest muscles?”
Li Mu froze. Yu Fan also looked confused and glanced to the side. Even Auntie, who was just about to scold Ren Tianyou, turned to look at him.
For a moment, everyone at the table was staring at the clueless Li Mu.
He looked down silently at his own chest.
The slight curve and those two strange spots were very noticeable.
“I just... gained some weight recently,” he calmly explained.
He really wanted to say it was because of working out, but Ren Tianyou knew full well that he hadn’t been exercising lately.
“Do you want to go see a doctor?” Auntie asked with concern.
“No need,” Li Mu shook his head slightly and kept eating hotpot like it was no big deal.
Ten minutes later, Li Mu said he was full and went home alone.
Only then did a bit of panic show on his face. He rushed into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror.
If viewed from the front, he looked relatively normal, except the protruding points are quite eye-catching. But if he turns to the side, his usually flat figure suddenly reveals some unexpected curves.
A shocked expression spread across his face as he pressed his hands to his chest.
“..Hiss…”
A strange pain spread to his brain as he pressed down.
“Why does it hurt?”
He frowned and muttered to himself.
Then, the “Li Mu” in the mirror, the one who had been “touching himself”, suddenly moved. He dropped his hands, looked down shyly, and quietly answered the question.
“Maybe... you’re developing?”
“......”
“It hurts when girls develop, you know.”
“Give it another year or two, and you might even... get your period.”
Li Mu felt like he had been struck by lightning. He was completely stunned.
Developing… period…
“But wait, you’re a guy... Do boys’ chests grow like this too? Did you eat something weird?”
No! He was just turning a bit more feminine. Why was this happening?
Wasn’t being more feminine supposed to just mean looking like a girl at most?
Based on what he believed before, Li Mu hadn’t been that worried. He thought this “feminization” would only change how he looked.
But now? If this kept going, he might not just look like a cross-dresser. He might actually become a futanari.
Or... even a woman?
His eyes went wide with disbelief. Then he suddenly bent over the sink, grabbed his head with both hands, and let out a silent scream.
“Li Mu, are you okay?”
Yu Fan pushed open the half-closed front door and walked into the living room, calling out loudly.
Hearing no reply, he looked around. Eventually, he heard some noise from the bathroom.
He slowly walked over, leaned against the wall, and looked at Li Mu, whose head was buried in the sink. He grinned and joked, “Did your feminization actually make your chest grow?”
“......”
He watched Li Mu get up and turn around, his expression indifferent.
“No way…” Yu Fan’s smile froze. “I was just joking.”
Li Mu suddenly remembered what Yu Fan had said to him back at school. ‘The ghost’s influence can’t be something like turning you into a woman, right?’
This is a curse, isn’t it!?
Whatever you say just happens! You’re definitely the one behind this, aren’t you!?
The more upset Li Mu felt inside, the less he wanted to show it. Even now, when he felt like smashing his head into the wall from stress.
“You said before… you wanted to look into how Lin Xi died?” he asked, turning to face Yu Fan.
Since this “feminization” started because of Lin Xi, then he had to fully investigate everything about Lin Xi, what happened before and after her death. Only by figuring out her situation could he hope to stop his body from changing further.
If that didn’t work, then he’d have to look into ghosts in general and figure out how they cause people to become more feminine.
Or maybe Lin Xi still had a strong desire for revenge, and that’s why her spirit was staying inside him?
It wasn’t so bad before, he could still barely accept the changes. He had lost some body hair and muscle, and even though he looked weaker, his male features hadn’t changed much. He didn’t look particularly feminine either.
But now his chest was starting to grow...
He looked down between his legs and went silent.
No wonder... he hadn’t had morning wood for a while.
“Yeah, but we haven’t found any ghosts in the school. We’re stuck.” Yu Fan looked a bit helpless. “And anyway, I don’t think looking into Lin Xi’s death has anything to do with you turning more girly.”
But what if Lin Xi’s spirit really was still around because she wanted revenge? If they helped her, maybe she would finally leave for good.
“And what if we investigate everything about Lin Xi and you still don’t go back to normal...?”
Yu Fan tried to cheer him up with a smile. “Becoming a girl isn’t all bad, you know. These days, girls are more popular, for dating or marriage. At least you’d only have to enjoy, not do the hard work, right?”
Li Mu looked up coldly at him. That sudden comment made Li Mu almost jump up and hit him.
But he couldn’t win in a fight, so he just gave a cold laugh and said, “Only virgins like to tell those dirty jokes.”
Yu Fan froze and clutched his chest like he’d been hurt.
“Let’s go to Lin Xi’s house first, then find her best friend.” Li Mu walked out of the bathroom and into his room to put on socks.
“How do we know where she lives?” Yu Fan muttered as he followed. “She was from the class next door. I can ask some friends, I've got a lot of friends in that class.”
Oh great, now you’re showing off how many girl friends you have right after teasing me!
That class was all girls and known for being high quality. Even if not pretty, they were the only ones in school who wore makeup every day.
“No need. I know where her house is. I also have her best friend’s contact info.”
“How do you know that?”
“I…” Li Mu paused, confused, halfway through his sentence. He looked up at Yu Fan.
After a long silence, he asked, “Didn’t you ask her where she lived before?”
“When did I ever do that?”
The two of them looked at each other, confused. Then Li Mu looked down at his pale fingers.
So why did he just know where Lin Xi lived? And why could he vaguely remember her best friend’s phone number?
Li Mu felt like something was wrong with his brain, but he didn’t know what exactly.
Maybe something inside got connected the wrong way?
Yu Fan saw that lost look on his face and asked carefully, “What’s wrong?”
“I think I…” Li Mu struggled to remember, then suddenly said something shocking, “I think I can remember most things about Lin Xi.”
“Huh?”
“But it’s all kind of blurry.” He mumbled to himself, “Lin Xi had a mole on her butt… She got her period at 13… She was scammed out of 3,000 yuan in an online relationship at 15… Later…”
Li Mu suddenly snapped out of it and couldn’t keep his calm face anymore. He looked shocked.
“How do I know all this!?”
“Did you date her before?”
“......”
“Or maybe when her spirit entered your body, you got her childhood memories too? Like in those novels where people swap souls?”
Li Mu looked up at Yu Fan. This guy… everything he says seems to come true.
So you really are the one behind this, aren’t you?
“You actually got all her memories? I was just joking,” Yu Fan muttered, now scared to say anything else.
“Not all, just bits and pieces. Only the stuff that was important to her. And nothing recent. So let’s go.” Li Mu put on his socks, stood up, and returned to his usual calm look.
“Go where?”
“To Lin Xi’s house. Her mom is pretty easy to talk to.”
Yu Fan thought about the people who had blocked the school gates carrying Lin Xi’s coffin and mumbled,
“I didn't think her family seemed very approachable. And it’s only been a bit more than a week since she died… Won’t visiting now just upset them?”
“It’s still better than me turning into a woman.” Li Mu put his phone in his pocket and walked out of the room.
Besides, you clearly know upsetting her mom is bad, so why do you keep upsetting me?
As expected, guys only show warmth to girls. It's already good enough if he doesn't kick his fellow men when they're down.