With a blinding flash, Jun appeared alone in the center of an enormous circular plaza.

He took in his surroundings, and much to his surprise, the plaza swiftly filled with people as if they had always existed.

Jun’s eyes darted back and forth as more and more people materialized into existence. In just a handful of seconds, he found himself surrounded by a massive crowd that was comprised of many different types of people.

Men and women, garbed in various styles of clothing, conversed with each other. Some kept their hands placed on their weapons, while others didn’t seem to carry one at all.

However, there was one obvious detail about the people that surrounded him—there were no children at all.

Well of course there wouldn’t be any children. PSI World is marketed as a dangerous, but lucrative place, and children would need their parent or guardian’s consent in order to join.

He shrugged and just as he was about to take a step forward, the system’s voice rang clearly within his mind.

“Soul transmission complete. Welcome to Tutorial City, user Xin Sugo.”

Oh, I see. So I was being phased into this new area? Or…

Jun raised an eyebrow at the semi-transparent screen in front of him. He stood there, awkwardly reading it, as the system continued to speak.

“On the system display, you’ll see your current priorities and tasks. These are suggestions that have been generated to suit your needs. Adventure awaits, good luck!”

After waiting a few moments, Jun realized the system wouldn’t be clarifying any details. He ambled off in a random direction while staring at the screen before him.

“Days remaining in tutorial, 96. Interesting, I wonder if this is taking time dilation into account. Let’s see… First suggestion is to visit the Class Selection Hall. Alright, I’ll—oof!“

“Hey, watch where you’re walking!”

Jun was so absorbed into reading the display that he accidentally collided with a thin man. He recognized his fault and gave an apologetic smile.

“Uh, sorry. I’ll pay more attention.”

“Forget that, you look new. You’re a beauty huh? Why don’t you come spend time with me and my boys? We’ll show you around good and proper.”

The man made a disgusting smile as his eyes swept over Jun’s body as if he were imprinting his form into the deepest recesses of his brain.

Ugh, not again.

“Sir, you’re misunderstanding something. Can I just-“

“No need to explain further lil’ girl. Come on, you’s at fault anyway. Least ya can do is show me some good will in private. Yea?”

At this point, Jun narrowed his eyes an anger.

“Ooh, you’s even prettier when ya angry.”

The man reached his hand out toward Jun as if to lead him away.

Before Jun could react in the most violent way possible, a graceful foot sailed through the air, landing squarely on the thin man’s jaw.

“Disgusting wretch. Is harassing a young woman the only thing you’re good for?”

Jun stared in shock as a beautiful woman positioned herself between himself and his soon to be opponent.

From his perspective, she was tall with shapely legs hidden underneath some lightly armored pants. Of course from Jun’s height, most people were tall.

“Are you okay, little girl?”

She turned around and glanced at Jun, who stared back with conflicted look on his face.

She also thinks I’m a girl! Why did I ever think of a dress.

“I’m fine…”

At this point, the man quickly picked himself back up. Initially, he had a belly full of anger, but that all changed the moment he laid eyes on the woman before him.

“Ah, is missus Amstel! Forgive me!”

He only said this before bolting away from the scene. The woman snorted as she watched the fleeing figure.

“Despicable at best. Don’t pay any heed to worthless scum like that man. Are you alone? Did you get separated from your group?”

Jun could only give a wry smile.

“I’m alone, I was looking at the system goals for what to do next.”

He simply replied in the most honest way possible. After all, even though he didn’t need help, the woman before him still helped him out of goodwill.

“Ohh, are you new here? Come with me and I’ll help you get sorted!”

She flashed a charming smile and reached for Jun’s hand. It was hard for Jun to refuse after seeing how happy she appeared to be, so he simply let himself be guided away.

“Did you just arrive in Tutorial City?”

She made small talk as she led him through the crowd. Jun noticed people would scatter the moment they realized they were in her path.

“Yes, I was hoping to get changed out of this dress so-”

“Oh? That’s great timing! I was just about to go to Rosa’s for one of my disciples. Don’t worry about a thing and come with us.”

He was about to decline her generosity when a group of girls rushed up to them.

“Who’s this pretty little girl? She’s so cute!”

A younger girl spoke out as the rest of the group soon fawned over Jun. The older woman, Miss Amstel, smugly stood upright as the compliments came pouring in.

“How precious! Her dress is so gorgeous. Look at these sleeves, so flowy!”

“Mmm, it fits her figure so well!”

This can’t go on.

Jun’s face was red with embarrassment as he heard the different comments. He needed to set the record straight soon before things got out of hand.

If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“Um, I’m a g-“

“Oh shush, shush! Come with us! Tiana needs new armor and so we’re going to get her outfitted. You can get outfitted as well!”

“No, but I’m a-“

“We absolutely won’t take no for an answer! Let’s go, let’s go!”

Jun made a helpless smile as he was soon led off towards a distant shop.

A signpost hung over the front entrance. It’s design was a spool of thread along with a sewing needle crossing over.

The girls constantly chatted around him about miscellaneous topics as he lost himself in thought.

I’ll just play along for a little then. I’d hate to ruin their cheerful mood.

“You have entered Rosa’s Threads.”

The system’s voice rang out in his mind once he stepped through the front entrance.

The store was full to the brim with customers, but the unique thing about these customers was—they were all women!

There’s no way that this can end well…

Jun looked around in curiosity when a middle-aged woman approached them.

“Ah, the Amstel sisters. Please, Madam Rosa is expecting you.”

“Thanks Noel.”

The leader of the group responded as the rest followed. As they were walking, the young woman who initially greeted Jun approached him with a smile.

“We didn’t properly introduce ourselves. The scary girl that found you is my older sister, Sela Amstel. My name is Lulu Amstel, and these are my friends from academy!”

She pointed behind as the rest of the girls caught up to them. They introduced themselves one by one.

“I’m Tiana, nice to meet you!”

“Nelath.”

“And I’m Shireen!”

Jun nodded at them before introducing himself as well.

“I’m… Xin...”

I can’t tell if those are their real names, or their usernames.

“Xin? That’s a nice name! Oh, there’s Madam Rosa!

Lulu pointed up ahead where a kind and elderly looking woman walked forward to greet Sela.

“Young Sela, it’s good to see you again. How’s my little ascendant doing?”

Jun paled slightly after hearing Rosa’s greeting.

That girl is an ascendant?! What’s she doing here in the tutorial?

As if Lulu could read his mind, she spoke to him quietly.

“My sister paid merit points to act as a tutor for me and my friends. It’s common to pay for a tutor’s services according to their rank at the Adventurer’s Hall. This is normally done with a contract so that neither side is cheated.”

Her eyes lit up just as she just thought of something important, and without a second’s delay she blurted out.

“Sister! Sister! We can have Little Xin sign a guidance contract with you too!”

Sela whirled around once Lulu called out to her. Her eyes shined in anticipation once Lulu’s idea had been spoken out.

“Yea! Let’s have Xin join us!”

“Oooh, I can’t wait for this little darling to be on our team!”

“Mm..”

The academy group also agreed in unison as they gently pushed Jun forward. Sela stared at him with bright eyes as if she were expecting him to make a statement.

Madam Rosa stood in the background as she watched this exchange. She cocked her head to the side in interest the moment Jun arrived at the front.

Isn’t that…?

The aged shopkeeper hid a small smile.

“Uh, I don’t think-“

Jun was about to decline their good intentions when he was interrupted by Lulu.

“No way, I won’t take no for an answer! Sister you can’t accept no either!”

Lulu shook her head furiously and glared at Sela.

“Oh, this poor child is too kind for her own good. Little Xin, I’ll draft a contract for you sweetie. Go ahead and accept!”

Sela gave a heartfelt expression as her eyes briefly darted to the side.

Jun assumed she was interacting with the system at this time, and without any surprise he soon received a notification.

“Guidance contract with user Misty Phoenix. Duration, 22 days. Contract fee, void. Please note that you may only accept a single guidance contract during your stay in the tutorial.”

The system’s voice announced within his mind as he read the details of the contract himself.

There’s no way that a guidance contract with a real ascendant could be cheap, let alone free.

“Accept! Accept! I know you can only have one contract, but I promise you won’t regret it! Sister Sela is the best trainer you can find! You have to join us!”

Lulu pleaded as she looked at Jun with her large innocent eyes.

It feels like if I decline, I’ll break her heart. What should I do…

He resolved himself once more, and just as he was about to decline, Madam Rosa spoke up.

“Ah, Tiana! It seems your measurements have shifted a little? My, my, you’re growing into such a beautiful thing.”

Tiana stood still with a small blush on her cheeks as Madam Rosa swiftly moved across her body.

“Only some minor adjustments here, and... Perfect! Take this to Noel and she’ll help you out with the rest.”

She gave Tiana a small piece of paper with some numbers scribbled on it, who then scurried off in anticipation. Madam Rosa turned her focus onto Jun.

“You on the other hand, get in here and let me take your measurements proper. I won’t be taking no for an answer as well.”

The corner of Madam Rosa’s mouth faintly curved upward as she pointed at a private room.

Jun let out an internal sigh and helplessly followed orders. His brain was rapidly working out how to approach this enormous misunderstanding.

“As for you ladies, wait here until I’m finished and then you can continue your talks of contracts.”

With that, she turned and followed Jun into the private room and closed the door behind her. The two sisters looked at each other in worry.

“Do you think she’ll join us? It seemed like she didn’t want to…”

Lulu spoke first as her eyes drooped down.

“I think she’s just too shy and kind to take advantage of other people. Don’t worry Lulu, I’ll properly make sure she joins us. I know she’s here alone, maybe she’s scared of strangers. Her first experience was pretty bad.”

They continued talking amongst themselves, while the topic of their conversation was isolated in a room with Madam Rosa.

“Uh…”

He wasn’t too sure what to say, but he still felt like he needed to at least explain the situation to someone.

“Do you have something to say, young man?”

Jun stared at her in shock while Madam Rosa matched his gaze with an amused smile.

“How did you-?”

“How did I know? Just how long do you think I’ve spent looking at women’s figures? Although I must say, you hide quite deeply. Even I had a hard time determining your gender with that dress on. I doubt all but a very select few would be able to tell at a glance.”

Jun was left standing there feeling incredibly awkward as a silence came over the room.

Am I really that feminine looking? Or am I just too young? Surely it has to be that. I’m too young, right?

“Can you tell me why you’re in that dress? And why didn’t you tell them that you’re a guy?”

Jun shook his head and let out a sigh.

“I was asked to pick a starting outfit when I first entered PSI World. It reminded me of a certain someone who likes to wear this dress. The system thought I wanted to wear the dress, and here we are.”

He smoothed out his dress with his hands before continuing.

“As for the girls, this is a huge misunderstanding. When I first appeared in Tutorial City, I bumped into someone. That guy wasn’t any good, but Sela beat him up. Ever since then, I’ve been trying to explain that I’m a guy, but they wouldn’t let me get the words out. Eventually, I felt bad and now I’m just keeping quiet.”

Madam Rosa raised an eyebrow as she heard this.

“They can be quite forceful in their opinions. So then, what are you going to do about the guidance contract?”

Jun frowned.

“I can only decline it. They’ve been helping me because they think I’m a girl, but that’s just not the case.”

Madam Rosa smiled and walked up to the boy. She ruffled his hair and looked down at him.

“You are pretty good. I have something else in mind. I’ve known that little girl Sela for many years now, and I can tell you for certain that she hates men with a passion. That is, all men except her fiancé.”

Jun’s heart sank as he made a wry smile.

“So if I tell her I’m a boy, she’ll hate me? Possibly even more than usual because she’ll feel betrayed.”

Madam Rosa nodded and took a seat on a nearby bench.

“Although I can’t say for certain that’s what would happen, I can say that it’s a strong possibility. I hope I don’t need to remind you that having an ascendant for an enemy is not a good idea.”

If I were stronger then this wouldn’t be an issue, but I’ve only just entered this place. Ascendants are towards the top of the food chain. This is bad.

“Madam Rosa, is there any way you can help me? Perhaps you can explain the misunderstanding to them for me?”

The elderly woman shook her head and smiled.

“No, but I do have a different idea. How about I dress you up like the cute little thing you are. Then you can continue pretending to be a girl, but at the same time you’ll get proper guidance from an ascendant.”

Jun was crestfallen. In a way, he almost felt betrayed that this was the plan she had thought of.

“Don’t think of this as me not helping you. In a different way, I’m helping you immensely. Do you think getting guidance from an ascendant is so easy? You realize that being under the tutelage of an ascendant is not something that can be bought with money, right?”

Maybe she’s right, but I could probably just ask Ciena or Bennon. No that won’t do. Maybe I can ask Grandpa Einstoldt? Or Grandpa Sugo? There’s also Sahves… No that won’t do either. Too busy. I could also ask… no. I’ll never ask him.

“You’re a good kid, I can sense that you don’t have any ill intentions to those girls. Although I can’t say you’re of pure heart, you at least look at them with clear eyes. Who knows, perhaps you’re just the friend that they always needed.”

She patted her stylish jacket and approached Jun with a crooked smile.

“Hehe, don’t you worry. I’ll make sure that even the most discerning eyes won’t be able to tell that you’re a guy. On this note, I definitely won’t be taking no for an answer.”

Her eyes glinted as she happily got to work on Jun, who could only helplessly comply.