Riser

34-11

Added 2025-07-06 00:59:07 +0000 UTC

Chapter 11

Tap tap

A studio apartment in Seoul.

The sink is piled high with unwashed dishes and spoons, flies buzzing around as an added bonus.

On the floor, countless garbage bags are stacked so thickly there’s nowhere to step.

And the linoleum floor is so sticky from not being mopped that it clings with every step.

It’s the kind of place even a homeless person living in Seoul Station’s subway would reject, saying, “This is too much…,” but a woman lives here.

Her name is ‘Pyeon Minhee.’

She’s sitting at her computer right in front of her bed, tapping away at the keyboard.

‘Ugh, I wish all these damn men would just off themselves…’

Tap-tap-tap

Title: Sisters? ㅠㅠ Am I the only one uncomfortable with this?

(A photo of a girl group idol wearing a crop top)

How can anyone wear such shameless clothes…

Isn’t it because of people like this that women’s rights are regressing?

I’ll put a link to a national petition, please help support it ㅠㅠ

ㄴ Wow, I feel like I’m being visually assaulted by men again

ㄴ 22222222

ㄴ 333333

ㄴ Isn’t she embarrassed…? Didn’t she wear that because of men?

ㄴ Wow, that could be true!!

Title: Legendary Male Politician.jpg

[Article: Rep. OOO denies all charges of slush fund embezzlement and tax evasion at first trial…]

How can a man blame all his faults on his wife ㅠㅠㅠ

Seriously, sisters, never get married…

They just want to pin all their faults on us by marrying us ㅠㅠ

ㄴ Wow… I’ve never seen a Korean man admit his own fault

ㄴ 2222222

ㄴ 3333333333

ㄴ But girls… doesn’t “wife” here mean the opposite of what you think?

-> (This comment was deleted due to reports.)

“Ugh, a damn man crawled in here again.”

Maybe I got the last hit, but as soon as I reported it, the comment disappeared.

Ding-dong

‘Oh, is that my delivery?’

Step, step

She only opened the door and grabbed her food after she was sure the delivery person had left.

Slurp, munch

‘Mmm, why is this so good?’

Though she hated the “-no” ending men often use, she’d picked it up naturally after infiltrating male-dominated communities for women’s rights activism.

Slurp

She finished her meal in less than five minutes. She thought about cleaning up, but the mountain of trash left nowhere to put even a small container.

‘…This is all because of men.’

Because men built glass ceilings that block women’s advancement, talented people like her are stuck at home, unable to live normal lives.

‘Ugh… I need to get out of this damn country soon.’

Despite having no money, connections, or skills, she kept telling herself she’d leave Korea one day.

She didn’t know: there’s no paradise in the places you run to.

[There’s an anti-spy-cam protest at Hyehwa Station today… please attend.]

‘…I almost forgot. I need to get ready.’

She’d been so busy fighting online battles she lost track of time. Only two hours left until the protest.

Luckily, she lived in Seoul, so she could get to Hyehwa Station in an hour by subway.

‘Let’s get ready…’

She hummed a boy band song as she got ready to go out.

The trash? She’d throw it out later. If not, she could just pay some male “slaves” to do it.

So, for the first time in ten days, she left her house.

Ugh, move over already…

Ew, my butt touched the seat, fuck!

…Would anyone want to live like that?

Murmur, murmur

Ah, it’s happening again. People are judging me, visually harassing me.

‘Damn! Stop staring at me!’

Whether people on the subway were actually looking at her or not, she was 100% sure they were.

Of course they were. Her body was the perfect “gat-chi” (slang for radical feminist) form, both in her own eyes and others’.

Anyone could see her body was dedicated to women’s rights. Even men with a passing knowledge of feminism would be at a loss for words upon seeing her.

‘Seriously, this sucks…’

But she lacked the courage to tell the men staring at her to stop. If she did, her face would surely end up on social media.

So she had to endure 50 minutes of what she saw as visual harassment from Korean men.

[Next stop: Hyehwa, Hyehwa Station. Doors will open on the…]

Crowd

‘Just breathing the same air as these men almost killed me…’

She quickly exited at Hyehwa Station and breathed in the outside air. She looked around to figure out where to go.

‘Ah, over there.’

Just seeing the “gat-chi” sisters walking in one direction was reassuring. Some had even shaved their heads.

‘Yes, this is it…’

Her heart felt at ease. With so many comrades, she felt she could overcome any hardship.

Luckily, the protest was being held not far from the station, for the sake of “gat-chi” sisters with mobility issues.

But then…

‘…Huh? What’s this sense of wrongness?’

Here and there, there were “hyungja” (slang for women with conventionally attractive, ‘male-pleasing’ looks) who shouldn’t have been there.

“Awaken! Awaken!”

[All Korean men are criminals. They’re the ones filming, watching, uploading, or just standing by.]

[Women are only safe when men leave them alone!]

[Spy-cam perverts OUT!]

The strong “gat-chi” sisters held picket signs. The protest was fine, but there were some uncomfortable parts.

“Everyone why are we here today? To denounce the Korean government that favors only men!!”

But the one holding the mic wasn’t a “gat-chi” sister, but a “hyungja.”

Even without seeing her face, her aura, tattoos, and the kind of body and fashion men go crazy for made it obvious.

‘Why… is a hyungja leading this protest?’

Looking around, there were many hyungja scattered among the protesters. All of them had a similar vibe and fashion as the woman with the mic.

‘Did they hire part-timers or something?’ She was flustered. Until now, all the protests had been elite squads of “gat-chi” sisters. It was too militant for weak hyungja to join.

And… though she didn’t want to look, she couldn’t help but notice the hyungja’s looks.

They not only had bodies but faces that men would go wild for.

‘…What is this…’

What the hell is this? Why are there fake dick-owners in a protest for women’s rights? This isn’t a place for people like them!

‘It should be us “gat-chi” sisters leading the protest…’

But she didn’t even have the courage to complain or question the emcee with the mic.

Because the emcee’s face reminded her of the girls who bullied her in school.

Learned fear had stolen her last chance to speak up.

Soon, the crowd around the protest swelled.

Even the men they all hated were joining the protest.

Awaken! Awaken!

‘…Why are they joining in…’

She fell into cognitive dissonance. Did these men even know what the protest was for?

On the surface, the protest looked like it was for victims of crime and women’s rights, but in reality, it was just a gathering for man-haters!

She knew deep down. Like it or not, she’d finished secondary education, and thanks to all the protests, gender discrimination had lessened a lot.

But she kept protesting because she wanted life to be easier.

Government, awaken! Awaken!

Like a porn protagonist, she dreamed of marrying a rich man, living in luxury, never worrying about money. Even though she wrote online that no one should marry and all men are enemies, she secretly wanted the opposite.

But, of course, she couldn’t have that.

‘Men like those hyungja bodies more.’

She could never have… a body that aroused men’s lust and possessiveness.

Maybe she could get the body with effort, but the face was impossible.

Objectively, even with plastic surgery, her face was hopeless.

You can just tell, right? Whether surgery would help or not.

‘…Fucking bitch.’

She felt deep anger at the emcee she met for the first time today. Why? Why did that person bother coming to this protest?

To see how ugly we are? To mock us?

‘.......’

If even the hyungja take over this space…

Where are people like me supposed to go…!