Chapter 37 – Girl or Boy? The Great Haru Debate
After logging out of World of Ancient Ruins, I lay there for a minute just staring at the ceiling.
My room was quiet. The air conditioner hummed softly. The real world felt strangely plain compared to glowing ruins, falling stone feathers, and wailing Seraph bosses.
"…That was fun," I said to myself.
It had been a while since I enjoyed a game that much.
Luna's tanking. Aria's calm support. Neko's chaos gremlin energy.
And me, the "newbie girl" who apparently dodged like a veteran and read boss patterns like a nerd with no social life.
I rolled over and grabbed my phone from the pillow.
Saeko had sent a "Good night, Haru-kun (๑•́‿•̀๑)" message. Reina had sent, "Don't get kidnapped in your dreams, haru-kun. Sleep well."
I smiled and replied to both.
Then I opened a video app without thinking. Habit from previous life: finish gaming → watch gaming.
The homepage loaded.
And there it was.
Big thumbnail. Bright title. Already trending in the gaming section.
[FULL CLEAR] Newbie Rune Swordsman surprises everyone in Ancient Temple of Fallen Light! (World of Ancient Ruins JP Server)
Uploaded by: Neko_Live
I blinked.
"…Wait."
That was definitely my character.
---
Neko's Great Content Plan (That I Never Knew About)
I tapped the video.
The screen faded in.
It was my party: LunaShield in front with her shield. AriaSong shining with soft buffs. NekoBolt zipping around like she had caffeine in her blood. And me… Haru… in my plain starting armor.
The view was from Neko's perspective, of course. She had recorded the whole dungeon.
"Oh, she's a streamer," I muttered.
At the top, a little watermark said:
Live recorded on: NekoLive Channel
Follow for daily chaos ♥
The video started with us arriving at the dungeon entrance.
Neko's voice came through, energetic and cheerful:
"Yoo, welcome back, chat! Today we're carrying a new baby Rune Swordsman! Look at her—"
Camera zooms in on my avatar
"Name's Haru. Claims to be a 'boy in real life.' We all know that's a lie, right?"
Chat messages flashed over the screen when it had been live:
[Chat] LMFAO another fake boy
[Chat] yeah sure and I'm a dragon
[Chat] if she's actually a boy I'll eat my router
[Chat] that avatar looks like a shoujo manga ML, no way she's a guy
I held my forehead.
"Of course… of course she turned it into content…"
The video continued.
It showed us walking into the temple, me staring around like a tourist. Neko titled the video segments:
[2:10] – Newbie Haru discovers graphics are pretty
[5:40] – First fight: Who taught this 'new player' to read patterns??
[11:15] – Puzzle Hall: The moment Haru's IQ awakened
[18:50] – Boss fight: Big stone angel gets bullied
I skipped ahead to the puzzle part.
---
The Puzzle Scene – Where the Trouble Starts
On screen, my character walked up to each glowing lantern in the puzzle hall. The chat spam was visible:
[Chat] this room sucks, I always wipe here
[Chat] Neko's gonna trigger every wrong rune again kek
[Chat] bet 100 coins they summon 8 extra wraiths
Neko's voice:
"Okay, so usually we just brute-force this and cry… Haru-chan, don't worry if we wipe, it's part of tradition."
Video-me stood there in silence, then typed:
[Party] [Haru]: Dawn, zenith, twilight, moonlight.
[Party] [Haru]: So… Gold → White → Blue → Silver, right?
Chat paused.
[Chat] …huh
[Chat] WAIT did this "newbie" just decode lore??
[Chat] WHAT DO YOU MEAN SHE READ THE WALL TEXT??
[Chat] I've played this dungeon 30 times I never noticed that
The runes lit up in the perfect sequence.
No enemies spawned. We got a buff. The hall glowed gently.
Neko screamed into her mic:
"SHE JUST SOLVED IT FIRST TRY— CHAT ARE YOU SEEING THIS??"
Comments exploded again.
I scratched my cheek in real life.
"…It wasn't that deep…"
But apparently, it was for them.
---
The Boss Clip – The Viral Part
I jumped forward in the video to the boss fight.
The title overlay read:
[18:50] FINAL BOSS – Fallen Seraph vs. Brain-Cell Haru
The fight played out pretty much how I remembered:
Luna tanking like a wall. Aria healing cleanly. Neko screaming, laughing, critting things.
And me dancing around the boss attacks, timing dodges, lining up Rune Slashes on glowing weak points like I'd been living in this dungeon for years.
The live chat during that part looked something like:
[Chat] okay but is she actually new
[Chat] those dodges are CLEAN
[Chat] she used Rune Guard at perfect timing for the tank??
[Chat] this is not "first day" movement bro
[Chat] I smell ex-hardcore player hiding in a cute avatar
Then the moment where I saved Luna with Rune Guard came.
Neko's voice peaked:
"CHAT DID YOU SEE THAT?? H A R U !!!"
And finally, the last blow.
Two Rune Slashes on weak points. Boss cracked. Light everywhere. Dungeon clear.
Neko yelled:
"Let's GOOOOO— my baby Haru carrying content!"
The clip slowed, zoomed a little on my character as the loot chest appeared.
The chat lost its mind.
[Chat] that was so satisfying
[Chat] who is this Haru person
[Chat] I'm making a fanclub rn
[Chat] I want this newbie in my dungeon team (T_T)
[Chat] marry me, Haru
[Chat] no me
[Chat] no me
I checked the video stats.
Views: 3.2 million
Likes: 1.9 million
Comments: 982k
"…Already?!" I choked.
I'd been offline how long? Half a day?
I scrolled to see the top comments.
---
Comment Section – The Gender War Begins
Pinned comment by Neko_Live:
Neko:
For everyone asking – yes, Haru said she's "actually a boy in real life."
Do we believe her?
No.
😂
Top replies under that:
User_Cloudy:
She plays like a calm divorced uncle gamer but sounds like a shy girl in chat. I'm confused.
Aegis_Main:
If she's actually a real boy, I will uninstall this game and touch grass for a week.
RuneLoreNerd:
No one is talking enough about how she read the wall hint LIKE THAT. Girl is a puzzle gremlin.
Then I saw it.
A different thread entirely:
[Debate] Haru – Girl or Boy? Place your bets.
Replies:
MoonlitOtaku:
That moment at 03:54 when Neko says "she says she's a boy" and Haru types it…
She sounds serious though??
EmoTank:
Nobody:
Haru: "I'm a boy"
This entire community: "Anyway, moving on."
PixelMom:
Look, boys DO exist, but why would a real boy be PLAYING GAMES?? Are you crazy??
CasualHealer:
Plot twist: She actually is a dude and we're all gaslighting him.
GachaOrphan:
If Haru is really a boy I'm going to cry because I fell in love with a ghost.
I rubbed my forehead again.
"…Do I correct them? Or just… let them yell?"
I sighed and locked my phone for a moment.
Then curiosity stabbed me again and I reopened it.
There was more.
Someone had taken the puzzle clip and re-uploaded it with a title:
"Mysterious New Player Haru Solves Puzzle Dungeon in One Try – Secret Genius??"
Another had posted:
"Rune Swordsman Newbie Plays Like Veteran – Are We Being Lied To?"
And then there was the gameplay forum.
I tapped into the bulletin board.
---
Game Bulletin Board – Official Chaos
[Thread #22038] Title: WHO IS HARU AND WHY IS SHE SO GOOD??
OP: DungeonAddict
Did you all watch Neko's new video?
That new player Haru is insane. Pattern reading, positioning, weakness hits, puzzle solve… that is not "first day" playing.
Also, she says she's "a boy".
Discuss.
Replies:
1 – SaltyMage
Honestly I don't care what gender she is. I just want her in my team.
Also, Neko, send party invite.
2 – NoLifeTank
I main tank and I'm willing to resign from my job and become full-time shield boy if Haru joins my squad.
3 – SoftSupporter
Are we sure she isn't a smurf account from some top player?
4 – LoreGirl
SHE READ THE TEMPLE TEXT. She is one of us.
Respect.
5 – ConspiracyTheorist
Listen, what if she's actually a Government AI made to test dungeon balance???
6 – OnlyRealMen
If Haru is a boy, I'll eat a stone wraith LIVE.
7 – GenderDebateEnjoyer
Here we go again.
Step 1: New good player appears
Step 2: Says "I'm a boy"
Step 3: Community laughs
Step 4: Argument thread 300 comments long
Someone made a poll:
[Poll] What is Haru IRL?
🔘 Girl
🔘 Boy
🔘 Genderless gamer spirit
🔘 AI NPC sent by the devs
Last time I refreshed, "Girl" was winning by 87%.
"I'm losing in a poll about my own gender," I muttered.
Lovely.
---
Meanwhile – Moonlight Echo's Private Chat
While I was sitting on my bed, scrolling through that madness, something else was happening that I had no idea about.
In another part of the city, three players sat in front of their own screens.
LunaShield. AriaSong. NekoBolt.
Their phones buzzed as new notifications came in.
[Group Chat – Moonlight Echo]
Neko:
GUYS WE WENT VIRAL
Aria:
I saw!!
My friend sent me a clip and said
"Isn't this your healer?" (;・∀・)
Luna:
…
You titled the video "newbie baby girl carries us in puzzle hall"…
I saw that.
Neko:
Listen
IT WAS GOOD CLICKBAIT OKAY
Aria:
Also everyone in the comments loves Haru (๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧
Luna:
They should.
She—
…they played well.
Neko sent a sticker of a cat rolling on the floor laughing.
Neko:
You typed "she" first wwwww
Luna stared at the screen a long moment.
Then typed:
Luna:
We still don't actually know.
Aria:
About what??
Luna:
About their gender.
Neko:
OH GOD HERE WE GO Don't start again, Luna
You're the ONLY one still saying "maybe Haru really is a boy." 🤣
Aria:
Yeah, Luna…
It's cute that you believe them but come on.
Boys don't play games.
Boys don't use Rune Swordsman.
Boys don't read puzzle texts.
Boys don't—
She stopped typing.
"…That sounded more offensive than I meant," she whispered to herself.
Then finished:
Aria:
I mean, statistically.
Luna:
You two can laugh all you want, but my instincts as a tank never lie.
Neko:
WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING
Luna leaned back in her chair in real life, staring at the screenshot she had taken of the chat in the dungeon.
[Party] [Haru]: I'm actually a boy in real life.
At the time, she had ignored it as a joke.
But the way he typed. The way he hesitated. The way he played.
Something about it stuck with her.
Luna:
When he typed that, it didn't feel like a joke.
Aria:
You're overthinking…
It's probably a role-play gimmick?
Neko:
...Wait
Are you telling me, if by some miracle Haru IS a real boy, I called him "baby girl" like 40 times on stream 😭
Luna:
Yes.
Neko:
I'll die.
I'll actually die.
They went quiet for a moment.
Then Neko, because she could never stay serious long, sent:
Neko:
Okay, new plan.
We solve this with gambling.
Aria:
…What?
Luna:
…Explain.
Neko:
We make a bet on Haru's gender.
Luna thinks "maybe he really is a boy."
We think "no way, definitely girl."
Whoever is wrong…
buys everyone premium avatar skin bundles. ( •̀ω•́ )
Aria paused.
Premium skin bundles.
Real money.
Fancy, shiny new rare bundles .
Dangerous words.
Aria:
…How many bundles are we talking?
Neko:
One each.
Full price.
No complaining.
Luna:
So if I lose, I buy both of you a full skin bundle each.
Neko:
Yes ma'am.
Aria:
And if we lose…?
Neko:
Then we BOTH buy one for Luna.
She gets two skins.
Queen treatment.
Luna stared at her screen again.
Two premium skins… if she was right.
Risky.
But her gut feeling tugged hard.
She straightened her back like she was about to charge a raid boss.
Luna:
Deal.
Aria:
I'll also join.
I'm confident she's a girl.
(If we're wrong… I'll cry while paying… but okay.)
Neko:
BET LOCKED IN 🔒
Official Rule:
– We can't ask Haru directly.
– We wait until one day they prove it themselves by mistake.
– Chat evidence, voice call, real-life leak, whatever.
– First confirmed info wins.
Aria:
That's so risky… and stupid…
I'm in.
Luna:
My instincts won't fail.
He's a boy.
I'll be waiting for my two skins.
Neko exploded in laughing emojis.
The Moonlight Echo gambling pact was made.
And I — the subject of this entire debate — was lying on my bed peacefully drinking juice, completely unaware that my gender had become a high-stakes cosmetic war.
---
Back to Me – Watching From the Outside
After scrolling for a while, I closed the bulletin boards and went back to the video one more time.
This time, I watched the final minute.
Neko's outro played.
"If you enjoyed this run, like and follow, bla bla, join the chaos. And say hello to our new party member Haru-chan, genius rune baby.
Haru, if you're watching this later…
you carried, okay? Don't deny it."
I couldn't help but smile.
"…I didn't carry," I muttered. "We just played well as a team."
Still. It felt nice.
Not the clout. Not the trend.
Just… being seen as a competent player. Not as "rare boy Takahara Haruya, must protect, national treasure," but as "Haru, that Rune Swordsman who reads puzzles and shields the tank."
I locked my phone and put it on my chest.
"I should be careful though," I mumbled.
"If Mom, Saeko or Reina ever sees that video, I'm dead…"
Imagining Saeko watching the clip:
"H-Haru-kun… playing games with other girls…"
And Reina:
"Oi. Why are those girls calling you baby??"
Yeah. No thanks.
I sighed and rolled over again, burying my face in my pillow.
Outside, the world still treated me like something rare and fragile.
Online, people couldn't even agree if I was a girl or a boy.
Somehow, between those two extremes…
I felt strangely okay.
---
Far away, three women were staring at their screens, plotting bets and future skins.
The gaming forums were writing threads titled:
"Haru Theory #1: He's actually a retired pro player secretly smurfing."
And the game itself quietly added one more item to its data:
Frequent Party: [Moonlight Echo]
Player flagged: Haru – High potential.
The story of "Haru the mysterious newbie" had just started.
And I still thought today was just a chill gaming day.
---
— To be continued…