Chapter 30
But Kwon-ju’s worries hadn’t ended even on the day before the MT. He still hadn’t prepared clothes to wear or things to take, and instead was doing daily quests with Ji-won at a cafe on their laptops. It was nice doing it while seeing each other’s faces though. As Kwon-ju secretly stole glances at Ji-won’s concentrated face while sipping his drink, Ji-won, who Kwon-ju thought was only looking at his laptop, said:
“Your staring is going to burn a hole in me.”
“What? No, the quest item isn’t dropping.”
“Even if you look at me, it won’t drop any faster. Today’s daily quest is really the worst.”
As if he didn’t care whether a male junior was staring at his face or not, Ji-won forcibly washed away the fatigue from his morning lectures with a sip of Americano and moved his hands mechanically. Today’s daily quest required bringing back items dropped by specific monsters, but strangely, they weren’t dropping, so they had been circling the same area for 20 minutes.
“Ah, one dropped.”
Just one item when they should have collected both and finished long ago. Ji-won was planning to continue hunting until Kwon-ju’s share dropped when someone looked for him in the guild chat.
[Guild][Ddaji : Guild Master, are you free tomorrow afternoon?]
[Guild][Hando : I have an MT tomorrow ㅋㅋㅋ]
[Guild][Ddaji : Ah]
[Guild][Ddaji : A forbidden word for students on leave.. it is]
[Guild][Hando : I misspoke..ㅎㅎ]
He’d come to the cafe during his free period specifically to finish the daily quests early, thinking about tomorrow’s MT. He deliberately chose a place far from the Business School building to avoid running into anyone he knew, and it turned out to be more pleasant than expected.
But…
“Kwon-ju.”
“Yes?”
“Is there something on my face?”
He had ordered a cake because he was hungry, but he didn’t think he’d eaten messily. However, if that wasn’t the case, there seemed to be no reason for Kwon-ju to keep staring, so Ji-won lightly brushed his cheek and around his lips with the back of his hand as he asked.
“No, nothing’s on it. My eyes are just tired from looking at the laptop screen continuously.”
Since they were at a window seat, he could have just looked outside. Making an excuse that didn’t make sense even to himself, Kwon-ju tried to act calm.
“Your face seems to give me a sense of stability…”
“My face?”
“Because you’re handsome.”
Kwon-ju, who had mumbled this answer without realizing it, froze. Why did he suddenly say something like that? He had carelessly mumbled it, and the thoughts he habitually kept in his mind had slipped out. Since the water was already spilled, a belated reaction would only amplify his embarrassment, making it difficult for him to act next.
“Really?”
But Ji-won wasn’t flustered as Kwon-ju had expected. He was just a bit surprised, thinking maybe Kwon-ju was saying this to make him feel awkward. It wasn’t the first time he’d been complimented on his appearance, and having lived for 23 years, he knew well enough what he looked like, but he never imagined such words would come from Kwon-ju’s mouth. Ji-won stared at the perfect ratio of eyes, nose, and lips, as if measured with a ruler, and said incredulously:
“The face that really gives stability is yours. With your pretty looks.”
“What?”
“Ah, it dropped.”
Before Kwon-ju could process what he’d just heard, the item they were looking for suddenly dropped, abruptly ending their conversation. Ji-won, who was happy it had dropped faster than expected, seemed to have completely forgotten what he’d just said.
“That finished much faster than expected. Pick it up before it disappears.”
Judging by how he only talked about the game afterward, Ji-won probably just said that without much meaning, matching Kwon-ju’s comment. But that statement circled in Kwon-ju’s head until he got home. While he didn’t care how his face looked, hearing a compliment about his appearance from someone he liked definitely felt good. Even as he packed for tomorrow’s MT, he could feel himself in an oddly buoyant mood.
Ji-won was the first person to make him take a new look at his face – a face that had no resemblance to his sharp, rigid-featured family members, which made him subject to suspicions of being adopted whenever he appeared at public events, with people wondering if the third child might be adopted. Sitting at his desk with the game habitually turned on, Kwon-ju stared at his face for a while, then knocked over his desk mirror with a surge of self-loathing. What am I doing?
[Hando>>HolyKnightKnight : Want to try Emily once?]
[Hando>>HolyKnightKnight : You saw the video I sent the day before yesterday, right?]
Just then, a login notification from Ji-won, who he thought had gone to bed, appeared, followed by a whisper. Didn’t he say he’d finish the daily quests early and go to sleep? That was certainly their plan when meeting earlier, but Kwon-ju, who was currently half-dazed with his mind floating in space, had no reason to refuse. He felt like he needed to move his fingers to regain his senses.
[HolyKnightKnight>>Hando : Yes]
[HolyKnightKnight>>Hando : I watched it five times]
Why did he watch it so many times? Somehow the tone seemed proudly boastful, and Ji-won felt gratified that Kwon-ju had diligently reviewed on his own even though Ji-won hadn’t taught him much.
[Hando>>HolyKnightKnight : Just a moment then]
[Guild][Hando : Anyone want to join Emily?]
Emily’s Cradle, which can accommodate up to six people, was a high-level dungeon available from level 190. While not particularly difficult to clear, it was a tier where rewards increased significantly. As the perfect first high-level dungeon, it seemed like a good idea to quickly run through it while they had free time and were relaxed.
Thinking they didn’t need to fill all slots, Ji-won formed a 5-person party with three guild members who wanted to join and Kwon-ju, then arrived at the dungeon entrance. He waited for the guild members who were in the process of purchasing the keys needed for entry.
[Soul : Excuse me]
At that moment, a player suddenly approached Ji-won’s party just as they were about to enter the dungeon. Since there were no other players around, they were definitely calling out to Ji-won’s group.
It was a player wrapped in expensive items from head to toe. The outfit was a limited cash item from about 5 years ago, trading for around 500,000 won, and the hair, hat, and the softly falling cherry blossom effect behind the character were all limited items too…
On top of that, a clean two-character nickname. Since duplicate nicknames can’t be created in the game, it meant they either bought it or had been playing since the very beginning. Naturally, trust increased for characters with a lot to lose.
[Soul : Can I join your party pleaseee?]
[Soul : I missed my guild party todayyyy ㅠㅠ]
Due to item distribution issues, high-level dungeons were typically run with acquaintances or guild members. While good items rarely drop, you never know when you might get lucky. They currently had 5 people, so there was space…
[Soul : I can do 1.5 person’s worth]
[Soul : I’m just trying to get the 100 dungeon clear title ㅠ I don’t need any item distribution just don’t want to miss a day]
Ji-won, who had been considering it, double-clicked on Soul’s character to bring up their info window. Jungwon Guild, Ranking 89th. A decent number of members too. The fact that they belonged to a guild ranked in the top 100 already built some trust.
[Party][Watermelon Doctor : its fine to let them join right?]
[Party][Watermelon Doctor : they said they don’t need distribution]
[Party][Ddaji : I think it’s ok we’ll clear faster]
[Party][Kkangki : ㄱ_ㄱ]
[Party][HolyKnightKnight : I don’t mind either]
With all the other guild members agreeing, there was no reason for him to refuse. Ji-won immediately sent a party invitation, and Soul, who seemed to have been waiting, accepted it and expressed thanks.
[Party][Soul : thx thx]
Soul, who joined the party this way, indeed delivered on their promise to do 1.5 person’s worth without any issues. Their movements were skillful, as if they’d done this many times, and perhaps because they had joined as an add-on, they even encouraged Kwon-ju when he occasionally faltered, showing him faster routes rather than rushing him.
Although they could have cleared it with just five people, having one more high-spec party member further reduced the clear time. The run proceeded so quickly that Kwon-ju, who was nervous about his first high-level dungeon, felt embarrassed—there wasn’t even time for practice. For experienced players, it was a level that could be cleared sufficiently without voice chat, just by using skills in their positions, dodging properly, and reading the situation.
They cleared the final phase without any problems except for Kwon-ju dying once when he failed to properly avoid the boss’s instant-kill skill. Ji-won casually tapped the reward chest to open it, not expecting much.
[Ddaji : It dropped????]
[Watermelon Doctor : Wow]
[Kkangki : It dropped;;;;;]
A Blue Fairy. It was a material item that traded for quite a lot, needed to craft the “Native Necklace,” the best necklace currently available. Accordingly, it had a low drop rate, but they were lucky this time. Its large size compared to other miscellaneous items around it, and the sparkling effect, revealed that it was no ordinary item.
Normally, one person would pick it up as a representative, sell it, and distribute the remaining amount. Usually that role falls to the party leader. So, after confirming in chat that everyone had seen the item, Ji-won was about to pick it up. That’s definitely what happened. The item would still be there if it hadn’t suddenly disappeared.
[Hando : ?]
[Ddaji : Soul, what are you doing?]
There was only one reason the item disappeared: Soul had picked it up at the speed of light.
[Watermelon Doctor : How can you just take that ㅋㅋㅋ]
[Watermelon Doctor : Spit it out]
A max-level player wouldn’t have picked it up out of ignorance. Seeing them standing there without a single excuse, it didn’t feel good at all. Ji-won instinctively thought: This person is probably going to leave soon.
[Watermelon Doctor : Did your conscience die?]
[Soul : ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ you let me join]
[Soul : Why are you obsessing over this piece of garbage item? ㅋㅋ How trash must your items be]
Just as he suspected, Ji-won sighed at the completely changed tone from the player who had been kindly giving advice to Kwon-ju earlier. Why would a high-spec player from a top-ranked guild become a thief for just one item like this? He wondered if they were prepared to be kicked out of their guild.
[Soul : Your so-called Shinmyung guild is so petty]
Learning that they had specifically targeted them knowing which guild they were in made it even more aggravating. Occasionally there were players who picked fights just because it was a guild with a YouTuber. But Shinmyung wasn’t even logging in these days… Ji-won, suddenly caught up in this incident, wearily tapped his desk with his fingernails.
[Watermelon Doctor : Are you kidding ㅋㅋㅋ don’t make us angry, just give it back]
[Watermelon Doctor : Are you going to make a necklace with that?? We’ll see who the real beggar is~~!]
[Soul : Yep~ I already have one ㅋㅋ]
[Soul : (Native Necklace) +13 jealous?]
[Soul : Just take a look ㅋㅋㅋㅋ]
Ji-won was astounded by their sudden display of their own item. What’s so great about it? When he hovered his mouse over it, it was indeed a good item. The options were clean enough, and it was enhanced to +13. However, Ji-won, who had recently seen the same item enhanced to +15, wasn’t easily impressed.
[HolyKnightKnight : (Native Necklace)]
Yes, that one. Ji-won, who was nodding at the unexpected chat message that popped up, paused.
[HolyKnightKnight : +15 jealous?]
[HolyKnightKnight : Now get lost after looking at it]
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
