Chapter 47
[General] RoyalFamily: Was there something like this when I signed up?
[General] SaltySalt: I didn’t have this either ㅇㅅㅇ!
[General] Goyounghee: You guys are like founding contributors… something like that, you know…
[General] RoyalFamily: lol
[General] SaltySalt: lol
[General] Tangerine: She’s looking so proud;
[General] Youngglory: Should we have a party now?^^
[General] SaltySalt: Woowㅇ0ㅇ!!
But shortly after, the chat window was completely flooded with jeers.
[General] SaltySalt: Ahㅡㅡ not buyingㅇㅅ”ㅇ
[General] RoyalFamily: Seriously……….;;
[General] Goyounghee: ??????
[General] SaltySalt: Says let’s have a party but then puts up a party invite, ugh really-ㅅ-
[General] Shotgun: ;; This is indefensible
[General] Goyounghee: Guild master card confiscated
[General] Youngglory: ㅠㅠ
[General] SaltySalt: Guild master, you’re so fake ㅇㅅㅇ
[General] Youngglory: Thank you for the compliment^^
[General] Goyounghee: ^^ confiscated too
[General] Youngglory: ;;
[General] Sinu: Just confiscate chat privileges altogether
[General] Girmu: ㅎㅎ…
[General] Tangerine: Girmu has given up too
[General] cnfqkf: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ You’ve maxed out your adaptability skill
[General] FreeMiumUser: The Grace ecosystem is fully exposed now, right?
To say it was only now exposed… This was something Beodeul had known since before he joined the guild. Youngglory wasn’t the authoritarian type, and Beodeul liked that about him. His occasional attempts at wordplay were tolerable since they’d pass if you just closed your eyes for a moment.
[General] Girmu: Have you all been in the guild since its early days?
[General] RoyalFamily: That topic change was smooth
[General] Tangerine: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
[General] Tangerine: I’ve only been a member for about a year!
[General] Girmu: Isn’t being here for a year quite a long time?
[General] Goyounghee: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ We’re a long-running guild in our 7th year…
[General] Girmu: Oh…
[General] SaltySalt: It’s stagnant water, stagnant water ㅇㅅㅇ
[General] RoyalFamily: But we didn’t always have this many members, right?
[General] cnfqkf: We’ve had several generational changes
[General] cnfqkf: Should I call it a turnover? Anyway, we used to be a huge bustling guild, but now everyone’s left and we’ve become a club
[General] Shotgun: A cluㅂㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
The unusually strong bond between guild members had its reasons. Beodeul had thought they seemed free-spirited yet tight-knit.
‘Will I be able to fit in well?’
From an outsider’s perspective, the closeness of Grace guild members had always looked pleasant. But now, as a new guild member, the pressure to blend into their already established relationships felt somewhat burdensome.
‘I know they’re all good people, but…’
The people in Dalkeum guild had also made a good first impression. Yet the end with them had only been bitter.
Beodeul shook his head at the memory of what happened at Dalkeum guild. He certainly wasn’t interested in going through something like that twice.
[General] Youngglory: Is there anything else you’re curious about?
[General] Tangerine: Oh, it’s the one who got his chat privileges confiscated
[General] cnfqkf: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
[General] Youngglory: Shh^^
[General] Sinu: You can ask us anything
[General] cnfqkf: If you want, I can tell you about my character customization sweet spots
[General] Shotgun: Isn’t it in front of the golden fountain in channel 11? That place seriously doesn’t work
[General] cnfqkf: ? Was it you who stole my sweet spot’s energy?
[General] Goyounghee: Unexpected arrest ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
Watching the chaotic chat made Beodeul laugh involuntarily.
This time, he wanted to see a different ending if possible. If he could just get along well with these people and enjoy the game, he couldn’t ask for anything more. But that would require effort.
[General] Girmu: Don’t large guilds usually have rules? I’d like to know if there are things I should follow… that sort of thing ㅎㅎ
[General] SaltySalt: I was about to talk about hair customization sweet spots… ㅇㅅㅇ
[General] Shotgun: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Club president, do we have anything like that?
[General] Youngglory: We used to have them, but now there are no specific rules and it’s free…^^
[General] Girmu: What about login rates or guild quests?
[General] RoyalFamily: Most people just do things on their own
[General] Sinu: That’s just something you guys do because you have nothing else to do ㅋㅋ
[General] Goyounghee: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅠㅠㅠㅠ That’s right, Girmu will probably be busy with daily quests alone, so I think you can just do your own thing…
[General] FreeMiumUser: I have no counterargument from 0 to 10
[General] Girmu: If everyone else is doing them, it would be awkward if I’m the only one not…ㅎㅎ
[General] RoyalFamily: If you really want to do them, do it after reaching max level;
[General] Girmu: Ah…
[General] Sinu: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
The Grace guild members gave indifferent responses, as if the special treatment Girmu was receiving among the max level users wasn’t even special.
[General] SaltySalt: Wait we do have other rules though ㅇㅅㅇ
[General] Youngglory: Huh?
[General] cnfqkf: This is news to me;
[General] SaltySalt: Don’t quit the game……….ㅇㅅㅇ
[General] Shotgun: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Oh right
[General] Tangerine: +If you do quit, tell us which game you’re moving to….
[General] FreeMiumUser: Sounds like a clingy ex;
[General] Tangerine: These days, the trend for late-night texts isn’t “Are you sleepㅣng…?” but “Are you loggㅣng…?”ㅠ0ㅠ~~
That was so obvious it couldn’t even be called a rule. If they quit the game, surely they wouldn’t leave without saying a word to these people.
[General] Sinu: Besides that… we have an active guild chat, but it’s not mandatory. Several members don’t participate
[General] Goyounghee: Some people leave and come back because it gets too noisy ㅎㅎ…
[General] Shotgun: Isn’t that targeting Hwasan and Sinu?
[General] RoyalFamily: Didn’t Hwasan leave for good? I think it’s been over a month
[General] Tangerine: Last time they were gone for 3 months before coming back?
[General] FreeMiumUser: I’m not in it either~~
[General] Youngglory: We also have a voice chat room if you’d like to join that^^
[General] Youngglory: Of course, if you’re uncomfortable with the microphone, you can just listen without speaking^^
[General] FreeMiumUser: I just listen too~~
Beodeul felt a strange sensation at the conversations flowing as if scripted. It seemed remarkable how easily they accommodated his preferences.
‘They must be telling me this on purpose?’
It seemed like his expression of discomfort about Dalkeum had influenced them. These guild members were remembering what happened then and preemptively reassuring him that everything would be fine.
‘I didn’t need to worry about what happened in the previous guild.’
He already felt at home in the guild. It was like finding both a comfortable shelter and reliable allies.
[General] Girmu: I’ll join the voice chat ㅎㅎ
[General] Sinu: Then I’ll send you the link
Sinu’s message arrived promptly. Along with the link came thoughtful concern.
[SN: (link)]
[SN: If you feel uncomfortable at any time, you really don’t have to join]
[SN: We use the guild chat a lot, so you can easily blend in just by playing the game]
[Girmu: I’m really okay ㅎㅎ]
[SN: Then if you feel uncomfortable later, you can just leave. Everyone will understand, so don’t worry]
[Girmu: You seem to be the one worrying the most right now ㅎㅎ]
[SN: ㅋㅋ…]
[SN: I have to treat you well, after all the effort to recruit you]
It was amazing. That a connection made in the traumatic party dungeon could continue like this. If SonyeoGajang hadn’t initiated the party that day, hadn’t sent a friend request, he would never have met this wonderful person.
[Girmu: Sinu is really…]
[Girmu: You’re just too kind ㅠㅠ]
[SN: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ…………]
Sinu’s laughter had a somewhat embarrassed edge to it, but Beodeul, lost in his appreciation, didn’t notice. He had no way of knowing that it was his voice alone that had maintained their connection until now.
*
After Girmu joined, Grace’s guild chat became even more lively. Another notable change was the increase in conversations via voice chat rather than text chat.
[Dodam: I’m seriously trying to talk myself out of changing my nickname, how’s it going?]
[SaltySalt: Is it because of Dodaㅁㅇㅅㅇ???]
[Dodam: Because of that attention-seeking bas1ard, you don’t know how many messages I get daily]
[Dodam: Keeps asking if I’m his alt]
[Dodam: Ugh… I used it FIRSTㅡㅡ]
[Dodam: And if you check Story of Guardians Network, wouldn’t you KNOW??? My level is higher, how could I be an alt ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
[Goyounghee: It’s too bad to change the Dodam nickname though ㅠ]
[Dodam: Exactly… I don’t understand why I have to change because of him ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
[Dodam: In that spirit, I’m taking nickname suggestions]
[Youngglory: Aren’t you contradicting yourself?^^;]
[Dodam: I can’t live with this shame]
Dodam was considering changing his nickname due to the stress from a user named “Dodaㅁ” who was gaining attention as a new attention-seeker on the server.
[Shotgun: How about ShotgunFan?]
[Dodam: ㅡㅡ]
[SaltySalt: I’ll specially give up my KingSaltySalt nick for you ㅇㅅㅇ]
[Dodam: Nope, not buying]
[Girmu: Isn’t it difficult to change nicknames? They all seem taken…]
[Dodam: Ugh that’s right ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Even if I decide on one, it’s usually already taken when I try to change it~~]
[SaltySalt: I just checked SOG Network and ShotgunFan is definitely available ㅇㅅㅇ!]
[Dodam: Like I would use that ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
After suggesting a few amusing nicknames to the wailing Dodam, the guild members soon shifted to a different topic.
[SaltySalt: Why not just use whatever pops into your head ㅅㅇ?]
[SaltySalt: When I was choosing my nick, I was eating something that was too salty ㅇㅅㅇ…]
[Girmu: So that’s why you chose SaltySalt?]
[SaltySalt: Yeahㅇㅂㅇ]
[SaltySalt: Girmu always reminds me of oil for some reason ㅇㅅㅇ]
[Dodam: Seriously…. don’t assume everyone chooses nicknames based on food like you]
[Girmu: Ah but I actually do…]
[Dodam: …..]
[Shotgun: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Bow your head]
[Dodam: That can’t be… how did you end up as oil…?]
[Girmu: It was my real nickname ㅎㅎ…. But “oil” was already taken, so I tried something different and it was created unexpectedly…]
[Goyounghee: You typed “oil” and it wasn’t available, so you added ㅠ and it was created, right?]
[Girmu: Yes….]
[Shotgun: ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Ah ㅠ]
On the weekend, sitting in a corner of the café and staring blankly at his phone screen, Shin Wooseok startled. When he thought about how the name connected oddly with one he knew, he muttered without realizing:
“Han Beodeul… Oil. Deul, Oil?”
In childhood, if you’re unlucky enough to encounter a playful friend, you inevitably end up with an embarrassing nickname. The easiest nicknames to give are usually related to names, like, for example, Shin Wooseok-gamoni…
Recalling the not-so-welcome nickname, Shin Wooseok quickly shook his head.
“Still, ‘Deul-oil’ is quite cute in comparison… isn’t it?”
So he must have thought about using it as a game nickname. Though it doesn’t seem to match his appearance. The name “Beodeul” suited that face perfectly… but that’s something he could only say if Girmu and Han Beodeul were the same person.
As Shin Wooseok continued his train of thought, he suddenly hit the brakes and wondered:
‘…Are they really the same person?’
The only clues he had were that Han Beodeul had watched a <SOG> video and that Girmu’s voice was identical to his. And now there was this “oil” nickname that strangely connected to the name. Following the voice, this was the second commonality he’d discovered.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
