Ha Se-gi's Age of Tribulations (1)
World Masters Winter ended on a bland note. Kaki, who had threatened Mixer during the Summer season, suffered from sudden flu and poor condition, dropping out midway without even reaching the finals. Na-jjang, one of his worthy rivals, tried to block Mixer but lost 3-2 once again. The perfect Mix-nario brought the curtain down on the matches. In his victory speech, Mixer said, "I want to hurry back to Korea and settle the score with LP."
Thanks to that, LP's follower count exploded once more. But he crushed all fifteen streamers who came knocking throughout the week in single rounds and clocked nine hours of Ring Soul playtime. If he'd streamed more often, maybe. But he only did three-hour sessions for three days that week. So his live viewer count these days is still just meh. Hitting around a hundred is lucky.
Anyway, things could pump up again once Mixer returns, but his year-end schedule is packed nonstop. And that's not all—there's the All-Star World Tour in January. The two won't meet again until at least February.
How could he cheer up LP? She wouldn't be satisfied with just any sparring partner. While Ppase pondered this on a certain Saturday,
A sudden summons dropped. He had no idea how her boredom connected to feeding his daughter, but maybe that was it. Did she suddenly crave some alone time?
# Her first impression was shocking. Even though he'd seen her once before, the atmosphere was totally different from when he'd panicked, bowed hastily, and fled. Armed with a mask and hat, her shining platinum blonde hair still drew eyes. And those eyes—huge, doll-like orbs sparkling like embedded jewels. Not ordinary brown, so the mystique doubled.
'Definitely stands out without the mask and hat...' Ppase recalled what LP had said before heading out.
As requested, Ppase wore his least shabby three-stripe tracksuit and a long puffer jacket. He'd washed his hair, but to avoid attention, he added a hat and mask. Now he got it. Even in sloppy clothes, she glowed—hence the no-agro warning. Recalling past scandals, he thought they should stay cautious moving forward. Not that he was chasing Lena for romance, but people would twist it. Like she was leeching off him fox-style, or they were secretly dating. Rumors could fly, so better prepare. No need for backlash on her.
Maybe because yesterday was Christmas, the convenience store tree ornaments dangling by the window bugged him extra. The girl approached right up to Ppase's nose and spoke.
"Hi."
"Sorry about the other day."
"That? It's fine."
"Mind if I ask your name?"
"Elena."
"E- E- Lena?"
"Call me Lena."
"Ah. Lena. Got it."
"What's yours?"
"I'm Ppase... or not. Ha Se-gi. Ppase is fine too. Whatever's comfy."
"Yeah. Se-gi."
Her natural casual speech reminded Ppase of LP's words.
Was she really older? She looked barely past twenty, even generously.
"Not cold?"
"Nah. Siberian blood."
Jealous she didn't feel the chill. Just in a thick hoodie, standing steady without shivering.
"Speak casual."
"This is my default. Can't change it easy."
Lena frowned, thinking it weird.
"Do what you want."
Her short, blunt words from long isolation. But maybe the looks made even that seem cute—an illusion, probably. Looks were the ultimate asset. If Ppase were as handsome as Mixer, he'd have double the subs.
"Here."
"...Oh. Money."
"Keep it transparent."
"Ah, yeah, of course. Wait, I'll log receipts and books all transparent. But what happened to your thumb?"
"Uh... knife... slip?"
"Be careful. So, what'll you have?"
No snow, but damn cold. Perfect for soup, but spicy tolerance? Pork bone and dried radish potato stew popped into Ppase's head—spicy, hearty broth.
"Potato stew."
Not his words. Lena said it, eyes sparkling, mouth agape like drooling any second.
"Potato stew. Let's go."
"Not too spicy?"
"Nah."
Fine then. Ppase fiddled his phone, whistled soon after.
"Found a killer spot. Let's head out."
"How far?"
"Car's fifteen minutes. Pretty close."
"Car? You got one?"
"Yup. Four years as top influencer, decent yearly income, sis."
"Nice."
"Subway or bus with crowds would suck for you."
Lena nodded fast, super pleased. His hosting skills shone. Treating her well would solidify LP partnership—Ppase's lips curled up.
"My place is right there, car's parked. This way."
"Go go."
# Lena was a loner with social anxiety. Lunchtime meetup too, so deep bonding seemed unlikely. But nope.
Casual banmal from the jump, acting the elder naturally. Comfy like a quiet but friendly big bro.
"What're you staring at."
"Ah. Nothing."
Only standout was her looks—dead ringer for Ren head to toe. Realized when she hooked her mask under chin at the restaurant, but held back asking if it bothered her. LP's "played Ren twenty years" was brag, but raising her that long? True. Picking Ren as main 'cause she resembled his daughter, probably. Fine for a dad gamer. But Lena? Growing up looking like Ren in Tuhon's homeland.
Did she struggle among Koreans from childhood? Feel burdened by stares as she aged? End up holed up?
"Smells amazing..."
Lena's head tilted toward bubbling stew like diving in. Curiosity hit Ppase.
"Uh, sis."
"Yeah."
"Dad's Korean, right?"
Slow nod.
"That's why your Korean's so fluent."
"Yup."
"Super close with him, huh."
"Yeah."
No hesitation. Eyes glued to boiling pot.
'