The Gacha Grudge Match
Merlin stood there, clutching her staff, trembling with rage as she aimed it at the machine, her face twisted in pure fury...
Cheonma and Arthur stood by with dead, hollow eyes...
The three heroes seemed to have taken quite a mental hit from being toyed with by the machine. But the world of Gacha is a cold and heartless place. Since they had lost their match against the machine... as much as they might have been reluctant to leave...
It was time for them to step down.
The machine was too cramped for all six of them to be up there at once, so the current three had to descend to make room for the next three.
"Alright... Cheonma, Arthur, Merlin. You three are down to zero coins, so... time to swap out..."
"..."
"Please, hurry up and get down. There are three more waiting below. Why are you still lingering up there when you don't even have any coins left?"
The three heroes, who had been dragging their feet and looking like they didn't want to leave the machine, finally descended, shooting venomous glares at Hwaryeon’s remark.
Hwaryeon... You... if you keep stacking up that karma... it’s going to come back to bite you, you know...!!
The remaining three heroes—Hwaryeon, Judang, and Lancelot—stepped up to the machine. They looked around with curiosity, gently touching and stroking the machine as if it were some mysterious artifact. Then, Cheonma’s impatient voice drifted up from below.
"Hey! You guys hurry up and do it, then get down. You think you’re actually going to win anything?"
At Cheonma’s ill-omened remark, Hwaryeon hissed like a cornered beast.
"Gal! (Begone!) How dare you spout such unlucky nonsense before we’ve even begun! It’s because your character is so bottom-tier that you ended up with zero coins."
"Yeah, yeah~ sure. I’ll be waiting down here~"
"...I’ll make sure to earn enough coins to get down there just to spite you... and I won't share a single one, even if you crawl on the floor and lick my feet."
I didn't expect to hear a "Gal!" here... I recall that being a typical martial arts trope for scolding someone...
Wait, hold on. What did you just say, Hwaryeon? Did I hear that right?
"Hmph! Hwaryeon, if you manage to earn coins and come down here, I’ll lick them! I’ll lick them, alright!"
Wow... is this that "reward" from a certain industry... the foot-licking thing...?
I have to admit, I’m getting curious. A beautiful woman, licking feet with a look of utter reluctance... just to get some coins...
Damn... I can picture it now. Is this really going to happen? Give it your best shot, Hwaryeon! I’m rooting for you! I’m happy with any outcome!!!
Now, the "Karma War" between Hwaryeon and Cheonma... is starting... RIGHT NOW!!!
...I miss the voice of the esports casters from the barracks... If one of them were here to commentate, it would be truly legendary. I’ll never hear that again, though...
...Maybe once I get stronger, I should try commentating like a pro caster when these guys are at it?
I chuckled at the fun thought and watched Hwaryeon. She picked up a coin with one hand, slotted it into the machine, and stared at the screen with a look of supreme confidence. Then, with her other hand, she performed a little sleight-of-hand trick, moving the coin between her fingers while starting to mutter under her breath.
Is that... a spell?
Well, if those kinds of actions could actually boost the 1% probability of the Gacha... then Gacha players would do anything. The fact that Hwaryeon was going all-in like this made me, as a fellow Gacha player, feel a sense of pride.
As soon as her muttering stopped, Hwaryeon’s eyes flashed, and she pulled the lever.
As Hwaryeon pulled the lever, images of Rock, Paper, and Scissors began to cycle rapidly in the center of the screen.
A moment later, with a beep, the screen changed and began the countdown.
Beep—
10
9
...
2
1
!
Rock!
Paper!
Scissors!
Clack!
The moment the machine’s audio cue ended, Hwaryeon slammed the "Scissors" button with a confident expression.
Me: Scissors VS RockPaperScissors: Paper
WIN / LOSE
She won!
Surprisingly, whether it was Hwaryeon’s "spell" or not, she had secured her first victory from the machine.
"..."
Cheonma, who had been staring at the screen with wide, speechless eyes, soon found Hwaryeon looking down at her with a look of utter contempt.
"Did you see that, Cheonma? This is what we call 'class.'"
"...Yeah~ you’re probably only going to get 1 coin~ and then a losing streak~"
"Honestly... that personality of yours... keep thinking that if you want."
Cheonma, who hated to lose, kept trying to provoke Hwaryeon until the very end, but Hwaryeon didn't take the bait.
※ ROCK PAPER SCISSORS ※
Pull the lever to win a massive amount of coins!
Clunk—
Hwaryeon turned away from Cheonma to face the screen, a triumphant smile on her face as she pulled the lever with excitement.
COIN REWARD
100 | 500 | ☞ 1 | 1000 | 50
And it took only a few seconds for that smile to vanish from her lips.
"Oh well~ You’ve won 1 coin~ You really are unlucky. Please try again~"
Hearing the machine’s devastating announcement, she stared at the screen in disbelief.
*Slide—*
A black circle appeared on the joystick, vanished, and in its place sat a single golden Gacha coin.
"Pwahahahaha! See? I told you! I said you’d only get one, didn't I?"
...
Cheonma, seeing the "1 Coin" on the screen, clutched her stomach and pointed her finger directly at Hwaryeon, laughing her head off. I quickly turned my head to look at Hwaryeon.
Hwaryeon’s condition... didn't look good.
She covered her eyes with one hand, tilted her head back, and looked up at the sky. And then, suddenly, Hwaryeon laughed. Like a madwoman.
"Ha... Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha—!"
When she stopped laughing and looked back down at the screen, the look in her eyes was strange.
"H-hey, Hwaryeon..."
"What."
Flash—
"..."
H-Hwaryeon? I... I’m scared...
I had been trying to soothe and cheer her on, but I couldn't help but shrink back at the predatory, flashing glint in her eyes.
Clunk—
Hwaryeon shoved the coin back into the slot and pulled the lever.
...
She lost.
As expected... without any major surprises, Hwaryeon was down to zero coins.
"Pwahahahaha! Hwaryeon~ you’re at zero coins too? Wow~ look at us, we’re both at zero coins now~ so... why don't you hurry up and get down here? It’s unpleasant having you looking down at me from up there."
"Aaaaaaaah—!"
As Cheonma’s mocking voice rang out, Hwaryeon’s mental state shattered; she screamed, scrambled off the machine, and collapsed to the floor.
"..."
"...Amitabha...! Young hero... then I shall give it a try! I feel as though I might be able to show you the will of the Buddha this time!"
Judang, the monk, stepped up with a pious bow, eyes fixed on the screen.
"Amitabha... Infinite Life Buddha..."
Judang inserted the coin into the slot, closed her eyes, grabbed the lever with her other hand, and began chanting sutras.
"Hup—!"
A moment later, with a shout of focus, Judang’s eyes snapped open and she yanked the lever.
...
She lost.
As expected... Judang also failed to show the will of the Buddha and suffered a defeat without any major surprises.
"Poof~ You lost, so what are you doing? Hurry up and make up for what you lost! I’ll be your opponent!"
The devilish voice echoed from the machine.
Grind—
Judang, grinding her teeth, set down the large prayer beads she had been carrying on her back.
"It is rare... for something to stir the character of this monk so... I shall see this through to the end today!"
...
Time passed.
The pious monk from a moment ago was gone... and only a monk trembling and sobbing with zero coins left remained.
"Huu... huu... whyyyyyyy!"
Judang’s pitiful wail pierced my ears.
Sigh... I’ll make you some good somaek (soju and beer) later... let’s find comfort in that.
At this rate... the five of them have such terrible luck... I wonder if the last one, Lancelot, will... actually hit the jackpot?