High-End Game (1)
High-End Game (1)
As soon as I opened the classroom door, what I saw was Hyun-woo's back, heroically oxidized.
It was all well and good to escape 'Utopia' by hiding behind the sunbaes' backs. But being overly diligent and coming early to grab a seat was a fatal mistake.
He was already surrounded by layers of female students. As soon as Hyun-woo, who was barely able to breathe, spotted me, he sent a desperate SOS with a pale face.
'Please... save me...'
I confirmed that wretched gaze and very quietly turned my head away.
'···I'm sorry.'
You're already a goner. That place is a swamp. If I go in to save you, we both die.
If I went in to save him out of loyalty, it would only lead to a grand catastrophe where even the rescue worker gets buried.
Every man for himself. Isn't that the logic of this world?
And hey, friend. Think positively. Isn't this a heaven-sent opportunity to develop your social skills? If you only hang around with a gloomy guy like me every day, how will you ever adapt properly when you go out into society later?
All this pain you're experiencing now will become your blood and flesh. Steel your heart and endure it.
It's absolutely not because I'm scared and running away. It's just a tearful act of bystanderism for my friend's growth.
'······Anyway, where should I sit.'
I scanned the classroom with a troubled expression.
There were no empty seats. No, to be precise, there were plenty of places where 'the seat next to me' was left empty, but that was a trap, and that was the problem.
Just then, I saw a familiar face in the back row far away.
Shin Ga-young.
As soon as our eyes met, she subtly moved her bag from the seat next to her to the floor. It was silent pressure telling me to come and sit quickly.
The problem was, the surrounding area there wasn't easy either.
'······Should I just pretend not to see and stick myself in the very front row?'
But before I could even turn my head, loud calls poured in from all directions.
I tried to look away, but the situation wasn't much different. Voices calling me from here and there hit my ears.
"Excuse me, there's a seat here!"
"Jin-hyuk-ah! This side is empty!"
They were faces I didn't know at all, yet they acted as happy to see me as if we were ten-year-old friends. Who the hell are you guys to act like you know me?
There was nowhere to hide. Rather than being squeezed between total strangers and subjected to a real-time background check, it was better to go with someone I at least knew.
I had no choice but to pick the second-best option.
Ttap-ttap.
I walked over to the seat next to the class rep and plopped down.
Then, Ga-young let out a deep sigh of relief and leaned toward me.
"That's a relief. Other kids kept asking for the seat, so I almost lost it."
As if her words weren't an exaggeration, stinging glares flew from all directions and pierced me.
'So she's going to keep him all to herself, huh?'
'She's really throwing her weight around just because she's the class rep.'
Even if I couldn't hear them, I could practically hear the resentful voices.
I felt like I was sitting on a bed of nails for no reason, but Ga-young didn't care and just grinned.
"What are you doing after class? Have you eaten? Did you go to that Utopia club earlier?"
A barrage of questions came flying in without giving me a moment to breathe.
I activated my defense mechanism and deflected them with dry, short answers devoid of emotion.
"Going home. Didn't eat. Went there."
"Ah, really?"
She looked like she wanted to dig deeper, but I kept my mouth shut.
If I let my tongue wag any more, forget 'Utopia,' even the 'Hanlim Classic Studies Society' that I really needed to hide might slip out.
That place is absolutely off-limits. It's top secret.
From now on, that's my own little honey pot that nobody knows about.
Especially Park Hyun-woo. It's even more of a secret from that guy.
I'm still not sure if he has any loyalty or not. What if he gets caught by the girls and faces concentrated fire? He might spill all my information just to find a way to save his own skin.
Then my peace would be over. I don't want to see an article titled 'A Male Student's Secret Reading Club' on the front page of the school paper tomorrow morning.
Fortunately, the professor entered, and the noisy atmosphere settled down.
Feeling like I had met a savior, I opened my textbook.
I didn't slack off during this class and focused intensely. Since I slept too much in the morning, I wasn't sleepy, and there's nothing like mindless note-taking to clear away stray thoughts.
.
.
.
"Alright, that's it for today's class."
As soon as the professor's declaration of the end dropped, I packed my bag.
"I'm heading out."
"Huh? You're leaving already?"
Ga-young's eyes went wide as if she were disappointed, but I stood up without any lingering regrets.
"Yeah. I'm tired. You get home safe too."
"Uh... yeah. Bye."
Leaving her gaze behind, I grabbed the scruff of Hyun-woo's neck as he lay sprawled out on the desk like dried radish greens.
"Hey, get up. Let's go home."
Hyun-woo, who was practically dragged out into the hallway, made a crying face.
"Hey... why did you abandon me? So disloyal."
"Who told you to go so early and get surrounded? You brought it on yourself."
"No, you came late..."
The guy pouted and grumbled, but I moved my feet as if I weren't even listening.
It was then.
"...Excuse me!"
"Jin-hyuk-ah, Hyun-woo-ya! Wait a second!"
The classroom door opened, and a crowd of female students poured out.
The target was clear.
It was us.
"Can you give me your phone number?"
"Where do you live? If we're going the same way, I'll give you a ride."
A deluge of questions poured in. In my original world, it was daily life for men to chase after women to woo them. Here, women are much more proactive and blunt.
It's beyond burdensome; it's almost scary.
Pretending not to hear, we only sent back apologetic glances as we hurried through the crowd.
We barely managed to escape the building and catch our breath when I saw a familiar back in a gray tracksuit walking a bit ahead.
'Huh?'
It's Room 703. The way she walked sluggishly with her hat pulled down low was unmistakably the woman from upstairs.
I hesitated for a moment. Should I act like I know her, or not?
Honestly, it's a hassle. If I go and say hello, we'll have to talk, and we'll have to walk awkwardly in sync all the way home. Should I just pretend I didn't see her and go slowly?
'···Eh, still, we ate together earlier.'
Since I technically even bought her lunch with my own money and ate with her, it felt a bit wrong to just ignore her and pass by.
Just then, as if she felt my gaze, she slowly turned her head. Our eyes met perfectly.
"······."
"······."
I missed the timing to avoid her. I had no choice but to nod my head.
"Are you heading home, Sunbae-nim?"
"Yeah. ...Room 603."
She didn't stop even after discovering me. She just nodded her head while maintaining her walking speed. Naturally, it looked like Hyun-woo and I were joining her side.
"Are you on your way home?"
"Yes."
"We're going the same way too."
"Okay."
The conversation ended there. There was no more small talk or concern. She walked looking straight ahead with her earphones in, and I didn't bother to say anything more either.
That silence was strangely comfortable.
Hyun-woo, who was next to me, widened his eyes and whispered in my ear.
"Hey, who is this person? Do you know her?"
"Ah."
I answered nonchalantly.
"My neighbor."
"Neighbor?"
"Yeah. She lives upstairs."
There wasn't much else to explain. We ate together today and we play games together, but it was too much work to explain all the details.
'···It's strange.'
Usually, walking with a woman is draining. But with this person, there's no sense of impact, as if I'm walking with an invisible person.
In this world where male-female relationships are exceptionally complex and sensitive, to have this level of dryness.
As expected. It seems the camaraderie forged through the Storm of Time and Space is thicker than water. This is all thanks to the great S-Gong.
"Are you going to run the game as soon as you get home?"
"Yeah. Of course."
She replied indifferently while taking out one earphone. Then, as if she suddenly remembered, she added bluntly.
"Ah, right."
"Yes?"
"Looking at the BattleTag, the Dark Knight who was playing with me yesterday was you."
"······."
So she knew. She saw it when I entered my ID at the restaurant, but she just didn't act like she knew and moved on.
As expected. A master keeps their mouth shut.
Beside me, Hyun-woo was rolling his eyes with an expression asking 'What's a Dark Knight' and 'What's S-Gong,' but I didn't bother explaining.
Anyway, it's a profound world of our own that an ordinary person wouldn't understand even if they died and came back to life.
She smirked and looked at me.
"Go home, wash up, and log on immediately. To join the queue."
"Sounds good."
The corners of my mouth went up without me realizing it.
Yeah. For now, it's S-Gong.
'···But did this person already forget about the thumping yesterday?'
Well. Getting into this and that just makes things tiring. In this field, indifference is the greatest virtue. Whatever it is. If I worry about every little thing, I'm the only one who loses out.
I sent Hyun-woo off first at the fork in the road and got into the elevator with Room 703. A familiar movement between floors. Even the quiet air filling the small space was comfortable.
Ding—
"See you in a bit."
"Yes. Get in safely."
We parted ways coolly without even looking back.
.
.
.
As soon as I got home, I tossed my bag into the corner of the bed and immediately turned on the computer. Wiing, the sound of the fan spinning filled the room cheerfully.
Ttiring.
[Baramjeomuneundal has invited you to a party.]
An invitation message flew in as soon as I logged on. That was fast. This noona... she must have turned it on without even washing.
Imagining that scene, a smirk escaped me involuntarily.
.
.
.
Had we played barely one round of S-Gong like that? Before the victory screen even appeared, the chat window popped up first.
[Party] Baramjeomuneundal: Ah... I'm already bored.
[Party] Baramjeomuneundal: As expected of S-Gong... the taste of shit is too strong.
Ennui was dripping from the chat window. I agreed. Usually, the taste of shit is best in moderation; if you keep eating it, you get sick of it.
[Party] Baramjeomuneundal: Let's do something else.
[Party] TimundoNaeGyehoek: Like what?
[Party] Baramjeomuneundal: How about High-class Watch?
"···High-class Watch?"
I tilted my head and typed.
[Party] TimundoNaeGyehoek: Isn't that a paid game? I haven't bought it.
[Party] Baramjeomuneundal: No, it's free. It's been out for ages.
[Party] Baramjeomuneundal: Do you really live with a wall between you and the world?
Ah. Is that so? I was too busy with S-Gong to know how the outside world was turning.
[Party] TimundoNaeGyehoek: I'll install it first and come back. Please wait.
[Party] Baramjeomuneundal: Okay.
She didn't nag, she just said okay. This person is really easygoing.
I typed the game into the search bar. It really is free.
I clicked the install button and stared blankly at the monitor for a moment. Doing it a few times at a PC bang when I was dragged there by friends in middle and high school was everything. My memory is fuzzy.
A moment later, the installation was complete and the game ran. A tutorial pop-up appeared on the screen.
'······What a hassle.'
Skip. Skip. Isn't it just about shooting and hitting things anyway? All FPS games are more or less the same.
Ttiring.
[Whisper to Baramjeomuneundal: Let's go for a Quick Play.]
[Whisper to TimundoNaeGyehoek: Let's go.]
The queue popped, and the hero selection screen appeared. There were many flashy characters, but only one caught my eye.
[ Soldier: 84 ]
The most standard, most familiar guy. Rather than playing a character with complex skills and shitting the bed from the first round, the guy who just runs and shoots is the best.
Looking to the side, the noona from upstairs had already picked. A giant gorilla wearing glasses. A Tank.
'···That shows her personality.'
I can see her determination to jump in without looking back or forth.
[Game Start]
The countdown ended and the doors opened.
[All] Baramjeomuneundal: Let's go!