Chapter 138
Chapter 138
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: How to Steal the Protagonist's Woman
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"Haa... haa..."
The harsh sound of heavy breathing filled the room, its walls entirely made of steel.
The space was about 100 pyeong, roughly cubic in shape with a high ceiling.
Countless holes dotted the steel walls, and in the center of the room stood a lone woman.
Wearing a white shirt and elegant-looking black cotton trousers, the woman stood in a spirited pose, gripping her sword tightly even as she gasped for air..
Her sweat-soaked white shirt had turned translucent, revealing everything underneath, but the woman catching her breath paid it no mind.
There was no one around to begin with, and even if a man were present, she wasn't the type to care.
After regulating her breathing for a while, Song Ara focused her eyes and shouted.
"Level 7... start!"
At her cry, a barrage of bullets erupted from the holes in the walls, hurtling toward her at tremendous speed.
Despite the menacing onslaught, she didn't dodge a single shot.
Clang!Kakang!Klang!
She slashed and deflected the endless stream of bullets with her blade.
Just as it seemed she would block them all, one bullet grazed the back of her hand.
"Ow!"
The moment it struck her, the bullets stopped firing from the holes.
"Ssp..."
Song Ara swung her arm around, enduring the stinging pain on the back of her hand.
The floor was littered with the spherical plastic bullets that had been fired up to that point.
After shaking her hand vigorously for a while, Song Ara collapsed onto the floor, spread-eagled.
Sweat beaded endlessly on her forehead, glistening silver as it dripped to the ground. Her shirt, soaked through, now clearly exposed her skin beneath.
But none of that mattered to her.
Her mind was entirely consumed by the morning's sparring session.
Instructor Seong Suho interfering every time she was on the verge of landing a hit on Instructor Cho Seo-hyun.
"...How could I have won?"
The morning's class had been nothing more than a sparring exercise unrelated to actual victory or defeat.
Knowing that, she wasn't angry or frustrated about what happened.
Just... every time she nearly reached Cho Seo-hyun, Instructor Seong Suho would interfere.
It only fueled her burning desire to surpass that obstacle.
Recalling the morning's events, she had skipped dinner and headed straight to the cadet training hall.
Yeah... skipped dinner entirely.
"Wait! What time is it!?"
She hurriedly glanced at the electronic clock on the wall.
10:34
Dinner time had long passed, and it was now past lights-out. The cafeteria closed at 10 PM sharp, so no one would serve her now.
Song Ara stared at the clock in dismay and muttered.
"My dinner..."
Whining about food, she slumped her shoulders, grabbed her cadet jacket, and trudged back to the dorms.
Seong Sua held my child-sized hand as we toured the village, chattering away.
"For now, it might be good to switch to night mode village."
"Night mode village?"
This game synced its in-game time perfectly with real-world time.
If it was 10 PM outside, it was 10 PM here. 8 AM outside meant 8 AM here.
To accommodate players like us who logged in late after work, there was a system to shift NPC activity hours and shop availability to nighttime, she explained.
"It says you can apply and change it right away, so let's try it."
"Sure."
Seong Sua's demeanor toward me had softened a bit as my instructor, but in the game, she was a completely different person.
Maybe it was my kid-like appearance, or the total disconnect from the outside world, but she acted without any reservations.
From hand-holding to hugs—she was making up for the whole weekend in a single day.
And with my shrunken body, there was this amusing discovery.
'Whoa... Looking up at boobs from below feels kinda weird.'
Having only ever looked down at women's chests before, gazing up like this felt strangely novel.
I had a feeling the current Seong Sua might even forgive me if I accidentally groped them.
Thankfully, we arrived at the village office before any sleazy urges could swell up.
"It says if you apply for night mode here, the other NPCs will move in at night and start their activities too."
Seong Sua gripped my hand tightly and led me inside.
Man, I'm really getting the full kid treatment...
Once inside the village office, Seong Sua glanced around.
She scanned the area, then pointed to one spot.
"Right here... Oh, talk to that character."
Sitting there was a single NPC.
I couldn't help but drop Seong Sua's hand and rush over to check it out the moment I saw it.
"Whoa!!"
"???"
The NPC I was ogling was a 1.5-head-tall SD character that looked like an anthropomorphic puppy.
A girl character, unmistakably the village mascot.
The moment I dashed up and spoke to her, she greeted me.
"Hello! I'm Banguli! How can I help you?"
"Whoa... amazing... so... cute..."
Having only played NTR games up to now, characters like this were rare for me.
This was the cutest one I'd ever seen in my life.
Just like how Seong Sua hugged and held my hand with skinship, I suddenly wanted to scoop this character up and squeeze her.
Grinning brightly, I raved to Seong Sua about how adorable Banguli was.
"Whoa, Instructor Seong Sua, isn't this character just the cutest?"
"..."
"...?"
But Seong Sua's expression had soured.
Sensing the sudden shift in mood, I awkwardly opened my mouth.
"Uh... isn't she cute?"
"...Let's switch to night mode quick and get out."
Seong Sua hurried over to Banguli, made the change, then grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the village office.
I was pulled along by her hand all the way home.
With my tiny frame, I couldn't resist her strength at all.
The moment we got home, I cautiously asked.
"Um... Instructor Seong Sua? Is something wrong?"
"...Ah, no. I just want to hurry up and do all the stuff we couldn't over the weekend."
Seong Sua forced a smile at me and squeezed my hand tight.
Watching her like that, I sent a mental message.
'She gets jealous over something like that?'
[When alone together, excessive attention on another being irks her, it seems.]
'Come on, I just said she was cute... What do you think? Wasn't Banguli cute?'
[Not my type.]
'...'
You too?
Today, Seong Sua and I decided to wander the village and go fishing.
Our first goal: pay off the house loan and upgrade it one level.
Decorating could wait until after the upgrade, per the plan.
As we fished leisurely, I asked her a question.
"Instructor Seong Sua, do you know what kind of classes the Healing Department does?"
"Healing Department?"
Seong Sua pondered for a moment before speaking.
"Hmm... Honestly, I don't know much about Healing Department either."
"Oh..."
"Healing department cadets are mostly trained in strictly controlled facilities under the Order. Even instructors probably can't enter the Healing Department building."
If even someone like Seong Sua couldn't get in, it was no ordinary place.
I'd probably get dragged away before graduation if I loitered around it.
'Man, it's just a place to teach kids, but why's it so different from Knight or Magic Department?'
[...Even if it's for teaching cadets, the security feels excessively tight.]
'To uncover anything, I'd need a way to infiltrate the interior.'
I had Stealth, but against the heroes here, it'd be exposed for sure.
If caught mid-stealth, I'd be arrested red-handed with no escape...
And Healing Department was where this world's protagonist, Cho Kang-hyun, roamed.
Near that guy, I'd get caught 100%, stealth level be damned.
Die trying to dig up info on Cho Kang-hyun, caught by the man himself.
I needed to scout alternative methods.
As I fell silent, Seong Sua placed a hand on my shoulder and asked softly.
"Why the sudden interest in the Healing Department?"
"Ah... just curious. Haha..."
"Come on, tell me~"
Seong Sua poked my side with a playful grin.
But those pokes forced me into a ridiculous dance.
"W-Wait! Haha! Hehe!"
"Oh? So ticklish. Ei!"
"S-Stop!! Hyaang!! Uwaaa!!"
She tickled me relentlessly until I surrendered and opened up, finally stopping.
"I-It’s... haa... haa... just that there's so little known about it, so I was curious... haa... haa..."
"Hehe... Yeah, even most Yeong-sa graduates are curious since they know so little about it."
She said cadets often got scolded for snooping around the building out of curiosity.
For now, there was no info to glean from Seong Sua.
'Haa... Thought I was gonna die. Almost spilled Cho Kang-hyun's name...'
[Why not just ask about Cho Kang-hyun directly?]
'No way, absolutely not.'
Seong Sua would answer questions about him readily, filtering out anything suspicious with her personality.
But the issue was her sense of guilt.
Here we were, laughing and chatting secretly from her fiancé—if even a hint of guilt over Cho Kang-hyun crept in, our VR time together could end abruptly.
'Gotta hold off on anything tying back to Cho Kang-hyun. At least until she likes me as a man. Right now, it'd be poison.'
While Seong Sua was in this VR world, she needed to develop romantic feelings for me.
Avoid any situation where Cho Kang-hyun crossed her mind while with me.
Unlike the other women I'd met, until my affection took deep root in her heart, the key was to go along with her lead.
Keep immersed in the role-play so no stray thoughts intruded.
"Alright~ Look, fish over there. Let's catch 'em quick!"
"Whoa!"
Seong Sua scooped me up effortlessly, hugged me close, and headed toward the fish silhouettes.
I stretched with a yawn as sleep suddenly washed over me.
"Huaaah..."
"..."
It was nearing midnight.
The moonlit forest felt anything but dark.
Honestly, no need for those glowworms from before at this brightness.
This deserted forest didn't feel scary at all, thanks to the game's design.
My inventory brimmed with fish.
All depicted in cute dot-graphics style.
I grabbed the latest catch, shook it in my hand, and laughed.
"Definitely feels like a game—no grossness at all."
"Glow worms and bugs are all rendered that cute too, probably."
"Shall we sell and wrap up for today?"
"Ah..."
Seong Sua looked disappointed as she replied.
"Um... can we do a bit more? I'd like to pay off the loan faster."
"Ah... but wouldn't it be fine to take it slow? It's a chill game, right?"
"Hehe... Paying off the loan quick lets us chill even more, no?"
What is this? Legendary legend status?
Slow life, but grind like mad to pay loans and then slow life?
"If you're sleepy... here!"
"Eep!"
Seong Sua suddenly plopped me on her lap and stroked my head.
"Take a nap here. I'll catch more in the meantime."
"B-But... I feel bad every time..."
"Psh... No need to feel bad about that."
Sitting on Seong Sua's lap, I felt her soft breasts against the back of my neck.
She had to feel my touch too, yet she hugged me without hesitation.
The squishy warmth teased my nape, then slowly stirred my lower abdomen.
But beyond that stimulation, being cradled in her arms brought a torrent of drowsiness.
In my half-asleep haze, I messaged mentally.
'Haa... Armonia... wake me in the morning...'
[Understood.]
Unable to fight the sleep any longer, I closed my eyes and drifted off.
Seong Sua gazed at the suddenly sleeping Seong Su-ho and whispered softly.
"Su-ho...?"
"Hng..."
Whether from the VR headset dulling his senses, Seong Su-ho didn't wake from her touch.
Seong Sua gently hoisted him onto her back and carried him home.
As she walked, worry began to creep in.
'...Will he think it's weird? Me bothering him like this until he falls asleep every time...'
Thankfully, Seong Su-ho showed no signs of annoyance.
But from Seong Sua's perspective, unease was starting to build.
If the tail grows too long, it gets stepped on. A universal truth across worlds.
Seong Sua, usually so composed, felt herself increasingly succumbing to deviant thrills here.
Yet, entranced once more, she hugged Seong Suho tight and lay on the bed.
Wrapping him in both arms, Seong Sua murmured.
"Haa... How can you be this cute?"
"Hng..."
She stroked his cheek until he fell fully asleep.
"...Ung?"
"..."
I blinked awake to sunlight, greeted by an unfamiliar sight.
Two magnificent mountain peaks welcoming me.
Seong Sua, hugging me tight in her sleep, breathing softly.
Her breasts rubbing my cheeks instantly banished my morning drowsiness.
Recharging my yin energy from those glorious mounds, a mental message chimed in.
[Master, are you awake?]
The voice and tone made it obvious who it was.
'Ah, Lena?'
[Yes, that's me.]
'Whoa, watched over me all night? Thanks.'
This was my first mental chat with anyone besides Armonia, so I was about to ramble on excitedly.
[Um... Master.]
'Yeah? What's up?'
Lena hesitated, then spoke.
[Seong Sua... She's a cunning woman. Be careful.]
'...'
You too...?