Chapter 145
Chapter 145
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 145
Chapter Title: How to Steal the Protagonist's Woman
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On my way to the cafeteria with Song Ara, a communication came in from Armonia.
'Yeah, if it had just been the two of us, we might not have noticed. Thanks, Lena.'
While I was distracted giving Song Ara advice on archery, Lena had been waiting in the warp room ahead of time for her shift change.
Lena had spotted Cho Seo-hyun's presence on the screen—the faint sounds and subtle visuals we hadn't detected—and alerted us.
Plus, her low Stealth skill had played a part in making her easier to spot.
The moment I learned Cho Seo-hyun was there, I deliberately shattered the mood with Song Ara just to praise her.
Sure, I might have come off like a stuffy instructor to Song Ara, but right then, Cho Seo-hyun took priority.
Thankfully, Song Ara understood my frustration.
'It wasn't empty words.'
She was a woman who had endured such pain during her school days yet came here and steadfastly worked for the cadets.
...Even if her personality was a bit wild like a cat.
I arrived at the cafeteria with Song Ara while chatting via comms.
It was already 8 o'clock.
<'Hehe... I'll eat quickly and then give Seong Sua's back a... huh?'
The moment we stepped inside the cafeteria, one person was there to greet us.
"Eh? Instructor?"
"Instructor Cho Seo-hyun?"
"... "
Cho Seo-hyun leaned against the wall with her arms crossed, glancing at us.
But her pose and expression felt different from usual.
She always tried to carry some weight, but right now, she exuded an especially heavy aura.
She watched us quietly, then straightened up with a snap and turned to Song Ara.
"Where are you two coming from?"
"Ah~ Instructor Seong Su-ho helped me with training. We're about to grab some food now."
"...I see."
Cho Seo-hyun gave a faint smile as she glanced at me, then picked up a tray.
"If you're eating, let's eat together."
Lights flickered on in the dark room, welcoming Cho Seo-hyun.
But she didn't react to the light greeting her, walking silently with a blank expression before collapsing face-down onto the bed.
She mumbled into her pillow.
"...What a mess."
As she muttered, Seong Su-ho's words from the shooting range echoed in her mind.
(You can't talk about Instructor Cho Seo-hyun like that. She's someone who spends all day thinking about how to teach you better. Calling someone like that 'cute' would be rude, wouldn't it?)
(In my eyes, among all the instructors here, no one has as much sense of responsibility or works as hard as her. It's no exaggeration to say she's devoting herself entirely to teaching you all.)
Cho Seo-hyun had spent her whole life striving for recognition.
Her first efforts had brought her endless violence and scorn during school.
After joining a mid-sized guild, she fought to overcome her trauma and earn acknowledgment.
But all she got were the shadows of Cho Kang-hyun's fame and guildmates treating her like a kid behind her back.
They didn't mean any harm.
But that constant treatment gradually evaporated the camaraderie within her, and eventually, all her comrades drifted away.
As family, friends, and comrades vanished, leaving her to battle loneliness, she received the notice to serve as an instructor at the Hero's Office.
When she received the notice, She saw it as an opportunity.
A chance to untie the knots in her tangled life...
She never laid a hand on the cadets. She poured her heart into them.
Things seemed to be going smoothly.
But there was a problem.
The assistant instructors.
Every single one who came aboard showed zero sense of responsibility.
Just when she'd think she could work with them, they'd quit.
Even if it was the best job around, the workload and pressure were no joke.
And having experienced discrimination against non-official instructors firsthand, they often lost motivation from the sense of deprivation.
Even understanding them, she couldn't grow attached.
But that man was different.
"Like an idiot... why was I crying there?"
Just hearing Seong Su-ho's words had brought tears she couldn't hold back.
She couldn't even remember the last time someone had acknowledged her like that.
His unexpected lines struck at her heart, and before she knew it, tears were flowing.
After being spotted by the two, she rushed back to the dorm to compose herself, but for once, she didn't want to.
For the first time, she followed her heart—waited for Seong Suho in front of the cafeteria and ate with him.
"...I wonder if we can eat together tomorrow too."
She murmured that, then smiled and buried her face in the pillow.
I put on my VR headset and immediately checked Cho Seo-hyun's login status.
'...Hmm? She's not playing the game today.'
The Cho Seo-hyun who'd fled earlier had waited at the cafeteria with Song Ara after we left and eaten together.
It was completely different from when we had lunch together earlier.
She hadn't said a word the whole meal.
Just quietly ate while sneaking glances.
As I thought about Cho Seo-hyun, a laugh slipped out unbidden.
'This is hilarious.'<
'Nah, it's just funny when I think about it. We haven't even seen Cho Kang-hyun yet. We haven't exchanged a single word with that guy or dug up any info on him, but somehow I've gotten pretty close to Cho Seo-hyun and Seong Sua. That's what's cracking me up.'
Since my targets were Cho Seo-hyun and Seong Sua, there were no issues there.
But at this point, I was starting to get curious about what Cho Kang-hyun looked like.
It was the start of week three at the Hero's Office, and despite meeting Seong Sua and Cho Seo-hyun every weekday, I hadn't caught so much as a single hair of Cho Kang-hyun.
As I mulled over Cho Kang-hyun, Armonia abruptly switched topics.
'Huh? Out of nowhere?'
It sounded so random.
Suddenly?
But Armonia had brought it up because of the Cho Kang-hyun topic we'd just discussed.
She was right, of course.
There was no guarantee Cho Kang-hyun would keep avoiding the two women forever.
If he was busy now but suddenly started meeting them frequently in a month, it'd put me in a tough spot.
'Fair enough. Then we'll need to clear at least a full day—or more—from Yggdrasil.'
To spend about two weeks (14 days) at the Hero's Office, I'd need to arrange at least 34 hours away from Yggdrasil.
Or just openly take two full days off and operate there for three weeks.
'Come to think of it, blowing off Hero's Office weekends wasn't that efficient.'
It might feel like I'm getting ahead of myself, but if I were to go on a date, I would absolutely have to use the weekends.
Weekday Hero's Office duties were insanely busy.
Even if it wasn't a date, spending a long time together in a VR game like this over the weekend would be helpful.
As I pondered, Seong Sua's voice chimed in.
(You're here?)
..
..
"Ah... So you can't do this weekend either."
"You play with me every day, so I'm sorry for making it feel like it's being interrupted because of me."
"Pfft! Just take it slow and enjoy."
Seong Sua laughed and... patted my head.
At this point, curiosity was kicking in.
'Can you have sex in VR?'
It sounded ridiculous, but I was genuinely wondering.
Sure, you could probably force it, but if the game software didn't support it, would you even feel the sensations properly?
And Armonia had the answer.
It was made targeting long-distance couples, so sex was possible.
But since the main goal was wholesome slow-life gameplay, the sensitivity was dialed down—and hilariously, genitals even had mosaics.
VR mosaics? I kinda wanted to try it once.
'...Nah, it'd be novel at first, but I can already see my future self complaining it's trash after a while.'
NTL games were 99 out of 100 mosaicked by default.
I still didn't get it.
It's an eroge anyway—why bother with mosaics...?
As I dwelled on nonsense, Seong Sua spoke up with a smile.
"Oh yeah, we're almost done paying off the first loan."
"If things go well, we'll finish tomorrow."
The house Seong Sua and I shared was a small cabin.
Built for one person, it was basic and tough to decorate due to its size.
Without paying off the first loan, NPCs wouldn't move in, and basic progression stalled.
Most players would've cleared it ages ago and been decorating the village by now.
But Seong Sua and I were taking it leisurely together, so progress was slow.
We were fishing now, but even without fish silhouettes, we'd often just sit and wait.
Chatting idly like that, it was late again.
"I'll sell the fish."
"Ah, it must be a hassle every time. Let me this once..."
"No, you head home first."
"...Okay."
I stayed put until Seong Sua's figure vanished.
The instant she was gone... I carefully moved.
No one was around here for sure.
The village had only two special NPCs residing, but I snuck off cautiously without being seen.
My destination wasn't the cabin I shared with Seong Sua, but another building.
It didn't look pristine, but compared to the cabin, it had a distinct air of importance...
I stepped into the lit building and shouted.
"Banguli!! I missed you!!"
..
..
I stroked the fluffy fur on the back of Banguli's hand, murmuring.
"Haa... Haa... So cute..."
"Thank you!"
Her AI was a bit behind, only giving simple responses, but the cuteness didn't fade.
If I were a girl like Seong Sua, I might've hugged her tight.
But as a guy, I settled for fondling her big hand and panting.
'Whoa, just like puppy fur. Love it...'
'...'
Up close it's affection, from afar it's harassment!? Huh!?
As I kept petting Banguli's fluffy hand, Armonia warned me.
'Hah... Hah... One more minute...'
BAM!
The door flew open as if it might shatter, the bang echoing through the building.
And in rushed a frantic woman...
"Haa... Haa..."
"... "
I looked up at Seong Sua striding toward me, her eyebrows twitching as she stared down quietly.
"Instructor Seong Su-ho... What are you doing here?"
"Well..."
Overwhelmed by Seong Sua, I couldn't muster an excuse and yelled over comms instead.
'This is all Armonia's fault!!'
