081. Party Launch Ceremony (2)

'A hideout....... A gift......?'

I sucked in a breath at the unexpected scale of it when Shin Se-hee's expression grew worried.

"......Is it not to your liking, perhaps?"

I stared at her blankly for a moment, then shook my head.

"No, it's not that. I was just a little surprised."

It was perfectly understandable why Shin Se-hee had suddenly prepared a gift like this.

Because I'd intervened and resolved her personal story for her.

'Hoo boy. I meddled in Shin Se-hee's personal story, and now a whole building's rolling in.......'

It was obvious that if I didn't properly accept her repayment now, things would only get more complicated.

Shin Se-hee, perhaps reading the contemplative look on my face, added,

"I didn't mean to make you feel burdened. But considering what you've done for me, Jin Yu-ha, even this isn't enough......."

Of course, I didn't dislike it.

Even thinking about the party members whose numbers would only grow from now on,

and honestly, it did look a little shabby for us to all crowd together in my room every time we had to do something.

In fact, I had already been thinking about shelling out my own money later to secure a separate party hideout.

Shin Se-hee's assistance like this was something to welcome, not something to refuse.

'It's just.......'

I subtly glanced to the side.

Lee Yu-ri, wearing an expression like nothing was wrong.

'......Mm, let's deal with that later.'

"Alright. Got it. I'll gladly accept it."

At that, a relieved look spread across Shin Se-hee's face and she beamed brightly.

"Then, shall we go?"

"By the way, is it just us here right now?"

"No. Do-hee and Ga-eul unni were already here."

'Ah. So Kang Do-hee came early too, I guess.'

Shin Se-hee led us toward the interior.

There was a door set into a massive tree trunk, like a space where elves might live.

We opened the door and entered.

This time, it was a different sight entirely.

With silver and blue decor, a long table in the center, and a hologram projector at the back—it looked just like a modern conference room.

Kang Do-hee and Im Ga-eul had already arrived there.

Im Ga-eul and Kang Do-hee were sitting across from each other at the table, drinking tea.

Im Ga-eul rested her cheek on one hand, a blissful smile on her lips.

Kang Do-hee, on the other hand, sat across from her with her arms crossed and a sulky expression.

"......Sunbae, are you really not going to tell me the full name of that bitch who spread the false rumor?"

Slurrrp—

"The tea here is truly wonderful—♪"

Kang Do-hee shot the question like an interrogation, and Im Ga-eul sipped her tea, pretending not to hear.

When we appeared, Im Ga-eul and Kang Do-hee turned their heads.

"You made it, hoobae? You're early."

"Ah, yes. You got here fast too, sunbae."

"Yeah, can't be late on the first day, after all."

And as soon as Kang Do-hee's eyes met mine, she whipped her head away.

It seemed the resentment from our last sparring match hadn't fully dissolved yet.

'Just wait. Kang Do-hee. I'm going to teach you that grappling I picked up from Instructor, one step at a time.'

I tugged at the corner of my mouth.

"Please sit here, Jin ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Yu-ha."

Shin Se-hee pulled out the chair at the head of the long table, the seat of highest honor.

"Yeah, thanks."

I accepted her consideration and took my seat.

Shin Se-hee, seemingly with no intention of sitting separately, stood behind me with her hands clasped, and Lee Yu-ri sat in the seat next to Im Ga-eul.

And so, all the party members had assembled.

The first to speak was Shin Se-hee.

"Then, Velvet Hunter Academy's first party. We will begin the launch ceremony."

* * *

I swept my gaze over everyone seated.

A modest number, one short of the six that generally compose a standard party.

But the roster of the individuals gathered here was formidable.

A 3-Star Tank showing 5-Star potential, Gukbap Tank Lee Yu-ri.

5-Star Damage Dealer, Velvetsra's Right to Breathe, Kang Do-hee.

4-Star-grade Special, Operator Shin Se-hee.

5-Star Support, the absolute essential pick for top scores, Im Ga-eul.

And me, a 4-Star-grade Damage Dealer.

'It's a little lacking if you're thinking PvP, but for clearing the Main Story alone, this lineup is more than enough to take off.'

What's more, their Chemistry wasn't bad either.

Shin Se-hee was a bit of a sticking point, but in the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠end she wasn't a combat class, so it didn't matter.

Now, as if truly feeling the reality of belonging to a new group, everyone was casting glances my way.

Well, I'd made a big deal about starting the launch ceremony, but I hadn't planned anything particularly special.

I looked at them and spoke.

"First of all, there's something we need to decide above all else."

"Something we need to decide above all else?"

Lee Yu-ri asked, a furrow forming in her brow.

"Yeah, we have to decide on a party name first."

"A party name....... Certainly, it'd be better to settle on a name before we start actively working."

Once the discussion turned to the party, Kang Do-hee dropped her prickly attitude from moments before and spoke in a flat tone.

"Right. At first, even if we claim a name, we'll probably just be known as 'that Velvet Academy party.' But as we get more active, we're going to need to distinguish ourselves from other parties."

"Ah, so you're wary of being lumped in with other academy-affiliated parties, hoobae?"

I nodded at Im Ga-eul's words.

"Yes. At the start, we'll be handling academy requests, but later on I'm planning to focus on direct nomination requests. It's better to set a name now, even for that."

"Mm, and if I might add to that......."

Shin Se-hee added to my explanation from behind me.

What she added were factors to consider when deciding a party name.

A party name should basically be short and intuitive.

And once a name is chosen, it's not recommended to change it later, so you have to be careful and deliberate when deciding.

Her words carried weight, perhaps because they came from someone who had actually led a large party.

The faces of the party members hardened as if they'd just realized how important choosing a party name was.

I smirked to ease the atmosphere.

"Well, no need to get all serious about it. Honestly, what kind of work you end up doing matters a lot more than the party name. I'd just like everyone to throw out whatever names come to mind, casually."

Mmm─

"How about Hard Party?"

There was no need to ask whose opinion that was. It was pure Gukbap.

"......What does that mean."

When I asked, Lee Yu-ri replied as if wondering why I'd even ask.

"......It's exactly what it sounds like? Like, we just want to be a hard, solid party. That's the meaning. A hard and sturdy party! In the sense of lasting a long time!"

In that instant, Im Ga-eul's head snapped to the side.

Pfft!

Her shoulders were trembling, as if she had no intention of hiding that she'd burst out laughing.

'What do you even think hard means, Gukbap.......'

"Hard is a bit off."

Kang Do-hee threw in a rebuke from the side.

"What?"

Lee Yu-ri, her feelings bruised by Im Ga-eul's mockery a moment ago, scowled.

"The meaning is okay, but the sound of it is a little... bad. Instead─."

Kang Do-hee stretched the end of her sentence and stroked her chin.

"Fire Punch."

Thud!

Im Ga-eul planted her head on the table.

The back of her head was quivering, like she was trying to hold in laughter but just couldn't.

"......That's, just, putting it in English as Fire Fist—isn't that just because you thought it would sound cool......? And I have absolutely no idea what Fire Fist is supposed to represent about our party's image?"

Shin Se-hee looked down at Kang Do-hee with eyes gone cold and flat.

At that blunt truth, Kang Do-hee bit her lip.

"Then why don't you try, Flowerbed-Head?"

"Mmm, how about Of the, By the, For the Yu-ha?"

At that, everyone's eyes glared at her coldly.

"The party of Yu-ha, by Yu-ha, and for Yu-ha......?"

"Weren't you the one who said from the start we should keep it short and concise, Flowerbed?"

"......Th-that is our party identity, isn't it?!"

Shin Se-hee cried out, her face turning bright red.

This time, unexpectedly, Im Ga-eul didn't laugh.

"......It's true, everyone here did join because of hoobae, really—. Mmm, if I were to express that concisely......."

She tapped her lips twice with her index finger and fell deep into thought.

"......Isn't that just a reverse-harem party?"

A sudden silence descended over Im Ga-eul's words.

"......."

"......."

"......."

"......."

All eyes converged on Im Ga-eul.

She spoke with a flustered face.

"I-I think that's weird too! This isn't my opinion, it's Se-hee hoobae's opinion!"

Im Ga-eul immediately deflected the gazes directed at her onto her hoobae with the seasoned authority of a sunbae.

I shook my head at their input.

"Haa, looks like I'd better just decide myself....... You guys, you really have zero talent for naming things, huh?"

At that, the looks in the party members' eyes instantly sharpened. Eyes that said, "Alright, let's see how well you can do it."

But I just snorted and met their gazes head-on.

I was confident.

Wasn't I the one who'd lived the Velvetsra no-life in the original world, coming across all sorts of kickass party names?

'Hmm, there was a name I saw back then and thought was really awesome. Let me try it out now.'

Everyone's eyes focused on my lips, and I slowly parted them.

"......The Moon Breaker."

At that, they all stared at me with trembling eyes.

"......The Moon."

"......Breaker."

"......The Moon Breaker?"

Lee Yu-ri, Kang Do-hee, and Shin Se-hee each repeated a piece of it.

For a moment, silence fell.

And then.

"Pffhah!!!"

Starting with Im Ga-eul, who completely lost it.

Shin Se-hee turned her head away, her face bright red.

Lee Yu-ri choked back her laughter.

Kang Do-hee tried to maintain a poker face as best she could, but little snickers kept leaking out.

'......What, what's wrong with it!'

I bit my lip.

Im Ga-eul, who'd been cracking up, suddenly composed her face.

Then she spoke in a serious voice.

"The. Moon. Break—er. One who breaks the moon."

"Ahahahah!!!"

Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang.

At that, Lee Yu-ri couldn't hold it in anymore and pounded on the table.

"Pfft, Yellow Dog....... Did you seriously mean that? Ahem!"

"Ah, so, so cute....... Ju-just look at that serious expression....... Pfft!!!"

Kang Do-hee tried to force her laughter down but only managed an even more patronizing expression.

And Shin Se-hee fumbled to fix her expression but ultimately couldn't hold back the laughter.

I wore a sulky face.

I mean, isn't it really cool?

I thought it was a genuinely decent ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠name.......

A moment passed, and just as the laughter was starting to die down a bit.

"Pffht—! Ahahah!"

Im Ga-eul lost it again, unable to hold back her laughter in another burst.

"......."

I ground my teeth and glared at her.

This was all Im Ga-eul's doing.

It was that woman's fault.

A sunbae who makes mom jokes with a perfectly harmless face,

and whose skill at running people in circles is top-tier.

Even now, hadn't her being the first to burst into laughter infected the others?

"Then why don't you offer one yourself, sunbae? Since you just deflected that harem party idea by saying it was Shin Se-hee's opinion."

I spoke to her in a low voice.

At that, Im Ga-eul, her face flushed red from laughing, slowly lifted her head.

"Haa....... Mmm, me? I......."

Im Ga-eul paused, her voice still carrying traces of laughter.

"Utopia?"

Utopia......?

I, who had been ready to immediately shoot down whatever weird thing she said, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠cocked my head slightly to the side.

'Huh? Is that... actually pretty good?'

And there was a glimmer of agreement in the others' eyes too.

"......Utopia. It means an ideal place. And taking the 'Yu' from Jin Yu-ha's name isn't bad either."

"Mm, a party heading toward an ideal land....... I think I like this one too?"

"Utopia Party, Utopia Party....... Four syllables. The length is just right too."

Utopia Party.

As the consensus on our party name seemed to be heading in that direction,

I quietly spoke up.

"......Mmm, still, I'd have liked it if we could fit 'moon' in there....... Uh, how about... MOON-topia......."

At that, Kang Do-hee glared at me with eyes full of contempt.

"Jin Yu-ha. It seems you have no talent not only for cooking, but for naming things. Erase that kind of name from your mind completely, and shut that mouth while I'm still asking nicely."

"Jin Yu-ha, I also think using that name here is a bit... not it."

"Yeah, I don't think that's right either."

Kgh.

Beaten in naming as well as cooking, I trembled, biting down on my lip.

'Jin Yu-ha will remember this day's events.'