Chapter 47
Chapter 47
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: Another Name for the Perk
-----------------------------------------------------------------
**Title: Everyone's a Tsundere?**
—Posted by: Newb120053
(Photo attached)
The title's a joke.
Thank you all.
When I woke up in the morning.
The comments were overflowing with Anomalous Tale Gallery users searching for some inexplicable '1 minute.'
I gave up reading halfway through.
I closed the app and turned on my computer for a mood boost.
I needed some stress relief.
A kind of refresh.
'Just a light game or two.'
That was the plan.
Definitely.
But after five straight losses piled up, my mindset shifted.
Far from a mood boost, it just added more stress.
The result of pouring the whole day into it.
A single line of red text on the screen in front of me.
'Defeat.'
My fingers unconsciously reached for the keyboard, but halfway there, the strength drained out and they went limp.
I slumped my head onto the desk and, out of habit, began analyzing the failure.
The cause of defeat.
"My hands aren't warmed up yet. I'm injured, right? This is actually pretty good considering."
"The jungle gap was huge. They had all the jungle."
"Ultimately, it's a team game. Who you're matched with affects the outcome."
Mumbling excuses or rationalizations—I wasn't sure which—before I knew it, my hand was queuing up again.
Now I knew the cause of defeat.
Knowing the cause meant I wouldn't lose this time.
"This one's different."
I picked an ADC champion and was waiting for the game to start when.
My phone lit up in the corner of the desk.
A familiar name entered my view.
Video call [Kang Su-ji].
Since I was alone in the room, I muted the computer and immediately accepted.
Kang Su-ji's face appeared on the screen.
—Oh, Alpha! Sorry for the sudden video call. My team members wanted to say hi! Is now a good time?
I glanced at the monitor. The chat was exploding.
[Mid Laner: Are you crazy?]
[King General: Ma. Thinks he's got it.]
[Jungle Gap: Just give her to us.]
I typed into chat right away.
[Yeah]
[Go ahead]
—Are you busy by any chance...
"No. Doesn't matter. I'm not busy."
Kang Su-ji beamed at my response.
—Hold on! Alpha, bear with us for a sec.
She turned and shifted in her seat, making the phone screen jolt along.
The camera swiveled around, revealing the surroundings where she'd been.
White wallpaper, IV bags hanging everywhere, and a mobile bed.
It was a hospital room.
"Ugh..."
A groan slipped out unbidden.
Soon, voices erupted from beyond the screen.
—Hey, Lee Jin-seok! Hurry up! You said you wanted to talk to Alpha!
—I'm gonna fall! Seung-tae oppa, stop her!
—No, Seung-ah? Even if you say that, we're all three lying in bed with IVs right now.
—More than that, Jin-seok's recovering fast 'cause he's young.
—What! Oppa! I'm still young too!
In an instant, the screen beyond turned into a noisy chaos.
A moment later, the phone was propped up on one side, and a face appeared.
A fresh-faced young man who looked just over twenty.
His face was full of vitality.
Our eyes met, and a booming voice burst out.
—Big bro!!
"...Big bro?"
Suddenly?
—Yeah! You saved our lives! From now on, you're my big bro! Loyalty! Loyalty!
Laughter bubbled up involuntarily.
"Do you even know how old I am?"
—Kang Su-ji said you're definitely older than her, so call you 'hyung'...
Kang Su-ji on screen was sweating bullets, frantically waving her hands.
—Alpha! No! Hey! Lee Jin-seok! When did I say that! I just... ahem. Said you're probably older than me!
...That stung.
Given Kang Su-ji's looks, the odds were high I was older.
After that, the screen kept swiveling to show others.
—This is Seung-ah unnie!
A woman with refined beauty appeared on screen.
She carefully bowed her head with a smile.
We'd already met.
She was the one who'd given me the notebook with maze info.
—Hello. Thank you for back then.
"No need. The notebook you gave me was a huge help."
A warm atmosphere flowed between us.
As we exchanged kind words, Kang Su-ji's puzzled voice cut in.
—Seung-ah unnie, speaking of which... why didn't you give me the notebook directly—
—Ahem.
—...Unnie?
The screen swiveled around again.
This time, it stopped on a burly man.
He gave an awkward smile and bowed his head.
—Nice to meet you. I'm Kim Seung-tae. Thank you so much for what happened.
The call wrapped up after brief greetings and chat.
It was short, but it felt special.
Seeing people who'd collapsed like they were dead now recovered enough to talk.
...Wait, wasn't I forgetting something—
Oh.
I turned my head, and the monitor came into view.
[Kill Score] Red 1 VS 31 Blue
[Teammate] Mid Laner: Where do you live? I'm really curious. I'll buy you a ham burger.
[Teammate] King General: He said he got into a car accident and left.
[Teammate] Mid Laner: YAAAAAAAAAA!
I shut off the screen.
...Yeah, games aren't rest after all.
Ding.
At that moment, the room lit up again.
The phone on the desk flashed on.
My gaze turned there.
[Reservation Inquiry Related]
***
The last time I entered Happiness Hospital, a thought had crossed my mind.
"Maybe I should find a good shaman and get an exorcism."
Of course, I didn't really believe it.
But considering I'd dismissed even anomalies as superstition until then.
In the end, I acted on that fleeting thought.
There was a slight problem.
I'd never done anything like this before.
I had no idea where to go.
Not long after getting off the bus and walking, a shaman's house came into view in the distance.
A place personally recommended by Kim Se-ra.
It wasn't cheap.
But since I was doing it, I didn't want to skimp, so I mustered the resolve and made a reservation.
I didn't trust it 100%.
Just like not all anomalies were real.
This was probably the same.
But hearing it had a high hit rate, I figured.
'Having ability = time to shed some bad luck.'
That was my mindset.
I got a text saying reservations were backed up for a while.
It arrived right after the call with Kang Su-ji ended.
The previous client canceled, so a slot opened up immediately.
The shaman's house I visited.
The room was simpler than expected.
The worn wooden floor creaked, with dark stains in spots.
Old talismans layered the walls, the paper faded and damp.
A small paper ornament dangling from the ceiling swayed in the breeze with a faint tinkling.
After scanning the room briefly, I slowly spoke.
I'd been inside for a while already, but I'd frozen up from the shocking words I'd heard earlier.
"So."
I looked at her, sitting in front, her face covered with black cloth.
"I'm... destined for that?"
"Yes."
A fate where anomalies twist around me.
Terrifying.
"People's fates are similar yet slightly different. But some... bear special burdens."
Fwoosh—
She extinguished one candle flame.
In that instant, shadows stretched long across the room.
"If I had to put a name to it... yours is a kind of wandering star curse. A twisting fate."
"...Will an exorcism help?"
"No use. This isn't something I can touch to begin with."
Silence flowed for a moment.
In that quiet, a low, slow voice continued.
"Do you regret having such a fate?"
I was about to say 'yes' right away.
But my lips stopped.
No sound came from my throat.
'Do I regret this?'
I couldn't say it was good.
But on the flip side.
I couldn't say no either.
If I didn't have this fate.
And hadn't gotten tangled in anomalies.
The lawyer ajusshi who'd waited 13 years would have vanished without any reward.
"...Is being born with such a fate misfortune?"
Her low voice echoed again.
Her fingertips moved, scattering white rice grains across the table.
Tap, tap.
Each clatter made my inner thoughts feel exposed, dizzying me.
"You already know the answer plenty well. If it's still hard, try looking around you. That's... all the advice I can give."
Just my fate, huh.
What a load of crap.
Nothing was resolved.
Still.
My heart felt a bit lighter.
'Is this why people visit shamans?'
As I reached for my wallet.
She shook her head and waved her hand.
"No need. You've already paid plenty."
***
The door closed.
Left alone in the room, she smiled faintly.
"...Newb. The reason gallery users call the perk 'curse' as another name. Abilities have inertia. The stronger the ability, the more it draws anomalies like a magnet."
"And that... whether the person wants anomalies or not."
She slowly raised her hand.
Her arm, revealed under the light, was stained black.
Like ink soaked into veins.
Like a scar that wouldn't wash away.
Gazing at the black traces for a moment.
A bitter smile spread across her lips.
"Forces you to get entangled."
Ding—
[Anomaly Management Bureau]
Time to get back to work.
Before standing, she smiled and posted.
**Title: Newb Broadcast**
—Posted by: Serious Junkie
Coming soon.
[Pa Cheonhwang]: This is the 13th time.
[Crazy Woman]: Too much.
[Cream Bun]: Can't not press it.. fuck