The Fatal Flaw of Silver Smoke Herb
The effect of the Silver Smoke Herb in the game is simple. It prevents all NPCs and enemies who have never come into contact with me from perceiving me at all. If that was all there was to it, the item would feel like perfect stealth gear, but it carries a fatal weakness. Just as the boss warned, it has no effect whatsoever on people who already know me. Worse, if one of those people recognizes me and causes others nearby to notice me as well, the perception deterrence doesn't just break—it permanently fails against everyone who spotted me in that moment. So the smart move is to steer clear of those two men.
But are they both taking the same lecture? I specifically mentioned the Silver Smoke Herb, so why didn't she warn me about this beforehand? Mulling it over, I peeked through the narrow gap in the lecture hall door. The two men weren't even pretending to look for seats. They walked straight up to Go Yu-jin and started talking to her. I tilted my head, focusing to catch every word.
“It’s just showing your face at the gathering… You really can’t make it?”
“I’m sorry. I have a part-time job, so it’ll be difficult for me to join.”
“Can’t you get a single day off? Talk to your boss or ask someone to cover for you?”
“That won’t work. The schedule’s already set.”
“Where do you work, anyway?”
“…Why do you want to know?”
“We’ll go with you. We can ask your boss together.”
For the briefest instant—just a flash—Go Yu-jin’s face twisted into a filthy mixture of disgust, rage, and irritation. I didn’t miss it. The two men standing right beside her, however, seemed completely oblivious. If they had seen that expression, they couldn’t possibly be wearing those eager smiles.
“That really won’t be necessary, sunbae. Please understand—I have my own circumstances.” Go Yu-jin spoke with a gentle smile I had never once seen her direct at me.
“Hmm…” One of the men scratched the back of his head.
It was hard to understand. Go Yu-jin had told me their conversation was about a drinking party. Was this the same situation? Then why were they pushing this hard? Offering to visit her actual part-time job and plead with her boss in person? The old me had never properly experienced college club life thanks to vomiting on a female senior’s face, but even I could tell this behavior was far from normal.
“All right. Sorry, Yu-jin. I guess we went too far.”
“No, I’m the one who should apologize. If I could make it even once, I would, but the timing never works out.”
“It’s fine. Lots of people are like that. We just wanted to chat with you about all sorts of things…”
“Haha…”
At least it looked like they were going to let it drop for now.
“Oh, by the way, what about that guy from yesterday? Did he come around again?”
“That guy?”
“The one who pretended to be your boyfriend yesterday. Looked like he was trying to hit on you.”
“Yeah, yeah. Did that bastard show up again?”
They were clearly talking about me.
“It’s fine. After you two sunbae chased him off, he hasn’t shown up again.” Go Yu-jin’s eyes flicked toward the door crack where I was watching. The look she gave me was pure reproach, as if asking why I had done something so stupid and created this mess.
“You shouldn’t let your guard down.”
“Exactly. Stalking crimes are getting really bad these days. It’s all over the news.”
“Did you report it to the police?”
“No. It didn’t seem serious enough. He’s probably just one of those guys who tries his luck and gives up when it doesn’t work.”
“You can’t think like that. There are so many dangerous people out there nowadays.”
These assholes sporting raging hard-ons the entire time sure loved to talk. I’d been watching them since they arrived. When they first walked in they were normal, but the moment they stood in front of Go Yu-jin they pitched tents so obvious it was almost impressive.
“Yu-jin, what time does your shift start today? We’ll walk you there.”
“…Excuse me? No, that’s all right, sunbae.”
“Don’t be shy.”
“Yeah, we’ll escort you. It’s dangerous at night.”
“I-I can just take a taxi.”
“Come on. Taking a taxi to a part-time job? That’d eat up your entire hourly wage.”
The two men clung to the refusing Go Yu-jin like glue. If the lecture hall door hadn’t opened right then and the professor walked in, who knows what would have happened…
As soon as the professor appeared, the two men hurriedly retreated. I pretended to head toward the bathroom to shake their attention, then quietly slipped back into the lecture hall and took a seat. Go Yu-jin’s expression was stormy, but I couldn’t speak to her. The moment she recognized me and started a conversation, the Silver Smoke Herb’s power would vanish. Staying silent and holding my breath was the best option.
*
Simply walking is enough for Go Yu-jin to draw every eye in the room. Of course, the reason is those two enormous melons of hers. When a man sees breasts that large, his gaze is pulled in whether he wants it or not. It doesn’t even require someone like me who sees the entire world as if everyone is naked. What’s interesting is that she draws women’s stares just as strongly. The difference is that the women’s eyes aren’t nearly as friendly.
And these women made their displeasure blatantly obvious.
“What the fuck, is she a milk cow or something?”
“Bet it smells disgusting down there from all the sweat, right?”
“Probably reeks like a used rag.”
“She might actually be a walking rag. Hee hee hee.”
As a werewolf, my senses are far sharper than a normal human’s. If I focus even a little, I can clearly hear the whispers of women sitting on a distant bench. How many times have I heard this now? While men who watched Go Yu-jin walk by muttered lust-filled, vulgar compliments, the women spat jealous curses behind her back. Seeing it all firsthand made me realize that the problems with her personality weren’t caused solely by the comments under Double Melon’s videos.
I spent the entire day guarding Go Yu-jin from her side. During the small-enrollment major lectures, I stood in the hallway outside and kept watch. When she ate, I sat a short distance away, eating school cafeteria food while observing her. After watching her all day, one thing was clear—she was always alone. Was this really what she meant by creating a clean, trouble-free past? Because getting close to people would inevitably entangle her with men?
I wasn’t so sure. To me, it felt like there was another reason. The women’s outright hostile attitude seemed far too extreme to be explained away as simple game-world jealousy. No matter how envious they were, would they really spew that kind of filth behind her back? It wasn’t normal.
I saw Go Yu-jin preparing to leave campus. I lit a fresh Silver Smoke Herb in the smoking area near school, then drove to a spot a short distance from the main gate and waited. Soon I spotted her walking toward me from far away. After confirming no one was around, I had her get into the back seat.
“Haa…”
Once inside the car, Go Yu-jin let out a long sigh and punched the seat several times.
Thud! Thud!
“What are you doing? Why aren’t we moving?” she snapped when she noticed me watching.
“Got it. Leaving now.”
I drove toward the company headquarters.
“What are you going to do about those people?”
“Those people? Who are you talking about?”
“Those… your sunbae, right? The guys who showed up during the first lecture.”
“Ah…”
Irritation flooded every inch of Go Yu-jin’s face.
“I don’t know!” She clicked her tongue and leaned back against the seat.
“Starting tomorrow I’ll just avoid them as much as possible.”
“Want me to help?”
“You?” Go Yu-jin sat up straight, looking utterly dumbfounded. “Don’t talk shit. Didn’t I tell you never to think about that again? What the hell could you even do?!”
“Calm down. The main point is making sure they don’t find out who I am or that I’m connected to you, right? Just give me the basic information. I’ll make sure they can’t come to school for a while.”
“What exactly are you planning to do?”
“Rough them up a bit. I’ll cover my face and everything, so don’t worry. If I break one arm and one leg each, they won’t be able to leave their houses.”
“Are you insane?”
“Isn’t it better than letting them keep harassing you?”
“Don’t do it. I said don’t! Stay the hell out of my daily life, you son of a bitch!”
Even when I spoke nicely she still blew up. Typical.
“Then what are you going to do?”
“I already told you. I’ll avoid them as much as I can.”
“These are guys who show up to lectures they’re not even taking.”
“I said I’ll handle it myself!”
Judging by her flushed face and wide eyes, pushing any further would be a bad idea.
“Fine. I’ll drop it.”
I focused on driving but kept glancing at her face. Despite her words, her brow was deeply furrowed—she clearly had a lot on her mind. If it got any worse, I’d have to consult the boss. Maybe he could provide some useful magic item.
*
It was the fifth day of tailing Go Yu-jin to school. While continuing to observe her, I also scanned the campus for anyone suspicious. Just as the boss had said, whoever was targeting her wasn’t an ordinary human. Magicians. Vampires. Werewolves. And doppelgangers. Every non-human carried unique markers that revealed what they were.
Magicians carried various tools needed to cast spells, and some even had magical tattoos to supplement insufficient mana. As a werewolf, I couldn’t sense magic power directly, but my knowledge from previous rounds let me recognize magic items and tattoos. Vampires—whether from the Authentic Blood or other clans—had their clan’s blood emblem engraved somewhere on their bodies. Werewolves looked completely human until they transformed, but their scent was different. It was a sharp, feral odor impossible to describe in words, yet I could identify it instantly.
And then there were the doppelgangers. No other race gave themselves away quite so obviously. Like werewolves, you couldn’t tell from their faces alone. But if you stripped them, they became the most obvious of all.
I pulled out my phone, sent a message to Go Yu-jin, and continued following the woman I suspected was a doppelganger.
The woman looked utterly ordinary at first glance. Plain monolid eyes. An unstyled black bob. A petite height somewhere in the mid-150cm range. Her figure was equally average, so unlike Go Yu-jin, it was difficult to find anyone who spared her a second look no matter how long she walked around.
I followed her cautiously, careful not to let her notice me. We eventually reached the rooftop of the humanities building—the tallest structure on campus. No one else was there. I couldn’t sense any presence or smell anything unusual. The woman sat on a bench that had been placed on the roof and immediately made a phone call. I held my breath and focused on her conversation.
Words I couldn’t understand flowed from her mouth. I wasn’t certain, but it sounded like Chinese. Then, astonishingly, the moment she opened her mouth her appearance began to change. Her black bob transformed into shiny golden hair. Her slightly round face sharpened. Her plain features became the distinct, vivid look of a Westerner. It wasn’t just her face. Her body changed in an instant as well. Breasts that had clearly been AA cups swelled dramatically. They weren’t quite as large as Go Yu-jin’s, but they were still impressive. Even more surprising, the color of her nipples had changed from a dark chestnut to a bright pink. Her waist cinched inward while her thighs became firm and toned. In the blink of an eye she had become an entirely different person.
Watching it in real life was vastly different from seeing it in the game. I couldn’t hide my shock. The woman continued speaking into the phone. I waited until she hung up. I planned to subdue her the moment she let her guard down. The fact that she was speaking Chinese made it almost certain she belonged to the Samgunhoe organization the boss had mentioned. If I brought her to the boss, we could extract information.
While I waited for the right moment, the woman suddenly spoke.
“You’re there, aren’t you?”
Her Korean was shockingly fluent and precise.
“I know you’ve been following me. So why don’t you show yourself?”
She turned her head this way and that, as if searching for me.
“Bloodycore’s dog.”
After hearing that, I knew I couldn’t stay hidden any longer. I revealed myself and destroyed the rooftop door handle with a sharp twist.
Crunch—!
I looked at the woman.
“You lured me here on purpose?”
Her pupils dilated. She seemed to have recognized me now.
“Oh. You’re better-looking than I expected.”
She grinned slyly at me, then extended her hand.
“Care to join us?”