What's the Dream? Harem King! (2)
What on earth do women actually do when they go to a PC bang together?
Today, I witnessed the answer with my own eyes.
"Aaaaargh!"
"...Hmm."
"Aha."
Kim Hyewon had come all the way to the PC bang to watch movie reviews, and Han Areum was drawing pictures in MS Paint.
...And she was surprisingly good at it, too.
How does someone draw that well with just a mouse? Apparently, art really is a talent thing.
In the end, the conclusion was this: exactly one person had come to the PC bang to actually play games — Han Sohyeon, and Han Sohyeon alone.
It made me wonder why they'd all come together in the first place if they were just going to sit side by side doing their own separate things. There didn't seem to be much point to it.
But then again, the strange part was how natural it all looked. Everyone went about their own business like this was completely routine. Hyewon, sitting next to me, was even casually ordering iced tea between movie reviews.
"No! What is our team even doing! This is why you never run random squads—"
Just then, Han Sohyeon grabbed her head in frustration, apparently having a rough game.
"My... my rank's gonna drop... this is not okay..."
I was quietly watching her mutter to herself when she suddenly snapped her head up.
And fixed me with gleaming eyes.
Whip—!
"Seojun! Do you play this game by any chance?"
"...Survival Ground?"
"Yeah!"
"Hmm, I do play it, actually."
"Seriously?!"
Han Sohyeon shot up out of her chair and seized my shoulders with desperate eyes.
"Then do you play ranked too? What tier are you?"
"Me? Diamond."
"Whoa! Then play with me!"
"Before that — what's your tier?"
"I'm Diamond too!"
Hmm.
Diamond, huh.
"Wanna do one match first, then?"
"Okay. Party up right now."
True to her word, I joined her game.
It had honestly been forever since I played at a PC bang. I usually just gamed alone in my apartment.
"Should we queue as duo?"
"I don't care either way."
"Then duo it is. I ran a random squad earlier and my teammates were all trolls."
She said it with the tone of someone deeply scarred by random squads.
But honestly, I understood. I'd glimpsed her earlier teammates, and they were absolutely trolls.
There was the hyper-aggressive one who'd shoot at any enemy on sight without a single thought (great if he got the kill, but he got picked off instead), the one-man wolf who spent the whole match wandering solo and died first (why even queue as a squad?), and the clueless dimwit with zero grasp of strategy who knew nothing but walking in a straight line.
That had been her matchmaking experience not ten minutes ago. No wonder she was fed up.
"Fair warning — I might mess up. My sensitivity and settings are different from what I use at home."
"Are you laying down an excuse already? Not very manly of you."
"...Huh?"
Look at this girl.
Was that a challenge just now?
"Heh heh. If you're lacking confidence, just lean on your big sis here. I'll carry you, so all you have to do is follow me, Baek Seojun."
"Well, funny thing — from what I saw earlier, it looked like you'd be the one following me, Sohyeon."
"Oho..."
Crackle—
Our eyes locked. Competitive fire blazed between us.
Granted, this was duo mode, but couldn't we settle who was superior with something like a kill race or damage dealt?
'This is a matter of pride.'
Time to sort out the pecking order... I suppose?
We partied up on the spot and started the game.
And then—
"Sniper at 70 degrees!"
"Where?"
"Yellow building, second-floor window!"
"Got it!"
Bang—!
"Got him!"
"Nice!"
Before we knew it, we were in such perfect sync that the competition between us had simply evaporated.
We exchanged a glance.
'...She's actually good?'
'He's good.'
It felt like we'd both found, at long last, a genuinely proper gaming partner. Not someone who just charged in blindly — someone who could actually execute strategy and tactics, someone you could give and receive feedback with, and above all, someone with deadly aim.
"...Should we head into the safe zone now?"
"Yeah. Let's set up inside early and hunker down. We just hold position and first place is ours."
"Okay."
Victory was right in front of us.
She and I folded away our pointless rivalry and focused on nothing but the game.
And then—
"Ack! Seojun, I'm down!"
Han Sohyeon cried out in a panicked voice. I checked her screen in a hurry — her character lay collapsed, knocked out and bleeding out.
There was no window to save her. Getting to her meant crossing open ground, and with no cover and no smoke grenades, going for the rescue would just mean dying too.
Which meant there was only one option left: kill the last remaining enemy.
"Where were you hit from!"
"The ridge at 170! That's where the shot came from!"
"Got it!"
Driven by a single-minded resolve to take first place, I locked my eyes on the ridge at 170 degrees — even deliberately exposing my body to try to bait the enemy out.
But the enemy refused to show himself, no matter what.
"...No choice then. Sohyeon."
"Yeah?"
"I need you to play bait."
"Bait?"
"You're knocked anyway. Just go die there."
"What?!"
Her shock lasted barely a second before she gave a grim, determined nod.
"Got it. But you have to get him, okay?"
"Obviously."
She launched into a gallant, doomed charge.
And then—
Bang—!
The instant the enemy, unable to hold back, fired at the downed Sohyeon—
Bang—!
#1 WINNER WINNER
We won.
"Kyaaaaah! We won! Baek Seojun, we actually won!"
"You see that? My aim on that last shot?"
"I saw it! That was absolutely insane, Baek Seojun! Take me! Ahahahahah!"
At some point I'd set my mouse down entirely, and Han Sohyeon and I were busy basking in our victory.
We were loud enough that Han Areum and Kim Hyewon beside us — not to mention everyone else in the vicinity — had turned to look.
—What's with them, are they a couple?
—...God, she's gorgeous.
—So jealous of that guy, man...
I cleared my throat at the whispers around us and settled back into my seat.
'When was the last time I had this much fun playing a game?'
Could it really be this entertaining just because I played with friends? Absolutely not. Even back when I came to PC bangs with friends, it was never like this. So what was different between then and now?
'One thing. Just one.'
Han Sohyeon.
In other words, the chemistry between me and Han Sohyeon was something special.
And it must have been the same for her, because at some point, the look she gave me was brimming with warmth.
"Wanna go for another one right now?"
"Duo again?"
"Obviously. At this point, I can't play with anyone but you, Han Sohyeon."
A faint flush crept across her face.
"H-hahm. I wouldn't go that far."
"Oh? Then should we not play?"
The moment I moved to close the game, Han Sohyeon grabbed my hand — the one still holding the mouse.
"Hey, it was one little joke! Let's just play another round."
"'Seojun-oppa, please play with me' — say it politely like that."
"Oh Seojun-oppa, please accept me as your humble second—mmph!"
"...!"
I slapped a hand over her mouth in a flash.
"...Am I boring you two?"
That was when Kim Hyewon, who had been watching us quietly, cut in.
"Oh? Uh, no."
"I see."
Swoosh—
"Then teach me too. Play with me."
She said it while opening the game herself.
"Oh? Really? You finished the movie reviews?"
"Yeah, all of them. Can I play too?"
"Of course you can."
Playing with Han Sohyeon was great, but games are more fun with more people.
Han Sohyeon, catching the conversation, lit up.
"You're playing too, Hyewon?"
"Yeah."
"Then should Areum join too?"
"H-huh? Me too?"
"Yeah! It's more fun with everyone!"
Han Sohyeon's sparkling eyes turned toward Han Areum.
Areum, still quietly drawing in MS Paint, flustered under that shining gaze.
"But... I've never played a game before. I'd just get in the way?"
"Oh, come on! What does that matter? We're just friends having fun. Right?"
"Right."
"Yeah."
Once Kim Hyewon and I both nodded, Areum carefully closed MS Paint.
"Then... shall we try just one match?"
"Yes!"
And the game went off.
***
"Whew~ That was SO fun."
On the way from the PC bang to the bus stop, Han Sohyeon stretched her arms up and declared, "Let's hang out like this again next time!"
Everyone nodded. Honestly, it had been a blast.
She was in such a good mood that she started humming to herself, while Areum watched her with a soft, fond smile.
After a moment, Areum spoke up, still watching Sohyeon.
"By the way, club selections are coming up soon. Has everyone decided what they're picking?"
"Huh? Clubs? Already?"
"Already? It's been two whole weeks since school started. Honestly, we're picking late this time if anything."
Clubs, huh.
Come to think of it, the season for joining clubs really was rolling around.
"I'm doing photography club! Same as last year!"
"So Sohyeon's sticking with photography. What about you, Hyewon?"
"Me, the baking club."
"Same as last year for you too, huh."
That was interesting information. Han Sohyeon in the photography club, and Kim Hyewon in the baking club.
Sohyon was an aspiring model, so I could see how that tied into photography — but Hyewon caught me off guard.
Her. Baking.
I pictured her shyly offering me a cookie she'd made herself.
'Hmm. Actually... kinda suits her?'
"What about you, Seojun? Any club in mind?"
"Me? Hmm... not really, not yet."
"What club were you in last year?"
"Last year... the board game club."
Which I'd been in together with Chaeeun.
She'd probably join the board game club again this year, too.
"Board game club, huh. Sounds like you had fun."
"What about you, Areum? What club are you joining?"
"I'm in the library club."
"Library club?"
Watching her draw that masterpiece in MS Paint earlier, I'd assumed she was 100 percent an art person. The library club definitely fit her gentle image — but today's Paint performance had left that strong an impression.
"I've been in the library club since last year, and this time I'm taking over as president."
"Ah, I see."
So that made Han Sohyeon the photography club, Kim Hyewon the baking club, and Han Areum the library club.
"If you've got nothing else to do, why not join the library club?"
"Me, in the library club?"
"Yeah. Ours is always short on members. Most of the people on the roster are ghosts anyway — I'm the only one who actually does anything."
And on top of that, she added, a good chunk of the current members probably wouldn't be staying this year.
The meaning behind those words was clear: she needed me. Whether I actually participated or not, the library club needed bare minimum manpower to keep from being shut down.
"Hmm. So if I join, do I get special treatment?"
I tossed it out as a joke.
"Hehe. Well, if it's you, Seojun?"