Chapter 101: The True Nature of Luka
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 101: The True Nature of Luka
[Aww~ My Pink Army loves this kind of stuff~]
Luka's voice was like she was dealing with children.
Luka grabbed the camera and shook it back and forth, as if playing with kids.
[Lu... Luka-nim! Please!]
[Aaaah!!!!]
[I'm getting motion sick! Stop!!]
[cuteee]
[Arrr~ You Pink Army guys pretend you don't like it, but you actually do.]
It was dizzying, but honestly, I liked it.
January 1st.
The New Year's Day stream went on until the early morning.
The Closer members had said they'd end late since they started late, and true to their word, they all finished their streams after 3 AM.
[E-Even though Luka-tan doesn't age, please continue to take care of me.]
Luka blushed, clasping her hands behind her back coyly.
Everyone knew it was just an act, but we were her fans.
[Luka-tan, please marry me this year!!]
[Please take care of us this year too!]
[Kyaaaaaaah]
[Hap-new~ Hap-new~]
[Oh, my! You want more? You should have said so sooner~]
She shook the camera even more violently, and I couldn't take it anymore.
Doah... have some mercy on us watching...
[It looks like everyone's had enough fun, so I'll end the stream here for today.]
The viewers, still wanting more, begged her to continue, but Luka had a solid excuse.
[Guys. I may not look it, but I'm the last one from Closer streaming.]
Indeed, the other Closer members had already ended their streams one by one.
Luka was a saint for staying until the very end and streaming so diligently.
[I'll prepare lots of fun content this year, too. Let's meet again next time! Bye!!]
-The stream has ended.
What a shame.
That was the first thing I thought.
Her new avatar for the New Year was adorable, and it was just so much fun sharing the same feelings with everyone from our own rooms.
If I said the things I typed in chat out loud in real life, people would definitely think I was weird, but not here.
The chat, where everyone had fun cracking otaku jokes, felt like home.
Doah. I wonder if she's finished cleaning up by now.
It had become routine for me to pick her up from the studio when she finished late, but I had a feeling I'd be going a little later today.
Debating whether to contact her first, I took out my phone.
[Hello?]
[Yeah, Doah. Should I come pick you up now?]
[Oppa. Aren't we having our VR date?]
Her voice was full of life.
She was usually tired around this time, but today she sounded more energetic than I expected.
[If you're tired, we can do it later.]
[Ah, I'm fine. I took a nap after seeing you, and the stream wasn't that long.]
[So, should I log on right now?]
[Give me about five minutes, and I'll send you an invite!]
[Ah... um.]
Would it be too much to ask which avatar she was going to use?
If I showed that I was too obsessed with Luka, Doah might get upset.
[Why?]
[Ah. I was just wondering if we were already friends on there.]
[We added each other when we did that group project. You didn't delete me, did you?]
[Hey, why would I delete you?]
[Who knows? You might have unfriended me to hit on some other girl with a cute avatar.]
She must have realized how ridiculous that sounded, because I could hear her laughing at the end.
[Anyway! This isn't an everyday opportunity, so get ready!]
[Yes, ma'am!]
I felt this every time Doah used her Luka voice, but there were moments when my loyalty would just skyrocket.
Like an instinct engraved in my DNA as a member of the Pink Army.
That seemed to be the most fitting description.
After hanging up, I launched the game and put on the headset Doah had given me for the first time in a while.
-Ding.
When the headset turned on, the first thing I saw was the battery level.
What? Didn't I leave it charging?
Blindly, I fumbled around for the cable.
Like any other electronic device, the VR headset ran on a battery, so charging was essential.
The battery drained pretty fast, too, so like a doctor giving an emergency blood transfusion, I jammed the charger into the port on the left.
“Phew...”
My blood pressure is stabilizing.
VRWorld booted up, and the familiar home screen appeared.
Standing in front of a mirror, I changed into an avatar I had downloaded a while ago.
It was an unremarkable male character.
It resembled me a little, but the biggest difference was definitely the golden hair.
A platinum blond, almost white, the kind you'd only see in games.
As I was standing in front of the mirror, turning this way and that, a message popped up with an invitation. I immediately hit accept.
A loading screen appeared, and the environment around me changed.
...Where is this?
It was a map I'd never seen before.
At least, it was one that had never appeared on Luka's streams.
It looked like a house that could exist somewhere.
The visuals were closer to a cabin from a Western fairy tale than a Korean apartment or house.
A fire that wasn't hot to the touch flickered in the fireplace, and next to it stood a small, decorated Christmas tree.
[Hello?]
Wondering where Doah was, I spoke into the empty air as if talking to a ghost, and a reply came from the other side.
[Oppa!]
If this place was the living room, then Doah's voice was coming from deeper inside.
I pressed the interaction button to open the door, and waiting for me inside was...
[Ta-da!]
[Oh...]
Her smooth, pale white shoulders came into view.
And inside, a faint glimpse of her cleavage.
The avatar Doah was using was the special edition I'd already seen at Christmas.
It was Luka, with her hair in pigtails.
[What do you think? Of this?]
[Heh. It's so pretty. Of course it is.]
I could say it over and over again.
Telling Luka she was cute and pretty.
It's what I did all day in the chat.
[Come sit over here.]
Luka's avatar perched on the edge of the bed.
I swallowed hard and sat down next to her.
[Did you enjoy the stream today?]
[Yeah.]
[I had a lot of fun today, too.]
Sitting beside me, Luka started sharing behind-the-scenes stories from today's collab.
The story about how Clover was almost late.
The reaction at the company when the illustration was pre-released.
And that meetings for the second album had started.
[Your hand. Can I have it?]
I moved my controller through the air, and our two hands overlapped.
[How is it? Do you still like Luka more even like this?]
[What are you talking about?]
[I'm asking if you like Luka more, even though you can't touch her like this.]
Luka pushed her hand forward a little more.
In VRWorld, an avatar is nothing more than an illusion.
Her hand passed right through my body and over to the other side of the bed.
[I never said I liked Luka more.]
It was true my heart was pounding, but I wasn't lying.
[When did I ever say I liked Luka more?]
[Aha. So it's okay if I log off now?]
Doah said, her voice filled with emotion, but my body went stiff.
[Then it's okay for me to come see you now, right!]
I knew a man should stand by his word, but...
Ah, fuck. Is that really important right now?
[How about... we play here just a little bit longer before I go?]
Trading my dignity for pleasure.
Right... If not now, when would Doah ever do this for me again!
A look of contempt filled Luka's eyes.
[Wow... Oppa...]
Seeing the expression I'd only ever seen on stream right in front of me was a reward.
A very, very big reward at that.
[You're unbelievable!]
When Luka made a fist and pretended to hit me, I immediately acted like I'd been struck.
I'd wanted to try this for a while.
As I fell over in real life and got back up, Luka blinked in bewilderment.
[Wait... did you really fall over? No! Why would you do that?]
[Because I wanted to try it.]
It was just the wish of a passing member of the Pink Army.
[Seriously...]
Luka laughed, as if in disbelief.
[Sigh... Well, if there's anything you've wanted to do, Oppa, you can do it today.]
[Something I've wanted to do?]
[I figured the Pink Army would have at least one thing they'd want to do if they met Luka.]
There were plenty.
So many it was a problem.
My mind, filled with all sorts of wicked thoughts, started spinning.
Should I ask her to scold me with a contemptuous look?
Or maybe act sweet, like a real couple?
No. I'm her boyfriend, so I can go a little further than that.
The one thing I'd wanted to do with that pink-haired character.
[A kiss. Can I?]
I was expecting to be rejected and even had a plan B ready.
But for some reason, Doah readily agreed to my request.
[Where do you want to do it?]
[...On the cheek?]
[Okay. Then.]
In reality, I moved my face toward empty air.
My avatar overlapping with hers.
Regardless of the action, I felt nothing on my lips.
When I pulled away, Luka-tan was there, smiling alluringly.
[Kissing the real Doah-tan's cheek feels better, doesn't it?]
Luka-tan glided up to me and whispered in my ear.
[...I'll be waiting at the studio.]
Doah logged out the second she finished speaking.
Taking off the VR headset, I could come to a definite conclusion.
It wasn't that Luka was a fox.
The person named Doah was a vixen herself.
I hurriedly threw on my padded jacket.