Chapter 114: The Spell
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 114: The Spell
[Luka-tan, I'm cold...]
[We thought we were going to freeze to death...]
[The clock that had stopped has begun to move again.]
I think someone once told me that becoming an adult means you don't get vacations anymore.
Back then, I couldn't even imagine a world without school breaks.
Only now could I understand why my dad was always in such a good mood during his time off.
[Ah~ Everyone~ Luhai luhai~ Minna~ How have you all been?]
I greeted the Pink Army with my voice raised high.
I definitely felt recharged.
I was happy to see the flood of chat messages, and the countless Pink Army emotes cheering me on looked incredibly cute.
[Luka-tan! Tell us what you did on your vacation!]
After streaming three times a week, taking a week off meant I had plenty to talk about, which was nice.
I wish I had vacations more often.
Burying my disappointment, I retraced my memories of the past week.
[Hmm... I think the best part of my vacation was going to the ski resort?]
I vaguely mentioned I went with a friend and then launched into my thoughts on visiting a ski resort for the first time.
[Oh, but my friend was sooo~ bad at skiing~]
I wonder if he's watching right now. Oppa.
Even if he was, he had no reason to say anything to me.
Because I was only stating the F.A.C.T.S.
[He kept falling and tumbling down the beginner's slope, so we only went to the intermediate course once at the very end, you know?]
[And it took him 40 minutes! A whole 40 minutes, I tell you!]
As I clapped my hands in disbelief, the Pink Army started sharing their own memories of ski resorts.
[Still, you should have tried the advanced slope...]
[Nah, for safety, intermediate is the right choice for the first time.]
[Luka-tan, go skiing with me too!!]
[cuteee...]
[Anyway! The best part of my vacation was the ski resort! And the best thing I ate was malatang!]
After talking about malatang for a good thirty minutes, I decided it was time to play a game and scrolled down the list.
[Hey guys, it's been a while since I streamed. What game should I play? Give me some recommendations!]
The game that appeared most in the chat was Legends of League.
[Wait a minute. Should I contact Fumurin right now? See if she wants to duo?]
Playing alone wasn't bad, but playing together doubled the synergy.
Plus, when missions were on the line, they were more likely to pop up during a duo queue.
[Hold on. Fumurin's stream is... Ah. She's just chatting.]
I joined Fumurin's stream and wagged my tail at her.
[Fumurin... want to play a duo... with your unnie...?]
[Wow! Luka unnie!]
Fumurin's avatar bobbed its head enthusiastically, signaling her acceptance.
[Everyone! I'm going to duo with Luka unnie~]
She acted like a total baby, but I knew the truth.
Fumurin was an incredibly beautiful girl.
The problem was that the image of her face, with the piercing in the center of her lip, kept flashing in my mind.
[Fumurin, where should we go today?]
[Is there anywhere you want to go, unnie?]
[I... In that case, I'll...]
As I paused for a moment, a mission with a donation attached popped up.
[Wow! SongdodongSeaofBlood-nim! 100,000 won for two consecutive wins as a bot lane duo?]
[Your footstool is ready!]
As expected, the quick-witted Fumurin immediately set her position to support.
The Pink Army snickered amongst themselves at the word "footstool."
Fumurin's chat seemed cleaner than mine, as there was hardly any reaction.
[Fumurin, we're idols... you can't say things like that...]
When I shook my head and said that, Fumurin shot back with a puzzled look.
[Huh? What?]
[Can't you see the Pink Army is dying of happiness hearing you say 'footstool'?]
[Oh? But if they like it, isn't that a good thing?]
Don't add fuel to the fire when it's already hard enough to put out these kinds of topics! Fumurin!
Just as I expected, the Pink Army was hailing Fumurin like a revolutionary hero.
[That's right! That's right! Are you ashamed of a footstool, Luka-tan!]
[Luka-tan, give us your feet as a reward!]
[Give us your feet!]
Ugh... seriously...
Getting used to it was one thing, but getting pissed off was another.
[You want to suck my toes? You're out.]
I immediately gave him a temporary ban and let out a deep sigh.
[Then how about your calves? What's with you? You're out too.]
I was about to make an example of one more person when my brow started to furrow.
Huu... Han Taemin...
What am I going to do with this Lucario-tan?
I gripped my mouse tightly, finding it harder and harder to maintain my expression.
Seriously! Why is he acting like that? That guy!
I was glad he liked Luka, but his barbaric chats showed no sign of stopping.
And there was one more terrifying thing: the thought of Oppa actually sucking my calves...
No. What am I even thinking right now?
[Huh? Unnie, the queue popped. Why aren't you accepting?]
I had been so preoccupied with whether or not to give Oppa a temporary ban that I'd forgotten to hit the accept button. I quickly apologized and requeued, and we...
[Ah! Seriously, supp diff!]
No! Fumurin! Play something you know how to play! Please!
Play something you know!
[Sorry... hehe...]
Fumurin, who had insisted on picking a champion she'd never played before, made the 100,000 won vanish into thin air. We had to beg and plead to get another chance.
[Fu... Fumurin! I'm dying! Protect meeee!]
[I'm coming! Unnie!]
She said that, but she ended up using her ultimate in the opposite direction.
Sigh... I'm never playing with you again.
If a mission comes up, I'm definitely going to find Clover unnie.
In the end, our duo session ended with nothing but scars for the both of us.
The moment Fumurin left the Voicecord, I immediately started complaining.
[I mean... seriously... if she's going to play like that, why is she so proud of being Silver?]
And after telling me to just listen to her.
Looking back, Lucario-ssi seemed like an angel in comparison.
I continued to play games after that, streaming until dawn to fill the time, and finally hit the "end stream" button at 2 a.m.
I stretched my aching back from sitting for so long, then took out my phone and called Oppa.
[Hello?]
[Yeah, Doah.]
[Can you come pick me up?]
He didn't always come to the studio.
It was usually only on days he said he was free, but now it was practically a demand.
[Now?]
[You just saw my stream end.]
[I did, but I haven't even washed my hair...]
[It's fine, just come now.]
It's not like I was in full makeup or anything.
Not having washed his hair wasn't a good enough excuse.
[Alright. Give me ten minutes.]
I sat on the one-person sofa, sipping the banana milk I'd brought with me, and stood up when I heard a knock.
"Let's go."
Oppa was heavily armed in a padded jacket.
I pulled his arm in tightly.
"What's wrong?"
Lucario looked at me with a face that genuinely didn't understand.
I was seething at his shamelessness.
"Excuse me, Lucario-ssi."
"Yes?"
"Do you think I don't read the chat?"
Finally understanding, Oppa scratched his head and averted his eyes.
"Well... you know how I am, Doah."
"What do you mean, 'how you are'! Don't give me that!"
Did he really think he could just gloss over it?
Even if other people post perverted things, my boyfriend shouldn't, right?!
I puffed out my cheeks and glared at him. As an apology, he gave me a peck on the cheek.
Mwah.
The cute sound echoed inside the studio.
The air I'd been holding in my cheeks escaped like a balloon with its knot untied.
"...Do you want to touch my calf?"
Still feeling a little resentful, I tentatively lifted my leg. Oppa made a strange expression.
"...Can I?"
"No! What's wrong with you! Are you a pervert, Oppa?"
Ugh, I hate it even more because you sound serious!
He wasn't like this before.
How long has it been since I was worried about our lack of physical affection?
This man with no middle ground was giving me a headache.
"Hey... you're the one who offered, and now you're getting mad at me."
"Ugh, seriously. Oppa, you could never be a celebrity. If I became one, I'd tell everyone you have a calf fetish."
Instead of answering, he held out his hand. I took it, feeling his warmth as we left the studio.
"Oppa, your first filming is tomorrow, right?"
"...Yeah."
"Are you sure it's okay not to sleep early? Though I guess it's already late."
"It's at 2 p.m., so I think it's fine."
I turned my head to look at Oppa, who had pulled his hood over his head.
I'd never thought of his face as mine alone, but the thought of it being spread across famous media outlets made me feel a little sad.
That's how I felt.
"Are you mentally prepared?"
"I want to be, but there's nothing to prepare for. They just told me to show up."
"Really?"
He said that, but I knew he must be nervous.
I knew how hard he had cheered for me during the Closer auditions, so I wanted to do the same for him.
To be helpful to him.
I couldn't do something like, "I'll do your homework for you!" like Oppa did, but I wanted to help somehow.
"Can you stand here for a second?"
We had arrived in front of my house.
I stopped Oppa and looked him straight in the eye.
"What is it, all of a sudden?"
Oppa smiled, embarrassed by my intense stare.
I stood on my tiptoes and wrapped my hands around the back of his neck.
"You're going to do great. Really."
I put my heart into every single word I uttered.
"This is a spell I'm casting on you."
It was something that had come up on stream once.
A viewer had asked if I could give them a kiss for good luck on their college entrance exam.
At the time, I told them I couldn't do that and to get out, but Oppa was my boyfriend.
My man.
-Mwah.
"If you do well, I'll give you something even better."
I didn't mean for the spell to work this well, though.