The Power of Makeup

Not many people at the broadcasting station would call Cain by his real name, Deok-su, so familiarly. Deok-su—no, Cain—whirled around in irritation. From a distance, a handsome guy who looked vaguely like Tae-hyun was walking toward him.

"...Did you get plastic surgery in the meantime?!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Your eyes look weird! Normally, they're much sharper... like, a thug-like, vicious glare!"

"Hmm. I now know exactly what you think of me."

! Cain winced. His inner thoughts had slipped out because of how drastically Tae-hyun's appearance had changed. That was just how shocking it was! To think that a guy who usually looked so terrifying could transform like this just by having his eyes touched up.

The power of makeup is truly terrifying! Cain marveled. Of course, this time, he kept it strictly to himself.

"Where is everyone else? Have you just been standing here by yourself this whole time?"

"No. There was one other person, but..."

"Who?"

"Do Dong-su. But he slunk off the moment he saw you coming."

"Why?"

"Who knows. Maybe he really had to use the bathroom, or maybe he just hates your guts."

"There's no way he hates me, so he must have had an emergency. Is he nervous?"

Before Tae-hyun arrived, Cain had been sitting lonely and forlorn ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on a chair in a quiet corner of the broadcasting station. The MBS staff preparing for the opening of the Pan-On Arena Tournament recognized him and kindly brought him a drink, but that only made his heart ache more.

"Are you here alone?" "Where are your other teammates?" They were innocent questions with no ill intent, yet they pierced his chest like sharp needles! Watching the other competing teams walk in together, chatting and laughing hand-in-hand, only deepened the ache. It felt as though they were the only team whose members arrived completely scattered.

"Hmph. Sitting all by yourself like a loser. It looks like those high-and-mighty jerks are ostracizing you." Someone spoke to him. At first, Cain didn't realize the comment was directed at him. It was a face he didn't recognize!

"Are you ignoring me?!"

"Ah, what? You were talking to me?"

"..." Cain's genuinely clueless expression made it even more infuriating. Do Dong-su cursed Cain inwardly. It seemed hanging around with Tae-hyun had only taught him his worst habits.

"Who else would I be talking to if not you?!"

"I just thought you didn't have any friends and were talking to yourself. Sorry."

"You son of a—" Do Dong-su swallowed his curse and glared at Cain. In Pan-On, Cain was a sturdy, imposing tank who exuded a heavy presence. But in reality, Cain had a small, slender build! He couldn't help but look like an easy target.

"Hmph. Look who's talking about having no friends."

"By the way, who are you?"

"...Do Dong-su! Do Dong-su! You motherf—! I'm Do Dong-su!" Do Dong-su finally exploded! Cain, completely bewildered, had no idea why the man was so angry.

"O-okay, I get it. Calm down."

"Ugh. Seriously, every single one of Kim Tae-hyun's lackeys is..."

"Leave me out of that!" Cain cried out, feeling deeply wronged. Why on earth was he being lumped in as one of Kim Tae-hyun's lackeys? Tae-hyun was the weird one; he was perfectly normal. Of course, to outsiders, such distinctions meant nothing.

"So, where is Kim Tae-hyun anyway?"

"I don't know. He said he was getting his makeup done."

"What? Makeup? Ha! Give me a break. What kind of grown man gets makeup done?" Cain was about to agree, but he hesitated. For some reason, badmouthing Tae-hyun to someone else felt wrong. If anyone's going to trash him, it's going to be me! I'm not letting some random guy do it!

"He can get it done if he wants, you jerk."

"I bet he's just another obnoxious, scrawny weakling like you. Hmph. Acting all tough in Pan-On when in reality..." Do Dong-su grumbled. He was actually planning to intimidate Tae-hyun a bit when he arrived. That would have been impossible inside Pan-On, but this was the real world! In Do Dong-su's mind, Tae-hyun was already labeled as a "makeup-wearing weakling."

"Oh, there he comes."

"Finally...! Wait, who?"

"That massive guy walking in the middle."

"Huh??" Do Dong-su froze. The only person walking over was a muscular man who looked at least a full head taller than him. His broad, muscular back was clearly defined even through his clothes! To anyone looking, he was the definition of someone who worked out seriously.

"Th-that's Kim Tae-hyun?"

"Yeah, why?"

"..." Do Dong-su quietly stood up and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠backed away. Cain assumed he was heading to the restroom. After watching Tae-hyun enter the waiting room, Do Dong-su crept closer to the door. He was too intimidated to go back inside, but he was dying to know what they were talking about.

Hearing them talk about his bathroom habits in his absence, Do Dong-su cursed Tae-hyun once more in his heart.

"He's still not back? Is it a number two?"

"Could be constipation."

"Come to think of it, people who sit for long hours are prone to a certain... 'h'-word condition."

Grind! The sound of teeth gnashing echoed from outside, but the two paid it no mind.

"Which is why, Cain, you need to make sure you exercise."

"I-I do exercise..."

"Before you hear your parents yelling, 'Go outside for once!'"

H-how does this bastard know?! Cain stared at Tae-hyun, shivering with shock. Tae-hyun had said it without much thought, but it had struck Cain right in his sore spot. In fact, when he told his mother he was going to the broadcasting station today for the opening, she had been so moved she practically shed tears.

Thinking back on it, his family's attitude felt incredibly unfair. Was I really that untrustworthy?

"Hello, everyone!"

"Chul-soo!" Everyone cheered as Kim Chul-soo walked in, greeting them politely. The sole conscience of this team! The only normal person here! Of course, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠both Tae-hyun and Cain secretly thought, The only normal person besides me! Embarrassed by the unexpected welcome, Kim Chul-soo sat down sheepishly.

"Have you all greeted the other teams yet?"

"No."

"Nope," they replied in unison, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Kim Chul-soo was slightly taken aback.

"O-oh, really? The other teams who arrived are all greeting each other outside, so..." In fact, Kim Chul-soo had just come from warmly greeting several players he knew. His social circle in Pan-On was quite decent! Compared to him, Tae-hyun and Cain... The two of them just stared at each other.

"Is there anyone even worth greeting?"

"I-I don't really have any close ranker friends..."

"Same here." Tae-hyun had no desire to chat with the other teams' players. The reason was simple: many of the rankers he had ruthlessly slaughtered back in Pan-On 1 were scattered among those teams! If he accidentally let something slip during a casual chat, assassins would probably hunt him down before the tournament even finished.

Cain's reason was even simpler: he literally didn't know anyone! In his transition from a PK guild leader to Tae-hyun's slave, he hadn't exactly had the chance to make friendly ranker acquaintances.

"By the way, Tae-hyun, you look incredibly handsome!"

"You don't have to go out of your way to prove what a good person you are..." Kim Chul-soo had meant it as a genuine compliment, but Tae-hyun was deeply moved. How could someone be so pure-hearted!

"Pardon?"

"It's nothing."

"Anyway, since neither of you knows anyone, let me introduce you!"

"I'm good..."

"I'd rather not..."

"Come on, don't be like that! Once the era of professional Pan-On players officially begins, these are the people you'll be seeing all the time, right?"

"Can't we just see them inside Pan-On?"

"Reality exists outside of Pan-On!" Kim Chul-soo dragged the visibly reluctant Cain and Tae-hyun to their feet. He led them out to introduce them to the other participating players. Watching this, Do Dong-su hesitated. Should I go out now? In truth, Do Dong-su was one of those rankers who had absolutely no friends.

Such rumors always followed Do Dong-su, and he thoroughly enjoyed the persona. It made him look cool! Of course, that cool persona didn't do him any favors when it came to making friends.

"Ahem..." Do Dong-su steeled his resolve and stepped forward. But the three of them were already long gone.

"..."

"The place we're heading to now is Team Blue's waiting room. You guys know them, right?"

"Nope."

"I-I know them! They're... the invited foreign team, right?" Tae-hyun proudly admitted his ignorance, while Cain, who had done a bit of research, chimed in.

"...They're a domestic team that fought their way through the qualifiers."

"..." Cain's face flushed red, and he quickly looked away. Tae-hyun was staring at him with a deadpan expression.

"What? An invited foreign team?"

"Th-their name is in English, so I thought they were invited from abroad...!"

"Then are you a foreigner? Wait, now that I think about it, what's our team's name?"

"...Good question." Tae-hyun and Cain turned to look at Kim Chul-soo in bewilderment.

"..." Even the mild-mannered Kim Chul-soo looked utterly flabated by the fact that his teammates didn't even know their own team's name.

"It's obviously the Korean National Team, isn't it?"

"What's with that lazy name? Who came up with that?"

"Because we're the invited team. The organizers invited one team from each country, and Korea's..."

"Ah, so we're the Korean National Team."

"Didn't Se-yeon ask you? If you wanted to name it something else?"

"Well... I think she might have..." Tae-hyun searched his hazy ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠memory.

Gasp! Recalling the conversation, a cold shiver ran down Tae-hyun's spine. He had brushed her off because he couldn't be bothered, but that was a blatant threat! N-no... Surely Lee Se-yeon wouldn't do anything too crazy. She cares way too much about this tournament.

"So it's just 'Korean National Team' then."

"It'll probably be registered as Team Korea or something similar. It's a bit plain, but isn't it nice? Some of the other teams are actually quite jealous. It makes us feel like the official representatives."

"If they've got a problem with it, tell them to plant a flag and claim it."

"Haha, well, this isn't Pan-On, so..."

"I meant planting a flag in real life..."

Kim Chul-soo pretended not to hear that. This introduction was strictly for the sake of peace and harmony! They weren't going to war.

"So, Team Blue... Are there also teams like Team Red, Team Yellow, and Team Green?"

"No, there's only Team Blue. The leader of that team is an acquaintance of mine. Ah, hello!" Kim Chul-soo knocked and opened the door, and the members of Team Blue waved in greeting.

"Everyone, this is Kim Tae-hyun and Cain."

"Ah..."

"The..." The moment Tae-hyun and Cain's names were mentioned, the players of Team Blue let out collective gasps of recognition. Cain wondered inwardly, Just what kind of rumors have they heard about us?

Every single player of Team Blue had their eyes locked onto Tae-hyun. They couldn't help but be fascinated; after all, he was the ultimate star player of Pan-On!

"Wow, this is the first time I've seen someone who looks even handsomer in real life than in Pan-On. Did you intentionally make your avatar look like that?"

Huh? Tae-hyun turned his head at the completely unexpected remark.

"And your name is?"

"Ah, I'm Cha Won-cheol."

"I see, Cha Won-cheol. Looking at you, you have a very pleasant impression and are brimming with positive energy. You look like the type of person who will succeed in whatever you do and hit the absolute jackpot this year."

"..."

"..."

"Th-thank you?" Cha Won-cheol barely managed to snap out of his daze to reply. It was a completely baffling response! Cain leaned in and whispered in a low voice.

"What the hell was that just now?"

"Huh? Wasn't this the designated time for insincere flattery?"