Chapter 14
Chapter 14
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 14
Chapter Title: Uncle, You Don't Know That Game? Total Noob Uncle?
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◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Bye, Oppa! Take care going home!"
"Yeah! You too, Do-hwa. And Ji-woo, get home safe!"
After finishing dinner, Do-hwa and Ji-woo waved goodbye to Si-yoon as he headed off.
"That was seriously delicious. Right?"
"Yeah! Who buys food that good? He's basically an angel."
Ji-woo wore an expression of utter satisfaction.
Even when ordering the tastiest menu items at the Hero Union dorms' cafeteria,
she'd barely take a few bites before leaving most of it behind.
The cafeteria ladies, worried about her, would prepare all sorts of dishes just for Ji-woo,
but there were almost never any she truly enjoyed.
No matter what she ate, she never felt satisfied—until now, when he'd gotten her to polish off a full bowl of rice.
Ji-woo felt satisfied, but a twinge of guilt toward the cafeteria ladies too.
"Was it that good? Want me to treat you next time, sis?"
"You'd just say you're on a diet and skip it."
Do-hwa's eating habits limited tasty meals to just once or twice a week.
It was one of her strict personal rules: rigorous self-management.
"I wanna eat it again."
"Then just go by yourself next time."
"How am I supposed to go to a barbecue place alone?!"
She wanted to go, but alone felt awkward.
And dragging another friend along? She didn't have any.
Ji-woo had teased Do-hwa earlier for not having friends,
but realizing she was no different herself filled her with despair.
"Or just go with Si-yoon Oppa again.
Oh! We're supposed to visit his restaurant next day off."
Do-hwa casually tossed out the topic of meeting Si-yoon to Ji-woo.
"Ooh! Then let's ask him for beef while we're there."
Like a fish snapping up bait on a hook, Ji-woo bit right away.
'Hehe... Ji-woo will find out soon enough. The joy of becoming Lord Dominator's sex slave...♥'
Watching Ji-woo fall into the trap, Do-hwa smirked wickedly.
She wanted her to feel the same pleasure she'd experienced.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Ughhh! Why the hell are we deploying at 7:30 in the morning?!"
"What? I didn't get any call."
An early morning dispatch request pinged on Ji-woo's terminal.
She jolted awake, startled by the sudden alert.
"Ughhh... I was gonna sleep in today!"
"Then just decline it."
Heroes don't have to accept every dispatch call from the Union.
They can't drop everything for every incident.
To respect heroes' personal lives and condition management,
their dedicated terminals include a decline function.
But declining too often tanks your internal Union evaluation,
leading to pay cuts or even rank demotions in severe cases.
"If... if I decline again, my paycheck gets docked."
"Knew it! It's 'cause of all those raids and stuff, right?"
Declining once or twice a week has minimal impact,
and there's no penalty outside official hours—9 AM to 6 PM.
But that's only if your total declines are low.
Not for Ji-woo, who'd been hitting decline two or three times a day, blaming sleep or games.
In other words, too many declines mean poor eval, so work off-hours or else.
"Damn it... Where's my hood?"
"You threw it on the sofa. And you forget it every time!"
Tank top, hot pants, and a special-material black hoodie zip-up.
Ji-woo's hero costume was so casual, it begged the question: is this really hero gear?
"W-Well, I'm heading out!"
"Yeah. Be safe."
She hastily slung the hoodie from the sofa over her shoulders
and bolted out of the dorms.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A main boulevard in central S City, swarming with rush-hour commuters.
"Kyaaaaah! What the hell is this first thing in the morning?!"
"Uwaaaah! I'm gonna miss my subway!!"
One villain's sudden appearance during peak commute time
had everyone stomping their feet, trapped with nowhere to go.
"Kehehehehe! Commuting? Why bother! I never got to, so no one else will!!"
This man blocking thousands on their way to work.
After 15 years as a jobless prep student, failing to land employment,
he was venting his rage at never experiencing the commute.
"UHAHAHAHA! Feel the power of Mud Guy! Hahaha!"
He'd wrecked the bus stop where buses should've pulled in, turning it to rubble,
and blocked every subway entrance and passage.
The villain 'Mud Guy', with his ability to launch mud clumps from his hands,
had targeted only essential transit infrastructure.
"Hey! What do you think you're doing?!"
A brave citizen approached, protesting to the man.
"What? You... you're wearing a suit...?"
But Mud Guy ignored the protest.
His eyes locked on the citizen's suit instead.
Suits meant office worker attire—
to the suit-hating Mud Guy, they were the enemy incarnate!
"Grrrr... UWAAAAAHHH!!!"
"Hey. That's far enough."
Someone tapped the shoulder of Mud Guy, whose rage boiled over.
"Wh-Who the hell are you?! Touching me?!"
"You the one who woke me up this early?"
The one tapping his shoulder as he prepared a mud launch
was A-Rank Hero 'Player' Yeon Ji-woo, even more pissed off.
Ji-woo glared at Mud Guy with a sharp expression she'd never show normally.
"Hey, mister. You ever played War of Champions?"
"What?"
"Don't know War of Champions? Total noob uncle?"
"N-Noob...?"
Why mention the game she was playing?
It tied directly to her supernatural ability.
"Lately, I've been practicing this champ... who uses dual pistols."
Ji-woo wagged her index finger, explaining her recent favorite character build.
"Wh-What's that got to do with anything, you little runt?!"
But Mud Guy didn't care about games.
He fired the mud clump meant for the suited man straight at Ji-woo.
- Splatter!
"What? Runt? Ha... I was gonna go easy, but..."
Ji-woo effortlessly dodged the mud.
She thrust both hands forward, blue light glowing from her palms.
- Shwoooo!
Pixel- and cube-like light particles formed in her hands,
shaping into a pair of pistols straight out of a game character.
"Guess you need a beating, uncle."
Her ability, Weapon Manifestation, let her summon weapons from characters she'd played in games.
Any weapon from a game she'd touched could appear in her hands.
- Bang!! Bang!!!
Two golden bullets fired from the glowing barrels.
"GWAAAAAHHH!!!"
One grazed his pant leg lightly,
but the other nailed his right thigh dead center.
"Y-You damn brat!!!"
- Pababababang!!
Mud Guy screamed in pain, unleashing a barrage of mud clumps.
"Ugh... So gross."
- Clang clang thud thud splat!
The dual pistols in Ji-woo's hands had swapped to a massive shield.
She'd switched to another character's weapon mid-barrage for defense.
Why use a 'weapon' like a shield, a defensive tool?
Shield users who headbutt foes unconscious or shoot ice would take offense.
"Ugh. Shields always make my arms ache."
Manifesting a weapon didn't grant the wielder's strength,
so Ji-woo avoided heavy gear like shields or greatswords.
But the mud flew faster than expected,
forcing a quick shield summon for cover.
"Th-This IIIIIAAAAAHHH!!!"
His dozen-plus earnest mud shots blocked in an instant,
Mud Guy shrieked in fury.
"Ugh... So annoying. Hey, uncle, wouldn't it be easier if you just died?"
Blue light swirled around Ji-woo's shield hand again,
forming a mage's staff-like weapon.
- Fwoosh!
"GRAAAAAHHH!!!"
A lightning bolt shot from the staff tip, coiling around Mud Guy.
"G-G-G-GRRRAAAAHHH!!!"
Writhing in the net-like electricity,
he soon stopped screaming and collapsed.
"Who's the runt now? Geez."
With Mud Guy subdued, Ji-woo stretched lazily, looking exhausted,
then turned to leave without a word.
"Um... Hero? Wh-What about all this...?"
Citizens thanked her for beating the villain but questioned her leaving the scene unresolved.
"Oh... Some other guys'll handle cleanup later."
Ji-woo's lazy, annoyed response and expression screamed, 'Do I have to deal with this too?'
The citizens seemed thrown by her attitude,
but Union staff arrived soon after to sort things out.
"Ughhh... Another job done today... Time for a nap."