Chapter 33
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: Defect (2)
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After returning home, Seo-hwa immediately submitted an inquiry.
It was a post on the Ariant World homepage's customer center.
The response arrived instantly. But when she read it, it was clearly a macro reply. The speed suggested they hadn't even bothered reading the content.
'...Even VR game companies pull this crap.'
The creators of a globally smash-hit VR game weren't all that different from typical game devs in these matters.
Seo-hwa decided to send an inquiry email straight to Rowon.
She was even willing to carve out time for a personal visit to headquarters if they ignored her. It was that crucial.
After double-checking it went through, she glanced at the clock—evening already.
'No streaming today...'
Seo-hwa let out a sigh.
The alien sensations prickling her head and rear.
She'd never dreamed these would mess with her streams.
Her senses were too sharp—too incompatible with VR.
It clicked logically, yet left her seething with injustice.
'...Does this mean no more VR streams for me?'
She wouldn't have to quit streaming altogether. VR was the problem; PC streams would work just fine.
She could go back to League of Legends or hunt down other games—no issues there.
But she didn't want to.
Ariant World blew them all away in fun.
'I swear, at first I thought I'd stream whatever as long as I could broadcast.'
Somehow, she'd turned into a game picky-eater.
Still, it didn't feel wrong.
After all, people streamed—at least she did—to share their favorite games with others. That seemed the biggest draw.
Once she framed it that way, giving up felt like a waste.
'...There has to be some way.'
Seo-hwa fired up a web search.
Thirty minutes of swimming the info ocean later, a post snagged the cat's gaze.
[Capsule disassembly method to increase neural synchronization level]
This burns out your capsule. Seems to last about a month before it croaks. So if you don't wanna flush 10 million won down the toilet, don't do it. How do I know? I tried it...
Wake up if you think cranking sync lets you pull off no-hit runs like named users such as Cheisi. This boosts actual sync level, not your in-game senses.
Tons of pics below. Data hogs incoming.
Did this and logged into Ariant World—about an hour in? Vision got all wonky, dizziness kicked in...
LOL you torched 10 mil. Your normal nerves can't handle the boosted VR sync—that's why.
What do I do now????
Buy a new one lololol
How'd you even figure this out?
VR drops and I couldn't resist cracking open the pinnacle of tech. Had to.
Dude thought about tearing apart a 10-mil unit?
Worth every won <nod>
So this just bricks your capsule, right?
Yup. Do it if you love wasting cash.
AS works tho?
Nope. Illegal mods = permaban.
'...Boost the sync level?'
From the comments, applying this would make normal players feel the symptoms she'd been dealing with.
That could actually fit her situation perfectly.
Scrolling down revealed detailed mod instructions with photos. To a layman, it looked like tweaking a board to adjust sensory neural sync.
Seemed doable with some trial-and-error tinkering.
But one big hitch: the capsule would fry. In just a month.
'Capsules cost 10 million won each...'
Replacing one monthly? A year in, that's over 100 million.
Who the hell sinks that into gaming?
Absurd.
Seo-hwa checked her bank account.
The fat payout from her corporate grind was still there. It'd sting, but she could swing 3-4 years no sweat.
'Around 400 million won...'
Still, blowing that on gaming? She'd get called insane.
Expecting some random cat-girl to cheerfully drop 400 mil?
Just to stream a VR game?
'......'
Crazy.
No sane person would.
'...I'm nuts.'
Seo-hwa's hands shook as she dove into modding the capsule.
At the animal hospital reception desk, Seo-hwa met a nurse beaming a bright smile.
Average looks, but her grin radiated warmth.
"Hello! May I have the guardian's name, please?"
"...Yoo Seo-hwa."
"Ms. Yoo Seo-hwa? Could you show me your sick friend?"
She meant the pet, obviously. But Seo-hwa had no animal to show.
She hesitated at the nurse's words, then pointed to herself.
"...Me."
"Uh, ma'am. Could you show the pet you brought?"
"......I'm the patient."
The nurse blinked in confusion, then flashed another smile.
"Ahaha, ma'am, this is an animal hospital. Think you came to the wrong place...!"
"See, I'm actually a cat...'
"...Pardon?"
The nurse kept smiling. But her eyes screamed, What nonsense is this?
Seo-hwa pulled off her hood, revealing her cat ears.
"...Ma'am, no cosplay pranks in the animal hospital."
"They're real cat ears..."
Cosplay? Totally understandable assumption. Who'd believe a girl with actual cat ears existed?
'...Except here I am.'
Seo-hwa showed the nurse the diagnosis from the hospital.
The nurse's eyes darted between the paper and the ears, her face twisting into obvious panic anyone could spot.
"G-Guard—er, p-patient? Mind waiting a sec?"
The nurse vanished briefly, then returned to usher Seo-hwa to an exam room.
"...Don't touch."
"S-Sorry! First time seeing something like this..."
Dodging sneaky ear-touch attempts en route, Seo-hwa entered the exam room.
Churu scent saturated the air.
"So. Guardian? Per the chart, the cat's named Yoo Seo-hwa. Mind if I check on Seo-hwa?"
A young vet smiled amiably.
Standard procedure call, but the situation was hilariously twisted.
"...Right here."
Seo-hwa hesitated, then pointed at herself again.
"Haha, fun joke. Your name's Yoo Seo-hwa too, right? So where's the cat?"
"...I'm that cat."
Seo-hwa tilted her head to display the red cat ears.
"......"
The vet's stare glued to the ears.
"N-No cosplay pranks here."
"Not cosplay..."
To the familiar question, Seo-hwa flicked her ears—perking straight up, then folding back.
The vet's eyes widened like saucers as he scrutinized them.
"Uh...how can I assist?"
Clearing his throat twice, the vet asked cautiously.
"Just here for the checkup, like told."
"R-Right... Checkup...coming up..."
Seo-hwa answered the vet's exam questions and even got an animal-grade X-ray.
'Churu...'
Meanwhile, the pervasive churu aroma teased her nose from every corner.
Saliva pooled in her mouth. She mentally chanted like a monk in meditation.
'...I'm human. Humans have dignity. No way I'd eat churu...'
But the smell was everywhere.
She steeled herself to endure, but her dignity's walls crumbled bit by bit.
'Even so...I'm human...how could I eat churu...'
She tried patching the barricade.
'But...people eat dog food...and trying it once out of curiosity's fine, right...?'
Her "repairs" shattered the wall instead. Finally, she caved to the vet.
"...You got any churu?"
"Uh, y-yeah. Not for humans, but if you want...I can give some..."
The vet rummaged out churu, handing it over amid visible turmoil—give it whole or let her tear into it?
Seo-hwa snatched it and slurped greedily.
'...D-delicious.'
Heavenly.
Like fish-flavored chocolate. Impulse screamed to raid a convenience store and stockpile.
'B-but I'm human.'
One curious nibble? Sure. Bulk-buying? Human fail, beast pass.
'Ugh...'
Torn, she unconsciously slurped again.
The sweet bliss washed away her inner conflict.
'F-fine, just churu then.'
As she resolved to ditch human dignity for churu alone, the vet spoke.
"Mind a quick test?"
"Test?"
"If it's not rude, what emotions does this stir?"
He led her to...a cat tree.
Yes. The cat tree. That feline paradise.
Staring at it ignited one burning desire in Cheisi.
'Conquer...!'
Like history's conquerors, she yearned to claim the summit!
But no way a human could just climb a cat tree like a lunatic.
"...Wanna climb it, yeah. Like an urge, I guess."
"No instinctive lunge?"
"Nope..."
Seo-hwa reined in the faint impulse while answering.
"Wanna give it a go?"
"For real?"
"You look thrilled."
"Ahem...nope."
Seo-hwa scaled the cat tree.
Step by step to the top perch. Now she looked down at the vet she'd craned up at.
'Conquered...!'
A intoxicating satisfaction washed over her.
"Can come down now."
"Don't wanna."
"Pardon?"
"One min...no, three."
She said that, but it took over 10 minutes to pry herself down.
Wanted to stay forever, but incoming staff and pets gawked at the "cat tree conqueror" like she was deranged.
Even the animals eyed her that way.
Feeling truly unhinged, she slunk down and headed home.