The PC Bang Sommelier
Buuuuuz—
Sitting in the passenger seat of Baek Seol-yeon's car, I kept my mouth shut and racked my brains.
My first thought was why she'd said something like that to me.
Out of simple affection? Or on orders from above? From what I knew, Baek Seol-yeon had rocketed up the ranks after that incident. But why was she giving me this special treatment?
I couldn't pinpoint the exact reason. As I mulled it over, elegant classical music flowed from the radio along with the news.
It was the radio delivering the news. The announcer calmly laid out the details of the mana poisoning in Incheon.
According to the announcer, here's what happened with the poisoning:
Some illegal immigrants had brought a few mana-emitting items into the sealed fish hold. The mana couldn't escape and built up until it suddenly seeped into the port, causing the disaster.
"…"
A subtle silence hung in the car. No one spoke; we all just listened quietly to the news from the radio.
The announcer's explanation sounded plausible. It was entirely possible. Even back in Yggdrasil, clueless humans occasionally got mana poisoned.
But there was one thing off about it.
Earth didn't have mana as abundant as Yggdrasil's, and mana-emitting materials weren't easy to come by. The prime example was mana stones, a key resource in modern magitech industry.
That's why hunters risked their lives diving into Gates. But for a mana stone to emit enough power to poison people? That'd take something way beyond average.
And illegal immigrants just happened to have those on a boat?
Sure, if they'd sold everything they owned to buy one, maybe—but even that didn't add up.
Plus, Baek Seol-yeon's warning.
'You'll need the Management Bureau's permission to enter Incheon.'
There were too many red flags, but no hard evidence—just suspicion. Without seeing the scene myself, I couldn't get proof.
'…'
Curiosity and the urge to investigate burned hot. I wanted to bolt to Incheon right then and uncover the truth.
But I crushed that impulse and shoved it down. Sometimes, it's better to play dumb in this world. Sticking your neck out often led to trouble.
Especially in a case this shady.
"We're here."
Baek Seol-yeon's voice shattered the quiet—and my train of thought.
I looked up and saw a beef restaurant. Not some cheap joint using imported meat; this was the real deal. The kind where a single serving cost tens of thousands of won.
"Ooh…"
Lee Ga-eun stared out the window, totally entranced. Elves had a weakness for food. Especially the women. In moments like this, their childlike side popped out, no matter their age.
Probably because Yggdrasil didn't have much in the way of tasty food, and female elves had even been restricted in what they could eat.
I shelved my Incheon thoughts for now and focused on the beef. It'd been a while since Baek Seol-yeon had treated us.
"Three people. Ah, three adults."
Baek Seol-yeon told the counter our headcount and picked a nice spot. Sunlight streamed in. Being a weekday at an odd hour, it wasn't crowded.
"What'll you have?"
Baek Seol-yeon scanned the menu and asked. Lee Ga-eun seemed apologetic, hemming and hawing over her choice, but I was different.
"Flower sirloin."
I boldly eyed the menu on the wall and picked the priciest cut.
"…"
Baek Seol-yeon lowered her menu and shot me a prickly glare, but I ignored it and fired back.
"If we're eating, might as well do it right. Right?"
Half-assing it was worse than skipping. Make the treater's wallet hurt and show a happy face—that's the way to go.
Better than compromising and everyone sitting there like they chewed shit.
Not that I, the freeloader, should say it.
"…Fine. Let's go big then."
Baek Seol-yeon pondered a moment, slammed the menu down in resignation, and rang the bell. Soon, mouthwatering beef hit the grill.
"But… just two servings?"
The portions seemed small. Baek Seol-yeon smirked and wordlessly slapped the meat on the hot plate.
And soon, I got why she'd ordered only two.
"Mm."
Lee Ga-eun ate three or four pieces, then switched to slurping doenjang jjigae nonstop.
Maybe female elves in Yggdrasil weren't allowed meat, so she wasn't used to it.
But.
"Ah… slurp."
Why was I doing this? Too long since fancy food—stomach not adjusting?
I ended up scooping some of the accompanying doenjang jjigae. Felt like it cleared out the heaviness inside.
Meanwhile, Baek Seol-yeon leisurely wrapped hers in lettuce and enjoyed it.
She saw our reactions, chuckled, and said,
"I heard hunters fresh from Gate raids struggle with meat. Mana buildup weakens the digestive system or something."
…You knew?
A twinge of betrayal—and some vengeful spark from who-knows-where—had me snatch another piece.
"Ah…"
It melted in my mouth. Delicious. But… no more.
Clack—
Lee Ga-eun and I barely touched it before setting down our chopsticks. Should've gone for pork. Damn it.
"Take care."
After the meal, Baek Seol-yeon dropped us downtown and left.
Lee Ga-eun and I decided to hang out more and bond since we were already together.
Around then, I made a quiet suggestion.
"Ga-eun, it's awkward with the formal speech. Wanna drop it?"
Elves bantered casually from the start. Age was basically meaningless. You couldn't tell by looks anyway.
Formal speech came from Earth or rubbing off on human-integrated elves.
"Mm…"
Lee Ga-eun thought it over, then replied,
"Just a bit longer… let me think. Hehe. I'm kinda shy with strangers."
"Sure, whatever."
No big deal. Just a matter of time, I figured. Call it intuition, but she and I had a lot in common.
And as we chatted, one thing stood out.
She was wearing a mask. A thick, awkward one.
To kick off my business—Vtuber producing for real—I'd need to peel that off first.
The online rep of 'You Must Be Respected' clashed hard with the Lee Ga-eun in front of me.
So far, she was the picture of a heavenly girl.
She knew how to smile prettily, say things to lift moods just right.
Unlike me in my sackcloth rags, she dressed cute, did makeup. Her behavior screamed unbelievable.
Hell, it'd be more believable if she said all that online talk was bullshit and the nick was her bro's.
"Where to?"
To break the awkward silence, I asked. Honestly, I expected something girly and ladylike from her.
Olive Young or Insta-cuts—places screaming "girls only."
But she shattered my expectations and biases.
"Nothing to do? Wanna hit a PC bang? You seemed into games earlier. I know a good one nearby."
Her eyes lit up the second game talk started. Right after Baek Seol-yeon left, actually.
Did Baek make her uncomfortable? That woman had a knack for it.
"Uh, um…"
Her enthusiasm threw me; I mumbled. But she kept going.
"Sguru PC Bang's got good hourly rates and drinks. Green Force is pricier but the food's killer—great for all-nighters…"
For a sec, I thought I was facing a PC bang sommelier. She rattled off five spots without pause.
"Uh…"
Then her face flushed beet red after spilling it all. Weirdo. Carrot-faced, she asked,
"Did I… get too excited?"
It was kinda cute, so I stared a beat, chuckled, and headed to one she'd recommended.
"Let's go."
"Ah, yep!"
As we walked, I tossed her some questions.
"You been to every PC bang around here?"
"Ah, yep. Before I bought my PC, I'd hop between them… Neighborhood's rough, and elf ears draw stares, so I caved and got one."
Fair point. Few elves here. Pointy ears alone pulled aggro.
Last time downtown for an event, I felt the uncles' stares at the PC bang.
Hard to blame 'em—kid-looking me in a stretched white tee, scratching my belly mid-morning on a weekday.
"I… uh, yeah. I game pretty hard. Draws more aggro."
"How much?"
"Weekends? Up from bed to crash, all games. Weekdays after work, straight to PC bang till bedtime."
Right. The 3000-game queen. Forgot for a sec. We bantered on till we hit the PC bang—second floor of a rundown building.
Lee Ga-eun dragged me to a corner booth right away.
"This spot's best. Newest rigs, far from the smoking room."
I took the sommelier's rec, sat, made an account, topped up, and fired up a game.
Soon enough, I saw the real Lee Ga-eun.
"She said she games 'pretty hard'."
"What the fuck, what is our ADC doing? ADC but positioning like that…"
One foul-mouthed lady. The gap between online persona and reality vanished in an instant.