Chapter 80
Chapter 80
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Begging Lesson and the Chase
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“Thank you for your business! Take care on your way back, Yelena!”
“Yes! See you next time!”
We finished shopping and stepped back out onto the street.
With a matching bag to store my uniform, there wasn’t a single trace that I was a soldier.
Wearing civilian clothes as a soldier during wartime violated the Geneva Conventions, but since the poison gas war hadn’t even started yet, there was no need to worry about it.
Besides, the Soviets didn’t follow the Geneva Conventions anyway, so there was really no reason for me to be cautious.
That meant I could just continue our peaceful, fun shopping with Yelena.
As I pondered our next destination, Yelena fiddled with the hem of her dress and asked,
“Cute Sis... but don’t we look a tiny bit pitiful like this? We can’t even forage seaweed in these clothes. How are we supposed to beg?”
“Huh?”
This adorable little kid seemed to want to scrounge her own food.
I’d promised to beg with her to buy her clothes, but admitting now that it was a lie might make her lose trust in me.
It looked like I’d have to demonstrate the ‘art of begging’ myself.
But it didn’t seem great for a child’s emotional development, so I decided to correct Yelena’s misguided attitude first.
“You can beg just fine in these clothes, so don’t worry. But Yelena, you need to work on your caution. If someone offers you treats, you’d get kidnapped right away. What if I’d been a dangerous person?”
“Huh? It’s fine! Someone like you, Sis, I could totally run from!”
“W-what are you saying, Yelena...”
“You’re tiny like me, Sis!”
“.......”
It seemed she wasn’t dropping her guard—she just thought I was an easy mark.
The thought that even buying her clothes might’ve been part of her plan was a little scary.
But no matter how clever her thoughts, she was still just a kid.
With a hint of dissatisfaction in my voice, I corrected her misunderstanding.
“If I were a bad person, you’d already be kidnapped by now.”
“Huh? Why? I’m a good runner! Are you fast too, Sis?”
“The very idea of running away is wrong. Do you even know what this is? I have a pistol.”
“Gasp!”
“And I’m not as weak as you think. I can take down big guys in one hit.”
“R-really? But you’re still a good person, right, Sis?”
“Yeah, I’m a good person, so no need to be scared. I just wanted to tell you not to judge by appearances.”
“Mm... sorry...”
Fortunately, Yelena understood my sincere advice.
Hanging on my arm and acting cute showed she’d put the escape option on hold for now.
But somehow, I felt her hand inching toward my pistol holster.
This cute little rascal was definitely still suspicious of me.
In that case, I needed to show her a friendly, cool side.
Deciding that, I hid the holster on my chest and got to the point.
“By the way, I said I’d help you get food, right? I’ll do the begging—you just watch from the side.”
“Huh? No foraging for seaweed?”
“Nope. Sis has begged enough to feed dozens of people before. I’m experienced, so we don’t need seaweed.”
“Ooh!”
Confidently, I took Yelena’s hand and approached a nearby player.
Since Yelena wanted food over money, begging from someone with supplies seemed best.
What the hell was I doing? But for Yelena, I could swallow my pride.
Recalling the American soldiers I’d met on the Eastern Front, I put my skills to use after a long time.
“.......”
From my experience, you didn’t even need to speak when begging.
Just staring intently at their supplies was enough—they’d hand over food on their own.
Sure enough, the player noticed my gaze and started rummaging in his bag.
I still didn’t know why, but the Americans had given me spam the same way.
“Got some tushonka—want it?”
“You’re giving it away?”
“But not for free. Kiss my cheek, and it’s all yours.”
“.......”
Unlike the Americans, though, this guy demanded payment.
And it was the kind of creepy request that made my skin crawl.
He must’ve been a viewer of my stream.
I could tell from his familiar face, the suppressed grin, and the eyes sneaking peeks at the chat.
“Gasp! Sis! He’ll give you cans if you just kiss him!”
“Stop, Yelena. No, no.”
I held back the bouncing Yelena and approached the man.
Then I gestured for him to lean down since I’d kiss his cheek.
He looked flustered and awkwardly bent over.
Instead of kissing his cheek, I whispered softly in his ear.
“You’re the one from the viewer event last time, right? You really want payment?”
“N-no, just kidding...”
“There’s a kid here—don’t make jokes like that. She might pick up bad habits.”
“But begging in the first place is weird...”
“Huh?”
“S-sorry. Take all the tushonka.”
“Thanks. Let’s shake on it.”
“Sure.”
It felt more like extortion than begging, but whatever.
After all, he was the one who crossed the line first.
Still, not wanting to seem too harsh to a viewer, I shook his hand.
I’d promised handshakes to those who came to Odessa, so the others should understand.
Sure enough, the chat stopped flaming him.
I checked the chat while transferring the tushonka to my bag.
『Kiss my ass lololololol』
『But that guy looks familiar?』
『Sukka... I’m waiting for my handshake too...』
【Ttalgwi has donated 1,000 coins!】
〔That idiot’s my YouTube editor—what’s he doing there?〕
『Lololol Ttalgwi’s editor?』
『Ttalgwi turn on your stream lololol』
『Said you switched to Nongnongdan for real lol』
Whatever his identity, the begging ended successfully.
Glancing back, Yelena stood there with her mouth agape in admiration.
I’d planted some weird respect, but it didn’t feel bad.
Slinging the now-heavy bag over one shoulder, I said to Yelena,
“See? We can do it without seaweed.”
“Yeah! That was amazing! Can you teach me how?”
“Hmm... but you won’t need to beg anymore...”
“Huh? Why?”
I gently stroked Yelena’s head and smiled.
I’d helped with begging as promised, but she wouldn’t need to anymore.
I planned to protect Irina and Yelena with my life.
So the Morozova sisters’ hard life ended today.
“I told you. I’ll protect you. If you’re hungry, I’ll feed you. If you’re cold, I’ll buy you clothes. If you’re struggling, I’ll help. I swear it on my life.”
“Wow, sounds like a proposal! So me and Sis are marrying Cute Sis?”
“Uh, w-well... shouldn’t we check with Irina first?”
“Yeah! Now it makes sense! You wanted to marry us, Sis?”
“.......”
Somehow the conversation veered off, but I let it go.
It was just a kid’s innocent misunderstanding.
I kept petting Yelena’s beaming smile.
She finally showed a real smile, and she was utterly adorable.
“Eek!”
That’s when it happened.
“Sis!!”
Someone shoved me roughly and bolted.
At the same time, the weight on my shoulder vanished.
Thinking it was safe had been a mistake.
A pickpocket had snatched my bag before I could react.
“Blin...”
My mind panicked, but my body moved on reflex.
I drew my pistol, racked the slide, chambered a round, and aimed—all in a blink.
The shabby pickpocket was clearly an NPC, not a player.
As I lined up on the receding target and started to squeeze the trigger—
“Mister! Give back that bag!! This is my turf!!”
Yelena’s shout from the side snapped me out of it.
I’d nearly shot someone dead in front of a child.
I hurriedly holstered the pistol and gave chase.
But he was too far gone to catch.
This boulevard wasn’t empty, though.
Plenty of uniformed players were around, and many were probably my viewers.
If I let the bag get stolen, Yelena might be disappointed.
Desperate times called for desperate measures—I rallied my stream comrades.
“Comrades! Find my bag, and I’ll treat you to a delicious meal!”
The noisy chat froze.
Then came the comrades’ thunderous pursuit.
“Uraaa!!”
“Grab that bastard!!”
Viewers poured out from everywhere.
The guy sitting like a bum, the one leisurely sipping tea, the one casually cleaning his gun—turns out most players nearby were my fans.
Stunned by the scene, I instinctively hugged Yelena.
They’d just been watching from afar like good viewers, but charging like they’d kill the thief was terrifying.
I quickly added, “Don’t hurt him!”
Roaring replies echoed from all over Odessa.
I’d never imagined my influence had grown this much.
“Sis! Who are those people?”
“Uh, w-well... my comrades...”
“Wow... Cute Sis is so cool...”
“Huh? You think that’s cool?”
“You really are a Federal Hero, Sis!”
Fortunately, it looked cool to Yelena.
The pickpocket would be caught soon, her affection was up, and it was a win-win.
I gave my viewers a thumbs-up in thanks.
Viewers who missed out sent jealousy.
【ㅇㅇ has donated 1,000 coins!】
〔But isn’t Sukka’s cooking punishment, not a reward?〕
“.......”
Even I felt a little hurt this time.
I’d learned spam fried rice from Shin Ara just yesterday.