Chapter 67: Running to the Edge of the Sky (4)

“Is someone talking about me?”

Former pro gamer, now streamer—Argon scratched his head.

After negotiating with viewers for a well-earned break starting tomorrow at noon, he was enjoying a peaceful moment slurping hot ramen.

He’d be grinding again soon, but for now, he could relax.

Still, even on break, something nagged at him.

‘But… what if—’

A scenario flashed through his mind.

‘What if Silverhair challenges me to a PvP match?’

Word had spread in the community that he’d boasted he could fend off the 11-man Red moon ambush.

Now the Silverhair vs. Ex-Pro Argon bait had lit the forums on fire.

If Silverhair saw it, a duel challenge was totally possible.

He remembered the replays from Raidel’s stream.

Silverhair’s outrageous talent, her unbelievable physical reactions—it haunted him.

And she was supposedly new to VR games?

Even in his specialty, Raid & Master, he didn’t see a winning chance.

What was he supposed to do against someone who caught bullets with her teeth?

Of course Pixelwars was no better.

‘Losing isn’t the issue—if I can’t even hit her, then I’m really f*cked…’

Argon gave a bitter laugh.

If he weren’t a former pro, it wouldn’t matter so much.

But the “ex-pro gamer” title still weighed heavily on him.

He’d been playing up his reputation in front of viewers and fellow streamers—

but if Silverhair wiped the floor with him?

He had too much to lose.

“Haa.”

He sighed and slurped the remaining noodles.

“Guess there’s only one way.”

His eyes glinted with resolve.

He nodded to himself and began refining a cunning plan.

---

“Here, have a drink, Seo-yeon!”

“Th-thank you…”

Yoon Ha-yeon handed her a can of beer she’d bought at the convenience store.

To celebrate meeting her musical savior, she said.

Seo-yeon offered to pay, but Ha-yeon insisted on treating her.

In the end, they had a few cans of beer and the cheapest bag of peanuts.

A goshiwon life.

Considering Ha-yeon’s financial situation, it was likely a splurge.

Seo-yeon felt a bit guilty, but chose to accept the gesture.

Crack—

The hiss of opening beer rang out into the cool night air atop the rooftop.

“Hehe, to Silverhair!”

“T-to Silverhair…!”

Ha-yeon took a satisfying gulp and smiled.

Seo-yeon followed with a sip of her own.

The bitter, crisp taste slid down her throat.

“I’ve been meaning to ask—was it the Star Demon? That event boss. How did you come up with using the golem to clear it?”

She asked with sparkling curiosity.

That moment during the one-month event, when Seo-yeon had used the Aegis golem to defeat the boss.

“Haha, I was just going to use it to open the gate, but the golem’s attack looked pretty strong.”

Apparently Argon had even watched the replay, given all the buzz.

“I figured I’d try attacking once, and… it actually worked.”

She downplayed it, but even if she explained it in detail, it would’ve sounded the same.

“Also—also! I think the 1.5 billion you won in the underground casino was even crazier. Everyone said you predicted the roulette by sound… Is that real?”

Maybe it was the alcohol—Ha-yeon looked gleeful, like a child.

Not the image she usually gave off.

“It’s kind of like… a pattern? I was lucky, too. And I could hear little cues.”

“Whoa… Then couldn’t you do the same in a real casino?!”

Her eyes widened, clearly imagining her raking in chips in Vegas.

‘Hmm… probably not.’

Seo-yeon shook her head.

“No, real casinos are way more complex. That was just a game.”

Though part of her, just a tiny part, still wondered… Nah.

She doubted it would ever work IRL.

“After that, I saw Argon replaying Raid & Master streams—and he kept saying your gameplay was insane.”

Ha-yeon seemed to really follow Argon’s streams. She brought up all sorts of references.

“With those reflexes, don’t you think you could go pro too?”

Seo-yeon just smiled and answered vaguely.

She didn’t say much, but Ha-yeon still looked satisfied.

It seemed like she just enjoyed talking.

They kept chatting over their beers, emptying cans one by one.

By the second can, Ha-yeon’s cheeks were tinged with a light flush.

The usual gloom and fatigue were gone. Her voice was lighter.

“This all feels like a dream. Meeting you, hearing you sing, and now my song… it’ll be performed in a major streamer concert.”

She looked genuinely moved.

“Thank you, Seo-yeon.”

Her heartfelt gratitude made Seo-yeon a bit shy. She lowered her head slightly.

“You don’t have to thank me. It was a beautiful song.”

“No—it was your voice that made it beautiful. No other singer could’ve brought it to life like that.”

Ha-yeon shook her head firmly.

Her gaze wandered toward the night sky.

“When I first saw you—your hair, your whole presence—I thought an angel had descended. Even sharing a beer like this feels like some midsummer night’s dream.”

Her voice dipped.

The light mood shifted—just a touch of melancholy.

She looked at Seo-yeon again, and smiled faintly.

“Seo-yeon…”

She paused.

The night breeze ruffled their hair.

“I hope… you don’t disappear.”

There was something more than gratitude in those words.

Like someone who’d lost something precious.

Like someone desperately clinging to a fragile hope.

Seo-yeon didn’t know what kind of past she carried,

but in that moment, the emotion in Ha-yeon’s eyes felt incredibly clear.

Letter to the Sky.

The song’s title came to mind.

She wasn’t sure why.

She watched silently as Ha-yeon, tipsy and drowsy, slowly dozed off.

---

Time in the Pixelwars streamer server moved fast.

The scheduled end date crept closer.

The server was starting to buzz with preparations for the final event and the grand concert.

Seo-yeon and Raidel spent their remaining time leisurely exploring content they hadn’t tried yet.

“Excuse me, Silverhair.”

Kreetzone. And his ten clanmates.

Their expressions were awkward—maybe lingering guilt from the Red moon incident.

Kreetzone fidgeted and opened his mouth.

“About last time… I’m really sorry we ambushed you like that.”

He suddenly thrust forward a heavy pouch of gold.

“Ahem. This is, uh… an apology. And also a token of goodwill.”

They’d heard Silverhair hadn’t reported them to the admins.

It was thanks to her leniency. This was their way of saying thanks.

Seo-yeon simply stared with bright golden eyes.

Tilt.

Her head cocked slightly.

‘Uh… thanks, I guess.’

She gave a polite bow and accepted the pouch.

But inside, she was thinking something else.

‘They probably don’t know their penalty gold and XP go to me.’

The Mark of Betrayal debuff the clan received—

the 15% XP and gold penalty was rerouted to Seo-yeon, courtesy of the admin’s system patch.

They must not have realized.

And the admins hadn’t made it public.

So Seo-yeon was getting a double tribute.

No need to mention it.

“Thanks. I’ll use it well.”

She smiled bashfully, like she was just touched by the gesture.

Kreetzone and his clan finally relaxed and backed away.

Once they were gone, Raidel snickered.

“Looks like Kreetzone got properly humbled. Bringing tribute and all.”

“Did he?”

Seo-yeon tilted her head, shaking the pouch absentmindedly.

Nearby, Argon had been watching from a distance.

‘Ahem. At least Kreetzone knows how to read the room.’

Humiliating, but at least he wrapped it up cleanly.

No lingering fallout, a tidy apology.

Even at the cost of pride, he’d salvaged things.

But then—

Step, step.

Silverhair, who had just been speaking with Kreetzone’s crew,

was now walking straight toward him.

‘…Huh?’

Argon’s heart dropped.

Why was she coming here?

‘No way—PvP challenge?!’

A mental alarm blared.

‘She saw the forum poll, didn’t she?!’

What other reason could she have?

She must want to settle the score.

The image of her Raid & Master gameplay flashed in his mind.

Her surreal reflexes, catching bullets with her teeth.

He glanced at her expression.

Neutral as always, but her eyes were locked right on him.

Not a casual hello.

She was clearly approaching with purpose.

A cold sweat trickled down Argon’s back.

It was a totally unexpected emergency—

but being a pro meant preparing for anything.

Thankfully, he had a plan.

“Argon, may I have a word?”

“Ugh…!”

Argon suddenly clutched his stomach.

His body trembled like he’d collapse any second.

“A-Argon? Are you okay?”

Seo-yeon blinked at him in concern.

“I-I think the yukhoe I ate last night was bad. Ugh…”

(TL note: Yukhoe is a Korean dish of seasoned raw beef, often described as a Korean beef tartare.)

Beads of sweat dotted his forehead. He acted desperate.

“My stomach… I gotta use the bathroom… uuuugh!”

And with that, he logged out.

Like a man in the throes of acute food poisoning.

“……”

It happened so fast.

Seo-yeon stared blankly at the spot where he disappeared.

‘I just wanted to thank him for helping me connect with Yoon Ha-yeon…’

She hadn’t been thinking of PvP at all.

Since Yoon Ha-yeon turned out to be a fan of his, Seo-yeon had just come with a small gift.

But he suddenly grabbed his stomach and vanished.

‘He must be really sick.’

Meanwhile—

“Perfect! I’ll just say I’m unwell until the server ends.”

Argon, now sitting on his actual toilet for extra method acting, whispered to himself with a fist pump.

He’d successfully dodged a threat that didn’t exist—

and declared to himself that he was a man of cunning and foresight.