episode_0043

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Lately, Ji-yoon had been stuck in a rut, her days passing like a hamster running endlessly on a wheel—until she stumbled upon fresh excitement.

A cute newbie to train.

Not just any newbie, but an SSS-tier rookie whom her brother-in-law had coaxed her into teaching—someone who needed to engrave the absolute basics into their bones.

In a dying game where finding new players was already a miracle, how could she not be thrilled?

Thanks to this, even during her usual eight-hour shift at the café, where she usually maintained a stoic expression, a faint smile had begun to creep onto Lee Ji-yoon’s face.

Amid the oddly intense gaze she felt on her—

Jingle.

Behind her, busily washing dishes, the cheerful bell at the entrance chimed.

“Welcome.”

“Um, a venti iced Americano, please…”

Messy hair.

Pitch-black horn-rimmed glasses.

The same white-and-black striped scarf she saw every day (did they even wash it?).

And something that vaguely resembled a laptop bag.

One of the regulars who always came at this hour.

Since they always just ordered an Americano to-go, she had memorized them.

Assuming nothing else needed to be said, Ji-yoon flashed a grin and let her thoughts stray back to I can’t wait to game.

But the man in front of her was steadily turning red.

She had no idea why.

“…V-Venti size… just one… please…”

43

Change clothes.

Wash up.

Sit down.

The moment her shift ended, Ji-yoon sped home and logged into the game immediately, brushing everything else aside.

The glaring red “1k+” notification on Discord’s left side looked suspicious as hell, but…

She ignored it. It was probably just guild-related nonsense anyway.

Right now, the fresh newbie was infinitely more important than anything she had to endure during her part-time grind.

Considering the time her older sister usually got back from the academy, Seo Woo-jin must have gotten off work long ago and sent her a friend request.

Let’s see…

“…Ah.”

There he was.

Her adorable newbie.

seowoojin123—

Kind of a lazy username, but she found it amusing in a way.

Not that she could talk—hers was just Jiyoon.

Accepting the request, Ji-yoon immediately fired off a game invite—

—only to fail.

Woo-jin was offline.

Well, she supposed it made sense. Staying logged into games all day, treating them as more than just entertainment but as social platforms… that was the lifestyle of a terminally online gamer.

Most normal people didn’t do that. Right, right.

Ji-yoon alt-tabbed and started hammering away at her keyboard.

─ You there? ─ Just logged in.

Might as well grab water or milk while waiting.

As she slung her headset around her neck, a reply popped up.

[Seo Woo-jin] ─ Should I boot up the game now?

Was it because he was her treasured newbie?

Even such a mundane response stirred something warm and fuzzy deep in her chest.

It was like watching a diligent high schooler who studied ahead and reviewed without complaint…

Still standing, Ji-yoon quickly typed back.

─ Yeah. Just grabbing water real quick.

Heading to the kitchen, she happily poured herself a glass of barley tea, her pulse fluttering oddly.

Come to think of it, this was the first time she’d played a game with someone she actually knew in real life.

She’d always prioritized squeezing in another match over making friends.

In middle and high school, the classmates who came closest to being “friends” had zero interest in gaming.

They wasted their time on TikTok or YouTube Shorts, dismissing games as a pointless time-sink.

Not that those weren’t also massive time-wasters…

Anyway, maybe that was why she felt so giddy.

She was starting to understand why people said even trash games became fun when played with friends.

Or why she suddenly got those memes she’d seen in gaming communities.

Like… what was it again?

That meme where a girl with a socially unacceptable hobby gets hyped when a guy says, I like that too, and drags him home to—

“……”

…Yeah.

Let’s just play.

What kind of nonsense was she imagining about Unnie’s boyfriend?

He was a nice guy. If he’d really had ulterior motives, he would’ve been begging to game with her since yesterday.

But no, he was busy—claimed he couldn’t even log on.

Returning to her room with the glass, Ji-yoon cleared her throat unnecessarily and sat back at her desk.

Using Discord would be better if it was just the two of them.

Since he rarely gamed, would he even know what Discord was?

Using in-game voice chat with the opposite sex was just begging to be labeled a queen bee attention whore.

Her mind kept drifting to increasingly indecent places when—

“…Ah.”

seowoojin123

And below it—

Kor_CZ

An unpleasant username she immediately recognized…

Now glowing green.

It had definitely been gray earlier.

Clicking over to Discord, she saw several DMs already waiting.

Playing Apex today?

Got room for one more?

I’ll keep it strictly gameplay-related, promise~

Etcetera, etcetera.

She stifled a sigh, ignored them, and invited only Woo-jin—making sure to lock the party to prevent any meddling.

Soon enough, a fresh-faced default character spawned beside her.

…Why did it feel strangely… lewd?

Was this the infamous newbie pheromone effect?

[seowoojin123] ─ Hello.

Even that tiny five-character message felt subtly indecent.

Briefly wondering if she was becoming degenerate, Ji-yoon snapped out of it and typed carefully.

─ Hello. Do you use Discord?

[seowoojin123] ─ Yeah. I downloaded it since people said it’s essential.

Good. Her pupil.

Satisfied, Ji-yoon smiled as she fiddled with her headset mic.

─ I’ll send you my ID so you can add me. ─ Wait, you might not know how. Just give me yours, I’ll add you instead.

Come to think of it, this was probably the first time she’d asked someone for their ID first.

The odd tingling sensation lingered briefly before Woo-jin sent his details.

After adding him, Ji-yoon called him and waited.

And then—

A pleasantly deep baritone vibrated through her eardrums.

“…A-Ah. Can you hear me?”

“Yeah. Sounds good. Can you hear me too?”

“Hold on. First time, so it’s a little quiet. Let me adjust…”

The same voice from last night—

In that alley, under the judgmental stares of passersby.

While pretending to hug, while receiving that headache treatment.

Her sister’s boyfriend’s voice.

…Hearing it now, alone on a call with him—

It felt unnervingly intimate.

“Got it. So uh… Do I just follow you around?”

“Stick with me for now. Let’s aim for a win today.”

“…Doubt I can.”

“You can. I’m here.”

Suppressing that bizarre feeling, Ji-yoon queued for a casual match.

Ever since their private chat at the café, she couldn’t shake the sense that she was doing something wrong…

But logically, it wasn’t a big deal.

She’d just talked to Unnie’s boyfriend alone.

Just received treatment from Unnie’s boyfriend.

Just gamed with Unnie’s boyfriend.

Unnie just… wasn’t there.

Nothing weird had happened.

Nothing at all.

“And keep callouts short—it’s cleaner. Oh, I might slip into casual speech mid-game.”

“Doesn’t matter. Casual’s easier for me too.”

“Then… Wanna drop formalities now?”

Nothing weird had happened.

Nothing at all.

“You said you preferred honorifics.”

“We’re both twenty, and after March, we’ll see each other at the clinic often anyway…”

“Sure, whatever.”

“You drop them first.”

“Ji-yoon-ah.”

Nothing weird had happened.

Nothing at all.

“…Seo Woo-jin.”

“Using full names feels stiff. Like I’m some barely-acquainted girl.”

“…I-It does?! But—wait, that was informal!”

“Stop nitpicking. You just switched back too.”

“…Fine. Seo Woo-jin. Happy?”

“Same as before.”

“I can’t just flip a switch with how I talk. Gimme time.”

Unconsciously straightening her posture, Ji-yoon frowned.

…Something felt off.

Was Woo-jin usually this teasing? His kind demeanor seemed subtly sharper now…

Was this how friends talked?

She wouldn’t know.

Before graduating high school, the only conversations she’d had with guys were one-sided confessions.

‘Friendly’ banter was unfamiliar.

‘Friendly’ banter was awkward.

Fidgeting with her hair, she scooted her chair forward.

“…Anyway, pick the heavyset one like I said.”

“This one?”

“Yeah, the one with the weird arm attachments.”

“Might need to read the skills…”

“You’ll get it after using them once. They’re tricky to master but straightforward.”

“Got it. I’ll try.”

Their random teammate’s skill level was unknown.

One player was a bullet-sponge newbie.

Even if the first few matches earned them toxic teammates, she’d patiently teach him the essentials.

Resolved, Ji-yoon picked her usual slippery escape artist and took a sip of water.

…There was just one thing she didn’t realize.

Be it games—

Or anything else—

Lee Ji-yoon was the type who became dangerously obsessed with winning.

[Jiyoon_0420] ─ Keep callouts gameplay-only. Minimal small talk. ─ Might be loud teaching my friend. Deal with it. ─ Party disbands after one win. Understood?

[CZ] ─ At your service 😀

Humming, CZ—Han Chae-jun—cheerfully accepted Ji-yoon’s party invite.

No way a tryhard who sweat ranked in every FPS could tolerate a newbie’s incompetence forever.

Not that he’d expected this, but even a thickheaded guy like him could see how it played out: losing streak → frustration → SOS. Obvious.

If this went well, he’d chat a few more times under the guise of repayment, leverage that for more interactions, and eventually bridge it into real life…

Hah…

Briefly eyeing the derpy default skin next to Ji-yoon, Chae-jun clicked the Discord link DM’ed to him.

A newly created channel, it seemed.

“Hello! Uh, Wo-jin-ssi? Real name?”

“Yes.”

“Nice to meet you. Call me whatever. Ji-yoon noona told me to shut up and drive.”

“Ah… Sure.”

This bastard’s voice is way too smooth in front of a girl.

Scowling, Chae-jun’s ears perked up as Ji-yoon’s sweet tone flowed through.

“Don’t mind him. Let’s focus on positioning first, okay?”

Sweet.

Ji-yoon.

An unimaginable combination—

“Yeah. Sorry I suck. You watched all that, huh?”

“Nah. It’s fine.”

—in casual speech.

The girl who’d throw a tantrum over tiny mistakes, who stubbornly used honorifics even mid-game…

Was speaking informally.

Was she like this because he was someone she actually knew?

Hmm…

“Be right back—need more water. Talked too much…”

Seizing the moment as Ji-yoon rustled away, Chae-jun licked his lips.

“You’re always this nice, Noona? Seems different from in-game.”

“Huh?”

“In matches, you’re super strict. Not that I mind, but… You’re softer with him.”

“……”

Heh. Acting all meek for him? Doesn’t suit you.

Chae-jun shut up before Ji-yoon returned, leaving his words hanging—seemingly harmless, but laced with venom.

I know the real Ji-yoon.

Is this all your ‘friendship’ amounts to?

Not that it was surprising.

A hyung’s friend? How close could they really be?

She just scooped him up as a newbie. Maybe ‘Acquaintance Level 1’ at best.

I’m closer to her than you’ll ever be.

Grinning, Chae-jun picked up a potato chip with chopsticks.

“She’s usually annoying. Bratty.”

“……”

“But around me? Weirdly well-behaved. Almost… docile.”

“……”

His smirk faltered slightly.

“No clue why.”

“……”

Crunch.

The sound of chips crackled softly over Discord.

Just as it faded, rustling returned as Ji-yoon’s mic reactivated.

“Ah, still not matched. Dead game.”

“……”

“……”

Pathetic bastard.

While Chae-jun seethed internally—

Seo Woo-jin smiled lazily.

Pitiful guy.

If he ever hears Ji-yoon’s moans over Discord, he’ll cry himself to sleep.

That thought lingering—

[END]