NOVEL NEXT chapter 73
“Yu Ji-han. Did you memorize all the mechanics in the new raid?”
“Yeah.”
Kim Daeseok, who’d been nodding off next to me the whole lecture, perked right up the second class ended and asked.
I shrugged on the coat I’d left hanging on the chair and answered without much interest. He drooped his head.
“Ugh, why is it this sweaty even on Normal. We have to go into Abyss starting tomorrow and I’m screwed.”
“Then tell them to go without you.”
“I’m the only proper healer in the guild.”
True. Other than Haereun, our guild didn’t have any healer who could play at Abyss-raid level either.
Healer’s a pain-in-the-ass class to level, so there weren’t many of them, and the gear was expensive, which meant not many players were able to enter high-tier raids.
“Can’t you come merc for our guild? I’ll treat you right.”
“You’re putting a lot of effort into that bullshit.”
I grabbed my bag and stood up.
This was not the time to shoot the breeze. I was supposed to meet Chae Yu-jeong, and of all days, the lecture ran about ten minutes late, so I had no room to dawdle.
“Guys, wanna go drink?”
“No.”
“Then club?”
“You’re incredible, you know that.”
Even Kim Daeseok shook his head, fed up with Eun Haeseong repeating the exact same line every Friday.
One was begging me to come merc for his guild, the other was nagging me to hit a club—just watching it was exhausting.
[Chae Yu-jeong: hyung hyung]
[Chae Yu-jeong: Did your class end?]
[Chae Yu-jeong: I just got here hehe]
[Yu Ji-han: yeah]
[Yu Ji-han: Type the location so I can find you]
Replying to the messages, I headed out of the building toward the front gate.
Trailing me, arms slung around my shoulders, Kim Daeseok whined while chattering with Eun Haeseong behind me.
“Yu Ji~ you’re really not gonna help? Did you forget I bought you the Xenorise Starter Pack when you started?”
“You’re heavy. Off.”
“Our guild doesn’t care about FC or any of that, okay? We’re pure—just in it for the clear. You can help after you get your FC.”
I reached the front gate and ignored him, checking my messenger again.
Why isn’t Chae Yu-jeong answering? He needs to tell me where he’s waiting so I can head there.
“You guys still play Xenorise or whatever?”
“You said you would—so why aren’t you?”
“I figured Ji-han quit after seeing he basically lives at school.”
“I’ll buy you a Starter Pack too if you come. But you have to go buffer or healer. I’ll bring you into the guild.”
“I like stuff with style… healer or buffer isn’t stylish.”
“What? You have any idea how stylish a healer looks dropping a ground field? But if you’re going healer, you gotta roll a female character.”
Leaving the screw-loose pair to it, I shot Chae Yu-jeong another message.
[Yu Ji-han: Where are you?]
“Hyung.”
I’d been squinting at my phone screen, and a familiar voice close by made me snap my head to the side.
“I’m right here.”
“You…”
He’d said he had something to do, and he was dressed up even more than usual, standing right in front of the gate.
He met my eyes, lifted just the corner of his mouth, and slipped the phone he’d been holding into his jacket.
“Why are you here? I told you to wait at a café nearby.”
“I brought my car. There wasn’t anywhere to park.”
At that, I finally noticed a car pulled up across the way.
“You can drive?”
“Of course. I got my license as soon as I turned twenty. But, hyung.”
Smiling with his mouth while his brows pinched, Chae Yu-jeong asked:
“Are the people behind you friends? How long are they going to be clinging to you?”
“Ah.”
Right, Kim Daeseok still had his arms around my shoulders. I knocked his arms off while he stared at Chae Yu-jeong like his soul had left his body and did a quick intro.
“My classmate. Hey, snap out of it.”
“Holy— it’s really Sensory. I’m a fan!”
“Thank you.”
Even with Kim Daeseok’s scatterbrained greeting, Chae Yu-jeong smiled and shook his hand.
‘Totally different from when it’s just the two of us.’
Up to now he’d acted more like thirteen than twenty-three.
Come to think of it, he autographed stuff on the street the other day too, didn’t he? He’s been a popular pro since he was twenty, so I guess he knows how to handle this kind of situation.
“Jesus. Stupid handsome. Ji-han, can I ask him to hit a club with us?”
“You think that’ll fly? I’ve got plans, I’m heading out.”
Brushing off Eun Haeseong’s bright-eyed question, I walked up to Chae Yu-jeong’s mask-like smile.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
“Hey, Yu Ji-han! You better come merc if you have time, yeah? I’ll be waiting for your call!”
“…”
Hearing Kim Daeseok holler from behind, Chae Yu-jeong flicked his eyes toward me.
That bastard—right to the end… I’m dying of embarrassment.
I buckled into the passenger seat, and with the corners of his eyes crinkled, Chae Yu-jeong asked:
“When he said merc, he meant Xenorise, right?”
…Did not expect Chae Yu-jeong to bring up Xenorise first.
“Yeah. How’d you know?”
“I heard it from Tae-young hyung a while back. I asked, and he just answered.”
He glanced at me, gauging my mood in case I’d be annoyed.
“That much doesn’t matter. If Tae-young hyung blabbed in an official interview that a close junior plays Xenorise, that would be the problem.”
“Sorry.”
Pulling out past the gate, he sounded glum.
“I wasn’t thinking. I called the outlet that day and had the parts about you deleted from the interview, so please let it slide just this once.”
“You didn’t have to go that far.”
“No, it’s better. Thinking about it, I don’t like the idea of random people replaying your old match videos either. Your face would show up.”
That had bugged me too, which is why I’d called him, but since he owned it and apologized sincerely, I let it go.
And if he cleaned up after it this thoroughly, all the better for me.
“Okay. Then I won’t stress about it anymore.”
“Yes. Hyung, aren’t you hungry? The coach recommended a place.”
“Where?”
“It’s up by Gangnam Station, so it’ll take thirty to forty minutes. I’ll buy you beef as an apology for the interview.”
“Oh.”
Beef? When it comes to meat, I go feral—pork, beef, fish, whatever—so my eyes lit up.
How did this guy know I love beef… impressive. Whatever leftover bad taste I had got wiped clean, and I grinned wide.
“I’m down.”
Seeing my smile, the tips of his ears pinked as he smiled shyly.
He was a year younger than me, but compared to [N O V E L I G H T] me just being a student, he’s a popular pro who’s gone to Worlds twice, so it’s fine to let him treat me this much.
Plus the restaurant was recommended by a coach older than us, which made it feel more reliable.
“I actually know why you said you were busy last week. You went to do the new raid, didn’t you?”
“Yeah. If I want to hit Abyss this week, I have to memorize the mechanics in advance on Normal.”
“So you chose the game and dumped me.”
“Well…”
He wasn’t wrong, so I couldn’t really argue. I dragged out the last word and looked out the window, and he grumbled in a wry voice.
“I could’ve bought you beef last week too…”
“…”
“The reason you coldly rejected me was because of a game raid…”
“Knock it off.”
If I left him be, he’d go on to verse three, so I cut in; driving, he snorted.
‘Yeah, he’s blessed.’
The thin sunlight spilled across his white skin. With features that sharp, it was weird how he still gave off a gentle look.
His soft hair caught the light and kept tugging at my eyes. Below it, a black T-shirt and a low-saturation beige jacket.
“You said you had something to go out for—was it another interview? You’re dressed to the nines.”
“Ah, this is…”
We hit a light and the car paused; he glanced down his outfit and looked a bit bashful.
“I dressed up because I was meeting you…”
“…”
I hadn’t even imagined he’d say that, so I didn’t answer right away. He blinked, hesitated, then spoke.
“Is… is it not good?”
“…Huh?”
I finally came to and, flustered, answered the way I would to a girlfriend.
“No, you look good in anything.”
“What?”
Ah, fuck. I messed up.
For how short we’ve known each other, that was too much, and secondhand embarrassment flooded me. I was about to say I overdid it—even late—when his face, flushed all over, filled my view.
“…”
“…”
With his neck, face, and ears blazing red, he pressed his lips together and pulled out again. I had no idea what to say either, so I folded my arms and looked away. A ridiculous level of awkwardness settled inside the car.