I Have a Reason to Hate Streamers

The cutscene ended with the kiss at the wedding.

It’s a sweet love story, but dungeon raiding must go on.

However, the sweetness didn’t disappear in an instant, so while I disarmed traps, my party members chattered away.

“Dol-gwal, you were married, right? How did you propose?”

“Ah… I reserved a restaurant. It was on my wife’s birthday.”

“Tell us more details!”

It seemed like Elderin was quite taken with Nianbah’s proposal.

The married Dol-gwal’s story had her all excited.

To me, it felt like the tales of popular people from a distant world, leaving no room for me to chime in.

Still, as is the case with gossip about others’ love lives, it was enjoyable to listen to… until it started circling back to me.

“By the way, how much dating has Da-eun done?”

“Uh… uh? What?”

“I mean, boyfriends. Didn’t you have a significant other?”

The sudden question came out of nowhere.

I’d hoped it wouldn’t be brought up, but here we are.

And boyfriends, really?

As open as the world may be nowadays, I was clearly heterosexual.

At least as long as I was born a man, I couldn’t… Huh?

So, which side should I be dating?

If I were dating a girl, would that be considered same-sex romance? Or heterosexual?

Then, what if I dated a guy? Huh?

Suddenly, my head began spinning.

It was a topic I’d never seriously thought about before.

Once I started pondering, my thoughts spiraled down a rabbit hole with no end.

No, I took too long to answer.

At this rate, I’d look like I was just stammering.

I opened my mouth in a hurry and ended up stumbling over my words.

“W-Well, I haven’t had any.”

“Come on, that’s a lie. There’s no way boys didn’t notice you.”

“Really! There’s been nothing at all.”

“Did you go to an all-girls middle or high school?”

“Um, more or less?”

That should be okay, right? It’s not a complete lie.

I had very few interactions with the opposite sex while attending an all-boys school and later a sports college.

So, contextually, it’s not a lie. I really didn’t have a boyfriend.

In the past, my mind was so wrapped up in Kendo that I had no room to think about girls.

It’s not unusual to hear stories of athletes whose skills deteriorated once they started dating.

Some would say it’s an excuse. Others would point out that some people manage to juggle both relationship and sports, but who knows.

At least, I couldn’t be one of those types.

If I started something, I’d have to throw myself into it entirely.

If I had started dating during my athlete days, I wouldn’t have been able to focus on Kendo properly.

So, that’s why I didn’t.

Not that I couldn’t.

…Really.

“Were all the guys around Da-eun blind or something?”

“Maybe you just didn’t notice? Really, you’ve never even had a confession?”

“That’s not true! Anyway, let’s move on.”

“Strange. You seem like someone who’d get confessed to at least once.”

“……..”

I gritted my teeth and ignored their incessant questions.

Dating, huh? I thought about it a bit seriously, but still couldn’t come up with an answer.

It all felt too vague.

Could I even experience something like love?

It felt like I might fall into it easily, yet perhaps never experience it at all.

I should be able to give as much as I receive.

But right now, all I wanted was to crave what others had, with no intention of giving anything of myself.

I didn’t want to show my ugly inner self to anyone.

I had to be very careful to avoid letting the dirty and rotten emotions seep out.

Just then, a welcoming distraction arose.

“Up ahead. Two axes and two spears. Total four. Shall I dribble past two of them?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. I’m confident I won’t die.”

“Then, I’m counting on you.”

By the way, I wonder if this dungeon’s boss is going to be a biological entity.

I really don’t want that. Large monsters tend to spill a lot of blood.

*

After dispatching several Minotaurs, we came face-to-face with the dungeon’s mid-boss.

It was a chimera with a bizarre appearance.

[You have defeated the epic monster ‘Chimera A-327.’]

[Check your rewards.]

It was a formidable foe.

Its overwhelming hardness came with the twisted patterns and instability characteristic of a composite creature.

It wouldn’t take a blade anywhere but its weak points, which made it tough to raid.

Well, no party members fell in battle, so that was a relief.

If the mid-boss was this challenging, it’s a given that we’ll struggle much more against the final boss.

Concerns lingered, but for now, we could purely enjoy our success.

Most importantly, there was one task we had to do after defeating the boss.

“Rewards! Shall we check the rewards?”

Elderin exclaimed cheerfully.

Her voice even carried a hint of excitement as she spoke.

To be honest, I was looking forward to it, too, so I dashed towards the boss’s corpse.

The reason gamer parties create teams to tackle high-level dungeons is all for this moment.

Not to mention, this is a storyline dungeon in the New Continent!

Even though it was just a mid-boss, the items dropped could easily be amazing!

As soon as all the party members gathered, Sulbbang checked the rewards.

[Emblem of the Ancient Kingdom]

[Nianbah’s Curse: Greaves]

[Chimera Hide Gloves]

[Rabbit Ears]

[Core of Chimera A-327]

……

With a brilliant pillar of light, the dropped items ascended.

We’d sort out the miscellaneous materials and gold later; for now, the five most valuable-looking items were the candidates.

Two of the items clearly had designated owners.

Only San-sae could use the Emblem of the Ancient Kingdom, and due to penalties, Dol-gwal claimed the greaves.

I had my eyes on the gloves, but when I actually tried them on… they were far too tough for my strength.

It was tough enough that I struggled to make a fist. High defense was tempting, but if I couldn’t wield a weapon properly, what was the point?

In the end, I passed the gloves to Sulbbang and was left with two items.

Though I didn’t know their uses for now, that core must be a rare material.

Given time, its value would surely rise.

Now, it didn’t seem bad to take the gold this time.

So, I never claimed ownership of the rabbit ears.

Not until I read the item description did I feel a spark of desire.

“Then I’ll take the core.”

“The rabbit ears are of course going to Gawol, right?”

“Huh?”

“Huh?”

[Rabbit Ears]

[Category: Head Decoration (Unique)]

Magic rabbit ears surrounded by fluffy fur.

Wearing them feels like becoming an adorable rabbit.

[Item Effect: Increases hearing by 12% when worn.]

[A decorative item that can be worn in conjunction with other equipment items.]

“……..”

What is this?

Why does a decoration item have a rarity rating of unique?

Normally, the rarity of such items would be at best rare.

And wouldn’t they have worthless options attached to them?

Like increasing movement speed by 0.5% in the village, or something.

This was a completely unprecedented form.

If I immediately posted this on the community, it would definitely stir up quite a response.

In RPGs, ‘rare decorative items’ carry incredible value.

Right. Selling it outside would bring in decent money.

But for now, it felt like nothing more than an eyesore on my head.

“Cute. Really cute!”

“Gawol, look over here and smile.”

“Ugh….”

I was the vanguard of our party.

However, an assassin wasn’t a class designed to replace rogues.

That meant I had limitations based on my original abilities.

So, I had no excuse to refuse wearing this… No, I simply couldn’t spoil the excited expressions on the older girls.

“V~ Come on, V~”

“B-BV.”

Ah, I want to go home.

Though I’m already home.

[You can escape the dungeon after defeating the mid-boss.]

[Would you like to continue? Y/N]

……

[Party vote results: Continuing the dungeon.]

[There will be a story cutscene.]

*

In the magnificent banquet hall, glasses were strewn about.

Delicious-smelling meat had fallen beneath the table, and broken plates were scattered haphazardly across the floor.

Splash. Splash. The sound of calm footsteps echoed.

The collapsed Nianbah barely reached out with a hand.

A heeled foot stepped on his hand. The scattered fragments were sharp enough to draw blood.

But more crimson than blood was his fury.

A sound reminiscent of a growling beast.

Nianbah asked.

“Your Highness Dalnerion. Why… why did you do this?”

“I thought you were clever, but it seems you have some dull parts after all. Is it not natural? At this rate, the hybrid will swallow the kingdom, so the chosen bloodline must save the nation.”

“I had no interest in the throne… cough!”

“Regrettable. Those raised in the royal palace tend to prefer a clear path. It would be a journey you can never return from, but your wife and children will soon follow. You won’t be lonely.”

The poison in the wine began to invade the mage’s body.

A concoction that turned blood into toxin—a potion designed specifically to kill mages.

It was crafted solely to kill him.

A glimpse of red appeared in his eyes.

Nianbah couldn’t tell if what was flowing down his cheek was blood or tears.

Yet deep within, the cry that burst forth was honest.

“Uu, Uuaaaaaa—!”

“Stop with this nonsense. If you’d just rest easy… W-What?!”

The mage’s rage enveloped the royal palace.

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