PP Chapter 14

While Dohwa’s eyes were darting around, wondering if he had done something wrong, the chat window, which had been silent for a moment as if lagging suddenly exploded.

[Guild] Cherry Coke: Did this bastard Won die and get possessed by a ghost? Ah I spent so much on cash shop purchases yesterday that I don’t have any money left for condolence money. This is bad. Can anyone lend me some cash? Even if he’s a piece of work, he’s my childhood friend, so I have to pay the condolence money.

[Won’ has demoted ‘CherryCoke’ from ‘Guild Heavyweight 2’ to ‘Untouchable Peasant’.]

[Guild] Cherry Coke: Ah

[Guild] Cherry Coke: Ah f♡♡k me

[Guild] Cherry Coke: What use is a guy who’s this petty, just chop your d♡ck off and give it to Noonaㅋ Noona will put it to good use.

[Guild] Won: What did you say? I can’t hear what an Untouchable Peasant is saying.

[Guild] FastAndPissedOff: What’s this, a bug? Why are only blank spaces popping up in the chat window?? To think a bug like this exists… the end of the world is near, the end is near.

[Guild] 21st Century No Yeah: Well, we have been playing this doomed game for a long time…… It’s about time we worry about the server shutdown.

[Guild] Cherry Coke: You absolute sons of b♡♡ches!

After that, the user named Cherry Coke continued to pour out insults for a long time. Then, at some point, when ‘FastAndPissedOff’ suddenly shouted, ‘Anyone want to go kill someone?’, she raised her hand and vanished just like that.

And during all that time, Dohwa stayed stuck to Won’s side without moving an inch.

Instead of pushing Dohwa away, Won kept him close while doing his own tasks, occasionally striking up a conversation.

His attitude was so gentle that it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to think he was a different person from the one who was tormenting Cherry Coke.

Even after that, all sorts of sentences popped up in the guild chat window.

Talk about the food they ate today, suddenly cursing out their professors and bosses, or even giving unsolicited self-introductions.

Instead of looking at those chats, Dohwa stared intently at Won, who was sitting right next to him.

The man who was exceptionally clear even amidst the boisterous light pouring out from the monitors.

Won was looking at the screen with languid eyes, resting his chin on one hand.

Won, whose face was full of smiles while dappled with all sorts of colors, noticed Dohwa’s gaze a beat late.

Startled for a moment at the gaze that met his the second he turned his head, as if it had been waiting for him, Won returned the smile as if it were only natural.

“Hmm? Dohwa, were you looking at me?”

A soft face that didn’t suit the smell of food and the musty air drifting from everywhere, let alone the pungent smell of cigarettes.

If he had to pick, it was a face that reminded him of the mocha latte Won enjoyed drinking.

Everything that made up Won was so soft that even though Dohwa knew the person inside wasn’t just kind, he wanted to be unknowingly deceived.

“Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something you want to say?”

At the gaze that watched him while asking affectionately, Dohwa blinked his large eyes and shook his head.

Won let out a low laugh at that silent answer. Then, he lightly ruffled Dohwa’s hair as if treating a much younger brother.

“If there’s something you want to say, feel free to say it.”

Won’s voice had a power that made even formal words feel sincere.

Dohwa turned his head away, thinking it was a dangerous power.

At that coy demeanor, Won covered his mouth with the hand that had been propping up his chin.

​It was definitely a space so loud it made his ears hurt, yet only Won’s laugh was distinct.

​Feeling his whole body tickle at just a hint of a laugh, Dohwa flicked his ear with a slightly annoyed gesture.

Won laughed a bit louder as that gesture overlapped with the image of a puppy shaking its ears with its hind leg.

---

“Hyung, when did you say you were going to the military?”

Seobin asked as he turned off the tattoo machine. He was also a member of Won’s guild, using the nickname ‘FastAndPissedOff.’

Won, who had been efficiently applying Vaseline and sticking on a waterproof bandage without even being told, lifted his head.

Getting up from the workbench and putting on his clothes, he tilted his head and folded his fingers as if counting.

“Hmm, about a month left……”

“Why are you going so suddenly?”

“It’s the end of the season right now. No matter how I look at it, I don’t think there will be anything to do until the patch. The patch is a long way off, and it’s better than going right when the patch drops.”

“Wow, that sounded like a true hardcore gamer’s answer.”

Seobin muttered indifferently in a tone that was hard to tell if it was admiration or something else. Unlike the lively content, the incredibly dry tone was exactly that of a perfect modern person.

Won, who let out a low laugh at Seobin’s words, stood in front of the full-length mirror installed in the studio.

Long fingers pulled down the collar of the shirt that went all the way up to his neck.

​The tattoo he had gotten on his neck not too long ago was completely covered up by a new tattoo.

“The cover-up turned out really clean.”

“Of course it did, look who did it.”

Seobin, who had dragged his wheeled chair over to Won’s side, lifted his chin.

The long-sleeved white t-shirt and the chick-patterned pajama pants he claimed to have stolen from his roommate looked like they didn’t match, yet somehow did.

Seobin rolled his sleeves all the way up and peeled off the grip tape wrapped around the tattoo machine.

​The pale arms revealed beneath his sleeves were completely covered in tattoos.

“You got more tattoos?”

Won said as if to himself, looking at the fierce tattoos that didn’t match Seobin’s pretty face.

“This is my job, after all.”

Won snorted at the confident remark and habitually tugged at the clothes covering his neck.

As the sensation of something choking his neck vanished, his expression became much more relaxed.

Seobin, who had been glancing at Won as he kept fiddling with his neck, rubbed his eyebrows and spoke.

“If you find clothes that cover your neck so uncomfortable, why did you wear them?”

“Because of the part-time job.”

“Ah. You said today was your last day, right?”

“Yeah.”

Nodding as if he understood, Seobin spoke while properly cleaning up.

“Then don’t you have to go now? You said there’s a fine if you’re late.”

“Yeah, I’m going even if you don’t tell me.”

There wasn’t much time left until his shift. If he didn’t leave soon, he might be late.

‘Which bus should I take to get to the cafe from here?’

While Won was pondering that, Seobin spoke.

“Get there safely~ And from now on, try not to get a couple tattoo if you can help it. It’s a pain to cover it up if you break up, so why do it?”

“Actually, I’m planning not to from now on.”

Won originally liked tattoos. He had several large and small tattoos all over his body, and he tended to get cover-ups frequently if he got bored of them.

The first problem was that his ex-girlfriend, whom he broke up with recently, had started taking an interest in his tattoos.

She had pressured him into a couple tattoo, saying, ‘It would be nice to have a mark showing that Oppa belongs to me.’

And the second problem was that Won was the type of man who did everything the person he was dating asked for.

Won lightly stroked the area near his neck where the tattoo remained.

It was good while they were together, but once they broke up, just as Seobin said, covering it up was a chore.

“A couple tattoo itself isn’t bad. Wouldn’t it be fine as long as you don’t break up?”

“Hah, what are you talking about when you never date for long? You’re logging into the game later, right?”

“Why are you asking something so obvious?”

A hint of madness could be seen in his face as he tilted his head as if he really didn’t understand.

This is why you shouldn’t associate with a hardcore player of a fucking doomed game like Betting Bad.

Then, as if he suddenly remembered, Seobin asked abruptly.

“Ah, come to think of it, how did you get to know Peach? It seems like there’s something more than just being game friends.”

At the sharp remark, Won, who had been tidying his clothes, looked up.

His face, which had been smiling softly just a moment ago, was expressionless as if it were a lie.

When he wasn’t smiling, his face had a cold edge like a marble statue as he looked directly at Seobin.

Seobin made a sour expression, thinking that even though they had known each other for a while, he still got goosebumps whenever Won looked at him like that.

“What, did I touch a nerve? Why are you reacting so sensitively?”

“No. It’s not that. Do we look that close?”

Games are games. Reality is reality. No matter how close they were, Won strictly maintained that line.

For example, his attitude toward ‘Park Seobin’ in reality and ‘FastAndPissedOff’ in the game was different.

‘But did I treat Peach and Dohwa differently too?’