[Chae Yujeong: Oppa, look at this]
[Chae Yujeong: (photo)]
[Chae Yujeong: Isn't it cute? lol]
[Chae Yujeong: Did you eat lunch?]
[Chae Yujeong: I haven't eaten yet ]
[Chae Yujeong: Are you busy?]
[Chae Yujeong: Are you at school right now?]
[Chae Yujeong: What are you doing this weekend?]
[Chae Yujeong: Can't we meet up this weekend?]
[Chae Yujeong: I've cleared my whole Saturday and Sunday for you!]
[Chae Yujeong: Oppa…]
[Chae Yujeong: Do you have other plans?]
[Chae Yujeong: I'm free anytime.. (emoticon)]
[Chae Yujeong: You're not avoiding me now that you got the info you wanted, right?]
[Chae Yujeong: If so, I'll be really sad, oppa (emoticon)]
[Chae Yujeong: Please text me back, okay?]
"…What the heck is this?"
After my lecture ended, I checked my phone and frowned at the pile of messages.
I was wondering why there were over ten new messages, and it turned out they were all from Chae Yujeong. What's wrong with this girl all of a sudden?
[Yu Jihan: What kind of nonsense is this]
[Chae Yujeong: Oppa!!]
[Chae Yujeong: Let's hang out this weekend ]
Weekend? After checking the date, I slung my bag over one shoulder and replied while walking out of the lecture hall.
[Yu Jihan: Nah]
[Yu Jihan: Can't]
[Chae Yujeong: ??]
[Chae Yujeong: Why not?]
[Yu Jihan: Busy]
[Chae Yujeong: ????]
[Yu Jihan: ?]
[Chae Yujeong: Who are you meeting?]
[Chae Yujeong: Can't you meet me instead of that person?]
Who said I was meeting anyone? Her jumping to weird conclusions made me chuckle.
[Yu Jihan: I'm not meeting anyone, don't worry]
[Chae Yujeong: Then what is it?]
[Chae Yujeong: Why are you busy?]
[Yu Jihan: I've got stuff to do]
[Chae Yujeong: Like what?]
Ugh, this is so annoying.
It was lunchtime, and students were pouring into the hallways. I weaved through the crowd while scrolling through my contacts and called her directly.
"…Hello? Oppa?"
A startled voice came from the other end. I stepped outside the building and went down the stairs, asking indifferently:
"What's with you?"
— Huh?
"I'm asking why you're acting like this. All of a sudden."
— Ah...
She probably didn't expect me to call and ask directly. Caught off guard, Chae Yujeong hesitated for a while before finally speaking up.
— I just… thought you wouldn't want to see me anymore…
"Why would you think that?"
— Because you're not curious about me anymore. So I thought maybe you'd think there's no reason to meet.
"Do I seem like that much of a jerk to you?"
I chuckled as I pulled out a cigarette in the smoking area and put it between my lips.
Well, to be honest, if I confirmed she wasn't the same person as Yu-chae, I wasn't planning to keep in touch. But that's something to figure out later.
— I don't know… You blocked me right away after just one chat in Jungle Talk.
"You're the one who picked the fight. And I unblocked you, didn't I?"
— When are you going to meet me then?
"Why should I?"
Still holding the cigarette in my mouth, I mumbled the question. Yujeong's voice shrank a little.
— Can't I just hang out with a close oppa?
"We're close?"
Did all your close friends freeze to death or something? We haven't even known each other a month.
— We went to the PC café together and watched a movie too. Doesn't that make us close?
"…Do you not have any friends?"
— I do! You're so mean, oppa!
"Your overreaction tells me you don't. Sorry."
— Ah, oppa! Don't joke around!
I'm not joking, though.
"Why does it have to be this weekend? You said we had time until the end of the year anyway."
– "I'm busy on weekdays because of school, so weekends are the only time I can meet… If I miss this weekend, I'll have to wait another whole week."
"Yeah, but why are you waiting for me? If you're lonely, get yourself a boyfriend."
...
Chae Yujeong went silent at that. After a long pause, she finally spoke again—right around the time I finished my cigarette and tossed the butt in the trash.
"What about you, oppa?"
"What about me."
"Do you not have a girlfriend?"
"If I did, I wouldn't be wasting my time with this kind of silly back-and-forth with you."
"You're not skipping the weekend because you've got plans with a girl or anything, right?"
"No, I'm not."
"Then with me…"
"I'm not seeing a girl, but I do have prior plans. Stop asking. We can meet next time."
I had already decided I'd meet with Chae Yujeong multiple times going forward.
After all, she was someone I could meet face-to-face, unlike Yu-chae, whose number was all I had. It was much more likely I'd find concrete evidence through Yujeong.
"Okay…"
Yujeong seemed to sense the growing coldness in my tone and instantly wilted.
"Let's definitely meet next week…"
"Sure."
"I'm hanging up now…"
"Yeah."
"Have a good lunch, oppa."
"You too."
As soon as the call ended, a pang of guilt hit me—wondering if I had been too harsh. But I really did have a prior engagement that I couldn't put off.
Right then, a notification related to that commitment popped up. I opened the message right away.
[DrinkWater: New raid info is out]
[DrinkWater: https://jenoris.com/page/news/notice4889548]
[DrinkWater: Patch ends early Saturday morning]
[DrinkWater: Dungeon opens at 9AM]
[DrinkWater: Normal this week, Abyss next week]
[TheHunter: Freakin' great]
[Staericim: If it's Saturday]
[Staericim: I can probably join too]
[DrinkWater: Max 12 players for Abyss difficulty]
[DrinkWater: Shouldn't have trouble with slots lol]
[Haeren: Let's run it like we did with Lorem Heart's first clear]
[Haeren: Two teams of 6 clearing Normal first]
[Haeren: Then all 12 tackle Abyss together]
[LaggyDude: Yeah]
[LaggyDude: If we're going for first clear, that's the best plan]
[DrinkWater: Since it's Monday now]
[DrinkWater: Let me know by Wednesday if you want in on the first clear]
[DoraHee: I'm in]
[DrinkWater: Sweet, we could use a buffer]
[MoccaBoomBoomBoom: Is it first come first served?]
[Haeren: Nah]
[Haeren: We'll gather everyone interested first]
[Haeren: Then filter based on class balance]
[DrinkWater: Too hard to do first come first served]
[DrinkWater: Some classes might overlap]
[MoccaBoomBoomBoom: Got it]
[MoccaBoomBoomBoom: I'm in too]
After checking the link Water had sent and reviewing how the new raid first clear was planned, I sent my reply as well.
[SoSleepy: Count me in too]
[DrinkWater: Got it]
That was the prior engagement I couldn't postpone.
Water had reached out first to see if I could clear the new raid on Saturday, and it sounded fun, so I said I'd consider joining once the official notice was out.
Not long after I confirmed my participation, another message came through in the group chat.
[ㅇㅇ: I'm in too]
＊＊＊
The First Clear of a new raid—commonly shortened to "first clear" or "퍼클" in Korean gaming slang.
To be honest, achieving the first clear on Abyss difficulty didn't come with amazing rewards. At best, your party name would be engraved on the stone monument at the dungeon entrance, and a server-wide system message would broadcast it.
Still, many players went for it because it was one of the few events that proved skill.
Competitive players often fixate on rankings, but since Jenoris is an RPG, it doesn't have many rank-based events.
Among the few big competitive events that got the community's attention were: the Guardian Guild Tournament, which had just ended recently; the Class Ranking Matches held at the start of the year; and the new raid first clear event.
Since our guild, Early Evening, was firmly the #1 guild on the server, we took raid first clears seriously. Especially since new raids were rare—maybe once a year—making them a major deal.
[Guild] HuntLikeMe: Wait,
[Guild] HuntLikeMe: Didn't the guild leader say he wasn't going for the first clear??
[Guild] ManaRunningLow: lol
[Guild] ManaRunningLow: Looks like he joined 'cause Sleepy said he'd do it
[Guild] ParkSeungjin99: That's some emotional manipulation lol
[Guild] Haeren: With the guild leader on board, it's gonna be fast for sure
Saturday, 8:30 AM.
It was an early morning when most people would still be asleep, but our guild members gathered in front of the new raid dungeon entrance, just as planned. The area was packed with players eager to challenge the raid.
I swept back my slightly damp bangs and took a sip of the iced Americano I bought after my morning workout. I'd gone for a jog to wake myself up anyway, but man—I was still tired.
[Guild Chat]
DrinkWater: Team 1 is Yuchae + Sleepy + Rahee + Haeren + Moccabread + Park Seungjin-nim
DrinkWater: Team 2 is Me + Staeric + TheHunter + ThatHunterDude + ManaDrained + LaggyDude
Moccabread: Yesss!!!
Staeric: sss
Hwasoun: No way, seriously?
Hwasoun: I'm a lancer and I got dropped while an assassin got in? ――
Staeric: lol
Staeric: Lancers can't beat reapers~
YangnyeomCrabChomp: ㅠㅠ I got cut too, damn
ManaDrained: Probably 'cause TheHunter and Staeric are a thing,
ManaDrained: so Water put them on the same team on purpose, lol
TheHunter: ?
Hwasoun: Oh, if that's the case, then I understand ^^7
LaggyDude: Sleepy and the guild leader got put together too hehe
TheHunter: Why would you compare it like that;
TheHunter: Those two are actually dating, me and Staeric aren't;;
SoSleepy: We're not dating either you f***…
Haeren: LOLOLOLOLOL
LaggyDude: LOLOLOLOL
YangnyeomCrabChomp: This is why healer, buffer, and tank classes are the best.
YangnyeomCrabChomp: Can't get excluded from a party.
Hwasoun: So true…
CashBornMonster: Water
CashBornMonster: Can the leftover guildies form a party and try too?
DrinkWater: Of course you can
DrinkWater: You guys go for the normal mode first clear too, go go go
Hwasoun: OMG count me in guys
Hwasoun: Lancer's on standby
SeseseLet'sGo: Me too, me too
FreebieGoodbye: Wanna bet who gets first clear first? lol
Haeren: We're the main team, obviously we'll get it. Agreed?
ThatHunterDude: Agreed
Hwasoun: Nope. Let's bet~
DrinkWater: Sleepy
DrinkWater: When's Yuchae logging in?
I was crunching ice from my Americano and scrolling through the new raid info when I saw Water's message and turned my attention to messenger.
[Yuchae: Oppa, I'm gonna shower real quick]
[Yuchae: I'll be online at least 10 minutes before start time!]
[Yu Jihan: Got it]
It was a message I had received 20 minutes earlier. I relayed that info straight to Water.
SoSleepy: She's probably showering right now
SoSleepy: Says she'll be in by 10 minutes before
SoSleepy: But doesn't you also have Yuchae's number?
DrinkWater: Yeah
DrinkWater: Problem is she leaves all my texts on read^^
SoSleepy: Ah…
Haeren: Gasp~ So she only replies to Sleepy's messages now, huh?
Moccabread: Oooh what's this~ ><
LaggyDude: A true romantic of our times
Haeren: Jenoris' very own Sean
ThatHunterDude: I can't with this lololol
Hwasoun: lololololol
Staeric: A man who could live without air but not without love
DrinkWater: LOLOLOLOLOL
"...."
I stared blankly at the endless flow of guild chat scrolling up the screen, then buried my face in both hands and let out a groan.Why the hell did I say anything?
I just dug my own damn grave.
…Shit.
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