CHAPTER 39
After filling their stomachs thanks to Haneul’s wallet, Yuchan and Junwoo were in a much brighter mood than before.
Watching the two, Haneul clicked his tongue, thinking they were way too simple-minded. Still, since this was better than the gloomy mood from earlier, he figured this much expense was fine.
“Brother, I’ll order dumpling ramen.”
“……”
“Oh! I want some too!”
“…Stop eating already, you little pigs.”
That thought didn’t last even a few seconds.
Oblivious as ever, Junwoo kept shoving a hot bar into his mouth with a loud “waang”, while his other hand flew across the keyboard, showing off godlike control.
“Isch it oki iff I order red-bean bun two?”
“Ugh, gross… swallow before you talk.”
“Seriously though…”
Haneul grimaced as he spoke, and Yuchan wrinkled his nose in agreement. After gulping down his food, Junwoo retorted in disbelief:
“Ha! Look at this. Two nasty melee dealers ganging up on poor, pitiful ranged DPS.”
“Hah? What’s melee or ranged got to do with this? I’m saying you’re just disgusting.”
“Exactly! Why are you bringing up classes now? And pitiful? Says the ranged who blasted melee into pieces in Eregos raids?”
It was unclear if Yuchan was siding with Haneul or insulting him.
Of course, Haneul’s eyebrows furrowed at that.
“Tsk tsk… Hyeseong was gentle, but you two are just rotten.”
“Why are you bringing up my brother who’s in the army?”
“Even though he was a tank, Hyeseong was still technically melee, yet he was nothing like you two! That’s why I say this!”
“Are you out of your mind?”
When Haneul glared at him, Junwoo immediately backed down, muttering, “Brother Haneul, look at your monitor. The boss mechanic’s coming up,” trying to change the subject.
But the game was just in a transition phase — nothing to do but stare blankly.
Even so, Junwoo muttered, as if he had to say it, “I miss Hyeseong.”
Junwoo and Hyeseong had been particularly close, and Junwoo had been the most upset when Hyeseong left for the army. So it was understandable he’d say that… but why bring him up here of all places?
Naturally, mentioning him made Haneul think about Hyeseong, too.
Honestly, Haneul hadn’t thought about him even once since he enlisted. It wasn’t like Hyeseong had quit the game — he just couldn’t log in because of circumstances.
But once the thought surfaced, something felt…
“Hey, don’t you think those two look alike?”
“Who and who?”
“Hyeseong and Master Lee Hwansung. Not exactly alike, but the vibe…”
As soon as Haneul finished, Yuchan and Junwoo leaned back in unison and exchanged glances. Then, they burst out laughing.
Stuck between them, Haneul covered his ears against the ringing laughter.
‘I picked the wrong spot to sit. Damn it…’
“Bro! Have you gone blind? Or just lost your mind?”
“…No, I’m just saying they feel similar.”
“Hahaha! Brother Haneul! Instead of thinking about that, maybe you should focus on bringing Sunya back and writing the apology letter you’ll show her when she returns!”
“I am writing that—”
“What was that, brother?”
Even when he was doing it, they made a huge deal out of it…
Still, once he thought about it, the two really did give off a similar vibe.
With his sharp eyes, Haneul was especially observant — a skill that shone brightest when deciphering raid mechanics, but apparently it worked here too.
Junwoo, still laughing, asked in a trembling voice:
“So what you’re saying is… cough! they’re siblings?”
“Well… yeah.”
That was exactly what Haneul thought — they felt like siblings. When he nodded, Yuchan even slapped the table laughing.
“They don’t look anything alike! What are you talking about? Hahaha!”
“Brother Haneul! Go get your eyes checked!”
‘Weren’t these guys depressed just minutes ago?’
Haneul started to feel annoyed, wondering if what he said was really that funny.
He repeated several times that it wasn’t about looks but about the feeling, yet they ignored him, laughing and making up their own nonsense.
“Okay, let’s say they are siblings. Then what happens to Hwansung?”
“Oooh… good point. If they’re siblings, Hwansung had better stay on Hyeseong’s good side. But then again…”
Junwoo trailed off, but everyone understood.
When Hyeseong first joined the guild, Hwansung wasn’t that active in the game. They hadn’t interacted much, but they had gone on raids together.
Once, Hyeseong accidentally stacked two “Deep Wound” debuffs, and Hwansung scolded him for getting hit unnecessarily. As tank and healer, there were bound to be incidents like that.
Plus, Hwansung’s aloof personality had already earned him a reputation for being rude. If someone like that actually had a crush on his “little sister”?
“There’s no way they’re real siblings, but if they were, Hwansung would be…”
“Yeah… Hyeseong may be kind, but he can be scary, too.”
Unlike Haneul, Hyeseong was gentle and soft-spoken. But his kindness was different from Haeya’s.
Haeya’s kindness was pure, straightforward. Hyeseong’s was gentle but carried the feeling that he might be scheming something behind the scenes.
If Haneul’s suspicion were true and they really were siblings… A chill swept through the air, as if a cold wind passed their table.
“Well, since they’re obviously not, we should probably stop worrying about impossible scenarios and deal with the problems right in front of us.”
“Agreed… I like Hyeseong, but he’d be terrifying if angry…”
“Yeah, maybe I just said something stupid.”
With that, the three left the boss fight feeling a bit chilled. Yuchan and Junwoo went for another run, while Haneul moved to the guild house.
He opened the guild window. Among the usual active members, Haeya’s nickname was still dark, and Hwansung’s name was always lit up but stuck in the same spot. The sight only weighed heavier on his chest.
Ever since that day, Hwansung had been standing in the Blue Prairie, where Haeya last did a quest. It looked like he was waiting there so he’d see her the moment she logged in.
Since it had all happened because of him, Haneul wanted to help somehow. But all he could do was pray for Haeya’s return, like setting a bowl of water at an altar. It was frustrating.
Sighing, he picked up his phone from the table, opened his memo app, and resumed typing the note he’d been working on.
It was none other than… the apology letter Junwoo had joked about.
Haneul had been writing it little by little, so that when Haeya came back, he could truly apologize.
“Haa… damn, what should I even write?”
He’d never written an apology letter before, so progress was slow. Still, he made sure to write down every mistake he’d made, along with promises not to repeat them.
“Haneul hyung! I’m eating the chicken mayo bowl!”
“Then I’ll add in some galbi dumplings.”
“……”
Not knowing what else to write, his fingers froze stiff at their words.
‘Seriously, do they have bottomless pits for stomachs? How can they eat that much…?’
With Yuchan and Junwoo constantly ordering more food, Haneul put away his apology letter draft, opened the calculator app, tallied up the food expenses… and fell into despair.
* *
He didn’t know how time had passed.
Day and night, assignments and teammates wore him down — he felt like he was going to die. But eventually, the endless stream of projects dwindled down to just one final submission.
“Once I turn this in, then…”
When he had free time again, he wanted to push through the exciting main quest, and hang out with his guildmates. Surely, by now, the endless ranged-vs-melee debate had been settled, too.
With only one left, he finally felt some relief. Game thoughts started creeping back in.
For a second, he thought maybe he could turn on his old phone again. But he quickly shook off the temptation.
“After I submit everything… then I’ll enjoy true freedom.”
