BOORH 06

Chapter 6

“Baby.”

“……”

“Baby~?”

“……”

“Yoon Hye.”

“…W-What is it.”

It had been a week since I joined the guild and the whole “husband” incident.
During that week, I’d learned a lot from the guild members.

Especially Hwanseong-nim—he practically provided one-on-one care.
Even when I didn’t feel like logging in, he’d insist I come in tomorrow, repeatedly reminding me and even getting me to promise. So I had no choice but to log in.

Still, maybe because I was learning a lot and the guild members guided me well, I could finally start to understand why people played games.

And… the more I played, the more I realized just how talentless I was at gaming.

Hopelessly so.

If I were a healer, I’d have ignored a tank like me a long time ago.
But Hwanseong-nim seemed to have a bit of a masochistic streak, obsessively sticking close to me wherever I went.

Even now—see how he keeps calling me “baby”?
When I ignore him, he doesn’t stop until I answer.
The moment he uses my real name, I get the feeling something bad will happen if I don’t respond, so I reluctantly answered.

‘I shouldn’t have signed up for DazzleCode using my real name…’

I let out a small sigh.

“Baby, let’s go on a date today.”

“Where to?”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: Wtf

Sooki-nim still hadn’t bought a mic and used chat instead.
And since no other guild members were online, only Hwanseong-nim and I filled the DazzleCode voice chat.

“A boss raid.”

“Huh?”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: ?

I couldn’t help but be surprised.

Boss raids weren’t for newbies like me.
Unlike dungeons where one weak link might not ruin the run, I’d heard that in boss fights, one mistake could wipe the whole party.

[Guild] Kim Sooki: Don’t boss raids need six or eight people?

“There are four-player boss raids too.”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: Ah, Eregos? That one’s beginner-friendly, pretty easy but…

I had a feeling I knew why Sooki-nim didn’t finish her sentence.
Even if it was easy, she’d seen how poorly I performed in dungeons.

“I don’t think I’m ready for a boss raid yet…”

“Why not?”

What do you mean “why”? He knows better than anyone how bad I am…

“I-I just don’t think I’m skilled enough yet…”

“Baby.”

“Yes?”

“Who’s your husband?”

“Who?”

“……”

Hwanseong-nim didn’t answer.

I mean, I’m not even dating anyone, let alone married.
Was this still an extension of that jealous-husband RP Issa-nim mentioned a week ago…?

My brother warned me that this game was full of overly immersed nerds…
Is he one of those roleplayers? I always cringed at that kind of thing.

Once my brother finishes his military service, I need to make sure he never runs into Hwanseong-nim.
A guy playing a jealous-husband RP? My brother would hate that.

[Guild] Kim Sooki: Just call him Hwanseong already. Or else it’s gonna be all ♡♡ and exhausting. The whole guild vibe’s in your hands rn.

“Ah, okay.”

I had no idea what that meant, but I didn’t want to kill the mood, so I just agreed.

“You’re Hwanseong-nim, right.”

“Right? Just trust me. I’ll carry you through the boss fight.”

Even though I sounded like I was reading a textbook, Hwanseong-nim seemed pleased.

But… do I really have to go to a boss fight?
Even if it’s easy, I’m still scared of dungeons—so boss fights are out of the question.
Even if Hwanseong-nim is there to carry me, I just don’t want to go.

If I told him I was too scared and unskilled, he’d just say,
“I’ve been carrying you this whole time; the boss fight will be fine too!”
and drag me in anyway.

But even if the sky falls, there’s always a way out.
And right now, I had the perfect excuse.

“But Eregos needs four people, right? We’re short one…”

Exactly.
The ideal party was one tank, one healer, two DPS—but we were missing a DPS.
Since my skills weren’t worth showing to strangers, the guild always insisted on full-guild-only parties for dungeons.

Hwanseong-nim didn’t have a comeback this time and stayed silent.

[Guild] Kim Sooki: True. Let’s go next time then.

‘Yes…!’

I unconsciously clenched both fists in triumph.

But just then—

[Heavenly Demon Emperor has logged in.]

[Guild] Heavenly Demon Emperor: The martial arts master, Heavenly Demon Emperor, has arrived!
[Guild] Heavenly Demon Emperor: Hm? Hwanseong! What is this party invite? Haha! This world clearly needs the mighty touch of the Heavenly Demon Emperor!

The true concept roleplayer DPS, Heavenly Demon Emperor, had logged in.

[Boss Raid: ‘Nightmare Lord Eregos’ has opened.]

“Eregos, huh… I remember now. That scoundrel appeared before me when I was about to embark on a great journey long ago!”

It was my first time partying with Cheonma-nim in DazzleCode.

He usually only logged in for guild raids, then immediately logged off, saying he was tired.
Every time, Sooki-nim would mock him, saying, “Wow, real martial artists must have terrible stamina.”

When I asked what a “guild raid” was, they said it’s when eight players schedule a time to clear a specific raid together.

It all sounded like a fantasy world to me.

Anyway, because of Cheonma-nim’s routine, I was hearing his voice for the first time.

‘Wow… this roleplayer is intense…’

Hwanseong-nim seemed like nothing in comparison.
Cheonma-nim didn’t just type in martial arts lingo—he spoke it too.

There was no other word but “insane.”

Surely he doesn’t talk like that in real life… right?

“Luckily, I have no guild raid today.”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: And yet you skipped our guild raid and joined a pickup raid to suffer lmao

“Hey now… wasn’t I busy then?”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: We cleared it ages ago, and you’re still trying solo runs lol

“Ah! Come now, Sooki!”

Their bickering came to a halt at Hwanseong-nim’s words.

“Hey, you two. If you’re not gonna date me, don’t get in the way of my date.”

“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean, Hwanseong? You’re saying this is a cozy double-date of four?”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: LOL even martial arts roleplayers say ‘date’ now?? ♡♡ I’m dead lmao breaking immersion

“I’m the one dating here. Why the hell would I date you two dudes?”

“Hwanseong, then what are Sooki and I supposed to be?”

“What do you mean? Are you seriously asking, or pretending not to know?”

“If I knew, would I ask?”

I could hear Hwanseong-nim’s mocking laughter through my headset.

“You guys are just the DPS. Nothing more, nothing less. Just lowly damage dealers.”

“……”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: Did I just witness a whole pile of ♡♡♡♡……

[You are entering ‘Nightmare Lord Eregos’.]

Unlike dungeons, which had branching paths and minibosses, boss raids dropped you right in front of one big boss.
There were no paths—just a square map and the boss.

As expected, this boss had a massive HP bar and used nasty, difficult skills.

Nervous, I wiped my sweaty palms on my pants and hovered my hands over the keyboard.

“My heart’s about to explode.”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: Nervous?

“Nervous…”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: LMAO why are you scared when you have god-tier healer Hwanseong? I’ll just focus on DPS~ lol

Sooki-nim seemed still salty about what Hwanseong said earlier.

Honestly, I’d be upset too.
Even if tanks and healers were more important in Dareso, there probably weren’t many DPS players as skilled as her.

And from what I’d heard, the better the DPS, the faster the boss died, meaning you could skip the later mechanics.

When I asked what “mechanics” were, they said they were just the boss’s special moves.

Apparently, they get harder and hit harder later on, so strong DPS reduce the pressure on tanks and healers.
That’s why top guilds compete to recruit the best DPS.

Sooki-nim must’ve had a lot of pride in her role.
Even with her chill personality, she must’ve been genuinely hurt by Hwanseong’s words.

So I decided to cheer her up.

“I’m really grateful you came, Sooki-nim.”

“Huh?”

The moment I said that, Hwanseong made a disgusted sound like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing—like some nobleman who believed healers were royalty and DPS were peasants.

I ignored him and kept talking to Sooki-nim.

“If it had been someone else, I’d be nervous.”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: ♡♡ Enough

“I feel more relaxed with you here. Oh! Of course, Cheonma-nim too!”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: I said stop ♡♡

“To me, you’re the best DPS, Sooki-nim!”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: ♡♡……

“But… what exactly do you want me to stop?”

[Guild] Kim Sooki: ♡……

Despite saying “stop,” she kept sending heart emojis like she was secretly enjoying it.

But then Hwanseong-nim’s sharp words cut through the air like a dagger.

“You said before you liked Sooki’s personality, that you wanted to hear her voice… and now she’s your ‘best DPS’?”