[TS] The Return of The Gamer - Chapter 38

…It’s fucking cold.

Park Jun-su shivered, trying to shrink his body as he left his room.

Originally, this should have been the season to enjoy the winter break.

Of course, even if enjoying meant just holing up in a PC bang and playing ranked games, it would still be much better than going to school in this cold weather.

Despite that, the reason he came to school early in the morning.

It was because of the goddamn seasonal semester.

Even though he had replenished his body with enough alcohol last night, feeling this cold, it seems there’s a reason for the break after all.

‘…If I had known this would happen, I should have filled up some attendance beforehand. I’m sure the seniors said the professor doesn’t really check attendance…….’

The seniors weren't wrong.

That professor was quite famous for not checking attendance well, and indeed he was like that.

It’s just that, he was unlucky.

Heard that only three people showed up in the lecture hall?

Naturally, the professor, who couldn’t take it anymore, marked the absent students as not attending, and Park Jun-su's attendance count, which was already hanging by a thread, immediately plummeted to F.

“Ugh.”

Who could he blame?

It was all his own lack of diligence.

‘Two hours free after lunch. I should go to the PC bang.’

Normally, with a seasonal semester, it was common to only take one or two courses at most, but not for Park Jun-su.

He had been slacking off so much in school life that the supplementary lectures he had to take were literally a mountain.

It was almost as if this was the real semester.

‘Ugh.’

Park Jun-su sighed and was about to leave the lecture hall.

Then.

“Hey, you’re also free this time, right?”

Perhaps it was because there weren't many familiar faces at school during the seasonal semester.

A classmate, whom he only exchanged greetings with, spoke to him first for some reason.

His name was Kim Su-hyun.

Due to his lively personality, he was a classmate who was involved in various activities inside and outside the department.

Seeing his usual passionate demeanor, it was a little strange for him to be taking a seasonal semester, but he soon lost interest.

Well, maybe he's aiming for early graduation.

“Yeah.”

“That's great. I have to do some assignments, so should we go to the PC bang after lunch?”

“Sure, why not.”

Park Jun-su readily agreed, as there was no reason or need to refuse.

Originally, he was planning to go back to his room and casually play a few rounds of ranked games, but a PC bang wasn't bad either.

Above all, his room was cold, as he had turned off the heating and everything else, and it was quite cold, and it felt a bit unnecessary to turn on the heating for only two hours.

The reason wasn't just that.

‘I don't have to go to the convenience store today.’

Even though these days are an era of eating and drinking alone, eating alone in the university district isn’t easy.

“What do you want to eat?”

Park Jun-su vaguely answered Kim Su-hyun's question.

“Anything.”

“If you say ‘anything’ one more time, we're going to eat tteokbokki.”

That would be a disaster.

Of course, it's not that Park Jun-su hates tteokbokki, but as a lunch menu… it’s something… something like that.

He couldn't put it into words right away, but anyway, that was it.

“How about dak-galbi? Lunch special.”

A lunch special at a nearby franchise dak-galbi restaurant offers dak-galbi fried rice for 8,000 won per person.

If you add noodles or udon noodles, it would be a satisfying lunch, so Park Jun-su was drawn to this.

“It's right there.”

After eating a hearty lunch, Park Jun-su and Kim Su-hyun started walking towards the PC bang.

“…Huh? Wait a minute.”

“What?”

Kim Su-hyun, who stopped in the middle, went into a cafe.

He had said earlier that it would be better to order coffee from the PC bang, so it seemed like he had found someone he knew.

Park Jun-su hesitated for a moment whether to follow Kim Su-hyun, but then he stopped after looking at the face reflected in the window.

‘…Lee Yuri?’

Did she just run out and go over there?

Lee Yuri is quite famous inside and outside the department.

It was not only due to her sociable personality, but also because of her appearance, which caught the eye wherever she went.

He heard that her mother was a famous announcer?

To put it a bit exaggeratedly, it wouldn’t be an overstatement to say that more than half of the male students in the department were interested in Lee Yuri.

In fact, a few had tried to confess to her bravely and, after failing, fled to the military as if escaping.

So much so that even Park Jun-su, who didn’t show much interest in school life, was unknowingly paying attention to Lee Yuri's whereabouts.

‘Will it take long?’

In the end, Park Jun-su went into the cafe.

Without getting too close, maintaining a proper distance, as it would be a bit awkward.

Lee Yuri was with someone.

And…….

‘Huh?’

The moment he saw the woman next to Lee Yuri,

Park Jun-su's sense of reality vanished.

“……”

What is this? What did I just see?

Thin silver hair sticking out under a ball cap.

Rosy cheeks.

Exotic, or rather, an appearance that was more suited to the word mysterious.

It wasn't just the level of being pretty.

Beyond those simple words, there was something he couldn't describe, an indescribable sense of mystery about her.

What was even more surprising was the fact that the girl, whose appearance looked like a high school student at best, was Lee Yuri's older sister.

“Sister.”

“…Why?”

“Shall we go too?”

As he stood there blankly, he ended up going to the PC bang together.

They sat side by side, but the distance between them made it hard to call them a group.

Naturally, Park Jun-su turned on Legend of League as his original intention, as they weren't going to play the game together.

While he was immersed in the game, a thin, sweet voice echoed in his ear.

“You shouldn’t go to the bottom lane right now.”

…Huh?

What did I just hear?

“…Or am I wrong?”

At first, he thought he had heard it wrong.

But the more he thought about it, the more it became clear that the voice was not something that could be dismissed as mere auditory hallucinations.

‘What was it?’

He couldn't focus on the game at all.

It seemed like his brain was overloaded due to too much information being inputted.

It was already an unfavorable game, and the mid-laner, the core of the team, couldn't even concentrate, so the result was as good as decided.

[Defeat]

Park Jun-su lost the game.

‘Huh?’

After losing the game, Park Jun-su glanced to the left.

Rather than looking on purpose, it would be more accurate to say that he happened to see it while stretching.

‘E-sports articles? Legend of League?’

Park Jun-su’s confusion increased.

Based on the information given, the person who gave the advice a moment ago was, according to his inference, Lee Yuri's older sister.

Even though he thought it was absurd, Park Jun-su couldn't dispel his suspicions.

“…Do you also watch Legend of League competitions?”

“Yes?”

In the end, Park Jun-su, who couldn't hold back any longer, spoke as if he was blurting it out.

Even though he had just casually asked a question, his heart felt like it was about to burst.

“Ah… yes. Sometimes.”

“I see.”

And silence followed.

Park Jun-su mustered up his courage.

“Don't you play games separately?”

“Ah, I do, but not really right now.”

“What games do you usually play?”

“Well… various things.”

Despite being a conversation intended to solve his questions, Park Jun-su's mind became even more complicated.

‘What is it, exactly?’

If you just compile the given information, the person who gave the advice earlier is, according to his inference, Lee Yuri’s older sister.

But this person giving advice about Legend of League to me, a Diamond 4 player?

It just doesn't match the image.

‘I can’t help it. Let’s confirm.’

There wasn't much of a way.

He just needs to act awkwardly on purpose, and ask for help.

“I wish someone would tell me…”

Honestly, it was an incredibly embarrassing act.

As Park Jun-su was building up self-disgust, bit by bit,

“I think Silas would be a good choice.”

An unbelievable voice was heard.

“Yes?”

“Um… I saw Silas being used a lot in the competition in situations like this. Or am I wrong?”

“…Come to think of it, I think that’s how it was.”

And the game began.

-Welcome to the battlefield of Summoner’s Rift.

As if she felt there was nothing to hold back anymore.

Lee Yuri’s older sister spoke in little bits and pieces, as if letting out all the things she had been holding back.

Of course, the words were more like talking to herself than to Park Jun-su.

“You should be catching that home timing now… you shouldn’t be saving your ultimate.”

At first, I wondered, do I really have to listen to her?

However, as the game progressed, the situation became complicated and difficult to judge, and Park Jun-su followed the voice, thinking, “Whatever.”

“The allied top laner is recalling, if you roam to the bottom lane now, you can get top lane tele support, so you'll definitely win….”

“The enemy jungler went home. You can get the dragon for free now… Oh, the allied jungler went home too.”

He caught home timings when told to, and roamed when told to.

“You can reverse the team fight by taking Sett’s ultimate and engaging, and then draw the aggro with Jhin.”

“There’s no vision of the enemy Baron now. If you burst, you can get it.”

He took the ultimate of a certain champion if he was told to, and bursted Baron when he was told to.

[Victory]

And he won.

It was such an easy victory.

‘What is it?’

Park Jun-su was dumbfounded.

Was Legend of League such an easy game?

It’s not like the team luck was good either.

The allied top laner was solo-killed twice, and the bottom lane also often took heavy losses in the 2:2 fights.

But, as he followed the magical voice in his ear, the game was won somehow.

‘Can you be like this just by watching competitions often?’

It was Diamond, for God’s sake.

Reigning over the numerous tiers of Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, a high tier that statistically belonged to the top 1%.

But, judging by her looks, the person whose judgment and sharp eye seemed to be in no way ordinary.

Park Jun-su couldn't contain his rising curiosity.

“Um… By any chance, what’s your tier?”

Park Jun-su, who knew better than anyone what it meant to ask that question to someone and how rude it felt, couldn’t help but be curious.

“It’s a secret.”

“…Yes?”

“I said, it’s a secret.”

The moment he saw that light smile, Park Jun-su felt what it meant to have his heart stop.

‘I have no regrets, even if I die.’

However, the voice that followed, pulled Park Jun-su, who was heading towards heaven, back down.

“What are you doing?”

“Yes?”

“You’re not queueing up.”

“……”

Park Jun-su became Diamond 3 that day,

and was late to his supplementary lecture.

* * *

“Ugh-geuk.”

I stretched as much as I could and left the PC bang with my sister.

My sister's friend and male classmate 1 left the PC bang before us.

He was late for his supplementary lecture… I felt sorry for keeping them so long.

In conclusion, I didn't play a single game at the PC bang, but I did a lot of other things instead, so I wasn't disappointed.

‘I can play games later.’

Of course, whether there would be an opportunity to do so was a separate matter.

‘Come to think of it, I didn’t even hear their names.’

Giving advice without even exchanging basic greetings… I don't think it left a good impression.

On the way home, my sister looked at me and said.

“Was it fun?”

Even though it was a question that seemed to be asked to a child, I answered it with childlike innocence for some reason.

“Yeah.”