There was one mountain I had to cross before heading to the illegal arena.
The ga I borrowed from Shu.
When I returned to the cabin over the weekend, Yoon was there.
"Breaking and entering."
"Did you buy a scooter?"
The ntor neatly ignored my sullen remark and asked back.
"A motorcycle would have been better."
"I got it cheap from Hesi."
His younger brother said he wasn't using it anymore.
I refused the offer to take it for free and paid a certain amount. Hesi seed to get along surprisingly well with my two-year-younger brother. He often said it would be great if his younger brother could beco a badger too.
Well, it couldn't be easy watching only his younger brother age.
I didn't buy a motorcycle because I couldn't tell if he had a license or not. I had added a car license during the illegal administrative registration, though.
Yoon turned off the TV that had been playing the news.
"The mission mbers going with Ricardo have been announced."
I relayed the ssage after washing my hands in the bathroom and coming out.
Yoon expressed his intent to listen with silence.
He was still a person who showed no unnecessary movents whatsoever.
"Ricardo Sordi, Asil Fisher, Barbie Winter, and —four in total."
"They're all regulars pulled for that mission."
Yoon shook the water from his hands and looked at blankly as I set up the ga.
"What about the last two?"
I'd only t Barbie Winter once.
Actually, twice. Once when we caught the pig, and once when we went to D Zone. But we didn't have much conversation either ti. When we caught the pig, I didn't even have the energy to greet her. Tvain, Iho, Barbie, and Silvia were there then, but even when we reunited in D Zone, we couldn't properly introduce ourselves.
Especially with Barbie, I hadn't been able to talk.
This ti, I definitely had to introduce myself.
I said that to Yoon as I turned on the ga console. The TV lit up brightly with a pleasant sound.
Asil Fisher was a na that sounded unfamiliar from the start.
"As far as I rember, he's an ex-cop."
Ah. So that's why he was being pulled for this mission.
We settled in front of the not-so-spacious living room TV. Yoon rejected my suggestion to lean on the beanbag and sat with his back against the wall instead. I quickly brewed so iced coffee, handed him a cup, and took my own, sitting down in front of him.
Truth be told, I wanted to play leisurely by myself...
But having Yoon watch like this saved the trouble of explaining.
The title "From E" appeared on the screen.
"Who is this Asil Fisher guy?"
Keeping my eyes on the screen, I picked up the cold glass.
The ntor answered concisely.
"Hot-tempered."
"...Is that it?"
"He grabbed my collar once."
Pfft!
Coffee sprayed out of my mouth.
What the hell!
I coughed for a while, choking.
My nose stung, and the coughs ca nonstop.
As soon as the tear-inducing, acrid coughs subsided, I whipped my head up.
"He grabbed your collar?"
"Yeah."
"Why on earth?"
And that to Choi Yoon?
"Did you say sothing rude?"
"No."
"Then did you act unlucky?"
"No."
"Then did you hit him first?"
"No. What do you think I am? He just ca up and grabbed my collar out of nowhere."
"Suddenly?"
"Yeah."
"Why on earth?"
Was he crazy?
Yoon replied indifferently with his expressionless face.
"Don't know."
"...Pardon?"
"I knocked him out before he could shout whatever it was."
Yoon added the explanation in a voice that said he wasn't particularly curious then or now.
"Didn't hear the reason."
"...He didn't co back for it?"
"He did. Bowed his head and apologized."
Yoon took a sip of his iced coffee.
The sound of ice clinking tickled my ears. The man's eyes, as he drank the coffee, were full of boredom.
"Said he was sorry for getting heated. I said okay and that was it."
"...So you still don't know why he grabbed your collar."
"Yeah."
"...Got it."
I would have to ask him directly later.
There must have been so reason. With the shock not fully subsided, I cald my brain and turned my head toward the TV. Since he ca back, regained his senses, and apologized politely, he didn't seem like a complete lunatic. It must have been so misunderstanding.
What misunderstanding was it?
I had to ask once we got a bit closer.
I sighed, wiped up the sprayed coffee, and sat back down.
I pressed the title screen to face the ga's opening scene. Just like at Shu's place, the title faded, and the ga began.
A chibi character erged from the castle, wielding a massive sword.
I stared at the character nad Hildebert Talev for a while before breaking the silence.
"Why is Senior Winter always pulled for colosseum missions?"
"I heard her dad's in that line."
That line?
Which side. Police? Or mafia?
Before I could ask, the ntor added the explanation.
"Her father's running several famous restaurants, but not entirely legally, I think."
"Oh...."
"But not fully mafia either. Ask the HR director for details."
"Got it. What's her personality like?"
"Don't know well. She's particularly scared of and Ye-hyeon."
Aha.
I stared at the screen with a faint smile.
That made sense.
I was still scared of Yoon myself. We'd reached a point where I could joke around and walk a tightrope on the edge, but that didn't an his chilling nature wasn't frightening. Yoon's cold disposition evoked a chilling fear in those who sensed it.
It probably would stay that way.
Ye-hyeon was scared because he was the top superior.
Neither of them was the type to easily show their true colors. I must have asked the wrong person. If I got the chance later, I would ask Ami about Barbie.
Thinking that, I placed my thumbs on the Joy-Cons.
I'd been chatting about irrelevant things out of fear of actually playing, but now I had to face reality.
"If you're bored, you can leave anyti."
"Just start."
Yoon gave a characteristically blunt response.
"Don't think about quitting midway."
Of course not. I was the type who preferred to clear everything up to the king once I started.
I nodded and moved the ga controller.
*
When I ca to, the cabin had darkened.
I slowly set down the controller as I sat in the living room, illuminated bluish by the TV screen.
It was over.
I'd beaten the final boss.
A happy ending ca to the story in the ga. The intense music cut off, and peaceful tunes began to flow. The characters in the ga gathered together, smiling brightly.
The protagonist in the center had eyes crinkled in laughter.
I took in the character with my na attached.
The end...
It was a traditional RPG-style ga.
It was a ga where the protagonist swordsman went with his companions to conquer a castle corrupted by a curse. It was a ga where he killed and eliminated the source of the corruption hiding in the castle, the final boss "Source of the Plague." From E wasn't a masterpiece, but it was an indie ga enjoyable enough to play.
The playstyle itself was quite simple, and the freedom wasn't high. But the backgrounds and props were very detailed. There seed to be a lot of Easter eggs and collectibles. I could see why core fans existed.
To them, the story felt clean and natural too. The progression made sense, with no setting collapses.
Just like a story that really happened...
I blankly listened to the ending music flowing with emotion.
Yoon, who had been sitting motionless behind , suddenly broke the silence.
"You find this fun?"
Ugh!
My imrsion shattered, and tired of the nagging I'd heard nonstop from Colton Wiseman, I furrowed my brow and whipped my head around.
Stop with this nagging!
"Respect my tastes a bit!"
"Why get so worked up?"
Yoon, who had been statue-still, spoke.
It was a valid point, but I didn't relax my expression.
Maintaining my sullen face, I stared at the man leaning against the wall. In the darkened living room, the man sat still like a ghost.
The ntor stared right through .
"So."
"Pardon?"
"Is this your story?"
I stared blankly at the ntor.
I couldn't stop looking at the man right in front of . The ntor slowly moved his body. After hours, he slowly stood from his seat and shoved his hands into his pockets.
He slowly cast his gaze to the screen.
His following words were rough.
"A story about a swordsman with a greatsword defeating a monster in a castle with his companions—is that your past story?"
I kept silent for a long ti.
The ending music from the screen completely stopped. Silence descended. The only sound was the hum of the ga console connected to the TV, filling the bluish cabin.
When that felt too heavy, I softly broke the silence.
"How did you know?"
"The final boss's traits were exactly like an apostate."
Yoon explained dryly.
"You flinched every ti the new character's na was revealed."
"...Good observation skills."
"The world you stayed in before coming to Earth."
The dry explanation poked at my chest.
"What 'you' stayed in—the events that happened in that world."
Yes.
This was my forgotten story. From long ago, very long ago, before setting foot on Earth—my old tale. mories that had slowly faded as I spent a long ti on Earth.
It had been perfectly recreated as a ga. Simplified a bit, but the ga creator had brilliantly turned my blurring mories into a ga.
Probably for .
"Yeah."
I let out a bitter smile.
"As I played, mories ca back one by one."
"Hilde."
I lifted my head at the called na.
Our gazes t in the air. Yoon looked down at with eyes hard to fathom.
"I'm not particularly interested in how the war started."
"...Is that so?"
"Yeah. It's sothing that already happened. Knowing the truth now won't change anything."
That was very like him.
I didn't know why he was bringing this up suddenly, but anyway, I slowly nodded.
He wasn't one to say unnecessary things, so there must have been sothing he wanted to say.
Indeed, Yoon continued.
"I'm not interested in what life you lived on Earth before the war broke out, or how you ended up coming to Earth. At least not now. Finding out won't change anything there either."
"Then what would change if you found out?"
The sharp gaze of the man pierced through my golden eyes.
It was like looking at prey right in front of him. I t it and waited for Yoon's answer.
He was a person who had said he wasn't interested in clearing the ga but had watched play without moving until nearly midnight.
He broke the silence in a chilling voice.
"Hildebert, what are creatures?"
So creatures had chased to kill .
To condemn the traitor.
To uphold the will of my kin, the Titans.
Reviews
All reviews (0)