I tripped Iselle as she tried to run away, and she fell face-first into the plaza floor.
[Ack!]
“We’re not done talking.”
[What, you still have more to say?]
Iselle turned back to , rubbing her now-red nose.
“You should investigate why the ga’s not being played.”
[Investigate? Does there have to be a reason? Maybe he just got bored...]
“That’s not it.”
I chuckled.
Sure, maybe he went through the tutorial and decided the ga wasn’t for him. Pick
Up isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, and I admit it takes a specific taste to enjoy it. If he found it boring, I wouldn’t stop him from quitting. But sothing about this doesn’t add up.
“If he didn’t want to play, he would have logged out and uninstalled the ga. But he’s kept it open.”
There were so odd details ntioned in his conversation with Anytng. His friends complained about it being a luck-based ga, and he himself wasn’t sure it would be fun. If that were true, he would have quit right after finishing the tutorial.
‘A minor suspicion, but...’
It might seem insignificant, but I have a bad feeling about it.
[Hmph! Whatever he’s thinking, it’s none of my business. Money is king. I need money so I can start fresh with a sleek master like Loki. So just leave
alone! Now if you’ll—]
I brought the edge of Bifrost’s blade close to Iselle.
Crackle!
[Aaahhh!]
The effect was imdiate.
Iselle flopped around like a fish just pulled from the water.
“Who said you could leave?”
[My Freedom XY...]
The coin-mining machine she # Nоvеlight # had been clutching was completely fried. The wires and components were lted together from overheating.
“Honestly. You should be thankful I’m trying to help you.”
I kicked the box of the destroyed Freedom XY-46 aside.
The shattered remains of the graphics card scattered across the ground.
[You... monster...]
“Quit this coin nonsense. I’m serious, it’s for your own good.”
[But... this is the only way to make money... I need money so I can butter up the higher-ups and get assigned to a better waiting room...]
Iselle hugged the ruined mining machine and began sniffling.
[The director even promised... I’d be paired with a top-tier master...]
“You got scamd.”
[Don’t talk about it like it’s soone else’s problem! You! You’re the one who broke my Freedom XY-46 Super Strike Custom! Now that it’s co to this, I’m going to—]
Crackle!
[Aaahhh!]
Exactly like in Townia, Iselle was totally helpless.
She still hadn’t learned her lesson.
“I’m going to investigate. You’re going to help .”
[But I... ]
I started to unsheathe my sword again, and Iselle’s face turned purple.
[How am I supposed to help? The master’s level is so low, I don’t have much power...]
“Use this to cover the lack of interference.”
Shrrr.
I tossed Bifrost at her feet.
Iselle grinned mischievously.
[You fool. If I get rid of this sword, you’ll be at my rcy...]
I snapped my fingers, and the blade of Bifrost, still lying on the ground, sparked with electricity.
“What did you say?”
[...Nothing.]
“Look up Jinho-Jang’s phone usage records. If he’s playing another ga, find out what it is. Also, check what he was doing before installing Pick
Up. Find out who he was talking to on CocoaTalk. I want a report in an hour. No funny business.”
[Uh, ugh...]
Iselle made a pitiful face, grabbed Bifrost hesitantly, and disappeared in a shower of stardust.
Once again alone, I turned my attention back to the door in front of .
It seed like Kardia was still working hard on her mission on the fourth floor, clueless about her own predicant, and fighting monsters with all her might.
‘How many waiting rooms must have vanished?’
The number must be in the millions by now.
Still, I wasn’t dwelling on it much.
Just as I hadn’t worried much about Africa when I was in Korea.
There were a few strange things about Jinho-Jang’s actions.
If I could resolve those, I wouldn’t care whether this waiting room collapsed or not.
Before Kardia even returned, Iselle brought
the report on Jinho-Jang in less than an hour.
I slowly scanned the letters on the paper.
‘He mainly plays Hellground, huh.’
It seed he wasn’t much into mobile gas.
There was no indication he had any interest in Pick
Up at all.
‘If he’s not going to play, why install it?’
What a waste of data.
I turned to the next page, where I found a summary of Jinho-Jang’s recent CocoaTalk ssages.
The na of the person he’d been chatting with one-on-one was...
‘Auntie.’
Auntie?
I blinked in surprise.
Starting from the top, I began to read through it.
Auntie: Jinho, are you awake? [12:02 AM]
[12:03 AM] No, I’m not. What’s up?
Auntie: I need a favor. Can you help
out? [12:05 AM]
The CocoaTalk chat log continued.
The conversation that started just after midnight went on until 1 a.m.
Auntie: She doesn’t listen to . You were close to her, right? Could you talk to her for ? [12:57 AM]
[12:59 AM] Okay. I’ll try.
Auntie: If you succeed, I’ll give you a gift. Those long padded jackets are popular these days, right? Don’t you want to buy one? [1:00 AM]
[1:01 AM] Oh, really? I’ll try even harder then!
Auntie: Thanks, Jinho. Fighting! ^^ [1:05 AM]
That was where the CocoaTalk conversation ended.
‘So that’s what happened.’
A few days ago, it seed that Jinho-Jang’s aunt had asked him for advice. The subject of that conversation was none other than Anytng.
Apparently, Anytng had beco so absorbed in gaming that she was neglecting real life.
‘...A valid concern.’
Understandable from a parent’s perspective.
To Jinho-chan, she was ‘Auntie.’
But to Anytng, she was her mother.
It seed Anytng had been playing gas all day.
Barely getting any sleep, struggling at work, and living off instant ran stacked in her cupboard.
Her mother was understandably worried that her health was deteriorating because of the ga.
She noticed she’d stopped saying goodnight to her every evening, a routine they’d always had.
On top of that, she listed more than ten other things she was concerned about, all of which she unloaded on Jinho-Jang.
And so, in the end, she’d given him a task, sweetened with the promise of a gift.
‘Anytng...’
She wanted him to stop playing the ga.
“Interesting.”
So this kid was sent to sabotage him?
To pull Anytng away from Pick
Up.
‘You plan to interfere with us, do you?’
I crumpled up the report and tossed it aside.
Not on my watch.
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