The Supporting Characters in the Game Have Become Obsessed Chapter 13

[Translator – Peptobismol]

Chapter 13: The Inexplicable (5)

The interior of a low-tier, shabby bar.

Cold wind seeps in through holes in the walls here and there.

Cheap LED lights hanging from the ceiling swayed haphazardly in the breeze.

As a gathering place for vagabonds living day to day, the air inside was chillingly still.

I scratched my head in dismay.

Catherine’s expression, which I glanced at, was equally uneasy.

“How on earth did you find a place like this?”

“…Just ca for a drink, didn’t we?”

Catherine shrugged, continuing her response.

“I heard about it from No Answer, said there’s a decent guy here.”

“…Here?”

I scanned the surroundings at Catherine’s words.

A few people with their heads resting on old wooden tables, presumably drowned in alcohol.

So laughing and chatting in corners, sipping cheap synthetic liquor.

And a couple, with dead expressions, gulping down strong alcohol without any snacks.

Well, just look at the atmosphere.

If you gather only those who roam the lower classes, this is what you get, I thought.

It didn’t feel like there could be any “decent guy” here.

I knew Catherine’s in-ga comrades.

One was a dwarf specializing in cyberware.

The other—

At that mont, a soft, clear female voice flowed from the small bar’s stage.

A very gentle and clear voice.

Even the drunken vagabonds turned their attention to the stage, one by one.

I rembered.

Another one was a singer.

A rcenary and a singer, an elf nad Andrea.

“…Hey, isn’t that her?”

Catherine pointed towards her as she spoke.

“Let’s wait until the song ends.”

“Right.”

We found our target and settled into empty seats.

The rusty tal chair creaked loudly.

There weren’t many people in the bar, so there were plenty of seats available.

“I can’t judge her skills, but she sings quite well.”

Even Catherine, who was usually critical, seed impressed by her singing abilities.

So, we waited for her song to finish.

“Hey, you bastard. If you’re going to sing like that and suck the energy out, you might as well just shut up!”

A drunkard, clutching his bottle, shouted at her.

The scene that followed, with the surrounding people joining in laughter, was not a pleasant sight.

Anywhere you went in the lower classes, it was the sa.

There were just too many lunatics.

Fights breaking out in the lower classes were nothing unusual.

But the problem was that this was an argunt involving a new teammate(s).

Catherine sitting beside seed to be thinking the sa thing.

We were about to get up from our seats.

Just as we were considering how to deal with the drunken vagabonds.

That’s when the chair flew into the air.

– Thwack!

Suddenly, Andrea, who had stopped singing, threw her chair at the drunkards.

The chair hit one of the drunkard’s jaw with pinpoint accuracy and continued spinning until it hit the ceiling.

An unexpected situation.

The blood and white pieces from the vagabond’s mouth proved that this situation was indeed real.

Even the drunkard’s companions, who had been laughing and enjoying themselves, couldn’t hide their shock.

“What the fuck!!”

Because of that, the drunkards shouted at Andrea a beat later.

The abrupt change in the atmosphere made Catherine and crave popcorn.

If Andrea handled the situation herself, there was no need for us to intervene.

Her red hair sparkled in the light.

Her long hair swayed as if showcasing her presence.

“─FUCK.”

Perhaps thanks to her excellent singing skills, her unnecessarily well-articulated curse echoed throughout the entire bar via the microphone.

Followed by her stiffly rising middle finger.

“If you don’t want to listen, then either co up here or shut hell up, you assholes!”

And that was it.

That was our first eting with her.

I’d like to justify this part by saying that it’s not her personality that’s dirty, but rather the rcenaries she’s surrounded by.

Anyway, that’s that.

* * *

[Translator – Peptobismol]

“Hey!! What was that?”

“Oh, just kidding, kidding! Can’t I even joke around?”

Catherine yelled as she rushed toward Andrea, who calmly received her.

This place is Andrea’s personal waiting room, with her na on the door. By the way, it was incredibly splendid.

It seed to double as a dressing room too.

Andrea, sitting in front of a large mirror, didn’t stop smiling.

Not as much as Catherine and , but she was also one of our long-ti comrades.

We’ve entrusted each other with our lives a few tis while carrying out many requests.

At first glance, it might seem like we’re really fighting, but in reality, it’s not that serious.

The two of them have been like this for a day or two.

“…Do you really want to die? You.”

“Would you like to give it a try after a long ti?”

…They’re not really serious, right?

I cautiously watched their interactions from the guest chair.

Surely they wouldn’t actually fight, right?

By the way, if they really start fighting, I’ve vowed to run away without looking back.

I was starting to feel like going ho.

Is there anyone to stop those two?

I murmured softly, only for Eve to hear.

“…Eve, isn’t there a good way to resolve this situation?”

[It is scheduled to appear in about 5 seconds, I inform.]

“Huh?”

It was a completely unexpected response.

[Currently accessing biotric data near the entrance to the waiting room. It is recomnded to check the direction towards the door, I inform again.]

As Eve finished speaking, the waiting room door forcefully swung open.

“Yoo!”

Everyone could tell he was a celebrity living in the upper classes.

His golden skin, starting from his jaw, wrapped his entire body in a peculiar manner.

Who was he again?

…It felt like I could almost rember, but not quite.

Ah, right.

He was the one who sang on stage earlier.

All the celebrities of Neon City had that vibe. Except Andrea, of course.

They seed to ooze with personality compared to the lower classes, but in a different sense.

“Andrea!”

“Ah… that crazy bastard’s here again.”

“Still as rough-mouthed as ever, thorny rose.”

Andrea sighed upon seeing the man’s face. She looked genuinely disgusted.

Catherine, witnessing Andrea’s expression, burst into laughter.

After laughing for a while, Catherine put her hand on Andrea’s shoulder.

“Oh, that’s hilarious. Crazy bitch, you two match well. Hey.”

“…Really, cut it out.”

A dull thud was heard.

If there was one problem, it was that the man’s attention wasn’t solely on Andrea.

Turning his head, the man’s gaze shifted towards Catherine this ti.

“Oh, you’re beautiful too.”

“What the fuck?”

“Hehehe, I hope you enjoyed my performance earlier. I’m Vince Barbo, the leader of Rain Earth.”

This ti it was Andrea’s turn to burst into laughter.

Just like Catherine earlier, Andrea couldn’t hold back her laughter.

Was he an extre narcissist?

The man didn’t seem to pay much attention to their reactions.

“Well, I was just about to have a al. Would you like to join , lady?”

Upon hearing this, Andrea continued laughing while speaking to Catherine.

“Hey, hey. You’re a good match. You two go eat together. I’m going to eat with Siwoon.”

“…Siwoon? Who’s that?”

The man, Vince Barbo, montarily narrowed his eyes.

I didn’t want to attract any sparks, so I stayed silent and sat quietly in my seat.

I took a sip of the tea that was prepared for guests.

It tasted good.

But unfortunately, my efforts were in vain.

Really, it was disappointing that we were the only ones in this room.

Even if I wanted to hide, there was nowhere to hide.

It was only natural that Vince Barbo’s gaze eventually turned to .

“…Hmm, I guess it’s him.”

He smirked.

“Aren’t I better than an Asian guy like him? He’s wearing a mask, and he doesn’t look too healthy either.”

…Hmm.

It wasn’t racial discrimination that happened once or twice.

I didn’t even feel angry at this point.

However, it would be foolish to ignore taunts from Neon City.

It couldn’t be helped.

I was about to get up to respond to his taunt.

Well I would’ve…if Catherine and Andrea hadn’t slapped him at the sa ti.

– Thud!

Perhaps due to being fully coated in gold, the sound of him hitting the wall was unusually loud.

Vince Barbo, now unconscious from being slamd against the wall.

…I didn’t intend for it to go that far.

Catherine and Andrea glanced at each other.

Then, without saying a word, they both nodded.

“…Are you guys really okay with this? He seed sowhat famous. Just be a bit gentle.”

But neither of them seed to care too much.

In fact, both of them had relieved expressions.

“Hey hey, I’ve sung all my songs. Let’s all go eat together now.”

“Shall we?”

…Is this okay? I briefly pondered.

Well, the concert did end quite late.

Thanks to that, I was quite hungry.

For now, let’s go eat and think about it later.

[….]

I’m not sure.

We’ll figure it out sohow.

—

And the very next day.

《This is breaking news from NCB24. Vince Barbo, the leader of a famous male group, has been urgently arrested on seven charges including tax evasion.》

The face of the man I saw yesterday appeared on the news program.

“Oh.”

The timing is quite interesting.

Tax evasion, huh?

Tax evasion in Neon City is essential for survival, but if caught, it’s an imdiate arrest.

I rember the penalties being quite severe.

I won’t have to worry about it for a while.

《NCPD officials have said that the investigation was based on evidence sent by soone online─》

“Hmm.”

Soone?

Suddenly, Eve spoke up alone.

[I really don’t know who sent the evidence. It would have been impossible without a high-intelligent AI, I believe.]

Was it her?

I asked several tis, but Eve never told the truth until the end.

[Translator – Peptobismol]