The shutdown law message I saw at the last moment before logging off still lingered in my mind. As I got out from the capsule, drenched in sweat, I felt an overwhelming sense of elasticity. It was proof that I had been so immersed in the game that it was affecting my real body.
"Ah…"
A low sigh escaped my lips. Just as I was about to distribute the gold, the clock struck 10 PM, and I was forcibly logged out of the game. The shutdown law was truly a formidable villain. In the past, I used to laugh it off since it didn't affect me, but now, it had become a significant obstacle in my life.
'What should I do?'
My mind went blank. The brain that functioned so smoothly while playing the game now felt like it had frozen. I grabbed my phone after stepping out of the capsule. Fortunately, there was still a group chat where I could communicate with my raid members, even though I couldn't log into the game. If I hadn't had this chat room, I might have become infamous in the game's community.
When I checked the group chat, there were already numerous messages piled up. It was a chat room with 40 people. Even if one person sent a message every second, there would be 40 messages in a minute. I rubbed my cheek as I began to check the messages.
Mage Group 1 Leader: [Raid leader got hit by shutdown law wwwww]
Priest Leader: [So it wasn't just for show?]
Mage 22: [Raid leader… I believe in you…]
Mage Group 2 Leader: [Hawawa... Middle schooler-chan can't play after 10 PM…]
As I read the messages, I realized the atmosphere wasn't too bad. But there was a hint of unease that couldn't be hidden. If I left it like this, the mood could turn sour. I quickly typed a message.
Raid Leader: [Sorry, I got kicked out because of the shutdown law. I'll log in before school tomorrow and send the gold via mail.]
Just as I sent the message, I heard a cautious knock from outside the room.
"Hayeon. Hey, Hayeon!"
It was Harang's voice. I thought it was Mom. what was he doing here? Ignoring his call, I focused on my phone.
Mage 7: [No one is more committed to their roleplay than you;]
Raid Leader: [It's not roleplay. I really can't log in.]
Mage Group 2 Leader: [Hawawa... Middle schooler-chan never lies…]
I frowned. Even though I was telling the truth, it seemed no one believed that I was a real middle schooler attending school.
Knock, knock, knock!
"Hayeon!"
The knocking grew louder, and so did his voice. Frowning, I walked to the door.
"What is it?"
"You... you... is it true?"
"What?"
"You were playing Deren?"
Suddenly, he was asking if I had been playing Deren? I sighed and opened the door.
"Yeah…"
He was standing at the door with a strange expression. He should have been holed up in the capsule, so why was he here?
"What's the matter?"
With my arms crossed, I leaned against the wall and glared at him. It was still awkward dealing with this boy who resembled my past self. It felt odd to treat him warmly, and it was uncomfortable to address him as Hayeon's older brother.
Harang, looking at me cautiously, took out his phone and showed me something.
"Look at this."
I checked the screen of his phone. It was a post from Daron Gallery.
[Deren Online Gallery]
[Let's take a closer look at the value of the gold ninja'd by the middle schooler.]
(Real-time price fluctuation graph from a gold trading site)
The middle schooler who overturned the gallery swallowed up a total of 12,750 gold in just five hours. Based on the current price, 10 gold has a cash value of 14,900 won. This means the middle schooler pocketed 18,997,500 won in cash. It's truly an incredible event. 19 million won in five hours?
{18,997,500 won = 13,298.25 EUR}
(A meme of Yeon's character with ninja gear, holding a gold pouch on her back)
Everyone was fooled. He wasn't a middle schooler, but a ninja.
[Comments]
[Fun fact: With 9000 won per gukbap, that's about 2110 bowls.]
ㄴ[Wow... middle schooler-chan... will explode from all the gukbap...]
ㄴ[5555555]
[Looks like pick-up raids won't work anymore.]
ㄴ[Just distribute the gold immediately after the boss auction ends.]
ㄴ[You should just go for random rolls.]
ㄴ[Last time I went for random rolls, a rogue dealing less than the tank took all the loot...]
[She's not a ninja, she got kicked out because of the shutdown law.]
ㄴ[Do you really believe that?]
ㄴ[Why are people complaining when none of the raid members are saying anything?]
As I read the post and comments, my lips began to twitch. It had barely been five minutes since I logged out of the game. What on earth had happened in such a short time? I frowned and glared at Harang standing in front of me.
"That's not it."
"What… what do you mean?"
"I didn't ninja the gold."
"Uh..."
"I'm serious... I got kicked out because of the shutdown law."
"I wasn't... I just..."
"You're not here because you were curious about this, are you?"
Harang shook his head at my question. His eyes gleamed with a hidden sense of excitement. What was he really here for?
"No, I just wanted to know if you're the raid leader who got the first clear."
I nodded at Harang's question. I didn't plan on hiding the fact that I played Deren, so there was no reason not to admit it. Harang took a step closer.
"Hayeon!"
"Ugh!"
It was intimidating when someone taller than me suddenly approached.
"Let me join the raid too!"
"You want to join the raid...?"
I took a step back and asked again. At this point in my previous life, I was already part of a different raid group. I still vividly remember it because that was my first raid group. The bond we formed lasted for a long time...
"Yeah!"
"Don't you already belong to a different raid group?"
"Me? I just hit max level two weeks ago... I haven't joined any raid groups yet..."
I was stunned by Harang's words. That's when I realized this world was twisted in strange ways. We didn't use keyboards and mouse to play here, so of course Harang's playstyle would have been different.
"What's your class?"
"I'm an archer..."
As expected, this world's Harang was different. He was a ranged DPS, unlike me, who had played a melee class. But what mattered most was the rank of his first and second classes.
"What's your first and second classs?"
"Both are Ranger."
A Ranger—a class that could shoot multiple arrows with a single attack. It was versatile for both single-target and AOE damage. Although it used up a lot of arrows, its damage output was on par with the mage classes.
He had leveled up to max as a Ranger. That meant he had at least some basic sense.
"Move aside."
"Huh? Oh..."
"I'm going to shower. We'll talk later."
First, I needed to wash off this sticky sweat.
* * * *
After I finished my shower and went to the living room, I saw some ice cream sitting on the table. As I approached, shaking the water from my hair, I made eye contact with Harang, who was watching me from the corner.
"What are you doing?"
"Do you need anything else?"
"Did you put this ice cream here?"
"Yeah... Don't you like it?"
It was a milk-flavored ice cream. Not my favorite. It seemed Hayeon, not me, liked it. I shook my head, unwrapped the ice cream, and took a bite. It was quite tasty.
As I ate the ice cream, I glanced around the living room. I didn't see Mom, so she must have already gone to bed. That meant I didn't have to worry about being watched.
I walked over to the sofa and plopped down. My wet hair dripped down my back, but I didn't care. Harang cautiously approached, holding an ice cream in his mouth too.
"Hayeon."
"What."
"When did you start playing?"
I frowned as I tried to recall. It hadn't even been a week since I, as myself, started playing the game. But Hayeon had already been playing Deren. Hayeon's account had other character besides the one I was leveling. That was probably the character Hayeon had raised.
"For a while?"
"For a while?"
"Why didn't you say anything?"
"Did I have to?"
"Well, no, but..."
Harang kept glancing at me nervously. It was frustrating to watch. Seeing a resemblance of my past self.
"I'll let you join the raid."
"Really?"
"Yeah. I was thinking of swapping out some of the mages anyway."
"Really? I thought the same thing. When I watched the broadcast, those mages were super frustrating."
I nodded at Harang's words, but something caught my attention.
Broadcast...?
"Broadcast...?"
"Yeah."
A broadcast? I hadn't streamed anything. No, it wasn't me. One of the raid members must have been broadcasting.
"Wait... You didn't know?"
I quickly grabbed my phone. Who the hell had been streaming? Leaking the raid's tactics was a serious issue. If others started copying my strategies, it would diminish the significance of my first-clear raid.
Preserving the value of the items was crucial. Maintaining their symbolic importance was also important. If everyone could clear the raid, the gear would become too common. I didn't want that.
My head throbbed. I knew the raid was full of misfits, but I never imagined someone would stream without the raid leader's permission. Had I really put in all that effort for those fools? Even fed them the first-clear achievement?
I didn't know the stream was live until the raid ended. Sighing deeply, I began browsing various sites.
As expected, because of the broadcast, the entire situation was being publicly discussed in real-time. I checked the stream and identified the nickname of the mage who had been broadcasting.
[IceMageViviBic]
This guy was getting kicked.
I opened the group chat, accessed the management menu, and removed him from the raid.
[The raid leader has removed: IceMageViviBic]
Priest Leader: [Gasp... The raid leader is swinging the sword...]
Mage Group 2 Leader: [Hawawa... Even middle schooler ninjas members]
Sub-tank 2: [He's the one who was broadcasting.]
Dogric: [I thought the raid leader had given permission for that?]
Sub-tank 2: [Judging by him getting kicked, I guess not?]
Raid Leader: [Just to clarify, anyone planning to stream should leave the raid. The same goes for streamers. I do not allow the sharing of our raid tactics.]
The situation was mostly resolved. I smacked my lips and stood up. Harang, who was sitting nearby, stood up as well. I looked at him and asked.
"Why are you standing up?"
"Huh? Oh... I'm going to play."
Play? It's past 10 PM. That meant he had to help me study. I had leverage over him. His raid membership also depended on me, so there was no way he could refuse my request.
"Wait here."
"Oh no..."
"Teach me to study."
Harang, who had been watching my reaction nervously, nodded and quietly sat down. But he didn't seem too upset. There was a small smile on his face.