Was she joking? But Jaemi chattered on with a serious face that held not a trace of humor.
“You know the BJ who plays Eleven, High-Speed Bus? He’s actually seen Olivia in person, and he says it’s no joke. He’s the most handsome person he’s ever seen in his life—if he punched a celebrity walking down the street, he’d be innocent.”
“Why would he punch a celebrity walking down the street…?”
“It’s just a way of saying how handsome he is. He said if Olivia debuted, he’d gain 100 million fans overnight.”
“The population of South Korea is 50 million.”
“Aren’t international fans still fans?”
Ah. Ji-han found himself oddly convinced as Jaemi continued.
“Anyway, one of my wishes is to see Olivia in person. I wish the Jijo guild would have a meetup. I’d definitely go unless it’s on the day of the CSAT. If it is… hmm, then you’ll go and take pictures for me, oppa. No, record a video.”
“Talk some sense.”
Ji-han burst out laughing. Maybe that last part was a joke, because Jaemi laughed along too.
****
Olivia is incredibly handsome.
The fact Jaemi had told him lingered in his mind. As Ji-han launched Eleven Wizard on the PC bang computer, he considered one possibility.
What if Olivia was actually a huge celebrity?
Not the character Olivia, but the real person playing that character.
‘He said he got a medal and was exempted from military service…’
He might have quit due to injury now, but he was good enough to win a medal in the past—and on top of that, his face was celebrity-level handsome?
Ji-han felt like he could find out who Olivia was with a quick internet search right now.
…But he wouldn’t actually look it up. It felt too much like snooping.
An image of a hypothetical net-ka-ma who was so obsessed with Olivia they would stalk him came to mind. A bitter taste rose in his mouth.
He was just temporarily borrowing Jaemi’s account. He wasn’t a net-ka-ma, nor would he creepily stalk Olivia.
Repeating this obvious fact to himself, Ji-han logged into the world of Eleven Wizard.
– [Guild] aaccbb: Good work everyone.
– [Guild] NoWorkSama: Good work~
– [Guild] GodController: Work
– [Guild] DontMakeMeMad: Everyone really, really worked hard!
– [Guild] IHaveAMan: Good workk~ >,< – [Guild] HouseDeedPlease: Good work all, and anyone below me in damage, give me your house deed – [Guild] IHaveAMan: Lol? Guess you didn’t see the rankings. You’re last in damage. – [Guild] HouseDeedPlease: Hahaha – [Guild] HouseDeedPlease: When’s the job change scroll coming out? I’m quitting this healer who gets out damaged by a guy like IHaveAMan – [Guild] CrossroadBlossom: Lol everyone good work – [Guild] Olivia: Good work all Today was guild boss raid day. The guild boss raid was an event where up to 20 guild members formed a party on specific days, entered a guild-exclusive area, and hunted a massive boss. The faster they killed the boss, the more guild points they earned for growth and maintenance. – [Guild] NoWorkSama: Sweet points as always – [Guild] BlackOfBlack: As always lol DM – [Guild] StarlightHerC: But we set a new record this time – [Guild] CrossroadBlossom: Right… probably thanks to InnocentMage? – [Guild] GodController: Agreed – [Guild] InnocentMage: No way haha everyone did well… – [Guild] IHaveAMan: Shh hey girl, stop with the excessive modesty >,< – [Guild] IHaveAMan: You carried the guild boss today, why? – [Guild] IHaveAMan: InnocentMage’s damage rank is 2nd – [Guild] IHaveAMan: PS, who’s 1st? Obviously IHaveAMan – [Guild] HouseDeedPlease: What nonsense is that? You lying bad guild member, hand over the house deed now – [Guild] IHaveAMan: Almost said that – [Guild] IHaveAMan: Korean till the end ^^;;; – [Guild] NoWorkSama: Lol – [Guild] IHaveAMan: 1st is the guild master… yeah. No plot twist. – [Guild] IHaveAMan: Too bad, I’m 4th. – [Guild] HouseDeedPlease: Who asked? – [Guild] HouseDeedPlease: Who asked? – [Guild] CrossroadBlossom: Wow InnocentMage… first guild boss since joining and you get 2nd damage? Damn – [Guild] CrossroadBlossom: Really cool – [Guild] FirstSayCool: Ah – [Guild] BlackOfBlack: Ah what? – [Guild] FirstSayCool: ㅠㅠ – [Guild] BlackOfBlack: Did you steal my words just now? – [Guild] HouseDeedPlease: Lolololololol – [Guild] StarlightHerC: Lmaooo – [Guild] MyTriangle: Lolololol – [Guild] IHaveAMan: CrossroadBlossom, isn’t that too harsh? FirstSayCool only ever says “cool” and you take that away? ㅇㅅㅠ – [Guild] CrossroadBlossom: Oh crap – [Guild] CrossroadBlossom: ㅠㅠ Sorry FirstSayCool, I didn’t mean to… – [Guild] BlackOfBlack: Why are you apologizing lolololol – [Guild] FirstSayCool: ^^ – [Guild] GodController: He forgave you. – [Guild] StarlightHerC: Ah shit lmaooo – [Guild] DontMakeMeMad: Lololololol Ji-han watched the chat for a while, then stood up to go to the bathroom. His palms were slick with sweat from being so tense during the guild boss raid. Feeling gross, he wanted to wash up quickly. As he walked to the bathroom, Ji-han hummed a soft tune under his breath. He wasn’t in a bad mood. Actually, to be honest, he felt pretty good. Second in damage. It was worth coming to the PC bang specifically to get the PC bang connection buff for the raid. A person coming out of the bathroom glanced at Ji-han’s smiling face with half-lidded eyes as they passed. Ji-han went in, washed his hands while looking at the mirror over the sink. His cheeks were flushed red like ripe peach skin. Cooling his heated cheeks with still-damp cold hands, he left the bathroom. He was heading back to his seat when— ‘Huh?’ Ji-han froze. A stranger was standing in front of his seat. At first, Ji-han thought they were just passing by, but the stranger didn’t move even after a moment. They were staring intently at the monitor of the computer Ji-han had been using. Ji-han stole a glance at the stranger’s profile—only their eyes were visible above a mask. A chill ran down his spine. Ji-han turned around and walked to the counter. He told the part-timer his seat number and asked them to shut down the PC, then quickly left the PC bang. As soon as he got home, crossing the main street, he went straight to the living room and chugged some cold water. His heart was pounding. ‘…I almost died.’ His heart screamed. You almost got killed a moment ago. No doubt about it. ‘f*ck…’ Entering his room, Ji-han plopped down on the bed. His back felt damp from cold sweat in that short time. Ji-han threw off his clothes to shower. As he did, he recalled the person he’d seen at the PC bang. Was it a member of [Jijo] guild? It must have been. The feeling was there. When he saw that profile, an eerie sensation washed over him as if someone had pressed a knife to his throat. That kind of feeling doesn’t come easily. Not unless you’re truly in danger of dying. Who could it have been? The person who had been almost glaring at the monitor of his PC—first of all, they were male. And tall. Roughly 190 cm, it seemed, assuming he wasn’t wearing insoles. But he probably wasn’t. In society, the height people call “cool” is around 185 cm. Anything over that invites comments like “too tall” or “like a telephone pole.” People who wear insoles to look 190 probably exist, but they must be rare. …Wait. Maybe he wasn’t 190, but rather the socially accepted mid-180s. Maybe his proportions were so good he looked taller. That was it—his proportions were incredible. Not just good, but absolutely killer. His face was so small that the mask he wore looked like it was oversized. Was it oversized? Hmm, probably not. The thought “his proportions are insane” had immediately crossed his mind. If his face wasn’t small but the mask was big, that thought wouldn’t have come. Also… though it was hard to tell because of the mask, he looked young. Probably around the same age as me, Ji-han guessed. Alright. Let’s sum it up. Male, tall, very small face, my age. …Who could it be? One person came to mind. Olivia.