Chapter 76: Avoiding a roe deer, only to encounter a tiger

Both of them avoided Molru’s gaze as if they were playing a game of wits.

The next target was Ryua.

“Ryua.”

“Uh, uh?”

“When did you go so far? Come sit here.”

Jieun patted the seat next to her, motioning for her to come over.

Ryua was deeply moved by Jieun showing such behavior, given that she was usually unresponsive and rarely expressive.

But Ryua knew.

If she stepped into that space now, it would be the end.

Like Tex before her, she too would be doomed.

“Hmm? Why aren’t you coming? I’m bored.”

“J-just a second…”

Yet, not going also wasn’t an option.

Jieun’s slightly pouting face, as if she was feeling hurt, was too lethal.

It made Ryua feel as though she had done something terribly wrong, urging her to quickly fulfill Jieun’s request.

What did Jieun say again?

Ah, she told her to come sit beside her.

Right, let’s go.

To Jieun’s side, the seat Ryua liked the most.

Why was she hesitating over something so simple?

All she had to do was stand up and take a few steps.

As if hypnotized, Ryua began to rise from her seat, moving toward Jieun.

“Ryua, snap out of it…!”

“Eh, eh?”

“If you get caught too, we’re done for…!”

Papijoa’s quiet whisper snapped her back to reality.

That was close—she almost fell for it.

Just from looking at Jieun’s sorrowful expression, she had momentarily lost herself.

Right now, it was as if Jieun’s natural restraints had been broken.

Her face was already strikingly powerful, but in the past, it had been somewhat contained by her usually expressionless demeanor.

Not anymore.

Now, Jieun was beaming brightly, looking happier than ever.

And to Ryua, this was, without a doubt, the most charming Jieun had ever looked.

‘No! Snap out of it!’

Slap!

Ryua slapped her own cheek to bring herself back to her senses.

“What do we do? At this rate, we’re both going to end up like them…”

“There’s only one way…”

“What is it?”

Ryua muttered gravely.

“We have to feed Jieun drinks first and take her down…”

It pained her, but this was the best option.

If Jieun managed to take down both Ryua and Papijoa, then who would take care of Jieun?

Never mind the fallen teammates—Jieun was the real issue here.

Recently, there had been the stalker incident, and even if that hadn’t happened, Ryua felt that Jieun was always in some sort of danger.

Because of that dazzling beauty of hers.

Now that she thought about it, Jieun must have had a hard time because of it.

Sure, there must have been benefits, but Ryua was sure that Jieun’s twisted personality was largely influenced by her naturally striking appearance.

Something must have happened in the past.

While Ryua was lost in thought, Papijoa whispered beside her.

“As expected, that’s the best way…? We have to contain Molru somehow.”

“Let’s do it.”

The first plan: Get Molru drunk.

First, they had to get closer.

Just as Ryua picked up a bottle and glasses, ready to approach Molru—

“What are you two whispering about…?”

Molru’s voice called out, making Ryua turn her head.

Oh no.

They had been so focused on strategizing that they forgot to keep an eye on their most important target.

Jieun was staring at them, looking slightly sulky.

Her cheeks puffed out a little, her eyes glaring at them.

Somehow, it looked… cute.

Ryua had the urge to reach out and ruffle her hair.

No, no! Stay focused!

Ryua had a mission to complete.

She couldn’t get caught up in this.

If Jieun was resorting to charm, it meant she was desperate too.

“You two are having fun whispering to each other… only talking amongst yourselves… So, you both don’t like me, do you? Is that it…?”

Jieun lowered her head, looking dejected.

Ryua and Papijoa frantically waved their hands in denial.

“N-no, that’s not it…”

“Why would we dislike you, Molru? We love you so much.”

“R-right! Jieun, you’re my everything! I can’t live without you!”

Jieun slowly lifted her head.

The pout she had been wearing disappeared, replaced by a small smile.

“You don’t hate me…?”

“Of course not!”

“Obviously not!”

Her face fully relaxed as she patted the seat next to her once more.

“Then come over here. Play with me.”

They were countered.

There was no need to overthink what “playing” meant in this situation.

Just look at the way Jieun was gently swirling the liquor in her glass.

Ryua spoke in a trembling voice.

“That might be a bit…”

“…It’s fine. You don’t have to lie. You really don’t like me, do you?”

Jieun abruptly turned her head away.

It didn’t seem like her mood was going to improve anytime soon.

At this rate, there was no way to execute their plan.

What should they—?

“Uh, excuse me for a moment?”

Ryua’s troubled thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the appearance of an unfamiliar man.

“I’m Buffie, a Switch streamer and YouTuber. I’m currently live streaming—would it be alright to film here?”

He politely asked while covering the phone camera attached to his selfie stick.

Judging by Papijoa’s reaction, he seemed to be quite famous.

Even Ryua had a strong feeling that she had seen him before while scrolling through her phone.

“I kept getting chat messages saying they wanted to see Team Jackie, so I came by to take a look, but… I guess this isn’t the best timing.”

Buffie scratched his head in disappointment as he glanced at the completely wrecked male members of the team.

“They wanted to see our team?”

“Yes, Team Jackie is pretty famous in many ways. Though, most of the chats were asking to see Molru.”

“Me…?”

From beneath the table, a woman suddenly crawled out.

For a brief moment, a stunned silence settled between them.

Buffie, as expected of a professional streamer, quickly assessed the situation and spoke up.

“Are you… Molru?”

“Yes, I am… Molru…”

“…So the rumors weren’t exaggerated.”

Buffie gaped in amazement.

Faced with Jieun’s overwhelming beauty, he momentarily lost his composure.

Ryua, who had now regained her senses, stepped in to take control of the situation.

“Sorry, but she’s not in the best condition, and the only ones still functional here are me and Papi. So, I don’t think a broadcast is possible right now.”

“That’s a shame, but it can’t be helped. Maybe next time—”

Just as Buffie was about to wrap things up, someone suddenly interjected.

“Broadcast…? A broadcast?”

“Ah, Molru, the viewers have been asking for you a lot. But today doesn’t seem like a good day… Maybe we can stream together another time—”

“Why not today?”

Molru tilted her head as if she genuinely didn’t understand.

Buffie calmly explained, “Well, because… you and everyone else here are drunk.”

“Who’s drunk? There’s no way I’m drunk from just one cocktail. I’m completely fine. Look at this.”

To prove her point, Jieun started spinning in place, doing a dizzy elephant trunk motion.

Alarmed, Buffie and the others immediately moved to stop her.

“Right, okay. Not drunk at all. My mistake.”

“See? I told you. I can handle my liquor.” Hehe.

“Haha, right… Haha…”

Buffie gave an awkward laugh as he slowly inched backward.

That was when Jieun suddenly called out.

“Hmm… Baffie? Vaffie?”

“It’s Buffie, Molru.”

“Right, Buffie. Want to have a drink with me?”

“Haha, I’m good. I already had plenty over there.”

In any other situation, an unbelievably gorgeous woman asking him to drink with her would have been a dream come true.

But Buffie instinctively knew—if he got caught up in this, he was doomed.

Fighting back tears, he firmly refused.

However, Molru’s next words made him freeze in place.

“Then… let’s stream.”

“What?”

“You asked earlier if I could be on stream, right? That’s why you came over, isn’t it?”

Molru swayed slightly as she pointed at his phone.

“Ah, yes… But are you sure about this?”

“Of course… But my face can’t be shown.”

Jieun gave him the okay sign, but Ryua immediately intervened, looking incredulous.

“Jieun, what are you saying? A stream?”

“Mm… I want to stream. Ryua, Papi, you both aren’t playing with me. I’m bored.”

Jieun whined, almost childishly.

Hearing this, Ryua smacked her forehead in frustration.

Avoiding the deer, only to run into a tiger.

They were trying to defuse the situation, but it had only gotten worse.

“This is the third day without a stream… I’m getting worried.”

My forum is probably on fire by now…

Buffie, stuck in the middle, looked completely lost.

Papijoa had a deeply concerned expression.

And Jieun, flushed from alcohol, seemed to have already made up her mind.

There was no other choice.

“Alright, but just for a little while, okay?”

“Mm… Can’t it be longer?”

“Buffie can’t stay here forever. He has other places to check out.”

Understanding the silent plea in Ryua’s gaze, Buffie quickly added, “Yes, I still have other people to meet. Maybe ten minutes? Five?”

“Just five minutes…?”

“Well then, shall we start the stream?”

Buffie pulled out his phone to set things up, while Jieun mumbled softly.

“That’s too short…”

Watching her, Ryua thought to herself.

Please… let nothing go wrong.