TGMND 95

While Yeo-woon was busy hunting in the field and gathering materials for crafting, he spotted a user passing by with a muscular rabbit pet. As the user did a double jump, the snow rabbit pet also curled up into a ball in mid-air, rolled, and then slammed a fist as big as a rock into the ground upon landing.

Damn… that’s cute!

Yeo-woon was instantly overcome with envy and jealousy.

Even if he wanted to buy adoption rights with money, he couldn’t because there were no listings available. Most people either used the Snow Bunny as a trade for another pet, like the Ice Fox or used it themselves without realizing its value. The more it kept flitting before his eyes when he couldn’t have it, the more he craved it. It was the first time in his life that he had wanted an item so badly!

“Hmm…”

He had a good feeling about this, should he try the gacha again?

Thinking he couldn’t lose to others, Yeo-woon used the gacha item he had registered to a hotkey. The gacha effect slightly recovered his HP and attached various minor buffs. Then, items started popping out randomly according to probabilities and entering Yeo-woon’s item window.

‘Acquired [Shivering from Cold] Title Acquisition Book ×10’

‘Acquired 500 Mileage Points’

‘Acquired 500 Mileage Points’

‘Acquired [Shivering from Cold] Title Acquisition Book ×10’

‘Acquired Smelly Breath of a Frozen Person ×10’

‘Acquired Smelly Breath of a Frozen Person ×10’

‘Acquired 500 Mileage Points’
…

The gacha roll was a disaster. Not just a small failure, but a massive one. Although he expected this outcome, actually seeing it happen left him feeling utterly empty and fed up with the world. He had tried to console himself by thinking he hadn’t expected much, but it seemed impossible not to have at least some hope.

[Couple] Ji9star: What are you doing? ㅇㅅㅇ

[Couple] neutaaaa: Despairing

[Couple] Ji9star: What? Did you roll the gacha again?

[Couple] neutaaaa: ㅜㅜ

[Couple] Ji9star: I told you to do it in front of me! I’m a total luck totem >_<

[Couple] Ji9star: You’d get better results if you’re with me, I swear ㅇㅅㅇ

Nonsense.

[Couple] neutaaaa: Who are you?

[Couple] Ji9star: Didn’t you see me get that Cat’s Glacier Hat earlier?

[Couple] Ji9star: That was all because I use the gacha while with you lol

[Couple] neutaaaa: Don’t talk to me, mister;

[Couple] Ji9star: Ah, you’re really sensitive…ㅠㅠ

[Couple] Ji9star: Trust me, it’s true this time

[Couple] Ji9star: I’m telling you, if you circle Isis three times and bow in front of the stone tower, you’ll really get it lol

As Yeo-woon faced repeated disappointments, Earth Star tried to share some so-called gacha tips he claimed to know, suggesting various ridiculous methods. At first, Yeo-woon actually tried Earth Star’s suggestion: climbing to the highest platform in the guild room and rolling while doing a backflip.

[Guild] Ji9star: Lol I can’t believe you actually did what I told you to

[Guild] CatMeowMeowMeow: Lololololol can’t believe you fell for that

[Guild] neutaaaa: ?

[Guild] Ji9star: Lolololololololololololololol

“…!”

Only then did Yeo-woon realize. He’d been tricked.

[Guild] Wandu Wandya: Poor Neuta, hope you get a nice floor mat out of this…

[Guild] Halloween Eggplant: Neu, there’s a great insurance plan available right now

[Guild] neutaaaa: Not buying^^

[Guild] Halloween Eggplant: Lololololololololololol

[Guild] neutaaaa: Lol 9star, let me hit you once

[Guild] Ji9star: Ack

[Guild] Halloween Eggplant: ?? 9star? Lololololololololololol

[Guild] CatMeowMeowMeow: Lololololololololol

Earth Star sent a whisper shortly after. He must have been afraid the nickname would stick if they kept talking in the guild chat.

[Whisper] Ji9star: ;; Why did you call me 9star in front of others!!

[Whisper] Ji9star: If you’re going to call me that, at least do it in privateㅡㅡ

[Whisper] neutaaaa: …What?

[Whisper] Ji9star: Just call me Ji-gu(Earth) instead;;

[Whisper] neutaaaa: What…? Sorry, but who are you?

[Whisper] Ji9star: This is annoying

That’s my line. Yeowoon felt thoroughly deceived by Earth Star and stopped treating him like a normal person. The folk beliefs he shared turned out to be useless and unreliable lies. To play a prank on someone so desperate…

Earth Star said he’d pay for his sins and shared another folk belief. Yeo-woon, who had decided to try it thinking he had nothing to lose, ended up with an armful of useless junk items and cursed Earth Star.

To avoid being fooled again, several days passed with Yeo-woon letting Earth Star’s words go in one ear and out the other. This also meant that several days had passed without getting the snow rabbit despite investing money and time.

[Couple] Ji9star: Why do you keep avoiding me

Whether he had run over after seeing his location, a pink silhouette appeared on the minimap from the far end. Usually, they appear white, and party members appear sky blue, but a pink silhouette meant a couple was approaching.

“…”

Yeo-woon’s heart sank again seeing Earth Star’s outfit. He was wearing the complete set costume from the gacha. A round-eared hat covered his ears, and a long tail stuck out from behind his furry top and bottom. To have already collected the entire set costume, Yeo-woon’s stomach hurt with envy at Earth Star’s luck. He couldn’t understand why this was making him so childish.

[Couple] Ji9star: Are you mad at me or something?

[Couple] neutaaaa: No….

[Couple] neutaaaa: But who are you again?

[Couple] Ji9star: Why do you keep pretending not to know me and using formal speech? ㅠ0ㅠ

[Couple] Ji9star: I said I was sorry ㅠㅠ I won’t lie anymore

[Couple] Ji9star: I swear on my older brother’s life, really

[Couple] neutaaaa: Haha, do you think I’m going to fall for it again?

[Couple] Ji9star: Wow haha…. fair enough

[Couple] Ji9star: Hahahahaha

[Couple] Ji9star: But you were fooled three times, hyung~ >_<

Shit. Just as he said, Yeo-woon had been fooled by Earth Star three times. He wasn’t stupid, but it seemed like he had no learning ability. No, that wasn’t it. Earth was the one at fault for giving people false hope.

[Couple] Ji9star: No, I just spent 500,000 won earlier and got everything except the adoption rights

[Couple] neutaaaa: I see….

[Couple] Ji9star: I even got five hats and just sold them

[Couple] neutaaaa: Oh really

Yeo-woon gave a soulless reaction, which made Earth Star ramble on even more. It was mostly nonsense and half bragging about himself. Yeo-woon just let it slide, pretending not to hear. Earth Star kept following Yeo-woon wherever he moved, persistently trying to talk to him.

[Couple] Ji9star: Hey….

[Couple] neutaaaa: What?

[Couple] Ji9star: Remember when you gave me that tulip for free before?

[Couple] neutaaaa: Ah right

[Couple] Ji9star: I honestly thought you were a total pushover back then;

[Couple] neutaaaa: Pay me back;

[Couple] Ji9star: Haha okay, if I get a muscle rabbit, I’ll give it to you for free

“…..”

This guy’s actually a good person… Even if he had offered to sell it, Yeo-woon would’ve been grateful. Feeling the previous resentment wash away, a smile formed on his lips.

[Couple] neutaaaa: Oh, but I couldn’t just take it for free~

Still, he refused once out of courtesy. He didn’t want to seem too shameless. This way, Earth Star would probably say “Just take it!” Then he could nod reluctantly as if he couldn’t refuse. It seemed more likely that items would drop for Earth Star than for himself anyway.

‘[Urgent Notice] The Snowflake Snowball Monster will appear on the event map in 5 minutes! Be careful not to freeze in the cold!’

The announcement was for an event map that opened every two hours. Yeo-woon could already imagine the NPC area swarming with people. To get more items, it was crucial to start fighting the event monster from the beginning. Yeo-woon thought he should go join the event raid soon, so he used a warp capsule to transport to Isis. Earth Star didn’t follow.

[Couple] Ji9star: Hey hyung

[Couple] Ji9star: If I get the adoption rights…

He paused for a moment before adding:

[Couple] Ji9star: Can I meet you in person to give it to you?

Meet up?

Yeo-woon froze at the thought. As he stood amidst the crowd, he became lost in thought.

“…”

Meet Earth Star in person? Yeo-woon didn’t know anything about him—what he did, what he looked like, or even what he liked—yet suddenly he was suggesting an offline meeting. They had never even mentioned offline gatherings before, so the timing was strange. He wondered what had gotten into Earth Star to suggest such a thing.

[Couple] neutaaaa: TT Can’t do it

[Couple] Ji9star: Why? lol Because of the guild notice?

[Couple] neutaaaa: That too

[Couple] neutaaaa: I’m not mentally prepared to meet Earth Star yet… T_T

[Couple] Ji9star: Huh? What kind of preparation do you need… LOL. Are we going on a blind date or something? LOL

[Couple] neutaaaa: Even so, I’m still not ready… ^^;

Although Yeo-woon spoke politely, the truth was that he had no intention of meeting an online friend in real life.

‘It’s too much of a hassle.’

It was better to keep hobbies within their boundaries. Meeting face-to-face might ruin things, and Earth Star, who Yeo-woon met through gaming, would eventually become just another person he would lose contact with after quitting the game. Even if Yeo-woon didn’t cut ties first, it would naturally happen over time.

[Couple] Ji9star: Okay

[Couple] neutaaaa: I’ll think about it later lol

[Couple] Ji9star: I said okay

Earth Star didn’t show up in front of Yeo-woon until the Snowflake event map opened. It seemed like he wasn’t going to participate in this event monster raid.