Former Hero Streamer – Chapter 163

“Ugh! Hic!”

Ajin, struggling to keep her balance, resolved never to embark on such an adventure again.

Ah, I should have bought some workout equipment beforehand. I foolishly got ahead of myself, thinking I could whip my body into shape before the stuff I ordered even arrived, and it backfired terribly.

Sure, I was exhausted, but there was a bigger issue at hand.

“Ugh!”

As the number of gazes around me increased, this damn body caught on way too sensitively.

Even with glances that lacked any real emotion, just brushing by me for a second.

‘I thought I was getting better.’

Yet here I was, still at this point. It looked like I had a long way to go.

Thanks to the curse that brainwashed me into being a total outcast, my body hadn’t changed at all.

If I had to find a silver lining, it was that I wasn’t experiencing any nausea or motion sickness.

If my sister hadn’t been there, I wouldn’t have had the courage to push through such a crowd, especially in this condition.

‘But at least I’ve improved a little.’

I was drenched in sweat and my face was pale, but through the pain, a twisted smile blossomed wider.

I realized that workouts for dieting should probably happen indoors with equipment.

Yeah. It’s only a year. I’ll show them. I’ll come back as a proper person, a hero.

Until then, I just need to take it easy.

“Hee, hee!”

As the sound of laughter slipped from my lips, making my eardrums feel good, I turned the corner and spotted an unexpected figure in front of Friede’s Hero House.

“Huh? Ba… Baekdae?”

“What’s up, Ajin?”

Just then, Park Da-young appeared from the other side.

“Wha, what? Why are you here?”

“Is it wrong for me to be here? I came to see my sister.”

“Y-you could just hang out in the MS Room instead….”

“Wow. You actually went back to normal after leaving home. Hilarious. And if you want to see your sister, you should see her in person, not through a screen.”

“Ugh!”

Ajin stumbled backward at Da-young’s sharp remark.

If this were inside the Hero House, then I could handle it.

But now, bursting in would just mean admitting I had already lost.

Ajin stamped her feet, stubbornly refusing to give in.

‘What the hell…’

If I just stood here, I could be caught in some kind of arrangement.

At that moment, there was a rustling from the bag, and then Peppa’s voice echoed softly.

“Da-young, when do we arrive? I really need to go!”

It was a ridiculous line, but the timing couldn’t have been better. Stifling a chuckle, Da-young replied while hitting the bag.

“Hold on. We’ll be at your sister’s house soon.”

“Quick! Da-young’s mom suddenly came, and I literally can’t hold it anymore! If this gets out of hand, I’m turning the bag into a toilet!”

“…….”

Da-young saw no point in responding to that and went straight for the Hero House’s front door.

Before opening it, she called over her shoulder to Ajin, still hesitating at the entrance.

“Are you coming in or not?”

“I-I’ll go!”

At Ajin’s breathless reply, Da-young slightly furrowed her brows.

Whether it was the one in the bag or the one in front of her…

Whenever she had to deal with both of them at the same time, an inevitable headache crashed down upon her, dulling her expression to a tired earth-tone.

Like a traveler in the desert longing for an oasis, she scratched her throat in discomfort without realizing it.

Ah, I need some healing.

So let’s hurry up…

‘I need to see my sister.’

Her sister was healing and a drug, all rolled into one.

She was already addicted and couldn’t resist any longer.

‘Unfortunately?’

No, thankfully.

* * *

“Hey, sis. I was supposed to have tutoring with Ji-hye.”

With a shy little wave, Yoori’s words made me shake my head side to side.

“Nope. Don’t worry. I won’t hold you for too long.”

Since I was the vocalist and Ji-hye played the guitar, we didn’t need to spend an eternity getting in sync. The key was the fusion of the hymns and harmonics, not breathing and quality.

‘Just pick a decent song and sing it.’

Indeed, having a lot of money was a huge perk. I could enjoy content without strict limitations or much effort. If the funds had been tight, I couldn’t have dreamed of living this reckless streamer lifestyle.

Anyway, our cute little Joony is the type who thinks being in a band means wrestling with instruments all day.

I gently grabbed her chubby cheeks and stretched.

“Ugh….”

Yoori’s cheeky little chub drooped like melted marshmallow. If there hadn’t been anyone around, I would have wanted to take a bite out of it.

“Look at you, slyly demanding Ji-hye’s share. How adorable, our maknae.”

“That’s not it….”

As soon as I let go, her plump face returned to its rightful spot. She puffed her cheeks in a cute protest and smiled back at me.

“Yoori, how about if we do a study broadcast after the tutoring? That could be fun.”

“Do you want to study together, sister? It would be great to have campus life together.”

“Yeah? Hmm, I never really thought about studying, but… hmm, yeah. Heroes don’t study, so I’ll pass.”

“Ha! Rejected, Yoori. Anyway, Se-hee would be much happier just rolling around the house and broadcasting.”

“…….”

As I patted her head during the silent protest, I heard the doorbell ringing from a distance.

“This doorbell is ringing a lot today.”

Ji-hye giggled and went to answer it, and Da-young appeared.

At that moment, a commotion erupted from the bag Da-young was carrying, and a green frog popped out.

“Finally arrived! I really need to go to the bathroom!”

“…….”

Watching Peppa dart for the bathroom, Ji-hye chuckled.

“That one really is something, isn’t she?”

Well, that’s just how she usually is. Even if you fix her to a soul level, it’s clear her nature is just like that.

Suddenly, I felt a warm hand gently grabbing mine.

“Sister, um….”

With her cheeks rosy, Da-young wore a clearly embarrassed expression. What’s up with her?

“Can we talk for a moment…?”

“Sure? Then should we head upstairs for a bit? I’ll go first.”

It seemed like she needed to discuss something. Seeing the kid who always looked after everyone needing my advice was a bit touching.

Opening up your heart like that is the greatest proof of trust, right?

At that moment, Ji-hye mischievously whispered to Da-young.

“Confession?”

“That’s not it?! This isn’t your business! Hmph!”

“Yep, I love you, sweet love.”

Seeing Ji-hye nodding as if the matter was settled, Da-young hastily picked up her pace.

“Um, well… saying this out of the blue is a bit shameless but…”

This behavior was new for Da-young, causing me to tilt my head in confusion. Did she mess up to the point where she was acting all serious with me?

Feeling increasingly peculiar, I pressed her for an answer.

“What is it?”

“Is it possible… for me to move in at your house now?”

Huh?

Her trembling eyes revealed a mix of anxiety, shame, and nervousness.

Honestly, I was taken aback. She was acting like a nervous puppy over something so trivial.

Excitedly, I took both her hands in mine and shook them. That makes it four rooms on the fifth floor filled!

“I’d welcome you anytime. When do you want to come?”

“Huh… maybe tomorrow?”

Huh? That seemed a bit quick, didn’t it, Da-young?

“What about taking care of your mom? Didn’t you say you had to manage the house?”

“Actually… Mom got out of the hospital healthily.”

“That’s great! Congratulations.”

I heard she struggled a lot because her daughter went missing due to this world’s summoning. I heard Da-young returned after that and was hospitalized.

Because of that, she had to restart broadcasting with a heavy heart. Thankfully, everything worked out, and I felt relieved too.

“But….”

Then, she dropped a big complaint that was out of character for her.

“I got smacked on the back for bringing up moving in with you!”

“Huh?”

“Mom said not to come in until the contract is signed. I’m basically half-kicked out right now.”

Yeah, I can see how she wouldn’t be able to resist living in a luxurious penthouse.

I couldn’t help but burst into laughter at Da-young’s adorable ‘good daughter’ predicament.

* * *

After finishing our chat, I wormed my way into the virtual reality device.

I thought I’d enjoy the preseason a bit more.

Since I still had time until dinner, I started with a light heart, thinking about having some fun until then.

Having wrapped up Da-young’s business smoothly made for an even brighter start, and I couldn’t help but smile.

The remaining rooms were a non-issue, and thankfully, Da-young had secured the remaining fifth-floor room before anyone else.

Even if there were other heroes, I hoped Da-young would be as close as possible to my own floor.

She was the very first bond I’d made.

“Alright, let’s go.”

Connecting to the MS Room, I accessed the Soul Warfare lobby.

What lay before me was…

“Ugh! What the hell, how do you expect me to deal with these hackers?!”

“The preseason isn’t an actual season! Damn it!”

“The helpers have raised the scores so much we’re stuck in heaven! Shit!!”

“Just now, I got wrecked by a lotus and a warden!”

“This game is over!”

In front of me, as I excitedly logged into Soul Warfare, was a fierce scene that was hotter than flames, burning brilliantly.

The burning wasn’t heated popularity.

It was the smoldering disaster of a game spiraling down… watching their house crumble was like seeing my own straw hut go up in flames.

And then…

“Oh, you’re here, sister?”

With dazed eyes, Eun-ha squatted in the lobby and greeted me.

“Is there some kind of festival today?”

“Nope.”

Shaking her head, Eun-ha replied with a mournful smile.

“It’s not a festival; it’s a funeral.”

What’s going on? What happened?