[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return – Chapter 80

I’m tired.

My body feels heavy.

“Ugh.”

Still, I need to get up.

What day is it today?

Even though the sunlight shining outside was the same as any other day, today’s routine was anything but ordinary.

“Get up and come eat.”

“…Can I not eat? I haven’t been having breakfast lately.”

“You have to eat.”

Clank, clank. The sounds of various dishes and the gas stove being turned on, along with the savory smell of food.

If I were going to school or work, I would imagine this is what a standard busy morning would look like.

Sitting at the table, I gulped down a glass of cold water, starting to feel my senses return.

“By 2 PM?”

“Yep.”

“Then I have to arrive close by by 1 PM. It is a short distance, but… it might take a while due to traffic.”

In that sense, I understood my mother’s urgency.

Yeah, if it weren’t for this moment.

“…Isn’t it a bit too early, though?”

8 AM.

For someone like me who’s a night owl, this was right around the time I would have just fallen asleep or be in the middle of a deep slumber.

Isn’t 2 PM a time I could get ready leisurely? Is it really necessary to make such a fuss?

…Of course, I didn’t say that.

I’ve recently learned that contradicting my mother was not a wise move.

“It’s an important day, right? So you should pick out clothes and stop by the salon.”

“…Salon?”

When I blinked at the unfamiliar term, my mother sighed softly.

“Go get your hair done and have your makeup done.”

“…Me? Why?”

“Since you’re going, you should look pretty. It’s an important event, right? How many times do I have to say the same thing?”

“Um, Mom. I think you might be misunderstanding something. The test I’m going for isn’t a model test, you know?”

Sure, I might pull it off to some extent if I went for a model test, but… no, that’s not it.

“Yujin.”

My mother’s gaze sharpened.

Eep.

The puppy inside me tucked its tail between its legs.

“What have you heard so far?”

“…I heard everything.”

“Not that. You said it’s an important event. That means you have to go dressed appropriately.”

It is indeed important, but… was the professional gamer recruitment test such an event? Wouldn’t it be burdensome for the team instead?

“Anyway, you think that way. If you go looking like a mess, it’s an embarrassment to your parents.”

“But I don’t think I looked that bad… and honestly, whatever I wear doesn’t look like that.”

They say humans are creatures of adaptation.

Even though I had used my usual technique to silence my mother, she casually shot another piercing gaze at me.

‘Yip.’

I tucked my tail again.

Thoughts raced through my mind, but unfortunately, I had no voice in this.

“I’ll leave around 10, so be ready by then. Oh, Yuri, help her pick out some clothes.”

At first, I thought maybe I had woken up way too early, but hearing that schedule made me feel like time was actually running short.

“Okay… got it.”

Today seemed to have no other plans since my younger sibling silently complied with our mother’s words.

Just barely rubbing the sleep from her eyes, my sister looked at me with a strange expression and casually blurted out.

“…Oh, right.”

“Huh?”

“That… Legends of League? You’re going to take the professional gamer test for that, right?”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

“Oh… that person was quite persistent the other day. They kept asking what tier you’re at.”

“Who?”

“You know, the one you were coaching next to. They said they got demoted and wanted you to coach them some more, right? Something like that.”

…Now that I think about it, that did happen.

I had completely forgotten.

“You didn’t say anything ridiculous, did you?”

“Do you think I’m an idiot? I told them I didn’t know… and I really don’t.”

Well, it’s natural for them not to know since I haven’t been boasting to my family about my tier.

“You’re so indifferent to me.”

“I’ve never shared it with you… and don’t give me that look. I just got a little hurt. How do you say it? It feels like I’m committing a sin as a human? Anyway, yeah.”

“Really? Sorry.”

“You don’t look sorry at all.”

“That’s fair.”

I chuckled.

After some pointless topics and pointless conversation, I quickly finished breakfast and went straight to get ready to head out.

Washing up didn’t take long, but the real problem was what to wear outside.

If it were just me, I would have just gone dressed as usual, but… sadly, I had my personal stylist, Yuri, by my side right now.

There were various compromises to be made.

“I don’t want to wear a skirt. No way.”

“Why not? Can’t you try it on? It’s an important occasion.”

“…It’s cold.”

That excuse was pretty lame.

“You can just wear stockings. If you don’t want that, wear leggings.”

“I said I don’t want to.”

Skirts of any kind were firmly rejected.

That included dresses, tennis skirts, long skirts that went down to the ankles—everything was dismissed without exception.

“Can’t you just wear it for a bit?”

“I don’t want to. Why do you insist on making me wear something I don’t like when there are plenty of other clothes?”

“Well… it’s because you’re acting so horrified and disgusted by it.”

In short, the reason she wanted me to wear it was that I didn’t want to.

“…Are you garbage?”

“I’ll be garbage if you wear this for me, okay?”

“No.”

In the end, the chosen outfit was a light, flowy dark pink blouse of an unknown fabric and a pair of black dress pants for women.

Clean and tidy.

One could mistake me for going to an interview.

‘…Actually, isn’t it kind of like an interview?’

To put it simply, when I looked at myself in the mirror, it was easy to define.

‘I look exactly like a secretary.’

“Seriously, I look like a secretary.”

As I thought that, my sister said the same thing, causing me to involuntarily flinch.

This is why genetics is scary.

After a long hour-long fashion show, I stepped into the living room.

“Hmm.”

“What’s wrong?”

“…It’s fine. It looks good. Clean. …Let’s head out. Yuri, are you coming too?”

“Nope. I’m tired.”

“Alrighty.”

My mother didn’t seem pleased with something, but she didn’t shove me back into the dress room with my sister again.

I couldn’t be more thankful.

*

The place my mother and I arrived at was a fancy salon in Yeongdeungpo.

If I were alone, I wouldn’t even have gotten close, let alone entered.

It wasn’t the salon my mother usually went to, but she thought it was better to go in that direction or something…

Once we entered the salon, an older woman greeted us.

She seemed to be the person in charge here… like the head stylist.

“Welcome. Oh my.”

With a brief exclamation, the gazes of everyone in the salon began turning towards me one by one.

‘…I can’t get used to this.’

In the past, I would have thrown on a hoodie to cover my face and hair immediately, but sadly, that was impossible with my current attire.

Even if I had something to cover my face, I wouldn’t have used it now.

After all, to stand before the public as a pro, I had to tolerate at least this level of attention.

“Ha….”

“What are you doing? Let’s go in.”

“Oh, right.”

I naturally followed the head stylist’s instructions and sat down in a chair…

It was like a magical flow.

“How would you like it done?”

“I have an important interview.”

“Ah, understood.”

Though my opinion was not taken into account at all, it seemed the stylist understood and started working promptly.

‘It is kind of like an interview…’

I gave up on thinking any further.

Even just sitting there, several people gathered around me.

Makeup artists, hair designers, and even some assistants.

“Your hair is… really nice. Have you bleached it?”

“Oh my, you have such baby skin.”

“You’re so pretty.”

“Ahaha…”

Uncomfortable minutes passed.

Finally, after the makeup and styling were done, I looked in the mirror.

Hmm. Still pretty just like always.

No, actually, a bit more than pretty.

“…Oh my.”

It seemed the designers were quite satisfied with their work, staring blankly at the mirror.

“Um… is it done?”

“Ah, yes, yes!”

I was finally able to leave the salon.

“What do you want to eat?”

“Anything.”

We had a light lunch at a nearby restaurant.

I purposely chose a place with private rooms since I was afraid of choking from the stares around, and it turned out to be a good choice.

After finishing lunch and checking the time, it was already 1 PM.

Since I had originally planned the route nearby, it hadn’t even taken ten minutes to arrive at the address of the Y So Games dormitory.

“Here we are.”

“Hoo…”

My mother urgently said.

“Don’t sign anything carelessly. Make sure to bring it home and discuss it with your mom and dad before signing. Got it?”

“Got it.”

“…What am I going to do with you? Are you really okay going alone?”

“I’m fine.”

For now, since I was just going to take the test, I decided to go by myself.

How should I put this… at my age, going out with my parents… I mean, it used to be that way, but now it feels like something’s off regarding my pride as an adult…

Anyway, that was how I felt.

“Be careful and come back. I’ll wait right here. Call immediately if anything happens. Got it?”

“Yeah.”

I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart and took a step forward.

Seeing the towering skyscrapers took my breath away. Among them was the Y So Games dormitory.

[YYY Building]

Naturally, Y So Games didn’t occupy the entire building, and I had heard they only used about a floor.

Arriving on the first floor, I exchanged light greetings with the guard at the security desk and then sent a message to Coach Park Tae-Hyung.

[I just arrived. I’m on the first floor.]

[Yes, you can come straight up with the elevator. It’s on the 9th floor.]

I don’t know if it was because it was the test day or if Coach Park Tae-Hyung was just waiting for my message, but I got a surprisingly quick response.

After getting on the elevator, I looked at the mirror inside.

It might sound a bit strange, but… if fairies or elves existed in reality, I felt like I could radiate an aura of both mystique and beauty.

‘Oh, right.’

I just realized I hadn’t mentioned the most important part.

-9th floor.

Finally, the elevator door opened, and waiting at the door was a man who looked to be in his late twenties.

It was Coach Park Tae-Hyung.

‘Good thing I searched him up.’

Even though pro-gaming teams aren’t public figures, they are somewhat treated like one, meaning the faces of the players and coaching staff are known.

If I hadn’t recognized Coach Park Tae-Hyung, things might have gotten a bit awkward, so I felt incredibly relieved.

“Hello.”

Coach Park Tae-Hyung briefly looked around at my greeting and realized he was the only one here, pointing to himself cautiously.

“…Me?”

“Yes, you’re Coach Park Tae-Hyung, right?”

“That is correct, but… um, what brings you here…? Ah, are you a family member of one of our players? Please, come in.”

“Actually… I came for, um, the test.”

“……Huh?”

Coach Park Tae-Hyung’s face turned pale with shock.