Chapter 45
Seyoung Resort.
Even someone like me, who has nothing to do with a place like this, had heard of it.
Someone on the gallery posted photos from a visit here, and it looked really nice.
I got a VIP ticket there.
Then let's think about who to bring along.
But even if I think about it, how many people do I even have to call?
So I picked up the phone right away.
-Hello~!
The first person I contacted was Hong Siyeon.
It was a video call, but something about the scenery around her was different.
What?
America?
-What is it?
"Uh... well, the thing is..."
I hesitantly told her about the resort.
The future changes.
She dropped everything and came straight back to Korea.
And after hanging out at the resort without thinking about what came next, I saw her following her grandmother and working like a dog for about two months, unable to do anything else.
-I'll go!
"Can you handle the fallout if you come now?
-Uh... hmm. A few days of overtime should do it.
"Let's go together next time."
-Ugh... it really sounds fine though...
"Don't trust tomorrow's me too much."
Then she collapses.
The disappointed Hong Siyeon eventually nodded.
-Then shall we go together next month?
"Well, it seems the resort voucher itself can be extended...
But then I wouldn't be able to go to the collaboration event.
-Then let's go together next month!!
"Yeah. I'll go first and think of it as a preliminary visit."
The VIP ticket is expensive, but not enough to be a burden for me or Hong Siyeon.
Then there’s no need to cling to the free ticket.
If I can go, I go. If not, I don't.
Anyway, Hong Siyeon said she couldn't go, so let me ask Han Yuna, our newbie... though 'newbie' is a stretch now that she's already got a spot in raid parties.
"What are you doing?"
I made a video call.
As expected, she picked up right away.
From the office scenery I could see, it seemed like she was at the company.
-I'm working.
"Ah, you're working hard. The thing is..."
Just as I was about to get to the point,
I saw her past.
It's peak season these days, so she works on a minute-by-minute schedule.
And a three-night, four-day vacation right in the middle of the busy season?
I can already see the future where she comes back and suffers like hell.
"No, not at all."
-...Just say it.
"Haha. Well, the thing is."
Smiling, I stated my purpose.
As expected, Han Yuna said she'd go without even hearing me out.
She's just like Hong Siyeon.
"Don't trust tomorrow's me too much."
-....I'm just trusting the me from the day after tomorrow.
To joke with such a serious expression.
Anyway, there was no need to force her to come with me.
-How about coming to our hotel? I can just head down there occasionally while working.
"They don't do Dunsa events there, though."
-I was thinking of trying to make that happen anyway.
"Then I'll definitely go."
-We'll take good care of you.
So Han Yuna can't go either, huh?
Then next is Mr. Cheolhon.
"But why would a resort collaborate on a game event like that?"
"A game company makes wine too, so what's stopping them from collaborating with a resort?"
"That’s true too."
"And from what I hear, Dunsa’s parent company is talking about acquiring that resort or something."
"Aha. Anyway, of course I can go with you."
I knew I could count on you!!
Mr. Cheolhon didn't seem to have any problems... huh?
"What's wrong?"
"Hey. Mr. Cheolhon. Could you turn this over for me?"
"Huh?"
He looked puzzled, but flipped the card over.
I said with a smile.
"You’ll get a girlfriend at the resort."
"...Really?"
"Yes."
I saw the future.
The future where he gets a girlfriend on the resort trip.
"Who is it? Is she pretty?"
"Well, aesthetic standards vary from person to person..."
"Objectively...!! Compared to our boss...?!"
"No, if you compare her to President Hong, even bringing in a celebrity would be a tough act..."
This man has no shame.
But anyway, I could see the two of them falling for each other at first sight and being all sweet on each other, so it shouldn't be a problem.
"Anyway, look forward to it."
.
.
.
And so, the day we went to the resort arrived.
Although I had a driver's license, Mr. Cheolhon decided to drive instead of a novice like me.
"Don't you drive sports cars?"
"They're really uncomfortable."
"That's true. Then get in my car."
The car Mr. Cheolhon drove was a Korean-made midsize sedan.
It felt very stable.
"Let's get going."
Mr. Cheolhon, who was also a top-notch driver, started driving.
There didn’t seem to be any special events on the way, so let’s take a nap.
I played games all night yesterday, and my eyelids weigh a ton.
"Get some sleep."
"That's the plan. If you want something while we're on the road, just buy it yourself."
I put the card down and closed my eyes for a moment.
And then.
"We've arrived."
..."What? It feels like I just closed my eyes and opened them again."
We had arrived at the resort.
"You must have been really tired. You were even snoring."
Mr. Cheolhon looked very pleased with himself.
He seemed to take pride in having gotten me to sleep so soundly in his car.
"Uh, um. Sorry for making you drive alone."
"It's part of my job too. But... this resort is really nice."
"Right?"
Just like I saw on the gallery, the resort was really nice.
There's a water park here, a golf course, a sauna, and even hot springs.
But that wasn’t the important part.
"Sir. We're going straight to the event hall, right?"
"Of course...! Let's check in and go right away."
Mr. Cheolhon was a Dunsa newbie I’d pulled in last time too, so I should take him along.
With him, I checked in, dropped off our luggage, and headed straight to the resort's event hall.
"Ooh...!!"
This wasn't just a token event set up to make the place look good.
In the fairly large event hall, there were experience booths, cosplayers, and even game company staff.
"Welcome!"
"Come play before you leave~!"
"Our invited singer is here too!!"
An invited singer? Who came... Huh!
When I went inside, there was Ncia in cosplay as Dunsa's new class, the female Infighter.
Her nickname was 'Mereuljjujju-palgosipda'.
She looked very excited.
Her face was full of smiles as she struck one pose after another and took photos with people.
"Boss. Look over there."
"Looks like a new raid boss."
As a Dunsa player, my blood was boiling.
Let's just let her enjoy herself over there.
We'll have our own fun.
.
.
.
It was a satisfying event.
They're doing it again tomorrow, so I'll go tomorrow too.
I got a ton of coupons too, so I should equip my characters with the new avatar set.
"Sir. What should we do for dinner?"
"There's a restaurant downstairs, so let's go there."
The restaurant we found.
It was quite upscale.
The coupons I got from Gong Yunseok also included a restaurant voucher, so we could order whatever we wanted.
"What do you want to eat?"
"A man's gotta have meat."
"Right?"
We ordered two servings of steak, plus some sides.
I could see people everywhere happily digging into meat.
Among them, I fixed my gaze on the table next to us.
"Sir? What's wrong? Is there something over there?"
"Mr. Cheolhon. You know the Heimlich maneuver, right?"
"Huh? Yes."
"Be ready."
The moment I finished speaking,
"Urk?! Ghk...!!"
The elderly man sitting at the table next to ours clutched his throat.
He was gagging as if he couldn't breathe.
The people at the same table were flustered and at a loss.
"Move out."
"Yes!!"
Mr. Cheolhon sprang up and grabbed the old man.
After a few attempts at the Heimlich maneuver, the meat stuck in his throat came out.
"Cough! Cough! Haaah...! Hah...!!"
As the old man finally caught his breath and panted, people gathered around.
After I roughly explained what happened to those who were curious, Mr. Cheolhon looked at me.
"My goodness. How did you know without even flipping the card?"
"Seeing how you were eating made me a little uneasy."
In truth, I'd seen the future.
Mr. Cheolhon just thought I was amazing.
"T-thank you! Thank you so much!"
The woman kept bowing her head in thanks.
Mr. Cheolhon, who had been about to answer her casually, froze.
Yeah.
This was the scene.
The future I'd seen for Mr. Cheolhon.
The two of them were staring blankly at each other.
This must be what falling in love at first sight looks like.
Must be nice.
Well, anyway, the situation was roughly settled.
Once the old man who seemed to be her father calmed down, he took quite a liking to Mr. Cheolhon.
"Sir. What should I do...?"
"What do you mean, what should I do?"
"No, this is my first time feeling like this... so this was it?"
"Yes."
What are you asking me for?
Anyway, since he even got her phone number, Mr. Cheolhon seemed pretty happy.
"She says she wants to buy me a drink at the bar tonight... I don't know what to do..."
"What do you mean what should you do? Go have a drink."
"What about you, sir?"
"I'll be going to the bar too. I'll be drinking nearby, so don't worry."
I checked my future in the mirror, and there was nothing special.
Only after I kept telling him not to worry because I could slip away if needed did Mr. Cheolhon finally set up the meeting.
"If anything happens, call me right away."
After repeatedly insisting on it, Mr. Cheolhon left.
All right. Then I'll go to the bar too.
Since it was a bar in a good resort, the atmosphere was really nice.
I was sitting at a decent seat, sipping a cocktail I'd ordered, when it happened.
"Huh?!"
"....."
Black horn-rimmed glasses.
A hood pulled over her head.
It was a familiar face.
Ncia.
Seo Yurim.
Mereuljjujju-palgosipda.
The famous celebrity who had earlier been taking photos with people in female Crusader cosplay.
She and another woman who seemed to be her colleague came into the bar and spotted me.
"Huh? Isn't that the person who was with the guy who saved someone at the restaurant earlier?"
Oh. She must have seen me earlier.
The woman next to Seo Yurim looked intrigued.
But Seo Yurim was different.
It was obvious what she was thinking.
"Hello."
"Uh... yes. Ah, hello."
She was probably wondering whether I knew she was the one with the nickname 'Mereuljjujju-palgosipda'.
"If you don't mind, would you like to have a drink together?"
"Sure. Why not."
Seo Yurim sat down next to me.
Seeing that, her colleague grinned mischievously as if things had gotten interesting and headed off to another part of the bar.
Looks like she’s terribly mistaken about something.
"Kang Noa... right?"
"Yes. You recognized me. Then you must be Seo Yurim."
"...You recognized me?"
"You’re so famous."
She fiddled with her glass with an awkward expression.
Then she asked cautiously.
"Noa. By any chance..."
Before she could finish her sentence,
-Kyaaah!!
A scream came from outside.
A horrifying scream.
What happened?
We immediately went outside.
And there it was.
A drunk woman, apparently after falling and hitting something, was bleeding as she sat on the floor, wearing a goofy grin.
"......"
Mr. Cheolhon had also run out after hearing the scream outside.
As his gaze shifted back and forth between her and me, I felt an inexplicable unease, and it almost seemed like I could hear the Conan BGM.
Why do incidents and accidents keep happening wherever I go?
Is it just my imagination?
"Sir. That woman..."
"Yes? No, she has nothing to do with me."
"Ah. I see. I thought you were about to talk to her...
"Of course I am going to talk to her."
For one thing,
if I leave that woman like this, in four days she'll swallow a bunch of sleeping pills and kill herself.
Even looking at her past, she's not a bad person, and reaching out to her isn't wrong, is it?