Became a Swordsman Genius in a Pretty Girl Game

388. Confession (4)

“Um, so, this place is a, a game…?”

At first, I thought it was a joke.

“Pfft! What on earth are you saying!”

Laughter burst out of me. I felt like I should laugh. But Jin Yuha’s expression didn’t change.

“Umm, y-you’re serious…?”

I thought it was just one of Jin Yuha’s occasional jokes, but seeing the sincerity in his eyes, I knew he was really being serious.

“Oh, it’s real then…?”

Mm.

“W-Wait a minute…Um, if you think about it that way, does it make sense? Huh? Does it fit? If you think about it, he knew everything about us…Everything kind of makes sense…?”

Jin Yuha began to tell the story of “Gukbap.”

Even the time he’d disciplined those kids bullying his younger sibling. Tales of him going toe-to-toe with loan sharks, issuing threats from back then. Stories of what happened before he came to the Academy.

Going further, even to why he decided to become a Hunter.

The past, which even he had completely forgotten, spilled from his lips, bit by bit.

His face flushed.

His whole body twisted with embarrassment.

The fact that Jin Yuha knew everything about him…

“And do you know why your nickname is ‘Gukbap’?”

“…Why Gukbap, though?”

The voice that escaped his lips was barely a whisper.

“Lacking natural talent, but a relentless hard worker. An unwavering willpower, no matter how bleak the situation. Seeing that, people said you were as dependable as a bowl of Gukbap, and gave you that nickname.”

“……!”

He’d always thought it was just a nickname his friends gave him as a joke… That it had such meaning.

Jin Yuha continued with a lengthy discourse on the image ‘Gukbap’ held for gamers, the praise he received, and how beloved he was.

“S-Stop it! Okay, I get it!”

“And, you even saved me.”

“…Huh? Me?”

“Yeah, actually, I started playing that Velvet Sura game because of you, Gukbap.”

Jin Yuha’s gaze swept over the basement room. It was a moment where his past overlapped with his present.

“This basement one-room right here. It’s not that different from where I lived in my past life. If anything, this place is bigger and cleaner.”

“Really?”

“Well, being born as an orphan with no idea who your parents are in a world without mana or monsters, this was pretty typical. Born like that, I didn’t know what to live for, or how to live.”

Lee Yuri fell silent.

“And then I met you.”

Jin Yuha stared intently at him.

“Poverty, bullying from those around you, mountains of debt piled up at home. Heavy responsibilities placed on your shoulders.”

“……”

“You in the screen seemed like you weren’t all that different from me… But you never gave up, not even once.”

Hm—

Jin Yuha paused, scratching his cheek.

“So, I wanted to watch you more, help you, and I became concerned about you.”

Listening to the story, Lee Yuri found memories of Jin Yuha resurfacing.

Crashing into the dungeon as a fill-in dealer.

How Jin Yuha knew she was secretly hiding and munching on pre-packaged rice, then coming to find her.

And then, without a word, taking her rice and sharing some of his own.

The way he’d appear when she was in danger, slicing through goblins.

Then offering his hand first, asking her to join his party.

Whenever she wavered or felt uneasy, Jin Yuha always reached out to her.

The whole sequence fit together perfectly in her mind.

“So, it was you.”

A tremor.

Lee Yuri felt a storm of emotions welling up inside.

For some reason, Jin Yuha’s face seemed anxious.

‘Ah, he’s worried about what I’ll think.’

In the dim space of the basement room, moonlight began to seep in. Streaming through the window, it cast our long shadows.

Suddenly, she felt an overwhelming urge to embrace Jin Yuha.

Lee Yuri reached out, cupping the face of Jin Yuha who sat before her.

She squeezed her eyes shut and moved her face closer.

A peck.

Truly devoid of any mood, tasting faintly of beef stew, just a first kiss in a shabby basement room.

But somehow, Lee Yuri chuckled, it felt right, something that suited us.

Seeing the shocked expression on Jin Yuha’s wide-eyed face, she felt a surge of satisfaction.

Lee Yuri gave a playful smile and put a finger to her lips.

“…It’s a secret from the others, okay?”

*

Perhaps embarrassed by her sudden kiss, Lee Yuri ran away then and there.

“Ha.”

Left alone in the basement room, I let out a dry laugh.

Honestly, if I asked Ichika to share her memories, I could have gotten away with it easily.

But I didn’t want to.

I wanted to explain it in my own words, as honestly and plainly as possible.

And, thankfully, Lee Yuri accepted my confession.

[ Lee Yuri – 5% ]

The ring of affection and obsession shone, and the percentage of Gukbap increased.

“Heh… it goes up even without kissing, huh….”

I touched my lips and let out a small chuckle.

“Not bad.”

* * *

Emboldened by the incident with Lee Yuri, I met with each party member and confided in them.

Each of their reactions was unique.

Surprisingly, Senior Gaeul accepted it readily.

We packed a lunch box and went on a picnic to a secluded park where I poured out my heart.

“…So, in the game, I was a super kind and accepting senior…? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Yeah.”

“Hehe, doesn’t sound too different from now! Always a senior you can rely on! That was me, wasn’t it!”

Hmm.

It was a little disconcerting hearing those words from the person who deviated the most from their in-game persona.

“Junior, if you ever have worries or hard times, tell me! This older sister will take it all in stride.”

[ Im Gaeul – 5% ]

*

Kang Dohee, whom I went up the mountain with,

Silently listened to my story from beginning to end at the mountain’s peak, and after a long silence, she finally uttered a word.

“…What kind of meaning did I have to you, Nuroongie, back then.”

“Someone I absolutely had to obtain.”

“Absolutely…?”

“Yeah, don’t you remember? I was so desperate for you when I first formed the party. Begging you to join our party. Because a Utopia without you couldn’t be a Utopia.”

That was so.

Kang Dohee was, quite simply, a must-have character in Velvetseura, akin to breathing rights, human rights, and an entrenched power.

“…Is that so. Then I must live up to those expectations.”

“You’ve always exceeded my expectations, Kang Dohee.”

Kang Dohee nodded with a satisfied look.

[ Kang Do-hee – 5% ]

*

Sophia, who’d come along for the volunteer work, tilted her head, peppering me with questions.

Though, somehow, Sophia seemed more curious about my old world than the game world itself.

“Ah… you worked at a factory. So, there were no monsters there? No Hunters? And the idea of men and women is opposite?”

“Yeah.”

“J-just a moment! Then, the things you said in that trance…!”

“Yeah, it was all a misunderstanding.”

I told Sophia the things I’d blurted out back then while in that trance.

Sophia’s jaw dropped, and she wore a flustered expression.

“So, you’ve come to dislike me now?”

“…There’s no way I could dislike you, Jin Yu-ha.”

[ Sophia – 5% ]

*

My Master listened to my story and simply nodded, saying, ‘I see.’

I couldn’t help but ask, feeling that they’d accepted it far too readily.

“…Uh, um. Is that all?”

“Hmm, how else should I react?”

“Don’t you think it’s strange? That this world was a game?”

“Disciple. You are not one to lie to me. Thus, I merely accept it.”

“…”

“However… I feel refreshed. So, the secret you’d been keeping hidden was this.”

Stroke, stroke.

My Master stroked my head, a faint smile gracing their lips.

“To hold such a secret alone, you must have suffered. Disciple.”

That single phrase left me speechless.

It was just the kind of reaction I’d expect from my Master.

Always, as it was.

*

The last person remaining was Alice.

Alice, unlike the others in the party, was visibly shaken.

“…Th-the Instructor-nim came to this world…because of…me?”

For the first time, the cool mask Alice wore cracked. Her silver hair shifted, and her blue eyes fixed on me.

“Truthfully… the moment I saw the illustration you debuted in, I made such a fuss. Silver hair, blue eyes, and wielding a sword… it was right up my alley.”

Alice’s face flushed. Her usual aloofness crumbled, her ears turning a deep crimson.

“So, elated, I shouted, ‘I’d give my soul for her!’… and I truly ended up in this world. Without knowing what kind of personality you had, or what your story was…”

“…Because of me.”

“No, it’s not *only* because of you, but… I don’t have any complaints about the current situation, to begin with.”

Alice still looked anxious, biting her lip.

“If I hadn’t come here, I wouldn’t have met you, or any of our party members. I would’ve had to simply watch from beyond the screen. I mean it.”

Alice fell silent for a moment, then offered a small smile.

“No… Thank you for being so honest. And…”

Alice gently touched her silver hair.

“To think that I’m the Instructor-nim’s ideal type… I’m pleased.”

[Alice – 5%]

And so, I finished confessing to all the party members.