Chapter 13

“Hyah!”

With a battle cry, I dodged the venomous fangs of the Field Boss Queen Spider in front of me and unleashed the Sword Master skill [Pentagon], which I learned after reaching level 45.

[Pentagon], which synergizes with [Chain Attack], delivers five consecutive strikes, and all five strikes are counted as [Chain Attack] hits.

This means I can stack five attack speed buffs in one go.

The instant five-hit combo [Pentagon] glowed purple as it shredded the spider’s abdomen. Crimson blood splattered everywhere.

“Kishaaaaaak—!!!”

The Queen Spider roared in fury, and the four legs on her back glowed red.

This was the Queen Spider’s Tank Burst attack.

Tank Burst, or “Tank Burst” for short, is a devastating attack aimed at the aggro target.

Normally, the tank would use defensive skills while being healed by the healer to block this attack. But right now, it’s just me, the DPS, and Pinkubelly, the healer.

I had to block this attack. Usually, if a DPS takes this hit, they die, but…

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

With my glowing blue Judgment Sword, I perfectly parried all six of the boss’s consecutive attacks.

“That’s it!”

My health was hanging by a thread, but I finally survived the Queen Spider’s Tank Burst. Honestly, I had died to this attack five times before.

After discussing skill distribution with Pinkubelly and getting used to the Queen Spider’s Tank Burst over five attempts, I finally succeeded on the sixth try.

Once the Tank Burst was over, the Queen Spider was a piece of cake.

The Corrupted Judge was tough because each of his attacks was powerful, and even parrying them left me struggling with knockback and recovery time. But the Queen Spider’s fast and consecutive attacks were easier to handle as long as I parried successfully.

The real challenge was the Tank Burst, and once I got past that, the Queen Spider was as good as cleared.

Not long after, the Queen Spider exploded in a bright light.

Phew, I cleared this area’s Field Boss without a hitch.

This time, I realized the synergy between [Chain Attack], [Pentagon], and the Judgment Sword’s 3% attack and defense boost on normal attacks was incredible.

I shook my head as I stood where the Queen Spider had died.

“Nothing dropped…”

Field Bosses have an extremely low drop rate. But after experiencing a drop from the Corrupted Judge, I couldn’t help but get my hopes up.

“Good job, Arang.”

“Yay!”

I gave Pinkubelly a thumbs-up as she approached.

“You’re such an uncle.”

“Gasp…”

Thud.

I was shocked by Pinkubelly’s sudden comment.

Sure, I was in my late 20s before I entered Arang’s body, but I didn’t think I was old enough to be called an uncle.

But now, out of nowhere, I’m being called an uncle…

I’m a 15-year-old girl now! Well, I don’t have limbs, but still!

“So, what’s trendy these days…?”

Even after racking my brain, Arang had been in the hospital since she was 12, so she had no idea about current trends.

Plus, when she wasn’t on her deathbed, she couldn’t even use her phone and just lay there watching TV, so she never saw stuff like SNS or YouTube.

“Hmm… these days, making a ‘V’ with your hand and pulling it down is trendy.”

“A ‘V’ pulled down? What’s that?”

“It’s called ‘gyaru peace.’ It was popular a long time ago, but it’s back in style now.”

“Ohh… Why not just do a regular ‘V’? Why pull it down?”

“Because it’s cute?”

“Oho…”

==

Ihayan couldn’t help but keep taking screenshots of Arang, who was diligently practicing the “gyaru peace” she had just taught her.

After taking the screenshots, Ihayan became certain of something.

Arang was completely disconnected from society.

At 15, most kids are sensitive to trends. They learn all sorts of things through SNS and YouTube to fit in with their friends, but Arang had none of that.

From the time she started using the access device to the latest games, dramas, and movies, she knew nothing.

It was like she wasn’t even living in this world.

Arang had said she didn’t attend middle school. Normally, if you don’t attend compulsory middle school, you’d have to be homeschooled.

But in the week since I met her, she’d always logged into Leore and spent 16 hours playing with me.

Shouldn’t her parents be stopping her by now?

But then I realized something.

Arang had to stay in the virtual world.

The [MDB Medical DeathBed], or MDB for short, is the only access device in the world with no usage limits.

Arang was definitely using an MDB.

There are only five in the world, and Korea has just one, located at Seoul Asan Hospital, the most famous hospital in Korea.

Arang must be in a very serious condition if she’s using an MDB.

After deducing all this, Ihayan wondered how she should treat Arang.

Arang was in a situation so dire that she had to use an MDB, which is typically used in end-of-life care.

But was there anything she could do to help? Could she even help Arang in the first place?

She had only known Arang for a week.

Sure, in that week, they’d spent nearly 16 hours a day together, playing games, clearing quests, and raiding Field Bosses, just like when I first started Leore.

In just a week, we’d become close, and for someone like me who had lived without friends, Arang had become more precious than anyone else.

And she was incredibly cute.

Anyway, seeing Arang smiling brightly and enjoying the game while going through such hardships broke my heart.

I wondered how I could meet her and help her in any way.

I thought about visiting Seoul Asan Hospital, but that felt too intrusive. Arang might not want that.

After all, no one wants to show others their suffering—

“Oh, right. Pinkubelly, want to have an offline meetup?”

“…Huh?”

“We just beat the Queen Spider and hit max level. Plus, we’ve gotten really close! Is it too much?”

“Can we even have an offline meetup…?”

“Of course! There’s no reason not to.”

I was taken aback by how casually Arang suggested an offline meetup.

“Wait, really?”

“Yeah. Let’s go eat something delicious. Oh, but my older sister will be there. Is that okay?”

“Your sister?”

“Yeah. I need her there.”

“Uh, sure. That’s fine. But are you really okay with an offline meetup?”

“Of course! Oh, right! I had something else to tell you. I’ll pick the place! Just bring yourself! I’ll call my sister and head out first!”

The conversation moved like a whirlwind, and then Arang suddenly logged out and disappeared.

‘What’s going on…? Was I just overthinking things?’

==

Offline meetups.

When you play games, you sometimes have offline meetups.

Just because I like games doesn’t mean I dislike meeting people. I just hate pointless small talk.

Meeting people who share the same hobby and talking about games is something I really enjoy.

So I thought about suggesting an offline meetup to Pinkubelly, who I’d gotten close to after a week of playing Leore together.

Back in the day, we’d all hang out together, guys and girls, chatting and having fun, but that’s not possible anymore.

The reason is simple.

Anna, my older sister, vehemently opposed it.

When I first brought up the idea of an offline meetup with Anna, she was worried but also happy.

She was glad that I, who had always been alone in this hospital room without friends, had finally made one.

The problem was that Anna didn’t know much about games, Pinkubelly, or what kind of person she was, so she was worried.

So she set one condition: she had to come along.

And while she allowed me to meet girls, meeting guys was absolutely out of the question.

At first, I wondered why, but then I looked at myself and nodded.

I’m not a guy anymore.

I’m just a delicate 15-year-old girl without limbs. Well, in the virtual world, I’m a named player in Leore, and that’s what matters.

When I form a guild later, it’ll be full of fun people. I’m looking forward to it.

==

Three days later.

Ihayan, under the nickname Pinkubelly, swallowed hard as she stood in front of Seoul Asan Hospital, nervous.

When Arang had so casually suggested an offline meetup, Ihayan wondered if all her previous worries had been for nothing.

But when she received the email saying the meetup would be at Seoul Asan Hospital, she realized her suspicions were true.

Offline meetup.

Ihayan used to like offline meetups, but after a bad incident, she started disliking them.

But she really wanted to meet Arang. The ten days she’d spent with Arang had been truly fun and happy.

Even hunting small monsters was enjoyable, and raiding Field Bosses together was thrilling and filled with tension and a sense of accomplishment.

To meet Arang, Ihayan entered Seoul Asan Hospital.