Chapter 25

The next morning, I headed to Kim In-ho’s house.

Kim In-ho’s house was an apartment, and of course, it was under his parents’ name. At 21 years old, he was still too young to be independent.

Ding-dong—. I pressed the doorbell, and hurried footsteps could be heard from inside. The door opened, and Kim In-ho, dressed neatly, appeared.

“Welcome!”

“Did I come too early?”

“No! You came at just the right time. Come in.”

I arrived an hour early due to my habit of being ahead of schedule, but Kim In-ho didn’t seem to mind.

As I stepped inside, a pleasant scent filled the air. A woody smell. Was it air freshener? It automatically lifted my mood.

I followed Kim In-ho to his room but stopped in my tracks.

“Oh my.”

A middle-aged woman, who had been sitting on the sofa, covered her mouth with her hand and stood up as our eyes met.

It’s polite to greet adults when visiting a friend’s house. I bowed my head slightly and said,

“Hello.”

Kim In-ho’s mother also greeted me in return.

“I wondered who was coming today. Such a pretty friend has arrived. What’s your name?”

“Han Yoorim.”

“Mom, please.”

I tried to engage in conversation, but Kim In-ho quickly intervened, looking flustered.

“Yoorim noona. You’re busy, right? Let’s hurry and start the test.”

“I’m not that busy. If I were, why would I come to play a visual novel that takes dozens of hours?”

“See? It’s fine. How did you two meet?”

“We met at a part-time job. In-ho explained things well to me.”

At my words, Kim In-ho’s mother smiled warmly.

“My son seems to do well outside, huh?”

“He’s very diligent. He saves money well too.”

“In-ho’s face might be a bit lacking, but he’s definitely first husband material.”

I found myself bonding with Kim In-ho’s mother.

From stories about catching bugs in elementary school to breaking his leg in middle school, we shared a lot of conversations in a short time.

We were just about to look at Kim In-ho’s old photo albums when—

“Noona.”

“Yes?”

“We have to finish the test today, so can we start with the game first? We can do the rest later.”

“Alright.”

It was a shame, but I decided to look at the albums later.

“Go ahead and wait in my room. I need to take care of something real quick.”

I followed Kim In-ho’s request and went into his room first.

As I closed the door, I could hear faint voices outside.

“Mom, please. She’s just a friend.”

“Sweetie, women don’t visit houses of people they don’t like.”

“That’s not it… It’s awkward, so stop. Don’t even bother cutting fruit.”

“That’s basic courtesy for guests. I can’t skip it.”

“…I’ll do it. Just rest, Mom.”

As I sat in front of the computer, In-ho soon entered the room.

I turned on the computer and said,

“I can’t eat peaches. Just so you know.”

“…Let’s just play the game, noona.”

Understood.

“Noona, what are you doing?”

“Huh?”

“Why are you sitting in front of the computer?”

Good question.

Habits are scary. Even now, my mind still associates gaming with computers.

“Can visual novels work in VR?”

“Actually, visual novels have grown the most in size thanks to VR devices.”

“True. Immersion is a big advantage for visual novels.”

Visual novels are all about immersion.

You have to think of yourself as the protagonist and treat the heroine like a real lover.

Usually, illustrations and stories are used as tools for this, but VR adds a layer of realism, making it a perfect fit for visual novels.

“Sit here.”

Kim In-ho pointed to a chair on the running pad.

“We’re sitting to play?”

“It’s hard to stand for dozens of hours playing a visual novel. Even in <Eternal World>, many people sit to play.”

“But doesn’t that ruin the immersion?”

“At least your body won’t get tired.”

The world went through the trouble of making great gaming devices, and we’re only enjoying half of it. It was a pity.

I confidently said,

“I don’t need it. I don’t get tired.”

“…Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. I’ve always played <Eternal World> standing up.”

My body rarely gets tired. Well, “rarely” is a term I use because, as a human, I should get tired eventually, but I haven’t felt tired since becoming a woman.

I downloaded Kim In-ho’s game onto the VR device I brought. Once connected to the computer, the monitor displayed my VR screen.

“I’ll monitor things from the computer.”

“That’s why I came to In-ho’s house. Alright, let’s do this.”

I put on the VR device and clicked on Kim In-ho’s game.

Dun-dun. In-ho Company! A cheerful sound effect played as the logo appeared.

Everything was fine, but I had one question and spoke up.

“What’s this ‘In-ho Company’?”

“…Should I change it?”

“Yes.”

It was completely lame.

Kim In-ho sighed at the criticism that came right from the start.

“Looks like I’ll have to spend more money…”

“If you change the developer name, I’ll do it for free. ‘Oppa, you didn’t turn your socks inside out again!’. How’s that? Not bad, right?”

“No way. Noona, can you do voice acting too?”

“I’m good at anything I do with my body.”

It was one of the small abilities I gained after becoming a woman.

I became good at almost anything that involved using my body.

After all, using your voice is about using your vocal cords, which are muscles.

I—

I muttered while reading the title.

“<The Mirage of Silver>?”

“Is it not good?”

“No. I like it.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Specifically, what I liked about it was…

“The title is very fitting for a game where a silver-haired character pretends to be unattainable but is actually the true heroine. Especially that ‘mirage’ part, it hints that she’s someone drifting through parallel worlds, which I really like.”

“…Is my story too predictable?”

“No. It’s just that I’ve had a lot of conversations with In-ho. A work always reflects the creator’s thoughts. The users will be shocked by the twists.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

Leaving the uneasy Kim In-ho behind, I started the game.

The protagonist was a guy who had just become a high school student. A common setting. Normally, there’d be something like “I want to get a girlfriend,” but In-ho didn’t go that far.

To put it nicely, he kept it classy. To put it bluntly, he was trying too hard. But in the end, if the game’s content is good, it doesn’t really matter.

I was surprised by the high-quality background.

“Did you spend a lot of money on this?”

“That’s a free background. So people who’ve played a lot of VR visual novels might find it a bit off.”

“This is free?”

The world has really improved.

I climbed onto the wall and touched the leaves with my hand.

Every time I touched them, the leaves moved.

“This is really free?”

“It’s too good for free. Some crazy rich guy who’s obsessed with visual novels released it for free.”

“No wonder.”

I got down from the wall and walked down the street.

PC visual novels are pretty much like reading a novel. You just press enter, and the game progresses.

Depending on the type, you might raise stats or choose options, but compared to other games, the difficulty of controls is extremely low.

Of course, VR games are similar. Well, to be precise, <The Mirage of Silver> is similar.

But it’s not exactly the same.

<The Mirage of Silver> makes you move as if you’ve really entered this world.

In-ho probably didn’t come up with this method, so other VR visual novels must be like this too.

Using this method to increase immersion? Pretty clever.

I looked around, enjoying the scenery, when someone called out to me, and I turned my head.

[Hey. Who’s going first?]

It was a cool-type beautiful girl with short hair that suited her really well.

Her sharp eyes made her a bit intimidating.

Instinctively, I lowered my gaze, then suddenly remembered someone and asked,

“By any chance, is your motif Bu…Min Chaewon?”

“No, it’s not.”

Guess not. Her tone and vibe were similar, though.

The heroine who reminded me of Bunny Run was named ‘Lee Mina,’ the protagonist’s childhood friend.

When I play visual novels, I usually go for the childhood friend or the protagonist’s female friends first.

There were various heroines, but I mainly raised Mina’s favorability as I played.

“How is it?”

“Honestly, it’s just okay for now.”

“…Is that so?”

“But that’s how visual novels are, right? You spend dozens of hours for the last 10 minutes. The only visual novel that’s fun from the start is <The Night of Magic>, and In-ho, you’re too young to surpass Nasu Kinoko’s greatness.”

Trying to surpass Nasu Kinoko at 21? You’d need at least 30 years.

“But the daily life parts do make you chuckle sometimes. That’s good enough.”

In-ho’s skills were better than I thought.

His writing wasn’t top-notch, but he really brought out the charm of the characters. That’s half the battle for a visual novel.

[I told you I don’t smoke.]

“Are you sure Min Chaewon isn’t the motif?”

“Huh? Why?”

“Must be a coincidence.”

Well, it’s a cliché for a sharp-eyed heroine to be suspected of being a delinquent. But if she actually smoked, she couldn’t be used as a heroine. Anyone who thinks about it would come up with that line.

I resumed the game.

Next scene. Mina sees a dead cat and tears up.

“Don’t lie. You’re pretending not to because you’re afraid of being sued, right?”

“Unnie. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

I couldn’t send the poor lamb to the police station just yet, so I had to let it slide.

I was having fun with Bunny…I mean, Mina, during school life.

[Yuseong. You’ve gained some weight lately, huh?]

The silver-haired senior appeared.

I watched the senior, who spoke to the protagonist in a playful tone, and said,

“Her tone is weird. Is she a scammer character?”

“That’s your tone, unnie…”

Ah, I see.