LS 56

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Uh… uh…? 8ㅅ8

[Guild] YYNNXX: I live not too far from Hanguk Univ. Station

[Guild] YYNNXX: Call me anytime if you need me~

Thanks to Daeyoung popping up out of nowhere, the situation got a lot easier. Yeohoo, who was more serious about full-clearing than anyone, immediately jumped at the chance to persuade Knockoff.

[Guild] YeohooHae: You need to hit level 125 first anyway

[Guild] YeohooHae: And do the hidden class quest

[Guild] YeohooHae: So how about we just get you on the power level ride first, Knockoff? Hehe

“Hehe,” my ass. What a saint act. Dohee scoffed. No matter what he thought, Knockoff was slowly getting pulled in by the guild.

[Guild] YeojinHae: Ooh~ yeah that sounds goodㅋㅋ

[Guild] YeojinHae: Just leave your character logged in 24/7 starting today

[Guild] SoftRiceCake: Yeahㅋㅋ we’ll handle the power leveling for you

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Ah… but I only play at the internet cafe

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: So I can’t really stay logged in all day… 8ㅅ8

Dohee expected that. Knowing Knockoff didn’t own a computer, he quickly stepped in.

[Guild] AssaGo: I was going to mention this

[Guild] AssaGo: Send me your ID and password

[Guild] AssaGo: I’ll log in and power level for you

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Ah… is that really okay…?

[Guild] AssaGo: As long as you keep your mouth shut, nothing happens

Oops. Did that sound a bit too much like a villain?

Right on cue, Knockoff sent a crying face.

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: 8ㅁ8…

[Guild] AssaGo: Why are you crying now? lol

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: But won’t that mess up your own gameplay…? ㅠㅡㅠ

[Guild] AssaGo: What are you even talking about?

[Guild] AssaGo: We’ve got two desktops at home lol

[Guild] AssaGo: Your character just needs to sit in the hunting zone

[Guild] AssaGo: It’s no trouble at all

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Ah…! Oh right

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Uh… then… hmm…

[Guild] Tando: No need to hesitate hehe

[Guild] Tando: It’s not even that hard for us

[Guild] Tando: And it’s probably the fastest way for you to level up hehe

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Ah… ㅠㅡㅠ But I haven’t finished the main story yet…

Dohee knew Knockoff loved immersing himself in story and leisurely doing quests. He ran a hand through his hair. The soft strands slipped through his fingers, but his heart felt heavy. It felt wrong to drag someone who just wanted to enjoy the game into this raid hustle.

To be honest, this wasn’t really for Knockoff’s sake. It was just their own convenience, wanting a Support for the raid.

Was this right?

Forcing someone to grow rapidly and join a massive raid on short notice, it didn’t sit well with him. Even if they needed Knockoff, this way of going about it made Dohee uneasy.

[Guild] YeohooHae: You can always watch the story later

[Guild] YeohooHae: When you raise an alt, you can go through it again lol

[Guild] YeohooHae: Just level up first and come back to the story later

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: Nah ** our AssaGo’s gonna go through it with you, so no worries

[Guild] Tando: Why not go with Noodle then haha

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: What are you saying;;; I skip story all the time — —;;

[Guild] Tando: Wow, what a flex lol

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: ??? You skip too ** why single me out **

[Guild] Tando: What are you talking about? I watched everything while raising my alt ^^

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Ah… so I can watch it later…? 8ㅅ8

[Guild] YeohooHae: Yes, you definitely can lol

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: Yeah you can always watch it later

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: But right now!!! we need Knockoff!! Without him we’ll get our asses kicked

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: Demon Hunter will wipe the floor with us

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: Pleaseeeee ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[Guild] Tando: Basically, Knockoff-nim is super important to us~^^

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Ah… 8ㅁ8

[Guild] AssaGo: Okay wait up

After quieting the guild, Dohee whispered to Knockoff.

[Whisper to GOingSupporter187]: Can you talk right now? GameTalk

[Whisper from GOingSupporter187]: Uh… yeah! I can!

Without hesitation, Dohee called him. The GameTalk ringtone played briefly before Knockoff answered.

— Hello?

“Hey.”

— Ah, yes!

“Just be honest. Do you want to do this?”

— Huh…?

“This Demon Hunter full-clear raid. Do you want to do it? Don’t just get swept up because everyone’s persuading you. I want to know if you actually want to.”

— Ah…

“Honestly, you enjoy doing quests and gathering and stuff more, right? A raid can take 12 hours, sometimes two days. Might even be longer. You won’t be able to do anything else during that time. Do you even enjoy raids?”

— Uh, uh… Raids themselves were fun! I haven’t done many though…

“So do you want to do this one? No excuses, no lies.”

Dohee heard Knockoff’s quiet breathing over the line. He waited patiently.

The answer was unexpected.

— If I can, then yes, I want to.

“Really?”

— Yeah…

“Because it sounds fun?”

— That too… but also because… it sounds like it’ll be hard without me. Right?

“It’ll be hard, sure. Not impossible. We could find someone else, it’d just take time. Nothing’s impossible.”

— But you’d rather I join, right?

“Of course. You’re a guildmate. Communication’s easier. We haven’t raided much, but you’re easier to sync with than strangers. The DPS players would prefer that.”

— Then… I’ll do it. And Daeyoung-nim said he’d cover for me…

“Okay, then.”

— And everyone’s helped me so much… and um… I actually like it.

Dohee raised a brow. Like what?

“What do you like?”

— That people say they need me.

“….”

— I might not be helpful, I might mess up… but it still feels good to be needed. No one’s ever said something like that to me before. Like they specifically want me. It feels nice. And the guild members… I guess you could call them friends. I want to be helpful if I can…

Dohee opened his mouth, then closed it again. He didn’t know what to say. After a moment, he spoke softly.

“You’re needed.”

— Huh?

“We need you.”

— …

“If you come with us, everyone’ll be happy, hyung.”

A brief silence. Then a deep inhale.

— It’s weird when you call me hyung…

Dohee just laughed loudly. Whatever had been nagging at his chest now felt cleanly lifted.

“After we hang up, go tell them you’re in.”

— Ah, but… I’m still worried I’ll be a burden…

“What are you saying?”

— Huh?

“No one expects you to be a hero. Just survive. Endure. Be there when we need you. That’s all. Anything more is a bonus. So go in with an easy heart.”

— Uh, okay!

“And don’t forget to send me your ID and password on GameTalk.”

— Yes!

With Knockoff’s bright response, the call ended. His message popped up in chat.

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Uh… then I, um… might not be super helpful but…!

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: Since everyone said you’d help me…

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: And Daeyoung-nim said he’d cover for me… 8ㅅ8

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: If you’re okay with it, I’d like to try…

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: Ah ** just being there helps us okay!? Don’t lose confidence!

[Guild] SiblingSpicyNoodle: I am Human raid team! I will full-clear! Let’s go! ** *** Be confident!

[Guild] Tando: Wow thank you so much hehe

[Guild] Tando: Knockoff-nim, you’ve got great game sense, I’m sure you’ll do well~^^

[Guild] YeojinHae: Heck yeahㅋㅋㅋㅋ I was wondering where we’d find a Support ㅅㅂㅠㅠ I’m hyped

[Guild] YeohooHae: We’ll carry you and boost your level super fast lol

[Guild] SoftRiceCake: LET’S GOOOOOOOO We got Knockoff in the guild, baby!!!

[Guild] GOingSupporter187: I’ll do my best…!!!

[Guild] 4EvilPrettyGirl: I welcome you with open arms

The moment Knockoff agreed to join, the guild exploded with joy. But separate from that happiness, Dohee’s heart grew heavier.

Now it was real.

What the hell do I do now?

How the hell am I supposed to say, “I’m GoingSupporter”?

He let out a long, heavy sigh.