CCBBWM 6

As another “World Alert” appeared, the chat exploded again.

[Guild] TangShuShuk: Urgent!! Anyone know where that hot spot is??
[Guild] Yuka Principles: Whoa, Gil-nim ㄷㄷㄷㄷ!!
[General] WishUponA: Gasp, congrats ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ!!!

WishUponA, who had been constantly triggering the surprise gift box effect above their character’s head, burst into tears as they offered their congratulations. Meanwhile, whispers poured in asking how many boxes he had opened.

[General] WishUponA: When will it be my turn ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

Even as they typed, the effect continued to sparkle above their head. Beo-deul was starting to feel a little bad for SayYourWishBooang. Being right next to them probably made it more noticeable. It wasn’t the first time something like this had happened.

In the end, the only thing WishUponA got was a fashion item shoes, the cheapest among the current Special-grade items. At the same time, Beo-deul had just pulled off the Special-grade pet that WishUponA had been dreaming of.

[General] WishUponA: Wait, are you really giving it to me ㅠㅠㅠㅠ?

[General] Gilmyu: ㅋㅋ, I already have one.

[General] WishUponA: But still ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

When Beo-deul initiated the trade and placed the Special pet in the window, WishUponA wept even harder.

[General] WishUponA: You could sell this at the auction house for a lot ㅠㅠㅠㅠ It’s cute so a lot of people are looking for it ㅠㅠ

[General]Gilmyu: It’s just too much of a hassle, ㅋㅋ.

[General]WishUponA: What if that’s too much hassle for you ㅠㅠㅠ

Not knowing what to do, WishUponA reluctantly added a small amount of gold before clicking confirm. When Beo-deul saw the amount in the trade window, he chuckled. “1004.” No matter how often he saw it, it was a charming bit of culture.

[General] Gilmyu: Please take good care of it, ㅋㅋ.

[General] WishUponA: Of course ㅠㅠㅠㅠ I’ll feed it until it bursts, put it to sleep whenever it’s tired, and take it everywhere with me ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

That… sounds more like torture? Beo-deul pressed confirm with an awkward smile. Once the transaction completed, WishUponA repeatedly used the “bow” emote in front of Beo-deul’s character.

[General] Yuka Principles: Wait, Gil-nim actually gave you the pet?

[General] WishUponA: Yes ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[General] Yuka Principles: OMG;;;; That’s the YumYum you were always crying about, right?

[General] WishUponA: ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠYesㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

After more emotional chatter, the two disappeared off to take screenshots in a map where the new pet, YumYum, would stand out.

“Feels like a whirlwind just passed…”

All Beo-deul did was open a Special box, yet he felt completely drained. he sat his character down and glanced at Sinu, who hadn’t spoken for a while. Maybe he stepped away for a bit.

As if responding to the glance, a message from Sinu popped up.

[General] Sinu: Ah, sorry. Had to reply to a message. One sec.

[General] Gilmyu: No worries, take your time ㅋㅋ.

There wasn’t much else to do anyway. Beo-deul absentmindedly clicked around. A silver emblem with a golden harp caught his eye Sinu’s guild mark. Simple, elegant, quite pretty.

“Grace?”

he right-clicked the character and selected “View Guild Info.” What popped up made him gasp.

“Wow, it’s a max-level guild.”

His own guild, “MoonDream,” had only just reached level 20 and had few members. But “Grace,” Sinu’s guild, was maximum level 50. The member list was long, too.

“And this is a weekday evening… there are still so many people online.”

As someone from a tiny guild, Beo-deul had no way of knowing. Though it looked like a major guild, “Grace” hadn’t recruited in a while and was technically a mid-sized one.

Most of its members were working adults who logged in after long days at their jobs.

“Guild like that must be well-organized… Maybe strict activity rules?”

Really, it just looked that way because it was full of people who treated gaming like their second life.

“And the levels… wow.”

A natural outcome of veteran players gathering together.

After browsing a bit more, Beo-deul closed the guild window. Just then, Sinu returned to chat.

[General] Sinu: Did you open all your boxes?

[General] Gilmyu: Yep ㅋㅋ, oh and by the way

he opened his inventory and scanned the Special-grade items he’d pulled earlier. One in particular stood out it had gotten good reactions.

[General] Gilmyu: (Special: Winter Camellia) What do you think of this?

[General] Sinu: That one’s pretty nice. If you hold on to it, its price might go up later.

[General] Gilmyu: Do you have it?

[General] Sinu: Nope, I don’t.

Perfect. Before Sinu could say anything else, Beo-deul sent a trade request. Sinu accepted, but immediately began flooding the chat with question marks.

[General] Sinu: ??

[General] Gilmyu: It’s nothing serious, really

Beo-deul quickly placed the item in the trade window but it vanished just as quickly. The trade had been canceled.

[General] Gilmyu: ㅠㅠ

[General] Sinu: Don’t just start crying out of nowhere…

[General] Gilmyu: ……ㅠㅠ

[General] Sinu: LOL why are you crying with a delay…

What now? Beo-deul hesitated, then sent the trade again. This time, Sinu accepted. When he placed the item again, Sinu questioned him.

[General] Sinu: But why give me this all of a sudden…?

[General] Gilmyu: Well… It’s not really “sudden,” ㅋㅋ. I originally planned to get a Special box for BreadwinnerGirl-nim because I thought an outfit would suit her…

[General] Sinu: That character is—

[General] Gilmyu: But then I thought this one suits you better! I know you’re the same person, ㅋㅋ.

he was referring to the character’s appearance. “Winter Camellia” was a Special-grade outfit resembling a hanbok crimson and white, flowing like a robe.

Sinu already wore other East Asian inspired outfits, and Bedeul had imagined how perfect this would look on him. Crimson and white… yes, very fitting.

[General] Sinu: Okay, give me a sec to check the current price.

he canceled the trade, and a gold pouch icon appeared over his character he was checking the auction house.

Shortly after, the pouch disappeared and Sinu sent a trade request.

“Huh?”

Beo-deul, about to offer the item again, froze. Sinu had placed a large amount of gold into the trade window.

[General] Gilmyu: ??? Sinu-nim?

[General] Sinu: The latest listings were cheaper, but there aren’t many available now. Prices will rise soon.

[General] Gilmyu: I wasn’t trying to sell it ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[General] Sinu: I was going to buy it anyway.

[General] Gilmyu: I just… I wanted to thank you for helping me through the dungeon. If you pay, it feels like I’m forcing you to buy it ㅠㅠ

he closed the trade window, just like Sinu had done earlier. After a beat of silence:

[General] Sinu: Alright;

[General] Sinu: Send the trade again.

Face brightening, Beo-deul complied, placed the item, and clicked confirm. But before he could see what Sinu added,

ding!

The trade was completed.

“Wait, what?!”

he hurriedly opened his inventory. His face slowly twisted in horror.

“What the heck is this?!”

The newbie had just been reverse pickpocketed by a veteran player.

[General] Sinu: LOL

As Sinu ran off, Beo-deul chased after him.

[General] Gilmyu: What is this ㅠㅠ Please take it back ㅜㅜㅜ

Sinu darted over hills and across rivers. For the first time ever, Beo-deul trailed someone in desperation though it was his character on screen doing the running.

[General] Gilmyu: Sinu-nim ㅠㅠㅠ Please take it back ㅠㅠㅠ

[General] Sinu: That item has only one trade left lol, can’t return it

[General] Gilmyu: Ughㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

Opening and closing his inventory in frustration, Beo-deul finally stopped.

[General] Sinu: So you’re not chasing me anymore?

Sinu stood at a portal to the next town.

[General] Gilmyu: I can’t go there ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[General] Sinu: Ah…;

It was a high-level area Beo-deul’s character wasn’t eligible to enter.

[General] Sinu: Sorry sorry, want me to go somewhere else?

[General] Gilmyu: Not like you’ll take it back if I goㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[General] Sinu: LOLOL

The item Sinu secretly traded was a Special-grade cosmetic from over two years ago. Beo-deul recognized it because he’d once seen someone wear it and thought it was cute—but quickly gave up once he saw it was practically priceless and unavailable.

“Back then, it was already worth hundreds of billions… It must’ve gone up since then. How can I possibly accept this?”

[General] Gilmyu: This item really isn’t something I should be receiving ㅠㅠ Please take it back…

[General] Sinu: Then why did you try to give me something without hesitation?

[General] Gilmyu: That’s… different ㅠㅠ

[General] Sinu: Not really… it’s the same.

Beo-deul was speechless. Even if he was a newbie, did they really think he was that clueless?

---

T.L/N
(Not them pulling off the ‘catch me if you can’ scene….ㅠㅠ me being a single damn hurt while translating this sceneㅠㅠ)

“ㅠㅠㅠ” (crying)

“ㅋㅋㅋㅋ” (laughing)

“1004” = Angel: This is a classic Korean number pun. “1004” (천사, cheon-sa) is pronounced the same as the word for “angel.” It’s a cute, symbolic gesture when gifting small amounts of money.