LS 51

Knockoff’s level had somehow already passed 70. While putting together a commemorative level-70 gear set for him, Dohee’s mind was all over the place. Lately, it had been like that all the time, like he was living with half his soul missing.

[System] ‘AssaGo’ has achieved a Great Success crafting ‘Veil of Glory Top’!
[System] ‘AssaGo’ has achieved a Great Success crafting ‘Veil of Glory Robe’!

A string of Great Success alerts appeared in the system chat. It actually made him feel a little better.
There was a good reason Dohee insisted on crafting Knockoff’s equipment personally, it was all about that Great Success rate.
So, what was a Great Success? When crafting gear, results are divided into failure, success, and great success. A standard success rate hovered around 10%, but Great Success was significantly rarer. For crafters without the Artisan title, the success rate was a mere 1.5%. With the Artisan title, it rose 3%, up to 4.5%. Add special materials that boosted success rates and the town fountain’s buff, and you could push it to nearly 7%.

Of course, that didn’t mean you’d always get a Great Success. Even though no one in the guild could rival Dohee when it came to gear crafting, three out of five attempts still ended in failure. Failed gear was dismantled, some of the reclaimed materials reused to try again.
Why go to such lengths, burning through resources, just to get Great Success on every piece? Because it gave you randomized buffs, attack power, movement speed, skill cast speed, ranging from 1% to 3%.

⸻

Character Info
GOingSupporter187
Level: 71
Class: Supporter
Title: Guardian of Love
Equipment
• Veil of Glory Robe Lv.70
• Veil of Glory Glasses Lv.70
• Veil of Glory Dagger Lv.70
• Veil of Glory Gloves Lv.70
• Veil of Glory Shoes Lv.70
• Veil of Glory Top Lv.70
• Veil of Glory Bottom Lv.70
• 7-piece Veil of Glory set bonus active
• Full Great Success effects applied
• The touch of Artisan ‘AssaGo’ can be felt. Thanks to the Artisan bonus, ‘Blessing of Goddess Kelathus’ is active.

⸻

And honestly, seeing his own username proudly displayed on Knockoff’s character info screen gave Dohee a bit of satisfaction.

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Wow… 8ㅅ8 This new gear, like, like… gold dust falls off it…!

Knockoff’s character hopped around Dohee, triggering a joyful emote. Every movement released an effect like gold glitter scattering around. The gear was hidden under an avatar skin, but the added effect gave it a new kind of presence. Dohee replied flatly:

[Party] AssaGo: Looks nice.

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Thank you so much again… ㅠㅡㅠ

Knockoff gave a series of polite bows using a learned greeting emote. He was finally starting to get the hang of things. The clueless newbie who didn’t know what “carry” meant and couldn’t use a single skill properly wasn’t around anymore. Within just a few weeks, Knockoff had learned to recognize the value of equipment made directly by someone with the Artisan title. He still seemed awkward and overwhelmed with guilt, but now he could accept things with a mix of gratitude, restraint, and growing confidence.

[Party] GOingSupporter187: I’ll wear it with care…! 8ㅅ8

[Party] AssaGo: If someone beats you up and steals it, I’m not letting it slide. lol

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Ah… I won’t let that happen!! ㅠㅡㅠ

[Party] GOingSupporter187: You always go out of your way for me…

[Party] GOingSupporter187: But I’ve got nothing to give back… 8ㅁ8

Dohee chuckled. In SoGod, passing level 70 usually meant you were finally starting to shed your newbie status. At level 80, you could attempt your first world raid: Adelbaid the Dark. That was when you’d be considered a real adventurer. But to Dohee, Knockoff was still just some half-baked newbie who barely cleared the second server raid, Burke. Honestly, even when Knockoff reached max level, he’d probably still look clumsy and all over the place in Dohee’s eyes.

Is this what it feels like to be a parent…?

Not the worst analogy. After all, he’d poured in time, care, and even money raising this newbie. Dohee slowly began typing:

[Party] AssaGo: Nothing to give back, huh? Then buy me food or something.

[Party] GOingSupporter187: …Huh!? Food??? You can eat in SoGod?

As if.

Dohee couldn’t help but let out a breathy laugh. He stared at the screen and instinctively smacked his forehead. This was too much. It had just been a throwaway joke, but he’d replied with “You can eat in SoGod?” What kind of nonsense was that? He’d gone full game addict.

[Party] AssaGo: Like hell you can, lol

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Ah… 8ㅅ8 You’re teasing me again…! ㅠㅡㅠ

He should’ve replied again, but his fingers wouldn’t move. Weirdly enough, his response was delayed by a beat.

[Party] AssaGo: lol who knows

[Party] GOingSupporter187: …That’s too mean… 8ㅅ8

[Party] AssaGo: But seriously, if I did ask you to buy me food, would you?

It was a spontaneous question, nothing more.

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Gasp… meet in real life…? 8ㅁ8

Dohee had expected a shocked reaction, but somehow, it didn’t feel that great. He knew full well that he had seen Knockoff’s face, but Knockoff only knew his name. He’d never told anyone in-game to grab food, even as a joke.

[Party] AssaGo: I was just messing around, lol

[Party] GOingSupporter187: 8ㅅ8… If you asked, I’d totally buy you something!!!

[Party] GOingSupporter187: I mean, not, like, something super expensive but… ㅠㅡㅠ

[Party] AssaGo: No thanks, lol. I’d rather steal a flea’s liver

[Party] GOingSupporter187: ㅠㅡㅠ… I’m serious

[Party] AssaGo: Funny how you’re not a flea anymore? You don’t say that now, huh? lol

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Ah… 8ㅅ8 Don’t tease me… ㅠㅡㅠ

[Party] GOingSupporter187: And you’re not supposed to eat fleas…

[Party] AssaGo: Are you serious? You think I actually would? LOL

[Party] GOingSupporter187: Still… 8ㅁ8…

He was good with words. Still, not an outright rejection.

Dohee’s chest felt uneasy again. Even though he knew Knockoff had no idea, he still couldn’t stop himself from snapping at him now and then.

His emotions had been a mess the past few days.
The guild was waiting for the right moment to rope Knockoff into the upcoming Demon Hunter raid. The teaser was already out, and the full patch notes would drop soon. While Knockoff was offline, the guild had been discussing it a lot. Most agreed it’d be better to bring GoingSupporter to the progression clear than AssaGo, high-level DPS were common, but high-level supports were rare.

Sure, they could wait until the Demon Hunter officially dropped to make a final call. But the tension in Dohee’s chest wouldn’t go away.
What if they did need GoingSupporter for Demon Hunter? And what if they had to bring in another support and convince Knockoff to join?

How could he come clean, naturally, smoothly, without embarrassing himself, that he was GoingSupporter all along? Especially after he asked Knockoff the other day, “What’s so great about GoingSupporter anyway?” The poor guy would never see it coming.

Dohee let out a deep sigh.
Shit, I should’ve just said it from the start.
Now it felt impossible to casually go, “Yeah, that’s me.” Even someone as shameless as Baek Dohee couldn’t help but feel awkward.

But truthfully, what worried Dohee wasn’t his own embarrassment.

What if the kid just disappears?

From everything he’d seen, Knockoff was a shy, sensitive pushover who cared way too much about what others thought. Realizing he’d been gushing about GoingSupporter right in front of himself calling him ‘GoSupp-nim’ might make him keel over. Even if he wanted to confront him, he was probably too nice to say anything and would just keep it bottled up.

Then again, maybe not. Maybe he’d think it was cool. Maybe he’d be happy. Odds were 50/50.

Dohee pictured Knockoff’s oversized frame blushing at an internet cafe, staring at the monitor, and burst out laughing. It wasn’t even funny. He rubbed his face dry.

Goddamn it.

Yeah, he’d brought this on himself.

In Baek Dohee’s mind, the worst-case scenario wasn’t even about missing out on the Demon Hunter progression clear.
Somewhere along the way, he had started to enjoy spending time with Knockoff. What started as “this kid’s a mess, someone’s gotta help him” turned into something else. Over time, through more shared hours, Dohee got to know not just Knockoff, but Kwon Moonhyuk.

He wanted to spend more time with him. Preferably, a long time.

I got greedy.

That’s how Baek Dohee defined it.

In a life where everything else had grown dull and empty, this strange person who suddenly dropped into his world turned out to be unexpectedly fun.

This guy who couldn’t even beat a cat monster.
This guy who got too attached to NPCs and pulled all-nighters to recover their keepsakes.
This guy who liked plants so much he’d gather herbs nonstop day and night.
He was cuter than expected.

Before he knew it, Dohee was waking up in the mornings wondering what quests they’d do together, what raids they’d run, and looking forward to the day.

He had started to want more from those moments.
Some might call that selfish. Might laugh and say it’s ridiculous to lie and then worry about being abandoned. But Dohee snorted.

So what? I might’ve been wrong, but I still don’t want to lose him.

That’s how greed grows.

It was a lie, sure. Intentional or not, a lie’s a lie. Even Baek Dohee knew that. But people are selfish. Hoping for forgiveness wasn’t such a stretch, was it?

Watching Knockoff run off excitedly in his new gear, Dohee sighed again.

I don’t know. I wish someone could just tell me the right answer.