Chapter 24

“Huh?”

“If you can’t handle it yourself, then at least report it to the guild. Nobody’s gonna blame a twenty-year-old kid for tattling about every little thing. They’re all hotheaded brawlers—they’ll love an excuse to gang up and crush someone.”

“K-kid…”

Blaine was struck dumb. Kid? Did Theo really see him as nothing more than some little kid? The thought left him even more dejected.

Seeing him shrink even further, Theo let out a heavy sigh and asked,

“I seriously don’t get it. Why are you so beaten down all the time?”

“What?”

“You didn’t do anything wrong. You’re the victim here. So why are you acting like you’ve committed some crime?”

Blaine stared at him blankly, then muttered in a daze, like he was just repeating words that had been drilled into him.

“Because I’m… Fourth Gen…”

Theo frowned.

“If you’re Fourth Gen, shouldn’t you be proud instead?”

“?”

“Look, most of the First Gen became Second Gen. The Seconds are aiming for Third. The Thirds are aiming for Fourth. But you—you started as Fourth Gen. Why the hell are you acting so small, so timid? You should be strutting around bragging. Me? I’m Third Gen, and I’m dying of jealousy.”

Blaine blinked in surprise. Then, as if the words didn’t make sense, he asked,

“Jealous… of me?”

“Of course. Aren’t you jealous? We’re trapped inside these capsules, barely two pyeong¹ of space.”

“……”

Blaine still looked lost, unable to deny the mindset that had already been burned into him.

“Why did you even get the Fourth Gen surgery if you hate it so much?”

“Ah… I didn’t choose it myself…”

“Then?”

“I was sick ever since I was little. My parents were thinking of getting me the Third Gen procedure before I died… but the center said I was too young for Third Gen and recommended the Fourth instead. After a lot of deliberation, my parents decided on the Fourth.”

“So you think your parents made the wrong choice?”

“N-no! When I was sick, all I had were painful memories… so right now, I’m really grateful. I mean it.”

Theo couldn’t understand how someone could say they were grateful, and still speak so negatively about themselves. Blaine had gotten the surgery young—he should’ve had plenty of chances to experience the world. Yet he acted like a frog in a well, blind to everything outside.

“So what did you do after the surgery?”

“Um… I had it when I was twelve, and I stayed in the center’s server until I was eighteen. Since I’d been bedridden my whole life, I didn’t know anything… I had a lot to study, and I needed training just to adapt.”

“…So you’ve only been out in society for two years?”

“…Yes.”

“…Don’t tell me the first group you ran into after leaving the center was your old guild?”

“…It was…”

“……”

Theo was at a loss for words. Of course. Those bastards had picked up a clueless kid and kept gaslighting him until he turned out like this.

“Fourth Gen isn’t wrong. And it’s not your fault either. Don’t let guys like that beat you down. They’ve got nothing to boast about except the fact they still have their original bodies, and they draw some arbitrary line, pretending that’s where ‘real humans’ end.”

“Then… hyung, you don’t think I’m gross or… unlucky because I’m Fourth Gen?”

“You’re still human—what’s there to find gross? And since I met you, my luck’s gotten better.”

When Theo added, “If anything, you’re handsome,” Blaine flushed red like his fear had never existed.

“You’ve got the superiority of being Fourth Gen, and on top of that you look good. That’s why people get jealous and lash out. If you keep reacting to all that crap, you’re just gonna wear yourself out. You’ve gotta learn to let it slide sometimes.”

“…I’ll do that from now on. I’ll try.”

Even though it sounded like nagging, Blaine smiled happily. It was a smile like a flower blooming.

“And for now, if anything happens, make sure you tell the guild.”

“Huh?”

“You’ve only been out here two years… it’s like throwing a kid into the deep end. Just keep telling the guild every little thing. Otherwise, you’ll get tangled up with weirdos and something worse might happen.”

It could’ve come across as meddling. He was an adult, after all. But Blaine just nodded with a smile.

Once their conversation wound down, Aslan, who had been quietly listening, carefully spoke up.

“By the way, how’s your current appearance made? It can’t be what you looked like when you were twelve, right?”

“Oh, the center makes an avatar for us. They run a growth simulation based on how we looked before the surgery, adjusting it to our age. Since I’m still growing, I have to get the avatar updated regularly. But it’s just a simulation… so I can’t say for sure this is what I’d really look like.”

“So you only exist inside data? Nowhere in reality?”

“I can be projected into reality through augmented reality.”

“Oh… then what about lifespan for Fourth Gen? Is it infinite?”

“No. Because of bioethics law, our data can only be preserved for the human average lifespan—three hundred years. After that, if you pay extra, you can extend it according to your expected lifespan.”

“And after that?”

“You can either delete it… or donate it to the state for research purposes.”

“Huh. Just like people. When someone dies, they either get buried, cremated, or donated.”

At those words—just like people—Blaine blinked at Aslan, then slowly nodded, dazed.

“…You’re right.”

And he thought… what if his first guild had been this one? What if the first people he’d met had been like Aslan?

The thought made him smile before he realized it. He felt like he would’ve been happy.

In the end, they couldn’t find Noquia even after searching late into the night. When the search finally ended, the guild members gathered at the Guildhead Camp were exhausted. They agreed to regroup the next morning and headed back to their residences.

But Father stayed behind alone, spending the night with the NPCs and discussing strategies to capture Noquia.

The next day, when the guild members reassembled at the camp, Father presented a new plan: wear Noquia down until she broke.

Humans go crazy if they can’t sleep for days on end. They decided to pour all their forces into Ratteon, where Noquia’s residence was, and fortify the area. Anyone with camping gear could set up a camp in a safe zone, but Noquia couldn’t buy supplies from NPCs or sneak into a safe zone without being spotted. Even if she wanted to move to another village and buy a new residence, it would still have to go through NPCs—impossible under her wanted status.

Sure, her real body could log out and rest. But unless her character was in a safe zone, her fatigue wouldn’t recover. And while wanted, she couldn’t log out inside a safe zone either. They’d let her stamina drain until her combat ability dropped, then overwhelm her with numbers—or force her to surrender.

It was a strategy that left the pursuers comfortable while driving the pursued into relentless exhaustion.

So the NPCs and guild members quickly assembled in Ratteon. They encircled the town and started… having fun. They lit campfires, cooked, sang, ate, drank, laughed, and partied. Sometimes passing acquaintances even joined in.

Since there was no need to move around, YesYesu’s support ended there. Their members all went home. But Aslan apparently had no intention of leaving. He wandered around, mingling with Father’s guild members. Thanks to that, Blaine found himself alone with Theo.

Even with guild members and NPCs bustling all around, Blaine felt strangely calm sitting across from Theo. Maybe it was because Theo himself was calm.

Theo said little, only tossing wood into the campfire or occasionally scanning their surroundings.

In-game, the sun set and night fell. The atmosphere grew livelier. Father went around, sticking skewered meat into the campfires. Soon the smell of roasting meat spread everywhere.

Theo checked one skewer, picked the juiciest piece, and handed it to Blaine. Then, just as he was about to eat his own, Aslan plopped down beside him and stole his meat.

“You little shi—”

“Hey, I think I’ve gotta go. My guildmates want me to run a dungeon with them.”

“Then get lost already.”

Theo didn’t even look at him, just stared at his half-bitten meat.

“I’ll be quick and come back.”

“Don’t come back.”

“Aww, you mad? Should I just stay then?”

Aslan twisted his shoulders playfully, leaning into Theo. Theo raised his skewer like he was about to stab him.

Aslan dodged away with a laugh, ruffling Theo’s hair as he stood.

“Spare some sympathy for the struggles of a poor vice guild master trying to raise his guildmates.”

And with that, Aslan practically bolted, slipping away like he was fleeing.

Blaine looked between Aslan’s retreating back and Theo. He dropped his gaze, as if wrestling with something, then stole a glance at Theo again. Theo was chewing his meat with a sour face, muttering under his breath. After hesitating, Blaine asked quietly,

“Um… are you and Aslan… close, you know, emotionally?”

“Emotionally?”

Theo tilted his head like the word was foreign. Blaine’s lips moved a few times before he finally whispered, almost inaudibly,

“…dating?”

Theo’s face twisted instantly. Was this kid insane?

“…Are you out of your mind?”

The disgust in Theo’s voice made Blaine snap his head up. He raised his voice in panic.

“S-so you’re not?!”

Theo looked like he might vomit just from the thought. He slapped a hand over his mouth, face pale.

“Don’t say crap like that. I feel sick.”

“Really not?!”

“Where the hell did you pick up that nonsense?”

Theo darted a sharp glare around, suspecting Father or Holanghee of putting weird ideas into Blaine’s head. But then Blaine’s voice piped up again, faint but oddly happy.

“I didn’t hear it… you just looked close…”

“Being close doesn’t mean we’re dating. If that were the case, everyone in the world would be dating.”

“Oh… then I must’ve misunderstood. Sorry.”

Blaine apologized—but his face looked overjoyed. That’s your idea of an apology? Theo actually clutched at his chest like his stomach was turning.

“Sweetie, what’s wrong?”

Holanghee appeared, patting Theo’s back.

“Just… heard something that made me sick.”

“Oh no, are you okay? Should I get you some water?”

“No, I’ll get it myself.”

With a grim face, Theo staggered off, looking for water. As soon as he left, Father came over.

“What’s up with him?”

She plopped down in Theo’s seat.

“Said his stomach turned, went for water.”

“Why’s his stomach turned?”

Holanghee looked straight at Blaine. He clearly looked flustered, and she waited for his answer.

“I… asked something weird…”

“Like what?”

“Um… if he was dating Aslan…”

Both Father and Holanghee stared at him in surprise. Then they glanced at each other with sly amusement, nodding in silent agreement.

“Yeah, that kind of thing—you need to confirm it directly.”

“Huh?”

“So? What did he say?”

“He called me crazy… said it made him sick.”

Blaine answered with a shy, elated smile, as if the reaction was the best thing he’d ever heard. Father, watching his glowing expression, muttered under her breath,

“First come, first served.”

“…What?”

“I’m rooting for Sweetie.”

“…Huh?”

“Honestly, younger’s better.”

“Right?”

Holanghee beamed, and Father nodded along.

Then Father turned to Blaine.

“How tall are you?”

“Me? I’m 188…”

“Ah, well, your face wins, but his height is better. Sweetie, you’ve got work to do.”

“…Eh? What?”

Oblivious to how baffled Blaine looked, the two of them patted his shoulders, clasped his hands, and cheered him on. When Theo finally returned with water, Father and Holanghee were grinning like foxes, giving him sly, mischievous looks.