Chapter 17: Keyboard Warfare: The Gifted Showdown

While Kyunghun’s fingers wandered for a moment, red text kept popping up non-stop.

[Whisper] Seohyun: Hyung
[Whisper] Seohyun: I don’t do long-distance online relationships;;
[Whisper] Machoking: No, you’re misunderstanding
[Whisper] Seohyun: You asked for my number last time too
[Whisper] Seohyun: And I let it slide

“The last time” referred to when Kyunghun had asked for Seohyun’s number to send a gift card. Since then, Seohyun seemed to have developed some strange misunderstanding, and Kyunghun couldn’t fathom how it could have been twisted into a romantic assumption.

In his life, he had rarely played such a crazy game or had a younger brother misinterpret him so wildly. He had simply asked for the number to repay some of what he had received. Now, unexpectedly, he was burdened with a rumor about a “virtual romance.” Kyunghun let out a tired sigh.

[Whisper] Machoking: It’s not like that
[Whisper] Seohyun: Not like what

Kyunghun tried to respond rationally, but his words were constantly cut off.

[Whisper] Machoking: Hey, I like women
[Whisper] Seohyun: Again, not my type
[Whisper] Machoking: I’m asking because I’m thankful to you
[Whisper] Seohyun: I just felt sorry for you, so I took care of you

Kyunghun stared calmly at the monitor and slowly closed his eyes.

Being a detective, he had learned that sometimes people hear you but understand in a “beastly” way. His senior, Chief Choi of Team 7, often reminded him:

“Be patient. The enemy waits for the moment your composure cracks.”

He mulled over those words, opening his eyes slowly like a monk achieving enlightenment.

Yet the screen reflected only his own foolish reaction to provocation.

[Guild] Machoking: Seohyun-ah

Kyunghun clenched and relaxed his long fingers, letting them fly over the keyboard. The thrill of typing instead of drawing a gun excited him.

Before Seohyun could reply, Kyunghun unleashed a relentless barrage:

[Guild] Machoking: Seohyun-ah, my type is innocent and lively
[Guild] Machoking: Not some crazy lively guy like you

In the chaos, he didn’t notice that his chat settings were wrong.

[Guild] Odin’s 88: Excuse me??
[Guild] LA Engineer: ..Machoking?
[Guild] Yaong-i: Machoking, your type is “innocent”? ㅇㅅㅇ

Without fixing the chat scope, Kyunghun continued his assault on Seohyun.

[Guild] Machoking: Why would I bother with a guy like you?
[Guild] Seohyun: Did you finish talking?
[Guild] Seohyun: What did I do?
[Guild] Seohyun: Are you insulting me in front of everyone?

[Guild] LA Engineer: Everyone, calm down!

Seohyun kept questioning him while the guild tried to mediate.

[Guild] Machoking: I care about integrity above all
[Guild] Machoking: I won’t meet someone with rotten character
[Guild] Machoking: You coward, killing only newbies

[Guild] Seohyun: What? Who said that nonsense?

Kyunghun turned his back to Yaong-i, deliberately continuing his typing assault.

[Guild] Machoking: Do you know what it takes to recognize shit? You have to taste it.

He mused that Wi-Fi and this fool were practically the same. If he had met Seohyun in a swamp on day one, things could have ended much worse.

Then he remembered something critical:

[Guild] Machoking: And aren’t you a guy too?

Both were male, and Kyunghun’s eyes flashed with realization.

[Guild] Seohyun: That’s discriminatory, you know?

Seohyun accused him of discrimination, leaving Kyunghun speechless.

[Guild] Machoking: What? I didn’t discriminate
[Guild] Seohyun: Even in games, same-s*x marriage exists
[Guild] Machoking: Bullshit. What game are you talking about?

Although both were off-target, the argument raged, hotter than any guild moderator could contain.

[Guild] Seohyun: Unbelievable…
[Guild] Seohyun: How much have I given you already ♡♡
[Guild] Machoking: Hey, add one more heart and I swear…
[Guild] Machoking: Who do you think you are cursing at me?

Kyunghun understood exactly what Seohyun feared.

He scanned the chaotic chat rapidly. His lips parted, forming fragmented syllables:

“Where… where is it… this setting is so damn complicated.”

Then his gaze fixed precisely.

<Do you want to block ‘Seohyun’?>