Sorim Grapes is Wronged

23.

“Shall we go if you’re done smoking?”

“Yes…”

I rubbed out my cigarette butt first. Kwon Je-beom also rubbed his out beside me, but it seemed he had barely smoked it.

I regretted being too indifferent to Kwon Je-beom. He’s my brother’s friend… So on the way back, I deliberately struck up a conversation.

“Want to use some perfume?”

“……”

“Because we smell like cigarettes.”

“Do you have some?”

“Yes.”

I took out the perfume I always carry and sprayed it twice on both Kwon Je-beom and myself. It’s not an overwhelmingly strong scent, but it’s enough to cover the smell of cigarettes. Kwon Je-beom sniffed it and asked, seemingly pleased:

“What perfume do you use?”

“Just any kind.”

“Is it legendary grade?”

“Huh?”

“I’d appreciate it if you could tell me the exact item name.”

He asked so politely with such a serious face that I couldn’t laugh and just told him precisely. Kwon Je-beom solemnly made a note on his phone.

I originally used fabric spray, but after winning the lottery, my brother bought this for me. It might be too expensive for a student to use… But since he’s a pro gamer, I guess he earns money anyway, so it should be fine?

“You’re taking the same class as Jin?”

“Yes. Da-bin too.”

“It’s Ju Da-bin. How are those two? They don’t chat during class, do they?”

“…They’re quiet. They actively participate in group projects, so everyone likes them.”

“You’re not just saying nice things because I’m the older brother, are you?”

“Well, not entirely…”

I burst into a short laugh. I thought he had a stone-like image and wouldn’t understand jokes, but…

“Is that class possibly the one about… reaching level 50 in Forest Effect?”

“……”

“Is it not? Jin said there was a class that had such an assignment.”

“Ah, um.”

Kwon Je-beom seemed momentarily flustered but then nodded.

“That’s the right class.”

“I see. Jin has been playing the game diligently these days. He’ll probably reach level 50 soon.”

“I see.”

“You already have a character, so you don’t need to do it, right?”

“Yes, I’ve already submitted. The server is, um, Mino server?”

“Ah, I’m on the Mino server, and Jin is on the Luna server.”

“So you’re on the same server as me.”

“Congratulations.”

“…Thank you.”

The conversation briefly stopped there, but when we approached the lake, Kwon Je-beom asked:

“Are you enjoying Forest Effect, hyung?”

“Um… I’m having fun with it.”

“What aspects do you find enjoyable? The visuals, story, combat effects… I’m curious about what you find attractive.”

Thinking it might be his professional spirit as a pro gamer, I answered sincerely.

“The visuals are flashy. The story is good too… No, actually the story has some cruel aspects, but it doesn’t go beyond the 15+ age rating, so… The combat, I guess it’s the satisfaction of defeating monsters. I heard people call it ‘impact feel’, and it’s quite satisfying.”

“Actually, the combat in Forest Effect isn’t that simple.”

“Really?”

“Yes, up until level 50, it’s designed for newbies to follow along easily, but after level 50, a lot of content opens up at once and it can feel complicated. And it gets more difficult as your level increases. The racial characteristics are quite distinct, so there’s a world of difference between forming parties with various races for team play and clearing dungeons solo. By the way, do you fight alone, hyung?”

The guy who had been taciturn suddenly spoke at length, but somehow… although it ended in a question, his tone seemed to assume that I would be playing solo, which felt a bit off.

“Yeah, I’m playing alone.”

“It’s more fun to play together.”

“……”

“Not all games are like this, but MMORPGs are more enjoyable when played with others. You can chat, use voice chat. From small things like greeting each other when you log in, asking ‘You’re finally here?’, to building camaraderie while tackling strong monsters for hours or even days together, and the thrill of finally succeeding a phase you’ve been failing repeatedly is much more intense in team play than solo. Of course, as you mingle with people, you’ll experience some unpleasant things too, but as they say, wounds from human interactions should be healed by humans…”

To be honest, I didn’t understand from the first sentence. What’s MMO…? Anyway, judging by the atmosphere, I waited for the sentence to end, but it didn’t. One sentence was incredibly long and messy.

This guy talks a lot.

I take back calling him taciturn.

Kwon Je-beom’s expression remained serious throughout his speech, and his intense eyes, which seemed a bit fierce, were clearly sincere to anyone watching. He would immediately look away when our eyes met, but I could feel him staring at me again as soon as I turned my gaze.

I don’t like people who meddle like this, but reminding myself ‘This guy is Ha Jin’s friend’, I just responded with “Yeah, yeah.”

Fortunately, we arrived at our seats before my patience wore out. There were two more people than before, and another chicken had been added to the food. Those two were Jin’s classmates who had come to our housewarming party before. I couldn’t recognize their faces, but they greeted me very warmly, so I played along and said it had been a while.

I suddenly felt extremely tired.

Meeting people is indeed exhausting. I just want to go home and play games.

*

Around 10 PM, Jin and I walked Da-bin home and returned to our place.

Jin went straight to study after washing up, and I was spinning in my chair in my room, pondering, before finally heading to my brother’s room.

Knock knock, Jin responded immediately to the knocking sound.

“Oh, hyung. Come in.”

As I opened the door and entered, Jin spun his chair around to look at me. I sat down on the massage chair.

“What’s up? Is something wrong?”

“No, it’s nothing major, but I felt I should tell you. Earlier, I told your friend Kwon Je-beom that you’re working hard on Forest Effect and that you’re on the Luna server.”

“Huh? Why?”

“What do you mean, why? You said you’re taking the same class as Kwon Je-beom, right? The assignment is to reach level 50, and you already told me that I’m playing this game too. What if your friends suspect that I played for you instead of you doing the assignment yourself when you submit it later?”

“Ah…”

Jin, as expected, hadn’t thought of this at all and looked blank for a moment.

“I don’t think they would suspect that…”

My brother is different from me. Unlike a human distrust patient with a sharp thorn stuck in their head after that earlier conversation, my brother, who doesn’t suspect friends, was innocently washing up and studying.

I think my brother should have… at least a quarter of a quarter of my level of human distrust.

To survive in this harsh world…

“Jin, there are so many people in this world whose outward appearance differs from their inner selves. Don’t trust friends you’ve only known for two months too much.”

“Okay…”

“And secondly.”

“You have more to scold me about…?”

“I didn’t say this earlier because I didn’t want to embarrass Da-bin.”

“Okay.”

“You don’t need to study so hard. Take it easy. It’s okay even if you get all F’s. The reasons for getting good grades in university are scholarships and employment, but you don’t need scholarships, and you don’t have to work for the rest of your life. Don’t waste time that won’t come back studying, just live doing what you want to do.”

“……”

Jin stared at me. He should be happy to hear this… but Jin’s expression was complicated. He seemed to pity me. I judged that Jin didn’t understand, so I added an explanation.

“I know you might be ambitious about grades since you worked hard to get into a good university, but I’m saying you don’t need to push yourself to the point of exhaustion. If you spend all your time just studying… You never know what might happen in life. Isn’t it a shame to put off everything you want to do and focus only on studying? Wouldn’t you feel wronged?”

“I got it, hyung. I understand. I totally get it.”

Jin quickly got up from his chair, came over to me, sat down in front of me, and looked up at me.

“I’ll study moderately. Just enough so I won’t feel wronged if something happens. So don’t worry.”

“I’m saying this for your sake.”

“I know, hyung. I know it very well. I’m your brother, after all.”

Jin grinned. Even though he’s grown much taller than me, when he smiles like this, he still looks like an eight-year-old child.

“Is there a third point?”

“The third is… well.”

I thought about mentioning Kwon Je-beom’s meddling, but decided not to.

Kwon Je-beom’s nonsense about interacting with people was probably because… Jin and Da-bin had talked about me like that, right? I don’t intend to instill any guilt.

After finishing the advice I wanted to give my brother, I returned to my room.

I sat in front of my laptop, staring blankly at the game screen for a while.

Did I unnecessarily encourage my brother to doubt his friends?

But even if those friends are truly good friends… the habit of doubting people should be instilled early on. Because no matter how much you doubt and suspect, you can still be deceived.

I worry about who will give such advice to my brother after I die. Da-bin is sharp, but she’s not the type to be very suspicious of people either…

Should I leave a will? Telling him to doubt everything and everyone? That the world is full of people who only want to bite and tear at you?

Yes, I said it well. This was just the right timing to give a bit of tension.

That’s the conclusion I came to.

However, I’m not sure if the second point was really the right thing to say.

My brother probably thought of mom and dad while listening to me. Because he would have known that I was talking while thinking of mom and dad.

“……”

As mom and dad came to mind, I absolutely didn’t want to play the game anymore, so I just turned off the laptop and lay down on the bed.

Our mom and dad lived like fools. They just worked too hard and died. I find that so unfair. Sometimes I feel so wronged and angry that I want to pound my chest with my fists.

*

It was very late at night. At that time, my brother was sleeping in his room, and I was watching TV in the living room. Thinking that mom and dad were a bit late today, I was sprawled out watching when I received a phone call.

They said they had been hit by a drunk driver and died instantly at the scene of the accident.

Our parents disappeared from this world too suddenly, without even saying goodbye.