#(just fyi you got two parts today bc i posted none yesterday lmao)

[sic-fayl]

Guild Member Next Door (kinda) translation - Part 4

Click here for the previous part - or click here for Part 1!

Disclaimer, as always: This is based on an MTL translation, I do not know Korean myself, I am trying more to stick with the impressions/vibes of a sentence instead of a strict word-for-word meaning - and most importantly, this is only for fun.

Back to the story:

Yeo-woon had been busy collecting things from the Auction House in its dialogue window. A few hours ago, one of his auctions finished up and now Yeo-woon had finally found the time to log into the game and collect his earnings.

However, after he had collected them and closed the dialogue window, he was surprised to see a whole group of people next to his own character, with one in particular standing right in front of him. It almost felt like they’d appeared out of nowhere.

And then there was the fact that these person couldn’t have known that Yeo-woon had just finished up his business with the Auction House a moment ago. Or in other words, that he had just now noticed the group’s presence. Instead, these people must have arrived here just a second ago, by concidence at perfectly the right time for Yeo-woon to spot them right away. That was the only possible explanation for the speech bubble that immediately appeared above the person closest to him.

[All] Ji9Star: Hey!!

‘Ah, there we go. I’m sure the Guild Master chewed you out for what you did, right? So you’re here to finally apologize for real?’

Yeo-woon couldn’t help but cackle a little - or maybe more than just ‘a little’, considering that, by the end, the corners of his lips had stretched as close to his ears as they could get…

[All] Ji9Star: Hahaha really now

[All] Ji9Star: Why are you doing this to me? ㅠ_ㅠ

[All] Ji9Star: So you don’t know me?

It was obvious Earth Star had to be fuming behind his screen.

‘Good, you bastard…’

[All] Ji9Star: You really don’t know me?

[All] neutaaaa: Lmao no?

[All] Ji9Star: Well then

[All] Ji9Star: Let’s change that!

‘Ji9Star wants to start a relationship with you! Do you accept?’

Just then, a notification popped up on the screen with a cute noise.

‘A… Friend Request sent by Earth Star… is not what this is. He wants a relationship?’

“...what?”

[All] Halloween Eggplant: ?? Did you go insane for real?? lmaoooo

Below the notification window, Earth Star’s character had bent down on one knee and was holding a ring in his outstretched hands, as if presenting it to Yeo-woon’s own character.

And the whole Poseidon guild was assembled behind Earth Star, the little Poseidon guild icon visible above each of their usernames and making it easy to tell them apart from the rest of the users milling about the village.

[All] CroakRush: ??? Lmaooooooo

[All] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: I was eating ramen, but someone said Earth was gonna apologize. Never seen an apology like this…

[All] CroakRush: What kind did you get?

[All] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: Spicy beef soup!

[All] CroakRush: Ah that’s delicious… Especially when you get the undercooking part of the recipe just right!

[All] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: Undercooking?

[All] CroakRush: Ah such a clueless cat…

Each of the different characters had their own shining outfit with unique special effects and they seemed a bit overwhelming because of it. Yeo-woon felt unnecessarily intimidated, with all these fancy characters surrounding his own plain one.

[All] Impeatuous Peatection: Lmaoo Earth’s actually gone off the deep end. Yesterday was bad, but today is somehow worse.

[All] Impeatuous Peatection: A legit shotgun proposal waa

[All] Captain Poseidon: …

[All] CroakRush: What even is this? He finally broke our guild master ㅠ lmaooooo

[All] Halloween Eggplant: My screenshot button doesn’t work… Pls someone else immortalize this mess for me?

[All] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: On it

[All] Halloween Eggplant: Tyty

‘Is this the cyberbullying that schools and parents warn you about? Isn’t it unfair, to bring all your friends when you go make fun of someone…?’

There were a lot of Poseidon guild members around him and he was sure they had to be on Earth Star’s side. And in contrast, Yeo-woon himself didn’t have a single gaming buddy. Normally, he didn’t care either, but in this situation, even he felt like it’d be nice to have someone to call in as reinforcement…

[All] Ji9Star: Will you accept my proposal?

[All] neutaaaa: No.

[All] Ji9Star: I bought 50 rings for this. Think I’ll need more? >_<

‘Fifty…?’

Yeo-woon blinked and stared at the information on his screen, the Relationship notification still big and bright in the middle of it all.

‘Why is he suddenly…? What the hell is that guy planning?’

These steadily increasing worries made his skin crawl.

‘You rejected the relationship. The Confession Rejection buff will be active for the next 10 minutes!’

‘Minimum Attack Damage increased by 25%’

[All] Halloween Eggplant: He got kicked to the curb lmaooo

[All] CroakRush: Lmaoooo

[All] Impeatuous Peatection: Lmaoooo

[All] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: Valid. Who’d wanna be stuck with Earth?

[All] Ji9Star: 4,9k won wasted ㅠoㅠ

[All] Impeatuous Peatection: So? You still got 49 anyway.

[All] Ji9Star: 5k won is like 20 pulls in the Royal Draw tho ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

The Royal Draw was a lottery ticket. The item could be bought at stores in the game, but only for 200won of real money. When Yeo-woon read Earth Star’s words, he realized this 4,900won ring must be another item like that and only available to people willing to use real money for it.

“That’s crazy. One of these costs actual 4,900won? 4,900won for some rejectable one-time-use dating item?”

When someone really seriously thought about it, 4,900won wasn’t that much money, but when it was spent on something in a game it suddenly felt like a way higher amount to Yeo-woon.

‘Ji9Star wants to start a relationship with you! Do you accept?’

Earth Star was using an item here that was worth 4,900won… But then again, no matter how a part of Yeo-woon wanted to fold under the item’s price, it also felt more than a little unfair. Earth Star was the one who had started their whole conflict in the first place, and then hadn’t seriously apologized for his actions either…

‘So why do I feel like I'm the one being punished now?’

[All] neutaaaa: Why are you doing this to me?

[All] Ji9Star: Lmaooooo

[All] Ji9Star: Because our guild master said I have to show my sincerity in front of everyone

[All] Captain Poseidon: ?

[All] Ji9Star: So here I am, showing you my sincerity ♡

Somehow, the heart at the end of the sentence didn’t look natural at all… and resembled a skull split in half way more than a heart… so it just looked like an omen of even worse things to come, nothing positive about it at all…

‘Are you secretly planning to have me assassinated?’

[All] Captain Poseidon: When did I say that…? I just told you to sincerely apologize.

[All] Ji9Star: “If Earth Star proves his sincerity and that user accepts it, I will give his position back to him.”

[All] Ji9Star: Didn’t you say that? You never told me to apologize! I even have witnesses!

[All] Captain Poseidon: So where are these witnesses?

As soon as the Captain asked, some guild members, who had so far been quietly watching the scene unfold, stepped forward and claimed to be the witnesses in question.

[All] Halloween Eggplant: Witness 1 here

[All] CroakRush: Witness 2 reporting in!

[All] al0ha: Haha, sure ig. Idr the words tho lmao. But I can be Witness 3

[All] Captain Poseidon: Ah…

[All] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: Lmaoo Witness 4 here

[All] CroakRush: And Witness 5!!

Everyone was joking around and laughing it off, but Yeo-woon couldn’t even get the slightest smile onto his lips.

‘I saw you say that ring is worth 4,900won… and you’re wasting it on a prank?’

It seemed like the only people here who didn’t think the situation was funny were Captain Poseidon and Yeo-woon.

While he sat there, unsure what to do and unable to pick between the big Accept or Reject buttons in front of him, there was also a number, steadily counting down with each passing second. The closer it got to zero, the brighter and bigger it seemed. For the last seconds, Yeo-woon stared at it as it reached its end:  3, 2, 1, and…

It was depressing, to see money evaporate into thin air like that. Of course, this wasn’t Yeo-woon’s own money and so he could have just decided this wasn’t his business either… but it was still such a waste… Especially when yet another Relationship request popped up, right after he’d let this second one run out.

Without thinking about what he was doing, Yeo-woon moved his cursor to the Accept button…

As soon as the mouse click registered, both in his mind and the game, a vibrant heart effect filled the whole monitor and light pink flower petals fluttered everywhere. The only other thing visible on screen were the countless speech bubbles, all containing variations of: ‘hahahahahaha’

‘Your relationship has been confirmed! Please check your received skills in the Couple screen! ♡’

‘The [Couple] tab has been added to the chat box. You can now hold secret conversations with your lover!’

[All] Ji9Star: Huh? He really accepted it lmao. I guess he does like me…

[All] neutaaaa: Ew…

[All] Ji9Star: Agreed ><

[All] Halloween Eggplant: This really is the best theatre in town

[All] CroakRush: Ah but this play’s got a sad end, right? They’ll divorce before their honeymoon even starts…

[All] Halloween Eggplant: No spoilers please

And that’s how Yeo-woon found himself with an in-game lover. One he didn’t get along with and had only met the day before.

[All] Ji9Star: Lmaooo Now we can grow closer >_<

[All] neutaaaa: No

[All] Ji9Star: Then why even accept…

‘What a stroke of bad luck…’

Yeo-woon felt really annoyed. He moved his character to hit Earth Star’s with his fists, spamming normal attacks that did nothing.

[All] Ji9Star: This place gives awesome massages~

[All] neutaaaa: ㅡㅡ;

All the users with a Poseidon icon were laughing in chat.

[Whispering] Captain Poseidon: I’m sorry, I’m really sorry ㅠㅠ I just wanted you to get a real apology. He will be punished for this, I swear.

Even though Yeo-woon had started resenting Earth Star, he also felt sorry for Poseidon’s Guild Master, who seemed to truly mean what he said.

‘I can’t believe these people have a Guild Master this kind. He’s amazing.’

[Whispering] neutaaaa: It’s okay, I can handle it myself… Thank you for caring enough to offer though

[Whispering] Captain Poseidon: Nooo ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ Ahh ㅠㅠㅠ I’m sorry ㅜ

[Whispering] neutaaaa: I’m the one who accepted haha.

[Whispering] Captain Poseidon: I’m still sorry ㅠㅠㅠㅠ

[Whispering] neutaaaa: No, I should be sorry

[Whispering] Captain Poseidon: I’m really sorry though ㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠㅠ

‘No clue who you are, but please don’t waste your tears on that bastard’s actions.’

Yeo-woon felt incredibly sorry for this Guild Master, his heart ached for a person whose face he didn’t even know.

[Couple] Ji9Star: Level 124? Then I’m sure you got the quest to improve your job.

“…!”

‘How did he know?’

Yeo-woon felt goosebumps rise on his skin. He had just received that quest. From Earth Star’s words, it sounded like he could identify a players current quests, just based on a quick glance at their level.

[Couple] Ji9Star: Do you want my help with that?

[Couple] neutaaaa: No

[Couple] Ji9Star: Translation - Yay I’ll get carried

[Couple] neutaaaa: Do we speak the same language? I said I don’t need you

[Couple] Ji9Star: Lmaooooo

[Couple] Ji9Star: Why act like you don’t want it? Wasn’t this your goal all along?

[Couple] neutaaaa: Never

[Couple] Ji9Star: Translation - Oops you caught me

Earth Star made zero sense to Yeo-woon. He didn’t seem apologetic at all. And wouldn’t a person have to be insane, to propose to someone again right away, after they just got rejected by them? After arguing with them in a way that even elementary school kids would be embarrassed by? After going as far as hiring strangers to murder this person in game?

[Couple] neutaaaa: Are you doing this to get revenge?

[Couple] Ji9Star: No? I’m just bored.

[Couple] neutaaaa: Lmao

[Couple] Ji9Star: I can easily level you up, just go afk and eat something or whatever! >_<

[Couple] neutaaaa: I don’t need help.

[Couple] Ji9Star: Until you suddenly change your mind again? I’ll help you get the job change done, just stop tattling on me to our Guild Master.

[Couple] Ji9Star: Sounds like the ideal future, right? All your dreams come true, right? Lol

[Couple] neutaaaa: What?

[Couple] Ji9Star: So we’ll do this on my terms. You don’t talk to other members, stop chewing off the gm’s ears with all your whispers, don’t bother with hellos or byes, and stop acting so friendly. It’s really annoying ㅡㅡ

So all in all, the thing Earth Star wanted was for Yeo-woon to pretend like the entire Poseidon guild and all its members didn’t exist.

“….”

But Yeo-woon saw no reason to let Earth Star have what he wanted. So he pulled up the chat window, scrolled back up to when everyone in Poseidon had been laughing and joking about the proposal and clicked his way through sending friend requests to all of Poseidon’s guild members. With each request, his Friends List grew one username longer….

‘You became friends with Captain Poseidon!’

‘You became friends with al0ha!’

‘You became friends with Kittycat MeowMeowMeow!’

[Friend] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: Thank you, Neu-name… You’ve shown me what kinda person I never want to become.

[Friend] Captain Poseidon: Kitty ㅠㅠ Even if it’s just joke, please don’t say such things…

[Friend] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: So I can say them as long as I mean them????

[Friend] Captain Poseidon: No.

[Friend] Kittycat MeowMeowMeow: Oh…

‘You became friends with CroakRush!’

‘You became friends with Impeatuous Peatection!’

‘You became friends with Halloween Eggplant!’

[Friend] Halloween Eggplant: Wow you added even me

Somehow, not a single person had rejected his friend request, even if Yeo-woon struggled to understand why.

‘Is this the true spirit of MMO gamers?’

He didn’t get why people were so happy to accept his friend requests, when he wasn’t even a member of their guild, but it made him curious to learn more about them.

[Couple] Ji9Star: What did you do?

It turned out the other guild members hadn’t tried to keep Yeo-woon’s flood of friend requests a secret from Earth Star. And so of course, if took no time at all until a notification window popped up on his screen…

‘Ji9star sent a friend request. Do you want to accept?’

‘Am I insane? Go and be friends with yourself.’

‘You have rejected the friend request.’

[Couple] Ji9Star: Wow, this is ridiculous ㅡㅡ

[Couple] Ji9Star: Why not accept it?

[Couple] neutaaaa: I don’t want to.

‘Ji9star sent a friend request. Do you want to accept?’

‘You have rejected the friend request.’

[Couple] Ji9Star: Wow…

[Couple] Ji9Star: Wow… Okay, well I don’t wanna be friends anyway.

‘Ji9star sent a friend request. Do you want to accept?’

‘You have rejected the friend request.’

[Couple] Ji9Star: …

For the rest of the day, Earth Star stayed in a bad mood, because Yeo-woon refused to be in-game friends, no matter how often Earth Star sent the request. Of course, that just meant he kept trying again, occasionally, throughout the day.

‘Ji9star sent a friend request. Do you want to accept?’

‘You have rejected the friend request.’

[Couple] Ji9Star: This is so stupid… You accept my dating request, but you don’t wanna be friends.

[Couple] neutaaaa: If that’s illegal, go file a report.

[Couple] Ji9Star: Do you think you’re super special or something?

[Couple] neutaaaa: Go report me^^

[Couple] neutaaaa: Oh, that’s the boss

[Couple] Ji9Star: Idiot, now it’s caught you;;

[Couple] neutaaaa: So… about that help you offered?

‘Ji9star sent a friend request. Do you want to accept?’

‘You have rejected the friend request.’

[Couple] Ji9Star: You stupid dog. Why won’t you accept me as a friend, even tho I gave you buffs and treats?

[Couple] neutaaaa: Why indeed…

‘So, would you yourself accept a friend that treats you how you treated me, Earth Star?’

There were also plenty signs that Earth Star still hated him. That player was a really strange person…

And so, in just one day, fifteen new people found their way onto Yeo-woon’s Friends List, yet Earth Star was too much to ever fit on there as well.

(Next Part)