By Zephyria 
…The Alliance bulletin board?
(Alliance) 0momo0: Why did Miu leave their account number there?
(Whisper) Opening: It’s complicated, but basically, some Alliance member scammed people a long time ago, so they posted a public call-out.
(Whisper) Opening: If you look at the comments, Miu left their account number lol.
Though he didn’t fully understand, Mo Yeon-hu felt he needed to find the post Opening was talking about. With a troubled expression, he clicked on the Alliance bulletin board.
[47 Alliance] Welcome. This is the 47 Alliance bulletin board!
Along with the welcome greeting, a list of posts appeared. Most were announcements from the staff or informative posts left by Alliance Members.
[Alliance Notice] Distribution of Siege Warfare Results – Shin Jadu
[Alliance Strategy] Rules for Dealing with Hostile Alliances – Shin Jadu
[Tip] Updated Cooking List – BBQ
[Alliance Notice] Gathering Ground Relocation – Miu
[Tip] Alliance Territory Layout Changes – GoodLuck
[Alliance Event] How to Use Alliance Points – Shin Jadu
Mo Yeon-hu slowly scanned through the posts. However, he was only relaxed at first. The mouse wheel, which had been turning slowly, was soon moving violently. Then, a specific sentence caught his eye.
**
[Call-out] I am sorry for scamming – chenha88
**
‘This must be the post Opening mentioned.’
As soon as he clicked the title, a short loading screen appeared, followed by an apology letter.
[Alliance Member Post] I am sorry for scamming – chenha88
I am sorry. I scammed items.
I pocketed the items that Miu asked me to buy in the meantime.
I also embezzled the gold saved up for Alliance purchases.
And…
‘They really took a lot.’
The content was roughly an apology for using loopholes in the Alliance system to secretly skim off gold donated by Alliance Members and Alliance funds.
At the end of the long-winded apology, the main point was that they would pay it back in gold as soon as possible, and there was one comment attached to it.
Comment
Miu:
Cut the crap and just deposit it. XX3813-913-912
It was Miu.
(Whisper) Opening: Did you find it?? lol
(Whisper) Opening: Try transferring to that. The name should pop up! lol
It really seemed to be Miu’s account.
“…….”
Mo Yeon-hu reread the giggling chat and stared blankly at the screen. Since Opening wasn’t exactly a trustworthy person, he didn’t believe them entirely. Furthermore, using personal information like this behind someone’s back wasn’t an honorable thing to do. But.
‘Why does this keep bothering me….’
He couldn’t just ignore Opening’s words.
‘Did I unconsciously start thinking that Miu might not be Ms. Mi-yeong?’
The strange sense of dissonance he had felt while playing the game. For instance, Miu, who had a foul mouth unlike Ms. Mi-yeong; Miu, who was cold and didn’t trust people, unlike the affectionate Ms. Mi-yeong… Moreover, the cynical attitude in every situation and the way they tried to use others.
‘No. People don’t always have to be consistent.’
Contrary to his thoughts, however, Mo Yeon-hu’s hand was steadily entering the banking app, pressing the transfer button, and entering Miu’s account number.
‘I’m just doing this to be sure. It’ll definitely say Kang Mi-yeong. Whose ID is this anyway. Naturally…….’
But Mo Yeon-hu could no longer continue his train of thought.
To: Kwon Mi-eon
XX Bank XX3813-913-912
How much would you like to send?
0 won
“Kwon Mi-eon?”
Mo Yeon-hu froze stiff at those three syllables.
‘No, that’s possible.’
They’re family. Since the world is dangerous these days, she might have posted Kwon Mi-eon’s account instead. So Miu must be Ms. Mi-yeong, she is, but…….
Mo Yeon-hu stared at the screen with a sunken expression.
‘Could it be… that Kwon Mi-eon is Miu?’
He scoffed at the thought that suddenly occurred to him. There was no way.
‘Him… Hyung does this?’
‘Yeah. Zombie Village. Do you know it?’
‘No. I have no idea.’
‘Kwon Mi-eon said back then that he didn’t know games like this at all.’
So there was no way Kwon Mi-eon was Miu.
‘……But what if, by some chance, Kwon Mi-eon is Miu?’
What if Kwon Mi-eon knew everything but pretended not to?
‘No, that can’t be.’
What would he even gain by doing that? He felt like he was making all sorts of bizarre assumptions now, but the ominous premonition blooming in a corner of his heart would not subside.
(Whisper) Opening: Did it pop up??
(Whisper) Opening: The name sounds like a guy’s name, doesn’t it? lol
(Whisper) Opening: I told you the Alliance Master is a guy!
(Whisper) Opening: If you still can’t believe it, try calling.
(Whisper) Opening: The voice is a total old-school tone, like it’s been that way since the voice-changing period lol.
Opening’s flamboyant character giggled in response to the ‘lol’. Staring blankly at that, Mo Yeon-hu turned off the game immediately instead of replying.
‘It’s better to check in person.’
However, once anxiety takes root, it doesn’t disappear easily. Unable to hide his agitation, Mo Yeon-hu grabbed his car keys and stood up.
Business Hours
Sunday AM 9:00 ~ PM 11:00
Weekdays AM 8:00 ~ PM 11:00
Saturday AM 9:00 ~ PM 11:00
“Am I an idiot….”
It was 6 AM, and the sun hadn’t even fully risen; there was no way the cafe was open. After parking across from the cafe, Mo Yeon-hu stared at his watch, shaking his legs, lost in thought.
‘Kwon Mi-eon, Kang Mi-yeong…… Miu.’
The names tangled in his mind. His head was a mess. The assumption that Kwon Mi-eon might be Miu was chilling and horrifying just to think about, but.
‘Doesn’t it actually suit him….’
Strangely, he didn’t feel like it was wrong. Even if Kwon Mi-eon were Miu, there wasn’t much of a sense of incongruity….
‘There’s no way. It can’t be.’
But it couldn’t. It absolutely could not be. If so, hadn’t he been acting all cute, flattering, and flirting with Kwon Mi-eon all this time!
“…It’s Ms. Mi-yeong.”
After enduring for about an hour in the car, shaking his legs with an anxious heart, Mo Yeon-hu—already pale from retracing everything—finally saw Mi-yeong walking in the distance.
She took out her key, opened the cafe door, and turned on the lights. The moment spent waiting for the opening felt like an eternity to Mo Yeon-hu. Even while suppressing his heart, which was pounding as if it would burst, time flowed, and the cafe finally opened.
Tinkle!
“Welcome!”
However, the walk to the cafe was not easy. Mo Yeon-hu hesitated several times before he could finally step inside.
A cheerful voice, a bright face, a kind smile. Kang Mi-yeong was someone who made you feel good just by looking at her. Mi-yeong looked up and locked eyes with Mo Yeon-hu. Her round eyes widened further.
“Oh?! Hello! It’s been such a long time.”
He faced her as she greeted a regular customer warmly. But it was strange.
‘What is this?’
Mo Yeon-hu paused. It was different from the previous sensation where he couldn’t help but be happy just by seeing her face. For some reason, he felt a sense of distance compared to before….
“Hello.”
Mo Yeon-hu greeted her, trying his best to ignore that ominous feeling.
“It’s been a very long time since you visited! Have you been doing well? …Ah! Right. I should take your order first. I’m sorry…. I was just so glad to see you after so long.”
Kang Mi-yeong smiled kindly and stood in front of the POS machine.
“What would you like to order?”
Mo Yeon-hu’s lips twitched. He hadn’t come to order. He had rushed here because he had a mountain of things he wanted to ask.
‘But how do I bring this up? That there’s someone I play a game with, and I want to know if it’s you?’
Now that he was looking at her face, the words got stuck in his throat.
“Just a hot vanilla latte, please…… uh.”
Mo Yeon-hu stopped mid-sentence, habitually deciding it was better to order first. His gaze was fixed on one spot.
‘Ms. Mi-yeong’s phone?’
A phone was tucked into her apron.
‘Was the case always that flashy?’
He couldn’t remember exactly what model the phone was that he had seen before, but the case was definitely different. He was sure it had been simple, but the one currently tucked into her apron was…….
‘Flowers?’
It was covered in crudely drawn flowers. And among them was a strangely distorted female character.
“Oh? Were you looking at this? It’s pretty, right!”
Kang Mi-yeong, who was standing in front of him, also followed his gaze and spoke in a bright voice.
“Ah, yes… the phone case is pretty.”
“My nephew drew me. Didn’t he do a great job?!”
Kang Mi-yeong boasted about the character, which bore the clumsy touch of a child, along with hearts and flowers.
‘Did she change the case?’
It wasn’t a design that one would easily forget after seeing it once, yet this was the first time Mo Yeon-hu had seen it.
“Did you change it recently?”
“Huh? No! I’ve used this for a very long time. Maybe about two years?”
“Ah, really…… what?”
Two years? Two years?
A few months ago, the phone sitting on the counter had a simple case, Zombie Village was running, and the player’s nickname was Miu.
‘Then what was I looking at back then?’
Mo Yeon-hu’s mind was in chaos. Staring blankly into space, he whipped his head around and asked Kang Mi-yeong.
“By any chance… do you like games?”
“Pardon?”
“Games.”
Kang Mi-yeong tilted her head, as Mo Yeon-hu, who usually didn’t talk to her, was asking a question on a sudden topic. However, she soon smiled shyly.
“I love games!”
Mo Yeon-hu felt relieved.
Ah, thank goodness. Ms. Mi-yeong did play games after all…….
“I really love spending time with puzzle games. Like Sudoku, Nonograms, things like that?”
……Puz…zles?
‘Puzzles, what?’
Toward the bewildered Mo Yeon-hu, Kang Mi-yeong turned on her phone screen and showed him. Inside, a colorful puzzle game was running.
‘What about Zombie Village?’
The brutal battlefield Mo Yeon-hu was looking for was nowhere to be found. As he stared blankly at the screen in confusion, Kang Mi-yeong, thinking he also liked those kinds of games, began to chatter away.
“By the way, you must like games too? My cousin likes them too.”
Cousin. Mo Yeon-hu flinched when the word referring to the ever-present Kwon Mi-eon came out. Unaware of his reaction, Kang Mi-yeong continued her story.
“I actually saw him playing one, and it looked pretty fun. He plays it on the computer and on his phone, and some weird monsters come out, the name was…….”
Mo Yeon-hu clenched his fist. He felt like he could guess the rest without even hearing it.
“Zombie Village!”
Only then could Mo Yeon-hu no longer deny it. He closed his eyes tight and bit his trembling lip.
“Kwon Mi-eon seems to be having a lot of fun with that game!”
Miu is Kwon Mi-eon. Fuck!