Chapter 2: Troublemaker.

“Then shall we wrap up the first round here and go for a second if anyone wants?”

The atmosphere must have been good, because more people raised their hands than I expected.

The ones who didn’t raise their hands were me. And the girl named Yuna I’d seen earlier.

It looked like the pair who’d been dragged along were going to drop out after the first round.

“Jaemin. I’m leaving now.”

“Yeah. Get home safe! Thanks for today, Woohyuk.”

He was capable, that bastard.

Jaemin already seemed to have a girl whose eyes he’d met.

Judging by how the two of them kept going outside and coming back in.

But that had nothing to do with me.

I left the bar and walked slowly toward home.

I’d go home, watch some of Uni’s VTube, and sleep.

Drinking and socializing with people had left me unnecessarily tired.

Lying on the bed after a shower and watching my favorite videos was like the only drug the country allowed.

That was the happiest moment in my life.

I was spinning happy thoughts about what to rewatch today when…

“Haa… Dizzy…”

A girl’s sigh came from beside me.

It was Yuna.

Apparently we were heading the same direction home.

That was fine.

More than that, she looked really unstable. It felt like she might crash into something.

Yuna couldn’t even keep a proper walking form, like some completely drunk middle-aged men.

I was genuinely worried she might fall over or slam into a roadside tree while walking.

She must have drunk too much while quietly sipping alone.

If we were complete strangers it might be different. But we already knew each other’s faces.

We were even in the same department.

“Huuah… Ah.”

Yuna, who had been stumbling along, let out a strange noise and plopped down right there.

Then she pressed one hand hard against her head and frowned.

When a person suddenly sat down right in front of me, I was startled and approached her.

“Hey. Are you okay?”

A question asked purely out of concern.

Yuna looked up at me with a completely flushed face and answered.

“Wh-who are youuu?”

How drunk was she that she couldn’t even recognize the person she’d just been drinking with.

We were drinking together until just now.

Was my presence that weak.

Well, I hadn’t said a single word, so maybe.

“We were drinking together until just now. You don’t remember?”

Yuna seemed to think for a moment.

“…Ah. I rememberrr. You’re Woo-hyookie, right?”

She called my name with completely drunken, twisted pronunciation.

At least she remembered that much.

“Yeah. So can you get up?”

“Uuung~. I can’t get uuup.”

The girl put her hands on the ground, shook her head side to side, and spoke in a voice mixed with aegyo.

Looks like she’s the type who does aegyo when she’s drunk.

Drunken antics varied, so this level was still mild.

It was obvious she couldn’t get home alone, so I decided to call a taxi and asked for her address.

“Hey. Where’s your house?”

“My houseee…? Oveeer theeere.”

“That white villa?”

When I said that, Yuna nodded repeatedly.

The place she pointed to was a white villa on a hill that was visible after a short walk.

It was less than a five-minute walk from here.

Calling a taxi felt awkward in this situation.

But just leaving her here made me uneasy.

There had been a lot of minor crimes around this area recently, so police were even patrolling.

If I left her here and something happened, I’d probably lose sleep over it.

I also couldn’t just tell a girl who couldn’t even walk to go alone.

Tsk… I don’t even like sticking my nose into other people’s business like this.

“Get on. I’ll take you home.”

Fine. I’ll just close my eyes and suffer for five minutes to take her home.

I crouched in front of her and patted my back to signal her to get on.

“Uuung. Okayyy.”

I wasn’t sure if she understood what I said, but at least she was being obedient, which was a relief.

She wriggled around, climbed onto my back, and wrapped her arms around my shoulders.

The problem was that she was drunk, so there was no strength in her arms.

In the end I supported her under the thighs and stood up while carrying her.

“Up we go.”

When I carried Yuna, the smell of alcohol mixed with the scent of shampoo drifted over.

And when her completely feminine body pressed against me, I felt the soft sensation of her body.

For someone with no experience with women like me, it was a bit of a strong stimulus, but I forced myself to ignore it.

Still, it was a relief that she was light.

Yuna had a slim build even from the outside, so she didn’t feel that heavy when I carried her.

“Ehehe. This is fuuun.”

“Hey, stay still.”

Yuna was laughing excitedly on my back like a daughter being carried by her dad.

Her endlessly pure-looking appearance was so absurd it made me laugh.

This girl really shouldn’t drink.

I started walking toward Yuna’s house while carrying her.

Since both my hands were occupied I couldn’t use my phone, so random thoughts kept coming.

“It really sounds exactly the same no matter how many times I hear it…”

I’d felt it since earlier, but this girl’s voice was too similar to Uni’s.

Even the drunken voice.

I roughly remembered Uni’s voice from when she did a drinking stream.

How could even this be so similar?

Come to think of it, there was a legendary aegyo clip of Uni that day and we teased her about it for a while.

Even if it was her, there was no way to confirm it.

Uni was a so-called dual identity streamer.

She used a character illustration and still never turned on the cam.

[I’m in university, so it’d be a bit awkward if my face got out there for no reason.]

[Once I graduate I might think about doing cam streams then…]

Still, except for her face, the rest had already appeared on cam a lot.

She often did hand cams, and when she did unboxings her whole body naturally showed.

“Stop the otaku delusions!”

Even so, this girl is Uni?

There’s no way. This isn’t some drama. Something like that wouldn’t happen in real life.

While I was letting my imagination run wild, I arrived in front of the villa before I knew it.

As expected of a villa where a girl lived, there was a common entrance.

“Hey. The common entrance. What’s the password?”

“Not heeey. It’s Yunaaa.”

Is she asking me to call her by name?

She really was something else.

“Fine. Yuna. What’s the password.”

“Passwooord… 6024.”

At least she knew the password.

That was a relief. Honestly if she didn’t know it I was planning to just dump her here and leave.

I’d done my duty enough with this.

“Yuna. What number is your place?”

I pressed the elevator button and asked Yuna.

“My house. 402.”

“Good girl. Nice answer.”

“Hehe.”

…She likes it. What am I supposed to do with this girl.

If she’d run into some weird guy instead of me, it could have been really bad.

Soon the elevator arrived and we got off on the fourth floor.

402 is… here.

I stood in front of the unit number she’d told me and asked Yuna again.

“Yuna. Do you know the house password by any chance?”

“…Mmnya.”

“Yuna?”

Don’t tell me she’s fallen asleep while being carried?

We’re already here. We just need to open this.

I shook my body to somehow wake Yuna up.

“Hey! Don’t sleep and open this already!”

“…Uuung?”

“Tell me the password and then sleep.”

“1224… Mmm.”

1224…?

[Everyone write it down. December 24th. Because it’s Uni’s birthday.]

[No no. It’s not like I’m asking for donations or anything. I just said it.]

It’s the same as Uni’s birthday.

…It must be a coincidence. Who would be dumb enough to use their own birthday as the house password?

Whatever it was, it was fine.

I just wanted to finish this quickly and go home.

– Beep beep beep beep.

I entered the door lock password, opened the front door, and stepped into the entryway.

A neatly organized home and a pleasant scent drifting from inside.

She must keep the place really clean.

How did such a put-together girl end up like this.

This was why alcohol was scary.

“Hey. Get down now. I need to go home.”

Ahh. Finally free from this burden.

Just watch me stick my nose into other people’s business again after this.

That was the kind of day it was.

But what Yuna did next was even more ridiculous.

“Get dooown…? I don’t wannaa… Take me to the bed…”

Like a child throwing a tantrum, Yuna clung tightly to my shoulders and refused to let go.

I seriously wanted to flick her forehead.

At this point shouldn’t I at least get paid?

Heat was slowly rising inside me, but it wasn’t like she asked me to do this. I was the one who stuck my nose in alone.

Fine. Since I’ve come this far, let’s just think of it as extra service.

Only up to there and then I’m leaving.

With that thought I dragged my legs, which had started trembling a little, and stepped into the house.

It was a one-living-room one-bedroom layout, so finding the room was easy.

I opened the door and tossed Yuna onto the bed that was right there.

“Uuuum… It’s a bed. Hihi.”

When she landed on the bed, Yuna giggled and made a happy-looking smile.

Now I should go home too.

I was about to leave the room with that thought when the desk in front of the bed caught my eye for no reason.

Computer equipment that didn’t seem like something you’d normally use in a regular home.

Two monitors and a case that looked flashy from the outside.

And even a microphone sitting on the desk whose purpose I couldn’t quite place.

As someone whose only hobbies were streaming and games, it was a scene that drew my interest.

So there were girls who set things up this seriously just to play games.

It felt a bit like seeing the fantasy girl I’d only heard about on streams.

And the moment I saw the small teddy bear placed next to the monitor.

My mind snapped awake.

“Wait… Why is that here…?”

It wasn’t just any teddy bear.

A teddy bear wearing clothes with “Uni” embroidered in pink English letters.

That was the doll I’d sent as a birthday gift to Uni.

[Wow. This is really cute. I’ll put it on the table and look at it every day. Thank you.]

She had clearly said that…

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

Once I realized it, my heart started pounding hard.

The familiar voice, the suspiciously good equipment, and even the teddy bear I’d gifted.

It felt like every puzzle piece was fitting into one place.

“Is this real…?”

If my guess was right…

I was currently inside the house of my favorite streamer, Uni.