Everyone is Young Except for Me

A new morning began. I jogged lightly as the sunlight opened in front of me. Then I sat on a bench and gasped for breath. I was sitting across from plants where the buds were about to bloom.

“P... pant...”

Damn, it had been a long time since I had done exercises in the morning with a hangover. I was going to die. It would be strange to be fine when I drank so much alcohol. By the way, I didn’t expect virtual reality to affect reality. Ugh, it was coming up again.

“Oof...”

The celebration in Mulan yesterday. The statue’s face was revealed and many users made a commotion when they saw it. The good news was that it was wearing the mask like I wanted. There were many speculation and sighs but users noticed that the celebration had begun. They seemed to forget about the statue as they ate, drank and enjoyed themselves.

However, there were some things I wouldn’t forget.

“Damn drunkard.”

It turned out that Philos’ father was the man who ran Mulan’s largest beer store. Mulan’s special beer was provided by Philos and it was enjoyed and drank by villagers all day. There was one problem.

...It was the fact that I was included in it. Like the son of a brewer, Philos constantly drank beer. He kept using the excuse of making toasts to make me drink. I couldn’t remember how many liters of beer that I enjoyed. The last memory I had was participating in a drinking showdown but it seemed like I lost.

“I would’ve won if it was soju.”

I firmly pressed my index finger to my forehead. Groan. I was glad that soldiers had been guarding the entrance. It would’ve been very tiring if users were in the crowd. Well, at least I hadn’t been discovered. I had to comfort myself with this.

Once I got home, the first thing I did was turn on a game broadcasting channel. Most of the news was about Arkstar. At the end, there was a discussion about yesterday’s celebration.

-The face of the statue in Mulan was revealed yesterday. At the same time, a celebration was held. The owner of the statue was at the scene yesterday but I think it is necessary to check the facts.

-That’s right. That evening, the face of the statue was revealed. Surprisingly, the statue’s face was wearing a mask.

-I see. I think he is trying to hide his identity.

-I don’t know why but I guess that is probably the case.

-Experts are divided about the class of the hero of Mulan’s. Let me tell you about this.

-First, let’s look at the screen.

On the screen, I summoned Solar and lit the wooden tower. “Damn. When was that taken?”

“Huh? Father, what did you say just now?” My daughter-in-law looked back as she washed the dishes.

I waved to her like it wasn’t a big deal. “I was talking to myself. Don’t worry about it.”

-If you look closely, you’ll see that a small fire was summoned.

-It is really true.

-It can be inferred that this person has a summoning or magician class.

-Some people claim that he is the new figure of the prophecy, a hidden legend.

-It is absurd. Originally, the Star Fruit isn’t something that can be easily obtained. Even Michael, the world number one, could only get it when he was barely past level 200.

-That makes sense. Now, let’s finish the broadcast on time. Thank you, Expert-nim. 

-Yes, thank you.

“Father seems to be watching many Arkstar related broadcasts these days. You must be having a lot of fun. Hoho.” My daughter-in-law finished washing the dishes and approached with one hand covering her mouth.

“Yes. It is more fun than I thought. Play it with me when you have time. How about it?”

“Hoho, really? That’s good. I think it would be nice to have our family together later on.”

“Um, I also think that is good.”

“When would be a good time?”

“There is still a lot of time so think about it slowly. Keke.”

I spent the whole morning chatting normally with my daughter-in-law.

* * *

[Welcome to Arkstar.]

The familiar female voice rang in my ears. The moment I opened my eyes, I stood in the middle of the town where the festival had taken place yesterday. However, there was a problem.

“Ah! Isn’t it that person? He is the same as the statue.”

“What? Really? Where?”

“Really! He is the hero of Mulan!”

...Something was ominous.

[The first apostle, ‘Prometheus,’ is starting the route guidance.]

“Damn.”

I started running without looking back. The users gathered at a tremendous rate and I was astonished by the sight.

“Kyaaak! Catch him!”

“Let’s chase!”

“Let's get his autograph!”

No, why were they chasing me? The number of people increased from 5 to around 30, 100, and then 500 after a while. Some people didn’t know why they were following. They just found it interesting and joined in. I guessed that chasing a truck spraying mosquito repellent smoke would be like this.

“Run~ run~”

“I don’t know what it is but it’s very exciting!”

“Catch him~ yay!”

Crazy bastards. I wanted to tell them that it wasn’t exciting at all. I listened to the voices in my ears and became even angrier. Dammit. If I knew this, I would’ve just broken the statue. After a brief disturbance, I ran into a blocked alley.

“There are all kinds of things. Truly.” I thought those words were appropriate to be used in this case.

The users’ footsteps got closer and my heart pounded. I didn’t think this guide would give me the wrong directions...

The only way was probably to fight. Then someone opened a door and beckoned for me to enter. It was a bit shabby but it seemed appropriate to hide in. “Here! Come here!”

[The first apostle, ‘Prometheus,’ is telling you to go there.]

I quickly ran in and closed the door. I didn’t have time to think about why this person was helping me. Still, I sighed with relief.

I could hear the sound of the users gasping. “Pant. Pant. Where is he?”

“Ah~ I missed him! Damn! It was an opportunity to reveal his identity!”

“I wanted to take a photo with him!”

...Photos were bullshit.

I held my breath until their voices went away. Then a trembling voice was heard in front of me. “Oh... are you okay?”

I looked up and saw a man dressed in a white suit. He had a lot of mousse in his hair and a few wrinkles on his face... no, wait. I knew this person...?

“Are you perhaps Drain?”

“Oh, you know me? It is nice to meet you. I guess you are a Korean person.”

Park Drain. A pioneer in Korean fashion. Someone with a distinctive accent. There was no way I couldn’t know him. The designer in front of me, Drain truly represented South Korea. Why was he here?

* * *

After a while, I sat at a shabby table in his studio and chatted with him. 

“It is fantastic. I never dreamt that Mr Choi would appear here.” He grinned like a child when he saw me with the mask off. 

“Rather, I was more surprised. The pioneer of fashion in Korea is here."

“Oh, I just wanted to find a place to burn my last passion."

His mouth curved up slightly. Last passion...

I told him, “It is the same for me.”

“Then you are a chef in the game?”

“That's right.”

“Amazing! I haven’t forgotten the taste when I ate with my son at Wolunjeong. I’m looking forward to it, Mister Choi.”

In the past, he had come to Wolunjeong as a guest when I had the highest authority. The appearance of him eating with his son was still vivid. The memories of that time came to my mind and I couldn’t help smiling. "Do you make clothes here?"

“Yes, that’s right. New fabrics and fashions attracted me here.”

...He was probably a designer. In the past when I went to Kunta for a class change, I had seen a ‘designer’ in the list of classes. He must have a designer class. Maybe I could leave this to him. “Do you make clothes?”

“Oh, if you need anything then just pick one. However, my level is low so I’m not very good. It is just usable.”

I turned around at his words and saw clothing of various colours hanging. The clothes had gorgeous patterns that let people see his craftsmanship and there were some unadorned clothes. I confirmed the information of the clothing one by one but there were no chef clothes. It couldn’t be helped...

“I’m sorry, can I ask for a custom outfit? I’ll pay you.”

“Ohu.. really? I’ll do it. Do you have something like a production method?”

I quickly pulled out a book and handed it to him. It was the way to make the cooking uniform that I obtained from Zalmergus.

"Let's take a look."

His eyes became serious as he started to look through the book. As expected of Korea’s leading fashion pioneer. It was true that he had a weakness for clothes. His eyes were unusual. His eyes repeatedly grew bigger and smaller but he was a craftsman in a different field from me. 

Finally, Drain closed the book. “Amazing!”

“......”

“Fantasutic! So beaulipul! Wonderpul!"  [1]

What was he saying? I was absentminded when Drain opened his mouth. “Mister Choi. This is a really amazing way to make clothes. How did you obtain this?”

“I received it from a friend. It is said to be a method from their ancestor that has been passed down from generation to generation.”

“It is really amazing. Mister Choi has a great friend.”

Was it that great...? I was a layman when it came to clothes and didn’t even know the performance, so I didn’t think much about it. However, it was different when he talked about it this way. I requested, “Can I ask you to do this?”

“Rather, I would like to ask you. It is an outfit I really want to make.”

He was so excited when talking that he didn’t even use his distinctive accent. It seemed that he didn’t want to miss this opportunity.

“I don’t need any payment. Rather, please acquire the leather I need to make this.”

He pulled out a pen and paper and handed me the list of necessary materials. I glanced at the materials on the paper.

-Goblin Leather (0/100)

...Goblin leather. I didn’t think this was a problem. Goblin Leather was overflowing in my inventory right now. I hadn’t known how to handle it but now I could hand it over.

-Gnoll’s Fur Leather (0/50)

Gnoll? What type of monster was this? I would have to ask Chen. “Is it really just these two materials?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’m sorry that I can’t make it better since my level is low.”

“It’s fine. I also have a low level.”

Drain’s eyes widened slightly. “What is Mister Choi’s level? I heard that you wiped out the goblin village. How can a chef...”

I opened my status window and told Drain, “It says I’m level 15.”

"What? Reolli?” 

I didn’t know much English but I knew he was surprised. His eyes were still wide. In this case, it was quicker to show him.

[You have sent a party invitation to the user ‘Drain.’]

[A party has been formed.]

He checked my level and his mouth dropped open.

“Wat-da-fuk!"

[1] English with a Korean pronunciation