[TS] Malicious Sniper

Curry, freshly washed and all, suddenly realized her phone was missing while changing clothes.

As she retraced her steps to figure out where she lost it, she recalled lending her phone to Barcode during their drive broadcast.

She was relieved it wasn’t truly lost, but the fact that Barcode had her phone was already a problem.

If it were Barcode, it was only reasonable to think he might do something weird with her phone.

So, without even properly drying her hair, Curry hurried off to find Barcode.

“Barcode said he’s taking a break in the room.”

Following Ji-hye’s words, Curry headed down to the first floor.

To anyone else, there wouldn’t be a reason to be in such a rush. But with the secret folders that every guy supposedly had…

It was more like a desperate struggle to avoid social suicide than just leaking personal info.

“Curry? Your hair’s still wet and you’re here…”

Curry soon bumped into Barcode on the first floor.

He noticed her damp hair but didn’t press it, as Curry’s main concern was solely getting her phone back from him.

“Barcode, hand over my phone.”

“Ah, so that’s why you rushed down here.”

Barcode pulled out the phone from his pocket and extended it.

However, as Curry reached out to take her phone, Barcode snatched it back again.

“Hmm… what kind of secret could possibly make Curry this desperate?”

“Oh, it’s nothing! Just hurry up!”

Was he enjoying seeing her fidgety like a puppy needing to go out?

With a grin spread across his face, Barcode teased as he waved the phone gently.

“Now I’m even more curious! Could you leave a fingerprint for me, Curry?”

“I’d rather die than do that.”

Given the circumstance, giving a fingerprint basically meant a death sentence in her mind.

“What could possibly be so ugly inside…”

“It’s not like that!”

“Then what is it?”

“…It’s just not.”

Thinking he’d had his fun, Barcode chuckled softly and handed over the phone.

As Curry took back her phone, she checked to see if anything had changed.

The inspection continued as Barcode and Curry made their way back to the second floor.

“I didn’t know you had that kind of taste, Curry.”

“…”

Curry seriously considered stopping her life right there at Ji-hye’s ear-whispered teasing.

“I’m joking. Your phone’s locked, how could I have seen anything?”

“Phew… you really scared me. Please don’t joke like that again…”

As Barcode continued teasing, Curry let out a sigh of relief and grumbled.

So, the two of them joined Ji-hye and Rine, who were already enjoying the spa, for a good soak.

*

This pension had a ridiculous array of facilities.

Well, considering the amount that went flying for the reservation, it wasn’t too surprising.

Still, having a jjimjilbang in the pension was definitely a plus.

“Sis… I think this is my limit…”

“Same here… Are you okay, Barcode?”

The two who bravely decided to challenge the jjimjilbang gave up in less than 20 minutes.

After all, it was warmer than other rooms, so their reactions weren’t that far from normal.

Even with cold Sikhye and boiled eggs to help, the struggling duo still couldn’t beat the heat.

Originally, they wanted to stream in there, but since they were both struggling, that plan was scrapped.

Well, at least Curry, who had gone out for a walk instead, would be back soon, so they wouldn’t be bored.

They waited for about ten more minutes before Curry finally stepped into the jjimjilbang.

“Whew! This is spicier than I expected.”

“What? You just said you could handle the heat earlier, and now you’re whimpering?”

“No, it’s not that… But Barcode, aren’t you dying? This is seriously serious heat!”

Seeing Curry pout cutely, already whining before it even got to the point of struggling was adorable.

Feeling undermined by my laugh, Curry sat next to me, biting her lip, determined to bear the heat of the jjimjilbang.

“How about we make it a bet, Curry?”

“A bet?”

“Yeah. Let’s see who can endure longer.”

As I suddenly proposed this, Curry started thinking hard.

It should’ve been simple to just say yes or no, but why was she taking so long?

Reaching the point where I wondered if both of us were going to roast alive, Curry finally spoke up.

“Are you really confident? You were here half an hour earlier than me.”

“Hmm… I thought you were worried about me, but it turns out you were judging me…”

“Um, no, I wasn’t worried about you specifically. Just fair play since we’re betting. Anyway, that’s my stance.”

As she spoke, maybe feeling embarrassed, Curry turned her head to the side.

Acting nonchalantly, she even whistled like it was no big deal.

“I appreciate the concern, but I’ll pass.”

“Ha, you think you can handle it?”

“Oh, I can. How about this: the loser grants the winner one wish? As long as it’s within reason.”

“Sounds good.”

With that, we capped off the conversation and fell into silence.

Time in the jjimjilbang quietly flowed by.

Thirty minutes flew by in no time, yet the outcome of the bet was still up in the air.

I thought for sure we’d both give up soon since the jjimjilbang was so hot.

But Curry, surprisingly, had been handling the heat like a champ without breaking a sweat.

By this point, it should’ve been time to call it quits, but looking at how fine Curry still was made me think we weren’t there yet.

‘I can’t ask for a handicap now…’

Having already boasted confidently, I couldn’t reverse course and ask for a handicap now.

Losing a bet was way more humiliating than asking for a handicap.

While avoiding Curry’s mocking gaze seemed a bit better than hurting my pride…

“…Barcode, are you struggling?”

“If I said no, that’d be a lie.”

“Then why not just give up? I’m pretty sure I won.”

“Who knows? I can still last longer…”

While I tried to act nonchalant and keep chatting, I suddenly felt the world spin.

“…Huh?”

“Are you coming back to consciousness? Seriously, why are you so stubborn…”

Once I regained my senses, the first thing I saw was Curry’s mixed expression of worry and disbelief.

Looking around, it clicked that I was outside the jjimjilbang, and I had lost the bet.

“Barcode, are you okay? How many fingers do you see?”

“Two.”

“You seem to be lucid… that’s a relief.”

Seeing Curry prioritize caring about me over the bet was a bit touching.

Still, the moment I thought that, it all faded back to the reality of the moment.

“Anyway, I won the bet, right?”

Forget those touching feelings; I was just a fool.

“…I’m such an idiot for getting sentimental.”

“What? What did you say?”

“I said congrats. You won the bet.”

“…You’re not sulking, are you?”

“Who’s sulking? Not sulking at all.”

Turning my head away from Curry, I checked my state.

Though I wore a towel, most of my clothes were damp from being in there so long.

Not one for feeling gross, I got up immediately to wash off.

“Are you off to wash up?”

“Yeah, what about you?”

“I’m going to stay in the jjimjilbang a little longer.”

“You’re not trying to flaunt your victory, are you?”

“Ugh, as if I’d brag about something like that.”

Curry got up and followed me into the jjimjilbang.

I hurried away to the bath, eager to scrub off my sticky sweat.

Thus, the endurance bet in the jjimjilbang ended with Curry’s victory.

*

After washing off with hot water, I thought I’d check back on the jjimjilbang.

Sure enough, Curry was still in there, forcing herself to endure.

From the look on her face, it seemed she was on the verge of passing out.

“Barcode?”

As I stepped inside, Curry looked straight at me.

At least her consciousness was still somewhat intact, I thought.

After taking her hand and dragging her outside, I sat her down in a chair and filled a cup with cold water.

Returning to her, I handed her the cup, which she gulped down instantly.

“Sis, what’s happening?”

Ji-hye, passing by, threw me a curious glance, to which I responded earnestly.

“Glad to see you’re alright.”

While Ji-hye and I chatted, Curry took a few breaths.

I had no idea why she’d pushed herself until I got back from my bath.

Suddenly, an idea popped into my head that I could use this situation to get a laugh from Lee Seo-na.

I pulled out my phone.

“Ji-hye, can you take a picture of us with my phone?”

“You’re going live?”

“Yep.”

Though it was a sudden stream, Ji-hye didn’t bat an eye and obediently took my phone.

“Sis, I’m going to start the broadcast.”

As Ji-hye said that, I closed the distance between me and Curry.

Curry was breathing heavily, and I was slightly flushed from the warm bath.

Whether Lee Seo-na would be watching us in real-time was uncertain.

But at this point, I could imagine her grinding her teeth in envy.

Just thinking about it put me in a good mood.

*

The broadcast starting in the jjimjilbang continued until evening.

If given the choice, I’d have preferred grilling outside.

But it was far too cold out to do that, so we planned for the day before leaving.

There was really no point in grilling when the air was frigid.

Instead, Ji-hye and I decided to prepare dinner together.

Of course, since it was a broadcast, we aimed for some engaging content.

With that, we dragged Curry and Rine, who had been resting, to join us.

“Curry, can you cook?”

“I only know how to boil ramen.”

“What about you, Rine?”

“I’ve never cooked before either.”

After their responses, I quickly brainstormed some content and exchanged glances with Ji-hye.

How about two cooks who are familiar with cooking pair up with two who aren’t?

It wasn’t a bad idea for something thought up on the fly, so I decided to partner with Rine.

I wanted to work with Curry, but that would have hurt Rine’s feelings.

Knowing how Rine felt, I couldn’t just brush her off.

My conscience was only rock solid when it came to Curry.

So, our impromptu cooking lesson content sparked plenty of funny moments and drew a good response.

Ji-hye transformed into a serious instructor, and Curry played the part of a sly student—their dynamic was simply entertaining.

While my interactions with Curry in the last collab felt like schoolboy crushes, what Curry and Ji-hye had was the real deal, teacher-student vibes.

After a long rollercoaster of a cooking experience, we finally sat down to enjoy our dinner.

The cooking stream inadvertently morphed into a mukbang, but it wasn’t too terrible.

Well, of course, that was the reason for this vacation.

The finished dishes turned out to be more palatable than we expected.

It wasn’t a five-star meal by any means.

But considering the boisterous antics, it wasn’t bad at all.

Once dinner wrapped up and everyone was satisfied, we ended the broadcast.

Even though the stream was important, the essence of this pension trip was relaxation and healing.

So, we decided to split off to our rooms a bit early, and having had such a full day, I quickly fell asleep.

Thus, the first day of our pension trip came to an end.

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