Online Game: I Started with Max Charisma and Caught the Goddess's Eye

Luca glanced at Susie, initially intending to tell something.

About her not to overthink it—after all, he was only interested in curvy older women.

But then, a mischievous thought crossed his mind. This was a perfect chance for some payback.

He cleared his throat and grinned, "What are you standing there for? Hurry up and come in."

With that, he grabbed Susie's hand. Her skin was cold to the touch, silky smooth like fine fabric, a detail Luca hadn't noticed before.

The moment he held her hand, Susie froze, instinctively trying to pull away.

But before she could react, Luca had already pulled her into the room and shut the door behind them.

The sound of the door closing echoed through the room, making Susie's heart skip a beat.

Now, the room was just the two of them.

Sunlight streamed through the window, casting a warm glow on Susie's flushed face.

Her heart pounded wildly, her thoughts scattered, and she couldn't bring herself to meet Luca's gaze.

But Luca wasn't done teasing her yet.

He wrapped his arm around Susie's waist, and he felt her body instantly stiffen like a statue.

Acting as though he hadn't noticed, Luca lifted her off the ground, carrying her toward the bed.

Susie let out a startled yelp, instinctively wrapping her arms around Luca's neck. In a panic, she stammered, "L-Luca, you—you better not try anything! If you touch me, I'll tell Auntie!"

Ever since they were kids, Susie's only surefire way of keeping Luca in check was threatening to tell his mother, Sini. But this time, it didn't seem to faze him.

"Go ahead," Luca replied casually. "Worst case, Mom gives me a beating. I can take it."

With that, he tossed Susie onto the pristine white bed and dramatically leaped on top of her.

However, despite appearances, Luca made sure to keep a respectful distance between them.

Teasing her was one thing, but crossing the line wasn't his style.

Still, he intended to pile on the pressure.

If he didn't give Susie a good scare, she'd keep pushing boundaries—today it was online relationships, but who knew what she'd come up with next?

Susie lay there, staring up at Luca, her heart pounding so hard it felt like it might burst out of her chest.

Her face was as red as a tomato, and she was so embarrassed she felt like she might explode. Her mind was a whirlwind of panicked thoughts, all jumbled together: "It's over, Luca's finally making a move on me… What if Mom finds out? Am I going to get pregnant?!" and so on, a chaotic mess of nonsense.

In just the span of a single breath, Susie's mind, which wasn't particularly quick on the uptake, had already come up with names for the children she was imagining.

The only thing she hadn't considered was logging out of the game.

The sudden shock and the hyper-realistic nature of the game were enough to make someone forget where they actually were.

Luca knew this all too well, which is why he decided to scare her a bit.

However, he also knew that as soon as she realized what was happening, Susie would log out immediately.

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By now, Susie was on the verge of tears. Luca had already avenged her false accusations of his online romance, so there was no need to continue.

After all, this was just a game—what could he actually do to her here? Luca figured it was time to stop.

He was just about to get up and say something like, "Stupid girl, did you really take it seriously? I was messing with you! That's what you get for accusing me of online dating! Let this be a lesson—don't you dare accuse me again!"

The plan was to make Susie embarrassed and furious, giving Luca a bit of satisfaction and closure. But just as he was about to get off of her...

"Vroom!"

Suddenly, the room shook violently.

A feeling of weightlessness struck them both, catching Luca completely off guard. He fell right on top of Susie.

A faint, sweet scent drifted into his nose.

His lips felt soft warmth.

Both of their eyes widened simultaneously.

Luca's were filled with shock, while Susie's were a mixture of shame and fury.

The Cloudwing Airship had taken off!

...

In the real world, the sun shone brightly.

A gentle breeze rustled the leaves, creating a soft rustling sound.

From the second floor of Susie's house, the sound of a girl's heartbroken sobs could be heard.

Standing at the front door.

Luca's face wore an expression of rare conflict.

The earlier incident had been a complete accident. He hadn't intended for things to go that way at all.

But Susie hadn't given him the chance to explain. She had logged out of the game immediately, leaving Luca feeling helpless.

After a long period of internal debate.

Luca knew he had to face the situation.

Sighing, he pressed the doorbell.

From inside, a deep male voice boomed, "Who is it?"

A moment later, the door creaked open.

Standing before Luca was a tall, broad-shouldered man with a commanding presence, built like a bear.

This was none other than Susie's father, Darabont.

A seasoned frontline detective who frequently dealt with corpses and criminals.

It was his day off from the rotation shift, which was fortunate for Luca, as he was rarely home otherwise.

Seeing Luca, Darabont let out a hearty laugh. "Oh, it's you, Luca! Perfect timing. Susie was playing some game and ended up in tears. Go on up and cheer her up."

Darabont, with his booming voice and rough, hearty demeanor typical of northern folk, spoke loudly enough to be heard throughout the house.

On the second floor, Susie's sobbing abruptly stopped for a few seconds.

Then, the crying started again, even louder this time.

"...I'll go now," Luca muttered, glancing nervously at Darabont's bulging biceps, forcing a smile before quickly slipping inside the house.

The layout of Susie's house was similar to his own, but the interior decor was quite different.

Luca's home had a warm, cozy atmosphere, with most of the furniture made of wood, giving it a homier and simpler feel. In contrast, Susie's house leaned toward a more modern, minimalist design. The floor and walls had cooler tones, and the décor was more refined, with expensive furniture pieces throughout.

Susie's bedroom was located on the second floor, and as Luca climbed the stairs, he noticed that the dining table in the living room was set with freshly made dishes, still steaming.

When he reached the top, he saw Susie's mother, Zoey, standing just outside Susie's bedroom door, looking worried.

"Sweetie, what's wrong? Talk to Mom, please…" Zoey was trying to comfort her daughter.

She still wearing an apron, probably having just called Susie down for lunch.

Luca cleared his throat softly. "Auntie, would you like me to try talking to her?"

Before Zoey could respond, Susie's voice, thick with tears, came from the other side of the door.

"I don't want to talk to you! You… you pervert!"

For once, Luca didn't argue back.

Zoey, exasperated, scolded, "Luca came here out of kindness to check on you, how could you speak to him like that?"

"You're all bullying me!" Susie's voice was filled with grievance. It was clearly Luca's fault, so why was her mother scolding her?

After all, her first kiss had been stolen by this jerk…

Feeling a bit guilty, Luca rubbed his nose awkwardly. "It's okay, Auntie. Don't worry, I'll make sure she feels better."

He knew Zoey had to head to the bank for work that afternoon and didn't want to delay her.

Though still worried about her daughter, Zoey knew Darabont was also home today.

After thinking for a moment, she sighed and said, "Alright, I'll leave Susie in your care. Try to talk some sense into her—I'm not sure what's gotten into her today."

Luca nodded in agreement.

Once Zoey had left, Luca approached Susie's door and knocked twice.

"It's me. Open the door. What happened earlier was an accident, and I'm here to apologize."

All he could hear was more sobbing from inside; clearly, Susie wasn't interested in talking.

Luca had expected this.

Having known her for years, he understood her temperament all too well.

Luckily, he had come prepared.

Luca pulled a thin piece of wire from his pocket and inserted it into the keyhole, twisting it to get a sense of the pin positions inside. After a couple of turns, he memorized the placement of the pins, then bent the wire into the shape of a key.

After inserting it once more and giving it two turns, he heard a soft click as the lock disengaged. No finesse involved—just sheer skill.

He pushed open the door and entered the room.

Susie's bedroom was slightly larger than his own. The space was clean and tidy, with sky-blue bedding and a giant plush bear sitting near the bed. Her desk was neatly arranged with books, and although the vanity didn't have any makeup on it, there was a hairdryer.

The moment he stepped inside, a faint, delicate fragrance hit him—her room was just like most girls' rooms, with a soft and inviting scent.

At that moment, Susie was hiding under her blankets, sobbing loudly, completely unaware that Luca had already entered the room.

He stood there silently, a playful smile on his face, watching her with amusement.

After a long time of no sound from the door, Susie finally began to tire from crying.

"That jerk! He said he was coming to apologize, but he doesn't even have the slightest bit of sincerity!" she muttered angrily to herself, determined that this time, no matter what, she would never forgive Luca.

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But it was getting stuffy under the covers, so she shifted and poked her head out to get some air.

The moment she looked up, she froze. There was Luca, standing by her bed with his arms crossed, looking down at her with a half-smirk, half-smile.

Their eyes met, and Susie blinked in surprise, thinking she must have been seeing things.

It wasn't until she noticed the door to her bedroom was wide open that her eyes widened in shock and anger. "You—you—you... who let you in here? Get out! I don't want to see you!"

She yelled, immediately diving back under the blanket, turning herself into a little blue cocoon.

Luca sighed and said, "I swear, I didn't mean for that to happen earlier. I was just teasing you a little. How could I have known the Cloudwing Airship would take off suddenly?"

He continued, "It's really not that big of a deal. It was just a virtual game, after all. No need to be so upset."

Then, with a grin, he added, "If you're that mad about it, I can let you kiss me back. I'll take the loss."

Hearing his shameless suggestion, Susie couldn't help but pop her head out again, glaring at him. "Ugh! You pervert! Who would want to kiss you back?"

Luca was relieved to see that she was at least talking again.

He knew Susie was just upset for the moment and that with a little coaxing, she'd eventually get over it. If she hadn't even wanted to speak to him, that would've been a real disaster.

For the next hour, Luca fully applied his silver tongue, doing his best to lighten the mood.

From the room came the occasional scolding from Susie, her tone sharp with mock anger.

Despite being berated thoroughly, Luca's attempts to comfort her were clearly working.

Though the game felt just as real as life, there was a certain emotional buffer knowing it had all taken place in a virtual space.

With Luca's relentless efforts, Susie's angry words soon gave way to soft giggles.

Downstairs, Darabont was watching television, and upon hearing the sounds from upstairs, he couldn't help but smile and shake his head.

Both families had always maintained a "let things happen naturally" approach with these two.

Where their relationship would go was up to them, as long as they didn't cross any lines, no one would interfere.

Just as he was thinking this, Darabont's phone rang.

He glanced at the caller ID, and his smile immediately faded.

This was his special phone, reserved for the police force.

When he answered, a team member's voice came through, serious and urgent.

"Captain, we've received a report from the north side of the city. A body was found in an elevator, and the cause of death seems… unusual."