Former Hero, Solo Play Oriented

Ding ding.

As Chris and I entered the café, a man sitting at a table near the window waved his hand.

“Oh, Sister Chris, over here!”

Chris pushed my wheelchair towards him.

The man grinning and waving at us was Cherni. Chris smiled broadly, carefully helped me into a seat inside the table, and I tilted my head slightly in gratitude towards her.

Sitting on the sofa-like café chair, I looked across at the two men sitting opposite us.

One was beaming at us, while the other, perched by the window, held a coffee cup in one hand and stared sharply outside, setting the mood.

The playful-looking guy was my former convenience store co-worker, Cherni, and the well-built, tall guy was the fighter, Deathly Death.

“Heo Jun, where are you looking? We’re here.”

“It’s Heo Junhyeok.”

At Chris’s call, Deathly Death turned to look our way.

Aromas of surprise sparkled in his eyes as he spotted me.

Cherni also looked at me with widened eyes.

“Wow… Rain, you’re dressed beautifully! You used to wear sweatpants when I worked part-time!”

I awkwardly hid my face as they stared. Chris stayed close to me, as if protecting me from the male gazes.

“Hey, Rain, stop looking. Your face might get worn from all this staring!”

“That can’t be true…”

I complained slightly in response to Chris’s comment. She held my hand tightly with a beaming smile.

Ding ding.

With the ringing bell from the café entrance, Cherni turned to check who just came in.

“Namdayeon, you’re the latest!”

“The appointed time isn’t up yet, right? Oh, and Junhyeok oppa is here too?”

Namdayeon, which means “Dayeon,” was Bae Merong’s name.

The cute, short woman approached me with a bright smile plastered on her face.

She sat beside Chris and started squealing while looking at me.

“Kyaa…! Rain, what’s with your outfit!? It makes you even prettier!”

“Hehe, right? I picked it out!”

Chris wore a silly grin.

Seeing this side of Chris, which she only showed in front of me, made it hard to imagine the charismatic raid leader smiling confidently in front of the initial party groups.

Before I knew it, I was sandwiched between Chris and Bae Merong. They ignored the guys across from us and were busy holding my hands while squealing.

“Rain, what do you want to drink? Is coffee okay? Or we have sweet smoothies too.”

“Do you like things like tiramisu? I’ll buy you dessert!”

“…Anything’s fine.”

What a loud pair of sisters.

“…So like this, when you crouch and move just before the targeting disappears, you can counterattack. Hm. Since Uncle Death is a defender, if he uses an evasion technique, he can swap places 180 degrees back to his spot, right?”

“Ooh…! I never knew that! Hm. Indeed, skills that target the back could be useful as standing invincibility!”

“Yes. It’s similar to the effect of using the backward evasion skill and approach technique simultaneously.”

Deathly Death’s eyes sparkled as he listened intently to my words.

His passion for improvement was impressive. Although I hadn’t seen him fight directly since we didn’t ride the same bus, he was undoubtedly the team’s tank aiming for the perfect run. He must have excellent skills.

While conversing with him, a strawberry smoothie appeared in front of me.

I wrapped my hands around the cup and carefully put the straw to my lips.

The cold strawberry smoothie slowly flowed into my mouth through the straw.

The first taste was smooth. Cream as white as snow enveloped my tongue, releasing the sweet taste of strawberries above it.

“Wow….”

I couldn’t help but widen my eyes and gasp as the sweetness spread throughout my mouth. The fresh scent of strawberries brushed against my nostrils, tickling my tongue with sweetness.

As I sucked a bit deeper into the straw, I bit into strawberry pieces. The juicy flesh of the fresh strawberries burst in my mouth, making my taste buds dance.

I closed my eyes, slowly savoring the sweetness of the smoothie.

It felt like I was in heaven, the delightful scent and flavor of fresh strawberries making me blissfully happy.

So sweet. So delicious.

I never knew a strawberry smoothie could taste this good.

Before I knew it, I had to suck harder just to get a bit out. I started to tip the cup and spoon the smoothie.

Slurp.

“Mmm…!”

This is actually pretty good. I felt a delightful shiver as the sweetness rose to my brain.

But then, an odd sensation came over me.

I looked down at my lower body.

My legs weren’t shaking.

Back when I visited the capital café in Rain’s body from the Continent of Astria, my legs used to move automatically when I ate something delicious.

Sweet is nice, but in this world…

I felt my mood sink a bit.

“Ugh…”

Lifting my head while sipping the strawberry smoothie, I noticed that all four of their gazes were suddenly fixed on me.

Deathly Death and Cherni wore pleased smiles, while Bae Merong had a blissful expression, her eyes sparkling. And Chris, with a similar look but slightly shaking eyes.

I couldn’t understand their reactions at all.

What’s this? Have they never seen someone drink a strawberry smoothie before?

Feeling overwhelmed by their concentrated looks as the conversation seemed to freeze, Bae Merong beamed at me.

“Rain, are you doing well at Sister Chris’s house these days? Is she taking care of you?”

“Yeah. Thanks to Sister Chris, I’m comfortable.”

Chris shrugged her shoulders. Bae Merong, with a mischievous smile, continued her inquiries.

“Really~? What all does Sister Chris do to take care of you?”

“Um… She makes delicious meals… and set up a cleaning robot to help me out. The robot does the cleaning and brings me food.”

If Chris asked what she did for me directly, there wasn’t that much to tell.

She respected my privacy and kept her distance in my living space. Plus, I had been living alone for so long that I rarely needed her help. Since the cleaning robot existed, I had no need to do chores myself.

What else did Sister Chris do for me?

Oh, come to think of it, she did do something recently.

“Oh, she made me feel good by touching my body.”

Bae Merong’s eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open.

Chris wore a similar expression.

“…So you mean we should delay charging the Level 2 Named Enemy? If we burst the golem’s red barrier as soon as the Named Enemy’s barrier color changes, we can extend the downtime considerably, right?”

“Hm, that’s a good idea. That 10-second cooldown after charging felt too short. It’s worth trying out.”

Deathly Death and Cherni hurriedly turned their heads and began discussing game strategies with each other.

When Bae Merong’s trembling gaze turned to Chris, Chris quickly waved her hands and made excuses.

“I-it’s just a massage! Just a simple massage! Rain asked me to do it!”

“Sister Chris… I know your tastes well. But still, Rain is… w-well, of course, he’s underdeveloped, but he’s fully grown! You like… ugh! Ugh!”

“Dayeon, shush!”

Chris quickly covered Bae Merong’s mouth.

Bae Merong shook off Chris and tearfully grabbed both of my hands tightly.

“Rain, Sister Chris is a dangerous lady! You have to protect your body! Or would you rather live at Bae Merong’s house? I-I’ll try to persuade my parents somehow!”

“Hey, Namdayeon! No way!”

With their intense reactions, a flood of question marks appeared in my mind.

Chris is a kind sister. She’s not dangerous.

She even helped me get changed today!

I felt the need to defend her.

“Sister Chris is a caring sister. She’s not dangerous at all. Today, she even carefully helped me take off my clothes while struggling to breathe.”

“Huh…!”

Bae Merong swallowed hard.

For a moment, a heated debate over my living arrangements ensued, but thankfully, it seemed Chris had succeeded in convincing our party members.

“Aaah~! Someone as decisive as you, why act like a moody middle school boy on this kind of issue!?”

“Ugh.”

“Sigh, do you understand? There are steps to this… It’s not good, so you need to… approach slowly, start with the heart….”

“Ah, I know! But it keeps….”

“Oh!”

“…Okay, okay.”

Bae Merong gave Chris a stern look and whispered to me in a voice barely audible.

Chris bowed her head and continuously nodded.

After finishing her conversation with Bae Merong, Chris held my hand tightly and sighed in relief.

I felt exhausted.

I had been drowsy since earlier, and the conversation wasn’t quite making sense.

Being in my fragile body, it felt best to lie down comfortably in my cozy capsule.

Still, I enjoyed my time with Chris and the noisy party members today. The strawberry smoothie was delicious, too.

“Sister, I’m sleepy.”

I leaned my face against Chris’s shoulder.

I felt a comfort near her that I hadn’t found in this world before.

Chris gently lifted my body.

“Hey, guys, can you fold up the wheelchair and put it away?”

“Sigh… Rain’s sleepy eyes are just too cute…!”

My body, surrounded by Chris’s party members, got transferred to Chris’s personal vehicle.

I’m so sleepy.

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