I Became a Raid Boss

Warmth was felt on my two cheeks.

Thump thump…

“Warm….”

The warmth from Da-eun’s hand felt no different from before.

Yet, it felt different—maybe it was the texture.

“So this is what it feels like.”

Unlike Joanie’s ever-so-smooth hand, Da-eun’s had a slight roughness to it.

Still, it was soft enough.

I half-closed my eyes.

And gently entrusted myself to the hand carefully stroking my cheek.

Thump thump, my busy heart settled down.

“…Is it a doll?”

“…”

“No, wait. If it talks and moves, it’s an android…? But it looks just like a real person.”

Just for a moment.

My peaceful mind shattered into pieces thanks to Da-eun’s weird comments.

I opened my eyes, which I had half-closed in disbelief, and looked at Da-eun, who had a surprisingly serious expression that suddenly turned astonished.

“Could it be that you called me here to show me that this child was modeled after something?”

“Huh? Not at all?”

“Or maybe you put someone’s brain in a box and made them act like an NPC…?”

It felt suspicious that an unheard-of company suddenly popped up, creating a whirlwind.

Edel, the woman who brought Da-eun here, sighed as she heard Da-eun’s murmur.

“Don’t you think if that was the case, it would be unnecessary to bring you here to show?”

“…To use my brain?”

“You have quite the imagination.”

Then she glanced at me.

“I understand why you two were together.”

“…That wasn’t the reason we hung out.”

It may have been amusing, but there were far more absurd moments.

I sighed lightly, just like Edel did, and raised my hand to gently remove Da-eun’s hand from my cheek.

That hand was still lingering on my face.

“A touching reunion… isn’t really my style, but I didn’t expect this either.”

“Definitely, that doesn’t seem like your thing.”

“…I didn’t ask for your opinion.”

“Not everything needs to be asked to express an opinion. …Hmm, I mean, it might not be entirely unsuitable for you.”

-What is she going to say next?

I wanted to close Edel’s mouth with the ominous feelings creeping up, but her lips were quicker to chatter.

“Remember that thing that happened on the mountain? You begging and whining was quite tasty. Are you thinking of doing that again?”

“Just die.”

“…What are you talking about?”

While I was rambling with Edel, Da-eun felt something was off and interrupted our conversation.

I paused for a moment and gazed into her eyes.

In her shimmering gaze, the image of a pink girl was vividly captured.

To say the reunion with Da-eun would be like this was beyond my imagination.

In truth, it felt a bit embarrassing to use the grand term reunion over having not seen each other for just a few days….

However, from Da-eun’s perspective, the one who had died right in front of her had come back, so perhaps it wasn’t an incorrect expression.

Or maybe it was a miracle.

So, to straighten out the rather chaotic atmosphere of the reunion, I opened my mouth.

What should I say when we meet again?

After pondering various thoughts, my choice was this.

“Hello. I am Canaria. …Um, just, I’m Canaria.”

Should I mention my last name? I thought for a moment and shook my head.

It’s fine to share the same surname as my father, but Grasis is not my father’s name; it’s one given by the kingdom.

Besides, Da-eun didn’t know me as ‘Canaria Grasis.’

I thought that introducing myself this way wasn’t bad.

While nodding in approval, I suddenly heard.

“…Canaria?”

Da-eun’s eyes sharpened.

Her eyes, which had soared high, twinkled fiercely, and her cheeks and hands trembled occasionally.

It was good that her lifeless face was regaining energy.

‘What is she doing?’

Given Da-eun’s clear anger reaction, I tilted my head in confusion.

Da-eun, who seemed to be choosing her words, swallowed repeatedly as she glared at me before shifting her gaze to Edel.

“Are you showing me your doppelganger, or just cosplaying? Did you really think I would like this sort of thing? Absolutely not…!”

“Um….”

“It seems like you’ve become completely out of touch with emotions, spending all your time buried in code. It’s not something you can play around with like this.”

“Wait a second-”

“You…. No, you’re the same. You must have participated in this because you were paid, but you shouldn’t toy with others’ feelings this way!”

“…I wasn’t paid.”

“You’re saying you did this without getting paid?!”

Da-eun’s eyes twisted in fury.

She looked ready to storm out at any moment, so I gestured to Edel.

‘Do something about this.’

Edel shook her head.

‘That’s your responsibility. She’s mad because of you, so you should calm her down.’

‘Why is this my fault?’

‘So is it my fault then? She reacted like this after hearing your introduction!’

‘…You could have explained before bringing her here.’

‘You agreed to it too, remember?’

We hadn’t actually talked it through, but the exchange of glances with Edel indicated something like that.

Isn’t it?

Then there was nothing to be done.

In any case, it seemed necessary to calm Da-eun down.

“Even if it’s a game company, you shouldn’t treat players like this, right? In fact, you should treat them even better…!”

“I get it, so just calm down—”

“You can’t calm down if you have to calm down!”

Da-eun, still fuming, showed no sign of settling down.

She looked just like an excited dog fiercely barking and running around.

I may not know how to handle animals, but I knew how to calm excitement.

I ignited mana at the tip of my fingers.

Fweesh.

Swish!

The head of the bed cleanly sliced off, revealing a smooth cutting edge, as it fell away.

“Shh.”

“…”

“…Hey! What are you doing to the bed?! Do you know how expensive this bed is?!”

“What’s it to me? If you wanted me to calm her down, you should have expected this might happen.”

“When did I ever say that?!”

“You said it with your eyes earlier.”

“Are you kidding?! You’re completely out of your mind!”

“Come on, you were reading my mind and predicting it.”

“I can’t! I can’t read minds!”

“Huh.”

Edel explained that.

She couldn’t read my thoughts like before because of the mixed mana in her body…

Ah.

I nodded.

“You’re even less useful now.”

“Ugh…”

Edel gritted her teeth, unable to attack.

Is that the reason why Edel showed more human-like responses than before?

“Mana…? No way….”

Da-eun’s murmur interrupted my thoughts.

She looked at the pink mana shimmering at my fingertip in disbelief.

As if that wasn’t enough, she bravely reached out to touch the mana, and I quickly dispersed it.

After clearly seeing the end of the bed being cut off, what on earth was she thinking reaching out like that?

‘Well, I guess that’s possible.’

She might think it was a special effect or magic.

In this world, such powers might not exist.

“Still not believing this?”

As I raised my arm, the patient gown that hung down was rolled up annoyingly high.

Rustle.

The bracelet on my wrist chimed clearly.

“…!”

Da-eun’s eyes shook violently.

Then she rushed over and grabbed my wrist.

I could have easily avoided it if I wanted to.

But I calmly allowed Da-eun to take my wrist.

‘But shouldn’t she be more amazed by the sword energy than the bracelet?’

The bracelet is just something you can get a similar one for.

Swallowing my doubts inwardly and remaining quiet, Da-eun fumbled with the bracelet.

After examining it for a while, Da-eun finally released my wrist.

“…Could it be, really?”

Then she hesitated.

“No. That can’t be. This isn’t some novel….”

Despite wanting to believe, the remnants of her reason were holding her back, unable to make sense of the situation.

As a true swordsman, one should be able to cut through anything.

Thus, I decided to cut through Da-eun’s hesitation.

*

“…That’s how it is.”

With Edel’s assistance, I managed to explain everything without a hitch.

Even after showing my mana for the first time, I had to repeat similar actions a few more times and bring up past events for verification.

“Is it really you, Canaria…?”

“Yep.”

“Really, really?”

“I told you so.”

“…This isn’t a hidden camera prank, right? If later it turns out to be a hidden camera, I’ll get really mad. I’ll definitely tip off the media.”

“Go ahead then….”

Exhausting, I’m exhausted.

‘Should I just say it’s not me?’

A naughty thought crept in.

Bear with it. There’s reward for those who endure.

Swoosh!

As I was suppressing the mischievous voice whispered inside me, Da-eun suddenly hugged me tightly.

“Canaria!”

“Gah.”

“I thought you were really dead…!”

“Ugh—”

It was true that I had died.

Still, that’s enough; could she let go of me?

Surely, my body in this world should be weaker than in that world, but Da-eun’s strength was the strongest it had ever been until now.

Should I shake her off? I raised my hand but sighed and gave up.

Through her crush, I could faintly hear the whimpering mixed in her words.

“So you…!”

“Okay, okay.”

Though her words were jumbled and difficult to decipher, I’m sure it conveyed something burdensome.

I started patting her back gently with the hand I had raised to break free.

‘Still, no matter how you look at it….’

I felt the same joy in seeing Da-eun back.

The sniffling sounds that went on for a while finally ceased.

“….”

“….”

“Can you let me go now?”

“…You really haven’t changed, huh?”

“When a person suddenly changes, they say it’s time to die. It’s only natural I haven’t changed after coming back to life.”

“Pfft, what’s that supposed to mean?”

Though she laughed incredulously, Da-eun released me from her embrace.

“Your face is a mess.”

“…You, don’t casually throw around compliments just because I’m cute.”

Da-eun, with her face a total mess from tears and snot, pouted.

I was glad I hadn’t put on makeup; otherwise, it would have surely turned into a sight for sore eyes.

Good thing the height difference was significant; if I were the same height as Da-eun, I might have collapsed from the emotional weight.

“…Can I ask you one thing, Canaria?”

While I was lost in thought, Da-eun who had tidied up her disastrous face looked at me with her swollen eyes.

“What is it?”

“You said before that you could have stayed in the Silia world but chose to come back to Earth.”

“Right.”

“Can you tell me why? I mean, of course, being with you is really nice, but…! I’m just curious….”

“Were you waiting for a hint about why I came back?”

“It might sound like I’m blaming you for coming back….”

“I don’t think that way at all.”

The reason I crossed over.

How to explain it? My fingertips were absentmindedly tapping the bed when they suddenly fell to Da-eun.

Watching her slightly coarse hand, I smiled softly.

“-Just.”

There are many reasons.

But right now, I just want to say this.

“I just wanted to.”

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