*Ding-a-ling.*

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

"Oh, Chris sunbae, over here!"

Chris pushed my wheelchair toward him.

The man waving at us with a big smile was *Cherni*. Chris smiled back and carefully helped me out of the wheelchair, settling me at the table. I gave her a slight nod of thanks.

Seated in the booth-style café chair, I looked across at the two men sitting in front of me.

One was smiling cheerfully at us, while the other, holding a coffee cup in one hand, stared out the window with a sharp gaze. 

The mischievous-looking man was *Cherni*, a former convenience store worker and spirit mage, while the taller, sturdier man was *Deathmaster*, a martial artist.

"Hey, Heo Jun, what are you looking at? We’re here."

"It’s Heo Junhyeok."

At Chris's call, Deathmaster turned his gaze toward us.

His eyes widened slightly when he saw me.

Cherni, too, looked at me with surprise.

"Wow… Rain, you're wearing such a pretty outfit! Back when I worked at the convenience store, you always wore tracksuits."

Feeling awkward, I gave them a small, strained smile and avoided their gazes. Chris, sensing the attention, sat a little closer to me, as if to shield me from their stares.

"Hey, stop staring at Rain. You’ll wear her face out!"

"That’s not possible…"

I grumbled a bit at Chris’s comment, and she responded with a sweet smile, gripping my hand tightly.

*Ding-a-ling.*

The café bell rang again, and Cherni turned his head to see who had just walked in.

"Nam Dayeon, you’re the last one to arrive."

"We’re not late, though. Junhyeok-oppa’s here too?"

*Nam Dayeon*, also known as *Beimerung*, had arrived.

A small woman with a cute face walked over to us, smiling brightly.

Sitting next to Chris, she began squealing excitedly as she looked at me.

"Kyaaa! What are you wearing, Rain? You look even prettier like this!"

“Hehe, right? I picked it out for her.”

Chris grinned like a fool.

Seeing this side of Chris, it was hard to imagine her as the charismatic raid leader who usually flashed confident smiles in front of her raid members.

Before I knew it, I was seated between Chris and Beimerung, their attention fully on me as they ignored the men across from us. They held my hands, squealing excitedly.

"Rain, what do you want to drink? Coffee? Or maybe something sweet like a smoothie?"

"Do you like tiramisu? Unni will buy you some dessert!"

"...Anything is fine."

Such noisy sisters.

---

"And then, by dipping your head slightly and moving as the target disappears, you can counter just before the targeting fades away. And since you’re a martial artist, you can use your *Evasion Step* to rotate 180 degrees and return to your original spot, right?"

"Ohh…! I didn’t know there was such a use for that skill! It’s like using a rear-targeting skill as a standing invincible move!"

"Yes, it works similarly to using a rear-dodge skill and a gap-closer simultaneously."

Deathmaster’s eyes lit up as he listened intently to my explanation.

His thirst for improvement was impressive. Although I hadn’t seen him in combat since we didn’t run bus parties together, as the tank of a first-clear team, he was undoubtedly highly skilled.

As we chatted, a strawberry smoothie was placed in front of me.

I wrapped my hands around the cup and carefully took a sip through the straw.

The cold strawberry smoothie slowly flowed into my mouth.

The initial taste was smooth. Like soft white cream, it gently coated my tongue, followed by the sweetness of fresh strawberries spreading through my mouth.

“Wow…”

My eyes widened in surprise, and a soft exclamation escaped my lips as the sweet aroma of strawberries tickled my nose and the sweetness danced on my tongue.

Taking another sip, I felt pieces of strawberry mixed in. The fresh fruit burst in my mouth, adding texture to the sweetness.

I closed my eyes, savoring the deliciousness of the smoothie.

The refreshing and sweet taste of strawberries filling my mouth made me think, *This must be what heaven tastes like.*

It was sweet. It was delicious.

I never thought a strawberry smoothie could taste this good.

After a while, it became harder to sip, so I started stirring the smoothie with the straw, scooping it up bit by bit.

"Mm…!"

This was delightful too. The sweetness sent shivers up my spine.

But then, I felt a slight sense of unease.

I looked down at my legs.

They didn’t move.

In the continent of Astrea, when Rain’s body experienced something delicious, my legs would automatically twitch.

The sweetness was nice, but in this world...

I felt a little down.

“Ah…”

I paused mid-sip and lifted my head, realizing that all four pairs of eyes were now focused on me.

Deathmaster and Cherni were grinning with satisfaction, while Beimerung held her face in her hands, her eyes sparkling with delight. Chris, although similarly mesmerized, had a slight tremble in her gaze.

I couldn’t understand their reaction.

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

Feeling burdened by the stares, Beimerung finally broke the silence with a sweet smile.

"Rain, are you doing well living at Chris unni’s place? Is she treating you well?"

"Yes, thanks to Chris unni, I’m very comfortable."

Chris's shoulders swelled with pride. Beimerung, still smiling mischievously, continued asking questions.

"Really? How is she taking care of you?"

"Hmm... she makes me delicious meals… she also set up a housekeeping robot. The robot does the cleaning and brings me food."

When asked about what Chris did directly, I didn’t have much to say.

She respected my privacy and rarely intruded on my living space. Since I’d lived alone for so long, I didn’t really need much help from her. Plus, with the housekeeping robot, there was no need for me to handle chores like cleaning.

What else has Chris unni done for me?

Ah, there was something recent.

"Oh, and unni made me feel good while touching my body."

Beimerung’s eyes widened, and her jaw dropped.

Chris’s expression mirrored hers.

"...So, if we delay the charging of the second boss a little and time it with the red barrier on the small golem, we could trigger a big damage window just as the boss's barrier color changes, right?"

"Hmm, that’s a good idea. Yeah, the 10-second damage window after charging is definitely too short. It’s worth trying that tactic."

Deathmaster and Cherni hurriedly turned away, diving into a discussion about game tactics.

Beimerung shot Chris a shaky glance, to which Chris frantically waved her hands in denial.

“M-massage! It was just a massage! Rain asked for it!”

"Chris unni… I know your tastes. But still, Rain… well, she may be small, but she’s fully grown! But you prefer wom—mph! Mmph!"

"Dayeon! Shh, quiet!"

Chris quickly clamped her hand over Beimerung’s mouth.

Shaking her off, Beimerung tearfully grabbed both my hands.

“Rain, Chris unni is dangerous! You have to protect your own body! Or… would you like to live with me at my place? I’ll convince my parents somehow!”

"Hey, Nam Dayeon! Stop that!"

Their intense reactions left me puzzled.

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

Today, she even helped me change clothes.

I felt the need to defend her.

"Chris unni is a caring person. She’s not dangerous. Today, she even worked so hard, nearly out of breath, to help me take my clothes off."

“Gasp…!”

Beimerung audibly gasped.

---

After a rather intense discussion about my living arrangements, Chris seemed to have successfully calmed the party members down.

"Aah! How can someone as capable as unni act like a middle-school boy when it comes to these things!?"

“Ugh.”

“Alright, you understand now, right? There’s a process to things... you need to take it slowly… starting with feelings first…”

“I know! But every time…”

“Hey!”

“...Yeah, yeah.”

Beimerung gave Chris a stern look and whispered something too quietly for me to hear. Chris lowered her head and kept nodding.

After finishing her conversation, Chris held my hand and let out a sigh of relief.

I was feeling tired.

I’d been sleepy for a while now, and I couldn’t really focus on the conversation.

This frail body of mine really needed to be back in my cozy capsule.

But today, I enjoyed my time with Chris’s party members. The strawberry smoothie was delicious too.

"Unni, I’m sleepy."

I leaned my head on Chris’s shoulder.

With her, I could feel the kind of comfort I hadn’t found anywhere else in this world.

Chris gently picked me up.

“Hey, guys, can someone fold the wheelchair and load it in?”

“Ahh… isn’t Rain’s sleepy face just too cute?”

Surrounded by Chris's party members, I was carried to Chris’s car.

Sleepy.