Chapter 42

I honestly never imagined that Arang’s legs were prosthetic.

I was so excited to touch those small, soft, and squishy feet in reality that when Arang’s prosthetic leg fell to the ground because of me, my heart sank along with it.

When Arang saw the socks and shoes, I thought the world was collapsing, but thankfully, Arang wasn’t too hurt.

I put the socks I was wearing and the shoes I personally picked on Arang’s prosthetic leg.

As expected, it matched Arang’s radiant appearance perfectly. My taste is never wrong.

“Cu…te… Thank… you…”

Luckily, Arang liked my gift. Even if it’s a prosthetic, I heard they still wear socks and shoes to look like everyone else and for fashion.

So, Arang smiled slightly when seeing the socks and shoes I gifted.

Nice.

The awkward atmosphere from the prosthetic incident seemed to have completely dissipated.

Despite appearances, Arang just struggles with speech, but the Arang inside isn’t much different from the Arang in Leore.

“Another… request…”

Arang said it was okay to make another request since I couldn’t touch the feet I wanted to.

If the feet are off-limits, where else is there? The answer is simple.

“Ah, if the feet are too much… then the hands!!!”

Trying to lighten the mood, I loudly declared and grabbed Arang’s hands, which were resting on my knees, savoring them instead of the feet.

*Click.*

A foreboding sound reached my ears.

A sound no different from the one I heard earlier.

The same sensation as when I touched Arang’s feet.

Arang’s hands, now limp and dangling.

“……………………”

I stopped thinking. No, I couldn’t think anymore.

==

[Arang Baldukgae] was more impatient than I thought.

Listen to me and move a bit.

Just as I was about to ask to touch the stomach, [Arang Baldukgae] grabbed my hands tightly, and the shock caused both my prosthetic arms to fall off my shoulders and collapse weakly onto my lap.

Anna unnie must have made them looser than I thought.

“……………………”

[Arang Baldukgae] opened their mouth wide, gasping.

“No, I mean, so… my hands, uh, I can’t hold back anymore…!!!!”

Clutching my prosthetic arms, [Arang Baldukgae] screamed as if in agony, then suddenly hugged me tightly and started sobbing.

I wanted to wipe away the tears, but without hands, I couldn’t even comfort them.

After some time, [Arang Baldukgae] finally calmed down.

Now, [Arang Baldukgae] is kneeling on the floor, burying their head in my lap, sniffling.

“Calm… down…?”

“…Yeah.”

“Now… wanna play…?”

“…Yeah.”

It feels like my relationship with [Arang Baldukgae] has reversed, but now playing is more urgent.

The reason is simple.

It’s because of the board games here.

I found out that the latest board games are in this lounge, and after looking up how to play them on Ryutube, I was dying to try them.

As I expected, recent board games have amazing technology.

Some are just like the old ones with components in a box, but there are also versions that sync with hologram tables.

The one I’m planning to play with [Arang Baldukgae] is the hologram table board game in the lounge.

Hologram table board games don’t have physical components but use a USB plugged into a computer.

With so many types and genres, time will fly by.

*Swish. Swish.*

[Arang Baldukgae]’s head brushing against my thigh and stomach tickled my sensitive body.

“Now… stop…”

“Okay!”

[Arang Baldukgae] quickly returned.

Come to think of it, what’s [Arang Baldukgae]’s name?

“Ah, sorry. I haven’t introduced myself yet. I’m Kwon Mi-ae. Just call me Mi-ae unnie.”

“Okay… Mi-ae unnie…”

==

I wanted to ignore everything and just have fun with Arang, but it wasn’t that easy.

However, seeing Arang’s usually expressionless face light up with interest while playing the board game, like a child experiencing it for the first time, melted my heart.

Every time the corner of their mouth twitched, the slight glimpse of their teeth was unbearably cute.

“Unnie… your turn…”

“Sorry! Hmm… I wonder what Arang wants~”

The board game we’re playing now is Splendor.

It’s a simple game where you use gems to collect cards with points, and the first to 15 points wins.

Having loved board games since childhood, I’m quite skilled at Splendor and even pride myself on my abilities.

Even now, I can predict all of Arang’s moves, as they’re using a surprisingly simple strategy.

Well, at 15 years old and having spent most of their life in the hospital, it’s understandable that strategic games like this would be tough.

It’s more about physical prowess than mental strategy.

“Here~ I’ll take this one! Now it’s Arang’s turn!”

As we took turns playing, something felt off.

The situation I had dominated started to reverse with each of Arang’s turns.

The cards I wanted were taken by Arang a turn earlier, and the cards I tried to block were wasted turns.

The gap widened, and I ended up helplessly losing to Arang, who was playing Splendor for the first time.

It felt like Arang knew all my thoughts, executing a flawless strategy.

Next was chess, which I’m even more confident in than Splendor.

Chess became hugely popular after hologram tables became mainstream.

The reason? It’s just that fun to watch.

Chess is a game where you use pieces to capture the opponent’s king. Why did it become so popular?

First, it’s a game many have known for a long time, and it pairs perfectly with hologram tables.

The chess pieces from a famous wizard movie based on an old novel were brought to life thanks to hologram tables.

On the table screen are standard chess pieces, while above the table are holograms of customized pieces.

The shape, movement, execution, and death animations of the pieces are all customizable, making it visually stunning and beloved by many.

“This time, I won’t lose!”

Splendor was just a warm-up. My skills must have rusted from not playing in so long.

I’ve been playing chess since I was a kid, and even now, I play it in Leore whenever there’s an update or some free time.

My skills rank in the top 0.4%.

Of course, I won’t go all out.

Showing my terrifying chess skills to a 15-year-old would just kill the fun.

==

“……………”

Why is this happening…?

Midway through, feeling the same tension as in Splendor, I went all out.

Every time Arang moved the chess pieces through the choker around their neck, it felt like they were strangling me, their play sharp and terrifying.

When I first saw Arang, I thought they were a cute princess from a fallen kingdom turned hikikomori.

But now, with the same expression, Arang’s presence felt like they were emitting a murderous aura, playing chess with a fierce intensity.

At first, it seemed like Arang was new to chess, but with each move, their demeanor changed, and even in a situation where I had the upper hand, Arang played to kill me, move by move.

In the end, I played seriously and won.

But it wasn’t a perfect victory.

As the game went on, Arang couldn’t fully concentrate.

“Unnie… you’re too good…”

“I was more surprised! Arang, how are you so good at chess…?”

“Am I… good…?”

“Of course! I’m not a pro, but among amateurs, I’m nearly the strongest…!? Arang, are you a genius!?”

“Oh… really…? But… this is… too tiring…”

“Then let’s rest a bit?”

“…Yeah. Hug me…”

“Huh? Really?”

“Yeah… over there, the bed…”

Where Arang pointed, there was a simple bed to rest on.

‘Can I really hug this cute, squishy Arang…? Even after all the accidents…?’

I gulped.

“Before… take these off…”

“Huh? You, really…? R-Really…?”

“Yeah…”

Arang’s eyes moved to the prosthetic arms and legs.

Since Arang asked, I steeled myself and helped remove Arang’s prosthetics, then carefully picked them up.

The weight of a 15-year-old girl felt heavier than expected.

I gently laid Arang on the bed.

“Chess… was fun…”

“Really? Arang, you were so good midway, I was shocked.”

“At first… it was hard… but as I played…”

“Not just physically strong, but smart too…! Truly worthy of our Guild Master!”

“Hehe… that’s me…”

While chatting and playing with Arang, I realized how amazing they are.

Even in this situation, Arang enjoys Leore, meets people without hesitation, and has fun playing.

The problem is…

My heart hurts…

In both a good and bad way…