The spirit summoner Dalboreum and the mage Redhotchicken of the Hongbaek Guild later reflected on the situation at the time.
"When I met her gaze, it really felt like I was a frog facing a snake... I couldn’t move a finger."
"Her ominous aura closed in on me, and I couldn’t do anything... Ah! What exactly happened that day?"
---
Chris was sipping wine and reviewing data displayed on a hologram in front of her.
"Chris, are you working even at a meetup?"
At the sudden voice from beside her, Chris turned her head.
In her sight appeared a young man with a sharp look.
It was Heo Junhyeok, a researcher at Klaus Capsule Corporation, her college peer, and the tank of Chris' party. His nickname was Deathmaster.
"Oh, that capsule—it's just been deployed on the market for the first time today. I need to continuously monitor the data."
"Hmm, I’ve extracted quite a bit of data from it myself... But isn’t it still in the trial phase?"
"Right. The most critical issue needs to be solved first... Replicating real-life sensations isn't a problem. The challenge is fine-tuning it."
"Even in this era of rapid scientific advancement, conquering the human brain is no easy feat."
Chris and Deathmaster nodded in agreement, lost in thought for a moment.
Breaking the silence, Deathmaster spoke up first.
"Rain was truly incredible today."
"Haha, right? I wonder how far Rain's abilities can go. With Rain, conquering virtual reality might not be just a dream."
"How about asking Rain to collaborate with us? If she could regularly extract data from the lab, it would be a great help."
Chris shook her head.
"Rain... is completely absorbed in *Astria Online*. I don’t want to take away her time."
"Is it a money issue?"
"Hmm, well, that's part of it, but not entirely. Money isn’t really a problem, since I’m around."
Although Rain had been relying on Chris lately, she still preferred to handle as much as she could on her own. This slightly frustrated Chris.
"Her money is basically my money."
Chris grumbled to herself but soon waved Deathmaster off with a dismissive hand.
"Anyway, Mr. Lone Fighter, go off and enjoy your solitude somewhere else. I’ve got more data to review."
"Ha!"
Deathmaster chuckled, taking a sip of wine and moving towards the window.
Not long after Chris resumed her work, Beimerung approached with a puzzled expression.
"Hey, big sis? Rain didn’t come over here?"
"Wasn’t she with you?"
"I was talking to the heavyset guys for a bit, and then she disappeared, saying she was looking for something to drink."
Chris closed the hologram window she had been working on and glanced around.
Rain was nowhere to be seen in the hall.
"Rain...?"
Chris and Beimerung started searching the area anxiously.
"Sseopseobi-nim, Goseungwoo-nim, have you seen Rain?"
"Jae-Wook, where’s Rain?"
Everyone they asked shook their heads, and as Chris and Beimerung moved toward a table by the window, they heard strange sounds.
"Ah... Ah..."
"R-Rain-nim, you really shouldn’t..."
"Hehe."
Thud.
Rushing to the other side of the table, Chris and Beimerung discovered three women lying entangled on the floor, hidden in the blind spot behind the tablecloth.
Rain’s wheelchair had been tipped over.
Updat𝓮d from freewēbnoveℓ.com.
The women... were tangled together, collapsed on the hall floor...?
"What’s going on, do you hate me, big sis?"
"N-no! It’s not that! But... Ahh...!"
"I... I don’t know anymore..."
"Hee, hee."
Rain, with a teary expression, let out a small sob from her throat.
"What... What is this? Rain’s crying voice is so cute...!"
"Should we take her home and raise her? But Rain belongs to the Guildmaster."
Rain was lying on the floor between Dalboreum and Redhotchicken, her arms wrapped around their waists, not letting go.
Chris and Beimerung stood there, mouths agape.
Beimerung was the first to snap out of the stunned state.
"Rain! Why are you lying on the floor like that?! Ah, Dalboreum-sis, what are you doing?"
"It’s not us! Rain-nim grabbed us and won’t let go!"
"Oh, Beimerung-sis! Oh... right."
Rain grinned brightly and tried to get up, but collapsed again.
"...!"
Beimerung swallowed a scream and rushed to Rain’s side.
Although Dalboreum and Redhotchicken had managed to free themselves from Rain’s grip, they were still sprawled on the floor, unable to gather their senses.
When Beimerung got close, Rain beamed and leaned into Beimerung’s embrace.
Beimerung’s expression wavered between joy and bewilderment at Rain’s affectionate attack.
"Oh no... This isn’t the time for this! Chris, Rain is acting strange!"
"Huh!"
Finally snapping out of her daze, Chris hurried over to Beimerung and carefully took Rain into her own arms.
"Heh. It’s Chris-sis."
Rain snuggled into Chris’s embrace, smiling slyly.
Chris swallowed hard.
Rain was absolutely bewitching.
Rain soon started rubbing her cheek against Chris’s face.
"Sis, I love you so much."
Snuggle, snuggle.
Chris felt lightheaded.
"Ah...!"
But she was strong.
Shaking her head vigorously, Chris regained her composure and asked Dalboreum and Redhotchicken what had happened.
"What... What’s going on? Why is Rain acting like this?"
"Um..."
Dalboreum, still trembling, raised a shaky hand and pointed at the empty bottle on the table.
It was...
"Fruit soju...!"
---
Chris carefully carried Rain to their hotel room on the fifth floor.
"Ugh... Sis. Sis..."
"R-Rain, stop! Or, no, don’t stop. No, that’s not it. Aaah!"
Despite everything, Rain continued to rub against Chris’s body, purring.
Chris could finally breathe a sigh of relief once she laid Rain down on the bed.
"Sigh, Rain is really weak to alcohol."
"Ugh...? Al-co-hol...?"
Chris lovingly gazed at Rain’s drowsy eyes for a moment, then tried to withdraw her hand from Rain’s back.
But Rain showed no intention of letting go.
"Ah."
Plop.
Chris’s face was suddenly pulled into Rain’s chest.
At the same time, Rain’s familiar fresh scent filled Chris’s nostrils.
"Hah!"
Chris gasped and opened her eyes wide.
Gritting her teeth, she tried to pull her face away from Rain’s embrace.
"Hehe, sis, where are you going?"
"Wha... what..."
But then Rain, who had her arms around Chris’s neck, pulled her down even further.
Plop.
Chris fell onto the bed, landing on top of Rain.
"Ah... ah..."
Chris gave up resisting and entrusted her body to Rain, her vision blurring.
This is where I die.
Rain moaned softly, rubbing her cheek against Chris’s body and burying her face in her chest.
Then, suddenly, Rain began to cry.
"Hee, hee."
"R-Rain? Why are you crying?"
"Why... Why am I like this? I’m weird."
Chris suddenly came to her senses.
While it was endearing to see Rain become more affectionate, something was indeed strange.
'Rain' tended to avoid people, but she also had a childlike smile.
'Lee Seulbi,' however, was much more mature, rarely showing her emotions.
But when 'Lee Seulbi' was drunk, she acted even more childlike than 'Rain.'
As if the alcohol had stripped away all of her mature composure.
"It feels like the strange thing inside me has disappeared for a moment."
"A strange thing?"
"Mmm... I don’t know. I just want to hug and whine... But I’m not a child... Am I? Hmm... If you count from when I was born..."
Rain twiddled her fingers as she seemed to contemplate something.
Chris chuckled softly.
Then she lay down beside Rain, cradling her face in her arms.
"Why? What’s wrong with acting like a child? It’s okay."
"Hee, hee. But..."
Rain’s soft sobbing gradually turned into full-blown crying.
"...Sniffle."
Chris’s chest became soaked with Rain’s tears.
"I’m sorry. I’m so sorry."
"Rain...?"
"Uncle Ain... Sister Melissa... Sister Elena... I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I was a strange hero with weird memories. I couldn’t do it properly. But that’s just an excuse, isn’t it? Why did it end up like this? Where did the gods go? But a world like Astria without comrades..."
Rain cried and muttered words Chris couldn’t understand.
"...Sister Igrain... Where are you? Didn’t you say elves never die? That they live on as spirits... Please..."
"What... What’s going on?"
"I must have just run away... To the world of my past life’s memories. Maybe that continent was where I was supposed to live? Where is this?"
"Rain!"
Chris needed to calm down Rain’s rapidly shifting emotions.
She gently pulled Rain’s face away from her chest and gazed into her eyes.
"......."
Rain, with teary eyes, stared blankly at Chris,
then gave a radiant smile.
"Still, I’m glad you’re here with me in this world, Chris-sis."
Unable to say anything, Chris could only stroke Rain’s hair gently.
Rain slowly began to calm down in Chris’s embrace.
As Rain’s sobs faded, they were replaced by the steady sound of peaceful breathing.
Chris continued to stroke Rain’s hair until she fell into a deep sleep.
"......."
What could have made Rain so sad?
Chris didn’t know.
But at least she was able to release it all in my arms.
---
And so, their night deepened.