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“I didn’t know there was a machine here.”

They often say that a chance encounter is fate, but isn’t this a bit too close for comfort?

I heard rumors that many successful users live in this apartment in Deoen, but in the end, it’s just another apartment.

In Korea, apartments and buildings are densely packed, and there are definitely better places than this.

Meeting connections from Deoen in real life is close to impossible.

“Ugh…”

“First… let me check your condition.”

At first, I thought she might have collapsed due to some issue I wasn’t aware of, and I considered reporting it to 119, but this woman was definitely Aisha.

Though she looked different from the Aisha I knew from Deoen, I could feel her presence was unmistakable.

Then, what could be wrong…

I turned Aisha, placing my hand on her forehead.

Swaa…

A faint trace of mana brushed over Aisha’s body.

“…Hmm. Just as I thought, her condition is similar to Yena’s.”

“Haa… haa…”

“Excuse me for a moment.”

With a swift motion, I picked Aisha up and carried her into her home.

Since it was the same apartment, the layout was identical, so I entered Aisha’s room without hesitation and laid her down on the bed.

After all, the pain of a soul cannot be treated in a hospital.

Her life isn’t in dire danger, but if left unchecked, she would probably be rolling around in pain for several days.

I eased the soul’s pain just as I had done for Yena, and her expression improved a bit.

“Ugh…”

“Well… I can’t catch a break.”

It felt like every time I tried to rest, something else cropped up.

With the situation somewhat settled, I sat in the chair across from the bed, observing her.

She had shoulder-length brown hair and a rather pretty face.

This was not the ‘Aisha’ I knew well.

The Aisha I knew had silver hair and starlight-like eyes, and the two didn’t resemble each other at all.

If Deoen’s Aisha had a cat-like face, the Aisha in reality was more like a puppy, maybe?

She probably changed her face through customization.

Yena appeared mostly the same in both reality and Deoen, but originally, Aisha’s look was more typical.

‘Not many users want to show their real appearance.’

That reason was a major influence on Aisha’s popularity in Deoen.

‘Speaking of which…’

“Ahh, those crazy twins… Ugh…”

“She’s really tiny.”

She’s very small.

When she was collapsed, the situation was urgent, so I didn’t think much of it, but now that things are clearer, it’s quite evident.

Despite not being a particularly big bed, it’s more than enough for someone her size.

She’s probably not even close to 160 cm, if not barely 155 cm.

When I last saw her, her height looked similar to Yena’s, who seemed around 165, but I think she was wearing platform shoes then.

From my perspective, Aisha and Yena are both practically alike in that regard…

“Duh… ugh…”

“It’s not just her face that’s changed. She looked about 170 in Deoen.”

“She was always tall…”

“Dreams are meant to be big.”

Heh. I chuckled as I gently tapped Aisha’s forehead.

As I channeled the flow of mana into her, Aisha’s eyes gradually regained their light.

“…Is this a dream? Finally, I can see… Lily…”

“This isn’t a dream.”

“Eh…?”

!

Suddenly!

Aisha shot up quickly.

And then she fell forward again.

“Grrowl…”

“Careful! You shouldn’t get up like that. Your condition is a mess, you need to stabilize!”

“I-I’m hungover…”

“You’re not drunk.”

It’s just a bit of confusion; it’s quite different from being drunk.

I gave her back a gentle pat, then laid her back down.

By the way…

“What do you mean ‘finally’?”

“…Eh.”

“Looks like you’re still not fully aware. Oh, why are you here? My acquaintance lives nearby, and I found out Aisha was right next door—she suddenly collapsed, so I laid her down on the bed.”

“…Yena.”

“I take it you know her? Living next door?”

“I called a few times… ugh.”

“You don’t need to explain everything. Yes, just slowly relax your body.”

As I brushed her forehead, Aisha’s expression softened further.

Now that I look at her, she really resembles a puppy.

She’s completely different from the Aisha in Deoen.

If she could just conceal her energy, one could argue she’s a completely different person.

“Feeling calmer now? No need to answer.”

“……”

“This situation has likely happened a few times. Techniques that touch the soul can also have an effect in reality. However, using such an intense technique is rare.”

“……”

“Originally, I intended to give you separate advice after my work was done, but… as you may have heard, the God of Balance has been acting strange, leaving me disoriented.”

“……”

“I was on my way to help Yena in a similar situation when I discovered you…”

“Yuna…”

“Yes?”

“Name… name, name…”

“Oh, your name is Yuna.”

So her name was Yuna.

Yena’s name matches reality, but Aisha clearly sounds like a nickname.

I smiled faintly and placed a small medicine bottle on the shelf beside the bed.

“That’s a pretty name, Yuna. I’ll leave this medicine for you. It’s a type of pain reliever; if you take one after eating each day, it should help.”

“…Yuna.”

“Don’t take too much just because it hurts, or you might face side effects, so be sure to stick to one a day. It was originally Yena’s, but I rushed to leave it for you…”

“Yuna, Yuna… hehehe…”

“…?”

She seems really happy.

I grinned as I watched Yuna smile like a cheerful golden retriever, then I covered her with the blanket and stood up.

I really should rest now.

‘At this rate, I’m going to collapse myself.’

I need to grab some coffee, get some food, and take a break…

“Ga… gi—”

“I also need to rest.”

“Meow…”

“Hey now, don’t try to get up.”

I gently pushed Yuna back down once more and slipped out of the room.

.

.

.

Alone in the house.

“……”

Left alone, Aisha covered herself up to her head with the blanket and murmured.

“Yuna…”

■

After grabbing coffee and tteokbokki, I ate at Yena’s place before returning and collapsing into bed.

It seems like I can use mana freely even in reality, but in truth, the amount is barely a handful.

It’s a challenge to cover just one person, let alone two, while preparing medicine for them.

It might be possible under normal conditions, but I wasn’t in a normal state.

After sleeping through the night, the next day…

“Morning bird, rise and shine!!”

“…Yena.”

“Hahaha! It’s a total resurrection! For some reason, I feel even more energized than before…”

Bam!

“Ahhhhh!!!”

“Why are you barging in when I’m resting?”

“My head! My head feels like it’s bursting!!”

“It’s not bursting.”

I just gave her a light smack on the head.

A red bump did form on Yena’s forehead, but it wasn’t that hard of a hit.

In short, the cat that rolls on the floor, making dying sounds, is just exaggerating.

“I feel worse than yesterday…”

“You’re quite the drama queen.”

“This is not exaggerating!”

I pushed myself up, rubbing my head.

I did feel slightly better than yesterday, but I still wasn’t fully rested.

The mana was still low, but I could manage some activity.

Haa…

“Today, I need to rest, so I can’t do anything special for you.”

“Come on! You think I would be so shameless as to let you suffer alone? I’m here to keep you company…”

“You’re here for the tteokbokki while you’re sick?”

“…S-so! I’ll cook for you!”

“…? You, Yena, cooking?”

I’ve only seen her cook ramen, soy sauce egg rice, or meal kits, so I can’t imagine she’d call that cooking…

Yena had already donned an apron and declared confidently.

“Believe it or not, it’s been five years of living alone! Sure, I order takeout a lot, but I can manage just about any normal dish!”

“Then why haven’t I seen you cook at all…?”

“Well, if we’re being honest, Lily is just better at it. So, um, let me calm down for a moment!”

“I’ll give you a chance to explain.”

Otherwise, the scream of a 165 cm cat would echo through the apartment once more.

“Well, um, when I eat that so-called heavenly chicken skewer or whatever, it makes me feel inadequate. Should I have the audacity to cook? What I make is simply ‘mixed scraps’; there’s no way I could show that before it’s perfected…”

“Well, even the food you’ve made has been tasty at times?”

“That was precisely measured meal kits with no room for error! That doesn’t count as my cooking!”

“Hmm…”

That’s not entirely unreasonable.

“Alright. I’ll check out what you whip up.”

“Ugh…”

“But are you really just here to cook? It feels way too early for breakfast at 6 AM.”

While serving breakfast this early is a bit much, Yena shook her head while holding a ladle.

“It’s not just about breakfast but important news I rushed over for. It’s something I’ve never seen in four years of Deoen…”

“What is it?”

“Look at this, meow.”

Yena turned the tablet on the table around to show me.

Inside was…

A statement directly written by the executive of Nutri Company, no less.

 

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