Goodbye, poor neighborhood.
I looked around the moldy single room that had been my shelter one last time, then came out and looked at the overall view of the poor neighborhood.
The time has come to part with this place that had sheltered my body for nearly a year.
The move was done at lightning speed.
To begin with, there weren’t many things to move from my single room. The bulky appliances and furniture were just a latex mattress, PC, and capsule.
I decided to dispose of the used microwave and small refrigerator I had additionally purchased. Since Chris’s house had all the latest appliances, there was no use in bringing them.
I wanted to bring the latex mattress that was well-adjusted to my body, but Chris said there’s a good new bed she recently bought in my room, so I don’t need the mattress either. Why on earth did she buy a new bed when she lives alone?
There’s a lot to throw away. Then, the luggage I must take would be clothes, capsule, and PC.
While the movers were moving the capsule and PC, I was packing the luggage I would take personally.
“…Rain, can’t you throw that away too?”
I shook my head while tightly hugging the electric kettle to my chest.
“With just this, I can live anywhere.”
The electric kettle is an appliance made by God. If you just buy a cup noodle from the convenience stores that are everywhere, a day’s meal is done.
That’s not all. You can make job’s tears tea, and with this alone, all kinds of instant foods that are completed by pouring boiling water are solved. You don’t even need things like a gas stove.
“If you need a personal electric kettle, I’ll buy you a new one. Unnie’s house has a state-of-the-art electric kettle too, you know?”
“…I’ve grown attached to this electric kettle.”
A used old model electric kettle. Thanks to this, I was able to live until now.
I didn’t let go of the electric kettle from my chest. Chris shook her head repeatedly.
* * *
“Mmm.”
I rubbed my sleepy eyes and woke up.
An unfamiliar ceiling.
A different ceiling from the hospital ceiling I had gotten quite used to.
Clean white wallpaper, and the afterimage of the night light softly illuminating the ceiling came into view.
Woong.
The blinds on the window that recognized my waking automatically opened, sending morning sunlight through the gaps.
Oh my. Everything is state-of-the-art.
It really feels like seeing products of the future era.
The poor neighborhood wasn’t much different from the past Earth. But this place was different. Everything is full of wonders.
Lee Seulbi, you need to adapt. This is the house where I’ll live from now on.
I pressed the bed I was lying on once with my hand.
Squish.
It sinks well. It’s too soft and fluffy.
Yesterday after the move was finished, Chris brought sleepy me here and laid me down. I fell into a deep sleep instantly. It felt like wearing clothes that fit my body perfectly.
And.
“Capsule.”
It’s the latest model capsule I’ve been using continuously since living in the poor neighborhood.
The capsule was installed very close to the bed. I can move my body directly from the bed and slip into the capsule, or come out of the capsule and lie down on the bed right away.
The room is clean. It’s very spacious.
Even though it’s the smallest room in this house, it’s incomparable to the single room I lived in before. It doesn’t smell moldy. There’s also a clean bathroom attached to the room.
Whirr.
I operated the wheelchair placed beside the bed and entered the bathroom.
“A bathtub, wow.”
I was moved to tears.
There’s even a bathtub in the spacious bathroom. I’ll be able to take baths, not just showers.
But I haven’t taken a bath since my body became like this, it might be dangerous to do it alone.
Can I take a half-body bath with the wheelchair in place? Then it’s not much different from a shower. I want to soak my whole body.
Hmm, there should be a way if I look for it.
For now, let’s just take showers that I can do while in the wheelchair.
After washing my face briefly and coming out, I laid my body back on the bed.
It’s too soft and fluffy. It’s incomparable to the latex mattress. There can’t be anything happier in the world.
Woong woong.
Just as I was about to drift back to sleep in that comfort, my smartphone rang.
[Yin-Yang Master ‘Chris’ (Offline)]
-Rain, are you up? Want to eat breakfast?
The messenger app linked to Astria Online sent a notification.
It’s Chris unnie.
I replied in a half-asleep state.
-I’lm eat in a bit i’m stil sleepy
There were a few typos. It’s because I’m not fully awake even though I’ve washed my face.
-Should unnie come get you? Can I come in?
-y
While holding the smartphone in my hand, not even knowing what I replied, as I was falling back into dreamland.
Swish.
I felt a hand touching my body. Soon, I could feel my body being carefully lifted too.
A safe posture that doesn’t feel uncomfortable, firmly supported by hands. My nodding head is supported by resting on their shoulder. Excellent skill.
There’s only one person who holds my body like this.
“…”
I gently opened my eyes and looked at the hair over the shoulder of the person holding my body.
Red hair clearly visible even with blurry vision.
It’s Chris unnie.
She held me and headed somewhere.
“Rain, let’s eat.”
Dung dung.
Just because it’s a rich household doesn’t mean we’re slicing steaks from the morning. It’s a normal home-cooked meal with various side dishes like rolled omelette, dried anchovies, and braised black beans.
Instead, the nutritious porridge placed in front of me was quite luxurious for porridge. There’s meat and abalone. It’s half rice grains, half ingredients. The seasoning was just right too.
Chomp.
I ate the porridge deliciously.
Chris, who was watching me eat with a bright smile, suddenly made an expression like she was about to cry.
“Unnie has to go to work today. Can you take your medicine well and eat meals by yourself?”
Chris said she’s a 4th year university student. But she was also working while having her attendance guaranteed through an employment contract. And she still has long Astria Online connection times. What on earth kind of work does she do?
“Huhu, I’m working at a capsule company. Playing Astria Online is also part of my work.”
It’s a good job. To be able to receive a salary while playing games.
Whirr.
A mechanical sound similar to my electric wheelchair was heard, and a robot with wheels on its legs approached.
“It’s a housekeeping assistant robot. It will bring meals even if you don’t come to the kitchen.”
“Oh.”
I admired the product of future science.
Chris taught me how to use the robot. It seems it heats up meals and brings them when called through an app linked to the smartphone.
With a robot like this, there’s no need to operate the wheelchair to go back and forth to the kitchen just for meals. I can eat meals in my room.
While maintaining my range of activity, my quality of life improves.
I looked at Chris with tears in my eyes, overcome with emotion.
“Ehehehe, it’s good, right? It’s good, right? These are all yours from now on.”
Chris, who was grinning broadly, soon spoke to me with a meaningful expression.
“By the way, with your body being inconvenienced, how have you been showering all this time? Even in the hospital, you adamantly told us not to follow you to the bathroom. Di-did nurses touch my body or…!”
My body?
The word choice was subtly strange, but I explained to Chris how I shower.
“…It’s roughly this way. I can shower alone sitting on a wheelchair with the mode changed.”
“Hmm, I see.”
Chris licked her lips.
After seeing off Chris who was going to work to the front door, I returned to my room.
Woong.
Although it hadn’t been used for a long time, the capsule opened smoothly.
Chris said she won’t receive money because it’s employee welfare, but there’s no way I can live comfortably just saying ‘Oh, thank you’. At the very least, I need to contribute to the household for utilities including management fees.
Lee Seulbi’s body has improved a lot. The living environment has also improved dramatically. From now on, I can earn money and enjoy that world with Rain’s body without worrying about or burdening reality.
Finally returning. To the Astria continent.
* * *
[Welcome to Astria Online]
Woong.
With a strange floating sensation, I returned to the Astria continent.
“Inhale~ Exhale.”
I took a deep breath.
Hop hop, stretch stretch.
I spun around in place and made a V sign.
“Rain, revival!”
I missed you, Astria continent!
The place where I logged in was in front of the elite dungeon ‘Aspero’s Fortress’.
“Wow… Isn’t that her? From Chris’s Raid Party bus.”
“Should we talk to her?”
A few users seemed to recognize me.
“Oh.”
Pitter-patter.
I quickly ran away from the users’ gazes and hid behind a pile of rocks.
Despite a month having passed, many people were still in front of the dungeon.
I briefly turned on the regional announcements. The regional messages were full of bus advertisements.
[Aspero Fortress bus at industry-lowest price! One free ride for every ten rides!]
[Operating express bus! Full refund in case of bus rollover accident!]
Although competitors have increased a lot and prices have come down, buses seem to be running well still.
And I need to level up soon. The advance parties would already be leveling up in the next area.
Since most of the financial issues regarding Lee Seulbi have been resolved, there’s no need to be too concerned about cash. My job employed by Chris is just to run buses together when she requests.
Fortunately, Chris seems to cherish Lee Seulbi too, but I can’t rely on her house forever. I need to save up the salary I receive instead of gold and prepare for independence.
However, I still need gold too. There are many items I want to buy, like cool outfits and desserts.
“They say we can make higher grade Echostones now.”
While Lee Seulbi was hospitalized, the Astria continent was slowly changing too.
Additional PVP content like arenas was added, and higher grade Echostone combination recipes were created too.
Elite+ grade Echostones have 1.5 times better stats than existing Echostones. If equipped on weapons, you can expect a huge spec increase. They can be used on next dungeon weapons too.
I heard you can make them by combining three existing Echostones, but the success rate is extremely low. Thanks to that, tradable Echostones in the market have been sold out.
“I need to earn a lot of gold.”
I don’t know how many months it would take to buy Echostones one by one through daily quests. Moreover, if the combination fails, all that effort becomes for nothing. In the end, the realistic method is to buy tradable Echostones costing hundreds of gold from the auction house and combine them. For that, I need a lot of gold.
And.
“Housing system.”
Housing that can be purchased in the Empire’s capital. This was expensive, too, but worth investing in. It helps recover fatigue value quickly and can be used as a workshop.
Lee Seulbi’s shelter has become very good. It would be really nice if Rain had a house too.
Decorating the house prettily, buying furniture too.
I counted on my fingers the people I would invite.
“I’ll invite Chris unnie, and Bae Merong unnie too. Hmm, should I include Cherni and Death ahjussi too.”
When I earn gold, I should buy housing first.
I smiled brightly and stepped forward vigorously.
Thump thump.