Fluffy Fluffy Secret Friend

It was a full hour later that Ellie emerged from the testing machine.

Just like before, Ellie’s body was burning hot.

Sweat streamed down her cheeks, and steam rose in white puffs.

The strong scent of her body emanating from inside the capsule was enough to make one’s head spin.

Ellie stumbled out of the capsule, gasping for breath and completely limp.

It was a sight I’d seen last week, too.

“Are you all done?”

“Ugh, hee-euk…”

Could she not even muster the strength to answer?

Ellie just nodded, completely limp.

The shirt she was wearing clung to her body, revealing her soft curves.

1:20 PM.

The perfect time for lunch.

I smiled, thinking about the lunch menu I had decided on while Ellie was inside the capsule.

“You must be really hungry, huh?”

As I spoke to Ellie, I glanced at where Sohee was sitting.

She was printing something out in front of a large printer.

Why would she save data in such an analog way in this day and age?

It was something I couldn’t understand.

“Hoo… I’m going to go wash up.”

Had she rested for about five minutes?

Ellie got up from her seat, shook off the sweat, and left the testing area.

I looked down at the seat where Ellie had been sitting with a strange gaze.

The floor, soaked with sweat, had an imprint of Ellie’s shape.

“Hayun-ah. Have you decided what you want to eat?”

“Ah, Sohee-ya.”

As I was blankly staring at the round, soft imprint, Sohee approached and spoke.

I nodded. I had waited for a whole hour. It was plenty of time to decide on a menu I wanted to eat.

A dish with minimal likes and dislikes, enough to satisfy everyone.

Something hearty and warm, as it was a lunch meal.

And I selected a menu within a reasonable price range.

“It’s not some kind of pork bone hangover soup again, is it?”

“No way!”

I strongly denied it.

That was my mistake. How disappointed must she have been when I dragged a current middle school girl to eat pork bone hangover soup together?

I would have been better off going to a snack bar nearby and ordering tteokbokki.

“Then what should we eat?”

“Pizza!”

“Pizza…?”

“Yeah.”

Pizza.

Isn’t it good? It’s easy to eat, fills you up, and it’s a warm dish.

If she doesn’t like pizza, we can order pasta.

These days, pizza places don’t just sell pizza, after all.

A completely middle school girl-like choice.

I smiled, admiring my own judgment.

“Hayun-ah. Did you ask someone before deciding?”

“Nope?”

“Really…?”

And so, the lunch menu was decided on pizza.

The Digital Center was so large that it was hard to find a fast-food chain that wasn’t here.

It was about 20 minutes later that Ellie returned.

The appearance of being soaked in sweat was gone, and Ellie, wearing new clothes, looked very fluffy.

As I approached, a pleasant shampoo scent wafted around.

She must have washed up cleanly?

I approached Ellie and sniffed.

The shampoo scent mixed with the body odor emanating from the small girl had a strange addictiveness.

It was a different feeling from the body odor that Sohee gave off.

“U-um…?”

“Ah, sorry. Shall we go eat?”

“… Yeah!”

Ellie, Sohee, and I.

The three of us walked out of the reaction speed testing area side by side and started walking down the wide road.

“U-um… what are we having for lunch?”

“Pizza. Is that okay?”

“Sure. Not a bad choice.”

As far as I know, pizza is one of those foods that isn’t very divisive.

Fortunately, Ellie seemed to like pizza.

The three of us arrived at a pizza chain restaurant.

There were many people using it as it was lunchtime, but there were plenty of seats available because the store was large.

I led the two of them to the deepest part of the store and sat down.

Because I was so conscious of people’s glances.

“Everyone, pick what you want to eat.”

I can afford to buy pizza at least.

I told the two of them as if I was doing them a favor.

Actually, I came to eat pizza, but I don’t know what’s good, so I’m leaving the choice to the two of them.

Ellie cautiously stuck close to me.

Why is she being like this today?

Sohee, who was sitting across from me, started looking at me and Ellie with a strange gaze instead of choosing a pizza.

“Aren’t you guys going to pick a pizza?”

At my words, Ellie and Sohee finally lowered their heads and started choosing a menu.

The large hologram spread out on the table was showing the appearance of delicious pizza.

“How about this…?”

Ellie pointed to a menu item and asked.

At her gesture, the hologram reacted and displayed a large image of the pizza in front of us.

Pineapple pizza with steam rising from it.

I frowned.

Pineapple pizza? Pineapple and pizza are foods that you can only taste the true flavor of when you eat them separately.

“Not bad.”

Sohee nodded at Ellie’s choice.

But I didn’t like it.

I chose the pizza next to it.

It was a very, very delicious-looking one with plenty of sausage and bacon.

The large pizza pushed aside the hologram of the pineapple pizza and floated in front of us.

“How about this?”

It was called [Sausage Bacon Roll].

It was a pizza I had never seen before, but there was no way it wouldn’t be delicious.

“I’m okay with it.”

“Ah, me too… I’m okay with it!”

I knew they would follow my choice.

I nodded, pressed the button next to the table, and took out my wallet.

It was a cute pig wallet with a big pig nose.

“I’ll pay.”

From ordering the pizza to paying for it. All the work was done smoothly.

I asked the two of them if they needed anything else, but they both shook their heads.

I added drinks as the last thing and stuffed the pig nose wallet back into my pocket.

“Okay, I’ll be right back, going to the bathroom!”

Was she nervous?

Ellie jumped up from her seat and said.

The small girl ran to the bathroom with quick steps.

Now it’s just Sohee and me.

Her strange gaze was staring intently at my face.

At that moment, my phone screen flashed.

A message had arrived from my secret friend.

Seeker of Light-[Fluffy Raccoon-yeo. You have arrived at an important place now. What should I do now?]

It seemed that he had arrived at that lunch spot.

I groped through my hazy memories and wrote a message.

Fluffy Raccoon-[Is it okay to write messages like this right now? What about the other person?]

Seeker of Light-[Just… I just left my seat for a moment.]

Hmm…

It seemed that he had gotten up from his seat for a moment to smoke a cigarette.

I smiled slightly and moved my hands.

Fluffy Raccoon-[Do you like the other person?]

Seeker of Light-[Hmm… I like them. I want to get to know them better.]

Fluffy Raccoon-[Then when you go back to your seat, try talking to them naturally. I told you earlier, right? It will be easier to continue the conversation if you both have the same interests.]

Seeker of Light-[Okay. I will do as you told me. I sat closest to them earlier, and their reaction seemed pretty good.]

Fluffy Raccoon-[If the other person doesn’t reject you, wouldn’t that mean they have similar thoughts? Then try to initiate skinship naturally.]

Seeker of Light-[S-Skinship?]

Fluffy Raccoon-[Yes, like holding hands…?]

“What are you looking at so intently?”

“Ah, just talking to a friend.”

“Friend…?”

“Yeah, we haven’t met in a while, but it seems like they went on a blind date. So I was giving them advice.”

“A, a blind date…? I see… That’s a relief.”

What was she relieved about?

Sohee let out a sigh of relief at my answer.

It was then. At the same time as Ellie, who had gone to the bathroom, returned, the pizza we had ordered arrived on the table.

Ellie cautiously stuck close to me in the seat next to me.

Even closer than before.

With the warm pizza with steam rising from it between us, Sohee’s strange gaze flew again.

At that moment, Sohee’s mouth slowly opened.

“Ellie.”

“Y-Yes…?”

“Aren’t you too close? Wouldn’t it be uncomfortable for Hayun to eat?”

Uncomfortable? Not at all.

I shook my head and answered.

“No, it’s okay. Ellie is small, so it’s not uncomfortable even if she sticks closer.”

“R-Really? Is it okay if I stick closer?”

Ellie looked at me cautiously at my words and moved her butt closer little by little.

That’s how our arms slightly touched.

“…”

Sohee watched the scene and pursed her lips.

Let’s stop talking now and eat.

I reached out and started putting pizza on the plate.

The cheese stretches out long from the pizza, which is cut so that it is easy to hold and eat in one hand, and is transferred onto the plate.

The first one to Sohee, the second one to me, and the last one to Ellie.

It was the moment I was about to put the delicious-looking pizza in my mouth.

Ellie, who was sitting next to me, turned to me and said.

“U-Um!”

“Yeah…?”

“I-Is it okay if I hold your hand?”

Hold hands out of the blue?

After asking me the question, Ellie was fidgeting with her fingers, hesitating.

If I hold her hand, what meaning would that action have?

There was no reason not to.

I reached out and held Ellie’s small hand tightly.

“Gasp…”

Ellie opened her mouth as if slightly surprised by my sudden action.

I fiddled with Ellie’s hand.

I could feel her soft and smooth skin.

“Is that okay now?”

“Ah, yeah…”

Now I really have to eat pizza.

Thinking that way, it was the moment I lifted the pizza and opened my mouth wide.

Sohee, who was sitting across from me, was looking at me, fidgeting with her hands.

“Ah…”

I’m not oblivious.

Rather, I was on the quick-witted side.

Is it trendy among middle school girls these days to touch hands?

I put down the pizza and held out my hand.

“Sohee, give me your hand too.”

I don’t know why, but I have to touch it first.

“Okay!”

Sohee smiled brightly at my words and held out her hand.

Sohee’s hand was also soft and smooth.

I’ve touched both girls’ hands, so now it’s time to really eat pizza.

I opened my mouth wide and pushed the pizza in.

The hot cheese and toppings that filled my mouth were mixed up like crazy.

It felt like the sticky cheese was beating my tongue.

While I was absorbed in the pizza.

Ellie, who was sitting next to me, opened her mouth.

“D-Did you see that?”

It was a sudden remark.

Sohee and I tilted our heads and looked at Ellie.

Ellie, with a slightly nervous expression, took a breath and opened her mouth.

“Hayun, the way you, the Blood Demon King, were defeating the leaders of the Exorcist Guild…!”

“Ah… that.”

“It was really cool. Amazing.”

This kid, she had a knack for making people feel good.

I seemed to have been mistaken because I only had annoying memories when I met Jupiter in the past.

I smiled lightly and replied.

“Of course. Who do you think I am?”

“M-My rival…!”

Isn’t there a big difference in skill to claim to be a rival?

But since I felt good, I didn’t point out that fact.

Starting with Ellie’s words, the three of us started talking to each other.

Since everyone was a user playing Deron, what came out of their mouths was naturally about Deron.

The contents of the quests they were doing and the stories that left a deep impression popped out like crazy.

At that moment, a signal came.

A signal to go to the bathroom.

I jumped up from my seat.

“Hayun-ah?”

“Blood Demon King…?”

“J-Just going to the bathroom for a bit…!”

I hurried to the bathroom.

***

Immediately after Hayun left her seat, an uncomfortable silence fell between Ellie and Sohee.

Ellie looked at Sohee and took out her phone.

The reason she was able to talk comfortably was thanks to the fluffy Hayun sitting next to her.

Left alone, Ellie became a sickly and weak girl again.

It’s time to borrow the power of a friend.

Ellie tapped on her phone and wrote a message to her secret friend.

Seeker of Light-[Fluffy Raccoon-yeo. Please help me. The atmosphere is so awkward that I feel like I can’t breathe.]

But no answer came back.

It seemed that he was doing something else.

Ellie wrote a few more messages after that.

But no matter how long she waited, no answer came back.

It was then. Ellie’s gaze turned to the phone placed next to her.

The Blood Demon King, Hayun’s phone that she left behind while going to the bathroom.

Ellie tilted her head and wrote a message to her secret friend.

Then, an alarm message from the chat room popped up on the phone screen.

“Gasp…!”

No way, there’s no way.

Ellie shook her head, checking the message that appeared on the phone screen.

It can’t be. There’s no way. Why would the Blood Demon King, she…

But…

Ellie wrote the message again.

Then, this time as well, Hayun’s phone screen flashed and an alarm message from the chat room popped up on it.