Ch.18Cherished Bonds (4)

I’ve said this before, but I used to be a big eater. Now, my food intake has been reduced to about a quarter of what it used to be.

Anyway, I’m struggling to finish even half a bowl of jajangmyeon with my changed stomach.

And Ju-an looks at me curiously and says:

“Your appetite has really decreased. You used to say one bowl wasn’t enough and would order more.”

“That’s true, but now I can’t even finish one bowl.”

“If it’s too much, should I finish it for you?”

“I can still eat this much at least.”

Ju-an isn’t exactly a big eater. He can barely finish one bowl of jajangmyeon.

But today he looks fine after eating one bowl. He even seems like he could eat more.

“…How full are you right now?”

“I could probably eat a little more than half a bowl.”

“Then could you eat some of mine?”

“Sure.”

Ju-an answers with a satisfied smile. I really want to hit him. But I don’t have the strength, so hitting him would be pointless anyway.

“What’s so funny this time?”

“Just thinking about the old days.”

“What about the old days?”

“Back then, I couldn’t finish my food and you would eat it for me. Now the situation is reversed.”

Come to think of it, that’s how it used to be. Maybe the reason I had such a big appetite was because I was eating Ju-an’s leftovers too?

“Right, and our genders are reversed too.”

“…Why are you like this to me?”

“When else would I get to tease you? Besides, it’s fun.”

I seriously considered splashing the water from my cup in his face, but with superhuman patience, I managed to hold back and said:

“So where do you want to go next?”

“I don’t know, where do you want to go?”

“The arcade.”

The physical superiority I once had over Ju-an is gone. But my gaming skills remain intact.

And the only place to utilize those gaming skills is the arcade.

“The arcade… it’s been a while. Okay, let’s go there.”

Our next destination was set as the arcade.

By the way, thinking about getting revenge for all the humiliation I’ve suffered puts a smile on my face.

***

After leaving the Chinese restaurant, we walked around and found an arcade. We immediately went inside.

The interior of the arcade was almost identical to the ones in my world. Except that it was filled with games I’d never seen before.

Still, I have gaming skills honed over decades. Even if I’ve never seen these games before, I’m sure I can adapt quickly.

What about Ju-an? He never had time to play games because he was always studying. So this should be a win for me.

“Let’s try that one first.”

I pointed to what looked like a fighting game.

“Okay. But how do you play it?”

“I don’t know either. We’ll just have to learn by doing.”

I said this, but the difference in our fundamentals is already extreme. That’s because I used to enjoy fighting games in the past.

I’m going to completely destroy him.

***

The first round was obviously my overwhelming victory. I won 3-0 without taking a single hit.

I wonder what expression Ju-an is making? He must look frustrated, right?

“I think I’m getting the hang of it.”

Contrary to my expectations, he had a rather serious expression. But it doesn’t matter. That face will soon be distorted in defeat.

“Want to play another round?”

“Sure, I think I can win this time.”

Ju-an spoke with a burning competitive spirit, but unfortunately, his words won’t come true. After all, he’s up against me.

And so the game started again.

***

Something went wrong.

I clearly dominated Ju-an for the first three rounds.

But from the fourth round, it became neck and neck, and by the seventh round, I lost to Ju-an.

I thought it might be a fluke and kept playing, but I continued to lose every time after that.

By the tenth round, I was repeatedly losing without landing a single hit.

“That was easy.”

Ju-an said with a winner’s smile.

“How did you do that?”

“When your character’s arm moves slightly, I press this button. When your character’s leg moves slightly, I press this button.”

I just realized why I lost. He reacted to movements that lasted less than 0.1 seconds.

How is that even possible? Is that something a human can do?

Suddenly, the thought that Ju-an might be a hero crossed my mind.

“Did anything change for you when you came to this world?”

“My physical abilities increased dramatically, my recovery speed got faster, and there are many other things too.”

This isn’t just showing off. He really did react to what he saw. He probably lost in the beginning because he didn’t know how to attack.

This world is so unfair…

“Want to keep playing?”

“I’m done.”

Once I realized I could never win, my motivation instantly disappeared.

“Why? Are you scared?”

Ju-an provoked me with a relaxed smile.

I should have been the one in that role… how did things end up like this?

Still, I’m not stupid enough to fall for his provocation. A fight you can’t win isn’t worth looking at.

“If we’re just going to play one game, there was no point in coming to the arcade.”

“Is that so? Then what other games are there?”

“We’ll have to look around.”

So I started searching for a game I could beat Ju-an at.

First off, games that rely solely on skill are out. It’s obvious I’ll get completely destroyed by his overwhelming physical abilities like before.

While looking for a suitable game, Ju-an pointed to a large box-shaped game machine and said:

“Should we try that one?”

The description in front of the machine read:

[Korea’s best virtual reality horror shooting game!]

It definitely sounds appealing. Regular shooting games are fun, but adding virtual reality must make it even better.

Still, I don’t want to play it. It’s not because I’m scared, it’s just that it takes too long to play one game…

“Oh right, you don’t like scary things.”

I immediately went into the game machine and said:

“I’ll show you what a real man is like.”

“But aren’t you a girl right now?”

“The results will show who the real girl is.”

It’s a shame I can’t destroy Ju-an since it’s a cooperative game, but teasing him when he’s terrified would be pretty good too.

This is also a good opportunity to practice my shooting skills. I should improve them while I’m at it.

So we entered the game machine and sat down. But the seat is a bit small. So small that we had to sit pressed against each other.

Anyway, because we were sitting so close, I could clearly feel Ju-an’s heart beating rapidly.

“Are you scared?”

“No, I’m not scared.”

“Then why is your heart beating so fast?”

“…I don’t know.”

The outcome seems already decided. I won’t lose to someone who’s scared before we even start.

As the game began, the background changed as if we had entered the game world.

The title “Korea’s best virtual reality” isn’t just for show. It feels like real life, not a game.

Even the chair moves when the character moves. The immersion is really incredible.

Now it’s time to show off my gaming skills!

***

After the game started, there was no conversation between us. Instead, I occasionally heard sounds of someone desperately trying to hold back screams.

“Hngh!”

But unfortunately, the person holding back screams is me, not Ju-an.

There’s an unavoidable reason for this. If you heard it, you’d understand why I’m like this.

But right now, it’s difficult to explain the situation. So I’ll explain the circumstances later when I think of an excuse… I mean, when I have time.

I’m definitely not scared. Definitely not.

While we were playing, Ju-an suddenly paused the game and said:

“Are you scared?”

“No, not at all.”

“Then why is your heart beating so fast?”

“…I don’t know.”

What goes around comes around. I should always keep that in mind from now on.

“Then I’ll restart the game.”

So I desperately held back my screams until the game ended.

***

Finally, the game ended. It wasn’t that scary. Anyway, it wasn’t scary.

“What game do you want to play next?”

“I just want to rest a bit now.”

“You’re tired after just this much?”

“You don’t know how fragile this body is, do you? It’s so fragile that I could lose to a middle schooler.”

This body can’t even eat much food. So naturally, my stamina is extremely lacking compared to others.

The more I think about it, the more unfair it feels. He got everything when he reincarnated, but why do I have nothing?

While I was grumbling to myself, Ju-an asked a question.

“Is there anything else you want to do?”

Let’s completely give up on competition. No matter what we do, I can only see a future of miserable defeat.

So what else can we do…

“Let’s just go out and walk around, we’ll probably find something.”

Boys are the type who, no matter how meticulously they plan, will spontaneously change their plans according to their mood.

So we should just look around downtown and do whatever catches our interest.

***

I am undoubtedly a moron with no learning ability.

Didn’t you learn anything from the horror game just now? Why did you make such a stupid choice just to protect your pride?

Anyway, I’m now at an escape room cafe with a horror concept with Ju-an.

I’m such an idiot. Why did I dig my own grave by getting provoked by a simple “Are you scared?”

Why don’t I just go on a horror game tour while I’m at it?

While I was berating myself, Ju-an asked a question.

“By the way, how do we do this?”

“Don’t tell me you don’t know how to do this?”

“Yeah, I never had time to play because I was always at academy. But do you know how to do this?”

“No. I was always playing games in my room, so I never went outside. How would I know?”

Until I became a high school senior, I used to hang out with friends often. But when we became seniors, everyone disappeared saying they needed to study.

“Wasn’t it lonely playing by yourself?”

“It was damn lonely.”

“Then why did you play alone?”

“Because I was the only senior who wasn’t studying and just lounging around.”

“That’s strange, kids kept asking me to hang out.”

“…Dirty popular kids.”

They said they didn’t have time because they were studying… They said they didn’t have time, you jerks! Did you exclude just me again?

As I was suffering from feelings of betrayal, Ju-an asked:

“Why are you suddenly angry?”

“When I asked people to hang out, they all ignored me saying they were busy studying. Wouldn’t you be angry too?”

“Then it must have been convenient not having to respond to each one.”

“I’m going to kill you.”

I immediately kicked Ju-an in the stomach. But it was like kicking a wall—only my foot hurt.

Is it that I’m weak or is he strong?

“Um… you know that when you kick like that while wearing a skirt, everything underneath shows, right?”

“I’m wearing safety shorts, so it’s fine, isn’t it?”

“No… aren’t you embarrassed?”

“We’ve seen everything there is to see of each other, why would I be embarrassed about this?”

I don’t think I’d be embarrassed even if I showed him my underwear or even if I was naked in front of him. After all, we’ve been together for over 12 years, what is there to be embarrassed about now?

But wearing a skirt is still embarrassing.

“Still, since you have a woman’s body now, shouldn’t you behave more modestly?”

“Like this?”

When someone tells you not to do something, it makes you want to do it more. Even if you had no intention of doing it in the first place.

So I lifted my skirt slightly with one hand, just enough to show a bit of my safety shorts. Ju-an’s face turned extremely red as he hurriedly looked away.

This body is definitely pretty. If I were in his position, I would have reacted similarly.

Thinking about it that way made me want to tease him more. Teasing really is fun.

“Why are you embarrassed? It’s still me inside.”

“…Yeah, that’s true.”

“Anyway, we should solve this… I guess.”

This is our first time doing an escape room. That’s fine, but the theme of this room is horror.

I want to leave right now, but my pride absolutely won’t allow it. So I have no choice but to go through with it.

It can’t be scarier than that game, right?