[TS] The Return of The Gamer - Chapter 34

I take a spot in front of a rather shabby shopping center with a relatively low floating population.

“……”

People walking on the street are visible.

Glances toward me pass by occasionally, but because I covered my face so tightly, the gazes didn't linger.

That was quite fortunate.

“……”

My life has always been a wait.

I couldn't do anything alone.

I always needed someone's help.

Waiting for someone, and waiting again.

Therefore, for me, waiting was an extremely natural thing.

Because that's how it has always been.

But everything changes.

Me too, and the things around me.

If there's a slight problem, in my case, the change was a bit too drastic.

Then, has something changed now?

Unfortunately, it's hard to agree right now.

I have changed, but at the same time, I'm still me.

I'm not afraid of change.

However, I just needed a little time.

“Haa……”

Looking at the white puffs of breath,

I wait for someone again.

Endlessly, endlessly.

“Unnie!”

How long had I waited?

A familiar voice is heard.

Perhaps because it's outside, or maybe because I've heard it many times already, but now even that "Unnie" sounds rather welcoming.

It seems the cold, which feels like it could tear away the skin, has invaded my brain.

It didn't take long for my younger sibling to arrive where I was.

As far as I know, the distance from here to the school is quite far…….

I think she must have hurried after seeing the message.

“…Why did you send the message like that? You startled me.”

My sibling, whom I finally met, was breathing roughly with a face that seemed both angry and relieved.

Despite the weather, looking at the sweat trickling on her forehead, it seemed she had been running.

“Huh? Mom said someone was coming to look at the house, so she told me to go out for a while.”

“I know, I talked to Mom.”

Seeing that she even talked on the phone, she really seemed surprised.

Come to think of it, I also seemed to have spoken with a nuance that was easy to misunderstand.

Perhaps for that reason, my sibling spoke as if spitting out words with a voice different from usual.

“Why don't you stop saying weird things and just go to a PC bang or something? You like games.”

Ugh. A comment that hit a nerve.

If I said something strange again, I wouldn't know what kind of snowballing would happen, so I confessed the truth.

“…I can't go in.”

“What?”

My sibling’s eyebrows gently furrowed.

It was a look I hadn't seen before.

“Then, why didn't you go to a cafe? The cafe has glass windows, so you can be seen from the outside.”

“I… I’ve never been to such a place…”

My sibling looked at me as if she couldn't believe it and let out a deep sigh.

“We're in big trouble, Unnie.”

“…It's not familiar yet.”

It's true.

A new champion is also unfamiliar at first, but doesn't it quickly become familiar after a few encounters with opponents and actually playing them?

This is the same.

I just need time.

“Yes, yes. I guess so.”

Of course, my sibling didn't seem to believe it at all.

Well, given that I've shown such a pathetic side, it was only natural to be distrusted.

'I also hate playing games with a laner who can't play when playing with me.'

When you play games, you meet such people.

People who get matched in the same rank as me, but show poor performance when playing with me.

Since I'm also human, I naturally don't welcome such people as teammates.

I could see that my sibling's distrust of me now was in a similar context.

“Anyway, Mom's plan will be useless if it goes on like this.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“Do you really think Mom kicked you out? She probably wanted to help you build some independence.”

“Really?”

“I didn't hear it directly from Mom. But that's what I think. How much did Mom overprotect you usually? Does it make sense to just send you out like this? It doesn't make sense.”

Now that I think about it, it seems so…….

It wasn't certain, as it was just a guess, but the hypothesis itself seemed quite persuasive.

You know, doesn't a lion push its cubs off a cliff on purpose to raise them strong?

Of course, although it's a story without any basis in reality, it's just a metaphor after all.

“Let's go inside somewhere for now. Oh, look at your face. It’s as cold as ice.”

“Kyaak!”

The moment my sibling’s hand touched my face, a scream burst out involuntarily.

My sibling also looked surprised, as if she didn't know I would let out such a baby bird-like scream.

“Um… Sorry?”

The words my sibling chose after a moment of bewilderment were an apology.

“Ah, no, it's okay. I was surprised.”

“Then let's go.”

At that moment, as my sibling was about to lead the way.

“Huh?”

My sibling’s eyebrows, whose gaze was directed downwards, slightly crumpled.

“Why?”

“Unnie, is that your boots?”

“Uh… were they yours? I didn't know what my shoes were, so I just wore them.”

“…I haven't even worn those yet.”

Her voice seems cold.

It's not just a feeling.

“No, it's not that I'm angry because you wore my shoes without asking. It's not that I'm so narrow-minded, but even so, using other people's things without asking, no matter how close siblings are, isn't there a line that should be kept? I think like that. Oh, of course, it's not that I'm angry. I'm really not angry. You know I'm not that narrow-minded. I'm just surprised. Ugh, looking at it like this, they're definitely yours. You should just have them. Who would have known that it's our Unnie? They suit you so well. How are you so pretty? I'm jealous.”

My sibling always cared for me.

The atmosphere my sibling exudes now was, to say the least, a sight I had never seen before in my life.

“Uh…… Sorry.”

My instincts say.

The correct answer in this situation is to just say sorry unconditionally.

It's like the feeling when our team's top lane gets continuously dived by the enemy jungler and quietly types 3 2 1 in the chat.

The difference between then and now is that the top lane can just leave the game and lose a game, but I couldn't even imagine the aftermath now.

“Ask me next time, okay? You surprised me.”

A smiling face, but not a smile.

Scary.

I had that thought for the first time, looking at my sibling.

“Uh, yeah. Okay.”

“Then let's go. There's a cafe we go to often in front of us. The egg tarts there are really delicious.”

I followed my sibling's back diligently, as if I was really a baby bird, for fear of missing her.

I feel like I've become my sibling…….

‘Well.’

Strictly speaking, isn't my sibling a senior in social life by far?

They say there's no age to learn. That means there's no need to be ashamed.

‘…Of course, that's a story when it goes my way.’

The authority of an older brother, a senior, disappears.

No, maybe that kind of thing didn't exist in the first place, but anyway, it feels like it's disappearing.

The place my sibling headed to was a small cafe, similar in size to the one I had seen before.

It seemed she had considered me, who is uncomfortable with a lot of people, as the large franchise cafes are usually big.

“What will you drink?”

“Anything. I don't know what's what.”

“Really? Hmm… Coffee? Or a smoothie or juice?”

“Coffee.”

I wouldn't have dared to drink caffeinated beverages before, but recently, coffee has become a favorite of mine.

Of course, it was usually canned coffee delivered, but it's the best for all-night rank games, you know.

“Sweet?”

“Yeah.”

I don't usually drink sweet drinks.

No, to be exact, it would be correct to say that I couldn't approach them in the first place because of my mother.

Even I have recently gained freedom regarding what I eat, and ordering snacks and drinks I wanted to try in the past has become another hobby of mine.

Anyway, I couldn't help but be amazed at the taste of canned coffee, which I tasted for the first time.

Then I realized.

That I actually like sweet drinks quite a lot.

“Iced? Hot?”

“Hot.”

I usually drink canned coffee cold, but the situation is different now.

“One hot white chocolate mocha, one iced americano, and two egg tarts, please.”

After deriving the menu with a simple Q&A, my sibling finished the order and received the vibrating bell.

“The bell rings when the coffee is ready, right?”

“Yeah, that's right. How did you know?”

“I saw it on a drama.”

Even though I've lived as a homebody for decades, that doesn't mean I've lived a completely isolated life from the world.

Even if I lack sociability, it's not that I lack common sense itself.

“Well, that's true.”

My sibling smiled lightly, agreeing.

My sibling already knew very well that I am a huge drama enthusiast.

As we were exchanging such meaningless conversation, the vibration rang out in a few minutes.

Wee-iing─

“Ah.”

My sibling, who was about to get up with the bell without thinking, soon changed her expression to mischievous.

I have a bad feeling.

“You'll get it, Unnie?”