Chapter 7

The next day, after all that had happened, I managed to wake up as scheduled.

Thanks to the earphones plugged into the music player that served as my alarm, I didn’t wake up Sufang.

Seeing the blue blanket on the sofa rise and fall with his breathing, I felt relieved as I picked up my clothes and headed towards the bathroom.

I couldn’t possibly change in that room.

If Sufang were to wake up while I was changing, it would be a disaster, mainly for my mental state.

Moreover, the current situation is a rather dangerous one, objectively speaking, as I am in a closed space with a stranger who has combat abilities and no place to run.

In such a special environment, I might feel threatened.

For example, if he weren’t him, he might threaten me to get whatever he wanted, or even take my computer or the entire room, regardless of whether it would be useful or not.

But considering his circumstances, what he probably wants is not material things but connections with people.

I glanced down at the hand he had gripped tightly yesterday.

If he has been wandering in this space for nearly a century, I don’t think he would let go of a connection with a normal human for trivial reasons. Given that he is him, I don’t think I need to be overly cautious.

“Well, it’s not like I need to be wary of someone who is that weak…”

After finishing changing, washing my face, and getting ready, I muttered to myself.

In this environment, I don’t think I could be this kind to someone unless they were my favorite character.

“Alright.”

I said this to muster up some energy.

He should be waking up soon, and I want to be in the same room when he does.

Still, it’s a good thing my face after reincarnation is so well-structured.

I’m still young, and my face is so well-structured that I don’t need makeup, which is a real relief since I don’t have to do it just because he’s here.

I don’t want to bring the hassle of makeup into this space where I can be lazy.

Although I’ve never tried it, since the clothes in this space remain in a brand new state, maybe the makeup won’t smudge either if I don’t take a bath?

But it’s still a hassle, so I decided not to bother and gently opened the door to the room.

The blanket in the dimly lit room was still moving up and down as it had before.

“Well, he must be tired.”

I whispered softly, and then I suddenly thought that if he is here, there must be a room for him outside.

I slowly moved and opened the door at the entrance of the room.

Beyond this should be the unpleasant space with mixed colors.

I hadn’t opened this door since the first time I did, which made me feel uncomfortable, so it had been a while since I touched it.

“Huh?”

I involuntarily let out a sound, worried that I might have woken him up, but the blanket was still moving slightly as it had before.

Relieved, I turned back to the door and took a step forward.

“Why is the room...?”

Instead of the unpleasant marble-patterned space, I found myself in a completely white room.

Looking around, it was a simple room with a bed and a small desk, just like the first room I entered.

For a moment, I thought the number of people in my room had increased, but then I noticed a book on the desk and realized it was different.

The bed was neatly made and unused, while the book on the desk was worn out from being read many times.

Since things in this space don’t break, the book must have been in that state since it was brought in.

Upon closer inspection, I saw a sword leaning against the desk, with a sheath in the color Sufang used in the game.

Prisoners are only allowed to bring one book into this space, but since he was forced in, the book and the sword might have been what he happened to have at the time.

This must be the room he was put in.

Sufang said that the room follows you as you walk in this space, but maybe it attaches to the room you enter.

Although there was nothing else in the room besides the sword and the book, it felt wrong to enter his room without permission, so I decided to go back to my own room.

Thinking about it, since this room floats in the space, if he goes back to his room, it might go somewhere else with him.

I decided to discuss this with him when he wakes up and returned to my room, where he was just sitting up.

The sofa he had been sleeping on was positioned with the backrest facing the entrance, so he hadn’t noticed me coming back yet.

I watched the blue blanket slide off his shoulder as he sat up, and he suddenly looked around, as if he had just noticed something.

“Good morning.”

I called out to him as I walked over.

His inorganic eyes caught sight of me and he froze.

Since he didn’t react after freezing, I thought he might still be confused and called out to him again as I approached.

“Hey…!”

The moment I got close, he pulled me towards him, burying his face in my shoulder.

I tried to pull away, but his trembling voice stopped me.

“It wasn’t a dream, was it?”

Feeling his trembling through his tight grip, I couldn’t push him away.

I tentatively reached out with my free hand and patted his head.

“Yes, I’m here. You said you wanted to eat together and talk, right?”

He said, “Ah,” in a voice that was less hoarse than yesterday.

After a moment, the grip on my arm loosened, and he slowly let go.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.”

I felt a bit embarrassed by the lingering warmth of his body.

I never thought I would be hugged by my favorite character.

Character, character… I really need to change this way of thinking.

He is a living person with a body and emotions that don’t follow the game’s script.

It’s disrespectful to treat a living person in front of me as a character.

“Um, if you want, you can take a bath?”

“…A bath?”

“You might not need it in this space, but I set it up to have some time to relax. I’ll explain the details later, but for now, why don’t you take your time?”

I thought it might be strange to suggest a bath to a man, but I thought he needed some time to calm down.

If he’s not calm, his anxiety will only double.

After a moment of hesitation, he nodded, and I handed him the extra towel I had bought.

I led him to the next room, quickly explained how to use the bathtub, and left.

Although he seemed a bit taken aback by the high-tech bathtub, which doesn’t exist in the outside world, I decided to ignore it.

I needed to think about how to explain the other devices in the room while he was in the bath.

In the end, I quickly concluded that the best way to explain everything is to say it’s all due to my abilities.

Since I’m the only one who can bring out and use these unfamiliar devices, it’s the only explanation that makes sense.

I decided that when he comes out of the bath, I would keep my promise from yesterday and have a meal with him, so I started boiling water in the pot for tea after the meal.