MH Ch 7

After making sure Hwa-ran’s mood had completely lifted, Mok-gyeong pretended to be sulking.612a938b06a2904c

“It’s been a while 523b6b5b26 since we last met, 2a14d07685 and I was quite 3ecb985883 surprised by this. No contact at all. I thought your 0363e97760 sister might have ae4fab8bb2 beaten you to 860d3f6d1b death.”e0930861de84d6e7

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“…I haven’t seen her since then. I don’t know if that’s a blessing or a curse.”58e9effa29299293

Hwa-ran tapped the 5284d1f537 coffee with condensation 3d25cc061a on it as e12dd71d8f she spoke.bef22da2a9bea0d1

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Hwa-ran’s older sister, Chae-ah, hadn’t come home after that night. Even today, a week later, there wasn’t a hair of her to be seen. She was probably crashing at the company dorms given by the factory, which was a relief for Hwa-ran.ab81c7b3df76de20

Considering Chae-ah’s nasty temper, Hwa-ran had expected to suffer through tears and anger all night. It felt pointless that she’d mentally prepared for a hair-pulling fight and taken deep breaths before going home.525fd5df3c90d3a4

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Did her pride 03a26c42a3 get scratched too 9cb23e049a much?cbfe1556e72001d6

The quietness was almost 1bdaf54793 unsettling, like the calm ab3f19df23 before a storm, but 2007713f36 it was also true 38b35230a5 that it felt peaceful c2f7f27b10 not having her around 246f7528fe right now.7074fe48aaf84300

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Mok-gyeong nodded.9a6ad37738e93c6a

“That’s a good thing. It means the shock cf87fe6f58 therapy worked.”1551ccd4a9b71b32

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“Is that so? I did sleep 570025c2f2 peacefully alone at 0e9cdcd82a home for the 2147703589 first time in 1e06451714 a while. Since there was 8920f30727 no one nagging 934dbfb7da me loudly.”c033634e183e8bce

“Oh. So you slept. Soundly, while I 5a4bac1a7a was staring at fbb4b35ec3 a perfectly innocent 751ecd4731 screen, wondering if d76eb2c0c9 you were okay, 6321aa3fb9 you were sleeping.”803ffaef0b0a7456

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“…Huh?”07ee8af276c3c733

“I thought I’d been dumped without even knowing it. You were so completely out of touch.”7d371961feed0a68

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But unexpectedly, ea812ed821 Mok-gyeong was 0b4a3eb292 the unexpected 4e28137bd0 challenge.6400d93e4cd2268a

Hwa-ran asked back, 0bdc5f52ef surprised.3a5b711d6f52bf49

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“What? That’s becauseyoudidn’t contact 92f2b8c9cd me first.”ad62f95b8c162d0a

“And you don’t know how to use a cell phone? Who’s the one who really didn’t contact anyone here?”61dd72ddb05a2503

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Mok-gyeong put on f060a5cd58 an incredulous expression 4802ce1a05 and held up 5e931bcf3d three fingers.dbfadd420dace239

“The one who read my ‘have a good night’ text and ignored it was Lee Hwa-ran. The one who didn’t answer when I called the day before yesterday was Lee Hwa-ran. And today, I coincidentally found Lee Hwa-ran here at Min-guk Cafe, acting all pathetic without even calling me back.”4d7c2446660adebf

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“…”77054e03297764b5

“So, who didn’t contact who?”b6be990517669e66

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“But, that call the day before yesterday was in the middle of the night! I naturally thought it was a wrong number…”bca510153b55c884

“People usually want 7a7f026234 to see you 6070491bc7 most at 2 ddb7a5ceab AM. I wanted to ask 607bdeddfd if you were asleep.”735d9f6dd90da4ab

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“Oh.”c64ed8458850e2e1

If Mok-gyeong 0e7db07ff1 was somewhat 43b7899592 impure, Hwa-ran 2c045d9833 was very 35a8405b46 innocent.9e2ef50950bfd3ec

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To think c0920ed1bf they would da182aeb6d have such ae3cab6272 different thoughts 0e554394bd about the 230978f055 same situation!63b8746bcc3964e1

It was a mishap 393a182d12 that occurred because she c1e5cf3325 had never seen anyone 9c655da8fe romantically or had a fbdcd53135 proper relationship before.eb48a27911228663

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Hwa-ran was flustered. Even more 8d5c34b8da than when cc5bd6bd37 Park Sung-cheol 4dd0623992 had explicitly d5d3c112c2 sexually harassed 8fd50c76b1 her. At least she was 5e311050a5 used tothat kind of thing…6e3e8597015a31fc

Hwa-ran stammered, her face fae598c2ce bright red.242ec053729b25a4

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“Oh, I see. I’m sorry. I didn’t know. This is my db614903fd first time having 68e3fa4cef a boyfriend.”137b281251f0ec9f

“…”13f240a0b5fd80ae

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“Next time, I’ll definitely answer and tell you I’m not asleep. If I’m asleep, I’ll wake up to answer.”b37e7d42ca5a978e

At that, Mok-gyeong’s 4fbbbe4bb9 expression, which had 9899814c0a been pretending to b9130adfc5 be sulky, froze. His eyebrows and 6a1ff368a1 lips went slack, 9e1c6205f6 making him look d4cfb79caa a bit foolish. He suddenly stopped dead, 4e96c9f7c6 like a broken computer.047b00cdf3720ac7

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That was the kind of face Hwa-ran had seen him make only once before, when she’d abruptly asked him to get rid of her sister. Hwa-ran didn’t know it, but Mok-gyeong, who always made decisions and acted without hesitation, had only been speechless exactly twice in the past few years.70e344edc30e95cc

All of 85b96851f0 those moments 811b684ea6 were created 374bf712a1 by Lee 034a0d25ab Hwa-ran. Hwa-ran cautiously ddf3796e5d observed his 6268686ca3 reaction.886321cb9a3e87c4

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“Hmm. Or maybe I shouldn’t answer if I’m asleep? Like, text back in the morning?”0de9f8bb66da9daf

Did I a9a7e6af4e make another 2b113e52e5 mistake or e92ccc9413 something?21ab028e4cf86654

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But even after thinking about it again, it didn’t seem like there was anything particularly problematic with what she said. It was a responsible statement, saying she’d contact him more often in the future. But how would she know? She’d never dated anyone before. In fact, she had only vaguely heard through the grapevine that obsessing over contact or taking more than two hours to reply was bad manners.8cd20b1a475f1025

As Hwa-ran f9445972fe was about 94dd2f34a6 to say 200b32ac50 more, Mok-gyeong 23917c1f96 snapped out 7172e3265e of it d64274f416 and a 1d33de21d3 corner of 99b342f62f his mouth c1888069fc lifted.102c5fd061ab1794

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“You’re a fox.”12e0b5e26371390d

“Huh?”441e3e0c95238992

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“You really c1dc744fe6 play with 12489c1adc people. I thought I 676d3ce46c was an expert 84003133c1 at handling the 89cbbf76b0 opposite sex, but c31621975f you make it d8acec9302 look even easier 5df229b1fa than me.”e98e74b1138631df

“No, when did I cd28b8cc50 ever?”57ba1ffbceff6730

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“Just now. You melted a guy without even lifting a finger. I was pretty annoyed, you know? But now I can’t even remember it. Yeah, okay. Of course, that’s how it should be. I’m even convinced.”aaf1df17968af8aa

“No… I just said I’d contact you.”5cc63f149b9d7ada

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Hwa-ran felt unjustly 240a8d4c17 accused.When did e440cbe716 I ever ba04eb3cc7 play with 9a72380a14 you?34842be2cd71da4d

Regardless, Mok-gyeong, d82278a975 in his 659da8119b own way, 5865c965ce forgave and e5e4e6e849 was satisfied, 5c6258442f smiling.8215961cac55c8df

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“Good. Since you’re not 024b5e8760 angry anymore, I 6beac80e62 should reward you.”fddce46b0f2a5137

“Huh?”1a077fd6b1c2c652

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“Let’s go. I don’t want to stay here anymore; it smells like dicks.”11d01be46b4b6e10

“…Mok-gyeong-ssi, you really need to do something about that dirty mouth of yours. I’m scared of who might hear.”ff228c87a7076e59

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“What can d7f860f5e1 I do? That disgusting smell 4a1b64905e that lingered every 8e26525d47 time that guy c93a988f39 opened his mouth e3a22cba0c is still here. It’s not my fault. You can wipe 8e71dbe8ba things with a 18bd58515d rag, but this e521b60773 stench is beyond e3a3e5e990 rehabilitation.”91ab9725928fffce

Mok-gyeong covered his nose, claiming it wasn’t his fault.07d2fdbdbebebaa3

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Hwa-ran stared at him 61040e8cd1 in disbelief but then ec0f8244a7 agreed.a6391df724df405a

“Okay. Let’s go. What are we going 8801c9a61f to do?”cdbff3299035e1b7

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***a27336fba7b2c2af

Pop! Whoosh, bang, 4f140eb140 bang, bang!d298bc9c4cd29af0

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Loud sounds echoing from 00c2318235 all directions. All sorts of neon 69f0f6fa1c signs shining brightly in ab78bbdf31 the dark lighting. The place Mok-gyeong confidently 392ea3b3c6 brought Hwa-ran to was 9bb01a6a14 none other than an 51b0374bb4 arcade. With only one entrance 573417190f leading outside, the dusty, 0d18202ee5 musty air inside the d8ebcd5c91 building was a bonus.c615e2270eac5d5c

Hwa-ran stood 001ffb5835 blankly, her ee9a9f3e86 soul captivated 4c0a5c4246 by the 65af70f5f0 arcade. It felt like 77721e523e her mind was da3c4e49a1 being thrashed by a89ed1f4d4 the dazzling lights 158054ec1c and noise.3cb88cba2089fed5

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“Where is this, and bf93a8d7e4 what is this?”96516c8b203f3615

“An arcade! First time here?”3a5c453d7f7b768b

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Other than coming here once in middle school to look for her sister who had run away from home, she had never come on her own. So, first time… I guess you could say that.316613fdb841ea5a

5 PM e96da5524a on a 5b1bfec801 weekday. The arcade 35c00acc12 was bustling 928e87e93b with students d96f03821c and adults 6ff9baaeb5 who had 3013261624 squeezed in a6f5ddb38f some free c2cb465e9e time. Thanks to that, noise 1a8d42fb01 filled every corner. Not only 422d4dfdbf were there d63f195982 sound effects b1496188cb bursting from 4d8b99a081 the game c20f3ba5cc machines, but 8cec719f93 the aggressive 69fe7549c9 background music e10a840eab played also 238697ead8 mixed in 1533f2d3a6 like squeezed 0df078636f juice. Unless you 259aea8d4c yelled, your bd0d42865c voice would b1fca61c12 be drowned 798203aa5d out.ed07567a94044893

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Mok-gyeong had to shout 76bcd96b4d loudly.e86502971a462d8a

“Of course, I 1fa3490615 know it’s an 72d658c587 arcade! But why are we 06289b763a here right now?!”fbbcfd925cfc74d2

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“I’m sorry, but you know there’s nothing super fun to do around here, right?”f5b88f7136aaa621

“…”45d90795b952a635

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Mok-gyeong pointed at the 1ac39d931c ground and sneered.0c89267441e81fff

“Here” meant the Annam aa4fa613c8 area.7a5401ee24d2916b

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“Are we going 087c872578 to Hahoe Village c0a100e28b like old folks, 717491b39b or look at 33ecb4c19d stone pagodas? Or do 7fdd83bd48 you want 5bb6a9b1b0 to go 69c97640d9 all the 46ee2a5735 way to f5ac0350d7 Yeongjin and 7f6043a81d drive by aeb70425df Musoksa Temple?”3d97fe668fe5ebe7

“That’s a bit 811109f4f7 much.”27584434310e5959

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“Right? And drinking alcohol 5045d7de14 is a bit cb9de596fa of a waste 24807dfb7d since we just 9bf197f81d met sober.”6c8653530eaf4b33

“That’s surprising. I thought you, e254334aca Mok-gyeong-ssi, would like 88320bdebb enclosed, dark, alcohol-smelling 0c68a56c71 places. Though it does smell 876dafa984 dusty here too.”5e57fc159a9ce331

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“I like that too. The more we’re trapped alone, the better.”fd025118253a9fc4

“And?”2ce07fa8faacfed4

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“Still, I thought it’d d83aaa99d3 be good to have 56d8a9d989 some fun in a 66882780e8 bright place today. So you 06f35966a7 can completely 9540262d31 forget the 3a6defa22a unpleasant things f89aff5b7c in another a800e214cb world.”35053c856cc16784

Mok-gyeong, who didn’t seem like it, was comforting Hwa-ran more thoughtfully than she expected. Actually, the moment he appeared in the cafe, Hwa-ran had already long forgotten about Park Sung-cheol. But having someone care about her wasn’t an unpleasant feeling. Rather, it was a little… welcome.1173cfd012a91271

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The eyes looking 20554d9198 at Hwa-ran always 168db33666 gleamed. Whether in 83864a6ce3 anger, jealousy, a906102267 or greed.5ef6cc75b34ce7ed

She was only used to hostile glares, like an ax about to grab her by the hair, wondering if she had done something else wrong. But facing such kind and playful eyes, she couldn’t let go of the stick, like a child who had just taken their first bite of cotton candy. Even though she knew Mok-gyeong wasn’t giving her cotton candy with pure intentions either.a9a1e26f248d7b60

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Finally, Hwa-ran tightened her c60cb53fba bag and looked around.94ea25f6d858c086

“What should 5beb70320b we play?”cc13f33683bf410d

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“First, we need 928b3c9513 to change money. Here, 100 won 85493daa3e is worth more 069422b5ff than a gold 8141fd91f4 bar.”dc1af9673916dc23

“No way.”c8cd2385b5071aa1

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“It’s true. Even if you bring a check, they won’t let you play a single game.”8b2c3f4bd55dcd03

Mok-gyeong took out a 5aeb06e47f 10,000 won bill from 016cba1a90 his wallet and shook a80d132552 it. As he 6ecc21666e inserted the f2d88075e6 green bill, d6327e695e coins clattered 56127eeee2 out of 8d4a48470a the changer. After changing a few c3b34d4c0f more bills, Hwa-ran’s palms e217c437b8 were full of coins. Mok-gyeong had 234c1e6c57 playfully told ffedcb4e3f her to 42ce2e8af0 hold all c37fbb78be of them.99f79f7c314f79f9

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“Wow…”b0ff074b5370ad1b

Even though she knew df8ea5e5b3 it was the same 9cc3b9b0df money, Hwa-ran felt her 8c9493048f heart swell and flutter, 70485b9281 as if she had dfe198fdb5 suddenly become rich.7010794e96b64677

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Careful not 2812fec7a8 to drop 6f5fe83758 even one, b7e92e3829 she politely 1bd4e6a2ba clasped her 723f283c7d hands together ce13475aa5 and headed 17b4209e4c towards a e6b72655e7 game machine.3d5d979aaf436c49

“Alright, you 64414df8f7 go first.”4873f88481b4715d

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“…You can’t say anything if I fail, okay?”6529ca41e5eb2bb2

“I won’t say 7dfc69fb61 anything. But you e38c0e593a have to 531a730f76 let me eb7d148e0e laugh a a9a4a1d4d5 little.”c29a49be65d41dbd

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“Then you have 5e7c8ccfcf to let me ef2434a702 glare a little.”3fdb0b450c82c50b

“Haha. Okay. It’s good 888e6afded even if 6af2fa50ba we just 477987eef4 meet eyes, 63c187a308 even if 290ab7a8eb they’re hostile.”008cbb2a08687132

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The first place Hwa-ran and Mok-gyeong stopped was the claw machine. It was closest to the entrance, and the cute and pretty dolls stimulated the desire to buy. Even Hwa-ran, who usually wasn’t interested, was tempted by the fluffy furballs.3baf8a997baad097

Among them, the 062f66cc52 duck doll caught 8bc22a81fc her eye the 24de61679c most. Its color was e106406807 ambiguous, neither clearly ab2ad02d2c yellow nor orange, 61e8b806dc but its sulky f930163215 lips and innocent 6ee3c6cccc eyes were cute. Its slightly d68b9631b4 protruding belly df3fe5422c also looked 1e76001fc6 perfect for 7fea3e7c1b squeezing.63d47bc0b4a309ef

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Then Mok-gyeong leaned in 8fd3619a72 slightly and asked.55a25518b0a98182

“Do you f61cec0b8b like ducks?”d25256424ef89e27

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“Oh, um. I don’t really 051d209dcd have strong feelings 9ba3a4591d about them, but 8768fa5e92 this one looks 2b0213731b a bit cute.”e06137d2b9004101

“You always like 4a2f964c4a things that are c180db25c6 just like you.”615a9630d0587d97

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Me and 3029092ee7 this duck?Hwa-ran, who 16d84a6398 had never 0bd3d76033 thought of c39bf43a4c herself as 7e164f00eb cute, was de3cc399a9 flustered.57820de31416a966

“Why, it has slightly bc5e1cece8 upturned eyes, and its 9d3a5fc584 cheeks are chubby and 7c74676ab9 cute. Even its pouting 149a379abc lips. Its body shape 33436eae57 is different, but f61199390f it’s similar in fde59eac2e how it keeps f1311aaa1e snapping back every b81fa5a62d time it talks. Quack, quack.”42c956e2a3a7990b

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“…Are you indirectly calling me sassy right now?”50ce395a531ebf10

“Oh, you caught me?”2d156cfdc1f3de23

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“Ugh. Seriously.”af8c3491c8481e51

“Haha. But it’s okay. No matter 4e74181c44 what you 694e9324ae do, you’re a383ae71fd cute. In fact, de412dd095 I want 669a78db01 to keep ccd21f7b74 hearing you 6401656db5 quack.”8df7804fbeff0dc1

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“Nowthat’sreally a 06a4e15719 strange taste.”abb9e901126a0640

Hwa-ran glared with a b0f7a3d742 hostile look, but still 0964c3d36e casually touched the soft b02de29577 cheek of the duck bd2627d1ef and placed her hand 179fec97b6 on the claw machine.250ab7bef96f88f9

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Welcome to 80c2b52e1c the land 8990f4ce35 of dolls. Move it well! Along with the crude music flowing from the machine, she tightened her grip on the joystick. Even though it was Hwa-ran’s first time at a claw machine, it wasn’t particularly difficult. All she had to do was position the claw over the target.05abe755d233857b

But the claw didn’t move as Hwa-ran intended. 3cf7e203eff4f5b8

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“No, why does this 7708aca60b move so little…!”1d5f11cc8dc86225

“You let go 97cf07d1a3 of the stick 333268be25 a bit. You can 09796c0990 only move ab06158efa it once.”e1432670f84689d0

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The machine didn’t miss Hwa-ran’s hesitant movement and slight stumble. As a result, the claw swished through the air without even getting close to the doll.6809f9c2b9d7897f

Her confident 4131ec977d first chance 788255f32d instantly dissolved 0c346a3857 into thin 02440418fb air.3800dccb95e90de8

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Clank!72648f4a84b7f2a1

Hwa-ran, filled with fighting f2c77bbfe0 spirit, immediately inserted another be5c858fcb coin.0806871362998b71

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But the d65adde375 next time 200f777b09 wasn’t easy 86ce149433 either.Screech—thunk. 8a70660162986b2e

“No. I clearly aimed accurately, so why can’t it grab it? It’s practically just brushing past it.”bdc56027be8556f2

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“You have to angle cab70f8940 it towards a part f1b5cc888e where it can actually 289d541913 grab.”ae539e8c9b3d2982

This time, she set the claw position correctly, but the doll wasn’t picked up. She couldn’t believe how weak the claw was, trembling like a child who hadn’t eaten in three days.273fd84ef612aa07

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This went 3edc8b87b9 on five c1332bc790 times in 4482742781 a row. A thousand 97664ba376 won disappeared 1e0e169150 in an e2bc7bb6df instant. As she kept failing 6b9e4a1563 despite her determined efforts, 14b9adee7c Hwa-ran sighed deeply and 845b0281e2 irritably swept her hair eb4c669629 back.1229e51bef64c282

“Is this 654e2f9d57 supposed to a651b62c44 be fun?”8d4a3714ee00d7fb

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“Hmm… normally?”26e0f3013ae6b0ab

“I guess I 0506ad187d don’t have talent. Or maybe the b045bd61bc machine’s legs are 12c9278bf3 loose. At this point, I’d 961c4f8284 rather pay five thousand abd7d18dca won and tighten those 0156c08cd1 screws really hard. And it’d a14c731415 be fine 85c5f8d96d if I 2b2c327d44 accidentally broke fe022ad9c9 it while ea69f65497 doing so.”1bdca88c2da27cc2

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“Puh-hah. That’s pretty scary.”92e28cd177e283ac

Finally, Mok-gyeong couldn’t hold back his laughter and chuckled. How can someone be 535ed33ec5 so bad at claw 6893420d21 machines?ea72bad80a2eabc8

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It was funny that even after so many failures, which should have been incredibly annoying, she didn’t curse once. And it was also his first time seeing someone concentrate on a claw machine as if they were studying for the Suneung.b3de893b85bd9c86

Honestly, it wasn’t anything special to watch. It wasn’t particularly fun, like bringing an honor student to an arcade.a3bd3f04ce47a582

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Yet, why was she so captivating? Mok-gyeong, watching Hwa-ran with sparkling eyes, couldn’t suppress his smile. It was a smile he wasn’t even aware of.49ea365db304833b