PRSR | Chapter 8.4

Rio’s hand moved towards mine. What’s he looking at in my hand? I inspected my hands, but nothing stood out. Just when I wondered what he was seeing, soft fabric slid down revealing my wrist where Rio’s fingers touched.

“I like seeing your wrists when you lift your hands.”

“Ah!”

Startled, I jerked my hand away, and Rio’s expression turned downcast.

“Do you dislike me touching you now?”

“That’s not it.”

Should I explain that such a casual touch could evoke a sensitive reaction? It would be easier to tell him not to touch me, but that would make Rio too sad. His black eyes looked like they might start dripping tears any second.

“Just don’t touch my wrists.”

“Is the hand okay?”

“…Yes.”

Quickly, Rio clasped my hand with his. I said touching was okay, not interlocking fingers.

“Soul’s hand is warm.”

Jjikjjiki… Rio smiled brightly as if he’d never been sulky. I felt somehow fooled, but it must be my imagination.

“I’m not wearing this.”

“You have to. What if you get into danger?”

“How am I supposed to go in front of others wearing this!”

“In front of… other people?”

Rio looked as if he’d heard the world was ending.

“Why would you need to go in front of others? Aren’t I enough?”

“If we get another quest involving other Awakened like this time, I have to appear in front of people. Didn’t you think that I’d have to show these pajamas to others?”

“…Quest window.”

Instead of replying, Rio scrolled through the air. He must be checking if the next quest requires cooperation with other Awakened. I couldn’t see the quest window, but I could guess. Rio’s face hardened, probably indicating that the next quest also involved others.

“Let’s take it off.”

“Don’t take it off!”

I stopped Rio, who was starting to pull off the clothes as if he couldn’t stand the idea of others seeing them.

“Then wear this.”

This time, Rio draped a thick coat over my shoulders. It was bought in advance for moving around at night, but being cheap, it was warm yet rough and uncomfortable.

“It’s hot. It’s hard to move.”

“But you have to wear it, Soul. Otherwise, other people will see you in your pajamas.”

You’re the one who put me in this situation…

“This was supposed to be for my eyes only…”

“You saw everything when you first came to the Tutorial Field.”

“That was unavoidable, but now it’s different. Just thinking that someone might see me like this gives me a headache.”

“Take medicine if it hurts. Don’t think about undressing me.”

It came out a bit weird, but that wasn’t what I meant.

“How did this happen…”

Even as I hung the poorly fitting coat in place, Rio was clutching his head in torment. Leaving him like this might just blind everyone in sight. I tactfully changed the subject.

“What’s the next quest?”

“…Monster Wave.”

“Monster Wave?”

“It’s about fending off a massive horde of monsters that surge like waves.”

“Ah, that wave.”

Given Rio’s reaction, it wasn’t a solo quest. It seemed we’d need to collaborate with other Awakened gathered in the harbor city.

‘Just the kind of quest that needs protection.’

It wouldn’t matter if it were a quest that automatically cleared if you hid in a corner of the city, but if it required a significant contribution, I’d need to actively participate. Whether I dove into the fray with Rio or sent him off while I hid alone, I needed the power to protect myself during the quest.

In that sense, the protective magic was the most necessary feature for me right now. I couldn’t give up such an incredible feature just because I didn’t want to wander around in pajamas in front of people. Really, I didn’t want to be seen in pajamas by people, but survival was more important for now.

“I’ll only wear this outfit when there’s a large-scale battle, only when I might be in danger.”

“What about at night?”

“I’ll wear something else.”

“Then I can’t fit into the pocket.”

“You can’t fit in this form anyway. Let’s give up what we must.”

Rio looked despondently as he bowed his head.

‘Is it really something to be so sad about?’

Looking at his gray hair, which matched the color pattern of Jjikjjiki, I almost expected two round ears to pop up.

Of course, no ears popped up.

“We can’t wear battlefield clothes in bed, so let’s go buy new pajamas. While we’re at it, I’ll buy you one too.”

“I don’t need pajamas.”

“Even if we buy the same design?”

“…Couple’s pajamas?”

Jjikjjiki… no, Rio brightened up again. Such a simple and cute creature.

“Let’s go.”

I had planned to check the details of the next quest and start preparing, but I couldn’t leave Rio sulking. With a beastman rat trailing behind me, we headed to the clothing store. Of course, I changed into ordinary clothes that didn’t have the protective feature.

“Soul. How about this?”

“Stop picking only gray ones, put it down.”

“How about this one?”

“It’s too short.”

“And this?”

“In most places, they call that underwear, not pajamas.”

I wanted to buy nice clothes to ensure a good night’s sleep, but those were expensive. It was also hard to find such clothes here; we would need to go to a bigger city. The ones we could afford were rough and stiff pajamas that made me wonder why anyone would wear them to bed.

‘We have less spending money than I thought.’

The difference in living costs between the harbor city and the villages we had passed through made the money we had saved look meager. Now, although the Brown Merchant Caravan was providing our lodging, unexpected expenses for the travel and accommodation of Shin Youngho’s group had taken their toll.

‘I’d save money to buy Jjikjjiki fruit…’

Fruits were outrageously expensive here. Now that he was Rio, my desire to feed my companion rat only the best was unchanged.

‘…Maybe I should just wear the old pajamas.’

As much as I disliked the idea, wearing clothes I had roamed the monster-infested fields in to bed felt a bit gross. I tearfully picked out a couple of reasonably stiff outfits.

There was no clothing that fit Rio’s size, so I had to pay extra for alterations. I almost blurted out that he should just sleep in pants like usual.

Let it go. Even if he sleeps shirtless, I’m the one who has to cling to those arms. I can always earn more money, and once we return to Earth, this money won’t matter.

“It’s our first couple’s pajamas.”

Unaware of everything, Rio smiled brightly.

It hurt inside.

After buying new pajamas and some food, we returned to the inn only to find Shin Youngho waiting for us in front of it.

“Hello there.”

“Good morning, Mr. Soul. Is Jjikjjiki still resting?”

“I’m right here…”

I was about to say “I’m here,” but I stepped hard on Rio’s foot to signal him to stop talking. Rio turned to me and flashed a smile.

“Why did you step on me, Soul?”

Ugh.

“This gentleman is the Awakened we met yesterday! Hello, my name is Shin Youngho.”

“You recognized that I’m an Awakened? Don’t I look more like a Tutorial Field resident than a Korean?”

Before Rio could blurt out something unnecessary, I inserted myself between the two to steer the conversation.

“I also thought you were a resident here when I saw you yesterday. But obviously, a Tutorial Field resident wouldn’t be able to converse with us.”

“Ah, that makes sense. This is Rio. He’s a foreigner living in Korea, but he’s still not very good at Korean.”

When he was a mouse, nobody understood what Jjikjjiki was saying, but now that he’s human, he can communicate. That meant Rio could also speak Korean, which was honestly a bit surprising.

“Is that so? It seems the tutorial zone you’re assigned to depends on where you live, not just your nationality. Anyway, nice to meet you.”

“Keep your hands off Soul.”

“What?”

“Ahaha, he only knows a few words and often says the wrong thing.”

“Oh. Should I greet you in English then? Hi. How are you?”

Big trouble. Rio doesn’t even know the alphabet.

“What brings you here?”

To rescue Rio from awkward stares, I engaged Shin Youngho in conversation. Fortunately, he didn’t mind the interruption and directly answered my question.

“It’s about a quest. The monster wave quest, have you received it too, Mr. Soul?”

“Yes, I have.”

“I thought so. Isn’t it strange that you, who have followed the quests from the beginning, and I, who skipped quests after the Beginner Village, received the same special quest?”

“Maybe it’s because the location of the monster wave is here, so all the Awakened in this area received the same quest?”

“I thought so at first, but the timing is suspicious. Didn’t the quest appear right after the Awakened kidnapping case was resolved? It’s like it was waiting for the situation to wrap up.”

Rio had naturally received the next quest after completing the Awakened rescue quest, but other Awakened who had been kidnapped and brought here forcibly were not. Normally, they should return to Beginner Village or Belford to continue their quests, but suddenly a port city quest appeared, which understandably seemed odd.

“I’ve spoken with Awakened unrelated to the kidnapping, and many of them ended up here unexpectedly, mostly those who fell behind on the tutorial quests.”

Thinking about it, those who ended up here due to the kidnapping were also Awakened who had fallen behind on tutorial quests.

“Perhaps the kidnapping was also anticipated. Maybe it was planned to gather those who were falling behind after a certain period since the tutorial quest began.”

“Do you think the managers deliberately herded the Awakened to the port city?”

“Yes. It’s not just my opinion. Most of the Awakened I met today share the same view. They suspect that the monster wave is so large that they needed to pull in even those who were lagging to ensure active participation.”

If that was the case, it was outrageous. Were they really expecting people who had just left Beginner Village to handle monsters they couldn’t possibly defeat? It would likely cause more problems than it solved.

“As you can see, the quest starts a week from now. And every single Awakened here must participate in the monster wave.”

I hadn’t heard about this before because we had been shopping for pajamas.

Gathering the lagging Awakened here and forcing them into the wave was like saying, “Either make it through the next quests, or it’s game over.”

“A week is probably given for Awakened like me who are falling behind. We need to level up at least once before the monster wave.”

“Can you hunt monsters around here when you’ve just left Beginner Village?”

“There’s an area not too far from here with monsters suitable for the second zone level. There are quite a few, so if you hunt non-stop, you should be ready in a week.”

Preparing even a field for beginners, they’ve thought of everything. From the kidnapping to the monster wave, everything seemed meticulously planned by the managers.

“We’ve decided not to return to the village but to hold out in the field for a week. I came to say goodbye before we left. Thank you for your help.”

Shin Youngho bowed in thanks. I was about to return the bow, but Rio, standing behind me, pulled me back, preventing it.

“See you in a week. Bye.”

Shin Youngho bid farewell to Rio as well and left for the field. As soon as he was gone, I turned to Rio.