ReLife Player

[New Friend (2)]

Since that day, the friendships of the children in class 4 have changed.

First, the girls who used to hang out with Minji and Hayang gradually drifted away from them. They weren’t ignoring them, but they weren’t approaching them as friendly as before.

Surprisingly, Hayang took the girls’ distancing in stride.

Eunha asked her why,

«I have better friends.»

Hayang said something that made Eunha stop asking why. She was happy that Minji and Seo-na were the only friends she had to go to the restroom with every break.

Minji, on the other hand, was the one who seemed to be the most upset, and although she seemed to be acting as if nothing was wrong, to Eunha, it looked like she was holding back her emotions.

«…Tell the kids I told you to do it, that you don’t know anything about it.»

Eunha was worried, so he offered some advice,

«…No, never.»

She glared at him with reddened eyes and didn’t speak to him for a while.

«…I’m sorry.»

Seo-na, who blamed herself for all of this, had been avoiding them, so her job lately had been to run away from them and get caught by Hayang.

Anyway, with the girls’ relationships in trouble, it was hard for even Eunha to stick to his promise to spend time alone.

Eventually, a new group of five was formed in class 4: Eunha, Eunhyuk, Minji, Hayang, and Seo-na.

«This is the captain’s house!»

«Why are you introducing it, Choi Eunhyuk? And it’s our house too, isn’t it?»

In the afternoon after class, the kids decided to play near Eunha’s house.

Seo-na, who was still reluctant to hang out with them for fear of harming them, refused, but Eun-hyuk dragged her along.

«If you… play with me….»

«I don’t care!»

«Huh?»

It was too much trouble for Eunha to answer her finger-flicking question one by one.

Eunhyuk, realizing what she was about to say, interrupted.

«You have more mana than me. The captain told me to befriend someone like this!»

«Hey….»

For a moment, Eunhyuk looked pleased, but soon regretted it.

Eunhyuk picked up on the words Eunha had unconsciously blurted out.

«Really?»

Seo-na hadn’t expected Eunhyuk to be so snobbish. Unsure of what to say to this unexpected answer, she blinked her red eyes.

«I mean, don’t look at me like that. You’re my friend!»

«…Yeah.»

A friend. Eunhyeok’s stuttered words seemed to resonate with Seo-na. She smiled softly and didn’t mention going home after that.

«Come on in. Would you like some juice?»

«Hello!»

«…Hi.»

I walked into the house and was greeted by my mother. She paused for a moment when she saw Seo-na sandwiched between her children, but then greeted her in a friendly manner.

«Yay!»

Eunhyeok dropped his bag as soon as he entered and jumped onto the couch.

Eunha sighed, not knowing whose house this was.

«Eunae, hi.»

«Kyaa.»

Eunae, now two years old, greeted them. She had recently started crawling and clung to Eunha’s feet for a hug.

«Is this your sister?»

«Yes, my sister. Her name is No Eunae. Do you want to hold her?»

«Can I?»

Seo-na took Eunae from Eunha. The motion of holding the baby was very natural.

Eunae opened her arms and tried to touch her ears and tail as if she was curious about Seo-na. Seo-na thought she was cute and wiggled her tail in front of her eyes.

«You’re used to holding babies, aren’t you? Mukminji is bad at it.»

«What? Why are you picking on me?»

«…Yeah. There are a lot of kids in the church.»

Seo-na had grown up in the church, and she explained that when she went home, she helped the nuns take care of the younger children.

The children were deeply moved by her story. Hearing about abandoned children from her mouth, they realized that they were in a happy environment.

«Hehe.»

Just as the children were about to say something, Seona laughed it off.

«Kyaa-!!!»

Euna came back from school, saw Seo-na, and let out a high-decibel scream.

«Ahh!»

This time, it was Seona’s scream.

Euna had jumped on the couch, just like Eunhyeok had done.

At Seona, too.

«Sis, I would have done something if Eunae had gotten hurt.»

«Eunae, I’m sorry, but you’re so cute!»

«Oooh…!»

If Eunha hadn’t quickly pulled Eunae away, Eunae would have gotten hurt.

Euna apologized to Eunae, but in Eunha’s arms, Eunae turned her head away while laughing.

Euna was disappointed for a moment, but all that mattered now was Seo-na.

Fox ears! And a tail!

Excited to see her, Euna hugged and touched her, not caring if Seo-na was embarrassed or not.

«…My sister is sorry.»

«Aww, there’s…!»

«Your tail is so soft!»

Euna couldn’t hear what was being said around her once she was in it. The only way she could get out of it was when her attention turned elsewhere.

«Eunha, Eunae, are you jealous?»

«…Yeah, no, not at all.»

In fact, Eunha had been unnecessarily jealous of Eunae’s fondness for Seo-na.

Even if Eunha tried to hide it with a poker face, Euna’s senses couldn’t escape it.

«Aww, cute!»

Euna switched targets. She was happy that she could hug Eunha and Eunae at the same time.

«Waawww-!!!»

On the other hand, Eunae started to cry.

«Euna, Eunae, you can’t make her cry. She’s your sister.»

«Eunae, I’m sorry.»

«Eunae, stop. Do you want to go with your mom?»

Their mother who brought the juice took Eunae with her.

«Let’s play outside.»

«Okay!»

The house was noisy with several children, so Eunha, who was drinking the juice, decided to take Eunae outside so she could sleep comfortably.

After drinking the juice, the kids ran to the hallway to put on their shoes. Among them was Euna, shaking her ponytail.

Eunha put his empty glass in the sink and was about to leave,

«Eunha.»

«Yes?»

His mother called out from across the room.

«Eunha.»

«mmm yes?.»

She looked like she wanted to say something. As she thought about what to say, she stroked his hair, getting down to his eye level.

«You know your mom likes Eunha, right?»

«Yes, of course.»

Why is she doing this?

Eunha was puzzled by his mother’s suddenness, but he waited patiently.

«Do you like your friend Seona?»

«…Yes.»

Seona’s name came out of his mother’s mouth. Hearing that, Eunha understood what his mother was worried about.

His mother wasn’t the kind of person who would discriminate against someone just because they were an Aeon. She was the one who would treat anyone without discrimination.

«…That’s right. If she’s your friend, she’s your friend from today. Tell her to come over again next time.»

«…Yes.»

«Eunha.»

But she did know how society viewed Ain.

And what would happen if his child hung out with her.

I don’t want that to happen to my child.

Her concern was palpable.

«Mommy and Daddy are always on the side of Eunha.»

«I know, Mom.»

«If something happens… you have to tell us»

Her mother’s concern was understandable. Resting his head in her hand, he stammered, «Yes, I will.»

«Hey! Come quickly!»

«No Eunha! You’re not coming?!»

«Okay, I’m on my way!»

Eunhyuk and Minji called from the front door. Eunha waved to his mother, then ran over to them.

«So, what are you guys going to do?»

«…Why are you asking me?»

«You’re the one who thinks of the fun stuff.»

Minji pouted her lips in a condescending tone. Crossing her arms, she grumbled that Eunha wouldn’t leave her alone if she didn’t suggest something fun to do.

«Hah…. Then….»

Eunha glanced to his left and suddenly remembered a new training exercise.

That’s right. Not a game, but a training exercise.

«Since everyone knows how to drain mana, why don’t we play hide and seek?»

«Hide and seek? What does that have to do with mana?»

«I’ll play the trick. From now on, all you have to do is run away from me, whether it’s by suppressing your mana to stay invisible, using it to enhance your physical abilities, or distracting me from tracking your location.»

«Woah, captain, that sounds like a lot of fun, I want to do that!»

«Ugh….»

Minji and Eunhyuk’s reactions were clearly divided, with Minji realizing that Eunha’s proposed game of hide-and-seek was not a game, but a training exercise, and Eunhyuk intrigued by the idea of using mana to play.

«Hey, I…. I don’t know how to play with mana.»

«You don’t know how to use mana, but you know how to hide it, and you’re athletic, right?»

If only I could be telepathic.

Eunha muttered to himself.

In the player world, it wasn’t just their superior physical abilities that made the Ain both discriminated against and favoured; they could communicate the idea of telepathy to others.

Telepathy was an ability unique to the Ain, distinct from the Gift. Their ability was useful in places where mana was too thick to communicate, especially in dungeons.

It would have been more fun if she could use telepathy in hide-and-seek, but she didn’t know much about Ain, and she didn’t know about telepathy.

I’ll have to teach her later.

Even if he did, it would only be in concept.

Eunha thought as he watched the children running around.

The game of hide and seek had already begun.

The rules were simple. He would find them without using mana, and they would do everything they could to avoid him. Instead, they would hide only around buildings, not in areas where others could not enter, such as their homes.

«Here we go!»

The appointed time passed. With a loud shout, Eunha fumbled around and found a place for the kids to hide. He had said he wasn’t going to use mana, he didn’t say he wouldn’t try to sense them.

How annoying it would be if I didn’t do this!

It was an instinct that had been honed since before the regression. I hadn’t been paying full attention to the kids, but it wasn’t hard to find the ones who had just learned to control their mana.

«I found you!»

«What…! You used mana, didn’t you?»

«No, I didn’t. Do you not believe me?»

«You’re an asshole.»

Minji, who hadn’t used any mana, could be found in the bushes in the corner of the garden.

She grumbled but walked to the designated spot on her own.

«Haha, what if I scattered my mana?»

«Hmph, I thought I hid it pretty well!»

«If you’re so clumsy, why didn’t you just do it like Minji?»

Eunhyeok was easier to find than Minji, hiding behind an outdoor unit on the first floor. Since he was openly using mana, there was no way he could not be found.

Heck, even Minji found him.

«What, you can’t do that too?»

«You can’t either!»

«It’s not that I can’t, it’s that I don’t.»

Gathered in the designated area, Minji and Eunhyuk argued.

Eunha decided to find the others anyway.

«Let’s see, who else is….»

The hide-and-seek began. I looked up at the rowhouse and felt no one.

Euna had learned to control her mana from a young age, and now she knew how to use physical enhancements as well, so she wasn’t as easy to find when she was hiding.

«Sis, I found you.»

«Uh? how did you know?»

«How could I not find you?»

But Eunha searched everywhere he could think of and found her.

Don’t underestimate my sister’s senses.

Eunha could confidently guess where Euna was on the planet.

«It’s not fair. I hid so well.»

«You were really good at it.»

«Right? Hehe….»

Praise makes even whales dance. Euna, who was instantly relieved, hugged Eunha.

«The rest of us are Hayang and Seo-nae….»

This was a tricky one.

There was no sign of Hayang even after entering the building. She had excelled at controlling her mana among the children and was showing her true colours in hide-and-seek.

Luckily, Jin seona wasn’t so good at it that he couldn’t find her.

«This is no joke.»

He stumbled over to where she was supposed to be, only to find that she wasn’t there. There were only traces of her golden fur left.

She didn’t have access to mana, but her animal senses told her that Eunha was approaching, and she was ducking and weaving.

He called out,

«Jin Seona, stop!»

«Not yet! If I don’t get caught, I’m free!»

Seona was unexpectedly stubborn. When Eunha finally finds her, she quickly runs out and yells at him that if she doesn’t get caught, she’s able to run.

And because of what she said,

«Huh? I see!»

«Ha, we’ve been tricked. Euna, let’s run away.»

«Huh? Is that okay? Um…, yeah! I wanted to do it one more time!»

And so began the escape. The three escaped while Eunha was not looking.

«Stay there!»

Before they knew it, hide-and-seek had turned into a game of cops and thieves. The children stopped trying to cover their tracks with mana and began to use their physical strength to escape Eunha’s grasp.

They recognized a loophole in the rules. Unable to use mana, Eunha could only gasp for breath and chase after them.

Damn it, I’m being played!

Cursing under his breath, he ran and ran to catch them.

☆

«Where do I hide?»

After entering the tenement house, Hayang looked around for a place to hide.

«Here I go!»

Eunha could be heard shouting in the distance.

«I-I, first, send my mana to ….»

In a panic, Hayang suppressed the mana leaking out as much as possible. She had been practicing mana control in her spare time, and she hid it inside her body to hide its presence.

«First, let’s see where….»

«I found Minji!»

In the meantime, Eunha seemed to have found Minji.

At this rate, they would be caught without being able to hide.

Looking for a place to hide, Hayang decided to go up the stairs.

It was a four-story row house, but it was hard for her to climb to the last floor.

«Whoa….»

After climbing up, Hayang regretted it. Unlike the other floors, the fourth floor didn’t have any hiding places.

«Uhhm, what should I do….»

Should she go back down?

She thought as she looked back the way she came,

«Huh?»

The stacks of books in the hallway caught her eye.

No! I have to hide now!

Despite her resolve, she was tempted by the books.

With a glint in her eye, Hayang slowly walked over and looked at the books in the hallway.

I want to read them.

Her eyes shone, unaware of the saliva running down her face, but the books were tied together with a string so tightly that even she couldn’t loosen it.

«Hmph….»

She sulked and gave up,

She walked along the path that led to the books, and some of the books were just resting on the string.

She flipped through the pages without realizing how much time had passed.

She flipped and flipped and flipped,

«This is interesting!»

Before she knew it, she was at a house with an open door.