I am back – Chapter 111

I watched the parade with my older sister.

People in costumes that seemed perfect for young children, along with doll-like figures, walked by enthusiastically while quite extravagant floats slowly marched along.

Honestly, the theme of this amusement park isn’t that famous, and most of the characters were ones I had never seen before, but still, it was a good time.

It was really festive, you know. Not just the parade, but the excited atmosphere from the children, families, and couples gathered around to watch created a lively festival vibe.

If I had been watching alone, I might not have felt as moved. But right next to me was my sister.

She was close by, sharing warmth while crossing her arms.

I mean, if I were walking with my sister, everything would look beautiful even without a staged atmosphere. Just strolling anywhere would be fun. No, I already knew it was enjoyable because I had fun when I was with her before.

Since we had been riding rides hard all morning, we decided to take it easy in the afternoon. The amusement park wasn’t just filled with rides; there were plenty of other things to see too. Overall, it felt more like a street than a collection of buildings, so I could happily wander around with my sister.

We left the amusement park around three in the afternoon.

We could have stayed longer, but we only had one day off. If we closed the bakery on a whim just because we wanted a break, it would ruin the trust of our customers who came in. So when we had a day of rest like this, we had to enjoy it to the fullest.

And honestly, it was a bit too noisy to stay too long. As time passed, more and more people came, and by the afternoon, there wasn’t much space left to sit.

As we exited the amusement park, the previous racket decreased as if it had been a lie.

It felt like what was just there was a figment of my imagination.

Still, if I stood still and listened, I could hear the rumbling sounds from the rides moving and the screams of the people enjoying those rides.

“Shall we pop into a café for a bit?”

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

My sister answered as if she had been waiting for my question, almost making me chuckle.

Being right in the center of bustling Seoul, there were so many cafés that finding a place to sit wasn’t difficult.

“Phew.”

As she sat down, my sister let out a sigh. She bent slightly at the waist and rubbed her calves, looking like her legs were hurting.

I thought my sister’s stamina was fairly decent. After all, to knead and bake dough every day, you needed a basic level of physical strength. In fact, rather than saying my sister lacked stamina, it was probably proof that we had been busy running around so much.

The reason my legs weren’t hurting was probably because I had… superhuman stamina. Well, I couldn’t say that out loud in front of my sister.

As I silently watched my sister relieve her legs, the vibrating bell we had placed on the table buzzed.

“Oh.”

“Ah, I’ll go grab it.”

Before my sister could lift her waist, she quickly picked up the vibrating bell.

“Thanks.”

When my sister saw me getting up, she looked a bit surprised for a moment but soon smiled and spoke.

Her words made my heart skip a bit. It was partly because of her slightly apologetic smile that made her look beautiful, but it was also because I felt that she was relying on me.

Having lived my childhood depending on my sister, I wished she would lean on me more. I was happy back then because of her, so I wanted to return that happiness.

I knew it was still a long way off. I understood how much her wounds from my death weighed on her.

How much effort did it take for her to be able to smile like that?

I was still a bit afraid to ask about that time. It must be a sensitive memory for her.

Someday, when I can truly be by her side, could I heal all those wounds?

I went to the counter and picked up a tray with two cups of coffee on it. One was a warm Americano, and the other was the drink I ordered… something with a name that looked quite complex, which appeared very sweet.

At first glance, the two drinks looked light and refreshing, but when I picked up the tray, it felt rather hefty. I had to be careful not to spill it.

*

The drink I ordered was sweet, just as I expected.

I wasn’t sure if it had caffeine or not. Honestly, even if it did, it wouldn’t affect me much.

It wasn’t that I had a high tolerance for caffeine or anything; it was just that… the body created by the Goddess had some differences from an ordinary human’s. If it was similar to the body I had in Irrelaysia, I could probably stay up all night without getting drowsy and march around the next day without needing caffeine.

But that meant I had to eat a lot. On the other hand, I could say it’s a benefit that I wouldn’t gain weight no matter how much I ate.

I slowly sipped the sweet drink that seemed filled with milk, cream, and syrup.

My sister had looked at me with curiosity when I ate lunch earlier. I mean, it wouldn’t be strange to think of it as her being somewhat pleased, though it was a bit embarrassing.

The changes in me weren’t just about gender and appearance. Though I hadn’t lost who I was, there were many aspects that were very different from ordinary people.

It was not just embarrassing, but it scared me that my sister might see me as an alien presence.

Maybe that’s why I still hadn’t fully revealed my identity.

“So where should we go next?”

My sister asked, smiling.

It was still early afternoon. If I thought about the time I could spend with my sister until evening, we had plenty of options left. Since we were still within Seoul, we could even go to some distant places without any concern for time.

“Oh, um…”

To be honest, I had sort of thought about plans for after this, but… I had been so careless that those plans fell apart before I could even put them into action.

So, the fact that the time after we left the amusement park was so aimless was entirely my fault.

“I’m sorry.”

“Hmm?”

When I apologized, my sister blinked her eyes in surprise.

“Uh, well, the thing is… I actually wanted to eat at that nice place up there…”

I said, glancing outside.

I could see an incredibly tall building connected to the amusement park. It was the tallest building in our country, built by a company associated with the amusement park.

And in that high-rise building, there was a very famous restaurant on one of the upper floors. The same place I’d gone with my colleagues last time.

That time, we were very lucky because some people canceled their reservations, allowing us to quickly book a table. Usually, it’s a famous place that needs to be reserved months in advance. Naturally, such luck was unlikely to come around again.

Moreover, I had tried to reserve a table in less than a week, so there absolutely wouldn’t be any open seats.

“I failed to make a reservation…”

As I said that, a bit downcast, my sister stared at me with her mouth slightly open.

“Pfft.”

She tried hard to stifle a laugh.

“So that’s why you look so down?”

She spoke incredulously.

“We’ve only tried to meet up for less than a week. How could we expect to reserve a table at a place like that? Plus, just look at the prices.”

Well, prices weren’t something I needed to worry about.

“Um, I’d like to go when I get the chance, but…”

My sister spoke while looking up at the building before turning her gaze down to me.

“That’s not why I want to hang out with you. We’re just meeting because we enjoy each other’s company.”

Well… that kind of made my heart feel a bit complicated.

Isn’t that what you expect on a date?

No matter how much younger I am, it is somewhat nice to lead a little… Well, I had never been on a date, so it’s just my feeling, but I didn’t have no yearning for that kind of thing.

However, right now, in my sister’s eyes, I probably didn’t look like a reliable young man but rather just a younger male companion. Even if I was a few centimeters taller than her, it probably didn’t make much of a difference in terms of being dependable.

And I was younger.

Perhaps my words might have sounded a bit like boasting to her.

My face felt hot.

I regretted bringing it up.

But still, I wanted to share that with my sister. I wanted to be as honest as possible in front of her.

“Well then, let’s take our time thinking about what to do next. We have plenty of time after all.”

“…Yeah.”

I replied softly to my sister’s much more relaxed words than before.