"All the food I eat will only dirty the floor later."Gala chokes. "So you're transparent?""Correct. But I can hold solid objects. Like when I was cooking earlier. Didn't you see it?"Reminded of the earlier incident, Gala feels embarrassed. "So, what do you eat every day?""Inside the dice, I recharge energy.""Electricity?"Dice shakes her head. "Solar."Gala doesn't understand Dice's meaning; he just gives the hologram girl a clueless look. "Can I touch you?""Yes. Only the owner of the Dice can do that. If the owner allows someone else to introduce me, then I can be touched."Gala is very curious about this. "Will I get an electric shock?"Dice laughs awkwardly. "No. Feel free to touch me." She stands up, approaching him slightly bowed. After all, the awkward young man in front of her is her master. Her owner.Slowly, Gala's hand moves closer to the hand Dice extends. He's actually scared but also curious. But every time Dice does something, it's like a human who can touch many t
A blonde woman shivers in one corner of the alley. Her hands repeatedly rub together for warmth, but it's futile. The air around her isn't friendly anymore. Plus, the clothes she's been wearing since last night are damp, maybe drying against her increasingly slender frame.Her eyes start to wander around, not many people passing through. She doesn't care. All she's thinking about is getting further away, avoiding those who might be after her. She looks back several times, making sure she's truly managed to escape. She's stopped for almost ten minutes now. Her head feels like it's been pricked by thousands of needles. Not to mention, her feet, clad only in shoes with holes at the tips, have become stiff and hard to move.She tries to remember if it's already winter now. "Damn. I forgot North Metro is a cold country," she curses. She hugs herself again. Her breath starts to smoke, and her walk becomes even more painful. She winces but tries to ignore it. Her head remembers the warmth of
Bellamie's eyes widened in shock. Her heart raced, cold sweat breaking out, and her body trembling suddenly."Prepare lunch, Maria. Don't let this woman faint before meeting Mr. Alex," the attendant gave another order. Unbeknownst to Bellamie, her head was so full of thoughts about Alexander Millian that her clothes had already slipped off.That name sent shivers down her spine. The owner of Vore Club, the ruler of North Metro. So many women wanted to be close to him to secure a safe position. Even if they did, it was only for a day, and after that, the woman would disappear. It felt like a death sentence, but Bellamie never heard complaints from those Dancer Women.Often, when Bellamie took a break from tirelessly serving drinks, she'd overhear whispers like that inside. But Bellamie refused to care. Her mind was solely focused on how to escape from here. She had planned everything but still didn't have a way out."Miss, how long will you soak?"Bellamie jolted and immediately got up
"Sir?"Gala lets out an annoyed sigh. "What now?""Let me help. So it'll be done faster, Sir."Gala usually doesn't get triggered to anger or annoyance, but since earlier, when he was tidying up the kitchen area that resembled a shipwreck—almost like his own kitchen but currently less painful to look at. Whatever Dice was doing, the kitchen and dining area looked neater and livelier. Gala often struggles to find time to tidy up this spacious but not-so-spacious flat. He's like a busy employee with tons of tasks, yet his tasks involve dragging trash and washing a mountain of pots and dishes."Come in," Gala orders. This time, he doesn't tolerate all of Dice's words around him. He's lucky Mr. Richard is visiting his son. He's free to remove Dice from the box hanging around his neck."But, Sir." Dice speaks again. His eyes gaze at Gala with a hint of plea. Since a while ago, he's noticed that his boss hasn't complained at all about the work in front of him. It's the same in the restauran
"Sir," he calls softly. No response. "Sir, can you wake up? Dinner is ready." This time, Dice slightly nudges Gala's leg, making the young man groan softly. He blinks a bit while scratching his face. Then back to sleep. "Sir. Don't blame me if you get surprised later."He touches Gala's bare foot. A little light emits from his fingertips. Then..."ARGH!!!" Gala immediately springs up. His body sways until he falls near the sofa table, where there's a cabinet full of dusty, old figurines starting to fall on him. "OH MY GOD!"Dice just looks at Gala without intending to help him. "Sir, are you okay?""Did you do that on purpose?"The hologram girl tilts her head slightly. "On purpose? What did I do on purpose?""Shock me?! You're insane!" Gala jumps up hurriedly, not caring if his head hits his mother's old ceramic vase from the collection. He checks a bit, noticing a bump that seems to cause enough pain to make Gala grimace. "Damn," he mutters softly."Sir needs to eat first."Gala gru
All night, Gala couldn't sleep soundly. His mind kept replaying his conversation with Dice, especially about his father. From what he remembers about Xavier, the man is gentle and often smiles. Quite the opposite of what Dice said. When Gala voiced his concerns, Dice just smiled awkwardly. Then...I don't know what Dice did, but in front of Gala, it's like a big screen where he sees someone he recognizes: Xavier. Walking cautiously with a large gun-like weapon slung over his shoulder. His eyes sharp, scanning the surroundings, his body moving agilely through trees and plants."This is Mr. Xavier hunting the owner of an illegal store in East Metro, sir. At that time, he hadn't met Mrs. Bellamie yet.""Does he ever age?""What do you mean, sir?" Dice is confused by Gala's question.While Gala shrugs, "Yeah... you said Xavier is around 800 years old. His face doesn't look old at all. Just as I remember him before he left me abruptly." There's frustration and anger in Gala's voice that he
Gala shakes his head in disbelief."Maybe because my programming can change the weight of an object to a size I can lift.""That makes more sense, Dice." Gala leans back on the sofa a bit. "You're really advanced.""That's just part of it, sir."That immediately makes Gala sit up straight again. "Is there more?""Hasn't sir been paying attention to what I've been saying?"Innocently, Gala shakes his head. "Looks like I do have a weakness, Dice."The holographic girl laughs softly."You can laugh too? I thought you only nod and smile oddly.""No, sir. Just a little. And only if I find it really funny. Like sir's recent statement. Weakness. Sir is not weak."Gala's brow furrows."Want me to show you anything I have? As a protector of a Horratio like your father and now you?""Anything?" Gala squints a bit. He's somewhat hesitant after hearing Dice's previous statement, but he's curious. Starting from a box the size of his fist that can change to as small as a pendant. The holographic gi
"Gala, can you be faster? The customers are waiting, oh my god!" Marta arrives with a flushed face. The circles under her eyes also look darker than usual. Gala quickly turns and thinks, he has already placed the glasses Marta should use in their designated spot. So, what's the problem now?"Are you looking for glasses?" Gala asks with a puzzled expression. The girl, who would actually be pretty if she just looked a bit more normal when applying makeup, sighs in annoyance. Her tied-up hair, with some strands sticking out, slightly obstructs her vision. Not to mention her lips not showing any signs of a smile."Yeah!""On the shelf, Marta. You can check it yourself."Gala feels like he's just informing, not engaging in a two-way conversation, but Marta's face, for some reason, turns purple. As if holding back anger, she raises her middle finger perfectly at Gala. "What did I do wrong?" he wonders. Following Marta's movements as she quickly takes the glasses, her back disappears from th