Chirpy nodded and looked up at me with desperate eyes.
That dripping sincerity couldn’t help but slowly sway my heart.
However, I had heard enough about the bad reputation of claw machines, so I felt reluctant.
Isn’t it a cunning business tactic to charm people with a cunning ball of fluff and make them open their wallets?
From my perspective, it was no different from gambling.
“These things are all scams. You can never win one. Wouldn’t it be better to just buy it with money?”
Despite my continuous persuasion, Chirpy was immovable.
I had an uneasy feeling, and sure enough, he started stubbornly whining, tapping the transparent window with his tail.
In the end, I had to quickly raise the white flag before drawing people’s attention.
As always, it was a fight with a clear result from the start, a battle I couldn’t win.
“…You can try ten times. No more than that.”
No sooner had I spoken than Chirpy instantly shut his mouth and began concentrating on the claw machine.
It was a pattern repeated many times, yet I could never overcome him.
Ding.
I had nothing but cashier’s checks for cash, so I had no choice but to use my card.
A thousand won per attempt.
Based on our snack shop’s prices, that was the cost of two pieces of fried food.
Honestly, the money was a waste, but I had more than enough anyway, so when else would I spend it if not now?
Besides, Chirpy wanted it this badly.
I felt a slight pinch in my heart but carefully maneuvered the joystick.
Since I was doing it, I was determined to win it on the very first try, if only to save the rest of the money.
However, despite my resolve, the claw, like a finger of the devil, absolutely refused to move as I intended.
Even when I managed to grab a doll, it subtly dropped it as soon as it lifted it up.
If there was no possibility at all, I could cleanly give up, but it kept giving me hope, making it seem possible.
Seeing the squirrel doll halfway hanging out of the entrance, my hand moved almost instinctively.
Ding. Ding. Ding. Ding.
“See, it’s nothing but a scam!”
Just like that, 5,000 won evaporated in the blink of an eye.
I was so engrossed in the claw machine that I unknowingly tapped my card four more times.
All of this happened in just a minute.
I knew it!
Finally, unable to contain my frustration, I pulled at my hair, then turned to the side at a sudden gaze.
A kid who looked about eight years old had approached without me noticing and was staring up at me blankly.
He seemed to have been watching me try to win a doll.
“……”
Unbelievably, a pile of various dolls was stacked in the kid’s arms.
Seeing the child blinking with chocolate smeared all over his mouth, a simultaneous feeling of self-reproach and reality shock washed over me.
I began to think that perhaps the problem wasn’t the machine, but my own hands.
“Cha Rui, you try.”
I grabbed the arm of Cha Rui, who was standing idly next to me.
At this point, I was fueled by stubbornness to win at least one doll.
If my hands were cursed, I had no choice but to borrow someone else’s.
Ding.
I quickly paid and wiggled my eyebrow at him, and his large hand moved reluctantly.
But while delicate control was needed, his hand movements were quite rough.
He shouldn’t be so careless…
I tried to coach him from the side, unable to watch, but the claw was already straying far from the target.
“Oh, that’s not it.”
Clack.
Despite my attempt to stop him, the claw stubbornly descended and soon grabbed something.
Hanging from the tip of the claw was not a squirrel doll, but some unknown, shaggy, red-furred grotesque creature.
It was impressive in a different way that he managed to choose such an ugly doll out of all these squirrels.
Meanwhile, he hadn’t grabbed it properly, and it was swinging precariously from side to side.
I should have just done it myself.
I pouted, thinking I had just wasted money, as it was clearly going to drop.
“Uh oh… Huh?”
But contrary to my expectations, the ball of fluff, which seemed about to fall, finally reached the exit.
With a welcome thump, I could finally grasp the strange-looking doll in my hand.
The palm-sized red object had a plump body and a long tail.
Since it had eyes attached, it was definitely a living creature, but I couldn’t even guess what animal it was supposed to be.
“What? How did you win it?”
“It just worked when I did it.”
“……”
At that, my mood instantly soured.
Are S-rank Hunters good at things like this too?
Then why am I like this?
A strange competitive spirit flared up at the fact that I had lost at something as trivial as a claw machine.
I had just wished I could win just one doll, but now that Cha Rui, and not me, had actually succeeded, I felt oddly jealous.
“Move aside.”
I pushed Cha Rui with my shoulder and gripped the joystick again.
I tried once, twice… more than ten times, but unbelievably, my luck just wasn’t there.
No, normally you succeed at least once after this many tries, don’t you?
It was so bad that I started to suspect someone was secretly tampering with the machine from behind.
“Aaaaargh!”
Eventually, the fifteenth attempt also ended in failure, and the anger I had been suppressing finally exploded.
In a surge of frustration, I tried to shake the machine, but Cha Rui quickly pulled me back.
But I couldn’t calm my temper and huffed for a long time before pushing him back in front of the machine.
“You… You, try again.”
And not long after, an identical doll was placed in both my hands.
Just once.
Cha Rui had once again won the same doll with only a single attempt.
Given the situation, my gaze directed at the two red balls of fluff was utterly devoid of emotion.
Unable to accept the result, I even started touching his hand this way and that.
“Did you do something weird to your hand? This shouldn’t be possible.”
Even as I examined his palm with disbelief, Cha Rui shrugged nonchalantly.
Then, as if finding it amusing, he scoffed and snatched one of the dolls.
“I’m taking this one.”
Huh?
Although I had paid with my card, the owner of the doll was practically Cha Rui.
If I had done it, nine times out of ten I would have just lost the money.
Despite that, for some reason, he only took one and backed away as if it was obvious.
Does this mean he’s giving it to me?
I glanced at Cha Rui and fidgeted with the doll I was holding.
The size that fit snugly in my hand and the shaggy texture were subtly addictive.
Now that I looked at it, the red fur and the sharply slanted eyes subtly resembled Cha Rui.
The more I looked, the cuter it seemed.
The sense of injustice I felt just a moment ago melted away like snow, and my mood slowly began to lift.
I thought I was quite simple-minded.
“Wait a minute.”
I didn’t usually carry a bag, so I debated where to attach this.
Then, the perfect spot occurred to me.
A location I always carried it in and that was clearly visible.
I immediately hung the doll on the item pouch at my waist.
I wondered if it was a bit much for my size, but I didn’t particularly care.
“How is it?”
“…Cute.”
When I showed off the item pouch for him to see, Cha Rui hesitated for a moment and then whispered, as if to himself.
I asked the question, but I instantly wondered if I had misheard him.
He was someone who would absolutely never use such an embarrassing expression, even if a knife were at his throat.
Of course, he must have been talking about the doll, but strangely, my ears felt hot.
Chirp!
But then, the thing I had momentarily forgotten about happened.
Chirpy, who had been quiet all this time, started pulling at my clothes and demanding something.
Wait, had he actually been quiet?
I had been so focused on the claw machine that I hadn’t paid attention to Chirpy.
He must have reached his breaking point when he didn’t get his own, and only the two of us shared the dolls.
“Wait, where are you going!”
Just then, Chirpy suddenly slipped into the exit slot of the claw machine.
It happened in the blink of an eye, with no time for me to grab him.
Soon, the little creature emerged inside the machine, rummaged through the dolls, and pulled out the smallest one.
It was a squirrel doll with its eyes closed, as if fast asleep.
It seemed he had a specific doll in mind even while causing a ruckus.
“No! Put that down.”
Despite my firm reprimand, Chirpy didn’t listen and obstinately dragged the doll out.
He even hugged it tightly to his chest, as if it was already his, and quickly flew off into the air.
If he acted like this, it was virtually impossible to catch him.
If I asked Cha Rui, he could probably catch him somehow, but I didn’t want to resort to that.
Hah…
In the end, with a long sigh, I pulled out a 100,000 won cashier’s check from my wallet.
It was the smallest denomination of check I had.
I wish I had exchanged it for cash earlier.
“You shouldn’t do this again.”
I neatly folded the check and slipped it into the machine, and only then did Chirpy slowly approach.
A dry laugh escaped me as I saw him hugging the doll tightly, as if afraid it might be taken away.
