Damien came to one conclusion.
He will act like a dog and buy a prosthetic arm.
It seemed better to live with one arm for a while and then get a better arm, either from Asher or from someone else, once he had saved enough money.
But the problem was...
"Hmm?
Are you missing your arm?
This might make it difficult to work here."
"Won't this affect your ability to work?"
“I'm sorry, but we can't hire you.”
“It seems like it would be difficult for a right-handed person to function without their right hand.”
"There may be tasks that require strength.
I'm sorry, but that's not possible."
Once he returned from rehab, Damian frantically searched for job openings, submitting his resume to anywhere that offered a decent wage, regardless of the job.
But he was rejected at every interview.
He couldn't find a place that would employ someone with one hand.
'No, it's only been two days.
If I keep applying, I'll eventually get lucky.'
When Liliana saw Damian with his head down and a gloomy expression, just like two days ago, she frowned and furrowed her brow.
"So, what went wrong today?
Is it still about the prosthetic arm?"
Damian looked at Liliana with a depressed face.
“I face the absurdity of reality and feel frustrated.”
“What is this ridiculous thing?”
“I need to earn money to buy a prosthetic arm, but...”
"but?"
“I can't make money because I don't have a prosthetic arm.”
Damian sighed deeply, contrary to his habit, and explained his situation.
“It's definitely a dilemma.”
Liliana frowned with a serious expression.
Not having the money to buy a prosthetic was one thing, but unemployment was going to create problems in his livelihood even before the prosthetic problem.
“There must be jobs you can do with one hand.
Like simple paperwork or something like that...”
Liliana's words made Damian sigh again.
“I can do it, but I use my right hand, and I haven't gotten used to using my left hand yet.
I do writing and other activities with my left hand in rehabilitation, but it's still very early, so I can barely write.”
Damian's voice became increasingly somber.
“I can live on my savings until I can use my left hand, but I don’t know how long it will take.”
Liliana moved her legs as she sat on the chair, deep in thought, then spoke with a firm expression.
“Do you have any connections?
Someone you can borrow money from, or someone who can pull some strings for you...”
Damian immediately thought of Paul but quickly shook his head.
"I don't want to get involved with them."
“Why?”
“I have decided not to associate with them.”
“Hmm...”
Liliana crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair.
“You seem to have a lot of complicated circumstances as well.”
"Yes…".
Damian looked at his short life and replied in a frustrated voice.
He was an outcast at the academy, so he had no real friends.
In the army, his rank was embarrassingly high, so his only close superior was Paul.
He could not burden his subordinates with his current situation, because that would be rude to a superior officer.
"You can talk to me if you're feeling overwhelmed."
“It's okay, I'll figure it out.
For now, I need to focus on practicing writing with my left hand.”
'Do you want me to help you with that?'
Liliana's words seemed sincere, and Damian waved his hand.
“No, it's okay.
I can do it myself.
"I don't want to bother you, Liliana."
"I'm bored.
I don't know anyone here, I have no friends, and there's not much I can do in the hospital room.
I would appreciate it if someone would do something."
Liliana said with a bright smile.
“Actually, I enjoy talking to you like this, Damian!”
Damian scratched his temple awkwardly, and Liliana stood up and said,
“Okay, let's meet at the cafe where we first met after treatment.
Do you agree?"
Damian nodded unconsciously.
Liliana smiled brightly and happily, and when her name was called, she reminded Damian again before entering the treatment room.
"Okay, I'll wait for you, so don't run away, okay?"
'Yes ma'am'.
Damian laughed and watched her go.
But Liliana narrowed her eyes at him and turned away.
"This is not fair."
“…?”
Damian tilted his head in confusion, and Liliana muttered to herself as she walked away again.
“I can't tell if it's a fox or a bear.”
Damian didn't know what it meant.
It seemed like she was unhappy about something, but if that was the case, why didn't she say it instead of leaving it hanging?
***
After the rehabilitation treatment ended, Damian went to the same café, and was surprised to see Liliana already there.
She was sitting on a table, wearing nothing but a hospital gown.
“You came out like this?”
Damian sighed softly and quickly took off his coat, placing it on Liliana's shoulders.
“Oh, I was so interested in getting my notebook and pen that I completely forgot about it.”
"Did you order anything to drink?
If not, I can go get it."
“It's okay, I asked for you too.”
"for me?".
“It's an herbal tea that supposedly improves concentration.”
He had no other choice.
He would have to drink it if I asked him to.
After all, it was Liliana who made time of her day for him.
Damian sat down in front of her, and Liliana got up and sat next to him, handing him a pen.
“Here, try holding the pen first.”
Damian grabbed a pen.
At least the way he held the pen felt natural.
But the moment he started writing on the paper Liliana had given him, she burst into laughter.
Describing his handwriting as “like a worm crawling” is an insult to worms.
Damian groaned, and Liliana patted his back.
“It's okay!
Your hand is still weak.
You'll be able to write soon if you keep practicing.”
I carefully wrote the letters of the alphabet in order on the paper with a pen and then moved them towards Damian.
“Wouldn't it be helpful to practice tracing these letters?”
Damian placed the paper in the middle and looked at the letters Liliana had written, then examined them with his eyes, then suddenly stopped moving, as if he froze in place.
In the silence, Liliana looked back and forth between the paper and Damian, then spoke cautiously.
"Um...
Damian?"
"..."
“Damien?”
She touched him lightly with her hand, and Damian's stiff body shook as if he was waking up from anesthesia.
'Yes yes?!'.
"What's wrong?"
Liliana looked at him curiously, and Damian wiped his eyes with his hand and said,
“Oh, nothing.
I was just thinking about something...”
“What were you thinking about suddenly?”
"I'm sorry".
“No need to apologize, but...”
"It wasn't really anything.
So, where were we?"
“I was saying you could try to trace the letters I wrote.”
“Okay, I get it.”
Damian tried his best to copy the letters Liliana had written.
But every time he looked at her handwriting, he lost focus.
'The line is the same.'
Damian followed Liliana's letters with his eyes, not just his pen, and thought.
'It's the same font as the letters.'
The circular line he was practicing.
'It's Mrs.
Lentrae's handwriting.'
Railways.
The tip of the pen scratched the paper, tearing it as it strayed from the letters.