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Chapter 26 - Re: A Dream Or Reality

So this must be a dream.

That's the conclusion Luel comes to after taking in the situation he's currently in. After all, there's no way a reality could exist in which Luel's beloved ex-Idol, Amy, would be sitting across from him at the table on the balcony where he usually eats breakfast and lunch—eating the Takoyaki he cooked.

If this isn't a dream, then it's definitely a hallucination.

That second conclusion comes from the idea that Luel might have put something weird in the filling of the Takoyaki, causing him to hallucinate after eating whatever it was.

Wait, what if this hallucination is because I'm dying?

Aside from adding something weird to the Takoyaki, choking while eating, or perhaps his anxiety and panic attacks suddenly hitting so hard that his heart couldn't take the burden anymore—there could be other reasons for Luel's sudden death.

Right now, in what Luel believes is reality, he might be lying on the floor, alone and unconscious, inside the empty house. Or perhaps his cousin Rammie has found him and brought him to the hospital.

Whatever the situation is that put him on his deathbed, that's not what matters to Luel right now. What matters is the person—the girl—he's seeing in front of him.

Superstition says that before someone dies, their life flashes before their eyes. Whether it's the mind trying to avoid death or simply trying to ease the body's pain, either way, it's not impossible that the mind could conjure a hallucination of what the person wishes for most.

"I guess my final wish is to see you once again..."

Luel's sudden, unconscious remark caught Amy's attention, and the heartfelt smile she saw from him made her blush, noticing the sincerity in Luel's words.

However, as if to hide her shyness, Amy chose to act like a bit of a Tsundere character.

"Don't just stare at me dumbfounded like that, you're making the situation even more awkward!"

---

Before what Luel thinks is a daydream scenario, a few minutes of flashback explain how he and Amy arrived at this awkward situation.

Amy kept knocking on the front door while Luel panicked behind it, unsure how to handle the most unbelievable encounter he had ever experienced.

"Hey!… I said open up!… You're the RAIDS ONLINE player, Lucent, aren't you?!"

That remark alone helped Luel regain a bit of composure and recall the picture he had seen on the screen of the smartphone Amy showed him.

A picture of the RAIDS ONLINE avatar—the player known as BlueHeroine.

That photo alone was enough for Luel to realize that the ex-Idol Amy was the real-life person behind the player BlueHeroine. However, it still didn't explain why she was outside his house.

With no choice, if he wanted to learn the truth—and not be any ruder to his beloved ex-Idol—Luel gathered his resolve to open the front door and face his long-held wish to see Amy once again.

However, that resolve immediately shattered when he saw Amy's annoyed and angry expression—yet still proud, confident, and dignified.

To apologize for his rudeness—a behavior deserving punishment as a member of Amy's Fan Club—Luel unconsciously invited Amy into his house and offered her Takoyaki for lunch.

Of course, Amy was hesitant to enter a stranger's house. But after observing the entrance and realizing that Luel lived alone—combined with the threat:

"Don't you dare try anything funny if you don't want to end up in court and go to jail."

Amy decided to accept Luel's invitation. After all, she needed something from Luel—or rather, from the RAIDS ONLINE player, Lucent.

---

Back in the present awkward moment, Luel finally snapped out of the thought that everything was just a dream.

"If you already knew who I was, then why did you close the door in my face?!"

"I'm sorry... I just didn't know how to react after not seeing you for more than two years."

"Tsk!... It's already been two years since I retired as an Idol. How can someone still remember who I am?"

"I don't think two years is enough for your fans to forget you, Ms. Amy... Even I won't forget you after a decade or more."

That remark just made the situation even more awkward.

That's the thought that both Luel and Amy had as they sat across the table on the balcony, facing the grassy garden, eating their Takoyaki lunch.

Whether Amy was just a bit reluctant to receive compliments from a fan after retiring as an Idol—or Luel was simply too overwhelmed with happiness to realize how cliché his line sounded—both remained silent for a while.

What a definitely awkward vibe.

To break the silence, Amy decided to speak first.

"So you're my ex-fan, Mr. Luel?"

"No…"

"Huh?!... Sorry for assuming, then…"

Amy felt a bit disappointed hearing Luel deny being her fan. But his next remark caught her off guard—and made her blush even more than before.

"What I mean is... I'll always be your fan for the rest of my life."

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