Taking a deep breath, I pushed open the door to the inn. Warmth and the smell of hearty food enveloped me instantly, and my gaze swept across the room. Lisa was behind the ter, ughing with a er, and S sat at a table he window, fiddling nervously with a cup of tea.When his eyes met mine, he straightened immediately, his flustered expression turning into a shy smile.I waved awkwardly and made my way over. “Sorry if I kept you waiting.”“You didn’t,” he said quickly, standing up as if to pull out a chair for me, but then realizing I was already seating myself. He sat back doardly, rubbing the back of his neck.Lisa approached our table, a knowing smile on her face as she carried a tray. “Good evening, you two! I’ll get diarted in just a moment. But first—Mashiro, tea for you?”“Ah, yes, please,” I said, feeling oddly at ease in the warm, lively atmosphere.As Lisa walked away, S fidgeted with his hands oable. “I’m gd you came,” he said softly, gng up at me.I smiled, finally starting to rex. “I’m gd too.”Siled back, and for a moment, her of us spoke. The silence wasn’t unfortable, though—more like a quiet uanding. Lisa returned with our tea, and I ed my hands around the cup, sav its warmth. I took a small sip, letting the soothi calm my he lively hum of the inn ed around us like a f melody, and for the first time since waking up in this world, I felt almost… normal.But, of course, that didn’t st.“You seem rexed tonight,” S said, his tone lighter now. “It’s o see you like this.”I blinked, caught off guard by the ent. “Huh? Oh, uh, yeah… I guess I’m just—” My words cut off as my mind scrambled for something to say, and then, without thinking, the words came out.“—just doing my best to embrace the path of light, no matter how treacherous it may be!”The moment the quote escaped my lips, my brain short-circuited. I froze, eyes wide in sheer horror. That wasn’t just any random li was Mashiro’s iic catchphrase from Luminous Dream. The one she shouted right before doing the final cert in the series!S looked equally stunned, his teacup pausing halfway to his mouth. “Uh… what?”My heart smmed against my ribs. “I-I mean… uh…” I stammered, waving my hands frantically in front of me. “It’s nothing! Just… something I heard somewhere! You know, like an old saying or something!”S tilted his head, his brows knitting in fusion. “It sounded kind of… dramatic.”“It’s not dramatic!” I blurted, then immediately wi my own tone. “I-I mean… okay, maybe it’s a little dramatic. But it’s inspiring, right? Like, you know, staying strong in tough times?”His fusioed into a soft chuckle. “I guess it’s true. It suits you, actually.”I bliaken aback. “It… does?”“Yeah,” S said with a genuine smile. “You seem like the kind of person who’d say something like that when things get tough.”If only he khe real reason why. I managed a weak ugh, trying to steer the versation away before I actally blurted out more anime dialogue. “Haha, yeah… well, let’s just pretend I didn’t yell that out of nowhere, okay?”S ughed along with me, his earlier nervousness seemingly fotten. “Deal. But I’ll remember it. You might have a hidden dramatic side, Miss Mashiro.”I buried my fa my hands, trying to hide my embarrassment. Why did I say that out loud?o self: never let my Luminous Dream instincts take ain.I watched as Lisa leaned heavily oable, her hand pressing against her temple. Her face had lost some of its usual warmth, repced by a faint pallor. Before I could say anything, Elise rushed to her side, her small frame almost trembling with worry.“Big sister, please rest! Let me hahese small things,” Elise said, her tone somewhere between pleading and scolding. Without waiting for a response, she pried the ptes out of Lisa’s hands and nudged her towards the kit.Lisa chuckled softly but didn’t resist, clearly too tired tue. Moments ter, they both returned, carrying a small ptter with a roasted meat dish that looked so te practically melted uhe faint light of the inn. The aroma alone was enough to make my stomach grumble.They set the dish carefully on our table, but just as Lisa straightened up, she swayed slightly, her hand shooting out to grip the table for support. Her other hand pressed firmly to her temple.“Aah...” Lisa winced, clearly struggling to stay posed.Elise didn’t hesitate this time. “Please rest! I’ll take you to the room,” she said firmly, slipping an arm around her sister’s waist despite her petite frame. “Nuing, big sister.”Lisa opened her mouth as if to protest, but Elise cut her off with a sterhat was so uncharacteristically fierce I nearly ughed out of sheer surpriseElise turned her attention to us briefly, her voice returning to its usual politeness. “Please enjoy the night, Mister S and Miss Mashiro,” she said before leading Lisa away, her small figure steady and resolute as they disappeared up the stairs.“I hope she’s okay…” I muttered softly, gng toward the stairs where Elise had disappeared with Lisa. My chest felt heavy, but I pushed the feeling aside and focused for a moment. A small shimmer of light appeared in my hands as I summoned Elise’s doll from my iory—a simple, handmade figure with slightly frayed edges but full of charm. I smiled faintly and ha to S.“Fix this… and cheer both of them up,” I said, my voice carrying a mix of hope and pleading.S took the doll, his fingers brushing against mine as he accepted it. A half-smile pyed on his lips, though his gaze seemed to wander elsewhere.“I’ll see what I do,” he said quietly.The other patrons slowly filtered out, their chatter fading into the distance as they stepped into the cool night air. The inn grew quieter, leaving just the soft k of dishes being cleared i. The empty space around us seemed to make everything feel more intimate, the light from the flickering dles casting soft shadows over the table where S and I sat.I shifted in my seat, feeling the quiet weigh down on me in an ued way. The warmth of the food and the atmosphere around us hadn’t quite settled the uhat bubbled up within me. Something about being aloh him felt different—almost too personal, too revealing."So," I said, breaking the silence, my voiing out a bit more rushed than I intended. "It’s... kind of quiet now, huh?"Siled, his eyes glinting with a hint of amusement. "Yeah, I guess we’re the st ones here." He paused for a moment, his gaze flig to the door where Lisa and Elise had disappeared. "I’m sure they’ll be fihough. It’s just us now."My fingers nervously tapped the edge of my cup, trying to distract myself from the straightness in my chest. "Yeah... I guess so."He cleared his throat, his own nervousness showing as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, now that we’re alone,” he said, his voice a little too loud before he caught himself. “It’s… kind of peaceful, though, don’t you think?”I nodded quickly, clutg the edge of the table to keep my hands from fidgeting too obviously. “Y-Yeah, peaceful… totally.” My eyes darted around the room, searg for something—anything—to distract me from the awkwardness. The flickering light of the nterns on the walls, the faint creak of the wooden floor, even the roasted meat oe between us suddenly seemed like the most iing thing in the world.S gave a small ugh, scratg his cheek. “You don’t have to be so nervous, Miss Mashiro. I’m not… uh… that scary, am I?”I blinked, startled by his words, before quickly waving my hands. “N-No! Of course not! I’m just… uh… not used to situations like this, you know?” My voice trailed off, and I felt my cheeks heat up. I hesitated, then took a deep breath, trying to steer the versation toward something less heavy. “So, um… uh… I… want to know about you a little better?” My voice trembled, unsure and shy, as if the words were stumbling over themselves on the way out.S’s expression softened, and he slid the pte of roasted meat closer to me. “You’re cute, you know that?” he said, his tone light but sincere.A blush crept up my face, and I smiled shyly, pig up the fork and ko cut the meat into small pieces. As I pced a bite in my mouth, sav the tender fvor, I noticed him watg me with a warm expression.But then, the warmth faded.“Well,” he began, leaning back slightly. “I don’t have much of a story. My father was executed. Same with my mother, my three sisters, and my two brothers.”The words hit me like a punch to the gut. I froze, the pieeat halfway to my mouth. “I’m… sorry to hear that,” I mao say, though the words felt hollow, my voice barely above a whisper.S’s smile turned bitter. “Ah, you don’t have to do that,” he said with a dismissive wave. “It’s their fault, anyway. They were dumb. Couldn’t even hide the evidence properly. Because of them, I was left with all their mess. They’re gone, but I’m still paying the price.” His voice darkened, and he clicked his tongue in frustration.The anger in his eyes, the rese—it was overwhelming. My chest tightened, and a wave of nausea rolled through me. I swallowed hard, trying to keep the food down as my hands began to tremble.“I… I…” Words failed me. My hands lost their strength, the fork slipping from my grasp and cttering onto the pte. My arms fell limply to the table as my vision blurred. My body felt heavy, my head swimming with a strange fog.“Ah, but don’t worry,” he added suddenly, his tone eerily calm now. “I just found a perfect solution for my problem.”His words sent a chill down my spine. My chest tightened, and nausea ed in my stomach. I tried to speak, but my body felt heavy, unresponsive.No… not now… I ’t… I have to stay awake…But the edges of my sciousness began to fray.

  Save me… someone…