“Um, Young Miss, do we really have to do this?”
“We have to. She didn’t even bother to say goodbye to me.”
In Emilia’s bedroom, Anna tried to persuade Emilia to reconsider, but Emilia refused while changing clothes.
“But we were the ones who brought her here in the first place,” Anna said. “It’s only natural she’d act this way.”
“Even so, then why did Miss Leinata leave with her?” Emilia pointed out a discrepancy.
“…True. Miss Leinata isn’t the type to leave without a word.”
“I don’t know what kind of weird trick she used to make Miss Leinata follow her, but to show me this little respect… I can’t forgive her no matter what. Let’s go, Anna. We’re going after her.”
Step.
“Emm… maybe you’re overthinking it, Young Miss. Perhaps Nuo Ai’er is exactly the person Leinata is looking for?”
“Ha? How could that be? The Inner World isn’t that small.” Emilia waved off the idea.
“Alright, enough talk. Anna, let’s head out.”
Anna: emotionally exhausted.
Nuo Ai’er trembled as she recalled the death she had just experienced.
Who would want to kill her…?
The mere thought of stepping outside the Milk Tea Shop and encountering that terrifying black-clothed person made her legs shake uncontrollably. She couldn’t move an inch.
If she went out, she’d be killed…
“No way. I can’t go home, and I can’t go anywhere without people.” Nuo Ai’er suppressed her inner terror and turned to run back to the counter.
Her voice trembling, she said to the staff, “Um… please, give me another hot milk tea!”
As long as she stayed in the crowded Milk Tea Shop, that black-clothed person probably wouldn’t dare to act, right?
If only she could lie low until Leinata cleared the game and came back… that would be best…
Nuo Ai’er hugged the newly ordered milk tea tightly and curled up in a corner, shivering.
“What is going on…?” Nuo Ai’er also thought to herself.
Had she offended someone?
When it came to offending people, she only had a minor conflict with Emilia.
And it was Emilia who had captured her first.
But… leaving without saying goodbye with Leinata was a bit rude…
Could it be that the black-clothed person was sent by Emilia to kill her?
…This guess was quickly dismissed by Nuo Ai’er.
Even though Emilia was the type to enjoy pub-stomping, she shouldn’t be that extreme.
‘And more importantly, she just treated me to a lot of good food.’
Just because of a small grudge, sending an assassin to kill someone – that wasn’t something Emilia would do.
Then why…?
***
Time passed minute by minute, and the milk tea in the cup ran dry.
When the second cup was almost finished…
“Mm… I’ll stay a little longer. Miss, another cup—huh?”
Nuo Ai’er was about to order another milk tea when she suddenly felt the atmosphere around her turn strange.
The previously noisy chatter had completely vanished without her noticing.
Nuo Ai’er stiffly turned her head and was horrified to find—the staff at the counter was gone, the waitress wiping tables was gone, and the customers who had been chatting just moments ago were gone!
The Milk Tea Shop was now empty, leaving only her sitting alone in a corner.
“N-no way…” Nuo Ai’er had an extremely bad feeling, her heart pounding violently.
Just then, the door of the Milk Tea Shop slowly pushed open.
A mysterious person dressed in black with a hood walked in.
“Ahhh—!”
Nuo Ai’er recognized him at once—this was the black-clothed person who had disemboweled her on the street in the previous loop!
The black-clothed person spotted Nuo Ai’er, then locked the door behind him. He pulled out that familiar small blade from his waist, its cold gleam shining, and took a step closer to Nuo Ai’er.
“Waaah—don’t, don’t come any closer, no, no!” Nuo Ai’er was scared out of her wits. Her whole body went limp as she slumped to the floor, crying incoherently while scooting backward.
But the black-clothed person showed no pity. He walked up to her, looked down at her, then without hesitation raised the knife and plunged it into Nuo Ai’er’s soft belly.
A sharp pain hit, and Nuo Ai’er’s vision went dark.
[Player death.]
[Innate talent “Time Rewind” activated.]
[Rewinding…]
“Ah!”
A white light flashed, and Nuo Ai’er snapped her eyes open.
After the rewind completed, she had returned to a few dozen minutes ago.
Before her was Leinata’s gently smiling face, about to disappear with the teleportation light.
“I’ll finish it quickly and be right ba—”
“Don’t go! Leinata”
Without even thinking, her survival instinct made Nuo Ai’er lunge forward, tightly hugging Leinata’s waist and crying out:
“Don’t leave… someone’s trying to kill me! Someone’s trying to kill me!!”
Leinata was startled by the sudden turn of events, her emerald eyes widening instantly.
“What are you—”
Just as Leinata was about to ask what happened, the teleportation light mercilessly enveloped her.
Before Leinata’s anxious voice could finish, she was forcibly teleported into the game dungeon, completely vanishing into thin air.
“Ah…”
Nuo Ai’er’s hands grabbed nothing, and she fell heavily to the floor.
Before she could recover from the despair of losing her protector, around her came the muffled sounds of heavy objects falling.
“Thud, thud, thud…”
“Huh?”
She looked up dazedly, and in horror discovered that the customers who had been chatting away in the Milk Tea Shop, as well as the staff at the counter, were now all foaming at the mouth, lying scattered on the floor.
In the midst of this dead silence, only one person remained standing.
“Tch, what a pain.”
Nuo Ai’er: ?!
Nuo Ai’er was shocked.
This person was the tall female customer she had accidentally bumped into while paying earlier!
A cold, cruel expression on her face, the woman stepped up to Nuo Ai’er.
Before Nuo Ai’er could react, the woman reached out and viciously grabbed her by the neck, lifting her up like a chick, then threw her hard onto the ground.
Nuo Ai’er coughed painfully. Before she could struggle, a foot in a heavy leather boot stomped heavily onto her soft belly, grinding down hard.
“Ngh aah…!” Nuo Ai’er let out a scream, tears streaming uncontrollably.
The poor loli tried to move the foot away with both hands, but she didn’t have enough strength, and could only let the female customer trample her stomach.
The woman looked down at her, eyes full of malice, and spoke viciously:
“I was going to kill you later, but… kid, how did you figure it out?”
“I’m asking you! How did you notice?!” The female customer increased the pressure on Nuo Ai’er’s stomach.
This time she aimed for the little house inside Nuo Ai’er’s belly.
“Aaaah…”
Nuo Ai’er felt a pain she had never experienced before…