89 A Person With low EQ's Response to a Confession

What…

What is this?

"Um… What did you just say? Sorry, the music is too loud…"

"You…! Ugh… I-I like you!"

"You mean as a friend, right? Not romantically?"

"L-L-Lancera! Don't you have any shame? Don't you know saying this stuff is e-embarrassing? I do, ok?! I l-l-like you romantica-caly…"

Is… Is this a dream? A cruel dream where, in a moment, I'll wake up to the ringing of Asu's dozens of alarms back at the Golden Rose Academy?

Is having hallucinations a side effect from utilizing too much magic?

I instinctively nodded. It must be. That's why I shouldn't get too excited. In fact, it would be better not to—

"L-Lancera! Stop dazing off!" Asu stomped her feet in indignation, her face pink with embarrassment.

No matter how I thought of it, it just didn't make sense. Just how did Asu come to love someone like me?

"Asu… This isn't a dream, right?"

"What do you think? You idiot. Want me to wake you up a bit?" She raised her foot to stomp.

I gasped in agony. "It's real… I-I can feel the pain…"

Still, I momentarily could not process what had happened. Instead, I grew painfully aware of the concerned gazes that were beginning to gravitate towards Asu and I—Asu just attracted way too much attention wherever she went.

"Asu… Let's go somewhere else to talk. There are too many people here."

"Huh? W—"

Without letting her continue, I pulled my cloak over her and grabbed her by the arm, running to a less crowded place. This wasn't hard because due to the highlights of the festival occurring mostly at the square, many people drifted towards the area near the square, leaving the outskirts of the festival streets vacant.

"You Hall brat! What's wrong with you?!" Asu huffed in exhaustion. "Now my hair is all messed up! Even some of my precious flowers fell off!"

I patiently waited for her to finish grumbling, before I asked the crucial question, "Did you really mean it when you said you liked me more than a friend?"

Asu widened her eyes in disbelief. "What? You don't believe me? Did you think that I would lie?"

The truth was, I wasn't sure myself. I hadn't expected to feel so indifferent towards Asu's confession, something that I had been waiting for ages to happen. Shouldn't I be very happy right now?

"… Then why do you like me?"

"What type of question is that?!" Asu harrumphed and turned away.

However, after a second of pause, she continued in a low voice. "Who wouldn't fall in love with you?"

She stared up at the night sky. "Did you know? Before meeting you, I had never expected that I would be able to act so carefreely as I did so tonight in my entire life. I had never expected that I would ever have my hair so messy as it is now. I had never thought that I could step on someone's feet with absolutely no remorse. I had never thought that I would be able to see how beautiful the sky is when it's nighttime. It's so mysterious yet alluring, and it reminds me of you."