NOVPUBAlthough the players in the amusement park were eager to continue, they knew it was late, and the changeover between the afternoon and night shift staff was normal. Both the host and the director needed a break.
Not long after, when the clock pointed to half-past nine, the screen at the Summer Night Gold Bee Amusement Park began projecting images again.
In that space constructed from video game fantasy colors, two figures were dressed in vibrant, matching school uniforms, looking striking and full of youthful innocence.
At that moment, they resembled a young boy and girl entering school together, sharing the sweetness and purity of their salad days.
"Hi, hi, hi! Love Obstacle Corridor College, Season One, continues right here!"
The lively female voice sounded as a girl dressed in a golden bee costume took the stage.
Her face was painted with watercolors inside the mascot suit, and only her light blue hair stood out noticeably.
In the Shadow World, Lanci and Talia saw the same golden bee cartoon figure.
However, Lanci felt strangely that the host’s voice sounded a bit like Senior Sister Lavisseir.
"Are you ready to take on the eighth question?"
The hostess asked the two sitting in the chairs.
"... "
Lanci stole a glance at Talia.
Talia had been looking down with flushed ears and hadn’t said a word to him.
He nodded.
Talia also silently nodded slightly.
"Don’t worry. Generally, if you’ve made it this far, the questions that follow won’t be too difficult for you!"
The little bee hostess said.
She opened the question card she had just flipped to.
[Question 8 (Male & Female): Have you ever dated multiple people at the same time?]
Lanci and Talia, who had clenched the little blackboard a bit, simultaneously exhaled in relief.
[No]
[No]
This question was too easy, practically a giveaway. Of course, it would be quite explosive if either of the two had done such a thing.
But at that moment.
Below the stage.
Sweat had begun to form on Loren’s forehead.
He realized this game wasn’t something to be played carelessly.
And this time, the camera that occasionally panned to the audience happened to focus on Loren for a close-up.
He feigned composure.
The camera continued to film him.
Loren sat upright, looking at the stage. He glanced at the camera and then continued to watch the stage.
After a while.
The camera finally moved away.
Loren barely breathed a sigh of relief.
"Loren, what’s wrong?"
Juliana, noticing the beads of sweat on Loren’s forehead, took out a handkerchief, raised her hand, and gently dabbed his forehead.
"The weather, it’s a bit too hot,"
Loren, feeling Juliana’s closeness and the soft pressure almost upon him, replied even more nervously.
In the Graffiti Classroom.
"Both of you, your current reward has reached an Animal Forest Chocolate Commemorative Gift Box plus sixty-four Golden Bee Coins. Following what that cute gray-haired miss said earlier, I assume you want to continue?"
The little bee hostess inquired.
The two of them assessed each other’s attitudes and both nodded slightly. 𝔫𝖔𝔳𝖕𝖚𝔟.𝔠𝔬𝖒
If it was only as difficult as the last question, not taking the opportunity would be a waste. With each new question they answered, the reward of Golden Bee Coins would increase significantly.
"Great! Please look at the question!"
The little bee hostess revealed the new question—
[Question 9 (Male & Female): What do you two want to do tonight?]
[Midnight Snacks]
[Feed Her Midnight Snacks]
After catching a glimpse of the answer, the two looked at each other.
The audience was stunned.
What kind of understanding was this?
At that moment, it seemed as though neither of them feared revealing their thoughts in front of everyone.
Before the audience could start heckling, a low table appeared in front of the two, with a plate containing a crepe from the Gold Bee Amusement Park’s weekend special.
The golden-brown crepe’s edges curled up slightly, crisp on the outside with a soft center that didn’t collapse, holding a layer of cream with freshly sliced strawberries and yogurt cake hidden inside.
Talia’s gaze had already been captured by the crepe.
Just standing in line for it required a long wait, and winning enough Golden Bee Coins from the games to purchase such a crepe wasn’t easy.
"Congratulations, you’ve triggered a special reward, which is also a surprise the show team has improvised for you," the host cheerfully said, turning towards Lanci,
"Now both of your wishes can be fulfilled, please feed her!"
"No no, can we take it away?"
Lanci shook his head, his thinking somewhat rigid.
"Uh, that’s certainly not possible. This is a special reward within the activity; just now you both thought about interacting with each other in your hearts. But when the actual opportunity arrives, do you dare not face your own feelings?" the host asked with apparent regret.
"..."
Lanci, to be honest, even with his mindset, felt that feeding Tata in front of everyone was a bit like mutual destruction.
He stole a glance at Tata.
At that moment, Tata’s gaze was so fierce it could kill, her meaning clear: if you dare feed me in this situation, I’ll bite your hand off.
Lanci’s heart involuntarily began to race.
His hand trembled and by the time he came to his senses, he had already picked up the crepe.
"You... you..."
Talia watched as Lanci came closer, her heart also nearly overwhelmed.
Then Lanci brought the crepe to his mouth.
He naturally started eating it himself, allowing Tata to watch him eat up close.
"?"
Talia’s eyes widened, watching Lanci eat and observe her at the same time. It felt like he was mocking or teasing her.
Now she was at a loss for words, unable to ask Lanci to feed her.
Disappointment and indignation began to fill her chest.
She couldn’t tell if Lanci thought she was a feast for the eyes or if he just wanted to watch her frustrated and speechless demeanor; Lanci was clearly enjoying his crepe.
Angry, she lunged forward and started to fight with Lanci over the crepe.
The two wrestled and fought for the food, leaving bite marks and indentations on the crepe.
"They look like they’re really having fun," someone said.
"Yeah," another agreed.
The audience nodded in satisfaction.
It all ended with Lanci being subdued by Talia, who devoured the rest of the crepe in a few bites and triumphantly let go of the pinned Lanci.
"That’s not fair! You’re bullying me," Lanci complained.
"Hmph, then next time have the guts to pin me down," Talia said with satisfaction, licking the corner of her mouth.
Upon reflection, the crepe she had gobbled up in the heat of the moment was the most delicious she had ever tasted, never had she found a crepe to be so exquisitely sweet and tart.
Suddenly, both of them realized they were still on the show and sat back down in their respective seats somewhat awkwardly, turning their heads away not to look at each other.
It seemed like they had forgotten they were in the public eye...
And who knew if their unseemly scuffle looked absurd to the amusement park guests watching...
