Otiliya didn't go to the cafeteria. Instead, she went to the convenience store, bought a bento box, heated it up, and then found a quiet place to eat alone.
“Wait, wait! Lily-chan!” Margaret ran up to Otiliya again, sat down beside her, and said, “You’ve been so cold to your elder sister lately!”
“You’re only a month older than me!” Otiliya retorted.
“Ah, but you used to always call me ‘sister’!” Margaret said with a nostalgic air.
“Don’t bring up things from when we were little!” Otiliya said, exasperated. “Frigia-san.”
“You’re so cold, Lily-chan.” Frigia Margaret sighed. “I don’t know what happened to you, but I’m still the same Anne you knew as a child.”
“…………” Otiliya didn't answer and silently continued eating her bento.
“I’m hungry, hungry, I’m gonna eat too!” Margaret said as she took out a delicate bento box from her bag — it was wrapped in a cloth printed with cat paw prints, and the bento box itself was a black three-tiered luxury bento box. A cute cat design adorned the top of the box, and when you opened it, you could see a variety of delicious foods inside. Not only that, but the person who made the bento seemed to have taken extra care in arranging the food in the shape of a cute, chibi cat head.
“You still love cats so much.” Otiliya couldn’t help but comment, glancing at the overwhelmingly cat-themed bento.
“Yeah, cats are my absolute favorite... but why do they always reject me? Ugh, I’m so sad!” Margaret said, genuinely heartbroken.
“Humph, it’s God’s plan, it’s your destiny, just give up.” Otiliya looked down, her cheeks puffed out slightly. She gave a cold laugh as she spoke.
“My food is delicious, Lily-chan. Want some?”
“I told you, don't call me Lily, and don’t add ‘-chan’!”
But Margaret ignored her and continued, “You seem to be spacing out all morning. Did something happen?”
“Nothing.”
“Really... well, if you need help with anything, feel free to ask me.”
“……No.” Otiliya immediately responded, but then she paused for a moment and asked:
“…………Your family, they’re in electronics, right?”
“Yup, cell phones, computers, you name it. Heh, the tallest building in the city is my family’s company, the world's number one tech company... uh, but it seems like a new tech company wants to build a building taller than ours on this island, huh, such audacity.” Margaret said.
“Have you heard anything about your company developing virtual products lately?” Otiliya asked.
“Virtual products, like VR headsets? We’ve always been producing them. The most advanced VR headsets in the world are made by us… Hmm, are you interested, Otiliya? I can get my dad to give you a brand new unreleased product!~” Margaret seemed ready to call her dad and order one right away.
“No, not that kind of VR headset... I’m talking about full-dive... like, your consciousness entering a virtual world.”
“Ah, you mean like that...” Margaret frowned, thinking for a moment. “Nope, if I remember correctly, the best products right now are just using visual illusions to create a 3D image. The only difference is in things like the immersive feel and user experience. A full-dive VR product, if it really existed, would shake the world.”
“Is that so...” Otiliya replied, and went back to eating her food.
“What what? Did you watch some virtual game anime recently? Want to play a VR game?”
“Nothing, I was just asking.”
Meanwhile, since Zhang Xingyu had been doing nothing but listening to the two girls’ meaningless conversation, the Nightmare Lord was incredibly bored and seemed on the verge of falling asleep. However, at that moment, the Nightmare Lord, who had already closed his eyes, suddenly opened them wide.
“That’s her!”
“Huh? What her?” Zhang Xingyu was startled by the sudden voice in his head.
“That girl. Hurry, go over there, she’s an absolute super food source! Call her Food Source Number Two!”
“Ah——???!” Zhang Xingyu was baffled.
“What are you still staring at? Go now! Drag her into the Nightmare Realm, or at least give her a Nightmare Mark! She’s about to leave!” The Nightmare Lord said frantically.
Zhang Xingyu looked in the direction the Nightmare Lord pointed, but there were many students there, and he couldn’t figure out which one it was.
“You idiot, your reaction is so slow. …………She’s gone…”
“Uh, should I go after her now?”
“No… it’s best not to stray too far from Otiliya. Our spirit bodies are still unstable.” The Nightmare Lord said.