Chapter 105 – Is Ais in love?


    As soon as Ais mmed the door, she instantly turned to me, her eyes gleaming as she stared at the box I held. I couldn''t help but find her behavior amusing; it seemed so out of character for her.


    She really loves my book.


    "You''re not kidding, are you?" she asked.


    I heard her question and used the key to unlock the box. Ais''s eyes sparkled even more when the book''s cover became visible. She desperately tried to snatch the box from my hands, but I pulled away.


    "First, you have to thank me," I teased. But Ais took it seriously and began thanking me. It was funny how she acted like a little puppy.


    She kept her hands outstretched and continued to stare fiercely at the box.


    I slowly ced the box in her hands, and Ais looked at it more closely. She was so excited she couldn''t say a word; she waspletely frozen.


    "Are you okay? Are you that happy?"


    "Of course! I''m the first person to have the second volume, right?"


    "Yes."


    "Yes! I don''t know how to thank you. I''m so happy. It''s so beautiful. Who made this art? Don''t tell me you drew this."


    "No, it wasn''t me. An artist did the cover."


    "I was scared for a second, thinking you had a talent for that too. But it''s beautiful, amazing. Seriously, the artist managed to capture the characters so well. That''s exactly how I imagined them. They''re perfect together; I wonder if everything will work out."


    Ais was talking about Emilia and Subaru. It''splicated to talk about that, so it''s best not to extend the conversation or give her spoilers.


    "I think it''s better not to discuss that."


    "I don''t want spoilers." Ais took the book out of the box and flipped through a few pages. "I want to read it all right now, but I must control myself."


    "Do you have anything nned for today?" At my question, Ais pulled her eyes away from the book and looked at me. Her cheeks turned red, and she replied.


    "I''m going to the dungeon today. And you..."


    "Do you want me to go with you?"


    "No, I wouldn''t ask you that! I just wanted to know if you saw..." Her face grew redder and redder. Her excitement was turning into embarrassment as she remembered what had happened earlier.


    "Are you talking about your breasts?"


    "You saw... I''m sure you saw..." she said, turning away. "But I don''t care. It''s fine."


    "You don''t need to worry. It is beautiful," I told Ais.


    She remained silent. After the awkward silence, Ais turned toward me, hugging the book. "Thank you so much for this. I''m d you chose me to get the first copy."


    "You''re a big fan, and we''re friends. Isn''t that reason enough?"


    "...Yes, friends."


    "Aren''t we friends?"


    "That''s not what I meant." Ais cleared her throat. "Thanks again, Luan. We should go out to eat together sometime. I''ll repay you for remembering me."


    "I''ll look forward to that."


    Once again, awkward silence filled the room. Ais seemed quite nervous, so I decided to say goodbye. I could have pushed things further, but I chose to hold back.


    But it worked. Ais seems to be getting closer and closer, and she seems to like me more and more.


    Who would have thought Re: Zero would help me with this?


    ''She hasn''t been won over yet. Don''t rush it. She''s just paying more attention to me now. I''ve made her notice that I care about her, and that''s enough.''


    Ais made a point of walking me to the exit of the Loki Familia house.


    There, we ran into Bete, who seemed immensely annoyed by how close we were. But we didn''t pay him much attention, and we parted ways with smiles on our faces. I couldn''t help but notice that Ais was blushing the entire time.


    My [Charming Aura] skill leveled up at just the right moment.


    ####


    <strong>*Ais''s POV*</strong>


    When Luan finally left, I returned to my room and took the book I had stored in the box. I looked at it again, and the art touched my heart. Indeed, this artwork was created with passion and care.


    "It''s so beautiful."


    I slowly opened the first page to start reading, but my mind was overwhelmed by what had happened earlier. Luan had seen me in an embarrassing situation, making me flustered.


    I never thought I would feel like this, but it''s incredibly embarrassing.


    "And what was that?"


    My heart raced when I received his gift. I had never felt anything like that before. Maybe I was too happy, or I was too excited to read the second book.


    "But I never imagined he would give me such a precious gift. What Tiona said..."


    Tiona told me a long time ago that Luan said I am beautiful.


    "Did he give me this book because he thinks I''m beautiful? I don''t know how to feel about that..." But it makes me incredibly happy. It''s nice to know that he thinks I''m so beautiful that he gave me one of his most precious things.


    Ugh... That''s when I realized I couldn''t read.


    Even though the words entered my mind, they quickly became scrambled because of my racing heart and the sound of Luan''s voice in my head, distracting me.


    I rolled around in bed, hugging the book and thinking about him.


    "What the hell is happening to me?"