-374- I have a dream

Rozen certainly couldn't forget the words he had spoken. After all, it had only happened six months ago, and his memory was not so bad as to forget them.

But Rozen had never imagined that his words would be brought up by Asuna at this moment. Moreover, it seemed that this single sentence had played a significant role in causing Asuna's transformation.

How could Rozen not be left speechless?

However, Asuna continued to speak.

"At that time, I used to have nightmares every day."

"Sometimes, I dreamed of dying in battle."

"At other times, I dreamed that my parents in the real world had abandoned me."

"Sometimes, it was the mocking laughter of my classmates."

"And sometimes, it was the roars of monsters I had slain."

"Like that, I kept having nightmares, and not a single day passed without them."

Asuna's unwavering determination to clear the game had its reasons, just as Rozen had suspected.

"But on that one day, all I could think about were the words someone said to me. It made my heart race, as if it was about to jump out of my chest. It influenced me so much that when I went home, I kept thinking about it until I fell asleep."

On that day, Asuna didn't have nightmares but instead dreamed of a scene where someone lifted her hair and said those words.

That scene continued to appear in Asuna's dreams until she woke up.

"That was the first time since I came to this world that I could sleep so comfortably. Before that, I would often wake up in the middle of the night due to nightmares. But on that day, I overslept completely. When I rushed to the guild headquarters, I even forgot to tidy my hair, and many people teased me."

At this point, Asuna felt a mixture of annoyance and nostalgia.

"After that, I went to bed every night thinking about that incident. The nightmares never returned, but instead, I became more and more focused on that person. Every time I thought of that person, my heart would race, making me feel both uncomfortable and happy. I started looking forward to the next day, to do something with that person again and turn it into another dream that would appear in my sleep."

When Asuna finally returned to her senses, she had only one realization.

"My mind is filled with that person's presence, and there's no room for anything else."

Asuna stared directly into Rozen's eyes, which had become gentle.

"Asuna..."

Rozen was completely at a loss for words, just staring at the beautiful rapier user who had suddenly poured out her innermost emotions to him. His heart raced violently.

Rozen was not a slow-witted person. At this moment, he finally understood what Asuna wanted to convey.

Rozen couldn't help but think of three people.

One was the protector who stood before him, holding a shield far heavier than her delicate body, his Demi-Servant who was determined to guard him until the end.

One was the doll who claimed to want to belong to him completely, offering everything to Rozen, a somewhat capricious yet headache-inducing doll.

And there was one more, a shy and hesitant girl who handed a bell, decorated with a ribbon and suitable for a hair accessory, the princess of Izanagi.

Thus.....

How...how could one handle a situation like this?

"Rozen..."

At this moment, Asuna, as if feeling a spark of emotion, not only had her eyes became moist but also blushed as she softly called his name.

Rozen's heart shook even more.

So...

"Listen to me, Asuna."

Rozen took a deep breath and looked at Asuna with utmost seriousness.

In the next moment, Rozen said something he absolutely shouldn't have.

"I have a dream, that is to travel far and wide, and establish a vast harem!"

As these words left Rozen's mouth, Asuna's blushing face froze, and her moist eyes seemed to have stopped blinking.

In reality, Rozen didn't have such a dream.

If he had any dream, it was to understand all the mysteries, explore all the miracles, master all the summoning rituals from his memories, and ultimately find the presence that had once saved him, while wearing the ring of "Miracle."

That was Rozen's true dream.

In other words, the words he just spoke were nothing more than a lie.

No, it couldn't even be called a lie.

As a proper internet addict, Rozen, like all otaku around the world, had the ambition of establishing a grand harem.

But that was at best just a fantasy; Rozen hadn't actually thought of putting it into action.

Now, facing the first girl who had confessed her feelings to him sincerely, Rozen just wanted to say something, anything.

As a result, in his moment of inner turmoil, Rozen blurted out this absolutely forbidden ambition.

And then, Rozen saw Asuna's expression disappear, and her gaze turned ice-cold.

"...Is that so?" Asuna said expressionlessly. "It's quite an ambitious dream, indeed."

Even though she said it like this, Rozen felt a bone-chilling coldness in her words.

"Scumbag."

Asuna's brief, icy words pierced Rozen's heart deeply.

...

After that, the troops led by Kobatz finally adapted to the rhythm of battle, and the clearing progress began to accelerate.

However, the faster pace of clearing couldn't alleviate the fatigue of the players within the group, and everyone's steps grew heavier.

Kobatz, on the other hand, was undeterred and had set the top floor of the labyrinth tower as their destination, rushing forward.

Finally, these people reached the highest level of the labyrinth area. After a brief exploration, they made an important discovery.

Walking in front, Asuna was the first to spot it, and her eyes slightly widened as she abruptly stopped in her tracks.

"Look at that!"

Asuna couldn't care less about being angry now; she urgently called out to Rozen.

"What is it?"

Rozen instinctively turned his head to see what Asuna was pointing at.

The next moment, Rozen's eyes narrowed as well.