This is not the date I wanted.

Shidou sighed with some nostalgia. Although they had just gone to the shopping street to buy ingredients for everyone's dinner a few days ago in the real world, after returning from the computer world, Shidou felt as if it was a long time ago.

"Well, it's nice to do this sometimes."

Mengyue smiled.

"Is there any place Mengyue wants to go?"

Shidou asked Mengyue.

"I don't have anything special I want to go."

Meng Yue smiled bitterly and shook her head. At this time, both the bookstore and the game center were closed. If she were alone, she would definitely not choose to go out. As a stay-at-home, is there a better paradise than her own home?

"Actually, this is pretty good..."

Walking on the quiet street, Mengyue felt a soothing sense of tranquility. Although her daily life with everyone was also a very happy time, this time spent alone with each other made her feel a little bit of happiness that could not be described in words.

"If we have to set a destination for this date, it should be to the place Shidou wants to go."

"The place I want to go...will be boring."

"That won't happen." Meng Yue shook her head slightly, showing a confident smile and said, "Where Shidao feels he can relax, I can also relax."

Then, Meng Yue seemed to have thought of something and added seriously.

"Of course Love House is not a good option."

"Of course I won't go to that kind of place!"

Shidou denied it with a helpless look.

The place I want to go... After hesitating for a moment, Shidou proposed.

"Then... let's go to the park."

“It’s really ordinary.”

Meng Yue couldn't help but complain.

"I can't help it. Even if I had to decide right away, I don't know where I want to go."

Shidou said in embarrassment. It was already so late, and if Shidou wanted to make up his mind, this was all he could think of.

"Well, I didn't say that being ordinary is bad."

Meng Yue knew, of course, that Shidao's personal life was a typical high school boy and househusband, going from home to school to shopping street to home. On dates, he would prioritize the spirit's preferences and emotions, and treat the other person's happiness as his own. If you ask about his favorite places, it's no wonder that he couldn't figure out the answer for a while.

"So, is the park okay?"

"Of course, didn't I say that? If Shidou feels that he can relax there, I don't mind. Hehe~"

Seeing Shidao's puzzled expression, Mengyue laughed happily and set off with brisk steps.

————————————————I am the dividing line that reaches the park——————————————

When I arrived at the park, it was already empty, with only the street lamps emitting a faint cold glow, adding a touch of beauty to this quiet place. To be honest, Meng Yue didn't hate this kind of place.

"Mengyue, which one would you like, coffee or juice?"

Shidou came to the vending machine and asked Mengyue.

"Ha - coffee, please make it a little stronger."

The girl yawned slightly, rubbed her eyes, and said tiredly.

"OK, I'll do the same."

After ordering two bottles of hot coffee, Shidou and Mengyue walked to the platform in the park.

Gurgle gurgle - the bitter taste of coffee spread in the mouth, and a little warmth came from the hands, which made the two people's tired minds awake.

"I'm back..."

"Yeah... I'm back."

I couldn't help but sigh like this.

"I was just trying to play the new game Lingyin mentioned before dinner, but after I got in, I suddenly couldn't get out."

"Then we were called into the game world by Maria. In order to help her understand love, we all went on various dates that were beyond our daily routines."

"It was weird from the beginning, but at the end, Junai suddenly appeared and took away Mariya's authority. He said he would destroy us all for DEM."

"Then the original love comedy game suddenly turned into a battle between AI hackers of two major world companies."

"In the end, even his life was at stake."

"Really are……"

"Really are……"

Recalling what happened in this short day, the two looked at each other and spoke in unison.

"——It's totally inexplicable!"

……puff!

"What is this? Why are even you, Mengyue, confused? Hahahaha!"

"Shidou, aren't you the same? Hahahaha!"

Then, for some unknown reason, both of them held their stomachs and laughed heartily in this empty and deserted place.

When he finally laughed so hard that tears came out, Shidao slowly breathed a sigh of relief and asked Mengyue.

"Even though everything is so inexplicable, we just can't let go of those two sisters, so we chose to save them without hesitation."

"Who knows?" Meng Yue shrugged, with a sly smile on her face. "I'm not a good guy like Shidao. I just think that if Maria and Juna both become AI in our phones, they can be paired as a couple. I'll act only if it feels good."

"If Junai hears this, she'll be angry."

Hearing Mengyue's words, Shidao couldn't help but frown.

"I know, I was just kidding."

Mengyue waved her hand and a calm and happy smile appeared on her face.

The girl took a few steps forward, leaned on the railing, sipped her coffee, and looked at the scenery of Tiangong City in the distance.

It was late at night, and most families had gone to sleep. Only the lights of some convenience stores open all day and the street lamps were on. In the pitch-black city, a bright crescent moon began to emerge. Through the gaps in the clouds, the moonlight slowly fell on the streets, covering the houses with a layer of light silver, making the city a little hazy and dreamy.

Although she saw the same picture in the virtual world, Meng Yue could clearly feel the difference between the real world and the virtual world.

No matter how well the current virtual world is restored, the amount of information is still significantly different in terms of vision, hearing, touch, temperature, and environment. Meng Yue could understand a little bit why Junai was so obsessed with the real world.

However, even so, there are indeed things worth cherishing in that virtual world.

The beautiful memories we build together and the feelings we cherish for each other are an inseparable and precious treasure.

Mengyue wanted to convey this to Junai.

"Hey, Shidou..."

"what?"

Meng Yue opened her mouth slightly, wanting to share her feelings with the other person, but when she thought that the other person had no such memory, her chest felt a little tight.

Biting her lips tightly, Meng Yue turned her back to Shidao, not wanting him to notice her distressed expression. The words she wanted to say also changed their taste after reaching her throat.

"I'm sorry, not only did I make Shidao suffer like that, but I also made everyone worry about me... I'm really sorry for letting you do whatever you want because of my willfulness..."

"..."

There was a period of quiet silence, which made Meng Yue feel a little surprised. Normally, the other person should have been reasonable enough to comfort her.

"Shidou?"

Turning her head in surprise, Meng Yue saw a young man holding the coffee can tightly with a look of self-blame on his face.

"...Really, if I pretend nothing happened, I'll be a hopeless scumbag..."

Shidao laughed at himself. If no one knew it beforehand, no one would believe that Meng Yue was lying.

He drank the saved coffee in one gulp. Although it was not alcohol, it gave Shidou courage.

"Mengyue! I have something to tell you!"

"Yes……"

Although Meng Yue was a little confused, she still nodded. After all, if someone suddenly asked someone out for a date in the middle of the night, it must be because he had some dirty thoughts or wanted to talk to her alone.

After taking a deep breath, Shidao suddenly bent down and bowed at a ninety-degree angle to Mengyue.

"First of all——I'm so sorry!!!"

"Eh eh eh eh?!"

Meng Yue looked very troubled by Shidao's sudden action and hurried forward to help Shidao up.

"What, what's wrong? Shidou, you didn't do anything wrong! If anything, I should be the one to apologize, because my willfulness put everyone in danger and made everyone worry about me..."

"No!" Shidao shouted loudly, clenching his fists. The bitterness spreading in his mouth made him clench his teeth. "It was obviously me who said some irresponsible words, which made Mengyue choose to make the most dangerous choice. It was obviously my willfulness... that made Mengyue choose to endure such pain."

"Shidou...what are you talking about? Could it be..."

Meng Yue seemed to understand something and widened her eyes in confusion.

As if confirming Mengyue's guess, Shidao nodded slowly.

"When I was attacked by Junai... I remembered everything... whether it was the date with everyone... or the willful request I made to Mengyue at that time... and the reason why Mengyue got drunk on the street..."

He made his own choice, then forgot about it all, and finally did something that could be considered a betrayal. Although there were force majeure reasons for this, it is still undeniable that Gokawa Shido did the most scumbag thing.

Even though he knew that this was not a problem that could be solved by an apology, Gokawa Shido would never allow himself to pretend that nothing had happened.

Tick ​​tock——!

After hearing the worrying voice, Shidou couldn't help but look up. What he saw was the face of a girl who was trying desperately to hold back tears, but her tear glands seemed to have collapsed and she was shedding tears continuously.

It was like the last mask was taken off, revealing a fragile and powerless face.

Then, a strong impact came, and Shidao suddenly felt dizzy.

Looking at the crescent moon slowly emerging from the sky, Shidou realized that he was thrown to the ground by Meng Yue, and felt his clothes gradually getting wet.

I should have just gotten up from my seat. Shidao couldn't help but think of this.

"…Why, why did I have to remember this…I clearly already…pretended…that nothing had ever happened…"

"sorry."

"…It's just a game…but do you know how much I was prepared when I accepted your confession?!…But, one day, it suddenly seemed like nothing had happened…Do you know how long it took me to accept this reality…"

"sorry."

"...I have every reason to be angry or jealous...but seeing how happy everyone is with you...I can't bear to ruin this future...and...the next time that person will suffer the same fate as me...Shidou is not wrong...I can't be jealous...I can't be angry..."

"sorry."

"…Whether it's the happy memories…or the sad feelings…it's as if they never happened…It's as if I'm just having a nightmare…"

"sorry."

"…Because we promised…I must rescue Maria and Maruna…So I told myself not to care too much about these things…and just endure it…"

"sorry."

"Wow... apologize to me... not just to me, but to Tohka, to Origami, to Yoshino, to Kurumi, to Kotori, to Yakuya, to Yui, to Miku... our feelings... our memories... apologize..."

In the end, Mengyue could only hug Shidao tightly, constantly sobbing, and releasing the pressure that had been accumulating in her heart.

A trace of blue-white lightning emerged from the girl's body, and her spiritual power began to flow backwards due to the girl's emotional fluctuations. Even so, Shidao did not regret it. If he did not let Mengyue vent these dissatisfactions, the result would not be such a minor spiritual power backflow.

The numbing feeling of the electric shock seemed to be expressing the inner distress of the girl who was already crying, making Shidao feel as if his heart was pierced by a sharp thorn.

"Sorry……"

In the end, all Shidao could do was to gently stroke the girl's soft long hair, and keep repeating this simple sentence until Mengyue calmed down.

26 Plus (Part ) Looking forward to the future of conversation

==============================

After that, about ten minutes later, Mengyue finally stopped crying and wiped her red eyes with her sleeves. She got up from Shidao's body. Perhaps because she didn't know what expression to use to face Shidao, Mengyue sat on the grass with her knees hugged, lowered her head and remained silent.

Let me be alone for a while... How should I put it? Shidou inexplicably felt this kind of atmosphere from Mengyue and said while scratching his cheek.