The next level brought us to a shopping street. As we walked around, we realized every single store here was related to food.
I looked up at the signboards overhead. Each one clearly showed what it sold. Then I spotted it—crepes.
"Lina, want some dessert?"
"Yes!"
The moment she heard "dessert," Lina's eyes sparkled. We walked up to the shop. On the counter, several tablets were lined up, displaying different topping options for the crepes.
I picked chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and banana. After tapping "Done," I saw one of the machines inside start moving, assembling the crepe.
It finished quickly. A mechanical arm placed the warm crepe and a napkin in front of me. I took it—still hot—and noticed we didn't need to pay.
I took a bite. It was delicious. Wanting to share it with Lina, I turned toward her, only to find her staring at the tablet with a troubled expression.
"Lina, haven't chosen yet?"
"I'm deciding… should I pick the same chocolate syrup as you or go with jam?"
I looked at my crepe. If we shared, we could taste both flavors anyway.
"Pick jam. If you want chocolate, you can have some of mine."
"Mm. Then I'll choose jam. You can have some of mine too."
Lina selected grape–lemon jam, whipped cream, strawberries, and chocolate sticks. Then we walked while eating. It seemed like almost all the foods from my previous life existed here.
Every now and then, I held my crepe up to Lina's mouth, and she did the same, letting me bite hers. We exchanged tastes like that.
Then I noticed whipped cream on the corner of her lips.
"Lina, you've got cream on your mouth. I'll clean it."
I reached out and gently wiped it off with my finger. The cream ended up on my fingertip, so I licked it off.
If I did that to a girl I wasn't close to, she'd probably scream or feel uncomfortable. Most likely the latter. But Lina and I often shared the same fork when eating cake, so it didn't bother her.
…Or so I thought. But Lina stared at me, stunned, her face turning completely red.
Did I judge the situation wrong? I asked,
"Lina, what's wrong?"
"N-nothing."
Nothing? Then my guess was right after all.
But then I noticed something else. Every time I took a bite, Lina peeked at me—and her gaze was fixed on my mouth. Did I get something on my face?
I was careful not to smear chocolate or whipped cream on my lips, but maybe I slipped up?
I wiped with the napkin—completely clean. No chocolate, no cream.
I finished the crepe and wiped again. Still clean. Success.
Meanwhile, Lina looked displeased for some reason, stuffing her crepe into her cheeks without chewing, puffing up like a squirrel.
"Lina, what are you thinking about? Your face is turning into a squirrel."
"Squirrel?"
"Swallow first."
"Mm…"
She chomped rapidly like a small animal. Cute. Once she swallowed everything, I asked,
"You seemed a bit upset. Why?"
"Because… cream…"
Her voice was too soft. Maybe I've grown too tall. Recently, I'd hit 183 cm, while Lina was 168 cm. With her head lowered, her voice barely reached me.
"Say it again."
I bent down so she could speak more clearly. Instead, she yelled straight into my face:
"Because you didn't get whipped cream on your mouth!"
I froze.
…What kind of reason was that?
Shouldn't people be glad they didn't smear food on their face? Would Lina be happy if I had? The more I thought about it, the stranger it felt. Better just ask.
"…If I had gotten some on me, then what?"
"Then I'd get to wipe it off for you! But you didn't give me a single chance!"
So that's why she kept staring at my mouth. Because I wiped the cream off her, she wanted to try doing the same.
But I'd already finished my crepe, while Lina still had some left.
"Give me a bite of yours."
I bit into a part overloaded with whipped cream. I could feel it sticking to the corner of my lips. I turned to Lina; she immediately understood.
"Karen, you've got whipped cream. I'll wipe it. Don't move."
She brushed her fingertip across my mouth. The cream transferred to her finger, and she happily popped it into her mouth.
After accomplishing her goal, Lina cheerfully finished the rest of her crepe. We soon found the entrance. But first, we wanted to "buy" some food to bring back—and to give Dex his share.
…Though "buy" might not be the right word. We didn't pay; we just selected and took it. But whatever. Let's just call it buying.
Level 93's theme was Gourmet Street—a food street with no other paths.
The next level brought us to a place filled with public facilities and various sports fields. It looked like a park.
Then we saw a huge spiral tunnel slide towering above everything. Just looking at it made me imagine how satisfying it would be to slide down. Lina pointed at it.
"Karen, what's that?"
We were at a playground—of course we had to play. Even if I was a bit old for this, fun doesn't have an age limit.
"That's a slide. Come on, I'll show you how to play."
I grabbed Lina's hand and led her to the slide. We climbed the stairs all the way to the top. Then I demonstrated the proper posture for sliding.
"I show you first."
I sat inside the tunnel, scooted forward onto the slope, and immediately began sliding as the low friction pulled me along.
In just a few seconds, I shot out of the exit. So fast! So fun! I looked up; Lina was peeking down at me from above. I waved excitedly and shouted,
"Lina! Hurry and slide down! It's really fun!"
She must've heard me, because she stepped into the entrance. A few seconds later, Lina emerged from the slide, her expression full of joy—even though her hair was a little messy.
"Lina, was it fun?"
"Mm! I want play again!"
"Then let's play a few more times."
We ended up going down the slide over ten times. Eventually we got tired and sat on a nearby bench to rest. It happened to be lunchtime, so we took out the ramen we got earlier and ate.
After we finished eating, I showed Lina the other park facilities. Soon after, we found the entrance.
Level 94's theme was Park.