Chapter 1
Shanghai, China.
Mineo had just stepped through the front door after finishing school when his phone buzzed with a notification from WhatsApp.
"Mineo-kun, are you home from school yet?"
"Yeah! I'm back. Erina, what are you up to?"
"The usual. Today I received several requests to evaluate food for some restaurants... I just finished tasting the dishes at the last stall, and now I'm in the car on my way home!"
As he looked at the reply from his online female acquaintance who went by the profile name "Erina," the corners of Mineo's lips couldn't help but twitch.
About three years ago, Mineo's phone had suddenly been flooded with female friends using the names of "2D Girls."
As a huge fan of the anime world, Mineo had naturally and enthusiastically started chatting with all of them.
After a few years had passed, Mineo had essentially become close friends with every single one of these online companions.
And this girl named "Erina" was, of course, no exception!
However, the only thing Mineo felt like complaining about was whether these online friends of his were all suffering from a case of Chuunibyou.
Whenever they spoke, it was as if they were truly living inside the world of their original works.
For example, Erina would tell him every day about where she ate that day, or where she was scheduled to perform an evaluation the next.
Even last night, she had mentioned that she was going to take a bath with her female cousin, Alice.
It reached a point where Mineo honestly didn't know how he was supposed to respond to them anymore.
"Mineo-kun, haven't you always said that you run a restaurant too? When can you invite me to eat at your place?"
Seeing the message sent by Erina, the corners of Mineo's mouth twitched again.
Was this online friend actually intending to meet him in person in the real world?
Over the past few years, because these online female friends were so deeply immersed in their "roles," Mineo had naturally joined in on the boasting.
In his chats with Erina, Mineo always bragged about how incredible his cooking skills were. He even went as far as to say that if it were a dish made by him, he could definitely fully satisfy the girl's God's Tongue.
When she saw what Mineo said back then, Erina had felt extremely delighted.
She kept asking for the location of the restaurant Mineo managed, insisting that even if the place were at the edge of the world, she would still come to taste his food!
Of course, facing this kind of pressure, Mineo had resorted to stalling tactics!
"The restaurant I manage is in China; the distance is way too far from where you are."
"China? That's still fine! It's not that far. I can just take a plane from Tokyo; the trip only takes about an hour or so... Mineo-kun, don't tell me you're actually so stingy that you won't even treat me to a single meal!"
"How could that be? Treating you to one meal is easy... By the way, Erina, where exactly do you live?"
"I live in Tokyo, haven't I told you many times? Don't tell me, Mineo-kun, that you've really never heard of our Totsuki Academy?"
"....."
Dammit, of course I know about Totsuki Academy, but what I'm trying to say is, can you stop being so deep in character!
You really think of yourself as the real Erina, don't you...
Because Erina had also sent voice messages to Mineo before, he could confirm that this online friend he had been chatting with for so long was indeed a cute girl with a very melodious voice.
However, Mineo had suggested several times that Erina send a selfie, but she always refused to send one.
A few seconds later, Erina sent another message to Mineo.
"Mineo-kun, I'll be on school break soon. Since I happen to have some free time, I really can come visit your restaurant!"
"If Mineo-kun agrees, I can grant one small wish you mentioned before!"
"A small wish? Which small wish?"
"That... you know, that one..."
"Which one?"
"Mineo-kun, didn't you say you wanted to see my selfie... Although I'm a bit embarrassed to take a selfie... if it's just a photo of my legs... that's still possible..."
"Really? Erina, back when I used to ask for photos, you always flatly refused. Why are you agreeing now?"
"It's because Mineo-kun is too mean, every day you only know how to tease me... even though you know I really love delicious food, you won't tell me where your restaurant is located..."
Seeing Erina say this, Mineo let out a sly smile.
"In that case, send one selfie first... let me see if I'm satisfied or not!"
"That... this is the first time I've taken a photo like this... Mineo-kun mustn't laugh at me..."
The text sent by "Erina" seemed to carry the natural shyness of a teenage girl.
However, Mineo thought to himself: In this day and age, what girl hasn't taken a selfie before? She really thinks I'm some kind of Otaku who doesn't know anything.
Of course, Mineo didn't voice those thoughts.
On his phone screen, Mineo immediately typed:
"In that case, let me admire those wonderful beautiful legs of yours, Princess Erina..."
"I'm curious..."
Right at the moment Mineo sent that message.
Inside a parallel world—a 2D world!
Erina was lying on the large bed in her villa's bedroom, rolling back and forth.
Ping—! You have received one new message!
Seeing her phone screen light up, Erina quickly snatched the device into her hands.
When she saw the incoming message from the account named "Mineo," a crimson blush immediately bloomed across Erina's smooth, pale face.
"What a truly bad person..."
"Do you really want to see my selfie that badly?"
"Do you think this Young Lady is such a flighty person!"
Erina lowered her head, staring at her own long, slender legs clad in black over-the-knee socks.
The next second, Erina gripped her phone and snapped a photo of the long, furry legs belonging to the large teddy bear sitting on her bed.
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