She discreetly glanced at Mayuseong and Baek Yu-Seol. She didn't want to be treated like a fool who didn't know how to eat something as simple as this.

Observing her, Baek Yu-Seol suddenly had a realization.

‘No way, is this her first time at a pizza place?’

Since Baek Yu-Seol didn't know much about the person named Eisel, he didn’t know if she had been to a pizza place before or not.

So, he quickly handed her a fork and was about to subtly show her how to eat it, but before that, Eisel took action.

Suddenly, she brought the pickle plate to her lips, and drank the pickle juice directly.

Her sky-blue eyes widened.

"I-It's delicious!"

She had never tasted such a stimulating broth before.

Baek Yu-Seol was about to tell her the truth with an indecisive expression, but Eisel kept drinking the pickle juice with delight, so he gave up.

Mayuseong, who was staring at her, also toyed with the pickle plate, and like Eisel, brought it to his lips and slowly savored the taste.

"Hmm... It's not bad."

As he watched her smiling refreshingly, he almost thought he was drinking an expensive red wine.

"Oh... right. That's the charm of pickles."

A moment later, when two pizzas were brought out, Eisel’s mouth dropped open.

"Wow...!"

The tantalizing aroma of cheese stimulated her appetite, and she was almost drooling.

"Let's eat. I checked beforehand, and this place is really popular."

As Baek Yu-Seol served the pizza onto the plate, Eisel cautiously picked up the knife.

However, Baek Yu-Seol couldn't tolerate the idea.

"Oh no. Why would you ruin the pizza by putting a knife on it? It doesn't taste good when you eat it like that."

"What?"

"You have to eat it like this to truly enjoy it."

Baek Yu-Seol demonstrated first.

He lifted a slice of pizza and took a big bite, pulling it away from his mouth.

Streeeetch!!

The cheese from the pizza stretched out like a maze.

"Well, that's even more outrageous..."

"Oh, it sounds fun, doesn't it?"

Mayuseong followed suit and stretched the cheese, while his eyes sparkled with enthusiasm.

Eisel, with an uncertain expression, alternated between the knife and the pizza, but in the end, she put the knife down and picked up the pizza with her bare hands.

And she also successfully stretched the pizza in her mouth.

"Ah...!"

An exclamation burst out.

It was her first time.

She couldn't regain her senses from the overwhelming stimulation of the chewy cheese and spicy hot sauce that filled her mouth.

‘Ah, the bell peppers are frolicking on top of the cheese. The combination of peppers, paprika, and olives is amazing. The bacon and onions are joining hands and performing an energetic salsa dance!’

Then suddenly, her emotions surged. She remembered the days when she couldn't properly enjoy a meal like everyone else.

But now, the taste was so delicious that all those thoughts vanished.

She felt happy.

Tears welled up in her eyes, but Eisel held them back and spoke with a choked voice.

"... It's delicious. Truly."

Baek Yu-Seol smiled, feeling like he made the right decision after all.

"Let's come here often from now on."

He felt a sense of satisfaction, as if offering a delicacy to a cute little bird.

"Eat a lot."

That way, it would give her some strength for the challenges ahead.

"Edna! Did you hear that?"

Edna, who was walking down the hallway, slightly stiffened her expression when she heard a girl's voice.

"Yeah..."

"Really? Then let's meet next time!"

As she watched her friend running off in another direction, she sighed.

Heard it.

She must have come to share the rumor that Alterisha had solved a complex Delta Augmentation Formula.

It was something she had heard dozens of times already.

Young girls were a vibrant species, who brimmed with infectious excitement whenever they stumbled upon intriguing news to share about their friends.

However, Edna knew.

She knew that all of this was Baek Yu-Seol’s doing.

Despite his name being not revealed and not known to the public... Somehow, Edna felt like she could understand his deeper intentions, as he hid himself and made Alterisha stand out.

But how did he solve the formula? Did any knowledge from the future remain? Most of the future knowledge, except for crucial events and narratives, would have been forgotten as a consequence of regression.

She herself had no way to help Alterisha because there was no explanation of the Delta Augmentation Formula in the original novel she was familiar with.

But, the situation was unfolding quite favorably.

"... Or maybe, he's just really smart? Is that why?"

Either way, since he knew the fact that "Delta Augmentation Formula would be solved in the future," he might have solved it with Alterisha directly.

In truth, she didn't plan to get deeply involved. She and Baek Yu-Seol had agreed to only reveal 50% of their true feelings.

Instead, she needed to prepare for the next event.

"Persona Gate training."

In this world, there were countless "Persona Gates." Even in the original novel, the true nature of the gates was never properly revealed, causing a lot of resentment.

It was another dimension born from the power of the Dark Mages.

If they didn't quickly conquer the Persona Gates and deal with them, the places where they appeared would become completely tainted by the Persona Gates, rendering them uninhabitable.

To prevent that, the magic warriors, including Edna, had been studying Persona Gates since their childhood, and now as high school students, they were conducting practical training.

Perhaps this time, the "real" would be mixed in the Persona Gate training. It was the infiltration of the evil Dark Mages within the academy.

"I roughly know the whole story of the event, so I have to prevent any major damage from occurring."

While pondering over such concerns, Edna walked slowly, only to find students gathered in front of the classroom bulletin board for some reason.

"Hmm?"

Curious, she went over to see a notice regarding the "Persona Gate." As she silently read it, someone approached her and started talking.

"Edna, hello."

".....?"

A gentle and warm voice.

She instinctively turned her head.

Jeremy, who belonged to the Scalben Family, had unknowingly made his way beside her, and he stood there with a dazzlingly beautiful smile.

Edna had a puzzled expression as she responded.

"Oh, hey."

"How about joining the same group for the Persona Gate training this time?"

Looking at Jeremy who said that, Edna let out a dry laugh.

‘Why is he acting like this here?’

In the original novel, Jeremy was depicted as a character who fell head over heels for Eisel and fought hard to win her heart.

However, Eisel eventually became involved with Mayuseong, which angered Jeremy, leading him to use his power to torment her.

If he had simply tormented her physically, it might have been understandable, but Jeremy displayed a psychotic nature, and destroyed her mentally.

Honestly, while reading the original work, Edna became extremely annoyed.

Although many readers idolized him as an embodiment of twisted obsession, Edna detested such a personality.

"Hah, if you're going, do I have to accompany you? What makes you believe in that? Huh? That arrogant expression of yours?"

She grabbed Jeremy's chin and shook it from side to side.

Jeremy was taken aback and his eyes widened.

"Mind your own business and stop acting presumptuous."

After that, Edna coolly turned around and walked away, while Jeremy caressed his chin.

‘... Indeed, she's peculiar.’

However, there was one aspect that Edna had overlooked. This was the world of "romantic fantasy," and the cliché of "you're the first one to hit my cheek" was very common.

"Unique, original, … Charming."

No other woman had ever acted so boldly towards him.

The freshness resonated deeply in Jeremy's heart. He felt sensations he had never experienced before and even a sense of excitement.

Jeremy watched Edna’s figure as she walked away with her short legs, wanting to capture every bit of her appearance.

But then...

"Oi, mister. Where are you going? Class?"

"Don't interrupt me while I'm eating my bread."

"Hahaha, why do you look so funny?"

A particularly mentioned and annoying person appeared, someone who always got on his nerves.

Unconsciously, Jeremy slightly clenched his fist and glared at the boy's back.

‘Don't mess with that kid, Baek Yu-Seol.’

He had never had something he wanted to possess taken away from him in his entire life.

And this time would be no different.