Gu Yuena Had Always Had a Dream

In the cozy little shop.

"Waaah... Back when I first entered the academy and met Sister Xinglan, I... I fell hopelessly in love with her."

Xu Lizhi sat by the window. Empty bowls had already piled high on the dining table before him. As he wiped the tears from his face with his sleeve, he choked out the words, his voice thick with sobs.

"Even though I knew from the start that it might have only been my own wishful fantasy, I still couldn't help wanting to stay by her side, wanting to watch her smile, wanting to step forward and protect her whenever she needed me..."

He picked up a freshly filled bowl of Mung Bean Smoothie and drained it in one gulp. The icy sweetness slid down his throat, but it could not suppress the bitterness churning in his heart.

"When Sister Xinglan nodded and accepted my confession, I knew deep down that she might have only... only pitied me, felt sorry for how I looked. But even so, I was so happy that I couldn't sleep all night. I felt like I was the happiest person in the world."

At this point, Xu Lizhi's voice abruptly rose with emotion before quickly falling again. "So I trained desperately, harder than anyone else, because I wanted to become stronger, stronger still. One day, I wanted her to truly see me and look at me differently..."

"But, but... waaah..."

At that, all his strength came crashing down. Xu Lizhi collapsed onto the table, his shoulders shaking violently as scorching tears rolled down his round, fleshy face and struck the rims of the empty bowls with soft splashes.

He grabbed another bowl of Mung Bean Smoothie and practically poured it into his mouth, as though he wanted to swallow down every