It was a day like any other.

Since being expelled by the Head and arriving at the outskirts of the Library, there were no more guests to receive. However, the countless books left behind still held their places, and the task of organizing them showed no sign of ending. The Patron Librarians, the Assistant Librarians, and even Angela herself spent their days moving between piles of books with little rest.

That evening, a drinking party was held on the Floor of Art, as usual. It was an event that repeated almost every week, and by now, no one considered it special. Somehow, Angela ended up joining them and took a sip of beer at their invitation.

Of course, she couldn't taste a thing.

It was only natural, as her body was not designed with a sense of taste. Nevertheless, the feeling of being mingled among people emptying their glasses was strangely not unfamiliar. Angela set her glass down without a change in expression.

After the gathering ended, she quietly returned to her room.

It wasn't that she was sleepy. It wasn't that there was something wrong with her body. She was an android, after all. She wasn't a being that strictly required rest.

She simply wanted to close her eyes for a moment.

How much time had passed?

Suddenly, she felt her body tilting to one side in a somewhat inefficient posture. Angela slowly opened her eyes.

"...Ayin?"

Her faint voice lingered in the air.

Standing before her was the being who should have already vanished into the Light.

The person she hated more than anyone, and loved more than anyone.

It was far too vivid to be a cruel joke, and she was an android who did not dream, so she couldn't dismiss it as one.

Yet, he was clearly there, right in front of her eyes.

In a strange, narrow, pure white space. Just the two of them.