CH 3

A Suspicious Book

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“Welcome…… Are you here alone again today? Yume-chan”

“…Suzu-nee, can you please stop calling me that?”

After school, I opened the door of a small coffee shop in my neighborhood where local coffee connoisseurs gather and was greeted by a smiling familiar older woman who looked good in jeans.

This person is Tsurugidake Misuzu. She’s an older childhood friend that I’ve known for a long time and that Amane and I share a lot of fun with when we were kids.

The signboard girl of this shop, now that she’s a college student, she’s looking more and more like an adult, but at the same time, she’s still the embodiment of the “cool woman” that hasn’t changed since long ago.

“I’ve always been waiting for you two to come here to play and be guests together?”

“Uuu…”

Suzu-nee’s gaze pierces my heart.

It’s been a store since I was a kid, but it’s only recently that I’ve come to the store as a customer.

Back then, we used to walk through the door of this store to play, not as a customer.

Of course, she knew that we were estranged after a certain day, and she probably cared about that more than I did, right?

“I’ll serve coffee and cake to the two of you who come here together as guests. That’s what I want right now~.”

I’ve consulted Suzu-nee about it several times and she’s tried to improve our relationship many times, because she can’t stand to see us like this.

But… I can no longer achieve the small goal from my older childhood friend.

“That… Maybe it’s impossible …”

“……Why?”

Because she has a boyfriend now.

I’m not a boyfriend and just an old friend, and since he hates me, the two of us will no longer be visiting this restaurant together.

But all I could do was bite down on the words that were about to come out of my mouth and turn my head.

It’s like I’ve admitted if I let it out of your mouth…. That’s what I feel.

“… a cup of coffee, please.”

“… Yes, yes, it’s the usual American.”

I think she sensed something in the words I squeezed out instead, and Suzu-nee goes through them without asking any more questions… The expression on her face was subtle, both annoyed and dumbfounded, though.

I was sitting at my usual table, trying to avoid the stares of the people who were looking at me, and was somewhat bored with my time, when I suddenly looked at the bookshelf and noticed a strange book.

“What is this book?”

It had a leather binding that could be called an old book. It was old enough to be dated, but it wasn’t raggedy, and it had a majestic presence.

At the very least, it didn’t seem like the kind of thing that should be left in a coffee shop with the old magazines that the manager or Suzu-nee had finished reading to pass the time.

It’s a cliché, but it’s like a fairy tale spellbook?

I couldn’t help but pick it up, but from cover to cover, not only is it not in Japanese, it’s not even in English… No, it was written in letters I’d never seen before in my life.

“I can’t even read foreign books… from what country these letters… Hmm?”

However, when I thought so… Strangely enough, I can now read the words in books that I thought I couldn’t read… Or rather, the books I opened were lined with Japanese that I could obviously read.

“……Eh?”

I involuntarily moaned, opened and closed the book, looking back at it from every angle.

However, this book was written in Japanese, except for a blank page in the middle. It was as if the book had been written in Japanese from the beginning.

“No … I’m pretty sure there are some letters that I didn’t recognize earlier? Was it my imagination?”

I looked through the lights and didn’t see anything unusual, and because I was moving strangely with a book in my hand, eventually Suzu-nee behind the counter asked me, “What’s wrong? ” She was worried about me.

“… Must be my imagination.”

I decided to conclude that it was an optical illusion caused by the atmosphere of the book and my own ego.

But now that I could read it, I was suddenly curious about what was written in this grimoire-like book.

However, when I saw the title written in big letters on the cover of the book, I frowned.

“How to Control Your Dreams?”

That was indeed the title of the book.

“S… Suspicious…”

I couldn’t help but let such true feelings leak out.

Somehow, it was kind of like when you see someone in a UMA or UFO article who clearly doesn’t want to make the reader believe.

The atmosphere of the book is the best…

“To those who are qualified to take this book. For starters, I’ll offer you the best dream you can imagine. “

Dream Manipulation Elementary “Manipulate Your Own Dreams”

・ Lucid dreaming: Awareness, understanding, and control of your own dream. Realize that your dream is your world, and that you are the world itself and God there.

Before you fall asleep, place your hand on the magic circle marked on the page and calm your mind.

Let me show you the best dream you can hope for.

It is fishy… I’m sure it is, but after pouring over the first part of the book, I’m a little more interested in this book.

Manipulate your dreams … In other words, that means you can dream whatever you want, right?

I want to have the dream I want. If you have such a desire, putting a piece of paper under your pillow with your wishes written on it would be a standard spell method.

“… the best dream for me …?”

When I think about it, the only thing that comes to mind is… For example, a dream of winning the lottery.

With a lot of money that can’t be spent out, I bought a mansion and went on a world trip.

Dreaming of becoming a world-famous athlete, singer, or movie star and being pampered by people all over the world.

Or, I can build a harem of beautiful women and drink with them in an 18-rated, R-rated dream…….

Hmm… I can’t help but think of clichéd images.

Even if “something that can make any wish come true” was right in front of you, you would probably only come up with similar ideas, wouldn’t you.

As I was lamenting the poverty of my ideas, an image suddenly came to mind.

“Yume-cha~n. Let’s play together!”

The image of the little girl who forcibly pulled my hand and took me around with a carefree smile on her face when I was a child.

I can’t wish for that smile anymore now, the one that was only for me…

I can’t see it in reality anymore… but what if it was a dream?

“… Even if I could see it, it’s only a dream.”

I muttered to myself, but still, what if I could see that smile again?

As I thought about it, my hand naturally touched the magic circle on the page. It’s not that I believed it, it’s just that I hoped it was true.

I know what my most desired dream is……. The moment I realized it, I felt a strange feeling of fatigue rushing all over my body.

I’ve been thinking about it all day and every time I think about it I feel mentally exhausted.

About it… The moment Amane’s image popped into my mind, my consciousness was cut off.