On the streets, the car chase was still going.
Firefly stood up in her seat, arms wide open, feeling the almost-real sensations of this dream.
But good times always come to an end, and just as she was enjoying this rare happiness, the sound of gunfire shattered it.
Looking back toward the noise, the pursuers had already started using weapons.
Firefly quickly sat back down. "They're using weapons now, what do we do?"
Pei Guang: "Huh? Weapons? Item race? No problem, item races are my specialty! But I don't have a free hand right now, so I'm leaving this to you!"
As a proper gamer, Pei Guang wasn't just good at speed races: he was also skilled at item races.
While speaking, he placed a pile of food and items between himself and Firefly—bananas, watermelons, and all kinds of fruit.
Firefly stared wide-eyed at the things Pei Guang had pulled out.
She hadn't eaten any of them before, but she could tell these were food?
She picked up a bunch of bananas and asked curiously: "This… can stop them?"
Pei Guang: "Of course! Eat the banana, toss the peel, and you'll see how amazing bananas are! You know, back when I played item races, I'd toss bananas all over the track~"
Firefly: "And then?"
Still driving, Pei Guang sank into memory: "It was a circuit race. I was in first for two laps, but in the final lap, I stepped on my own banana peels twice in a row. Then I got hit by three missiles in succession… and I lost."
At that moment, Pei Guang's face was full of melancholy.
Firefly: "I see… then, how do I eat this?"
She held a bunch of bananas, feeling the peel in her hands: it didn't seem edible.
Pei Guang: "See that black tip? Start peeling from there. Eat the soft fruit inside."
Following his instructions, Firefly pulled one off the bunch and peeled it open.
She carefully took a bite, and the instant the banana touched her tongue, her eyes shut in bliss.
"Mmm~ so good~"
Since the car was a convertible, the pursuers could clearly see Firefly eating.
They were furious.
Have some shame! You're being chased and you dare eat so arrogantly while fleeing?!
Enraged, the Bloodhounds pulled out ranged weapons and opened fire at Pei Guang.
But their shots missed, whizzing past the car.
Seeing this, Pei Guang quickly shouted: "Now's not the time to just taste it—throw it! Throw! Remember, toss the peel, not the fruit. The fruit's still good to eat."
"Ah? Oh!!!"
Firefly stuffed all the fruit into her mouth, then hurled the peels at the cars behind.
The peels seemed to resonate with the vehicles—floating cars or not, who said they couldn't slip on banana peels?
As one car passed over a peel, it suddenly spun out.
Both the driver and passengers were dumbfounded. This was a dream, how could cars still skid in a dream?
But the fact was right in front of them, and they had no choice but to believe.
Firefly's excitement grew as she watched the car spin off. "It really works?"
Pei Guang: "Of course! This is a classic item race weapon. Works on cars, and works on people too: guaranteed slip with no resistance! Come on, bananas, watermelons, as much as you want! Leave the enemy to you."
Firefly: "No problem! Leave it to me. With something this tasty, I'll never get sick of eating it. And besides… you can't get full in dreams anyway!"
She happily ate fruit while throwing peels behind them. It was her first time tasting fruit, and the delightful flavor completely captivated her.
Banana peels, watermelon rinds… under their combined assault, the pursuers' cars were a total mess.
Even in the dreamworld, she had never eaten so freely.
And now? She could! And it was all delicious.
She couldn't describe the taste: she had no frame of reference, never having eaten real food before.
All she could say was "tasty, very tasty."
But that was enough.
Eating and tossing, she watched as one pursuer car after another spun out—some crashing into walls, others colliding and sending more flying.
Her smile never left her face, until suddenly, something occurred to her.
She turned to look at Pei Guang, still focused on driving, then glanced down at the fruit in her arms. After a moment's hesitation, she peeled a banana and asked softly:
"Want one?"
Hearing her, Pei Guang chuckled. "Can't—I need both hands on the wheel. You know, in racing games your hands can never leave the keyboard."
In racing games, you could split your focus, even look away from the screen, but your hands could never leave the controls. One hand per side—that was how Pei Guang liked it.
Firefly: "So… you want to eat too?"
Pei Guang: "Of course! Food's always better when shared."
"Then I'll feed you~"
Before Pei Guang could react, Firefly suddenly pushed the peeled banana straight into his mouth.
"????"
Caught completely off guard, Pei Guang froze. He turned his head toward her, only for Firefly, cheeks slightly flushed, to explain: "I ate too much… I'm a little full. So you have one too."
Seeing her pure, innocent gaze, Pei Guang swallowed back his quips.
He honestly never thought the day would come when a beautiful girl he'd just met would shove a banana into his mouth.
As for whether there was anything "strange" about this?
Well… he had read plenty of "racing" fanfics on very proper platforms, where this sort of phrasing was used to dodge moderation. Even if no one was censoring here, and even if he really did "do something," no one could stop him.
But still, the thought of a girl feeding him like this left him with a weird, indescribable feeling…
But Pei Guang still finished the banana in just a few bites, though his expression as he ate was somewhat melancholy.
Firefly: "Um… is there something wrong with the fruit?"
Pei Guang shook his head. "Nothing. It's just… what I'm thinking about, I hope you'll never have to know in your lifetime."
Looking at the pure, innocent girl before him, Pei Guang decided to bury those crude jokes that had been created only to slip past censors deep inside his heart: he'd just keep the self-mockery to himself.
That was enough.
Firefly blinked, not understanding what he meant, but her instincts told her that whatever was in Pei Guang's head definitely wasn't good.
"All right, stop staring. We'll be at the Studios Theme Park soon."
Pei Guang glanced at the minimap.
They were already very far from the city, and their chaotic ride had practically dragged everyone to the outer edge of the dream.
Firefly: "How do we get back? Our enemies are behind us… and there are more and more."
She looked back.
Although she had taken care of many pursuers by throwing banana peels and watermelon rinds, in the dream world their opponents' respawn speed was unnervingly fast.
Just as their car was about to reach the border, airships appeared in the sky. In all the years the Bloodhound Family had maintained this dream, no one had ever forced them to use airships to capture someone.
Pei Guang and Firefly were the first.
Firefly was still happily playing. Even though the enemies were increasing, her aim was spot-on.
A bite of banana here, a slice of watermelon there—then a toss.
Whether the cars were floating or not, the moment they touched the peels, they spun out of control. If a flying craft got hit, it would spin midair in a completely unscientific way.
Eating and playing at the same time: this was truly something Firefly felt she could only experience in a dream.