Chapter 179. The Angel of Death’s Real Name (4/5)

“Who… are you?”

“Do you think I’m a crazy stalker or something? I’ll have you none such a story is a dime a dozen. I can come up with such tales with a snap of a finger. If you saw any resemblance to yourself in it, it is merely a coincidence.” Yes, it was all a generalized speculation. I never said anything concrete or specific in my words. It was all cold reading. The basics of magic. Deception at its finest. 

At the end of the day, I was an author who constantly came up with fictional stories. To think of a story that might fit her own situation was hardly something I found difficult.

I snapped my fingers in front of her face to snap her out of her daze.

“Hey, the autograph I requested. Chop, chop. Get to it already.”

Her head jerked back a bit when I snapped my fingers and she said, “Huh? Oh, right. Sorry.” 

“Who do I make it out to?”

“No idea.”

“What the heck? How am I supposed to personalize it then?”

“Oh, that’s right, I had them write down their name on this.”

I took out the contract from my bag and handed it over to her. He’d signed his name on it.

“What the heck is this? Is this a contract?”

“Huh? Yeah, it is.”

“Uwaaaaa. You really don’t joke around with your lonerness. What’s with these conditions? Actually, what’s this one in fine print. Huh? He sold his soul to you? Who the hell sells their souls for an autograph? Actually why even include this? It’s not like it actually does anything? Are you playing pretend devil as role-play or something?”

Naturally, as a celebrity presented with contracts all the time, she’d read through it, unlike the idiot who went and signed away his soul to me.

“Well, the idiot went and signed it without even reading it. I’d included it as a joke, but my joke went unnoticed by him.”

“What a twisted joke, but I feel like it suits you pretty well. Someone selling their soul to you. I basically did the same too, though under a fake name.”

“Yeah, because of you weaseling out of our agreement the way you did, I decided to get these things in written form from now on. I’m never going to go by just a verbal agreement again.”

“You’re pretty awful.”

“I don’t want to hear that from you of all people.”

“Hahaha, certainly. I’m not one to talk. I’ve done a lot of bad things to get to where I am today just like that fictional little girl in that story of yours.”

She wrote out an autograph addressed to her fan on a blank piece of paper I gave her and handed it back to me.

“Thanks. I’ll be able to ensure that public nuisance never comes here to sigh in such an annoying fashion ever again with this.”

“Sigh? What do you mean?”

“He kept sighing endlessly for an hour nonstop until I finally caved and pressed him on how I could get him to leave and never come back again. That is how this entire situation came about. All because he spotted you coming in here. You better not bring more weirdos here or I’m going to be forced to leave when they come by if I can’t shoo them away.”

“Haha, so someone sighing is enough to annoy you?”

“When I’m trying to work, yes.”

“Work? You work when you're here?”

“Yes, is that so strange?”

“What are you working on exactly?”

“My studies, what else?”

“What a boring answer.”

“What? Did you expect me to say I was plotting how to save the world from humans by destroying it or something?”

“Hahahahaha, yeah, yeah. An answer like that suits you way better.” She nodded her head while looking at me expectantly.

“... I’m not going to, okay? Don’t look at me with such expectant eyes. Nothing like that is ever going to happen.”

“Awww… but it would make for a pretty good story. An average gloomy-looking boy who’s always alone in the university museum plots to save the world from humans by destroying it. That could totally be the synopsis for a story. I think a story like that might even sell well. It’d make an interesting movie or TV series I think.”

“Hah? Are you kidding me? Such a story would never appeal to the masses. It’s too far off the mainstream. What sells are otherworldly power fantasies jam-packed with action and comedy. The story you just suggested doesn’t sound the least bit exciting or interesting. It sounds so mundane and boring it’s not even funny. If you pitched that story to a professional, they’d drown you alive in their spit from laughing too hard.”

“Awww, come on, it doesn’t sound that bad.”

“It is. Trust me. They’d have security escort you out the door, your face flat on the ground as they drag you by the feet, as you look back in tears cursing them out in your head.”

“They wouldn’t do that to me.”

“Sure, they would humor you since you’re a celebrity. But if it was some nobody like me pitching the idea, that’s exactly the sort of treatment I’d get.”

“Err… why does it sound like you have personal experience with such a situation?”

“Haaaaah. I don’t.” Not yet in this life at least. 

“That sigh makes me think you do.”

“I really don’t.”

“Could it be something other than pitching a story idea that you experienced something similar? Could it maybe be a research topic in university?”

“Maybe it was, but forget it.” She was still under the impression I was in university like her after all. She still didn’t know my real age or what year I’d be in though. As such, I played along to make her fall under the illusion that I was someone older than she might have expected.

“What year are you in exactly? Actually, what’s your name? I don’t even know my own boyfriend's name now that I think about it.”

“I don’t know yours either, so does it matter if we don’t know each other’s name?”

“You mean you still didn’t check it?”

“No.” Though I’d found it out yesterday when her fan said it, I'd still act like I still didn’t know it. That way I could have the excuse to not reveal my own name to her. Giving her a fake name was problematic as well as she’d easily figure it out if she just checked with the school. There was a big difference between a celebrity asking and a normal student asking. She could also just ask online if anyone knew someone with the name I gave her at this university. She had many means at her disposal that a little small fry like me could do nothing against.

I was in a bit of a predicament with her. I didn’t want her to find out anything about me while I still didn’t trust her. If I returned to school, she might uncover my identity if she had some goons tailing me. I’d been extra cautious for the last two days walking down a bunch of back alleyways and changing up my appearance where no one could see me to prevent such an outcome.

I hadn’t noticed anyone tailing me, but you could never be too careful when dealing with a celebrity of her status. The entire world was their eyes and ears.

“I’m not going to tell you my name. I can’t accept that you haven’t heard from someone else yet. How did my idiot fan not even say it once?”

“He just called you his Goddess.”

“Ahhhhh! He’s so useless! At least say my name once in front of this infuriating idiot boyfriend of mine!”

She seemed genuinely annoyed. I was thankful her pride as a celebrity worked in my favor as I’d anticipated.

“Is it really that big of a deal? Someone, not knowing your name?”

“It is when you’re a celebrity. It’s a big blow to your ego. Don’t act like you don’t know that.”

“Hahaha, of course I know that. It’s quite fun to see how frustrated you are over it too. Your pride won’t allow you to tell me either. It sure is tough being a big star.”

“Yeah, yeah. It is tough, I’m glad you understand that. Celebrities have big egos, for someone to not recognize us without us having to tell them who we are is a problem. Our names are our lives, everything we worked for in life concentrated into a few simple words.”

“I see. For me, a name is something useless, I don’t need it. I’d throw it away if I could, that’s how little value it has to me. It seems our values are completely incompatible.”

“It’s not like there aren’t times where a celebrity doesn’t wish they could have the world forget their name too you know. Being a celebrity comes with just as many pitfalls as there are benefits.”