The café at the street corner, with its charming pink bunny logo designed by the artistically inclined owner, was a favorite after-school hangout spot. Nestled near several schools, it drew students looking for a cozy place to relax, sip something warm, enjoy sweet treats, chat with friends, or even do homework.
Perhaps it was the chill in the air today, but the café was unusually crowded. The small space was nearly full of boys and girls in school uniforms. Warm yellow lighting bathed the interior in a gentle glow—though just a wall away from the cold outside, it felt like springtime within.
"Hello! It's cold out there—how about a cup of hot cocoa?"
At the entrance, a petite staff member in a rabbit mascot suit was handing out flyers. Unlike the muscular adult bunny mascot from days prior, this bouncy, energetic little bunny was far more endearing, and many passersby accepted the flyers with smiles.
"It warms you up—head to toe!"
The café manager, watching the energetic promotion through the window while wiping tea cups with a hot towel, nodded in approval. He didn't know how this girl had heard about their need for a seasonal mascot role, but from her performance alone, she was certainly earning her pay.
"Welcome! How many in your party? We have seats in the corner."
The bell over the door jingled again as another guest arrived. The manager greeted them casually.
"Oh, I'm just here to pick up my sister. Should be a group of five or six girls. They came about an hour ago."
Stomping his feet to shake off the cold, Kitagawa Ryo sniffled slightly as he stepped in.
"I see—they're probably over there."
Seeing that Ryo was just a kid, the manager gave directions without much thought.
"Thanks."
Following the pointed direction, Ryo found his sister's table.
To his surprise, there were only two people there: Hotaru and another girl about her age whom he didn't recognize.
"Huh? Where are your friends?"
"You're too slow, Onii-chan."
Hotaru tapped the table in protest.
"I got here as fast as I could, alright."
Seeing the empty table, Ryo sat down across from her and casually picked up her half-full cup of cocoa, gulping it down.
"Two cups again? Trying to get fat?"
"I can't help it! One cup isn't enough, but two is too much—it's frustrating."
Hotaru giggled and hugged the girl next to her as she made introductions.
"This is Ichinose Maki, my classmate and super good friend."
"She even took notes for me when I was sick and missed class!"
"Cough cough."
Nearly choking on the cocoa, Ryo stared at the timid-looking girl.
"Ichinose?"
"You can just call her Maki like I do!"
Still holding Maki's hand, Hotaru nudged her toward Ryo.
"And this is my big brother. You can call him Onii-chan too!"
"Um, Kitagawa... Onii-chan?" Maki said shyly.
"No way! My brother doesn't like being called by his surname. Besides, my brother is your brother now too."
Hotaru leaned her chin on her hand and smiled playfully. Their closeness was clear.
Ryo, recovering from his shock, thought back. He had never seen Maki's face before—she had only appeared in simulations related to Ichinose Honami and only in text form.
But she did resemble her sister quite a bit.
"Hey, hey, Onii-chan! Time to go pay for your two cute little sisters!"
Annoyed by how long Ryo's gaze lingered on Maki, Hotaru stood up and forcefully pushed him toward the register.
"Just three cups of cocoa, right?"
Glancing at their table, Ryo didn't think much of it—until the cashier handed him a much longer bill than expected.
"Hotaru—!"
Returning with a long strip of receipt and multiple packages, Ryo glared.
"Any explanations?"
"You planning to skip dinner?"
The fresh-baked sweets smelled heavenly. Hotaru gulped and said matter-of-factly:
"Girls have an extra stomach just for desserts."
"Oh really? Then after dinner, you can eat all of this. Let's see if that extra stomach really exists."
Ryo sighed coldly, wondering if he'd spoiled her too much lately.
"Ugh."
Hotaru whimpered like a kitten caught by the scruff, unable to protest.
Watching the two siblings with a hint of envy, Maki said gently:
"Now that your brother's here, I don't want to keep you waiting on me. I'll just stay a little longer by myself."
"No way! I promised to walk you home."
Hotaru shook her head seriously.
"Besides, my brother's not in a rush."
"Eh? Don't your parents mind?"
"He doesn't live with us," Hotaru explained.
"He stays on his own because of theater."
"Oh..."
Maki nodded slowly, then turned to Ryo with admiration.
"Your brother is amazing."
So just footing the bill made you a hero to grade schoolers, huh? Their world was simple.
As the girls chatted about school, Ryo stared idly out the window.
If she's waiting for her sister, then that sister must be Ichinose Honami.
Ichinose Honami.
Her warm, approachable smile surfaced in his mind.
In truth, she and Ryo shared the most in common, background-wise.
He first encountered her in the crude text-based game Life Restart Simulator. She was the heroine of the first chapter. They met only briefly during his first simulation, leaving behind a massive mystery.
In the second and third simulations, Ryo became a meticulous researcher, gathering fragments of her existence and rebuilding her piece by piece through text. With each swipe of his fingers, she came alive.
In the CG titled "Sinner," he saw a younger Honami, the eldest daughter of a single-parent household—lonely, introverted, and emotionally isolated. Ryo had grown up the same way.
She stole a hairpin for her sister and was forced by her mother to kneel and apologize in the store.
But in that moment, Ryo had seen himself.
At 14, wearing ill-fitting, secondhand clothes, he had wandered city streets in fear and anger. Every step was a trap, but he pushed forward, trying to protect his family, just like Honami.
Ultimately, what he wanted most was for her to live a better life.
The north wind howled outside. The sky darkened. Snow threatened to fall.
Pedestrians quickened their steps. The bunny mascot handing out flyers leaned against the wall to rest.
Huh?
He hadn't seen the bunny when he arrived—had they just come out?
Ryo had once done this very job, wearing the same bunny suit. That's why he immediately noticed: this wasn't an adult inside. It was someone his age.
"I'll be right back."
Ryo stood and headed outside.
He knew well that the suit wasn't warm at all. Dressed only in a sweater and undershirt, every gust of wind cut straight to the bone.
Ordering a quick cocoa—nothing fancy, just cocoa powder and hot water—he leaned on the counter while waiting, watching the bunny outside.
The bunny, facing away, hadn't noticed him yet.
Inside, Maki looked slightly anxious, quietly observing Ryo's actions.
Grabbing the steaming cup of cocoa, Ryo opened the door.
The temperature shift was stark—as if stepping from spring into winter.
-------------------------------------
Snow hadn't started falling yet, so there was no reason to stop working. Besides, getting this job was already a stroke of luck.
It had been thanks to Maki, who had offhandedly mentioned the café needing a special employee.
Honami knew their household was struggling. Their mother was practically sacrificing everything to support the sisters' education.
If she could ease that burden just a little, things would be better.
In the past, she wouldn't have dared.
Her mother had always demanded complete focus on academics, charting out a perfect life path from school to society. Honami's job was to study—not worry about home.
But...
Rubbing her arms to generate a bit of warmth, Honami continued handing out flyers with as much energy as she could muster.
If things had stayed that way, she would've grown into a twisted person.
She would've built wall after wall around her heart, locked herself up, and lost the ability to love even herself.
That future terrified her.
Shaking her head, Honami dispelled the thought.
She refused to become that version of herself.
Clutching the flyers tighter, she stomped her feet against the cold.
She remembered every emotion she had felt:
Care, affection, joy, sadness, regret, pain.
"Even if they seem insignificant, I want these feelings to live inside you. I want them to become your will, your strength.
I want you to trust your heart when making choices. Care for yourself. If a moment comes where saving someone else means sacrificing yourself—don't. You're not an all-powerful angel. You weren't born bearing sin."
[Ryo...]
Whenever she felt defeated, whenever she wanted to give up, she thought of him.
Just remembering their time together gave her strength.
From what she had learned, he had just debuted as a child actor and was performing as a theater lead.
Part of her paycheck from this job was for his next show's ticket.
Just a few more days, and she'd see him again.
[I want him to see a new me.]
Snow began to fall.
The pink bunny walked slowly beneath the flakes, holding onto distant memories, continuing her job.
She would still treat others with sincerity, but she no longer wanted to be an invincible angel.
She would still feel guilt for her mistakes, but she no longer believed she was born a sinner.
Ichinose Honami was now simply a girl who cried, laughed, got moody, and comforted others.
A perfectly ordinary girl—
—who had someone she liked.
In the frigid air, a warm voice called from behind.
"It's cold today. You look like you're working hard."
"Would you like a free cup of hot cocoa? It's really warm."
Ichinose Honami froze.
She recognized that voice.
Ryo looked at the adorable bunny in front of him and couldn't help but pat her long ears.
"The kind of warm that reaches from your hair to your toes."
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