Toru continued to look at the simulation content.
This time, he was prepared to watch until the very end.
[Before the final exams.]
[Kita approached you, asking for help with her studies.]
[You couldn't understand why you, as her employer, needed to help your maid study without compensation, but your diary recorded moments of friendship between you and her. Because of this, you did not refuse her.]
"Because he has no friends, the other me regards Kita-san as his only friend?" Toru muttered to himself.
That was logical.
[On Saturday, you accompanied Kita to Shimokitazawa.]
Hmm?
Is he planning to meet the members of Kessoku Band?
"Why does it always circle back to the band's route?"
Toru couldn't figure it out.
He had run the simulation eight times, yet no new, high-quality women had appeared.
The members of Kessoku Band were cute, beautiful, and their married lives were happy, but a man shouldn't be tied down to one... ahem, five trees.
Only half a year had passed; was it a bit rash to select his future wives already?
He should at least try ten or twenty, and then pick one, shouldn't he?
"Wait, wouldn't that make me a total scum?" Toru gasped, drawing in a cold breath.
But that's not right.
He was only messing around in the simulation; does that count as scumminess?
Definitely not!
Cheating in reality is what's called cheating!
Toru didn't even have a girlfriend; the only person he had some ambiguity with was Yamada Ryo.
Their relationship was more than friends, yet less than lovers.
It didn't even count as an emotional affair.
"I didn't steal, and I didn't rob. It's not illegal to switch wives in a game, is it?"
Toru quickly convinced himself.
In the next simulation, he would strive to find new wives.
Ideally, he'd find a legally aged loli with white hair and red eyes.
[On this day, you met the members of Kessoku Band.]
[Your relationship with everyone deepened.]
[To prevent yourself from forgetting them, you controlled the frequency of communication, preventing the relationship from escalating to the level of 'friendship.']
["As long as we're not friends, I won't forget them..." you muttered inwardly, not without some bitterness.]
"It's alright, you won't need to feel bitter in the next simulation," Toru comforted his other self.
[You longed to make friends, but due to your strange illness, you couldn't fulfill that wish.]
[If you could ever find the culprit who tormented you and caused your illness, you would definitely bring them to justice!]
[Automatic Reply] The user you are calling is currently in the three-dimensional world and cannot be brought to justice.
Do not disturb.
[In this way, half a year passed.]
[In autumn, the second semester began, and you and Kita became desk mates.]
[You still had no memory of her, and your feelings for each other had made no progress.]
[During the summer vacation, you watched fireworks and went to a festival together. Yet, you could not recall even a tiny bit of the fireworks' brilliance... You could only read the words written in your diary: August 13th, watched fireworks with Kita-san. The blossoming fireworks were dazzling, lighting up the dark night sky.]
[You knew you were her friend, but you found it hard to accept. You craved friendship, but after the beautiful moments, all that remained were hollow words and flat pieces of paper. Witnessing this, your heart felt withered.]
[Even so, you still had to pretend that your relationship was good. You didn't understand why you had to do this, but in your diary, last week's self had constantly repeated: "Do not forget Kita-san, she is very enthusiastic, cute, and good to you."]
Toru was silent.
He continued to read down.
[Time flowed.]
[Your diary grew thicker and thicker. Finally, on a certain day in October, the last page was written.]
[You purchased a new diary...]
[It was also on this day.]
[Kita found your diary while cleaning. She didn't open it without permission; she just told you—important things shouldn't be casually left on the sofa.]
[You finally couldn't endure the long-term agony anymore and told her about your problem: you cannot remember friends; any beautiful memory related to a friend is deleted every Monday.]
[Kita didn't believe it at first.]
[But after opening the diary you wrote and reading through all your shared moments, she fell silent.]
[Kita smiled at you and comforted you—]
["It's alright. If Kitahara-kun forgets me ten thousand times, I'll become Kitahara-kun's ten thousand and first friend."]
[Upon hearing this, you were very moved.]
[But you still said that no one can live 200 years. Well, forgetting ten thousand times requires 191 years, and you probably won't live that long.]
"What a dense straight man?"
Toru was speechless.
If it were him, he should have started flirting right away.
Easily win her over with his charm because what's more attractive than a decisive man.
[After this incident, your relationship with Kita deepened.]
[Unfortunately, you couldn't remember her for long.]
[Your friendship was like a star on the horizon, disappearing at dawn, only to quietly climb back into the dark night sky at dusk the next day.]
[Over the past half-year, Kita worked as your maid, and with the wages you paid, she paid off her loan and saved quite a bit of money.]
[You heard that her parents did not support her dream.]
[All these things were recorded in your diary.]
[You could always write for a long time about the trivial matters between you and her. Kita, as your only friend, was worthy of your effort.]
[During this time.]
[Her guitar skills were getting better and better, quickly approaching Gotoh Hitori, a member of the same band. Kessoku Band's activities were thriving.]
[How long will these days last?]
[You looked at the blue sky outside the window; an airplane flew by, leaving a long contrail.]
[You still have a long way to go in your youth, but romance has nothing to do with you, friendship has nothing to do with you, and in the future, maybe you will be single for life.]
[Many girls in school sent you love letters, but because you had no impression of them, you rejected all of them.]
[Kita was also a big name in school. She was enthusiastic, energetic, and kind; no one disliked her.]
[Sometimes, you had a thought: How exactly does Kita view herself... Does she like you? Or just consider you a normal friend?]
[You didn't know.]
[Your feelings had never crossed the high wall called 'Friendship.' This wall stood in front of you, isolating all the paths ahead.]
[Perhaps, you could try to become her lover within one week? That way... would your condition change somewhat?]
[Under the sky, inside the classroom, listening to the teacher's lecture that made one drowsy, you contemplated the troubles of adolescence.]
[During the cultural festival, she accompanied her bandmates to perform on stage.]
[The students shouted her name...]
[You stood below the stage, watching her sing... sing... sing...]
[Until she collapsed directly.]