--
No response.
"If you don't come out, I'll drag you out."
This time, there was finally some movement.
A girl slowly emerged from the bushes.
—Red short hair, a shy demeanor; a girl like a small animal slowly walked toward him.
Her steps were very slow, as if her legs were filled with lead, and her small head was lowered, making her expression unclear. A green leaf was still falling from her head.
Komari… Kiyono's eyes softened. It seemed she also had simulated memories. This girl's style truly remained the same no matter where she was.
It wasn't until she walked in front of him that Kiyono saw what she was holding in her arms.
"Th-this is for you…"
The gloomy girl stammered as she handed him the item, then mustered the courage to glance at him before quickly lowering her head again.
Kiyono was stunned—his gaze fell, and in his hands was a household bento box. Through the transparent lid, he could clearly see scrambled egg and pork-cutlet rice inside, with several vegetables and small sausages in an adjacent compartment.
Their first meeting in reality… was her bringing him a bento?
Komari pursed her lips, her gaze fixed on her shoes.
Although she had been full of bravado before, acting as if she would unlock all CGs in one day and clear the game in three… when it came down to it, she found her personality was still very difficult to change. She couldn't enthusiastically invite him like Lemon, nor could she proactively flirt like Yanami…
She had thought of many ways to naturally get close to Kiyono, but in the end, only a very simple thought remained in her mind.
Kiyono's life must be very difficult at this stage, right? Is he eating well? Is he resting well? What if he becomes too weak living in that kind of place?
As a result, she subconsciously made a bento.
Even though she herself was still eating dry bread at school.
Ah, this would definitely make her seem like a weird, gloomy person, wouldn't it? After all, it was both stalking and delivering food… Forget about raising his favorability—it would be a miracle if she didn't lower his impression of her.
The girl was annoyed by her own thoughts.
Thinking this, Komari didn't dare look up at all.
She didn't dare look up at Kiyono, and even less dared to look at the outcome she had personally messed up.
In the suffocating silence, Kiyono said, "You…"
As the first note sounded, the girl instinctively covered her ears, not wanting to hear what came next—but she couldn't help loosening her hands slightly.
Then, she heard the boy's words.
"Come and eat with me. You probably haven't eaten yet, am I right?"
Eh?
What kind of… development is this?
Komari slowly widened her eyes.
"Why isn't Kiyono here yet? How dare he stand up a beautiful girl like me…"
Under the cherry-blossom tree, Lemon looked at the time on her phone and muttered in dissatisfaction.
"He must have gotten delayed by something. No matter, I'll go find him!" After sending him a message, she flashed a bright smile and began searching for his figure nearby.
On the other side, far away.
The blue-haired girl opened her Heavenly Eye.
Next, Kiyono took Komari to a nearby convenience store to buy a curry bento and some ready-to-eat food. After heating them, the two found a park bench to eat at.
Before sitting down, Komari carefully wiped the bench with a tissue—she wiped the part for the boy. She herself wasn't so particular and sat down directly.
Her legs were neatly together, a bento box resting on her knees. The girl silently opened the lid; her peripheral vision uncontrollably glanced at Kiyono, then she looked down at her own clothes, her heart far from as calm as her surface suggested.
This was such a hard-won reunion, and she had just grabbed a random jacket, her hair was messy, and she hadn't put on any makeup. She had no feminine charm at all!
She couldn't wear simple outfits with a fashionable flair like Lemon, nor did she have her slender figure. As for Yanami, she was simply incomparable.
Fortunately, she had memories and time, so she could take it slow.
Kiyono, feeling the girl's gaze, raised an eyebrow and turned his head—she was sitting so far away! All the way at the other end of the bench!
If Lemon's impression was athleticism, sunshine, and tomboyishness, then Komari was introverted, sensitive, and always thinking of others.
—Incidentally, Yanami was the kind of unstable, stock-like player—sometimes an innocent foodie, sometimes Amaterasu—belonging to the type with both high and low limits fully maxed out.
"Want to try exchanging side dishes?"
Kiyono proactively started the conversation. He felt a little bad letting the girl eat convenience-store ready-made food while he ate homemade.
Normally, he wouldn't make such a slightly overstepping request, but after feeding Yanami and being fed by her, he had gradually become desensitized.
Ex-exchange!? She had seen this plot in manga!
But isn't this a bit too intimate…
The spring air seemed to become viscous. Komari slowly pushed over the bento box, the only two green vegetables on it still trembling slightly.
Although she usually didn't dare be proactive, if an opportunity arose, she would seize it fiercely!
"J-just a little bit…"
She stared down at the swaying light spots on her shoes, her voice still very soft and light.
Kiyono picked up his unused chopsticks and gave her half of the radish, roasted meat, and other side dishes.
When the girl picked up the bento box again, she was shocked to find that the arrangement of the dishes subtly formed a heart shape. Could this be hinting at something! Did he also have…
She instantly fell into fantasy.
With such feelings, Komari opened her small lips and ate in tiny bites. Her movements were very gentle, like a hamster foraging—among the three defeated girls, she was the most quiet and elegant.
As they ate, the two looked ahead. Within sight, there was a small patch of sand where several children, faces full of smiles, held toy shovels, building their dream castles. Occasionally, joyful laughter could be heard, and Komari's expression also softened considerably.
"Do you like children very much?" Kiyono asked.
"A-at first I hated them because I always had to take care of my younger siblings, and they annoyed me. But after a while, I couldn't bear to part with them."
The girl said this softly, without looking up.
Kiyono suddenly recalled his experience at the girl's house that night. To be honest, compared to the other girls, Komari was actually the most suitable for starting a family. Just by her actions, he knew she was truly family-oriented. As long as you were at home, you could always be as leisurely as a "master"—wait, what kind of disgusting things am I thinking!
"Why are you suddenly slapping yourself!?" Komari's eyes widened, even forgetting to stammer.
"Nothing, just remembered the sacred pure love in my heart," Kiyono said calmly.
"I don't understand at all!"
The atmosphere improved a little. Komari secretly glanced at him, hesitated and struggled for a while, then finally mustered immense courage, her pretty face resolute:
"Th-that!"
"What is it?" Kiyono looked at her curiously.
"Fr-from now on, do you want to come to my house for dinner…"
Her earlobes and voice were burning hot, her heart beating extremely fast. She simply turned her small head to the side and continued to stammer:
"Of-of course, this isn't making you eat for free. You also have to pay half the cost of ingredients, and you have to accompany me to the supermarket to help me carry things back. This will be good for both of us!"
This was an excuse she created for him. After all, her life was similar to Kiyono's, and she was sensitive about things like dignity. With this reason, he could feel more at ease.
Hearing this, Kiyono couldn't help being stunned for a few seconds.
Eat at Komari's house…? He thought about it and realized it was indeed possible, but this wasn't for himself. Rather, he could use this reason to help her family improve their lives, at least until the girl successfully published her work.
"If you don't mind a series of unexpected comedic events happening," Kiyono said with a smile, nodding.
"Hmph, I've already bought pepper spray in advance, and, and I've warned my sister…" The girl sneered.
"I was just joking—please don't be so serious!"
Honestly.
The gloomy girl secretly curved her lips, the arc perfect like a crescent moon, radiating a faint warmth.
This—this counts as a big step forward in their relationship, doesn't it? She didn't expect the first day to go so smoothly!
A surge of secret joy filled her heart. Had she surpassed the other girls now? If things continued like this, their relationship would become more and more… Even the Yanami of this worldline would be no match! And Lemon could easily be cut down!
Just then, a voice rang out in their ears.
"Ah! Kiyono, you're actually hiding here eating alon… Eh? Komari?"
Komari's expression froze. She seemed to realize something and suddenly looked up.
She saw Yakishio Lemon, equally stunned.
Their eyes met, and both discerned the other's true thoughts from their pupils: So, you too…
Wh-why did it turn out like this!? It should have been enough for just herself and Kiyono to have memories!
A collective wail erupted in their hearts.
Then, they thought of something else. Komari's fingers, holding the chopsticks, suddenly tightened. Lemon gasped, and both stopped paying attention to each other because they realized something even more terrifying.
Since both of them had the same memories, then… then, was that blue Izanami hovering in the sky also about to descend upon the world?
The defeated girls felt a heavy heart.
These past two days, Kiyono's life rhythm gradually became as leisurely as it was during the simulation. In the mornings, he read books and discussed novels with his editor. In the afternoons, he went for a run with Lemon. In the evenings, he freeloaded dinner at Komari's house and, incidentally, raised his younger siblings' favorability…
If it were him right after transmigrating, this kind of life would probably have been his greatest wish: a promising career future, no worries about money, direct rest after tiring work each day—youth, warmth, a real yet ordinary existence.
However, after the simulation, he was somewhat unaccustomed to this life. He always felt that this peaceful, pre-determined life lacked something. Perhaps in twenty years, these things would be his greatest desire, but for him—who now possessed the system—he still wanted to move forward, to become even more perfect. Not to become a great figure whose name would go down in history, but at least he didn't want to regret this moment in the future.
—Of course, most importantly, he felt that life lacked that brilliant splash of blue.
"This Old Ba… why hasn't she come looking for me yet?"
Kiyono paced anxiously in his room.
It had been two or three days since the simulation ended. While the other two defeated girls were linked heroines, Yanami seemed to know nothing, abruptly disappearing from his life.
If this was the girl's little trick, he could only say Yanami had succeeded. He indeed realized the girl's importance, even starting to worry if she had truly lost her memories, or encountered some accident.
With such worries, he began his daily routine of three points and a line.
"Kiyono, have you seen Yanami recently?"
—In the field, the athletic girl asked casually.
Kiyono shook his head.
"Qing, Kiyono, didn't you go out with Yanami?"
—At Komari's house, the girl looked up and said nonchalantly.
Kiyono shook his head again.
Could it be that Yanami really knew nothing?
The three of them had completely different thoughts.
Another day passed. With numerous thoughts accumulating in his heart, Kiyono took a deep breath—deciding not to overthink, but to act directly.
"Let's go see what's going on first…"
As dusk approached, he put on his shoes, got on his bicycle, and rode to the vicinity of the Yanami family's house. This residential area was very quiet, sparsely populated, with only old grandpas and old grannies walking their dogs leisurely.
Today was the weekend, so he couldn't "apprehend" her on her usual route home from school. But from here, he could easily catch the blue otter going out to buy snacks, at least to find out her true state.
"Why do I feel like a pervert?"
Kiyono stopped his bike and scratched his head.