By the time night rolled around, I had done the impossible—absolutely nothing productive.
The mission timer glowed at the top of my phone screen:
[Time remaining: 00:32:48]
[Objective: Raise Ayaka Minori's affection to 8/100.]
[Current progress: 3/100.]
Luna floated by my desk, arms folded behind her back like some smug holographic teacher. "Host, at this rate, you will fail."
"Thanks, I can see the numbers," I muttered, rubbing my temple.
I'd already sent one text to Ayaka earlier. She hadn't replied. Not even a read receipt. Maybe she'd muted me. Maybe she'd blocked me. Maybe she just had better things to do than talk to the guy who once spilled milk tea on his own notebook.
Luna's eyes blinked blue. "Failure will result in a system penalty."
"Yeah, about that…" I turned to her. "What is the penalty, exactly?"
She tilted her head. "Penalties vary by severity. Minor infractions may cause social disadvantages. Severe infractions can affect emotional state, public perception, or luck parameters."
"…Luck parameters?"
"Would you like to see an example?"
"No!"
The way she said it made my skin crawl.
It's funny how, when someone tells you you're on a timer, suddenly everything feels like a movie. Every second ticked louder. The hum of the fridge, the buzz of my phone, the faint streetlights through the blinds — all of it felt like I was waiting for something to explode.
I paced around my room, staring at Ayaka's name in my messages. I could send another text, but what was I supposed to say? 'Hey, please like me before midnight because my imaginary girlfriend AI will curse me'?
The system didn't come with a guidebook for this kind of humiliation.
I sighed and collapsed onto the bed, eyes half-closed. "Luna, is there any other way to gain affection besides talking?"
"Technically, proximity and shared experiences may generate low-level affection increases."
"Shared experiences. Right. Let me just manifest next to her apartment window and hope I don't get arrested."
Luna blinked. "That approach has a 0% success rate."
"I wasn't being serious."
The clock hit 11:50 p.m.
The air in my room felt heavier somehow, like static before a storm. Luna's glow dimmed to a colder blue.
"Host," she said quietly, "please brace yourself."
My chest tightened. "For what—"
[Mission Failed.]
[Penalty Initiated: System Curse — "Social Misfortune." Duration: 24 hours.]
A sharp pain spiked through my skull, and the world blurred around the edges. My phone slipped out of my hand, hitting the floor with a dull thud.
It wasn't just dizziness — it was like someone had reached inside my brain and twisted the dial on "bad luck" to maximum.
When the pain eased, Luna hovered over me, her voice uncharacteristically soft. "Penalty applied successfully. You are… alive."
"Gee, that's comforting," I groaned. "What does 'Social Misfortune' even mean?"
"You will find out soon enough."
I didn't like the way she said that.
The next morning, I woke up feeling like I'd been hit by a cosmic joke.
My alarm didn't go off. My toothpaste tube exploded from the middle. I stepped in a puddle right before boarding the bus.
Then, just to top it off, the bus driver announced that the fare machine was broken and glared at me like it was my fault.
Luna floated beside me as we rattled toward campus. "Host, you appear to be experiencing standard misfortune symptoms."
"No kidding," I said through gritted teeth. "This better not last the full twenty-four hours."
"It will."
I groaned again.
When I got to class, I tried to act normal. Tried to pretend there wasn't a holographic AI judging me from the corner of my eye. Ayaka was already in her seat, reading something on her phone.
[Ayaka Minori — Affection: 3/100.]
Still the same.
I sat down behind her, careful not to drop anything. Which, of course, meant I immediately dropped my pen. It rolled forward, tapped her shoe, and stopped perfectly at her feet.
Ayaka looked down. I froze.
She picked up the pen, turned around, and handed it to me. "Yours?"
"Y-yeah, thanks," I stammered.
[Affection +1.]
I blinked. "Wait, seriously?"
Ayaka frowned. "What?"
"Ah—nothing! I just… appreciate it."
She gave a small, puzzled smile before turning back to her phone.
Luna floated closer to my shoulder, whispering, "Host, you have 4/100 affection points. Progress has resumed."
"By accident," I muttered under my breath. "Maybe I should just keep tripping in front of her until I hit 100."
"That strategy has a low success probability."
"Wasn't serious again."
The rest of the day went about as smoothly as a horror movie marathon in an earthquake. I spilled coffee on my sleeve. My notes got caught in a gust of wind and scattered across the courtyard. And when I finally got the courage to say hi to Ayaka again, I sneezed right as she turned toward me.
Perfect timing.
[Affection -1.]
"Wait, minus one?!" I hissed.
"Your sneeze was perceived as careless and unhygienic," Luna replied matter-of-factly.
"I'm human!"
"So is she."
I dropped my head to the desk, groaning. "This system is rigged."
"Perhaps," Luna said, eyes flickering, "or perhaps you are simply unlucky."
That night, back in my room, I collapsed onto my bed again, staring at the ceiling.
The "Social Misfortune" penalty still hadn't worn off. I'd survived the day, but barely.
Luna hovered quietly for once, her usual monotone replaced with something more thoughtful.
"Host," she said after a long silence, "you did not give up."
I blinked. "Was that… a compliment?"
"Observation."
"Still counts."
She didn't reply. Her glow softened, more silver than blue now.
Then, without warning, a new notification appeared:
[New Daily Mission Available.]
[Mission: Apologize sincerely to Ayaka Minori for today's inconvenience.]
[Reward: Penalty Removal.]
I stared at it for a long time. "…Convenience? You mean the sneeze?"
"Among other things," Luna said.
I sighed, sitting up. "You know, for a system that claims to help me form connections, you're awfully good at making me anxious."
"Progress often requires discomfort."
I couldn't argue with that.
I grabbed my phone, hesitated, then typed out a message:
"Sorry if I was weird today. I think I'm just tired, but I didn't mean to bother you."
The message sent. I set the phone down, waiting.
Ten seconds. Thirty. A minute.
Then—
"It's fine. You just looked kinda out of it. Take care, Ishida."
My breath caught.
[Affection +2.]
[Penalty lifted.]
I looked up at Luna, who nodded slightly.
"Mission complete," she said. "Well done, Host."
For once, I couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or not.
I leaned back, smiling despite myself. "So, 5 out of 100 now… guess I'm moving up in the world."
Luna's hologram flickered faintly. "Slowly. But yes."
I didn't know whether to feel proud or terrified.
One thing was certain though — whatever this system really was, it wasn't going away anytime soon.
And if love was a game… I was officially a player.