Volume 1 Chapter 17

Volume 1 + Chapter 17: Fate

[In the game, if feelings are mutual, a mandatory story event will occur, leading to 18+ restricted content.

If within one month your intimacy with a particular heroine far exceeds that with the others, a forced night-long pink scene will be triggered.

Aside from this, everything else is determined by your own free will.]

This was the information the text box had given me during our first encounter.

And the approach of heroines cannot be guarded against like that of other people, they are inevitably able to draw near me.

My eyes can see them, but my brain cannot react in time.

It is like trying to guard against air. You may want to be on guard, but your brain will not comply with your wishes, it may even reach the judgment that “air requires no guarding against.”

I can guard against people, but I cannot guard against air.

When a heroine approaches, their presence ceases to exist entirely, just like air, so guarding against them is out of the question.

If my eyes can see them and there is a safe distance, I can successfully defend.

But if my eyes cannot see them, or there is no safe distance, then my defense will fail.

Fortunately, girls are generally reserved. I have never been touched in any sensitive areas, so over time I gradually relaxed about this matter.

Yet today, I encountered what seems to be a carnivorous type of heroine.

Her adult age, her shameless words, and her behavior of brazenly radiating sensuality toward me, 

For me, this newly appeared heroine has not a single safe spot on her entire body. She is an utterly dangerous person!

Therefore, I will never go to that bookstore again!

Shit!

Placing the bag of books on the sofa, the burning heat in my ears reminded me once more of that humiliation.

Furious, I stomped my foot on the floor several times.

I had never been so flustered and embarrassed. Looking in the mirror at my still-red ears, I gritted my teeth!

Recalling my instinctive flight, I felt a deep sense of frustration.

[Acts of violence against heroines are prohibited.]

Every one of the text box’s prohibitions was etched in my memory.

When it comes to matters of life and death, no one takes them lightly.

Even if I had given up on myself in other areas, I still subconsciously remembered the important points.

Thus, these heroines, whom I cannot hit, whom cursing does nothing against, and whom I cannot guard against.

They are practically game bugs!

Enormous bugs that are extremely unfriendly to me!

All the heroines are bugs!

Damn it, damn it, damn it, damn it, DAMN IT!!!!!!!

Though it is not in my nature to flee, running away was merely a strategic retreat, not an escape.

There is no shame in it!

Better yet, the fact that I could run at all was already a good thing.

Anyway, we are all girls! I won’t get pregnant! I won’t lose any flesh!

After calming my agitated mood, I let out a breath.

Running all the way back with the books hadn’t tired me, but this emotional outburst had exhausted me considerably.

Hmph! If I can’t hit them, I’ll run. They’re all physically weak anyway.

Venting my anger on all the heroines, I childishly grumbled about their weakness for a good while.

The temperature in my ears finally subsided. With my expression back to calm, I picked up the books I had just bought.

Then…

For no reason, I thought of that damn woman again.

My brow twitched. I wanted to slam the table but couldn’t bear to do it with the books.

Just then, I spotted the stack of folded paper my mother had used to hit my father’s head yesterday. I gently set down the books.

Picking up the stack of paper, I turned and slapped it hard against the table!

As if slapping the face of that damn shameless woman!

“SMACK!!!”

A deafening, sharp crack.

Looking at the now-slightly-bent stack of paper, I calmed down a little. I quietly set it aside, returned to my seat, and unwrapped the packaging of the books.

After reading for a while, my heart finally settled. I began earnestly memorizing the fundamentals.

Properly understanding the piano in this world, as well as how to play it, was very important.

[Spirit Users] are also an advancement based on the foundation of being a [Piano Healer].

And since [Piano Healers] attract spirits by playing the piano, ultimately, I still needed to learn piano knowledge.

Understanding the staff notation was necessary.

Lines and spaces are generally learned starting from the treble clef.

After learning the treble clef, one moves on to the bass clef.

Progress in this area was fast, because it was just a matter of memorizing the information.

But the coordination between hand and mind, as well as the ability to distinguish piano tones, these would be the main challenges going forward.

[Spirit Users] are the highest beings in this game. Since it is the male protagonist’s specialty, and the game’s title contains the word [Spirit], this must be the mainstream of this game world.

Since there is bound to be a connection anyway, why not take the initiative and seize control?

, , , , 

Night had already fallen, and my parents still had not returned home. It seemed today was another busy day for them.

I put my hands together in a prayer position and softly recited a prayer.

Dinner alone was very quiet, a silence I had once found unbearable but had now grown accustomed to.

Taking small, careful bites, I ate slowly. Suddenly, the phone on the table rang.

Listening to the ringtone, I continued eating, bite by bite.

Since the caller was not identified by name, that meant it was not an important enough person to warrant my attention.

[Answer the phone.]

Just then, the text box unexpectedly appeared before me. Swallowing the food in my mouth, thinking it must be Yuna, I answered the call.

[Why did you take so long to answer?]

Yuna’s dissatisfied voice came through the phone.

[I was eating.]

Thinking it really was Yuna, I took a sip of soup and replied.

[Oh… I see… then should I call back later?]

[Yes, I would appreciate that.]

[………]

She seemed not to know how to respond. All I could hear was Yuna’s silence, followed by her shallow breathing through the phone.

I thought, ‘Why doesn’t she just hang up?’ Was she waiting for me to do it?

Then I heard the click of the call ending. Ignoring the phone, I continued eating.

After finishing, I took a bath. Still, Yuna did not call back.

Thinking it was time to sleep, I had just sat down on my bed when the text box appeared once more.

[Call her.]

There was no need to specify who, it was clear who I had to call.

Reluctantly, I got up, went to my desk to retrieve my phone, found the call log, and dialed.

[Ring… Hello.]

I had just called when she answered on the very first ring.

Answering so quickly made me think, had she been waiting all this time for me to call back?

I paused for a moment, then said.

[What did you want to talk about earlier?]

[……..It’s eleven o’clock now.]

[Yes, it’s eleven o’clock.]

What did the time have to do with anything?

I pulled the phone away from my ear and saw that it was 11:07. Yuna was silent on her end, so I stopped speaking as well.

[……I called at eight o’clock.]

[Yes, it was eight o’clock.]

Checking the call log, the time was indeed eight. I confirmed.

[………..Watanabe Yuu, you’re going to be the death of me.]

Yuna said this through gritted teeth. Without an ounce of self-reflection, I replied.

[Then you truly are a petty-minded little person.]

[………..What does “little person” mean?]

[A tiny human, in other words, a child.]

Sensing Yuna’s voice suddenly drop, I finally stopped courting death and answered with a strong survival instinct.

[Hmph!]

[Aren’t you going to tell me what this is about? You should be getting to sleep too.]

I had no time to trade “hmph” for “hmph” with Yuna like a pair of grunting creatures.

Was she a little piggy? All that grunting.

[Ah! You really make me so angry!]

[I’m a person who makes you angry. You’ve always known that.]

[That’s exactly why I’m so angry!]

[Then I apologize for having been born with a personality that makes you angry.]

[!!!!!!!! Seriously, Watanabe Yuu, you big idiot! Jerk!]

Perhaps my indifferent and overly perfunctory attitude had angered Yuna, for she began cursing in a very unladylike manner.

Though her vocabulary of insults was quite lacking, to say the least.

[What about “blockhead”?]

[Blockhead!]

Yuna’s obedient addition of that word was so foolish. I couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

[@#¥%¥#¥%@]

On Yuna’s end, she was so angry she started saying incomprehensible things.

[For me to actually want to celebrate the birthday of someone like you, I must have lost my mind!]

Saying this, Yuna hung up with a sharp click, while I stopped laughing, stunned.

Birthday?

It was unexpected that she knew my birthday was approaching. I stared at the phone screen in silence for a moment.

Someone celebrating my birthday or something…

That was truly beyond my expectations.

Setting down the phone, I did not dwell on the matter.

Perhaps because I had often complied with Yuna’s wishes, following the text box’s requirements,

It had given Yuna the illusion that she and I were actually close?

To the point of saying she would celebrate my birthday…

I shook my head and filed the matter away as an “accidental incident.”

Putting down my phone, I returned to the bedside, lay down, and quickly fell asleep.

, , , , 

The next day at school, I noticed Yuna had started ignoring me.

Quite obviously, the moment she saw me, she would “hmph” and turn her head away.

Since the text box had no special requirements, I adopted a laissez-faire attitude toward it.

This week passed very peacefully. With Yuna not bothering me, and my recent frenzy of reading books keeping even my underling from disturbing me,

I managed to enjoy a rare, quiet week.

Compared to the slow pace of the previous week, time this week flew by like a rocket. The agreed-upon time with the game’s male protagonist was fast approaching.

At home, I received a text message from the male protagonist, saying his teacher had time this afternoon.

After confirming the time and address he had sent, I stood before my wardrobe, contemplating the clothes inside.

The male protagonist’s teacher was bound to be an impressive, high-status person, the magazines had not carried any news about her, but that much was certain.

Nevertheless, according to dating game logic, the male protagonist’s teacher, barring surprises, should be a very elegant woman. This could be considered a law of dating games.

I thought, beautiful as this teacher might be, there was a fourteen-year age gap between her and the male protagonist. Even a dating game wouldn’t be that extreme in taste, surely.

Deciding that the teacher was unlikely to be one of the heroines, I chose clothes appropriate for an important meeting.

The anomalies of the three heroines, [Inoue Hatsuka], [Endou Hina], and that [bookstore pervert], had instilled in me a sense of fear toward all heroines.

Subconsciously not wanting the male protagonist’s teacher to be a heroine as well, I could only comfort myself with my own understanding of dating game logic.

A set of pure white dress. Since I had never had a reason to wear a skirt before, I had never worn one.

Today would be the first time I wore a skirt since my birth.

Putting on thermal undergarments of the same color, I felt there would be no issue with the temperature.

At the entrance, I added a white scarf. Dressed all in white, I made a striking appearance.

In the small square mirror by the entrance stood a little girl with fair, rosy skin, soft, smooth hair, and a very well-behaved look.

The snow-white fluffy clothes she wore made her look like a snow spirit. I found my reflection, with its deceptively gentle appearance, quite pleasing.

Nodding with self-satisfaction, I adjusted the stray hairs on my forehead. With my eyebrows now covered, the indigo-black hair softened the intensity of my dark crimson eyes.

My gaze remained as calm as ever, but it no longer carried the previous air of “don’t mess with me.”

Ready. I stepped out the door.

Dressed like this, I attracted many furtive or not-so-furtive glances.

Strangely, men and women seemed about equally represented. Perhaps it was because I was a child, appealing to both genders.

Having always been mindful of my walking posture, and now being dressed in fine clothes, I was even more careful with my bearing than usual.

Besides, I couldn’t let my white shoes get dirty.

Today happened to be a weekend, so there were many people.

I boarded a women-only car, which was relatively less crowded, though “less crowded” was still quite crowded.

But compared to the other cars, where people were packed in like noodles, it was far better.

I stood upright, paying no attention to the gazes directed at me.

I reached my destination without incident, no unexpected trouble arose.

When I arrived at the meeting place, it seemed even the heavens wanted to help me, for it had started snowing lightly.

I reached out and caught a few snowflakes. I thought, this outfit is exactly the same color as the snow.

If I were one of the heroines, there would probably be a beautiful CG image right about now.

[Umm… excuse me… are you Watanabe-san?]

The male protagonist’s hesitant, uncertain voice came from behind me.

I turned around, and my gaze met the golden eyes of the woman standing next to him.

Yes. It was the feeling of fate, without a doubt.

[https://ko-fi.com/golden_dragon]