Volume 1 Chapter 6

Volume 1 + Chapter 6: An Encounter With Her, And A Startling Truth

At age eight, I encountered the game’s male lead.

After bidding farewell to the butler and successfully boarding the subway, I took out my phone and jotted down today’s meeting with the male lead.

Getting off near home, I walked to the park, stopped, bent down to crawl into the bushes, and found the cardboard box.

I opened the box and, as expected, saw that stray Ragdoll kitten was still curled up inside.

Sigh. A purebred cat, yet abandoned, how unscientific was this?

I figured this was probably another game plot. Even if it was troublesome, I had to do it.

After all, the text box had given me another mission, [Find an owner for the cat].

Why does it have to assign someone as rotten as me such a charitable task?

Truly against my will.

Watching the hurried, busy passersby, I held back the sigh threatening to escape.

Today was the second day. Could I find it an owner?

In the end, the sigh still slipped out. Standing in the center of the park holding the cardboard box, I tried once more to see if anyone would take the cat.

Today marked the second day I’d stood here, box in hand, seeking an owner for the cat inside.

Standing straight there, holding a cardboard box, a child like me was somewhat conspicuous to others.

But conspicuousness was useless, adults afraid of trouble wouldn’t actively seek it out.

Should I call out?

E-excuse me, d-does anyone want to adopt a kitten?

Ah, never mind.

Immediately discarding the thought, I simply stared at the stream of people passing by.

Then a little girl caught my attention.

Pulling incessantly at an adult while pointing at me, this little girl looked quite promising.

Could I finally pawn this creature off on someone today?

Somewhat cheered, I lowered my head and smiled at the kitten, utterly oblivious inside its box.

Having finished its cat food, the Ragdoll sat upright, staring at me. Noticing my gaze, it merely let out an innocent, adorable, soft mew.

Sitting inside the box, swishing its tail, pure moe.

You’re this cute, little guy. Make good use of your charm points and bewilder your future owner, okay?

Trying to convey this thought with my eyes, I reached out and stroked the kitten’s head. Whether the message got through was anyone’s guess.

[Little girl… are you trying to find an owner for this kitten?]

The man forcibly dragged over by the little girl adjusted his glasses, slightly out of breath.

Wearing a white shirt, scholarly in appearance, his tone was gentle.

Seemed like a good person.

I’d made my assessment. I lowered my gaze again and glanced at the little girl hiding behind the man, still tugging persistently at his clothes.

The man’s good-person facade wasn’t what reassured me. The little girl was the real source of my confidence.

Even though I intended to give the cat to this family, I still paused before answering.

[Yes, Uncle. Does your family want to keep it?]

[If you’re willing to entrust it to us…]

The man’s clothes were nearly being torn apart. Hearing his response, the little girl suddenly yanked downward with force.

[Sorry, I misspoke.]

The man sighed and bowed slightly to me, a child.

[Little girl, please, by all means, entrust it to our family.]

I hadn’t expected the man to bow.

Does he dote on her that much?

I glanced behind the man’s legs and unexpectedly met a pair of deep violet eyes.

A color that should have been mysterious, yet in this little girl, it evoked a sense of pitiful vulnerability.

Eyes as beautiful as amethysts. Looking at the little girl’s features and her unusual eye color.

I suspected she might be a game heroine, which made me even more determined to let her adopt the cat.

A little girl who was a game heroine couldn’t possibly have behavioral issues or mistreat a cat.

This world was full of good-looking people, but those who gave me a sense of destiny, aside from the game’s male lead.

Were the game’s heroine Yuna and the sun princess. The remainder was this little girl I’d met today.

What role did she play?

Even at this young age, one could see she’d grow into an extraordinary beauty in the future.

Her looks were on par with Yuna and the others, evenly matched.

But I liked this kind of personality and this kind of feeling. Selfishly, I gave the little girl a score of 11 out of 10.

One point was a subjective bonus, the ten was for her appearance.

[If you want to keep it, come carry it back yourself.]

I extended the box with the cat toward the little girl, holding it level in my hands.

The little girl bit her lip, seeming a bit nervous. But the feeling in her violet eyes shifted from unease to determination.

Step by small step, she approached. Each stride grew larger than the last.

Finally, she stood straight, chest out, posture impeccable.

[I’ll take good care of it.]

The girl accepted the kitten and left a promise. Her words, like her voice, were pure and gentle.

[Meow~~]

The moment it reached her hands, the kitten, reading the room, let out a soft mew at the girl, almost like a greeting.

[I’ll call you Pika from now on, okay?]

The little girl smiled adorably, nuzzling the kitten. Seeing this, the man tensed slightly, then lowered his hands.

Probably worried the kitten carried germs.

I understood the source of his tension. I had no particular opinion. If he were a true cat lover, he’d have been angry.

But I wasn’t one, so I found his reaction only natural. Beyond that, I had no thoughts.

Watching the girl and man leave, I stretched my body.

[Ah, my, that wasn’t easy at all. Finally done.]

Able to go home, read, and take a bath now, I let out a satisfied sound and started on the path home.

————

[Boss, are you really going to grow your hair long?]

The moment I arrived at school, my underling sidled up to me, wearing that annoying expression of someone who deeply regrets your decision and wants to dissuade you.

[Really, really.]

Uttering a double dose of “really,” I pushed aside his irritating face and sat down.

[Boss!!! You can’t do this!!!!!!]

My underling let out a tragic wail, his face on the verge of tears as he pressed closer again.

[Why?]

Cornered, I had no choice but to put down my school bag and look at him, exasperated.

[Boss, you’re so brave and heroic, as mighty as a hero!

How could you keep such effeminate, girly long hair?]

With a few simple words, my underling managed to offend every girl in the class with his sweeping generalization. Oblivious, he continued howling loudly.

To this, I could only offer one assessment: A guy like you will never get a girlfriend.

[Boss! If you keep your long hair, the boys from other classes will keep looking down on our class’s guys.

They’re saying… The boss we chose is a disgusting sissy, and we’re the sissy’s underlings.

So that makes us sissies too! The Sissy Corps!]

This sounded exactly like something little boys that age would say.

Nodding along, saying “I see, I see”, letting it go in one ear and out the other, my dismissiveness successfully sent my underling fleeing in tears.

[Boss! Even if they call us sissies! We’ll still follow you! Boohoo…]

That’s what he said, but his actions betrayed his thoughts.

He actually shed genuine tears, turned, covered his face, and ran off.

Hmm……

Could it be that you got called a sissy because you cover your face when you cry?

I felt inexplicably like I was taking the blame for this. Scowling darkly, I pulled a book from my bag and continued reading yesterday’s unfinished chapters.

Studying brings me joy, books bring me peace.

All external distractions, begone from my attention. I let out a low, dry chuckle.

A former teacher once said three years is enough to gain proficiency in almost any skill. I agreed and followed this principle.

Mm!

Every three years, I’d pick up a new skill.

To make up for the regrets of my past life, in this life I was diligently studying.

So that in my old age, I could have a big house, sip tea, keep a cat, and have a leisurely existence.

Stay strong!

My fighting spirit surged, a radiant light swelling within my chest. I lowered my head to read an introductory piano book, purely a hobby-level interest.

[Eh? Little Yuu’s interested in piano?]

Yuna, passing by, paused beside me, looking somewhat surprised.

[Is that not allowed?]

I gave her dead-fish eyes. Even someone like me, who spoke bluntly, could have refined hobbies.

Besides, reluctant as I was, ever since I learned the text box had mentioned a piece called “Song of the Spirits,”

I’d searched and explored the topic of spirits and come to a rough understanding of them.

Though I gave up after initial research due to sheer distaste.

But now that the plot has started, just in case, I’d better continue gathering information on the subject.

Still, even if the odds were slim, I prayed this wouldn’t turn into a full-blown fantasy story.

[Hmm~ That’s fine.

Tomoya-nii is an amazing pianist. Little Yuu, want to go listen?]

Smiling mysteriously, Yuna pulled something like a movie ticket from her pocket.

[Youth Piano Healer Competition]

The ticket was printed with a piano and those words. Seeing the term [Healer] , I felt as if the heavens were playing a joke on me.

A sense of fate, again, permeated my awareness. I took a deep breath, accepted the ticket, and answered solemnly.

[I’ll go.]

Personally I was hoping for school romance, but instead it’s school fantasy

——-

Arriving at the concert venue, I sat in my assigned seat.

A [Youth] performance, why was the venue as large as a professional singer’s concert?

I’d heard of this competition before, but I’d skimmed over it and forgotten. Besides, being this young and without connections,

I’d never actually attended. The scale here, the venue and audience size, was completely different from what I knew.

This made me realize, when approaching this [Youth Piano Healer Competition] , I couldn’t rely on the impressions and memories of my previous life.

Seats I thought wouldn’t fill were packed within just half an hour of doors opening.

If my estimate wasn’t wrong, this venue seemed to hold five thousand seats?

Meaning, five thousand people had come to watch the [Youth Piano Healer Competition]?????

Granted, the title of “piano prodigy” suited the romance game’s male lead identity.

But this fantastical setting, why was it introduced so seamlessly????

Was a plain old school romance game not perfectly fine????

Why inject this supernatural nonsense into it???????

My internal scream couldn’t possibly reach the game developers, whether they existed or not. It was as if all my strength had drained away. I slumped limply into the plush, luxurious seat.

Sinking into silence, I caught Yuna’s attention.

[What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?]

A slightly cool hand touched my warm hand.

[I’m fine, but I think you might be the one with issues. Your hand’s really cold.]

Ah, ah…

Sighing inwardly with resignation, I turned my palm over and enveloped Yuna’s right hand.

[Heehee, so warm.]

Yuna’s smile as she said this was adorable. Too bad I wasn’t a lolicon.

[That’s good then.]

Unmoved, I coolly averted my gaze. My hand was larger than Yuna’s, wrapping just right around hers.

[Little Yuu has big hands.]

Yuna’s other cool hand touched my left hand, her gaze envious as she looked at mine.

[And long fingers too.]

She stretched out her fingers, pressing her palm against mine. Mine were just slightly longer than hers.

[Hands like these are perfect for playing the piano.]

Leaving behind this murmured remark, Yuna tucked her hand back into mine. Smiling sweetly, she turned her gaze toward the performance stage, where a piano sat waiting.

[What about the sun princess?]

Thinking how rarely the two were apart, I finally remembered to ask.

[As for “sun princess”, my sister’s name is Hina.]

Yuna seemed aware of my arrogant habit of never remembering people’s names. Giving up on lecturing me, she replied with mild exasperation.

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