After a calm and peaceful night, life once again returned to the ordinary three-point routine.
From home to school, then to the part-time job, and finally dragging an exhausted body back home—over and over again. Today was supposed to follow that same schedule.
"The owner at my old part-time place wanted me to work overtime and told me that if I don't work hard, life will crush me."
"Doesn't matter. Then let it crush me."
"I agree. Wage slaves are like shoddy high-rises built with cut corners—our entire stress tolerance comes from giving up."
After school, in the Service Club room at Sōbu High, Yukinoshita Yukino rubbed her temples as she watched the curly-haired boy and the dead-fish-eyed boy banter back and forth at the table.
Narumi Tōru and Hikigaya Hachiman had a habit of suddenly launching into shockingly outrageous theories during idle Service Club chatter, their unrestrained trains of thought galloping like runaway horses—something Yukino often found hard to keep up with.
On top of that, Narumi would enthusiastically share music with Hikigaya, or recommend obscure films from some movie list he'd seen—something that, to be honest, bothered Yukino a little.
After all, no matter how she looked at it, she was the one who understood his tastes better than Hikigaya, and surely the one closer to him as well.
Even so, despite the lingering frustration in her heart, Yukinoshita Yukino chose to hold her ground and remain patient. After all, there was plenty of time—so long as her sister didn't come in to meddle and sabotage things, there was no need to get overly paranoid.
"Excellent music. It makes my bowtie spin. Love from the East."
When that inexplicable line suddenly popped out of Narumi and Hikigaya, who were watching some video together with headphones on, the teacup in Yukino's hand began to tremble violently.
Is it just my imagination…? Somehow it feels like my rival isn't just my sister anymore.
Don't tell me I have to count Hikigaya as well now…?
"Haha, those two really get along well."
The pink-haired dumpling girl sitting beside Yukino laughed lightly as she teased them. She had clearly noticed the complicated emotions on Yukino's face and stepped in tactfully to smooth things over.
"They may get along well, but please don't imagine anything beyond that."
The curly-haired boy suddenly removed his headphones and spoke in a serious tone as he warned the two girls. In response, Yukinoshita Yukino narrowed her eyes slightly in a meaningful way—she more or less understood that she was being mistaken for one of those adolescent girls who fantasize about romantic relationships between boys.
"If you don't want people to overthink things, then maybe don't do things that invite wild speculation in the first place, Narumi-kun."
"Hm—Yukinoshita, you've got a point! Looks like I need to go flirt with a girl to prove my orientation is the same as most people's!"
"T-That's not necessary! There's no need to go to such extremes or fall into some ridiculous self-justification trap…"
Wow, Yukinoshita really is kind of cute when she gets flustered and starts dodging the point whenever this topic comes up.
Narumi smiled warmly as he watched Yukino awkwardly throw out more arguments to prove that he didn't need to make a move on other girls to escape the "homo" label. Nearby, Yuigahama Yui's auntie smile was brighter than anyone else's.
"Narumi-kun~ you're being a bit mean."
The pink-haired girl giggled innocently.
"Exactly. To think you'd want to extend your sinful hand toward an innocent girl."
Yukinoshita Yukino nodded in agreement with a serious expression—though she had clearly misunderstood Yui's actual meaning.
"No way, I'm super upright—unyielding and straight as an arrow."
Narumi pouted and spread his hands, while Hikigaya Hachiman took off his headphones and muttered a complaint.
"That's a pretty cold callback."
"What? Hikigaya-kun, you actually caught that it was a double entendre responding to my orientation being questioned just now? Good, good—like I thought, you're no ordinary guy…!"
"You're so loud… and d-don't get so close."
Watching Narumi sling an arm over Hikigaya's shoulder again, Yui glanced uneasily in Yukino's direction—sure enough, Yukino's expression had turned even worse.
"You two really have the leisure to waste time watching short videos in the club room, Narumi-kun and Hikigaya-kun."
"Huh—Narumi dragged me into it! If you're annoyed, Yukinoshita, take it out on him!"
"Ahaha…"
Yuigahama gave an awkward laugh. This was her first time returning to the Service Club since receiving the gifts from Narumi and Yukino—and honestly, this noisy, argumentative atmosphere with no trace of insincerity between them felt pretty nice.
And Yuigahama's thoughts, in fact, were very much in sync with Narumi Tōru's.
He originally wanted to stay a bit longer too, but considering the system had said the third simulation would probably descend around four or five in the afternoon, it seemed wiser to prepare early and enter the simulation in the place where he felt most at ease.
Before classes that morning, Narumi had already turned down his after-school part-time shift using the excuse that he had plans in the evening. Now, it was about time to head home and prepare for the third simulation.
"Alright, it's getting late—I'm heading out early today."
After a round of friendly interaction with the Service Club members, Narumi began packing his belongings into his bag.
"Part-time job? Or band practice?"
Yukinoshita Yukino raised an eyebrow. She had a pretty good grasp of the boy's daily schedule.
"Neither—let's just say I'm going on an adventure."
The curly-haired boy smiled, his still-youthful, handsome face filled with anticipation and longing.
And precisely because she could see that, Yukino felt a twinge of jealousy.
He never seemed to wear that expression when coming to see her.
"…Being obsessed with after-school adventures is just like a little kid."
And as long as he didn't want to say it, she had no way of knowing what this so-called "adventure" even meant.
"Well, at the end of the adventure, Yukinoshita will be waiting for me anyway."
And the real-world Yukinoshita Yukino looked far more energetic than that sickly version from the simulation.
He tossed out that seemingly casual remark and waved as he left the Service Club room, leaving behind Yuigahama and Hikigaya exchanging complicated looks toward Yukino, whose face had gradually turned red from what he'd just said.
"Maybe… Narumi-kun is more mischievous than I thought…"
"Yeah, I agree…"
They whispered these thoughts in voices only the two of them could hear.
After returning home and finishing all his to-do items—clearing out his entire schedule for the rest of the day—Narumi took a hot shower.
He treated it as a vacation of sorts, preparing himself in the best possible state to welcome the third simulation—at least, that was his train of thought.
Usually rushing around with part-time work after school, he luxuriated in a comfortable bath, then slowly cooked himself a hearty dinner as a reward. Finally, with twenty minutes left before the simulation began, he put on a face mask and lay down on his bed to rest.
[I must say, you really know how to enjoy life.]
The system's voice appeared at just the right moment, but it still didn't make the lazy curly-haired boy open his eyes.
Because he knew that the system's appearance meant the simulation was about to start.
[I feel deeply honored that you're taking this simulation so seriously. I wish you smooth sailing on the journey ahead.]
"Smooth sailing isn't exactly a good phrase…"
This time, Narumi wanted to retort—but he no longer could.
His consciousness gradually drifted away, as if sinking into a thick, hazy sea of silence, before being gathered together by some strange force into a single point.
It felt like astral projection—his entire body floating weightlessly as the sensation filled his mind—and when everything finally settled, he barely managed to open his eyes.
What greeted him was an unfamiliar ceiling.
The bed beneath him no longer felt hard enough to make his back ache as he remembered. Instead, it was wide and comfortable, softly enveloping his entire body.
"...…?"
The boy swayed as he stood up, surveying the place where he had awakened.
A bedroom more than ten times larger and brighter than his student apartment, an expensive-looking wardrobe and carpet, floor-to-ceiling windows facing a beautiful villa garden, and an exquisitely decorated fireplace—the kind of interior he'd only ever seen in films depicting wealthy households.
Is the spawn point this comfortable this time…?
After hesitating for a moment, Narumi opened the door and cautiously stepped into the long corridor outside.
The presence of the face mask was still very much there, so his first task was to find a bathroom and take the thing off.
After walking through the narrow hallway for quite a while, he finally found it.
But just as he stepped inside—before he could even turn to face the mirror—
Clatter.
The clothes in the hands of a girl standing in the middle of the room all fell to the floor.
Her figure wasn't as full and curvy as that of a mature woman, but the suggestive contours and her fair, softly pink skin possessed a unique, youthful beauty. Paired with her long golden hair like something out of a fairy-tale princess, she radiated a purity and sanctity that made it hard to harbor any vulgar thoughts—if not for the fact that she stared at the boy who had suddenly barged into the bathroom with eyes full of panic, as though an intruder had appeared, Narumi might have mistaken this for a truly wonderful encounter.
Just like the frozen blonde girl, Narumi himself was plunged into unprecedented shock—because he could vaguely sense that the developments following this situation would not be pleasant.
"Eek—!"
Sure enough, after the girl let out a piercing scream, a bar of soap came flying straight toward his forehead.
"Pff!"
Unable to dodge in time, he was struck head-on and sent tumbling backward, the face mask peeling off his face as he fell.
In the instant before he completely crashed to the floor, he caught an accidental glimpse of his reflection in the mirror by the sink—on his face, a head of striking dark-golden short curls instantly filled his vision.
…Huh?
In those brief yet strangely long seconds before losing consciousness, Narumi more or less grasped the situation.
Lucky pervert, huh… what a clichéd fanservice scene.
That was the last joking thought that crossed his mind before everything went dark.