Shido was staring blankly at the empty seat next to him (our socially anxious protagonist, overwhelmed by his overly enthusiastic classmates, had fled to the restroom to recover).
As he pondered yesterday's bizarre experience and the sudden, overwhelmingly impactful "sister" who had appeared, his phone suddenly vibrated.
It was a text message from an unknown number:
[From: Unknown Number] [Content: Idiot Older Brother, come immediately to the abandoned physics lab at the west end of the third floor. Immediately! Right now! — Kotori]
Shido: "???" (Kotori? Why is she at school? And using this commanding tone? An abandoned physics lab? What in the world is going on?)
Although full of suspicion, his sister's orders (especially his sister in commander mode) were not to be questioned.
Shido had no choice but to greet a classmate, excuse himself by saying he was going to the restroom, and walk toward the west side of the school building with a nervous heart.
Pushing open the creaking wooden door, a smell of dust and old equipment rushed out.
In this slightly gloomy environment, two figures stood out prominently.
Itsuka Kotori, having already changed into her red and black Commander uniform, was sitting on a dusty lab table, swinging her legs and looking impatient while chewing on a precious jewel.
Murasame Reine stood quietly to the side, wearing her usual white lab coat and sporting heavy dark circles under her eyes, as if this were her second laboratory.
"You're too slow, Shido!" Kotori jumped off the table. "Are you a turtle?"
"Kotori? Miss Reine? What are you..." Shido looked utterly confused.
"There's no time to explain."
Kotori interrupted him, her expression turning serious.
"To make a long story short, we detected a highly suspicious target. Its spirit energy signature is different from both 'Princess' and yesterday's Welt. It is a Spirit."
Shido's heart tightened suddenly: "A Spirit?! Where?"
Kotori looked at him sharply: "Far away in the sky, yet close at hand. It's your new'sister,' Phoenix-in Chinatsu."
"Wha... Younger Sister Chinatsu? She's a Spirit? Impossible!" Shido instinctively retorted. "She's just..."
"Just what?"
Kotori pressed him.
"A sister you've never heard of, suddenly appearing after a Spatial Quake, whose personal information is too flawless, like it's forged, and whose household registration records are suspiciously seamless? How can there be such a coincidence in the world? Reine."
"But... but..."
Shido thought of Younger Sister Chinatsu from earlier today, and his face flushed even more.
"...What does that have to do with Younger Sister Chinatsu..."
Reine calmly interjected:
"...Initial Spirit energy waveform analysis confirms her as an independent entity. However, her existence itself... has a logical probability below 0.73%. We highly suspect her identity and purpose."
Shido felt like he had been struck by lightning, frozen in place. That girl who seemed somewhat aloof but apparently cared deeply for her older brother (Koushi) —she was a Spirit?
"She is a suspicious person who appeared suddenly, and she's sitting right next to you!"
Kotori's tone was severe.
"You need to learn how to observe, analyze, and interact with women of different personalities! This is basic training! Or..."
She narrowed her eyes, revealing a devilish smile.
"Would you rather I command you to 'practice' with Younger Sister Chinatsu right now?"
"Absolutely not!"
Shido nearly jumped out of his skin. Although Younger Sister Chinatsu was beautiful, that cold, inexplicably oppressive aura, and the fact that she was his friend's (?) sister! Such a thing felt too sinful!
"She approached you in this manner; her purpose is unknown, but she is extremely dangerous."
Kotori concluded, "Therefore, in order to deal with her and other Spirits, your special training must begin immediately! We can't wait another moment!"
"Spe... Special training?" Shido had a bad feeling.
"Stop complaining!" Kotori impatiently pointed her lollipop at the laptop and a pile of game discs/hard drives already set up on the table.
"This is the fastest way for an idiot with zero dating experience like you to gain Understanding of female psychology and learn conversational skills! Do you want to stand there waiting to die again the next time you see Princess, or that Welt? Or are you planning to use your meager vocabulary to persuade a fierce male Spirit who can build mechs with his bare hands?"
Kotori snapped the computer open, and the login screen of a beautifully drawn Galgame was displayed prominently.
"That's right! It's special training! Starting now, until the end of lunch break, your mission is to clear this game, 'Love! My Little Shido,' and select all the correct choices that lead to the best ending!"
"Here?! Now?!" Shido looked at the dusty instruments and the eerie atmosphere around him, nearly shouting.
"This is the quietest place, and no one will bother us!" Kotori shoved the computer toward him without question.
"Enough talk! Start! We will supervise the entire time! There are penalties for selecting the wrong choice! And because of that Welt, we specifically added a series of male characters, including a male university professor, a male teacher, a male neighbor, and a male leader!"
Kotori slapped a blank "Strategy Notes" notebook into his arms.
"Starting tonight, you must complete one archetype every night! Pure love, tsundere, yandere, older sister type... all of them! Tomorrow, I want to see your first report! If you don't finish writing it, don't even think about sleeping!"
And so, Itsuka Shido, an ordinary high school student, under the "coercion" of his sister, embraced the great ideal of saving Spirits (and avoiding social death).
He plunged into the sea of Galgames, steeling himself for his first Galgame experience.
Initially, things went smoothly. Relying on his good-natured intuition, he chose several options that showed concern for the heroine.
["You look a little pale. Are you alright?"] -> Affection +5
Kotori: "Hmm, you have some talent, I suppose."
However, a fatal question soon appeared. Heroine:
["Senpai, what do you think... of my hairstyle today?"]
Options: A. ["It's very cute, it suits you well."] (Safe, but bland)
B. ["Hmm, same as yesterday."] (Straight-man comment)
C. ["This is a beauty that cannot be compared to anything mundane! Like a star in the dark night, guiding the direction of our fate!"] (...)
Exhausted and nervous, Shido's hand slipped... and he clicked C.
The heroine on the computer screen gave an awkward but polite smile, like she was looking at trash.
["...S-Senpai is really interesting."]
Affection -20 [Bad Flag: Chuunibyou Suspicion Raised]
The lab fell into a deathly silence.
Kotori's face darkened at a visible speed. She slowly pulled out... a Bluetooth speaker? Reine silently handed her a microphone.
"Hey... Kotori? What are you going to do?" Shido felt that something terrible was about to happen.
Kotori ignored him, connected the microphone to the speaker, cleared her throat, and began to broadcast in a completely emotionless yet perfectly clear, flat voice:
[School broadcast sound check, *zzzt*—]
[Ahem. Announcement: We are now interrupting with a precious historical memory fragment from Itsuka Shido's middle school years.]
[Title: *Gospel of Darkness* — Author: Itsuka Shido (Second Year of Middle School)]
["...Hmph, foolish mortals, do you know that the Black Flame Dragon of Destruction is sealed in this right hand? When the Blood Moon descends, and the Wicked Lord's True Eye opens, that shall be the moment when I, the Dark Flame Master, descend upon this realm to wield the laws of causality! Bandage? This is not a bandage! This is the 'Hermes Shackle' that seals away my divine power!..."] The broadcast voice echoed clearly through the speaker in the abandoned laboratory, perhaps even faintly reaching the hallway outside.
Shido's face instantly turned ashen, all color draining away. He looked as if he had been struck by lightning, then slowly, as if in slow motion, he slid onto his knees, hands braced on the floor, his body trembling violently, his soul seemingly floating out of his open mouth... "No—!!! Stop reading it!!! Stop it right now!!!" He let out a desperate wail. That was the dark history he had buried deep in his heart and sworn to take to his grave!
Kotori emotionlessly turned off the microphone: "That is the punishment for selecting the wrong option. If you mess up again, I will print the entire text and plaster it all over the bulletin board. Continue training."