The one who stepped in front of Hanadasaki Ame was a very lively-looking girl. She seemed a little younger than him—though she might have been the same age. Her flaxen hair fell to her shoulders without curling at the ends, and the way she moved was light and springy, like some small hopping animal, as she quickly skipped over to cut him off.
Then came a conversation that was hard to make out from a distance. It seemed she was asking for directions, and Hanadasaki Ame even pointed off somewhere for her.
Watching from afar, Nagasaki Soyo could not help clicking her tongue.
What a fake, overly cutesy girl.
Just as expected, next she would start chatting aimlessly and asking for his contact information.
For an instant, Nagasaki Soyo had the urge to go over and interrupt the girl mid-casting—but then she thought better of it. This really had nothing to do with her, so she simply watched from where she stood.
Fortunately, Hanadasaki Ame knew he had arranged to meet someone. He did not linger for long—after only a minute or two, he said goodbye and left.
Nagasaki Soyo also caught the way that girl kept staring after his retreating figure, clearly reluctant to let him go, and clicked her tongue again.
Has she never seen a boy before!?
Taking a quiet breath, arranging her expression, and absently smoothing her long hair, she finally walked toward Hanadasaki Ame.
The moment he noticed her, she put on the gentle, warm smile she had honed through long practice—eyes softly curved—and gave him a small wave as she greeted him in a light, gentle voice.
"Hello, you're Hanada-kun, right? Sorry to keep you waiting."
"Hello. I just got here too."
Hanadasaki Ame responded with a routine courtesy, then gave a slight nod.
Just as expected—more or less the kind of person he had imagined. Even her voice had that faintly affected softness to it, not so different from that cutesy girl just now.
He did not dislike that sort of thing, though.
Some people valued authenticity and wanted to see a person's true nature. But Hanadasaki Ame found it interesting too when a girl put a great deal of thought into trying to please him.
"I remember a pretty good café nearby. Shall we go there and have a proper talk?"
After the brief exchange of pleasantries, he made the invitation.
He had been to Kaihin-Makuhari many times before—not because he was interested in the bustling commercial district, but because when he went to look at the sea, he would often stop and rest around here along the way.
Though calling it "seeing the sea" was a bit generous.
What you saw here was really just Tokyo Bay, calm and uneventful.
"Yes, alright."
Nagasaki Soyo replied with a smile.
Then she fell into step beside him as they started walking toward the café.
Earlier, she had already thought Hanadasaki Ame looked small, with a bit of that cute little-boy air about him. But now that she was close, she realized he was actually a little shorter than she was.
From a bit of distance, his well-balanced proportions made it easy to misjudge.
"I heard from my mother that you're a year younger than I am, Hanada-kun, though we'll really be in the same grade. That's right, isn't it?"
She searched for a topic, trying to keep the conversation going, while one hand unconsciously left the handle of her cream-colored handbag to lightly toy with a lock of her hair.
"Yes. I started school fairly early. I even considered skipping a grade, but then I realized the environment after skipping would have had a somewhat negative effect on my development, so I gave up the idea."
Hanadasaki Ame answered casually. Toward this girl who might become his older sister, he maintained a politely courteous attitude on the surface.
Nagasaki Soyo attended an all-girls school. Once his research institute was finished, they would probably not have much interaction in everyday life anyway. A certain level of mutual understanding would be enough. There was no need to invest too much time in deepening the relationship.
At the same time, though, another thought had started turning over in his mind.
That ability of his to observe or extrapolate possible futures…
Yes, for now he would just call it simulation.
If he tried simulating a future with Nagasaki Soyo, that ought to be possible too, right?
Simulation required a certain amount of contact or connection with the other person before it could be used. He understood that as a form of information gathering. Just as during its earlier growth, the ability had captured countless strange fragments of information for him, it needed a substantial information base in order for the simulation to have enough credibility.
The only problem was, the last time he simulated a future with Nibutani Shinka, it had started with them becoming lovers and then getting married.
Surely it would not go like that with Nagasaki Soyo too?
That would be rather bad.
He was a person of noble character—how could he possibly get involved with his own sister, even if she was not related by blood?
…Forget it. No more pretending.
It was just a simulation anyway. If it happened, it happened. He did not particularly care.
While he was distracted by that line of thought, Nagasaki Soyo chose her moment and asked with mild curiosity,
"What kind of negative effect?"
"Environment shapes a person. When you don't yet possess enough strength to firmly hold on to your own sense of self, the first thing you should think about is staying in an environment that is outwardly similar to yourself. In other words… remaining in your comfort zone for the time being."
Hanadasaki Ame said it lightly.
Skipping grades was supposed to better match his learning pace and provide a superior educational environment. But in his case, it made little real difference—unless he skipped straight into university.
And besides, why should his life have to be in such a hurry!?
What cog was he supposed to be, spinning frantically to meet society's expectations of his talent?
Since he knew clearly what he wanted to pursue, and was already financially free, there was naturally no reason for him to push himself too hard.
"The younger you are, the less you understand the world, and the more carefully you should think about the environment you place yourself in. Because what you absorb next will become a part of who you are."
Of course, most people did not really get to choose. It was not as if you could simply swap out your environment whenever you liked. At most, you could change your social circle a little.
"…That sounds like a very profound topic. Are these the kinds of things you think about all the time?"
Nagasaki Soyo asked softly, instinctively wanting to steer the conversation elsewhere.
She did not want to think about those things.
Once you started, it turned into self-dissection—peeling away layers of skin to expose the raw wound underneath that had never truly healed.
It was far too painful.
She had never been willing to do it.
"Not really. That was just an offhand thought. Most of my time goes into studying mathematics, physics, and the like."
Hanadasaki Ame shook his head.
Who had time to sit around contemplating life? Figuring out Magnetic Field Rotation was what actually mattered!
If he truly mastered that power, then whether the Earth was round or flat would not that basically be for him to decide?
"Then… music? A friend of mine had heard about you and said you're very good at violin. Do you spend a lot of time practicing?"
Nagasaki Soyo was beginning to feel a little uneasy. Hanadasaki Ame's way of thinking seemed vastly different from hers. This did not feel like the sort of person with whom getting along smoothly would come easily.
"The violin, hmm…"
For some reason, Hanadasaki Ame smiled. Then he stopped by the roadside and said to her,
"Do you want to see a special move I developed from learning the violin?"
The smile Nagasaki Soyo had been carefully maintaining almost cracked.
She had thought music would make an excellent topic of conversation. At the very least, surely it could carry half an hour of discussion during today's meeting, right?
And yet Hanadasaki Ame had still not said a single proper word about music itself!
Fine, whatever.
She did not like music that much anyway!
The double bass had been something she picked up simply because the opportunity presented itself, and bass guitar was something she only played casually. Neither was anything worth bragging about.
"Eh? What is it?"
She feigned curiosity and cooperatively asked, though in truth she was not interested in the slightest.
At that moment, she felt as though she were dealing with an elementary school boy showing off a toy of his.
He had suddenly become absurdly childish.
"Then don't blink."
Hanadasaki Ame raised both hands in front of her.
Then all ten fingers began to move in sequence, faster and faster, until they were leaving countless afterimages, blooming like a flower opening before her eyes in a dazzling blur!
He even started forming hand seals, flashing through all sorts of intricate gestures—from Buddhist mudras to ninja hand signs he had picked up from the strange information his simulation ability had gathered before fully taking shape—smooth and seamless to an unbelievable degree!
"S-so flexible…"
Nagasaki Soyo murmured despite herself.
No, wait.
You can develop that from practicing the violin!?
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 172)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 115)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 116)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter105)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter100)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter69)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter119)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 70
From Junkman to Wasteland 60
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 40
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 66
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 50
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 52
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass 55
The Way the Umamusume Look at 42
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 40
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 36
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 30
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 26
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 26
My patreon : patreon.com/queen_sin