After making this rather mischievous choice, a rush of unfamiliar memories suddenly flooded Kazami Haru's mind.
In front of him was an old wooden counter with a timeworn texture. The natural wood grain looked like the wrinkles of an elderly person, worn by the passage of decades. Yet, despite its age, it had been carefully polished and maintained, without a speck of dust in sight.
Seated beside him was a blue-haired girl dressed in a gray shirt and a long skirt.
Her beauty was exceptional, like a delicate blue plumbago flower, nurtured with great care. Her snow-white skin was flawless, and her slender fingers, grasping a pair of chopsticks, had well-defined joints. Her refined and elegant face carried an air of cool detachment, making her seem distant and unapproachable.
A few strands of her hair were tied back with a hairband, neatly framing her face. Her golden-hued eyes, reminiscent of fine yellow jade, gazed at him with quiet composure. Beneath her left eye sat a distinctive beauty mark(mole), accentuating her unique and captivating aura.
Despite her cool-toned outfit, she wore it with a charm that was uniquely her own.
The girl raised her delicate eyebrows, her calm gaze fixed on his face. She parted her lips, just about to say something—
"Can you lend me some money?"
Before she could even speak, Kazami Haru beat her to it. His sudden words made Yamada Ryo freeze in place.
That cold and delicate face visibly cracked for a moment. Her eyes instinctively widened slightly.
She looked... shocked. As if she couldn't believe that someone would actually ask her for money.
"Sorry, I just realized as I was about to eat that I seem to have forgotten my wallet."
"...Then why did you still start eating?"
Kazami Haru's deadpan tone, combined with the fact that he hadn't stopped eating his ramen, made Yamada Ryo look at him in mild astonishment. Then, she suddenly gave him a big thumbs-up, her eyes filled with admiration.
That's right. Money or not, with a bowl of delicious ramen right in front of you, letting it sit and go soggy would be a crime.
"Unfortunately, I'm broke too."
"...Then why did you come here for ramen?"
"I was hungry. I couldn't resist."
Yamada Ryo rested her chin on the wooden counter, lightly rubbing her jaw as she looked at Kazami Haru with a pitiful expression.
She had only just realized, after feeling around for her wallet, that all her allowance had already been spent on a new Fender Element Series bass. What little pocket money she had left wasn't even enough to pay for the fragrant, steaming bowl of hell-spicy miso ramen in front of her.
In fact, her original plan had been to borrow some money from the handsome boy sitting beside her.
[You failed to borrow money from Yamada Ryo. Since neither of you could afford to pay for the ramen, you both ended up working at the restaurant entrance to attract customers as a way to repay your debt. Thanks to your exceptional good looks, business at the ramen shop boomed.]
[Like how Stand users are drawn to each other, your chance encounter leads to lively conversations about all sorts of strange topics. Before long, you exchange contact information.]
[You and Yamada Ryo have become friends.]
"So certain choices even trigger special memories ...?"
Kazami Haru raised a hand to rub his temples, surprised by the unfamiliar memories that had just flooded into his mind.
This made him frown slightly.
Did the simulator completely replicate the target's personality?
Or... was it actually making the real Yamada Ryo participate in the simulation?
If he could see these simulated memories, then...
Could the people he simulated see them too?
What if one day, his dumb choices got exposed, and a certain heroine showed up at his door with a knife?
He just wanted to mess around for fun, not get stabbed into someone else's punchline.
Was it just his imagination, or did this shitty simulator just hesitate for a second?
[You and Yamada Ryo occasionally exchange a few casual messages on Line, but they remain superficial.]
[Yamada-san is naturally aloof and prefers solitude, so there has been no real opportunity for your relationship to develop further.]
[A new day arrives, and as usual, you plan to head straight home after school. However, Yamada Ryo suddenly messages you, asking if you'd like to buy a ticket to her band's Live House performance for the special "friends-only" price of just 3,000 yen.]
[Faced with her invitation, you decide—]
1. Accept the invitation. A mere 3,000 yen isn't a big deal for you.
2. "If you're treating me, I'll go."
3. Decline—I'd rather go hang out with the popular red-haired girl from my class.
4. Virtual reality—experience it firsthand.
"3,000 yen? That's expensive. A typical indie band's live show should only be around 1,500 yen, right?"
"Something's off... I feel woman is trying to rip me off."
Even though Option 1 was clearly the best choice to strengthen their relationship, Kazami Haru couldn't shake the feeling that something was fishy.
Option 2 required some consideration. Normally, saying something like that might lead to a bad outcome... but Yamada Ryo was not a normal person.
As for Option 3, the "red-haired popular girl" in his class... was that supposed to be Kita Ikuyo?
When had he even established a connection with Kita in this simulator?!
Sure, he had just been picking random choices for fun up to this point, but since he'd already built a decent rapport with his target, it made sense to keep pushing forward.
After all, he was really curious about what kind of rewards this simulator could offer.
So he picked Option 2.
[You bluntly tell Yamada Ryo that you'll only go if she treats you. Realizing that her sneaky attempt to profit off you has been exposed, she argues with you on Line for a while before finally giving in, selling you the ticket for 1,500 yen instead.]
[She even promises that if you come to see her band perform, she'll personally "treat you to a Monster energy drink."]
"Wait, she was smuggling her own band's tickets for profit?!"