I have a life simulator.

Amidst the chattering of the girls, Karuizawa Kei awkwardly echoed their questions, trying to appear less nervous. She gripped her phone, which she had just hung up. The group of girls she had called over—the girls who had once bullied her—had now become her strongest protective shield.

She will never accept breaking up with you, even if it means piling lies upon lies.

[Karuizawa Megumi took a deep breath. Dressed in a blue yukata, she smelled of roses today—the perfume he had given her.]

-------------------------------------

[Ichinose Honami heard the cold, electronic voice from her phone for the thirteenth time: "The number you dialed is currently switched off. Please try again later." With each sound, the grip on something tightened, until the veins on her pale wrists became visibly prominent.]

[Ichinose Honami is an exceptional talent. Unlike you, she grasped the true nature of Karuizawa Kei much earlier. She knew perfectly well that Karuizawa Kei would never let go of you, the lifeline she had finally found. After you listened to her past and accepted her weaknesses, she became an inescapable...parasite.]

[After failing to get through on the fourteenth attempt, Honami Ichinose threw her phone into the nearby bushes. She was now fifty meters away from Kei Karuizawa, and could clearly see the group of girls surrounding her. This expected outcome made her sneer.]

The closer the time came, the calmer her mind became. As Ichinose Honami stood guard in this grove, a deep and quiet weariness welled up within her, as if she no longer cared about anything, as if nothing mattered anymore. At this moment, she finally didn't have to worry about her family, her classmates, or others. This forgetfulness brought her a long-lost sense of peace, a bottomless peace.

Just yesterday, she regretted wanting to go back to those earlier moments—whether it was when she buried Hotaru, when they went hiking together, or even when she first visited him in the hospital. But now, Ichinose Honami no longer thinks about those possibilities, because she is already in this reality.

She saw the boy walking towards her with two candied apples in his hand. As he approached Karuizawa Megumi, he visibly paused in surprise.

[As expected, he didn't expect that Karuizawa Kei would try to exploit his gentleness and play the victim to prolong that fake relationship. If he were truly understanding of relationships, he wouldn't have wasted so much time on him.]

[Honami Ichinose opened the greeting card in her hand. This birthday card hadn't been thrown into the fire and consumed by flames as you might have thought; instead, it had been left in the corridor and picked up by Honami Ichinose later.]

"I hope you can trust your heart and make judgments. I hope you can care more about yourself. If a situation arises where you have to sacrifice yourself to save others, don't abandon yourself without hesitation. You're not an omnipotent angel, nor are you a prisoner born with original sin."

She...it seems she still can't do it.

[Just like now, she only wants to give up herself again for you, for the person she likes, and solve the Karuizawa Megumi problem once and for all.]

Honami Ichinose sheathed the sword in her right hand and silently walked towards it.

-------------------------------------

The moment you see the girls surrounding Karuizawa Megumi, you understand her self-righteous trick, but your first reaction isn't anger at being betrayed, but a strange sadness.

Perhaps you shouldn't have accepted their confession back then, perhaps you shouldn't have accepted their past, perhaps...

An eerie atmosphere permeated the air; the sweet scent of roses carried a hint of decay within it.

You take a step forward.

[Another figure approached Karuizawa Megumi even faster than you; her shadow fell in front of you, and the right hand of that shadow gleamed coldly.]

The blade shot towards Karuizawa Megumi's chest like an arrow released from a bow.

You instinctively step forward, your speed in that instant so fast that even you are amazed.

A cold, painful sensation washes over you; you feel your strength draining uncontrollably from your body, as if your bones are shattering. The nerve endings in your vision feel like they're being severed, and the information entering your pupils grows increasingly scarce. Soon, darkness finally descends.

Finally, what comes into view is a magnificent display of fireworks bursting in the sky.

[Day Fourteen: On the night of the fireworks festival, you blocked the blade that Ichinose Honami was about to use to stab Karuizawa Megumi. Under their grief-stricken and shocked gazes, you died.]

This simulation will last for fourteen days. You may choose one talent to retain, which will be automatically used in subsequent simulations.

[Congratulations to the player for achieving the ending: Dreamlike Dream]

[Dream: You couldn't save anyone, but the good news is: you won't have to witness a more cruel future. Like a dream, may you rest in peace.]

Chapter Twenty-Three: The Third Simulation

[Congratulations to the player for achieving the "First Clear" achievement and receiving one Talent Refresh Card (Purple)]

[Talent Refresh Card (Purple): Refreshes any talent; the new talent will always be purple level.]

[Congratulations to the player for achieving the achievement "I Want Them All" and obtaining a permanent talent slot.]

【I want them all: Three or more story CGs are triggered in a single simulation】

[Permanent Talent Slot: Players gain one additional initial talent slot, currently allowing for the selection of six initial talents.]

[Congratulations to the player for achieving the achievement "Two Girlfriends in One" and receiving one Talent Upgrade Card]

[Two Girlfriends in One: Gain the affection of two important female characters in a simulation]

[Talent Upgrade Card: Upgrades the selected talent by one quality level. Gold talents cannot be upgraded. Applicable to initial and fixed talents.]

[Congratulations to the player for achieving the "Regret" achievement and receiving a temporary talent card.]

[Regret: First time achieving a Bad End]

[Temporary Talent Card: Can be used at any time during the simulation. After use, the player will definitely gain a talent that is beneficial to the current situation. The quality is random.]

[Chapter 1 Completion Objective: Find and correct the turning point in Ichinose Honami's life. Completed. Final overall score: 69 points]

[Congratulations on clearing Chapter 1! We are currently drawing rewards based on your score.]

[Congratulations to the player who has won the reward item: Ichinose Honami's Blessing]

[Ichinose Honami's Blessing: You will never obtain a white talent when drawing initial talents]

[Current highest rating: 69 points]

[The first chapter has three remaining simulation attempts. Players can choose to simulate the first chapter again, or they can choose to end the first chapter with a comprehensive score of 69 points. The remaining three simulations will be completed by default with a score of 69 points, and rewards will be issued accordingly.]

"finished?"

Mechanically tapping the screen, Ryo was still immersed in the afterglow of the second simulation. The lifelike characters and genuine emotions in the second simulation were more attractive to him than the rewards he received afterward. So much so that even when the screen automatically returned to the beginning of the game, he was still thinking about the girl in Ichinose Honami's story.

Ryo originally thought that he had drawn the "A Promise is a Promise" gold talent, which could be said to have maxed out basic favorability, and that the second simulation should go more smoothly. However, he did not expect that the second simulation would still end in tragedy. Although the game determined that he had indeed completed the first chapter and completed the task of changing Ichinose Honami's past, the system score of only 69 points showed that he had not completely completed the game.

On the game's initial screen, the title of the second chapter is already lit up; it was unlocked after the first chapter was completed.

"Karuizawa Kei's Autumn Lies".

Is she the main character in the second chapter?

Liang frowned slightly. Unlike Ichinose Honami, he was not very familiar with Karuizawa Kei. However, judging from the second simulation, what this girl had encountered and faced was worse than that of Ichinose Honami, the protagonist of the first chapter, and her personality was also more twisted.

My eyes were a little sore, so I put down my phone, closed my eyes, and went through the entire second simulation again from beginning to end.

Through the words "False Love," "She and His Cat," "The Actor," and "The Last Fireworks Fade Easily," he could feel Ichinose Honami's struggle and entanglement, as well as the final stab she gave him. Thinking about this, Ryo himself was somewhat glad that the simulation had ended. He couldn't imagine what kind of ending he would face if he had personally stabbed his childhood friend, Ichinose Honami, and he didn't want to imagine it.

She deserved a better ending.

Liang splashed cold water on her face, reopened the game, and selected the first chapter without hesitation:

[Ichinose Honami's summer is recreated.]

"Then let's make this summer come again."

-------------------------------------

"If we're talking about retaining talents, the only truly valuable talents from last time were the gold 'A Promise Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold,' the purple 'Tokyo Handsome Guy,' and the blue 'Beauty Protector.' Actually, looking back now, 'Tokyo Handsome Guy' and 'Beauty Protector' were also the hidden reasons for the second simulation bad ending. It was because of her high personal charm that she attracted Karuizawa Megumi. If she hadn't had the 'Beauty Protector,' she might not have been able to block that blow in the end. Although, even if she hadn't blocked it, it would still have been a bad ending."

"The importance of keeping one's word lies not only in the fact that it is a golden talent, but also in the fact that it can raise Ichinose Honami's favorability to a high level from the beginning, so if you want to keep it, it is still the best choice."

Liang sat back down at the table, quickly thinking and making a decision.

You have chosen to retain "A Promise is a Promise" (Golden Talent)

[A Promise Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold (Gold): You are incredibly lucky to have grown up with the heroine of this chapter as childhood sweethearts. Your youth was intertwined, your lives intertwined and inseparable. At no time will you abandon the other, even if you are sometimes unexpectedly stubborn, shameless, or meddlesome. (She is the one who accompanied you day after day, from naivety to maturity, through the school years, through gossip, and through the passing of time.)]

"I get a feeling... of a subtle irony."

[This talent has been fixed. Do you wish to start the third simulation?]

[Ding - Life Restart Simulator simulation has started.]

Please name your character.

[The player chose to name themselves Kitagawa Ryo]

[Named]

The third simulation of Chapter 1 will follow next.

Chapter: Ichinose Honami's Summer Revisited

Six talents have been randomly selected for the player, as follows:

[Unforgettable (Gold): You possess an extremely mysterious past, which you can no longer recall much of, as if your past memories were magically erased. (Unlocking this talent will unlock the hidden endings 'Oedipus Rex' and 'Salvation')]

Oedipus Rex: Fate will always follow in your footsteps until it brings you the future it has chosen for you.

[Salvation: Let's make a promise here, that we'll go a long way together from now on]

"...I remember this talent appeared during the first simulation, but it was called Heart-Piercing and Bone-Cut, a purple talent, and it didn't appear in the simulation."

After flipping through her previous notes, Liang found the description from before.

"These two endings seem to be a happy ending and a bad ending, respectively."

[Master of Romance (Purple): You have an extremely keen understanding of women's psychology, making it easy for you to win their favor. (This talent has some negative effects.)]

"This negative comment is exactly the same as the previous one, 'Tokyo handsome guy'."

Liang sighed softly. If his talent didn't become particularly weak later on, he was already prepared to replace it.

[Dream Weaver (Purple): You are skilled at weaving dreams and possess the ability to spy on and slightly influence other people's dreams (Codename: Red Pepper)]

"Superpowers? What does Red Pepper mean?"

Liang frowned and went online to look up relevant information.

"Paprika, an animated film directed by Satoshi Kon, tells the story of a near-future psychiatric research institute in Tokyo that develops a machine that can reflect the dreams of others in order to treat the increasing number and severity of mental illnesses among modern humans. With the help of miniature digital cameras, dreams are displayed on a monitor, making it easier to find the root cause of a person's anxiety. The female protagonist, as a doctor, enters the dreams of others to provide mental therapy through the device. Her name in the dream is Paprika."

"interesting."

[Pet Owner (Blue): You have a well-behaved, intelligent, and human-like pet cat. (It's just a cat, but perhaps you could call it 'Firefly'?]]

"...Is it possible that the heroine of the first chapter is not Ichinose Honami but this cat?"

When this talent appeared, Liang was speechless as he recalled the little cat that had bewitched him in the first simulation, causing him to pet the cat at home every day. In the second simulation, a white cat with the same name "Ying" also appeared. He never expected that he would encounter this talent again in the third simulation.

[Combat Proficiency (Green): You have mastered a certain level of combat skills (only a certain level)]

"Something is better than nothing."

[Close Friend (Green): You have a close male friend of the same age with whom you have a close relationship]

"If this were a woman, I would definitely refresh this page..."

[Cultivating Talents and Achieving Some Assets]

[Small Assets (Blue): You own an 80-square-meter property and five million yen in savings. (The property is located in Tokyo)]

[Solidating one's talent and keeping one's promise]

[Due to the initial talent 'Unforgettable,' the talent 'A Promise is Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold' has been changed to 'Childhood Sweetheart,' while the talent quality remains unchanged.]

[Childhood Sweetheart (Gold): You and the heroine of this story formed a deep friendship in your childhood, then disappeared from her life. People always unconsciously romanticize the past, weaving passionate memories and fervent hopes into the most perfect illusion. You are the Christ in her heart, and to this day, she is still waiting for you, still keeping her promise. (You are the cinnabar mark between her brows, not the mosquito blood on her palm; you are the white moonlight in her heart, not the rice stuck to her lips.)]

[Use Talent Refresh Card (Purple)?]

Please select the talent you wish to refresh.

"Pure love players don't need dating experts."

The talent "Master of Romance (Purple)" has been refreshed.

[Perseverance (purple): Striving, working hard, and never giving up. (This is the cornerstone of success.)]

"Well, it's okay."

Liang nodded and continued using the props.

[Use talent upgrade cards?]

Please select the talent you wish to upgrade.

The talent "Dream Master (Purple)" has been upgraded to "Dream Weaver (Gold)".

[Dream Weaver (Gold): You entered the world of dreams very early on, possessing the ability to peer into, weave, and structure multiple dreamscapes. (Everyone has the right to sleep peacefully in their dreams.)]

"I'm starting to feel a bit excited."

[Talent selection complete]

【Dream Weaver (Gold), Childhood Sweetheart (Gold), Unforgettable (Gold)】

[Unwavering Perseverance (Purple)]

[Pet Owner (Blue)]

[Combat Proficiency (Green), Close Friend (Green)]