How can my simulation be a real love?

The blonde woman simply nodded slightly and then turned her gaze back to what was ahead.

Her bright golden eyes were fixed intently on the painting on the wall. Her focused and serious expression aroused a bit of curiosity in Ichiji Nijika, so she followed her gaze to the painting.

""Flowers of Summer"?"

As she murmured the name of the painting, the girl suddenly felt a sense of disorientation.

The painting "Summer Flowers" depicts a bright scene, with a large field of brightly colored sunflowers outlined on delicate paper. Beyond the azure sky, an endless landscape seems to extend, making one feel as if they can actually see that magnificent flower field and sky.

The vast world seems to be contained within this small piece of paper.

An indescribable sense of familiarity and tenderness kept welling up from the bottom of her heart.

Suddenly, Ichika felt her heart beating faster for no reason. Her gaze was completely drawn to the painting, and a gentle happiness and joy enveloped her heart.

"What on earth is this..."

This was unlike any painting she had ever seen before.

At first glance, this painting doesn't have the same strong visual impact as other paintings. It simply uses delicate colors to outline very simple lines. But it is precisely this simplicity that gives her a kind of dazed illusion, as if the 'light' in it contains some kind of captivating magic.

"What do you think of this painting?"

The older woman beside her suddenly spoke, her eyes narrowed, pulling her back from her reverie.

"Eh? Me?"

Ichi Nijika shook her head in surprise, her beautiful golden ponytail swaying gently in the air with her movements.

The woman in front of her, who looked quite gentle, was clearly a professional. It was somewhat flattering that such a person was suddenly seeking her advice.

"I...I feel...this painting is very warm..."

"Warm?"

The blonde woman squinted and muttered to herself, then lowered her head thoughtfully.

"Excuse me, is this painting your work?"

Ichi Nijika spoke somewhat cautiously.

"No, I'm not at that level."

The other party simply shook their head slightly, which made Ichiji Nijika feel inexplicably relieved.

In fact, the moment she saw the painting, she realized that it was very special to her. It was a type of painting that Ichiji Nijika had seen countless times before, and the oil painting and the bright colors were particularly unique.

She seemed to be able to rattle off the name of the artist who created the painting at any moment.

However, she wasn't sure.

"Excuse me, is this painting very impressive?"

"This is the only decent thing to see in the whole venue."

The other party's merciless criticism startled Ichiji Nijika, and then she looked around in a panic.

You should know that many artists will be coming to see this art exhibition. If this lady's words are overheard, it could cause a lot of trouble.

But the blonde woman seemed completely unconcerned, and continued speaking to herself—

"The lines and space are not at the level of monsters that should be exhibited in this venue. In particular, the color and light and shadow are simply at an extraordinary level. Just in terms of pure technique, it can crush all the paintings here."

"However, this painting seems to be a rough draft that was casually thrown out that night, and it doesn't feel like the creator's emotions at all."

"Even so, it could easily sell for several hundred thousand."

Hundreds of thousands?!

The sudden appearance of such a high figure left Ichiji Nijika feeling a bit dizzy, especially after hearing that it was a so-called 'draft'. She didn't know what to say, even something that was just casually drawn could sell for hundreds of thousands.

Artists are terrifying!

"However, more than the value of the painting itself, I'm curious to see what kind of monster the artist himself was."

“Every year, the Youth Exhibition has an age limit; participants must be under twenty years old.”

Perhaps it was these words that suddenly awakened Ichiji Nijika, and she stared at the painting with trembling eyes.

Just then, an extremely absurd idea suddenly popped into her head.

45

Chapter 45 Ming doesn't like me at all.

"..."

With her delicate eyebrows furrowed, Iji Chikuni gazed intently at the painting "Summer Flowers." The complex expression on her face, filled with entanglement and melancholy, aroused a sense of curiosity in the blonde older sister.

Judging from her appearance, she should just be a cute high school girl who knows nothing about painting, so why is she making that expression?

The girl's expression made her raise an eyebrow, and she asked in a calm tone, "You seem to have a different opinion on this painting?"

"Huh? I don't understand any of this..."

Suddenly called upon, Ichiji Nijika frantically waved her small, white hands, her head shaking rapidly like a rattle drum. However, the blonde older sister still accurately captured the fleeting hesitation in the girl's eyes.

Such unusual emotional fluctuations are truly surprising.

"It's okay, just tell me how you feel."

"Eh?"

The blonde girl, her eyes darting away, looked at the painting "Summer Flowers" with a hesitant expression, her conflicted thoughts ultimately overwhelmed by complex emotions.

"Is it something like 'light and shadow'? The use of color and light in this painting must be quite impressive?"

Ichi Nijika doesn't understand the so-called art of painting.

In Ichi Nijika's view, paintings are far more profound than music, which is easy to understand. Naturally, this level of understanding is not enough to judge the quality of a work. Even if a painting is very impactful, she can only barely say "amazing".

Her understanding of painting art is at the level of a standard, ordinary person.

Even such an ordinary girl has a special feeling for this painting.

"However, I think this painting might be just as you said, big sister... perhaps the creator didn't put much emotion into it. I imagine the person holding the paintbrush probably subconsciously had a serious expression when painting?"

"But when he finally finished 'Summer Flower,' he must have had a smile on his face, right?"

As she spoke, the girl couldn't help but chuckle softly.

With her hands behind her back, the blonde girl tiptoed, her petite figure carrying an orange backpack as bright and pure as a legendary 'flower fairy'. Before she knew it, her bright red eyes had been tinged with a serene and gentle light.

The girl seemed to yearn to touch the painting, and gently raised her right hand towards the sky.

No one but him could paint such a picture.

The gentle smile in her memory gradually overlapped with the figure in reality, and the girl, whose thoughts were drifting into the sky, seemed somewhat lost in thought.

The blonde woman standing beside her stared at the smiling girl with utter astonishment. Dressed in a kimono, she seemed to suppress her shock as she exhaled a breath of stale air, and spoke with a meaningful look in her eyes—

"...It really didn't expect you to give such an answer."

Upon hearing this, Hongxia was momentarily at a loss for words and hurriedly bowed to her, saying anxiously, "I'm so sorry! I really don't understand at all, I was just going by feeling..."

"No, you're right."

The blonde woman, her face expressionless, stood with her hands tucked into the sleeves of her kimono, explaining with a serious look in her eyes: "The brilliance of this painting lies in its 'light' and 'color.' Its use of light and shadow, which is completely ahead of the art world, is why I call it a 'monster.'"

"It's hard to believe that this was done by a young man who is not even twenty years old."

Genius? This isn't even a question of genius.

Even if the modern Impressionists, who were equally skilled in color, came here, they would probably have to admit defeat to this superb use of color in their paintings.

How could such monstrous painting skills appear in a place like the Japan Youth Art Exhibition?

This painting is like an Ultraman bomb destroying a parking lot; it easily won the top gold medal with overwhelming power. An artist of this age could never remain unknown.

But she had absolutely no recollection of the other person's name.

"You're absolutely right, that's an excellent assessment."

"Is this like this?"

Being praised by such a professional person made Ichiji Nijika scratch her cheek shyly, but before the joy in her heart could rise, it was suppressed by more complicated emotions.

Because she was only very familiar with this painting, or rather, with its artistic style, she was able to describe it accurately; her words were simply instinctive.

However, as Ichi Nijika's guess was confirmed by professionals, the absurd idea hidden deep in her heart gradually surfaced like an iceberg floating on the sea.

However, Ichi Nijika dared not confirm it at all.

The girl's intense emotional turmoil made it impossible for her to ignore the details of the matter. Her heart was beating so fast that it felt like it was about to burst out of her chest. She forced a gentle smile and turned her gaze to the information board for "Summer Flower".

The creator's name was prominently displayed above.

"delicate fragrance?"

Ijichi Nijika suddenly felt her breath catch in her throat. This seemingly unfamiliar yet familiar artistic nickname left her stunned and rooted to the spot.

The blonde woman in the kimono narrowed her orange-gold eyes and said thoughtfully, "Yuuka is his nickname; we don't know his real name yet."

Thoughts and memories surged into my mind like a tidal wave, and the figure in my mind, always sitting in front of the easel, kept overlapping with the image of him in my heart.

The girl's bright red eyes trembled violently as all sorts of memories echoed in her mind.

The warmth of his comforting hugs when she kept making mistakes during training, the comfort of leaning on his shoulder for a nap when she was tired, and the coquettish dependence on him when she encountered difficult things—those joyful and irreplaceable memories, along with her chaotic emotions, kept flooding into her mind.

Both her emotions and intuition told her that everything was exactly as she had in her heart.

Ichiji Nijika's slightly dim, crimson eyes lowered gently. She suppressed the intense panic and confusion deep within her heart, and with a slight tremor in her eyes, she managed a soft, faint smile.

"...Thank you so much for telling me so much, but I suddenly remembered there are still some things I need to talk about..."

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the distraught blonde girl turned and left.

There's no point in letting things remain in this chaos; she has to find the answer.

……

Even in autumn, the Hanasaki River still retains the youthful charm unique to girls' high schools.

The late autumn sunlight shone through the gaps in the golden leaves of the forest, illuminating the fair and delicate face of the black-haired girl. Shiina Ritsuki, holding chopsticks and a panda-patterned bento box, sat under a tall ginkgo tree and casually popped a sausage and octopus from the bento box into her mouth.

pat.

A familiar black aluminum can of coffee was placed beside him, and Hachiman Kairin, who was also holding a lunchbox, stood in front of him expressionlessly.

"Can I sit down?"

"...No need to ask about that. Just sit down if you want."

After receiving permission, Yawata Kairin sat expressionlessly next to Shiina Tatsuki, and they both gazed at the stadium bathed in sunlight.

Girls sweating and expending their youth are a daily occurrence at this girls' high school, but these activities are completely unrelated to the two of them.

As Hachiman Kairin gazed up at the boundless blue sky, a mix of emotions welled up within her.

Ever since Kazami Naruto invited her on a date, she has been lost in thought. Unable to simply refuse or agree directly, she is clearly not as carefree as usual. Being invited on a date is still something she could not have predicted.

After all, compared to Li Xi beside her, she didn't seem to have much of a womanly charm.

Suppressing her chaotic thoughts, Hachiman Kairin, who maintained a calm demeanor, casually asked, "How is it?"

"I've already said I'm not considering that right now..."

I was referring to your band's performance.

With an expressionless face, Hachiman Kairin raised her elegant, jade-like emerald green eyes and looked at the 'suicide infantryman' beside her with a meaningful gaze.

"what……?"

Holding the lunchbox, Ms. Lixi's delicate face flushed red at a visible speed. Speechless, she uttered an incomprehensible sound: "The performance can only be described as... quite successful, right? After all, there were no problems from the start to the end of the live performance."

"What about him?"

"It's so unexpected," Yawata Kairin blurted out.

"So, is this still the question we're going to ask?!"

The previously quiet and peaceful atmosphere was instantly shattered, and the embarrassment on Ms. Lixi's face, who couldn't help but complain, seemed to solidify into a tangible expression.

Seeing her nervous and flustered appearance, Hachiman Kairin smiled gently, as if she had expected Shiina Tatsuki to have such an interesting reaction.

Perhaps because Shiina Ritsuki always habitually reveals her emotions and inner thoughts, Yahata Kairin vaguely sensed something from her reaction, but outwardly remained calm and said lightly—