How can my simulation be a real love?

"Deputy...Deputy Store Manager?!"

Just as Toyokawa Shoko thought she had regained her peace of mind, she slowly raised her head. Suddenly, she noticed that the familiar blonde shop assistant was looking at her with a surprised, bewildered, and somewhat incredulous expression.

The other person's strange expression caused Toyokawa Shoko's expression to gradually freeze.

Why did you look at her like that?

pat...

Suddenly feeling a dampness on the back of her hand, Toyokawa Shoko realized that her face was constantly warm.

Realizing what was happening, she suddenly widened her beautiful eyes, which were gradually dimming. Then, she subconsciously reached out to touch her cheeks, and the mist that had been spreading turned into hot tears that welled up in her eyes.

With a look of utter astonishment, Toyokawa Shoko's eyes widened as she finally realized what had happened to her.

The ink on the notebook had somehow become soaked and blurred, and the 'portrait' she cherished most was wrinkled from the water stains. The boy's trembling fingertips tried to touch the portrait on the notebook, hoping to give himself a little comfort.

But because of uncontrollable trembling, he accidentally tore a hole in the portrait.

The tear in the paper seemed to rip open her heart at the same time, and intense pain and an unbearable feeling of suffocation quickly followed.

she cried?

A wave of fear washed over Toyokawa Shoko, her eyes widening as she instinctively reached out to wipe away the tears welling in her eyes.

Why is she crying? Why did she suddenly burst into tears?

She had already made up her mind after 'that time'; as [Toyokawa Shoko], she would never cry again.

No matter what, she will maintain the most resolute and calm attitude. No matter what happens to her, she will never shed another tear. This is how she should be, and this is how she must be!

Her shattered hard shell rendered her unable to think, revealing her soft, unperturbed inner self.

……

"Assistant store manager, it's almost time to leave work, isn't it?"

Is this the 40th time already?

Seventy-five times?

Or perhaps ninety times?

Miss Toyokawa, who had an exceptional memory, seemed to have lost her ability to remember. She, who was originally absolutely confident in her own 'strength,' was now like a fragile and comical doll, endlessly repeating the same cycle of mistakes. The notebook she used to write down doubts was also no longer in her memory.

Toyokawa Shoko has lost count of how many times she has failed, but she remembers every single event that occurred during those failures.

For example, she remembers that her last 'failure' was losing to someone she never expected.

"Xiao Mu..."

What utterly shattered her inner courage was Toyokawa Shoko's childhood friend, and also her soul's 'half-body', Wakaba Mutsuki.

Having failed countless times, she had gradually become numb, but after being 'defeated' by her own self, Wakaba Mutsu, the despondency she had almost forgotten surged back into her heart.

The emotions that filled her were no longer motivation and stubbornness; a faint bitterness, accompanied by almost numb thoughts, completely occupied her mind.

Since the 'thirty-first time', she has become absent-minded, weakly and timidly carrying out what she considers to be her most conservative plan.

Having exhausted all her courage, Toyokawa Shoko no longer dared to try to take that step.

This naturally led to her constant failures, repeated attempts, and being trapped in this so-called 'cycle' until now, after countless failed attempts, she is filled with emptiness and inferiority and no longer dares to step out of the shop.

"...Anyway, it's bound to fail again."

"After all, I am so weak and have done many things that I have wronged everyone."

Exhausted and unable to move, Toyokawa Shoko could only mutter to herself, realizing that she seemed utterly unworthy to stand beside Kazami Mei.

Having failed countless times, she also learned a lot from this experience, realizing that everyone in this 'dream' seemed to be alive.

Without their own knowledge, each of them fell in love with Ming. Their awareness of this love was much stronger than their own, compared to their own, who only cared about falling in love with Ming without caring about his feelings at all.

They were the ones who wholeheartedly considered each other's feelings; they were the ones who truly loved Ming.

They're so completely different from people like me!

"Assistant...Assistant store manager? Are you alright?!"

Shoko Toyokawa fell silent, her eyes dim as she stared straight ahead, unable to respond to the terrifying cries from beside her.

She simply stepped into Rabbit House's staff break room, locked the door, and curled up alone in a corner, burying her face in her hands.

A profound sense of exhaustion and despair permeated every corner of her body; even her burning blood seemed to have cooled, and her trembling soul gradually turned into a wisp of smoke.

……

[End of simulation]

The black-haired boy sitting at his desk pressed his knuckles against his forehead. Even without looking in a mirror, he knew his eyes were bloodshot. Every simulated 'memory fragment' had flooded his mind, and the sense of powerlessness brought on by the continuous failures made it difficult for him to calm down.

Unable to make choices in the simulation, Kazami Naruto is now as if he is forcibly tied to the audience, watching the simulation fail time and time again. This feeling is naturally not comfortable for him.

However, Kazami Mei did not complain; he simply exhaled a breath of stale air.

"Should this be the hundredth simulation? Or the hundred and first?"

Because there was no way to 'choose', Kazami Mei could only try to change her mindset in reality to increase the probability of following Xiangzi's path. This method still had some effect until the middle of the journey.

However, after about thirty simulations, it completely lost its effectiveness.

Kazami Mei vaguely remembered the 'influence' he had brought, which indirectly led to several simulations reaching the critical point of success.

But just as she was about to cross the finish line, Toyokawa Shoko suddenly turned around and ran behind her.

“I originally thought that ‘Run Away’ could reach the level of Aine… that’s practically an insurmountable ceiling.”

"I really didn't expect there to be people more capable than me, and that there's always something beyond my understanding."

Kazami Mei let out a soft sigh; the aching and numbness in his nerves made him feel physically and mentally exhausted.

I thought Teacher Da Xiang would be the easiest to win over, but now she's become the hardest.

Even if it's not a fully immersive 'personal simulation,' experiencing a large number of 'memory fragments' is no joke. Even the 114 'resurrection armor's' that I was originally full of confidence for now only have a mere ten or so left.

"..."

Kazami Mei silently rubbed her temples, trying to get herself back into a good state.

Those who repeatedly fail in simulations will naturally receive a consolation prize from the simulator, but this reward, which is closely related to the simulated object, is also limited. After dozens of attempts, what you get is basically all 'gifts'.

"...But as a result, I also gained a bunch of strange skills, such as wilderness survival, basic medical care, and even driving a steamroller."

"If we try a few more times, maybe we can even fly a fighter jet or something?"

Kazami Mei couldn't help but chuckle to himself, then turned his attention back to the simulation panel.

It's 5:30 in the morning now.

Kazami Mei actually shares a similarity with Toyokawa Shoko: they are both unusually stubborn about something! Even though he has conducted hundreds of simulations and tried various methods, only to fail in the end, he still wants to try all the remaining opportunities.

Afterwards, Kazami Mei would often wait until she failed before considering anything else.

If he were to give up on the people he likes so easily, he probably wouldn't be qualified to take on the responsibilities of everyone's lives.

"As long as we keep moving forward, the road will continue to extend."

Mr. Kazami took a deep breath, accepted the situation, and adjusted his mindset. He looked at the simulator panel with a serious attitude again. His notebook on the desk was filled with dense writing, but his right hand was still tightly gripping the pen.

"restart."

【Simulation starts】

This morning when you woke up, you seemed to have made a decision about something. Even if you weren't sure why you wanted to do it, you understood that even for the sake of an uncertain future, you had to be prepared at all times.

This feeling fills you with motivation, and artistic inspiration begins to flow freely.

[You're not going to miss this opportunity to be bursting with 'zero-sense energy,' so you've decided to take a day off today and spend the rest of the day at home drawing up the artwork for the exhibition.]

However, unexpected things always happen. Just as you took out your paintbrush to add a base color to the pristine white paper, a phone call suddenly pulled you out of your thoughts. You discovered that it was actually from the coffee shop's landline number.

So, you decided—

[1. It's probably just a routine business matter, but you're currently in a precious time for inspiration, and as a hands-off manager, you're choosing to ignore it.]

[2. Even though sudden inspiration is hard to come by, you still believe that the coffee shop should be dealt with first.]

The two 'options' that suddenly popped up on the panel caused Kazami Naruto's pupils to contract slightly as he sat there.

"Options? Why now?"

101

Chapter 101 The Fate of Toyokawa Shoko.

You decide to prioritize matters related to the coffee shop.

Faced with this sudden choice, Kazami Naruto immediately came to his senses. The two options that appeared this time were obviously 'special options' that had to be chosen quickly. Not only that, but he couldn't even 'personally simulate' them.

This means that if he pauses for a few seconds, the simulation options will run automatically.

Fortunately, he reacted quickly and made up his mind without any hesitation.

"...What's going on? There wasn't a single option that appeared in all the previous simulations, so why is it different this time?"

"Not only that, the beginning of the 'simulation' is also different from before. Could it be because I in reality have successfully influenced the simulation?"

Countless questions surfaced along with the options, and Kazami Mei, unable to find a solution, could only suppress his doubts for the time being and concentrate all his attention on the simulation, because he didn't know if the options would appear again in the next simulation.

This is probably an extremely rare opportunity!

If this opportunity is missed, Kazami Mei doesn't know if the simulation will make any further progress.

"..."

To be honest, Kazami Mei was still somewhat uncertain about the outcome.

The 'special option' he had just encountered left him with no choice but to rely on his instincts, but in reality, the meaning of either 'handling café affairs' or 'staying home to paint in peace' was rather ambiguous.

In the dozens of previous failed simulations, there were occasional instances where he went to the coffee shop but did not see Xiangzi.

However, at this point, Kazami Mei can only keep her head down and keep going.

You discover that the call is from a staff member at your coffee shop. Through her description, you learn that the 'assistant manager' who usually oversees the entire coffee shop seems to be having some problems. She seems inexplicably depressed, but after running into the staff break room, she hasn't come out again.

The shop assistant wants you, as the store manager, to come and take a look in person.

[But you know that Toyokawa Shoko is a very strong-willed person with a very high sense of pride. Your decision to entrust the café to her was a sign of your trust in her. But now, her management is showing signs of problems, and even her own health is starting to deteriorate. You realize that it's probably time for you to make a decision.]

So, you decided—

[1. Forcibly taking your courage back from her would likely severely damage her self-esteem, so you decide to place absolute trust in Toyokawa Shoko.]

[2. This matter is no longer about Toyokawa Shoko's face and dignity; you must prioritize her physical condition, so you decide to focus on helping her adjust her current state.]

【3. Virtual Reality, Personal Simulation】

The two options made Kazami Naru's pupils slightly narrow; the special option that appeared again was quite tricky.

Whether it's the first point, "Consider Xiangzi's dignity and give her your trust," or the second point, "Disregard everything else and prioritize her physical and mental health," both of these points are based on Xiangzi's well-being in Fengjianming's eyes, and theoretically, either one is correct.

"..."

This is no ordinary choice.

Right now, even the options that appear are all 'special options' with time limits, and both seem very suitable; the appearance of two options at the same time also means that there will definitely be 'traps', not giving Kazami Mei enough time to think.

He understood that this so-called 'dignity' was Xiangzi's last act of stubbornness. No matter how close he was to the real-life Xiangzi, she still dared not tell him her last thoughts, because she did not want to remove the fig leaf of dignity from him.

But is it a matter of dignity now?

"Xiangzi is actually more fragile than I imagined."

Kazami Mei seemed to suddenly remember something and looked down at the notebook lying open in front of her.

The notebook with the wisteria pattern was filled with neat and elegant handwriting, but the dense arrangement of the characters was unsettling. These were all the problems he had summarized after the previous simulation failure, and the hundreds of memory fragments flooding into his mind also allowed him to fully understand the other party.

For Toyokawa Shoko, losing her dignity was probably worse than death.

But Kazami Naruto carried the belief that he would walk with her for the rest of his life. Having decided to hold her hand, he couldn't let her face the challenges alone. Even if the stubborn girl didn't want to be a 'burden' hiding behind him, he at least had to ensure that the two of them could walk side by side.

"it is good."

A faint smile gradually appeared on Kazami Naruto's face before he refocused his attention on the simulation panel.

Recalling the fragments of memories that had been flooding his mind, he made up his mind after only a moment of silence.