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Chapter 5: The Sickly Girl and the Restarted Simulation
[Ending Rating: D, an ordinary life like everyone else, with no rewards.
Comment: I believe you chose this ending, which has nothing to do with the simulation objective, out of curiosity, right?]
The words echoed like a condescending teacher's remark, dripping with artificial cheerfulness. Narumi Toru stared at the glowing text hanging in the void before him, lips twitching into a smirk.
"Sure enough," he muttered, "if you miss the 'special event,' the simulation ends immediately—no rewards, no pity."
The text shimmered, fading like smoke.
Choosing the wrong branch midway through the game, walking down the wrong route, missing the heroine's flag—it all led to the same result. A dull ending.
He couldn't help but think of it like one of those dating sims he used to mock. In every story, there was always a fateful girl. Maybe in this one, Yukino Yukinoshita was his destined heroine—the one who waited for him behind all the wrong endings.
Like a princess trapped in a tower, or the classmate who falls from the sky in a cliché romantic comedy. The "true route" girl. The one whose story only unlocks after you've conquered every other path.
Was it difficult to win her over?
"Yes," he said aloud, grinning faintly. "It's very troublesome."
But troublesome didn't mean impossible.
And in Narumi's mind, that only made it more interesting.
A flicker of light pulsed across the void.
[Simulation Reset Confirmed.]
The voice returned, crisp and amused.
[Restarting from previous save point.]
The world reformed around him—bright white spilling into color.
And then, as if nothing had happened, he was back. Back in the car, beside Haruno Yukinoshita, just before he opened that hospital door for the first time.
---
"Hey, what are you standing there for? Narumi, are you shy?"
Haruno's teasing voice snapped him out of his brief daze. Her lips curved into that familiar mischievous smile.
"No," Narumi replied smoothly. "I'm just worried that your little sister might fall in love with me at first sight because I'm so handsome."
"Yukino?" Haruno laughed, eyes narrowing. "Pfft, you're definitely not her type. Besides, I try to keep smooth-talking, seemingly warm but secretly cold guys like you away from her."
Narumi chuckled. "I'm grateful you didn't deny the handsome part. Clothes make the man, after all. And my silver tongue helps too."
"Being good at talking is a plus," Haruno said lightly, though there was an edge to her tone. "But if you try to sweet-talk Yukino, I won't let you off easy."
She said it playfully, but Narumi could hear the warning beneath the smile. The older sister act was layered thick with something else—an instinct to protect, or perhaps to control.
He only raised an eyebrow, lips curving in amusement, before finally pushing open the door again.
---
Just like before, sunlight poured in through the blinds. The girl by the window—pale, slender, with long black hair shimmering faintly in the light—lifted her eyes from her book.
"Hey," Narumi greeted casually, a small wave accompanying his words. "Long time no see. Do you remember me, Miss Yukinoshita?"
"…Ah." Yukino tilted her head slightly, her tone calm but precise. "My sister's very troublesome ex-boyfriend, right?"
Narumi let out a soft laugh. "That's quite the introduction."
Though her attitude was neutral, there was a glimmer of curiosity—one that betrayed her calm front. For Yukino, this man's sudden reappearance was strange, disorienting even. The ex-boyfriend of her sister—here, in her hospital room.
In the delicate web of Yukinoshita family relationships, such a situation was a spark waiting to hit oil.
The Yukinoshita sisters—everyone familiar with them knew their dynamic was complicated.
The older sister adored the younger, but never hesitated to criticize her.
The younger sister admired the older, but always felt a step behind.
If this were some twisted yuri story, Narumi thought idly, they'd be the kind of sisters who were "too close for comfort." Deliciously tragic. Beautifully wrong.
But life—or rather, this simulation—had thrown him into the middle of it. And that made everything more distorted.
Yukino turned her sharp gaze toward Haruno. "If I remember correctly, your relationship is in the past, right? Then why is Toru-senpai here?"
Her voice was calm, but her question carried thorns.
"Sister," she continued, eyes narrowing, "you brought him here on purpose. Does that mean you approve of me attacking Toru-senpai?"
There it was—the Yukinoshita wit, icy and direct. Haruno merely smiled, the kind of soft, deadly smile that could freeze fire.
"Oh, I have no objection," she said sweetly. "If it's my beloved Yukino."
Narumi sighed quietly. Yep, this is getting weird fast.
"No way," Yukino shot back, her tone still cool. "My taste is different from my sister's."
Narumi crossed his arms. "Hmm. So what I'm hearing is… I was brought here as a peace offering?"
Haruno chuckled. "Oh, to be precise, I've been a bit busy lately, so I thought Narumi could keep Yukino company for me."
Of course, she wasn't telling the full truth. But she said it so casually that it almost sounded convincing.
"And you two haven't seen each other in a long time," she added innocently.
"…We weren't close enough to need to meet in person," Yukino murmured, her tone chilly as she turned away.
Narumi caught a small detail as she moved—the clear tubing taped to her wrist, the faint drip of IV fluid. His eyes lingered on it for a moment, a flicker of something thoughtful in his expression.
He understood then, at least partly, why Haruno had called him here. Not out of nostalgia. Not out of kindness.
But out of desperation.
So this is hospice care, huh? he thought grimly.
"Oh, don't say that," Haruno said cheerfully, sliding closer. "Narumi came because he's worried about you, right?"
Before he could respond, he felt something soft press against his arm—a familiar warmth, accompanied by a faint floral scent. Haruno had looped her arm around his without hesitation.
"That's true," Narumi said with a dry smile, glancing down at her hand. "But Yukino seems to be in good spirits."
Playing along, he slipped effortlessly into her rhythm—his easygoing charm forming the perfect social shield.
"I happen to be free," he said, turning back toward Yukino with a disarming smile. "How about we chat a bit?"
"...?"
The girl blinked, visibly confused. Her gaze flickered between her sister's serene smile and Narumi's infuriatingly calm grin.
Then Haruno clapped her hands lightly. "Good idea. I'll leave you two to it. I've got some things to take care of."
The door closed softly behind her.
Narumi sighed. "Okay, I've been tricked again."
---
Yukino leaned back against the bedframe, pinching the bridge of her nose. These two… they probably have eight hundred schemes between them.
The young man before her—her sister's former boyfriend—was now her temporary caretaker. A scenario so absurd it felt scripted.
Still, he wasn't entirely unfamiliar. She remembered his presence, his odd sense of humor, the faint distance in his eyes that made him seem detached from the world.
An NPC, perhaps. But not an ordinary one.
Narumi, meanwhile, took a seat by her bedside, resting his chin on one hand. He had read enough light novels to recognize the setup. The "terminally ill girl" trope was so predictable it made him yawn. He'd even mocked it once, calling it "melodrama for caffeine addicts."
And yet, sitting here, watching Yukino in her hospital gown, he couldn't quite dismiss it so easily.
"Let me make this clear first," Yukino said suddenly, her tone precise. "If you're planning to say something sympathetic, please retract it, Toru-senpai."
Her expression was as composed as ever—sharp, distant, utterly unwilling to be pitied.
"I'm not without hope of recovery," she continued. "So I don't need anyone's pity."
Narumi tilted his head, pretending to think. "The patient is just a normal person who's sick. Why talk like that?"
He smiled faintly. "I'll save the pity speeches for your deathbed, don't worry."
Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, he handed her a roughly peeled apple.
"Here you are."
Yukino blinked, momentarily caught off guard. The apple was uneven, the cuts clumsy—but she accepted it, holding it carefully in both hands.
"…Thanks."
For all her pride, she was polite. That much had never changed. Her strictness wasn't cruelty—it was discipline. The same rigid self-expectation she turned outward toward others, often without realizing how harsh it appeared.
Narumi remembered that clearly from before. Even back then, she was like this—calm, logical, difficult to approach, but never truly cold.
"Just like Haruno," he said softly, "you can call me Narumi, Yukino."
"…Narumi-senpai," she corrected automatically.
He chuckled. "Fine, I'll take it."
For a while, silence filled the room, broken only by the faint hum of the air conditioner. Then Narumi spoke again, tone light.
"How does being sick affect your daily life? You're a high school sophomore, right? Should be the busiest time of your student life."
Yukino looked out the window. "Aside from the illness itself, there's really no impact. I won't fall behind in my studies or activities. I just have a little less free time."
"Wow," Narumi murmured. "So that's what it means to be a top student. Even illness can't slow you down."
His words carried no mockery—just quiet admiration laced with irony. He leaned back slightly, remembering something.
"Hm… if I recall, you joined a club after school. The Service Club, right?"
Her eyes widened slightly. "…How did you know that, senpai?"
He grinned. "Hiratsuka-sensei told me."
It wasn't entirely a lie. Hiratsuka had indeed mentioned something about it before this simulation began—how he should try joining.
"So, it's some kind of club that helps people fulfill wishes?" he asked, half-joking. "The name's a bit misleading though. Sounds… dangerous."
Yukino sighed softly. "That's not quite right. The club's goal is to teach people how to solve their own problems, rather than do it for them. We've only just established it, though, so we haven't recruited anyone yet."
Narumi nodded slowly. "Makes sense. Teach a man to fish, not hand him a fish."
Then, without warning, she turned the question back on him. "Speaking of which, is the reason you're so concerned about me because of my relationship with your ex-girlfriend's sister?"
Sharp, direct—definitely Haruno's sister.
Narumi smirked. "No. It's just because you're cute."
"—?"
Yukino froze, visibly flustered. Whatever retort she'd prepared tangled in her throat.
"What?" Narumi asked innocently. "I'm just stating facts."
His tone was so casual it almost disarmed her. The faint blush that had crept up her cheeks vanished just as quickly as it came.