As the memories surfaced, Narumi gradually recalled the first half of his life.
In this simulation, Narumi Tōru was born into a stereotypical East Asian household: a father who was perpetually absent and nowhere to be found, and a mother who worked herself to the bone raising him alone while maintaining an overpowering need for control. Together, they pieced together a childhood he felt no nostalgia for whatsoever.
After entering middle school, the suffocating academic atmosphere did nothing to spark his interest in dull, mechanical studying. His grades hovered near rock bottom year-round, and he only ever crammed at the last minute before exams—yet somehow, against all odds, he managed to get into Sōbu High School.
And now, sitting beside him, calmly instructing the chauffeur to drive toward the hospital, was a woman with short-to-medium black hair—
"Hm? What's wrong, Achē? You've been staring at me this whole time."
Yukinoshita Haruno smiled and blinked at him, her lively, radiant eyes carrying a hint of playful mischief.
"Oh my, don't tell me you've fallen for your ex all over again?"
That's right—his high school girlfriend.
In this simulation, Narumi Tōru had been born three years earlier than in reality. While attending Sōbu High, he had dated Yukinoshita Haruno as her classmate. After graduation, they went their separate ways and eventually broke up.
As for the reason they broke up…
"That won't do. Even though we split amicably back then, rekindling old flames isn't very realistic."
Haruno waved her hand lightly, making it clear she had no intention of falling in love again.
"And just like a few years ago, my mother wouldn't approve of us anyway."
"Your family's such a headache that even if I did feel like trying again, I'd be discouraged before I started."
Narumi replied with an indifferent expression, clearly not taking her rejection to heart.
"How heartless~ You know, you were the one who pursued me back then."
"How annoying~ You know, we broke up because your mom decided I wasn't good enough for you."
When exes meet again, it doesn't always have to be explosive—sometimes it's just mutual sarcasm.
Like many high school couples who get together in a hormone-fueled haze, Narumi Tōru and Yukinoshita Haruno hadn't dated out of some pure, transcendent love. It had been curiosity and mutual interest that pushed them into a relationship.
Haruno, always the model student and peerless honor roll exemplar, noticed Narumi—who loafed around all day yet somehow consistently scored above average on exams. Narumi, in turn, had no objections to Haruno's approach, given that she was outstanding both academically and in appearance. And so, naturally, they began dating.
Of course, a relationship like that is just as easy to end. All it takes is a summer graduation season and a parent's offhand comment—"You're not from the same world"—to draw the curtain.
"Given the situation, it'd make more sense if you were the one still hung up on me, Haruno."
Having fully recalled the memories of this simulated life, Narumi rubbed his temples and looked at the woman beside him, who was smiling softly.
"Oh my, why be so distant? We may have broken up, but we're still old friends, aren't we? Besides, I'm here to help you."
Haruno smiled and blinked again, her warm, spring-like smile and slightly coquettish demeanor unchanged from their high school days.
"You started submitting writing after entering university, didn't you? I've seen your short stories in a few light novel imprints. But I haven't noticed anything recently…"
But as Haruno's former boyfriend, Narumi knew that no matter how dazzling her smile was, it always concealed a carefully laid plan.
"Yeah. I've been stuck for almost half a year. Zero royalties."
Narumi admitted his identity as a writer—something he'd had ever since entering university—without hesitation.
"Compared to writing, wouldn't it be easier to just get sponsored by a rich lady~?"
Cultivating inspiration, submitting manuscripts, waiting through reviews, finally getting published—every step was exhausting. As a newcomer, those caffeine-fueled, sleepless nights spent chasing ideas resurfaced vividly in Narumi's mind.
No—for this future version of him, those experiences had genuinely happened.
"Forget about being kept. For writers, hitting a creative bottleneck is pretty common, you know."
Haruno's tone carried an implication, as if she were steering the conversation in a particular direction—and Narumi picked up on it immediately.
"Right. Writing novels is a dead end, and making money's tough. Miss Haruno, are you saying all this because you want to keep me?"
"Cough—!"
The butler in the driver's seat choked at the sudden question, though thankfully his grip on the steering wheel didn't waver.
"Oh my, Achē, what are you saying? I thought young men your age preferred to work honestly and steadily."
Haruno's eyebrow twitched, but her smile remained firmly in place.
"Not at all. High-end prey walks onto the table by itself. Hesitating even one second would be disrespectful to the kept-boy lifestyle."
"…You really haven't lost your silver tongue."
Yukinoshita Haruno's ability to maintain her aura despite clearly being at her limit was something everyone could learn from.
"If you don't tell me your real reason soon, I'll assume you're secretly in love with me and came to confess so we could get back together."
Narumi shrugged noncommittally. In his memories, he'd been summoned by Haruno via phone to their old high school, Sōbu High.
And the reason he was called was—
"…It's my sister. Yukino. You've met her once or twice before, right? Back when we were dating."
As she spoke, the smile on Haruno's face softened into something calmer.
"But I didn't tell you to go looking for her at school, did I? At this time of day, little Yukino wouldn't be in class."
She leaned back against the plush car seat, her inscrutable gaze fixed on the scenery sliding past the window.
Finally, Haruno revealed the information Narumi cared about.
"She's still recuperating in the hospital. That's where we're headed."
Clearly, Yukinoshita Yukino was suffering from some kind of illness—something that contradicted what Narumi knew in reality.
In the real world, Yukinoshita Yukino did have an exceptional older sister named Yukinoshita Haruno, but she herself was known among her peers as an unattainable ice-cold beauty, distant and unapproachable. That was Narumi's general impression of her.
In this simulation, however, the three-years-older Narumi had no particular memories of Yukino, who was no longer his peer.
He rummaged through the archive of memories in his mind and could only recall vague impressions: a middle-school girl with black hair secretly peeking at him and her sister from the corner of a family restaurant during a date, and Yukino sitting quietly at the dinner table during his first visit to the Yukinoshita home, stealing cautious glances at him from the corner of her eye.
Occasionally, the girl would say something unexpectedly sharp, calmly posing questions that were almost too incisive—but Narumi had always assumed it was just a test of "what kind of man thinks he deserves my sister."
Either way, Narumi Tōru had once stood on the same side as Haruno, viewing Yukino as a younger sister.
And that child, whom he hadn't seen in quite some time, was now most likely ill.
A normal person would probably say something comforting at this point.
The curly-haired young man pressed his lips together, raised his brows slightly, and looked up at Haruno.
"You mentioned helping me earlier. Don't tell me that has something to do with your sister too?"
Out of all the possible comforting words, he chose the least relevant one.
"You really never know how to say the right thing. You could at least pretend to ask what illness Yukino has."
"Saying nice things won't magically cure your sister. Especially not when it's something even the Yukinoshita family can't solve."
At best, this was blunt honesty. At worst, it was a complete lack of tact.
Narumi could put on an act around others—but in front of his ex, there was no need to hide.
"Hmph… now that I think about it, your occasional coldness was part of why I wanted to break up with you back then."
Haruno rested her chin on her palm by the car window, her tone tinged with mild displeasure.
"Aren't you curious what kind of illness little Yukino actually has?"
"If we're following the script, your next line is telling me."
Despite himself, Narumi was curious. In reality, Yukinoshita Yukino looked perfectly healthy—nothing suggested a hidden condition.
"It was diagnosed recently. A pancreatic disease."
Haruno spoke calmly, even while talking about her sister's illness.
"Just think of it as a type of autoimmune disease. In short, the situation's severe. If things go well, she might recover. If not… she may only have a year or two left."
Her voice, however, lacked its usual composure.
"And that child… isn't even an adult yet."
"…That's hard to accept."
"Right? I can't accept it either. Yukino's always been healthy—how could she suddenly be diagnosed with something like this? Father and mother have been beside themselves."
Hard to accept… Is this the variable affecting her in this simulation? And what does it have to do with the purpose of my run?
Narumi's expression remained cool as his thoughts strayed far from sympathy.
The black sedan slowly entered the hospital parking lot. With outwardly calm expressions, the two of them—each carrying complicated thoughts—rode the elevator up to the inpatient ward.
"At first we were shocked too, but honestly, we've started coming to terms with it. So you don't need to feel too heavy about it, Achē."
Haruno patted the silent young man's shoulder, completely misunderstanding why he hadn't spoken.
"Aren't you stuck on your novel? Maybe meeting Yukino as a patient will spark some inspiration—terminal illness themes and all. Consider it research."
"You really are a terrible sister."
Narumi replied instantly, though he knew full well that Haruno's deliberately outrageous words masked another intention.
"Oh come on. A novelist should be good with words, right? Talk to Yukino, cheer her up a bit. Letting her meet someone outside the family might lift her spirits."
They exited the elevator one after the other. The hospital corridor was filled with an unpleasant antiseptic smell, and the people they passed all wore heavy expressions.
They stopped in front of a patient room. The door was ajar, not fully closed.
Haruno smiled silently and gestured for Narumi to go in first.
After a brief hesitation, the curly-haired young man reached out and pushed the door open. Bright light poured in from the venetian-blinded window directly ahead.
Bathed in warm sunlight, a figure sitting sideways by the window naturally drew Narumi's gaze. In the sea of white light, the girl's jet-black hair—gleaming faintly—and the red ribbon tied near her temple stood out vividly.
The girl by the window was quietly reading a bunko book. Setting aside her smooth, pale skin, her flawless, porcelain-like face was mesmerizing—if not for the conspicuously obvious hospital gown she wore.
If he could ignore the faint weariness in her expression, Narumi would have mistaken her for the real-world Yukinoshita Yukino and stood there in silent admiration for a long time.
But shortly after he entered, the girl sensed his presence and lifted her gaze from the page—shattering the painting-like scene with his own hands.
The instant his eyes met Yukinoshita Yukino's icy blue ones, a thought flashed unbidden through Narumi's mind.
"…Haven't we met somewhere before?"
After a long silence, the black-haired girl spoke, her face tinged with confusion.
Yukinoshita Yukino, gravely ill, was the focal point of this simulation.
Whether it was Narumi Tōru's intuition—or the system whispering in his ear—he couldn't tell.