Averting his gaze from her, Yuu stared at the piercing afternoon sunlight outside the door.
The temperature in May was already approaching summer. Though not as scorching as the intense summer heat, seeing the girl's pale white arms and sleeveless dress, he knew that despite her unhealthy body, she couldn't resist wearing thin clothes.
If only she weren't the type to sweat easily, perhaps now her smooth, firm, and flawless white skin would be coated with a thin layer of crystalline sweat.
It was somewhat hard to imagine Kanade sweating profusely. Yuu shook his head, closed the door to block out the wave of heat from outside, and entered the living room.
The girl sat upright in the chair, holding the cup he had bought and placed there a week ago. Like an obedient cat, she sipped the room-temperature lemon water from the cup.
Perhaps the heat had subsided, or maybe she had finally arrived at a soothing place. She narrowed her eyes comfortably, and her small dangling calves swayed slightly.
"Did you come to play with Sora? Where's Isshiki?" he asked, picking up the straw hat she had placed on the table and twirling it casually, like a certain red-haired man.
Kanade set down the cup, pursing her moist and clear sakura lips. She met his eyes and replied: "Iroha is still working part-time at the cafe. I just returned from the hospital."
Yuu's movements halted. He unconsciously furrowed his brows. "Are you okay?"
Though he could do many things and had received many rewards from the system—the one thing he still couldn't do until now was restore Kanade's health, who had heart problems. It was his unsolved blind spot.
Forget accelerating medical progress; even with Yuu's Perfect-level Learning skill, if he started researching medicine now, he would need at least one or two years to read all the knowledge related to internal cardiology and surgery, and then find ways to accumulate various experiences in a major hospital, before he might be able to help his underclassman.
Regardless of whether he could do it, that would clearly be very inefficient. It was better to pray that the system would soon bestow upon him an all-purpose panacea that could heal all wounds and illnesses.
Fortunately, this was a test world created by the system. As long as he didn't complete the mission before graduating high school, he would return to the starting point and begin anew.
So, if he truly wanted to heal her, he could directly use this reincarnation rule, using the mission completion time to research medical methods, isolating himself for five or six reincarnations, and after finding a healing method, he could quickly complete the mission, return to reality, and heal her.
Or, rely on the omnipotent power of the system's wishes...
In any case, solutions were always more numerous than difficulties, but none of them could be used by him at present. Every time he thought about this, Yuu rarely felt helpless, just like when facing this mission clue.
"Relax."
Suddenly, the girl's soft and peaceful voice pulled him out of the chaos of other thoughts.
At some point, she had already stood in front of Yuu, looking up and staring straight into his eyes.
"The check-up results are quite good. Although it can't be fully cured yet, the condition can be stably controlled as long as the treatment continues."
As she tiptoed, the tips of her cold fingers gently touched the crease between his brows, rubbing it as if trying to smooth it out.
At the same time, a sincere smile gradually appeared on her always expressionless face.
"I wanted to be the first person to share this with Yuu-senpai, so I came right after finishing my treatment... Thank you for worrying about me so much."
Yuu also lowered his head to look at the girl who was twenty centimeters shorter than him. After contact with those warm pale golden eyes, many words melted away unconsciously.
"...Sure?"
"Yes, sure."
Kanade answered his final question calmly and firmly.
Although his heart was relieved, and he indeed hadn't seen her suffering from illness lately, due to some old-father mentality, Yuu still couldn't help but advise her:
"Don't push yourself. I know you won't lie, but hiding your illness because you're afraid I'll worry, don't do that... Tell me if you feel unwell. Even though I can't cure your disease, there are many things I can do."
"Yes, I know." Kanade smiled a little resignedly. She suddenly remembered something. She tilted her head and winked at him, "Or, want to listen?"
"Listen to what?"
"My heartbeat. Right now, it should be very healthy."
"Heartbeat..." Unconsciously, Yuu glanced at her flat chest, which was almost the same size as his sister's.
As if committing an indecent act against a saint, he quickly averted his gaze awkwardly: "Ahem, better not. Next time, if there's a chance."
"I see." Kanade seemed a little regretful, for some reason.
Regardless of her response that lacked self-awareness/self-defense, Yuu smiled again: "But with this, your parents should be able to let you go out for fun, right?"
Kanade's parents weren't too strict, and they quite respected their daughter's privacy. Yuu had never been warned by anyone even though he came to this single senior's house repeatedly...
However, traveling far was different. If her condition was unstable, Kanade had to return to the hospital immediately for a check-up. If she went to a place where it was hard to call an ambulance, no one could bear the responsibility if something irreparable happened.
So Yuu had heard that Kanade never participated in out-of-prefecture excursions, like graduation trips and autumn trips, and always took sick leave.
If her condition stabilized, perhaps she could regain her youth and gradually recover the things she couldn't experience in the past.
"I remember, you once said you wanted to go fishing by the river? In that case, why not start planning it now?"
Kanade blinked: "Now?"
Yuu shrugged: "It doesn't have to be now either. After all, summer vacation is still far away, so let's plan long-term!"
"..."
As if unable to avert her gaze, Kanade quietly stared at his enthusiastic appearance. On her small porcelain-white face, a brighter smile bloomed silently.
"Yes, I'll look forward to it very much!"
Yuu, for a moment, couldn't avert his gaze.
Such a smile, if described as beautiful, still carried a bit of childish spoiling; if described as cute, it couldn't hide the elegance behind it.
However, it was not contradictory at all. On the contrary, these two feelings merged evenly in a harmonious and gentle way.
If Yuu truly had to find one word that could describe it definitively, it might only be called...
(Angel's smile.)
As this thought emerged in his mind, accompanied by a faint heartbeat, Yuu suddenly realized one thing.
Until now, he had completed many achievements, accomplished many brilliant feats that ordinary people might never achieve in a lifetime.
However, there was only one thing he had never experienced since childhood, even after completing so many achievements—
Love/Dating.
Could this system want him to find a girlfriend?