"Speaking of which, the demo review results should be coming out soon."
Nijika steered the topic back in a more normal direction.
If this kept going, Ryo would probably start putting price tags on everyone around her.
To be honest, Nijika was a little curious about how much she herself was worth in Ryo's heart, but in order to keep Ryo from completely derailing the mood, she decided to ask about something serious instead.
The undecided riot music festival that Kessoku Band was aiming for released its demo review results in February. Online voting began in March, and selection lives were held in April. The top two bands by live audience scores would qualify to perform at the festival itself.
The competition could not be called anything less than fierce.
It would not be an exaggeration to say it was thousands of troops crossing a single-plank bridge.
"It should be fine, right?"
Kita answered first.
In the simulations, they had passed several times already. There was no reason reality would block them.
If nothing unexpected happened, then nothing unexpected should happen.
"Yeah… we've practiced for so long, we'll definitely make it."
Bocchi-chan nodded hard.
Just like Kita, most of her confidence came from information gained in the simulations.
"But I heard that SIDEROS is participating too."
"Where did you hear that from, Ryo?"
Ryo lightly spat out two words: "Secret."
People who talk in riddles really should leave Shimokitazawa.
Nijika thought there was nothing worth hiding here. Among Kessoku Band, the only one who had a close relationship with Ohtsuki Yoyoko and the others was Toru.
The possible source of information was so limited that there was not even any need for elimination.
Come to think of it, Toru had such a good relationship with Ohtsuki Yoyoko, yet across more than a dozen simulations, he had never made a move on this tsundere twin-tailed girl…
Really strange.
On top of that, Toru had not even spared Ijichi Seika, yet he unexpectedly left Hiroi Kikuri alone…
Sometimes,
Nijika really could not figure out his standards for choosing partners.
Wasn't being good-looking enough?
————
"Wheelchair, sickly, emotionless young lady… this character setup is really classic."
Toru exited the simulation, ordered some takeout, and lay down on the sofa.
This simulation's profession was a bit boring.
At first, Toru had wanted to end it early, but after meeting Tachibana Kanade, the story became a little more interesting.
"Heart disease is hard to deal with. Boosting immunity is useless, life-extending medicine cannot save her either. Developing new drugs is too late in terms of time. As for bionic organs, forget it. The technology in the simulation cannot reach that level in the short term."
Toru thought it over.
Then there was only one answer left…
Desperation.
But if Toru wanted a high evaluation at the end of the simulation, he could not do something suicidal like burning his life to save someone.
What's more…
Kita and the others would not agree.
Seeing Toru ruin his own body, these girls who deeply loved him would definitely stop him. There was no doubt about that.
"Having a girlfriend really makes the things I need to consider increase all at once."
Originally, Toru could seek out new encounters without any worries.
After getting Hitori as a new girlfriend just yesterday,
Everything became troublesome.
Hitori did not seem to oppose him having a harem, but that did not mean Toru could collect pretty girls like strays and take them all in.
It could be said that Bocchi-chan's actions yesterday had made Toru rein himself in quite a bit.
"After saving Tachibana-san, then what?"
Staring at the ceiling of the living room, Toru thought about how, in the past, when he saved people, it was always after establishing an intimate relationship.
A girlfriend was dying, a wife was dying, and he desperately went to save them. That made perfect sense.
But at present, in the simulation, his relationship with Tachibana Kanade had always remained at the level of friends. There was no ambiguous development.
Was it worth saving her?
Rationally, the answer was no.
A simulation was just a simulation. If he really wanted to save someone, doing so in reality would make more sense…
Suddenly feeling a bit cold-hearted, Toru spoke to himself inwardly.
But during the years he spent as a doctor in simulations, he had seen far too many separations of life and death. There were countless people in the world with heart disease. He could save one, but could he save everyone?
He rubbed his brow.
"I'm thinking too narrowly, but it seems I have something that can break the deadlock."
Toru quickly recalled it, walked into the bedroom, and took out a bottle containing golden liquid from the drawer where he kept treasured items.
The Elixir of immortality.
A treasure obtained during the simulation with Kagarino Kirie. Drinking a single sip would grant immortality.
The effect was somewhat exaggerated.
But using it to treat an ordinary person's heart disease was more than enough.
"If I learn alchemy, I should be able to replicate it…"
Toru gently shook the golden liquid in the bottle.
With his god-tier medical skills, he could easily conclude that this was something he could not analyze with his current abilities.
In the future, through simulations and learning supernatural methods, replicating it should not be too difficult.
"I'll use this to save her."
Otherwise, it would just sit there gathering dust.
...
After putting the Elixir of immortality into the simulator's item inventory, Toru picked up his takeout.
He ate while watching the simulation content.
During lunch break, he decided not to enter full immersion for now.
[July. You finalize your plan to climb Mount Fuji.]
[Strictly speaking, this does not count as an extreme sport. You simply want to climb.]
Why climb a mountain?
Because the mountain is there.
[The companions are simple. There is only one, Kita.]
[To be honest, among the girls you know, ninety-nine percent are physically weak.]
[Hitori gets exhausted just from going shopping. When she gets home, she has to lie down for an entire day, her muscles aching badly. Climbing a mountain is impossible.]
[Nijika is much better than Hitori, but climbing Mount Fuji…]
[Sorry, you should spare her.]
[Ryo has decent physical fitness due to her habit of wandering around shopping, but she has no reason to accompany you on a mountain climb.]
Why?
[Because she's a lazy bone.]
Fair enough.
[Hiroi Kikuri's body has been hollowed out by alcohol, and she even broke her leg in spring. You cannot bear to invite her.]
[Ohtsuki Yoyoko is also small fry. The type who gets out of breath from running. Even though she is a band vocalist, yes, truly unbelievable.]
[Before climbing the mountain, you make thorough preparations.]
[You purchase climbing equipment, protective gear, and warm clothing. Fearing that Kita might suffer from oxygen deprivation, you even buy a canister of oxygen.]
[There are four classic climbing routes on Mount Fuji: Yoshida Trail, Subashiri Trail, Gotemba Trail, and Fujinomiya Trail.]
[You prepare to choose the Yoshida Trail, the one with the lowest difficulty.]
[Mainly to take care of a girl.]
[You bring a camera and a drone for aerial filming, so your load is not light.]
[But for you, it makes no difference.]
[After reserving a mountain hut, you arrive at the foot of Mount Fuji the afternoon before.]
[A towering peak reaching into the clouds, with white traces of snow at its summit. This is Japan's highest mountain.]