"Free time begins!" Platinum stretched lazily, rubbing the tears from the corners of her sleepy eyes, and muttered to herself as she lay alone in the hall.
Doesn't this feel just like a galgame? A limited timeframe, with numerous heroines waiting to be "conquered"... or rather, to build relationships with.
Outside of advancing the main story, you use the daily free time to deepen bonds with different heroines, raising their affection levels. Once a certain threshold is reached, you can progress their routes.
...Comparing it like that does feel kinda scummy, but Platinum had her reasons for thinking this way.
Heck, if playing a real-life galgame could actually cure her illness, Platinum would gladly do a one-legged split and spin 3,600 degrees on the spot.
So, who should she approach during this afternoon's free time? Platinum sat up from the lounge chair, buzzing with anticipation.
First, rule out Agnes Tachyon—just an old lady who's already a teammate. According to the classic RPG rule where allied characters get nerfed, spending limited time on her would only result in more medications and injections.
As for the sisters... um, better not comment. Platinum feared she might not make it out of their room alive if she went in.
Sham looked too intimidating, clearly a high-difficulty route. Next.
Urban Sea seemed cheerful enough, but these sister-complex types are actually the hardest to befriend... Wait, not "conquer"—build rapport with. It's not like she could just wear Sea the Stars's outfit and go see her. Next.
After that round of elimination, the only option left seemed to be Agnes Digital.
Though Platinum had already ruled out Agnes Digital as an anchor point, it wasn't entirely impossible. Besides, you've gotta start somewhere.
Agnes Digital might seem a bit odd, but she was trustworthy—why else would Symboli Rudolf entrust both her and the sisters to Agnes's care?
...Even if it kinda went against her principle of avoiding close contact with people she'd have to see regularly, rules were meant to be broken.
Sometimes you have to adjust them to fit the situation.
No time like the present. Platinum rubbed her tail, which had been pinned under her all afternoon, and wobbled her way upstairs.
"Agnes Digital's room... should be this guest room, I think." Muttering to herself, Platinum knocked on the door.
Now that she thought about it, Platinum felt a bit nervous. She didn't have any particular connection with Agnes Digital. She'd slept through the entire flight, and besides knowing the other girl liked Uma Musume, she knew nothing about her.
Charging in like this—what was she even going to say? She was outgoing enough to chat with herself, but she had zero experience talking to strangers.
Her social circle was limited to long-time acquaintances or dominant figures like Symboli Rudolf who'd forced their way into her life.
The more she thought about it, the more terrified she became!
Leaving Platinum alone on a lounge chair to do nothing all afternoon would make her perfectly happy, but making her lie down with someone she couldn't even talk to?
That'd be like sitting on pins and needles—every second would be torture.
Just thinking about it made Platinum panic again.
Maybe... she should sneak away now, before Agnes Digital opened the door?
Now that she thought about it, treating real life like a galgame was utterly stupid.
What possessed her to come up with such a disgusting, self-torturing plan?
Seriously, her brain must've been malfunctioning earlier. Platinum wished she could travel back five minutes and slap some sense into herself.
Go, go, go! Run away now! If Agnes Digital asked during dinner, "Oh, who was knocking on my door this afternoon? I opened it but no one was there," she'd just say, "Actually, I saw Agnes Tachyon playing pranks."
"...Just a moment, I'm coming." A muffled voice came from inside the room just then.
Eek! Every hair on Platinum's body stood on end. It honestly felt like an alien was behind that door.
With a creak, the wooden door slowly opened.
"Tachyon, what is it?"
Her hair was pulled back by a pink headband, blue-light anti-myopia glasses perched on her nose, wearing floaty pajamas and fluffy slippers, with a cooling patch stuck to her forehead—Agnes Digital was still dressed like a total homebody.
Not hearing Tachyon's lazy drawl, Agnes Digital looked up curiously. When she finally saw who was standing at her door, every hair on her body stood on end too.
Eeeek! Why was it Platinum, not Agnes Tachyon?
They weren't close, were they?
Ah, no, that's not what she meant—she really, really liked Platinum, but it was that kind of idol admiration.
Agnes Digital wanted to see Platinum galloping on the track, wanted to see her wearing all sorts of dresses dancing on the winner's stage, so she could wave her glow sticks wildly from the audience, reveling in the joy of watching her idol grow.
Being asked by Symboli Rudolf to join this Hong Kong trip already felt like winning the lottery to Agnes Digital. Immense joy flooded her heart.
But she knew her place... Since Symboli Rudolf had entrusted her with taking care of these two, her role was probably something like a bodyguard protecting them!
Of course, she wasn't dissatisfied—in fact, she felt incredibly happy... Getting to be this close to her oshi? Wasn't that the ultimate bliss?
But to avoid disturbing her oshi's normal life, Agnes Digital had been restraining herself with almost ascetic discipline... The fact she hadn't lost it yet was solid proof.
Miss Agnes Digital was trying very, very hard.
Anyway, their relationship was bound to remain that way. Once this strange journey ended, they'd return to their daily lives with zero overlap, and she'd continue watching her beloved idol from afar...
So why was Platinum seeking her out now?
What was this? What was happening?
If she had to compare it, it was like in a novel when the knight and princess are traveling together.
One night, as the knight sits keeping watch by the campfire, the princess suddenly sits beside him and says, "I can't sleep, will you stay with me?"
Unless you're a knight from Dark Souls, your first thought wouldn't be to roll away and slash the princess, but that a romantic story starting with the bridge-shaking effect was about to begin, right?
That's exactly what Agnes Digital was thinking right now.
Wait, she must have crossed over to a parallel world... Maybe even a galgame world!
Agnes Digital already had the title ready: Heart-Thumping Autumn Memories ~ A Rhapsody of Holiday Bliss in a Hong Kong Mansion ~.
There was simply no other way to explain this situation.
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.