The system—so adept at catching Narumi Tōru off guard—appeared once again, signaling that the second simulation was right around the corner.
[Based on your behavior in the previous simulation, you're the type who triggers a number of secondary endings before finally going for the perfect one. This is somewhat time-consuming for both your experience and my data collection, so I've made a small adjustment to your abilities this time.]
In short: one life, one clear.
[This way, you'll be more driven—doing everything you can to reach that "best ending." It shortens the overall game flow and significantly reduces my workload. Thank you very much.]
Hey, you just want to slack off, don't you…?!
[Additionally, while staying in the simulation for extended periods doesn't negatively affect your physical body in reality, it isn't exactly healthy for you mentally. I don't want these experiences to bleed into your real life, so I'll be using additional hidden settings to help speed up your progress.]
It sounded considerate, but somehow the way it would be implemented felt like it might be unexpected.
[All right. The rest is for you to explore on your own. I'll appear when explanations are necessary. Please enjoy your second simulation.]
The moment the system's voice faded, Narumi finally snapped out of the daze caused by focusing inward on that mental conversation.
Just moments ago, he'd returned to the venue entrance with Yamada Ryō under the glow of the setting sun. He glanced to the side—only to find that the canned coffee he'd left on the steps was gone. The surroundings that had been bathed in orange twilight were now illuminated solely by the stark white light of streetlamps.
As his vision fully refocused, Narumi turned around. Yamada Ryō—who'd been casually looking around just a second earlier—had vanished as if she'd evaporated into thin air.
Which meant one thing.
The second simulation had already begun.
Narumi surveyed Shimokitazawa, now swallowed by night, then shifted his gaze back to the entrance. The door stood open against the wall, and above it, the LED sign reading "OPEN" glared brightly.
Restless noise spilled out from inside, as though some event was about to start. After a brief moment of thought, Narumi stepped forward and headed inside.
If this simulation began at the live house entrance, then the original "Narumi Tōru" must have intended to go in. Which meant that someone important to this simulation might appear here.
He passed through the dimly lit corridor, turned the familiar corner from memory, and was greeted once again by the stage setup and front desk he knew so well. The only difference was that, now that business hours had begun, quite a few people were gathered near the stage, waiting for the performance to start. The noise he'd heard outside must've come from them.
Good. No discrepancies from my memories here. In that case, maybe…
Narumi's eyes darted around as he desperately searched the sea of moving heads for a familiar face—
Only for a golden figure at the front desk to notice him first. Narumi shifted his gaze and met her eyes.
Standing at the counter, greeting customers, was the owner of the place.
Ijichi Seika.
"Ah."
Narumi's shoulders twitched instinctively. Having worked here for so long, seeing the boss diligently doing her job always gave him the illusion that he'd been caught slacking off—
And on top of that, her gaze didn't look particularly friendly.
No way… In this future, am I still working here? And I don't even get to slack off on the job?
"Hey. You're only showing up now—what's that supposed to mean?"
With a stern expression, Ijichi Seika strode over, slung an arm around Narumi's shoulders, and started hauling him toward the front desk.
Narumi was still completely lost, his mind blank—just like in the first simulation, when it took getting into Yukinoshita Haruno's car for his memories to gradually return. This time, too, he needed a bit of loading time.
Seriously, this setup is way too user-unfriendly… Can we patch this later?!
But, just like an unresponsive government office, the system predictably offered no reply.
"Do you have any idea how long we've been waiting for you? Where'd you go off to enjoy yourself?"
"Uh, boss, well, you see—"
Just as Narumi stammered through Seika's interrogation, thinking he'd be dragged straight back to the counter to start working—
She walked right past the front desk with him.
…Oh?
And continued briskly down the corridor toward the deeper part of the venue.
What's going on…? Am I not working here in this future?
Perplexed, Narumi glanced back. A boy he'd never seen before had just returned from the restroom, brushed his hands on his clothes, and taken up position at the front desk.
That was supposed to be his part-time job.
Then why did I appear at the live house entrance in the first place…?
A not-so-good answer began to take shape as his memories slowly stirred awake. Led along by Ijichi, Narumi arrived at a room at the end of the corridor and stepped inside, greeted by warm yellow light—
Three boys around his age stood gathered in the center of the room, each holding an instrument they'd clearly been practicing with.
The moment Ijichi brought Narumi in, all three stopped at once and turned to look at the curly-haired boy, who was still trying to process everything.
"Ah, there you are! Tōru-kun~!"
The gray-haired boy sitting at the drum set put down his sticks and waved at him with a bright smile. Slender and fair-skinned, he looked almost girlishly delicate—and somehow, strangely familiar.
"You're here. We've still got some time before the show—let's run through it together once more."
The blond, lightly curled-haired boy at the keyboard stopped playing and smiled at him gently, his composed, effortless charm also stirring a sense of déjà vu in Narumi.
"You sure took your time. Don't tell me you've let it go to your head."
The guitarist, his tone cool and edged with irritation, set down his pick and fixed Narumi with a sharp pair of dead fish eyes—
This time, Narumi was certain he'd seen those eyes before.
"What are you standing around for? If you don't rehearse with your bandmates, you're the one who's going to embarrass yourself on stage—not me."
Leaving those words behind, Ijichi turned and left the room without another glance, while Narumi stood there, stunned, his eyes flicking back and forth between the three boys.
My bandmates—
Why were they Totsuka Saika, Hayama Hayato, and Hikigaya Hachiman?
Did I switch channels or something?