My Love Simulation with Them

Early the Next Morning

Already awake, Minami unhesitatingly climbed out of his still-warm bed. After a quick wash and a change of clothes, he began his morning jog.

[Your physical fitness has slightly improved. Your exercise stat has increased. Current exercise stat: 7.]

"Exercise stat increased?"

Wiping his sweat and drinking water, Minami stared at the sudden pop-up notification and tapped open his status panel.

Sure enough, under his personal attributes, his exercise stat had risen to 7.

This rapid increase made Minami pause and think.

If the average person's exercise stat was around 5, then his 7 points should make him stronger than the average person but still weaker than a professional athlete.

The exercise stat likely became harder to increase as it went higher.

Without professional training, most people might never break past 8 in their entire lives.

And if left unused for a while, his newly gained 7 points could very well drop back down.

With this realization, Minami understood why the increase had been so fast.

Unlike intelligence stats, which had a built-in "talent" component, the exercise stat relied heavily on effort in addition to natural ability.

"But still, having my exercise stat increase means my overall physical fitness has improved. That's a good thing."

Feeling his more energized body, Minami was rather satisfied.

He never planned on competing in sports events, so just having a healthy body was already a great benefit.

At the very least, it lowered the chances of him dying due to physical neglect in the simulation.

"Alright—time to get ready."

Today, he was meeting Yamada Ryo, so he figured he should put in some effort.

He casually pulled a shirt from his wardrobe and took out a pair of casual pants to match.

Once fully dressed, Minami stood in front of the mirror, staring at his reflection for a long time before frowning.

"What's going on?"

The 17-year-old face in the mirror was clean and pure, with high cheekbones and bright eyes that seemed to sparkle.

And then—

"Why do you still look so damn good today?"

His frown gradually eased into admiration as he marveled at his own reflection.

[Your special trait "Narcissism" has greatly increased. Your Narcissism level has risen. Current Narcissism Level: 3.]

"...Huh?"

The sudden system notification left Minami frozen for a moment.

Seeing the glaring "Narcissism LV3" text, he truly started to suspect that this cursed simulator was malfunctioning.

How was this possible?

In this world, the only person he knew with Narcissism at Level 3 was Miss Yamada.

According to the system's grading:

LV1: Amateur beginner LV2: Elite amateur LV3: Professional level

"Are you telling me my narcissism has caught up to Miss Yamada's in just one week?"

Minami found this incredibly hard to accept.

He was genuinely convinced now—this cursed system had completely mixed up confidence and narcissism.

Miss Yamada had cultivated her narcissism since childhood, refining it over more than a decade.

And yet—

He had managed to match her progress in just one week?

This had to be some kind of joke!

"This system seriously needs an update; it's obviously bugged."

Minami thought with absolute confidence.

As for doubting himself?

That was simply out of the question.

Would he, Minami, ever have a problem?

Ignoring the system notification, Minami tidied up his room and headed out.

Once outside, he didn't immediately decide on a direction. Instead, he stood still and took out his phone.

Wearing a crisp white shirt, he stood under the gentle morning sunlight. The golden glow accentuated his sharp features, giving him a relaxed yet effortlessly charismatic aura.

A few high school girls on the street, who had been shopping, immediately noticed him.

They whispered among themselves, trying to guess his identity.

"Is he an actor?"

"Maybe a singer? He's so good-looking..."

"A model, perhaps?"

Unaware of their discussion, Minami focused entirely on his phone.

Tokyo's No.1 Pretty Boy: Where are you?

The Lonely Bass Freak: I'm here. (Location attached.)

"Hmm?"

Minami glanced at the address Yamada had sent.

It wasn't far from his home—about a ten-minute walk. That meant saving some money on train fare, which was a plus.

But—

"Why does this place seem so familiar?"

He pondered for a moment but decided not to overthink it. Putting his phone away, he began walking in the direction of Yamada's location.

However, as he walked, the sense of familiarity grew stronger.

And then, halfway there, he finally realized—

"Isn't This the Way to 'Riko-Riko'?"

Yes.

In the simulation, he had walked this path to Riko-Riko countless times.

Just past the next corner, on the right-hand side, stood the cozy café with a wooden signboard, exuding an atmosphere of tranquil, everyday life—Riko-Riko.

Minami hadn't expected that the restaurant Yamada Ryou invited him to this time would actually be Riko-Riko.

Fate truly worked in mysterious ways.

In the simulation, he had racked his brain, tried everything he could, and even had to play through a second time just to unlock the Riko-Riko café as a new scene.

Yet in real life, all it took was casually agreeing to an invitation, and Riko-Riko was unlocked just like that.

Which meant, according to the simulation's logic—

If he did absolutely nothing except accept Yamada's invitation, he could directly establish a connection with Nishikigi Chisato?

Upon realizing this, Minami found himself at a rare loss for words.

So all that effort he put into tailing people, studying tailing techniques...

What was the point of all that?

He couldn't seriously have wanted to become a stalker of beautiful girls, right?

Shaking his head, Minami continued walking forward.

"Hmm..."

Taking out her phone, the short-haired girl with deep blue hair blinked expressionlessly. A small tear mole at the corner of her eye added a touch of lazy elegance to her charm.

Sitting at the café's counter, she glanced at the message from Tokyo's No.1 Pretty Boy:

"On my way."

Resting her cheek on her hand, she took a sip of her coffee.

"How is it, ma'am?"

The bespectacled female barista at the counter inquired.

"It's good."

Setting down her intricately carved coffee cup, Miss Yamada propped her chin up with the back of her hand and, in an almost professional critic's tone, remarked:

"The initial taste is bitter, but it quickly gives way to a sweet aftertaste. The beans must be of high quality, and the hand-drip technique is quite refined. Both the aroma and flavor are impeccable."

Her usually lazy gaze sharpened as if she had seen through every secret hidden within the cup of coffee.

And then—

"Since it's so good, would you mind paying your bill now? That'll be 1,500 yen, including your hand-drip coffee and the leftover curry rice for takeaway."

"..." Yamada Ryou.

"My friend is almost here."

As if a little embarrassed, she withdrew her small hand and replied with a blank expression.

"...Alright then."

The Riko-Riko barista, Mizuki Nakahara, let out a small sigh upon hearing the blue-haired girl's response.

She hadn't expected to encounter a dine-and-dasher on her shift.

And judging by the girl's attire—her outfit was made up of rare vintage pieces, the kind that were expensive simply by being hard to find.

Someone like that… couldn't possibly be unable to afford 1,500 yen, right?

Mizuki didn't want to make things difficult for the girl, but Riko-Riko was struggling financially, and 1,500 yen wasn't exactly a negligible sum...

Just as she was thinking this, the bell at the entrance chimed.

"Welcome—huh?"

Mizuki started to greet the customer but froze in place the next second.

No particular reason—just that the young man who had just stepped into the café was unreasonably good-looking.

The way his eyes glanced over, there was a kind of pure, refreshing clarity to them that was hard to put into words.

Even though he was wearing the simplest outfit—a white shirt and black casual pants—

He still somehow exuded an effortlessly fresh and striking presence.

However, in the next moment—

CLANK!

The sharp screech of a chair being pushed back abruptly shattered the serene atmosphere.

At the same time, the cool and lazy blue-haired girl stood up and walked toward the young man.

"Minami!"

"Hmm?"

The young man—called "Minami"—paused in surprise, his gaze briefly meeting Mizuki's.

The blue-haired girl, now the center of attention, let her cold and languid expression melt away.

She raised her head, her amber-colored eyes locking onto the black-haired youth in front of her, as if she had countless things to say.

But in the end, all the unspoken emotions condensed into just one sentence—

"Give me money. 1,500 yen."

Her fair, delicate hand stretched out, her face dead serious.

"..." The black-haired youth.

The moment she said it, he couldn't help but glance at the blue-haired girl in front of him, then at Mizuki, who was still frozen in shock.

Seemingly realizing what had happened, the black-haired youth unhesitatingly walked up to Mizuki.

But instead of paying the bill outright like Mizuki had expected—

He grabbed the blue-haired girl by the back of her collar and lifted her up like a kitten.

"How about you keep her here to wash dishes instead?"

"Uh? Huh?!"

Mizuki's mouth opened in surprise, unable to process how things had escalated this way.

"There's nothing to be confused about. This is the consequence of trying to dine and dash."

Facing Mizuki Nakahara's stunned expression, Minami completely ignored Yamada's gaze.

What kind of joke was this?

1,500 yen?

If Yamada had even the slightest clue about his current financial situation, she wouldn't have had the face to say something like that.

At this moment, Minami finally understood—

Why, in his second playthrough of the Nishikigi Chisato simulation, this option had appeared:

["The woman, Yamada Ryo, actually secretly took me out for a meal while I was researching music and film. I guess I should tie her up and correct her properly?! (BRUTAL SEGGS)"](Chap 76)

So Yamada really had mooched a meal off him and never paid him back?

Classic Yamada.

"What?!"

Hearing Minami's words, Yamada Ryou blinked her cold eyes in surprise.

She reached out with her small hand and tugged at his sleeve.

"Minami, do you really have to be this cruel?"

Though her expression remained indifferent, the way she tilted her head and gently pulled at his sleeve was undeniably adorable.

If this were a typical anime or light novel protagonist, upon seeing the heroine act so pitifully, with such a soft voice, they would probably soften up and begrudgingly pay the bill.

But—

"A broke man like me is crueler than you think."

Minami wasn't falling for it at all.

Raising a beautiful girl's affection level?

He needed to have enough money to keep himself fed first.

Besides, after facing off against Yamada in the simulation so many times, he knew full well just how extravagant her spending habits were.

"Let me guess—originally, you had enough money to treat me to a meal, but then you passed by a nice music store, couldn't resist the temptation, and went in for a look."

"Minami… how did you know?"

Although Yamada's voice still sounded as composed as ever, the sudden rise in pitch completely gave away her inner turmoil.

She genuinely hadn't expected Minami to figure it out so accurately.

"Your guardian spirit told me."

Minami kept a straight face and continued his nonsense.

"Your guardian spirit tells you even things like this? Does that mean it also saw what kind of underwear I'm wearing today—"

"Alright, that's enough of this conversation, Miss Yamada. So, did you buy it or not?"

Cutting her off, Minami swiftly hoisted Yamada up by the waist and tucked her under his arm, preventing her from spouting any more nonsense.

"I bought it. A black, headless Ibanez electric bass. Cost me 520,000 yen, tax included. My father said I should properly thank you as a medium, so he gave me some extra allowance."

Still expressionless, Yamada nodded and answered honestly while being held in his grip.

"Tch..."

Minami couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.

520,000 yen.

And that included a "thank-you" payment from Yamada's father?

Unable to hold back, Minami reached out and pinched Yamada's soft, pale cheek—hard.

"Ahhh—"

Yamada's calm voice let out a monotone cry of pain.

Minami, still expressionless, tightened his grip, refusing to let go until a red mark appeared on her cheek.

At this moment, he truly felt that—

Yamada's father had a point.

If you didn't have a degree from the University of Tokyo, a good job, or a solid family background,

Supporting this extravagant, reckless, blue-haired woman would be nearly impossible.

With this thought, Minami spoke without hesitation:

"Miss Yamada, your guardian spirit just told me that you must start managing your spending more wisely from now on."

But this time, the usually foolproof "guardian spirit" excuse didn't work.

Yamada blinked her pretty eyes and exposed the lie without mercy.

"Minami, you're obviously making that up."

Tch…

Why did her IQ suddenly kick in at moments like these?

Wasn't she easily fooled just a while ago?

Minami realized that sometimes, there really was no way to deal with this self-absorbed, free-spirited woman.

Just as he was about to retort, he heard a confused voice from nearby.

It was Mizuki Nakahara, a fellow Riko-Riko employee and Nishikigi Chisato's colleague.

"Guardian spirit? What's that?"