Simulation Complete

Sometimes she would reflect on her feelings for Kitagawa Ryo. Horikita Suzune's attitude towards Kitagawa Ryo was different from her attitude towards others. Was it simply because he was her [first] friend?

Many people have praised Horikita Suzune's long hair since then, but no one has ever given her that subtle yet real joy, like a gentle touch on the skin.

Later, Horikita Suzune realized it was because the other person was [the first].

He first saw the softest spot in his own heart, and then changed himself.

After entering university, Kitagawa Ryo spent more and more time on research.

He is the most talented one; it's completely unimaginable that he used to be a baker who owned a dessert shop.

He seemed to be able to memorize all the tedious drug instructions, experimental reactions, and chemical equations after just one glance.

Horikita Suzune was well aware of Kitagawa Ryo's goal: to completely cure Sakayanagi Arisu's congenital heart disease.

Kitagawa Ryo seems to have a morbid obsession with curing his sister's physical illness.

So much so that she often missed even Horikita Suzune's calls.

Take now, for example.

Horikita Suzune hung up the phone, somewhat speechless, and stood at the entrance of the enormous building.

The man in the white coat seemed to be out for some fresh air, and the security guard outside bowed and greeted him.

This is Massachusetts General Hospital, located in Boston. Its full name is Massachusetts General Hospital, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School.

Kitagawa Ryo caught a glimpse of a familiar figure, and after a brief moment of surprise, he smiled.

"Merry Christmas?"

"Merry Christmas."

This is a visit from thousands of miles away, spanning an entire ocean.

Kitagawa Ryo was momentarily at a loss for words.

"... Suzune's hairstyle is also very pretty today."

"Um."

Horikita Suzune took two steps forward, her long hair flying in the snowy Christmas night.

"It's for you to see."

She confirmed her feelings in this way, and then spoke:

"Perhaps what I feel for Ryo is not friendship."

[Congratulations to the player for achieving the ending: Travel Companion]

[Travel Companion: Life is like a journey, and I am but a traveler. I hope our first meeting will not disappoint those who are sincere.]

I can't take it anymore, I need to take a day off.

My body is so weak, I really can't take it anymore. A few days ago, it would take me four or five hours to write a chapter, but today I've been writing since this afternoon and I still haven't finished. Acute gastroenteritis is really killing me; my mouth is full of the taste of acid.

I am truly sorry, and I hope you can understand.

Wishing every reader good health.

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Simulation Ends

[Chapter: Horikita Suzune's Midwinter Phantom Dream]

[Chapter 3 Completion Objective: Find and correct Horikita Suzune's personality weaknesses until she is free from the shadow of her older brother Horikita Manabu. Completed. Final overall score: 100 points]

[Congratulations on clearing Chapter 3! We are currently drawing rewards based on your score.]

[Congratulations to the player for obtaining the reward item: Self of Horikita Suzune]

[Self of Horikita Suzune: Before each simulation begins, she can actively choose one talent and upgrade its level to gold.]

"Don't stand in front of me or behind me, please stand beside me."

[Current highest rating: 100 points]

[Congratulations to the player for achieving the achievement "One-Life Clear" and obtaining the item "Talent Extraction Card"]

[One-Life Clear: Achieve the goal of clearing the game with a score of 90 or higher in the first simulation of any chapter]

[Talent Extraction Card: Allows you to solidify the knowledge and experience gained in this simulation into your own "talent" form.]

[Analyzing player information in this simulation]

[The following are the talent options that can be detached]

[I. Complete medical knowledge and clinical surgical experience can be separated into the talent of a "Physician"]

[Physician (Purple): You have mastered modern medical techniques and have extensive clinical surgical experience. Your areas of expertise are cardiovascular medicine and surgery.]

[II. Complete experience in operating a dessert shop and a complete industry chain model, which can be spun off as a natural "dessert family"]

[A Dessert Family (Purple): As the sole heir to a dessert family business, you possess the rights to thirty-three dessert shops passed down through generations, along with their business philosophy and management experience.]

[III. Masterful skills and strategies for interacting with the opposite sex can be categorized as the innate talent of a "Tokyo Handsome Guy"]

[Tokyo Handsome Guy (Purple): Your personal charm is greatly enhanced (this talent has some negative effects)]

[You have selected option one]

[The talent for "Physician" has become fixed]

"Only... one new achievement, is that right?"

Kitagawa Ryo's consciousness browsed through the dense text. As the number of simulations increased, many of the easier achievements had already been unlocked. For example, the achievement [Deeply Rooted Feelings] required gaining the favor of two important characters in the story at the same time.

Kitagawa Ryo did indeed achieve this feat in this simulation, but the reward is only given for the first time it's unlocked, which is a bit of a shame.

However, the achievement reward given this time is quite novel. It's the first time I've seen it strip away the experience and things in the simulation into talents and then solidify them into oneself.

As for why [Physician] was chosen, the answer is quite obvious.

With the completion of [Horikita Suzune's Midwinter Phantom Dream], the last of the four chapters has finally changed from gray to color:

[Arisu Sakayanagi's Spring Wish].

As expected, the protagonist of the final chapter is Sakayanagi Arisu.

[The player achieved a perfect completion in this simulation, retaining all talents.]

[All talents have been fixed.]

[Currently, players possess a total of fixed talents...]

[The player currently possesses a total of... items...]

(Because the character cards are too long and might be considered padding, they will be released separately as a free chapter later.)

When consciousness returned to the body, the first thing the person saw when they opened their eyes was a red dress—no, it was deliberately made, as the body and hem of the white dress were stained with a lot of Blood Red.

He was momentarily stunned before remembering that Karuizawa Kei should have been practicing with the Theater Troupe today. Her outfit was also Lady Macbeth's classic costume, a choice to become an accomplice in the regicide alongside her husband.

Since Kitagawa Ryo left the Theater Troupe, Karuizawa Kei took the opportunity to open up a new acting path for herself, citing her dislike of other male Actor. It is said that there is a trend in the Theater Troupe to create a drama exclusively for her, after all, with Karuizawa Kei's acting skills, she is more than capable of carrying a drama as the lead.

The long skirt concealed her shapely calves, extending all the way to her rounded ankles.

Kitagawa Ryo instinctively tried to sit up, but didn't notice that his right hand was being held by Karuizawa Kei. The trembling caused by the movement was quickly noticed by Karuizawa Kei, who was standing by his side, and she turned slightly to the side.

A few strands of honey-colored long hair fell naturally from her ears due to gravity, and beneath her light, airy bangs were eyes as blue as the sea.

"Are you awake?"

How long have I been asleep?

Letting out a heavy sigh, Kitagawa Ryo used his arms to support himself as he sat up.

"It's been about three and a half hours."

"Um."

He felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders, and every cell in his body seemed to be full of energy. Kitagawa Ryo guessed that it was due to the effect of his newly solidified talent, [Strength to Carry a Tripod].

If he were to face Ayanokoji Kiyotaka again now, he should be able to establish an advantage much faster than before.

"It should be fine now."

Noticing the concerned look from Karuizawa Kei beside him, Kitagawa Ryo nodded in response.

"I'm so sorry to have worried Hui and everyone else."

Kitagawa Ryo gave an apologetic smile, and Karuizawa Kei loosened her grip on his hand, responding with a smile as well:

"It's alright, and it's rare to see Ryo show this vulnerable side."

"I don't dislike the feeling of Liang relying on me."

"Rather than saying, if Liang encounters difficulties in the future, I hope she will come to me immediately."

"Is Hui a confidante who came from some children's program?"

While replying to various messages on his phone, Kitagawa Ryo complained that although he had only been out of contact for a short time, quite a few people had sent messages to inquire about his whereabouts and express their concern.

"No, that's not true. I was always relied upon by my classmates when I was in elementary school. Whenever a girl was bullied, she would come to me first."

Karuizawa Kei pouted slightly in dissatisfaction. Despite still wearing a long dress covered in blood, she showed no trace of the madness she had been portraying on stage in front of Kitagawa Ryo.

However, I feel like the coolness has changed a bit.

As Kitagawa Ryo, who was hugging his knees and observing him as he replied to text messages, Karuizawa Kei also noticed his change.

I feel that my temperament, or rather some inner qualities, have suddenly become much more refined.

Or rather, to give her a more grounded and genuine sense of reality.

During the two years that Karuizawa Kei and Kitagawa Ryo spent together in the Theater Troupe, she always felt that Ryo carried a sense of detachment and fragility, as if he could be blown away by a gust of wind at any moment and disappear like smoke.

That's why she kept the other person constantly in her sight.

However, Kitagawa Ryo seems to have shaken off that feeling now, and this change has put Karuizawa Kei at ease.

"Is there really such a thing? I don't think Hui has ever told me this before."

After replying to all the messages, Kitagawa Ryo put his phone back. He sat there, turning his head away, a faint smile playing in his dark eyes.

"I didn't lie to Liang, the situation was..."

Karuizawa Kei shifted her body Kitagawa Ryo and began to recount her past, specifically her elementary school days before she met Kitagawa Ryo.

She recalled that she had once portrayed Kitagawa Ryo as a victim of bullying, but now, Karuizawa Kei was portraying a completely different image.

"The bullied may become the bully, but they may also become the protectors."

This is the prop description for [Self of Karuizawa Kei].

Horikita Suzune looked in the mirror, at herself, and lowered her head.

Her long hair swayed down to her waist.

"Perhaps what I feel for Ryo is not friendship."

For a moment, I couldn't tell whose voice it was, but then I realized it was myself, Horikita Suzune speaking.

My heart—no, my entire soul—felt a sudden jolt at that moment.

There was a strange, dull pain, as if my consciousness were being torn apart by sharp claws.

But a faint sense of peace and contentment welled up from the depths of my soul.

The memories of the future, the past, or another world still linger in my mind, as if I can hear the earth's pulse coming from the depths of the ground, or the low, dark, melancholic, and heavy rumble of thunder echoing in the blue sky, like the cold sound of permafrost cracking open.

Real, fake, or just pure imagination.

For fourteen-year-old Horikita Suzune, this was definitely a supernatural phenomenon.

She knew all the male and female protagonists in the story, and one of them was a girl named Horikita Suzune who looked 99% like herself.

Both in personality and actions, the fourteen-year-old Horikita Suzune is almost identical to the fourteen-year-old Horikita Suzune in the story.

She saw Horikita Manabu's self-denial, her own growth, and...