"The director seems to have added some features to the cards. They can show the current affection level, and if you successfully win someone over, you'll even get some kind of achievement. I have no idea what it's for—what's wrong, God of Conquest?!"
Elsie looked at Keima Katsuragi in surprise. His expression had grown even more serious than before, and light seemed to gleam in his eyes behind his glasses.
How could a gamer possibly turn down something like this?!
"Ahem."
Keima coughed twice to calm himself, then looked at the card on top.
It showed a girl with short amber hair and an adorable face that rivaled Elsie's. Her figure, wrapped in the same school uniform, was even more striking.
This was practically a game character illustration, wasn't it?
[Name: Kushida Kikyo]
[Current Affection: 0%]
Keima pushed up his glasses and quickly flipped through the cards in his hands. Then he looked around. The inside of the bus was almost identical to the one in his original world. If he hadn't experienced it himself, he would have found it hard to believe he'd actually crossed into another world.
"It looks like this bus's final stop is the school we're about to enroll in. Maybe some of our classmates will be on it too."
Just then, a clear voice rang out from the front.
"Um, everyone! Could someone please give this elderly woman a seat?"
Keima immediately fixed his gaze on the source of the voice, narrowing his eyes slightly.
The speaker was none other than Kushida Kikyo, the girl he had just seen on the card.
She looked a little anxious, and beside her stood a hunched elderly woman.
Keima quickly glanced around at the other passengers. None of them seemed inclined to give up their seats.
Just then, Keima's eyes fell on someone else.
She was undeniably beautiful, with features as refined as Kushida Kikyo's, if not more so. Her long black hair fell to her waist, with a bow on the right and a long braid. Her foxlike eyes were captivating, but her face was expressionless, giving her a decidedly aloof air.
Keima had seen her on one of the cards, too.
[Name: Suzune Horikita]
[Current Affection: 0%]
Perhaps noticing Keima's gaze, Suzune turned to look at him.
Their eyes met—
Suzune frowned.
[Current Affection: -3%]
"?"
Keima's brows lifted slightly.
Could their affection level really drop just from making eye contact the first time they met?
That had to be the kind of thing that happened in a game on the highest difficulty setting.
"What do we do, God of Conquest?! Her affection level dropped before we've even started!"
Elsie sounded nervous.
"It's fine."
Keima smiled and pushed up his glasses.
Affection levels could go up, too.
Suzune's drop in affection had actually given Keima some information, helping him gradually understand what kind of person she was.
She was probably the type who was hard to get along with.
Besides, making an impression on her was already a decent start.
"This is starting to feel like playing a game."
Volume One: You Just Looked at Me, Didn't You?
"I'll do it."
A second later, Keima raised his hand and smiled at Kushida from across the bus.
In dating games, intimacy and the number of times you met were directly related.
All you had to do was keep watering the flower until it bloomed.
And bore fruit.
When meeting a female character for the first time, the most important thing was to leave a lasting impression.
Getting her to remember you mattered more than anything else.
Judging by Kushida Kikyo's actions, she seemed like the most common kind of character in games: a kindhearted girl who was always eager to help.
If he wanted to raise her affection level, doing something similarly helpful in front of her seemed like a good choice.
Keima stood up and helped the elderly woman into his seat.
Kushida Kikyo smiled and walked over to him.
"Thank you so much!"
"You're welcome. It was the right thing to do," Keima replied with a smile.
They were standing close enough for him to catch the faint fragrance coming from Kushida.
Next, he just had to steer the conversation a little.
"Hey, from your uniform, it looks like we go to the same school. Are you a first-year student, too?"
"I am! What a coincidence! Today's my first day! You're a new student, too, right? Maybe we'll even be in the same class!"
"Let's get along!"
Keima chatted with Kushida for a few more minutes, and quickly determined that she was outgoing and friendly. She could talk about just about anything, and always struck the perfect balance in her choice of topics, tone, and wording. She was clearly very good at socializing.
Keima himself, however, wasn't especially interested in socializing in the real world.
Games were enough for him.
How could real girls possibly be as cute as game characters?!
Keima didn't notice the pair of slightly languid eyes watching him as he talked with Kushida.
"The final stop, Advanced Nurturing High School."
The announcement sounded, and the bus pulled to a stop at its destination. Everyone got off.
"Keima, would you like to go to the school together?" Kushida asked politely.
"I still have to take care of something with my... little sister. Go ahead, Kushida. Maybe we'll run into each other on campus later."
Keima looked behind him and pursed his lips.
"Wow! Keima, you and your little sister both got into this school? Your family's amazing! I'll head to my class, then!"
"Why don't we exchange contact information first? If we're assigned to different classes, we might be able to help each other out!"
As he spoke, Keima took out his phone.
Although he had crossed into another world, he'd discovered that his electronic devices still worked—though only in this world. He couldn't contact anyone from his original one.
If he could successfully exchange contact information with her, he'd be halfway there.
He'd be able to talk to her more easily every day and make sure she kept noticing him.
That was one of the most important parts of cultivating a relationship.
The more often you appeared in front of a female character, the more efficiently you could raise her affection level.
"Huh? There's no need, is there? Don't you know? Once we enter the school, they'll confiscate all our electronic devices. We won't be able to use our phones! And we're required to live on campus, so we'll be staying here throughout high school!"
"Huh?"
At Kushida's words, Keima felt a bolt of lightning shatter his heart. He froze in place, as stiff as a board.
What did she mean by...
confiscate all electronic devices?
Did that mean they'd confiscate his handheld console, too?!
Did that mean he wouldn't be able to play any games?!
And they had to live on campus?
Did that mean...
he wouldn't be able to buy any games from this world, either?!
Unacceptable! Unacceptable! Unacceptable!
This world could do without anything else, but it absolutely couldn't do without games!!!
"Are you all right, God of Conquest?"
Just then, Elsie came over and patted Keima on the shoulder, bringing him back to reality.
"I—I'm not all right at all! You didn't tell me they'd confiscate electronic devices! What about my PFP?! What am I supposed to do without my most important partner?!"
"I didn't know either! But if you want me to, God of Conquest, I can help!"
As she spoke, Elsie touched her Feather Haori. Keima's handheld console immediately shrank to the size of a coin.
"That should help it get past the search!"
"Elsie, I knew I could count on you!"
Keima wore a grateful expression and patted Elsie firmly on the shoulder. Then he suddenly remembered something and turned around.
"Hey, where's Kushida?"
"She left while you were standing there in a daze! She seems like a really nice girl! I remember she's one of the targets, too! You seemed to get along well just now. Her affection level must've gone up quite a bit, right?"
"Let me check."
Keima picked up Kushida Kikyo's card.
In an ordinary dating game, he thought, he'd made a pretty good first impression.
[Name: Kushida Kikyo]
[Current Affection: 0%]
"Zero?"
Keima rubbed his chin with his other hand.
From every angle, his first interaction with her had gone well. Surely her affection level should have increased at least a little.
Which meant—
Kushida Kikyo wasn't as simple as she seemed.
That was important information, too.
"Wait, what's going on? That can't be right! You two seemed to be getting along so well! Surely it should've gone up at least a little! Even a fraction of a percent would count!"
Elsie was clearly getting anxious and hurriedly asked him.
"It's fine. Getting started is always the hardest part. This is normal."
Keima pushed up his glasses.
That warm, friendly demeanor was probably just Kushida Kikyo's outer shell.
If he wanted to raise her affection level, he'd have to slowly find a way into her heart.
What was she really like?
Before you continue