My love index is at its maximum.

Kuriyama Sakura at least has some interest in felines, but Kichikawa Yui seems indifferent to everything except herself.

The crows perched on the barbed wire for a while, then, probably bored, flapped their wings and flew away. Murakami Mizusuro followed their flight path and could just make out the small figure on the rooftop of the school building.

Ugh……

He sighed again.

That guy Tazaki is really worrying.

I'll send him all the accounts of those big-breasted girls later, see if that can warm his lost and lonely soul.

But then again, besides the cat, Kuriyama Sakura seems to be quite nice to Tazaki too. Is there any possibility between the two of them?

Murakami Mizuiro, lost in thought, glanced at Kuriyama Sakura. Just then, Kuriyama Sakura waved at him.

"Me?" He stopped, turned around and looked around. Only after confirming that the wave was being waved to him did he slowly walk over.

"Where is Tsukasa Tazaki?"

Kuriyama Sakura held her hands, her expression perfectly embodying the image of an "ice queen." Her voice was equally so; one could almost feel a chill emanating from her if speaking to her under the blazing sun.

After hesitating for a moment, Murakami Mizuiro finally pointed to the rooftop of the teaching building.

The low-hanging clouds resembled a uniformly colored gray fabric, or perhaps a lid sealing off the sky. Beneath this sealed sky, the streets of Tokyo stretched out, bathed in gray sunlight.

Stretching down from the top, among the rows of houses, Tsukasa Tazaki saw a beautiful restaurant and an old national library.

The trams entering and leaving Yotsuya Station in the distance looked as cute as toy models in the rain.

The wind, carrying a light drizzle, pattered against my cheeks, feeling slightly cool.

Tazaki Tsukasa crossed his arms, opened the system, and checked the secondary trading market.

This market serves as an advanced supplement to the existing trading market, offering fixed currency exchange, lending products, and rotating commodities. Note: Rotating commodities are refreshed on the first of each month.

Clicking into the secondary trading market will show four exchange options.

10 yen = 1 (unlimited exchange times)

[System Funds 100000: 0 (Only three purchases allowed per month. Automatic deductions next month, monthly interest rate 10%)]

[Passive Skill: Mastery: 100000]

[Master's mission: 100000]

The fact that the system's funds could be exchanged for real currency at a 1:10 ratio greatly pleased the extremely impoverished Tazaki Tsukasa. If the system could be personified as a girl, he would definitely want to give it a big kiss.

Then ask her: Which type of streetlight would you prefer to be suspended from? Wind-powered or solar-powered? White-painted or blue-painted?

Loan products with a monthly interest rate of 10%? Why don't you just die?!

With mixed feelings of love and hate, Tsukasa Tazaki clicked on the skill description for [Passive Skill: Mastery].

This is a passive skill, effective immediately upon acquisition. It accelerates the learning progress of the currently being studied category, covering all technologies appearing in the human world. (Note: Once the skill level for that technology reaches (professional level), this passive effect will no longer apply.)

The technologies that have emerged in the human world...

This means that with this skill, you can achieve twice the result with half the effort no matter what you learn.

Tazaki glanced at the available funds; there were still 15000 left.

After thinking for a while, he decided not to sell his stocks for the time being, but to borrow some money instead.

[System funds: 100000: 0, this is a loan product; 110000 needs to be repaid next month]

[Do you confirm the purchase?]

Purchased, 100000 available funds.

Current available funds: 115000

[Passive Skill: Mastery: 100000]

[Do you confirm the purchase?]

[Purchased [Passive Skill: Mastery], cost: 100000]

Current available funds: 15000

Tazaki glanced at the panel and saw the three passive skills he currently possessed in the passive skills section.

These are accent correction, neat handwriting, and the newly added comprehension and mastery.

Switching back to the secondary trading market, Tazaki Tsukasa glanced at the "Master's Mission" item, which he wasn't sure was either an item or a skill. With some rather frivolous thoughts in mind, he clicked on it.

Chapter Fifty-Seven: The conversation between the two on the rooftop about the third person.

[Master's Task]

[One-time consumable item: When used on a designated character, it will cause that character to obey your command once.]

It feels like... while being very serious, it can also be a little unserious.

This system always gives out weird and wonderful things. There were whips and gags before, which made Tsukasa Tazaki wonder if handcuffs or candles would appear next month.

After closing the system panel, Tsukasa Tazaki glanced towards the tennis court. In the hazy world, Yui Kichikawa's blonde hair stood out conspicuously.

We're in the same school, we'll see each other all the time, and running away like this isn't a solution...

He rubbed his temples in confusion, staring blankly at the Tokyo street scene, when he suddenly realized that the rain had stopped.

Looking up at the sky, I realized it wasn't that the rain had stopped, but rather that a transparent umbrella had appeared above my head. Looking further up through the umbrella, I saw dark clouds swirling low in the air with the wind, as if I could reach out and touch them with my fingertips.

"What are you doing hiding here all by yourself?" Kuriyama Sakura stood beside him, holding an umbrella in one hand. Her delicate and beautiful face looked especially pretty in the drizzle.

"Reflecting on life," Tsukasa Tazaki replied, looking at her legs clad in black stockings.

“I see.” Kuriyama Sakura nodded, her ponytail swaying in the breeze. “People who lack friends and are too lonely do have time to contemplate life.”

"Kuriyama-kun, did anyone see you come up here? I want you to experience freefall."

"There are a lot of surveillance cameras."

Tazaki could only look at her with regret, and after noticing the pleated skirt and shirt she was wearing, he asked curiously, "Isn't it gym class?"

Kuriyama Sakura also glanced at his shirt: "Aren't you the same?"

“Since you know me well, you should know that I have hated sports for the past ten years.”

Tazaki Tsukasa looked away from her, his expression calm, with a hint of 'leave me alone'.

"Me too. Although I sometimes play tennis, ski, or swim with my family, I still fundamentally dislike sports."

"That's a real shame. We'll never have anything in common to talk about in our lives. Well then..."

Tsukasa Tazaki waved his hand and turned to leave.

Kuriyama Sakura asked from behind, "Aren't you going to explain things clearly about Kichikawa Yui?"

Tsukasa Tazaki turned around and stared at her intently. A gentle breeze carrying the drizzle blew past them, causing the hair around their ears to sway and flutter.

She's a stunningly beautiful young woman with gorgeous legs; she could hold someone's gaze all day long just by standing there still. The only problem is that her desire to explore herself seems a little too intense.

With a soft sigh, Tsukasa Tazaki chose to close his eyes for the time being.

Something lingered in my mind, like a television screen with static, replaying with difficulty.

It seems to have been on this rooftop, but it wasn't raining that day; it was a sunny and breezy evening.

It was after school, and the entire campus was bathed in a magnificent sunset.

A gentle breeze rustled the cherry blossom petals, and the setting sun cast its rays into my eyes. A young man mustered the courage to confess his love. Even now, that scene is still vividly etched in my mind.

"Will you be my girlfriend...? That way, I can receive the same attention from Grandpa as you do..."

"I originally thought you were just a little cowardly, but who knew you had such a despicable mind."

"No... I mean..."

"Forget about it. I don't even want to talk to a disgusting person like you!"

See? This is what a failed memory looks like.

On the rooftop bathed in the glow of the setting sun, the girl's long golden hair was dyed a dazzling fiery red, and her expression of disgust is still etched into her memory like a photograph.

Regarding this photo, Tsukasa Tazaki only has one thing to say.

go to hell!

That woman, and the original owner of this body who was even dumber than a pig back then!

Uh... it seems one has already died, and now we only need one more.

Tazaki Tsukasa slowly opened his eyes. In his line of sight, the cherry blossom trees on the school path appeared even greener in the rain.

I remember when I first traveled here, Tokyo was a city covered in cherry blossoms. Cherry blossoms were everywhere – on the riverbank slopes, between mixed-use buildings, and at the corners of roads.

However, the cherry blossoms have now turned from pink to green.

He was somewhat emotional.

Even trees adapt to the changing seasons to better fit into this world. Humans should do the same; they too must adapt to different stages of life.

"Kuriyama-san..."

Tazaki Tsukasa smiled faintly and asked, "You should also know that Yui Kiseki is currently the first in line to inherit the Kiseki family, right?"

Kuriyama Sakura nodded.

“That should have been my place, well… provided that my dad chose to marry into the family back then.”

"Are you feeling resentful now?" Kuriyama Sakura asked with interest.

“I think so…” Tazaki Tsukasa did not deny it, and said while sorting through the memories in his mind, “After my parents passed away, I was taken back to the Kikawa family. The period from when I was five to ten years old was the most difficult time of my life so far. On one hand, there was the grief of losing my parents, on the other hand, there was the anxiety of being in a new environment, and there was also the indifference and oppression from my relatives. During that time, the person I hated the most was my grandfather. How much did I hate him? I wished he would choke to death on a grain of rice while eating.”

Kuriyama Sakura didn't speak, she just silently held up her umbrella, her cool eyes showing no emotion.

“Kiyokawa Yui was probably my only light during those ten years…” Tazaki Tsukasa looked towards the playground, gazing at the blond hair in the distance.

"Isn't your relationship quite bad?" Kuriyama Sakura exhaled softly, a very interested smile on her face.

“It’s really bad now, but it was great when we first met.” Tsukasa Tazaki squinted, as if reminiscing, and said, “When I was little, if I was bullied by other kids my age, she would beat them up for me one by one. If we had any fun toys, she would play with me, and every New Year, she would ask the housekeeper to give me a little extra money…”

Kuriyama Sakura looked into his eyes; as always, his pupils were beautiful and clear. She then gave him a slight smile and asked, "How did it get worse?"

Tazaki stared blankly at the rain drifting across the rooftop, and slowly said, "When she reached middle school age, my grandfather began to relinquish power. Her mother took over all the affairs of the family, and she was thus established as the first in line to inherit. You are also from a large family, so you should understand what this means."