I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

That was a lament, a feeling of reluctance to let go of the remaining past, that only she could understand.

Shaking her head, Asuna Yuuki quickly rallied, her gaze fixed firmly on Utaha Kasumigaoka, and she stated with unwavering certainty:

"The key to finding Yu-kun is definitely inside this machine!"

If you ask why, it's because of that game that she made up her mind to transfer from Black Lily Academy to Soubu High.

It was because of that game that she was able to break through the system's limitations in the virtual research and briefly regain proof that she and he had been together.

It was because of that game that she was able to cross the line between virtual and reality, and stay by his side to this day, learning about all sorts of things about him.

That game now exists within AmuSphere, housing a vast and boundless virtual world, and also housing every little detail of their past interactions—

Therefore, nothing could be more fitting as the 'key' connecting the two of them.

"Then stick the notebook up there and see." Kasumigaoka Utaha didn't mind and casually tossed the notebook to her.

After doing so, just as expected, the words "Yuuki Asuna: Key obtained" successfully appeared on the notebook.

After glancing at the few lines of text on the inner pages a few more times, Asuna Yuuki returned the notebook to Utaha Kasumigaoka.

"It's good that it succeeded, but there's still no next step..." Kasumigaoka Utaha tapped her heel in frustration, nibbling on her thumb and muttering to herself, "Now all that's left is Natsukawa Masuzu. I hope what she brings is the key. I don't like the feeling of being stuck... just like Kaven."

"Isn't Yuihama-san here?" Yuuki Asuna suddenly asked.

"What?" The others looked at her in surprise.

"I mean, Yuigahama-san should also be Yu-kun's girlfriend, right?" By now, Asuna Yuuki had gotten used to calling him by his name directly. "Why didn't she come? Her name isn't in the notebook..."

“Because she’s different from us; she’s an ordinary person who escaped the clutches of the gods.” Admiring her neatly trimmed pink fingernails, Yukinoshita Haruno answered casually, “Never mind her, let’s just do what we need to do.”

"How can we ignore Yui—"

"Then let me ask you, do we even have time to explain the current situation to her? What good will it do if she comes when she can't do anything? Will she and her sister massage him and give him a lap pillow, and then feel sorry for her own powerlessness?"

"This……"

The relentless questioning left Yukino Yukinoshita speechless, her small mouth agape. She wanted to speak up for her best friend, but had nothing to say.

"Sigh!" Yang Nai sighed heavily, giving his sister a disappointed look.

"You should hurry up and recover your memories. You are completely different now than you were back then. It's unbearable to watch... Xiao Youyou has changed you so much. I want to thank him."

"..."

Yukino slowly lowered her head, her long hair obscuring her expression, revealing only her fists, which were clenched so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.

After a long pause, he finally managed to squeeze out a dry voice: "You don't need to tell me."

What would she really be like if she loved him? Feeling powerless and struggling inside, Yukino Yukinoshita wanted to know even more.

The living room fell silent.

It wasn't until Natsukawa Masaki rushed back, panting, that the frozen, stagnant air finally began to melt away.

Chapter 41 Crossing the Gate Between Reality and Falsehood?

The thing she went back to retrieve was a seemingly ordinary diary.

“It contains a lot of information about him; you could say it’s my diary… If this still can’t be the ‘key,’ then I’m out of ideas.”

Catching her breath, Natsukawa Masaki wiped the sweat from her forehead that had been chilled by the wind, and simply tied her slightly disheveled silver hair into a ponytail. She walked briskly to Kasumigaoka Utaha's side.

As she passed by, Yukinoshita Haruno raised an eyebrow in surprise and scrutinized her figure: "You also kept records... If that's the case, perhaps writing diaries is the reason we can retain our memories."

As she said this thoughtfully, she casually reached out to take the notebook that Masuzu was handing to Kasumigaoka.

Natsukawa Masuzu reacted quickly, pulling her hand away from hers. She gave a forced smile and chuckled twice, "Sorry~ The contents are confidential. Even Ayu would have to pay a heavy price to see them."

For example, hundreds of millions of life energies... Unfortunately, even such hints are no longer allowed. To avoid being targeted by the censors, please understand the deeper meaning on your own.

Yang Nai shrugged indifferently: "Fine, don't show it to me then. Anyway, it must be full of messy and terrible fantasies, right? I doubt you'd dare show Xiao Youyou this kind of terrible stuff that's like a fantasy novel."

"That's none of your business." With a cold, sarcastic remark, Natsukawa Masuzu looked at Kasugano Sora. "However, what you said earlier does make some sense... Sora-san, do you also keep a diary?"

Although she didn't really want to talk to the silver-haired, infatuated woman who had forcibly kissed her older brother, the mature and sensible Kasugano Sora wouldn't let personal emotions interfere with important matters and hinder her exploration of the 'truth'.

"Sorry, I'm not interested. I don't know why I was able to retain my memories this time either. The problem probably lies with Yu, but I don't think he knows much about it either."

While patting Tenkuji Yu's head, Kasugano Sora answered casually.

"Is that so... Never mind, whatever the reason is." Natsukawa Masuzu turned her gaze back and reached out to borrow Kasumigaoka Utaha's notebook.

"If it succeeds, everything will be fine. If it doesn't succeed... I can only pray that a little life will be born in my belly when I'm dating him."

Ignoring the dangerous and sharp looks from the other girls after she finished speaking, Natsukawa Masuzu took a deep breath and nervously tucked her diary into the black-covered notebook, her knuckles unconsciously tightening until they turned white.

Despite having appeared calm and collected until now, on her way home alone to retrieve something, she was suddenly overcome with a sense of powerlessness and helplessness, and almost couldn't take another step.

She had no memory of him, nor any of the "treasure" he had given her. From beginning to end, she was just an outsider, only able to say hurtful things to try and gain a sense of existence...

That sense of loss and disappointment was deeply rooted in Natsukawa Masuzu's heart, causing her to have several negative thoughts about giving up everything, letting them pursue their happiness, and just being a bystander.

After all, she had nothing.

Even if they wanted to save their loved one, they couldn't find a firm reason to stay, other than helping to move his body or just filling in the numbers.

When she was in despair, it was this notebook, which she found under her bed, that saved her.

It contains many things related to him, starting from the first page, it describes just how much he likes Yuu Tenkuji.

Whether it was the unease of confused memories, the jealousy towards Yukino and the others, or the stubbornness of not wanting to admit how infatuated she was with someone—Natsukawa Masuzu flipped through the notebook as if she were reliving this ridiculous and pathetic false life, but gaining an undeniable treasure from it.

"Speaking of which, I even made a vow to him... that I would definitely make him fall in love with me, and that I would make myself indispensable to him."

It was a vow so childish it was almost laughable, yet it left large, deep marks in the notebook, like a ten-year-old loudly proclaiming he would become a Pokémon Master, or a fifteen-year-old donut-shaped boy vowing to become a superstar.

Just like a silly girl who was once extremely disappointed with something called "love," but now she can burn herself out without hesitation to pursue a happy life with him.

Natsukawa Masaki couldn't help but shake his head with a smile, while confirming that this was indeed the 'key' connecting him and himself.

It wasn't as simple as him giving me a gift and me giving him one.

In this notebook, starting from the day she drank a bowl of familiar-tasting hot porridge, a certain silly girl kept chasing after the figure in front of her, recording the 'sky' that belonged only to her eyes.

From the past to the present, from hesitation to determination, it can definitely become a bridge connecting oneself and others!

So, may you succeed!

I want to find Ayou too!

Silently calling out like this, Natsukawa Masuzu clenched her back teeth, subconsciously held her breath, and slowly opened the black-covered notebook, taking out her diary.

Then, enduring the cramping in his stomach, he stared intently at the words on the inner pages.

Natsukawa Masuzu: Key obtained.

"call……"

Like a bowstring released from its tether, Natsukawa Masaki swayed, almost collapsing to the ground as she breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

To avoid becoming a laughingstock, she forced herself to maintain a nonchalant demeanor, returned the black-covered notebook to Kasumigaoka Utaha, and casually said, "All done. See what changes have occurred... Now that we've gathered all four heroines, even if we don't surpass Heaven immediately, we should at least be able to go find Yuu."

As she spoke, Natsukawa Masuzu moved to an empty spot on the sofa, ignoring Haruno's teasing gaze and Yukino's "thank you for your hard work" look, and completely surrendered her body to the soft cushions, collapsing down as if at ease.

Of course, she treasured the diary, which served as the 'key,' and held it tightly to her chest, unwilling to let go of it no matter what.

"Logically speaking, it should have progressed to the next chapter..." Kasumigaoka Utaha muttered, glancing across the notebook before turning to the next page.

Then she raised an eyebrow and let out a soft hum, whether out of helplessness or relief.

"Sure enough, a new mission has appeared."

"To be honest, this is practically a real-life escape room game... Let me see."

While complaining, Yang Nai eagerly moved closer, took the notebook, narrowed her eyes slightly, and read out the newly appeared sentences for the others:

"The fourth chapter, the bridge to the trial has been built. Find the gate that transcends reality and illusion... Tsk, it's easy for you to talk when you're not in the situation. Is there any point in making things so mysterious?"

Seemingly annoyed by the notebook that had been used to assign tasks, Yang Nai tossed it back to her seat with a hint of frustration, then lazily lay back down on the sofa, making a listless sound:

"Alright ladies, now that we've found the keys, it's time to look for the front door!"

"...It's a good thing that progress is being made, anyway, we have no other choice but to do as they say."

After a long silence, Yukino finally spoke, her tone sounding like she was offering comfort but lacking much emotion. She seemed to be just going through the motions, calmly gesturing to Kasumigaoka Utaha.

Only after receiving permission did she take the notebook properly and carefully examine its contents. However, the more she read, the more her brows furrowed, revealing an expression of incomprehension.

"This explanation is too vague... At least the key has the clue of 'items related to him,' but the door only has the explanation of 'crossing between reality and illusion.' Are we supposed to find a way to enter Tenkuji-kun's dream ourselves?"

Also pondering this question, Natsukawa Masaki crossed her arms, her gaze unconsciously drifting to Tenkuji Yu's serene sleeping face. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her, and she clapped her hands, her eyes shining brightly:

"I've got it!"

Everyone turned their surprised gazes toward it.

Natsukawa Masaki, head held high and chest puffed out, explained confidently, "What this means is that we have to sleep with him, right? To be on the safe side, we'll sleep holding his fingers; one finger each is enough. To be on the bold side, we'll all take off our clothes together..."

"Alright, that's definitely not the case. You'd better shut up." Kasugano Sora's eyes twitched as she coldly interrupted her senior, who was a year older than her. "Even if it were true, the former doesn't have a bed big enough for you to sleep in, and I wouldn't let you do that to Yu either."

"Even if this is a necessary sacrifice to awaken your brother, it's still not acceptable?"

After asking the question with righteous indignation, her delicate face tightened slightly, and Natsukawa Masaki said seriously, "I swear, I absolutely did not harbor any evil intentions. Everything I did was to fight for Ayu's awakening! Besides, there are so many people here now. Even if I really took off my clothes, I couldn't do anything, right? I still have basic shame. You don't need to worry that I will take advantage of you and do something that crosses the line of human decency!"

"Well……"

But I'm afraid you'll suddenly shout, "I'm not human anymore!" and then shamelessly assault Yu in front of everyone...

The failed attempt to kiss her left a deep impression on Kasugano Sora, and it also caused Natsukawa Masuzu's reputation and trust in her to plummet to an irreparable level.

Staring at the righteous, silver-haired, infatuated woman before her with a look of utter distrust, she desperately wanted to continue her objections, but as her fingers lightly touched her brother's sleeping face on her lap, her resolve began to waver.

What exactly is truly for his own good?

Must we really let these women try methods that could very well lead to disaster in order to awaken him...?

"Although I have no objection to Masuzu's suggestion, little sister, you don't have to listen to her nonsense."

As Kasugano Sora looked conflicted, Haruno waved her hand and said with a slight smile, "Her dirty desires are almost exposed, yet she still dares to say she has no selfish motives."

Natsukawa Masuzu's expression immediately darkened, and she glanced at her with displeasure: "So what if I really had some selfish motives? At least I wasn't lying, and I was genuinely offering my opinion from the perspective of wanting to wake up Ayu as soon as possible. That's better than some guy who only talks nonsense, right?"

Yang Nai leisurely raised the corners of her mouth, lightly curling the ends of her gradient red hair with her fingers, and responded to her with a queen-like, nonchalant gaze: "So I have no objection to your suggestion~ I was just stating the facts, why did you have to refute it so agitatedly?"

"you--"