I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

"..."

Frowning and pondering for a moment, Tenkuji Yu did not answer her question directly, but instead pinched her delicate little nose: "Whatever it means, tomorrow will come eventually, and she has promised to treat us as usual."

"You look so worried right now, aren't you letting her down and failing to live up to her expectations and trust in us?"

"Hmm..." Iroha Isshiki sighed, holding her head, still unable to let go of the feeling. "...I always felt that when she said those words, she was already prepared to say goodbye to us."

Tenkuji Yu shook his head: "How could that be? She's not the heroine in a tragic drama. Putting aside whether Tachibana has romantic feelings for me, even if she does, it's impossible for her to say she'll continue as before after knowing I'm dating you, and then leave us without a word the next day, right?"

"That's true..."

Iroha thought about it carefully, and indeed, that wasn't something the Tachibana Kanade she knew would do...

Was I just worrying unnecessarily?

"Don't worry, even if she really wants to leave, I will take responsibility for bringing her back."

Looking at the girl's eyes, which were not as bright as before, Tenkuji Yu said confidently, "Tachibana Kanade is not only a junior and friend whom I value very much, but also a friend whom my girlfriend has always admired, envied, and loved, isn't she?"

"So for the sake of both of us, no matter where she goes, I will bring her back!"

If she really wants to leave, she should be allowed to leave only after the reasons and consequences have been properly explained!

Yuu Tenkuji tried to dispel the unease that lingered in his girlfriend's heart with this confident and assertive attitude.

However, she was met with a merciless retort from Iroha Isshiki: "Senior, what you're saying is practically kidnapping. They don't want to visit you in prison as a family member."

"Don't talk like I'm definitely going to go to jail..."

Isshiki Hatake sighed helplessly, put her hands on her hips, straightened her chest, and regained her bright and relaxed expression. Her sweet, cheerful voice rang out as she spoke to him with boundless energy:

"okay, I get it!"

"What do you know?" Tenkuji Yu asked curiously.

"As your senior's girlfriend, you can't just dawdle and hesitate here! — That's right, time will solve everything!"

"You talk so smugly, but in the end, it still comes down to time..."

Yuuichi Tenkuji slapped his forehead and rolled his eyes, but he was also completely relieved.

Seeing that Caiyu's mood had improved considerably, he waved his hand and turned to step into the dark alley behind him.

"I'm going back now, I'll go to sleep early."

"..."

After waiting for a long time, I still didn't hear her reply.

Tenkuji Yu turned his head in confusion and saw her puffing out her cheeks and staring at him with a dissatisfied look.

"Senior, is that all?"

"Aha?"

The warm yellow light from the entryway illuminated the girl's cheeks, giving them a delicate blush.

Isshiki Iroha feigned impatience as she reminded him, "What are you 'ha'ing about? Is there something you forgot to do?"

Her slightly pouting, rosy lips were as tempting and delicious as a ripe cherry.

Tenkuji Yu was only taken aback for a moment, but quickly understood what she meant and couldn't help but chuckle.

"I didn't expect you to be so bold..."

"This has nothing to do with being bold; it's just a routine thing between boyfriends and girlfriends!"

"Okay, okay, yes, yes, yes..."

Filled with embarrassment and nervousness, Isshiki closed her eyes and tilted her delicate face up.

Tenkuji Yuuichi supported her soft, warm shoulders, his fingers gently kneading her slender arms beneath the yukata. He could feel a slight tremor, but it wasn't a fear that kept her at arm's length.

That was a girl's shy yet expectant reaction.

So he lowered his head, letting all his thoughts melt into the boundless sky, and stood side by side with the girl on the moist, warm white clouds, letting his mind wander and enjoying the happiness and longing of intimate communication with her.

The stars and moon peeked out from behind the dark clouds.

The moonlight shone on the two of them, casting their overlapping shadows long, very long...

Chapter Fifty-Seven: The System Is Not a System, Unveiling a Corner of the Mystery

After kissing Iroha Isshiki goodbye, Yuu Tenkuji embarked on her journey home.

The night was cool and still, and he walked alone across the deserted street. The surroundings were so quiet that it seemed as if a supernatural event could happen at any moment.

The streetlights illuminated a safe zone, and within each warm yellow interval, darkness surged like a tidal wave, trying to swallow him whole from his ankles.

Walking silently, letting her body move like a car on autopilot towards her home, Yuu Tenkuji was racking her brains, frowning as she pondered something.

The faint smile on his face had never appeared since he broke up with his girlfriend.

I don't know how much time has passed.

"This is a trial."

As I climbed the slope, my steps suddenly became heavier, and the piercing sound of my footsteps echoed in the deserted street.

Even though there was no one around, Yuu Tenkuji suddenly spoke in a deep voice, his eyes, which he slowly opened, were sharp and cold, his gaze fixed on the distance, as if looking directly at a high and unfathomable being in the deep sky.

“I believe this is a trial to reclaim the past… and I was forced to accept this trial.”

He slowly raised his hand, his fingertips reaching out towards the moon, as if inviting the princess on the moon to descend to earth and dance with him, yet his expression remained indifferent and calm.

"Only by finding the so-called 'true past' can a person grow, and I can use this to continue moving towards the long-awaited future."

Tenkuji Yu curled the corners of his lips into a mocking chuckle: "Hmm? That's what you want me to think, isn't it, you trash system?"

The system, which had just spoken up to remind him to find clues, is now remaining silent, as if it had been gagged.

Yuu Tenkuji didn't expect the system to answer his questions. He was just in high spirits and talked to himself about the things he had thought about during his contemplation.

"You know what? Actually, I've been wondering about something throughout our date today."

After passing a small park, the swings hung quietly in mid-air, and the slides stood solemnly like a sleeping giant monster.

"In my memory, I was a very popular guy, practically overflowing with admirers—I would be pestered by rich girls at school, followed by certain people from the sports club on weekends, and I also had to deal with the harassment from girls I accidentally attracted while completing my 'achievements' in the past."

Yuu Tenkuji said softly, and the park silently watched his figure disappear: "Why is it that now, in the month since the start of senior year, those girls have vanished as if they evaporated, allowing me to flirt with the junior girls every day and smoothly date Ayaha after each date?"

This is very abnormal.

Logically speaking, having been pursued by so many girls in the past, he should be constantly battling wits with his suitors, just like I remember, and deeply entangled in complicated relationships.

From Christmas Eve of his second year of high school to the start of his third year after he "awakened," and up until now at the end of May, during this period, those people were like NPCs whose data had been deleted. Apart from leaving a background story in his memory, he could not see them anywhere.

By the time he realized this, Tenkuji Yu had already sent a group message to confirm—and the result was exactly as he expected.

Among his many chat contacts on LINE, only Kasugano Sora, Isshiki Iroha, and Tachibana Kanade replied to him. As for the others, whether they were teachers, friends, or suitors with whom he had a good relationship, almost fifteen minutes had passed and none of their messages had been read.

Just like stuffing a Pokémon card into a Yu-Gi-Oh! deck, it's hard to notice its overly strong and unusual presence until you turn the card over.

Of course, this doesn't prove anything; you can easily find several reasons to explain it.

If you insist that this is a trial bonus, Yuu Tenkuji can't find any arguments to refute it.

"So, this is not a 'mistake'."

So, what constitutes a mistake?

What does the system want to correct? Is it something tangible or intangible?

Is it close at hand, or far away?

The questions that Yuu Tenkuji pondered were these boundless questions, full of infinite possibilities.

He glanced at the empty basketball court and could almost picture the adorable sight of energetic young girls dribbling the basketball and straining their slender arms to throw it into the hoop.

Fortunately, Yuu Tenkuji wasn't a loli-loving person, so a fatherly smile appeared on his lips, and he continued walking into the deeper darkness without stopping.

"Furthermore, your 'Life Achievement System' is quite interesting... It's always been designed to help me achieve certain professional accomplishments, like 'Rent a Boyfriend' or 'Sword Master,' but in the final trial, the hidden clue is actually to get a girlfriend?"

"What, what achievement are you planning for me to accomplish this time? 'Devoted Boyfriend' or 'Playboy'?"

With a relaxed tone, as if chatting with a friend, Yuu Tenkuji chuckled for a moment, then suddenly sighed softly, looking down at the hand that had just held Iroha Isshiki, his expression somewhat complicated.

In his memory, he had never kissed anyone else. Even during the time he was renting a boyfriend, the young lady who was the target of his mission tried every means to take advantage of him and completely possess him, both physically and mentally. She tempted and attacked him countless times, but he resolutely guarded his purity and chastity. Besides wanting to give his first time to his real girlfriend, he also wanted to make it easier to completely sever ties with her in the future.

But just now, without Iroha Isshiki saying anything, Yuu Tenkuji also felt that his kissing skills were very proficient.

Reaching the "perfect" level of kissing skills does not mean that he has hundreds or thousands of kissing experiences—this is different from playing a musical instrument or acting. It only provides relevant knowledge and skills, but does not give him that kind of mastery that comes from being a master and having been honed through countless trials.

The moment their lips touched, Yuu Tenkuji showed no nervousness or awkwardness whatsoever about giving his first kiss. In fact, it was as if he already knew how the girl would react. His body reflexively guided her into the moment, and she slowly immersed herself in the pleasure of their kissing. This first kissing experience was so perfect that when they parted, Iroha Isshiki was in a dazed and intoxicated state, unable to come back to her senses for a long time.

The "perfect" level of knowledge and skills clearly told him that this was not something a beginner could do—even someone like Tenkuji Yu, who had the skills, would inevitably need to spend some time growing to this level unless he had experience at the "proficient" or "expert" level.

"But I've never kissed anyone other than Iroha..."

No matter how small or bizarre the clue, Yuu Tenkuji would not take it lightly or let it go.

His memory and reality became misaligned, and he chose to believe his feelings.

Sky Temple slowly raised its head, took a deep breath facing the moon, and said with a serious expression, "So, System, I reasonably suspect that the memories you gave me are wrong!"

This was the final answer he arrived at after careful consideration.

Several seconds passed, but the system did not respond.

The night was peaceful.

Instead, Yuu Tenkuji revealed a smile of triumph.

"Hey, I knew it wasn't?"

He strode forward with his head held high, his gaze seeming to pierce through the darkness and illuminate a corner of dawn.

"Because you know, false memories will be quickly exposed by me, just like a lie should be three parts truth and seven parts falsehood—but against a smart guy like me, even a one-part lie is in danger of being seen through."

"Therefore, what you give me must be real. Including memories, including the things I have done, they are all truly mine."

Familiar streets, familiar eaves, and familiar houses come into view.

As if eagerly anticipating returning home to see her younger sister, Tenkuji Yu smiled even more easily and happily, while repeatedly stating the conclusions she had reached.

"But system, your mistake was using my best method of lying."