You call this a love game?

The plan seems to be feasible!

Chapter Fifteen: Have we known each other before?

"Ah! It hurts!"

A sudden pain shot through her forehead, and tears welled up in her eyes. Sayaka covered her red forehead, her tearful eyes accusing Shiraha of flicking her forehead.

"Waaah... Bai Yu-jun is bullying me..."

"No such thing happened. You were the one who thought something bad about me first."

Bai Yu withdrew his finger and instead used his palm to help rub the girl's forehead, where he had flicked out a red mark.

"Slander! I just wanted to whisper something to Bai Yujun."

Sayaka pouted, her dissatisfaction turning into a silly grin the moment Shiraha's palm touched her forehead.

"So what exactly does Sayaka want to tell me? Is it about that transfer student?"

"That's right..."

Sayaka hesitated for a moment, but decided to tell Shiraha what Kyubey had just told her.

"That transfer student is also a magical girl, so be careful of her!"

"Oh?"

Now it was Bai Yu's turn to be surprised, but then he immediately understood.

Since Kyubey was able to contract with a boy, the number of magical girls must not be very large, since people with 'talent' are not everywhere.

It's only natural to be on guard now that a strange magical girl has suddenly appeared.

He doesn't yet know how strong that witch is, but seeing how easily Sayaka dealt with that familiar last night, it probably shouldn't be too difficult.

In other words, this unfamiliar magical girl may not be aiming to cooperate in killing the witch, but rather has other motives, and her target may even be him personally.

After some reasoning, Bai Yu felt that he might have grasped the whole picture.

However, his misjudgment of the witch and Sayaka's strength led to a completely wrong reasoning process, but the result was actually correct.

Just as Shiraha and Sayaka were whispering about what schemes the transfer student might have, Homura Akemi emerged from the shadows.

Sayaka, being a magical girl herself, immediately sensed Homura Akemi's arrival. She stepped forward, opened her arms like a mother cat protecting her kittens, shielded Shiraha behind her, and bared her teeth at Homura Akemi.

"Don't come near Shiraha-kun again!" Sayaka bared her teeth, her short blue hair standing on end. "And you'd better explain what happened in the classroom earlier, or I won't let you off so easily, even if you're a magical girl."

Seeing this, Homura Akemi immediately stopped and sighed softly, "Sayaka Miki, you're still so impulsive..."

As soon as she finished speaking, Sayaka suddenly realized that the long-haired girl with black hair in front of her had disappeared.

The next second, a dull pain shot through the back of her neck, her vision went black, and she slumped forward limply.

"Sayaka!"

Bai Yu quickly caught the unconscious girl and placed her on the ground. He then looked up at Homura Akemi with an unfriendly expression and asked, "What did you do to her?"

Everything happened so fast that Bai Yu didn't have time to react or even see anything. He thought the two of them would fight to the point of obliteration, and he was even considering whether to let them go out and fight. It wouldn't be good if they damaged the school, as there were so many students here. But in just a moment, Sayaka collapsed.

However, Homura Akemi did not answer. Her expression suddenly broke down, and tears fell like pearls from a broken string. Under Shiraha's astonished gaze, the girl suddenly threw herself into his arms and hugged his waist tightly.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." Her voice was choked with sobs and almost inaudible, "This time... I will definitely protect you..."

Bai Yu could feel the girl in his arms trembling, as if she had recalled some painful memories, and warm tears soaked his clothes.

He hesitated for a moment, then reached out and gently patted her back.

"Xiaomei, do we know each other before?"

Homura Akemi's body trembled slightly, and she raised her head, her teary eyes filled with endless longing.

She reached out and touched Bai Yu's cheek, her fingers trembling slightly.

"I……"

Homura Akemi paused for a moment, her voice stuck in her throat, unable to come out.

“Since Akemi-san can’t explain it clearly…” Bai Yu gently pushed away Akemi Homura who was hugging him, looking apologetic. “I’m sorry, I have to take Sayaka to the infirmary first. I hope we can have another chance to talk like this next time.”

After saying that, Bai Yu picked up Sayaka from the ground next to him and carried the girl away from Homura Akemi in a princess carry.

"No, don't go!"

Losing her support, Homura Akemi collapsed to her knees on the ground, tears streaming down her face. She reached out to try and stop Shiraha, but he left without looking back.

"..."

Watching Bai Yu's departing figure, Akemi Homura stood up from the ground, her purple eyes filled with determination.

This time, she will definitely protect Bai Yu.

No one can believe in the future, no one can accept the future, and if that's the case...

I can't let Shiraha-kun fight anymore. I'll deal with all the witches by myself, and this time... I must personally defeat Witch Night...

She is Homura Akemi, a magical girl who wields the power of time and reincarnation. The future is in her hands, and she will do anything to save Shiraha-kun and protect his safety, even if it means sacrificing her own life!

Mami Tomoe is too fragile, keeping her as a teammate would be dangerous, it's best to eliminate her beforehand. Sayaka Miki is too weak and useless, and would only make Shiraha spend more energy taking care of her feelings. Kyoko Sakura is barely a useful combatant, but she won't come to Mitakihara every time she's reincarnated.

As for Madoka Kaname...

Homura Akemi seemed to recall some terrifying memory and immediately shook her head.

We absolutely cannot let Madoka Kaname wish to become a magical girl.

…………

Is Sayaka feeling better?

Kaname Madoka frowned, looking at her friend who was lying unconscious on the hospital bed with a worried expression.

Bai Yu shook his head. "The doctor said it's nothing serious. Sayaka is probably... asleep right now."

"Huh? Wasn't he supposed to be unconscious?" Kaname Madoka asked, somewhat surprised.

Bai Yu suddenly messaged her saying that Sayaka had fainted. She managed to sneak out of the classroom by using her position as the health committee member, but when she got here, she was told that Sayaka was just asleep.

"At first, he was indeed unconscious, and the doctors said we should rush him to the hospital. But then his breathing suddenly stabilized, and upon closer inspection, we realized he had fallen asleep." Bai Yu shrugged helplessly.

He genuinely didn't know what was going on and could only attribute it all to Sayaka's magical girl physique.

"By the way, does Kaname-kun also know that Sayaka is a magical girl?"

Chapter Sixteen: Cause and Effect of Past Lives

"Magic, magical girl...!"

Kaname Madoka's eyes widened instantly, like a startled little rabbit, staring at Shiraha with disbelief.

She instinctively wanted to say she didn't know, but felt it was wrong to lie, especially since she had promised Sayaka not to tell anyone about magical girls...

However, since Kamijou brought this up, it shouldn't be considered that she told him on her own initiative, right?

"How did Kamijou-kun know this..." Kaname Madoka gently bit her lip, looking conflicted.

Bai Yu pointed to the ring on Sayaka's finger, "Last night I was attacked by a familiar, and Sayaka came to save me."

"I see." Kaname Madoka suddenly realized, she had thought she had accidentally revealed it.

She glanced furtively at Sayaka, who was still fast asleep, and whispered, "Um... I'm sorry, Sayaka said it was a secret, so I didn't tell you, Kamijou."

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone." Bai Yu made a pursed mouth gesture and winked. "But is Madoka a magical girl too?"

"I-I'm not!" Madoka Kaname waved her hands hastily, her pink twin tails swaying with the movement. "I haven't decided yet whether I want to become a magical girl..."

"I see..." Bai Yu nodded thoughtfully.

It seems that unless he has the will, Kyubey cannot force him to sign a contract even if he knows about the existence of magical girls.

However, judging from the current situation, things don't look too optimistic.

Although Homura Akemi is one of the romanceable heroines, he has absolutely no idea what her situation is.

Even though it was their first meeting, the other person's intimate attitude towards him was as if they had already been through countless life-and-death situations together.

Even if Homura Akemi won't hurt him, the people around him might.

If Sayaka were to encounter a yandere type, she might be in danger.

It would be great if there were another magical girl to help fight Homura Akemi right now, although the chances are slim.

After all, Sayaka couldn't even last one round and collapsed in one move, so having one more person didn't seem to make much difference.

"Baiyu-kun...is mine..."

Sayaka, lying on the hospital bed, suddenly murmured to herself. Shiraha and Madoka Kaname were both taken aback, and Madoka couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Bai Yu sighed and rubbed his forehead, saying, "What is this guy even thinking about in his dreams...?"

…………

During the afternoon class, Shiraha would occasionally cast glances at Homura Akemi.

His seat was right in the back row next to Homura Akemi, so he could clearly see every movement the girl made while sitting demurely in her seat.

However, the girl was quietly writing something quickly in her notebook, as if the kiss that morning and the incident of knocking Sayaka unconscious during break had never happened.

Just who is this guy...?

Bai Yu stared blankly at Homura Akemi's back, her long, black hair cascading down her back.

This sudden turn of events disrupted his original plans and made him even more confused than before.

It's one thing for a dating simulation to have some supernatural abilities, but the fact that he's 'powerless' makes it really frustrating.

But that's fine. According to his plan, there's probably no problem completing Sayaka's route in this simulation. Next time, he can start other heroines' routes, like Madoka Kaname, which looks pretty good.

His rhythm was completely disrupted when Homura Akemi appeared, behaving strangely and without any discernible pattern.

While this did stimulate Sayaka, overstimulation can lead to stress, which is not good.

Whose interests did he threaten that warrants such treatment? Capitalists, you win!

"Jingle Bell--"

As the school bell rang, Homura Akemi, who had been observing him intently all afternoon, suddenly stood up and left the classroom immediately, moving so fast it was as if someone was chasing her.

Just as Bai Yu was about to follow, Sayaka, who had already woken up and returned to the classroom, stopped him.

"Shiraha-kun, Hitomi said she's treating us today to Wako Tissalon. I heard it's really expensive there, let's go right away!" Sayaka said excitedly, tugging at Shiraha's arm.

Sayaka is almost always present whenever there's good food, especially when her good friend Hitomi treats her.

Sayaka was well aware of Hitomi Shizuki's family's wealth. Every time Hitomi treated her to a meal, she would jokingly say that she would take advantage of her. However, when the food was served, all she wanted to do was become Hitomi's parents' goddaughter.

She couldn't even imagine how happy she would be if she could eat such delicious food every day; she would even be willing to live in a large villa.

The premise is that you don't assign her any heavy after-school study schedules.

"Alright, let's go together then." Bai Yu had no choice but to let Sayaka drag him away.

Although he really wanted to see where Homura Akemi went and what she did after school, Sayaka was like someone who had forgotten the pain once the wound healed, keeping silent about Homura Akemi and not even glancing at her.

I don't know if he became withdrawn after being beaten or if he plans to take a long-term approach and proceed gradually.

……

The group of four arrived at a coffee shop called Wako Tissalon.

This café, located in the iconic Wako Department Store in Ginza, is said to be very popular with wealthy women, and the environment is naturally top-notch. According to Hitomi, her mother took her here once and thought it was quite good, so she thought of bringing her friends to try it out.

Bai Yu was discharged from the hospital just in time. Although we couldn't hold a ceremony to congratulate him on his discharge, having afternoon tea together would be a way of celebrating.

"By the way... does Bai Yu-kun know that new transfer student who came today?"

Hitomi Shizuku picked up the exquisite bone spur teacup, stirred it counterclockwise with a steel spoon in her hand, and gently blew on the steam rising from the surface, seemingly casually bringing up the topic.

Yes, I originally planned to confess to my best friend Sayaka first, and then Hitomi Shizuki would decide whether or not to confess to Shiraha.

But what that transfer student did to Bai Yu today made her put aside her idea of ​​confessing her feelings for the time being.

Although she had never heard any rumors that Bai Yu had ever dated a girlfriend, and she had never met the transfer student before, she was just afraid that something might be wrong.

If he really is her girlfriend, she can only silently step aside and not bother him. But if he isn't, she'll have to ask the housekeeper to investigate the background of that transfer student.