Chapter 30

Ramen noodles are something only those who’ve tasted them can truly understand. A refreshing sensation akin to cold noodles, with slices of braised meat or sashimi sitting on top, and instead of water, the rich broth that comes with it.

On a scorching day, it’s the ideal dish to enjoy. It was so popular that people would line up for it, even slightly past the lunch hour for office workers.

However, its flavor was undeniably satisfying, unlike what I thought when eating it with others, feeling that it was so good one might d*e for it, but the taste didn’t leave a single thing behind unimpressive.

[Let me show you what’s changed.]

System.

Even though I’d been ignoring it, the system reacted as if it had been affected by the taste of the ramen, enlarging its window to assert its existence to me.

Since there was no longer any reason to keep ignoring it, I confirmed the system window while slurping the ramen.

[Awakening Rate: 1%.]

Maybe because the protagonist was with me, the awakening rate had already reached 1%.

Even though it had hit 1%, I still didn’t know how to control the abilities.

[Ability Breakdown: Nameless Protection, Curse of bl**d.]

Perhaps as a result of reaching 1%, the system informed me of other things. Unlike others, I had two abilities.

While the “Curse of bl**d” sounded dangerous and negative, I didn’t know why it was classified as an ability, but since it was one, something special had taken root within me.

The system didn’t just inform me that my presumed supernatural awakening rate had increased; it also revealed that I had two supernatural abilities.

[In the scenario with the Heroine Erica, you’ve encountered the character who will act as the final boss. For now, any action against her will only result in a Bad Ending. Perhaps you might even trigger a Bed Ending, living on her bed.]

[If you aim for a Happy Ending, minimize your interactions with her. Avoid any requests from her. When the slight sense of guilt she feels toward you outweighs her longing for you, you’ll meet your downfall.]

The message stated I had encountered the final boss of the scenario I would soon undertake.

Since there was only one woman who left an indelible impression with feelings of guilt, I immediately knew who she was.

The woman who had said the grotesque line, “I ate your parents,” couldn’t possibly be the one who ate them and then felt guilty about it, given how advanced the world had become.

Normally, people turn to cannibalism out of extreme hunger, but why would someone who presumably earns good money engage in such behavior?

Perhaps she had done something wrong to me for some other reason and couldn’t obtain forgiveness for it, though I couldn’t figure it out with even my brilliant mind.

While contemplating these thoughts, I mindlessly stirred the cream cheese that had arrived as dessert.

Incidentally, I sometimes noticed the term “Bad Ending” displayed as “Bed Ending,” confirming my suspicion that it referred to ending up in someone’s bed.

In a world designated as a school slice-of-life, as long as I avoid battles with others and stay cautious, there might be a way to avoid lewd activities and keep from reaching a Bad Ending.

The system kept terrifying me, insisting that certain lewd actions needed confirmation to prevent a Bad Ending.

Only after finishing the ramen broth did I notice that two people were looking at me. One gaze was adoring, while the other seemed to say, “You’re such a pig.”

I’ll definitely have to teach that latter commenter a lesson.

With those thoughts, I deliberately ignored the system window lingering in the corner of my vision.

[Kim Ha-neul’s favorability is increasing quite significantly. Although it’s hitting its cap, staying above -100, you should be careful about giving away your heart recklessly if you wish to make it home safely.]

As much as I wanted to ignore it, I couldn’t.

In the end, my eyes scanned everything the system had shown, and I felt a growing dissatisfaction.

“Who says I should hand over my heart?” Since I have no romantic desire toward men, I wouldn’t be offering my love anyway.

Though it’s a cliché to fall for someone else, I still need to maintain a certain distance to avoid getting too deeply involved…

What I should really be wary of isn’t the boy but the other side.

“I’ll pay.”

The face of the student council president rising from her seat was far too beautiful to see clearly.

Even using my hand to shield my eyes from the sunlight, I stared at her, while a young boy drinking warm broth glanced at me and silently implied, “You’re making a fuss,” with his eyes.

Which prompted me to reply in the same manner: “I don’t hear the words of rhythm game losers.”

“…Really, how many times are you going to keep saying that? Surely not forever, right? And by the way, I just threw a glare—not verbally,” he said with exasperation.

Perhaps those words came out unconsciously. Anyway, I won’t say those things forever since I’ll no longer keep seeing him.

But I’ll keep saying it whenever we meet to erase the shame of losing in everything except rhythm games. I must repay all of that humiliation.

If I lose again, there’s nothing I can do but repay with words…

After finishing the payment calculations, Lee Seo-ra returned and looked at us with disdain, continuing our silent eye-to-eye argument.

Or so I thought, but I ended up speaking aloud.

*

They didn’t seem to plan on finishing with just a meal, as they headed toward a café and secured a spot.

After ordering coffee and deciding to leave me behind for a private chat, they asked for my understanding and then left.

Since I could handle bringing the coffee back anyway, I agreed without hesitation.

After all, even if they stayed with me, they were lovers first, which would’ve made things awkward for me.

After retrieving the coffee, I gazed toward the window, reflecting on the impending trouble: my sister, presumed to be the final boss, and the queen who was still expanding her power outside.

Just these two already troubled me; the thought of protagonists from other genres only made my headache worse.

At our next encounter, I would potentially face a life-threatening battle with the protagonist of a fantasy story, and with the protagonist of a bondage story, I would worry not for my life, but for being forced into something lewd.

Considering the heroines clinging to these protagonists, my path forward became clear:

I need to rescue comrades, not the heroines who have already fallen for the protagonists or those who possess a strange fixation on me, but those who can genuinely help me.

If the system controls how understanding the other party is and whether they can be approached without affection, I’d be able to manage well, but since that’s out of my control, I have no choice but to proceed cautiously.

After checking my surroundings in case anyone was eavesdropping, I cautiously spoke to the ever-present system.

“Hey, why don’t you answer? You’re just going to talk and leave when it suits you, huh?”

Not only that, but my mutterings are silently ignored, as this system only approaches when convenient.

If I attempted a s*icide threat, I might get a response since I could be an important heroine, but if the system threatened me with a bad ending, I would be at a loss.

Since everyone in my family had already passed away, dying would mean no one would remember them, so I couldn’t afford to d*e.

I’m staying alive to remember everyone.

There’s probably no one else left in this world who thinks so fondly of my departed family.

‘That’s what makes you a good son.’

While sipping on a piece of melting chocolate and waiting for them to return, someone approached me.

Her curly hair resembled seaweed and wouldn’t have looked out of place if stepped on, and her sunken eyes suggested she had stayed up all night.

Her lack of facial fat made her look almost cadaverous. Despite her unsteady walk, she headed straight for me.

To make sure she wasn’t aiming for someone else, I glanced around, but she was heading directly to the only unoccupied table.

Before I arrived in this world, random violence and stabbings had made the world restless.

If this romantic visual novel took place during that period, a sudden attack with a blade wasn’t out of the question.

“Um… so…”

Tensing myself, ready to activate my powers at a moment’s notice, I watched as she reached into her bag.

I closed my eyes tightly, but instead of the expected white lightning or pain, I opened my eyes to see a sketchbook in her hand with “Haven’t seen you in ages!” written on it.

Rather than a sharpened dagger intended for harm, it turned out to be just that.

Unaware that I would meet someone connected to this body by chance at a café, I had panicked unnecessarily.

In a romantic visual novel, random encounters while out and about are bound to happen.

“Would you like a sip?”

Trying to break the awkward silence, I offered the straw I had just used.

Thinking I could get an extra one if needed, but she simply nodded, took the straw I had removed, and sipped on the chocolate milkshake.

Though not particularly bothered since it was free food,

‘Is the common sense here different from what I know?’

Isn’t it dirty? Despite a new straw clearly being available, I couldn’t understand her choice based on my knowledge.

I had already accepted that in romantic visual novels, scenes with heroines fondling each other’s chests could occur, so the intimacy between women wasn’t unfamiliar.

[Uh…]

Just as the system was about to show me something, my gaze shifted,

[Unhygienic.]

Only to find out it was a message about the uncleanliness of reusing the straw.

Looking above her head, I identified her character.

[Kana]

[Role: Unavailable Heroine]

[Ability: Instant Enhancement]

Unavailable.

The woman playing the role of my ideal type lapped up the chocolate milkshake with the straw I had used.

…Wasn’t she supposed to stop after one sip?