(TL Note: Let's listen to [gentle love ˚ ⋆ 𐙚 ｡𖦹 .ᡣ𐭩 ˚ || soft playlist].)
"It's about my sister's future—her happiness."
The moment Ijichi Seika said those words, the lively atmosphere around the table shifted.
Hiroi Kikuri, who had been making a ruckus just moments ago, suddenly went silent.
PA-san, who always had her eyes closed in an easygoing smile, opened them slightly, her gaze shifting toward Seika.
It was clear that both of them already knew the real reason Seika had called Shouji Minami here tonight.
Minami straightened up slightly, adjusting his posture. "I'm listening."
Seika, ever the direct type, leaned forward, resting her hands on the table. "No need to play mind games with you, huh? I don't like beating around the bush anyway, so I'll get straight to the point."
She fixed her crimson eyes on him.
"What do you think of my sister?"
It wasn't a difficult question to answer.
After spending over a decade by Ijichi Nijika's side, Minami barely even had to think before replying.
"She's… incredibly understanding."
Her bright personality, her energy, her warmth—those were obvious.
But if he had to describe what truly set her apart, it would be her empathy.
Nijika had always been someone who considered everyone's feelings, supported them, and gave them space to grow.
And that, more than anything else, had been the very foundation that kept Kessoku Band together through the years.
"She's an amazing person. Always has been, from our school days to now."
That was his honest opinion.
But—
"You don't need to butter her up with compliments."
Seika cut him off, shaking her head. "I'm not asking for the general opinion anyone could give."
She wanted more than that.
She needed to hear something else.
"What do you think of my sister… if she were to become your wife?"
The entire table went still.
Minami's expression hardened slightly. "I already have a wife."
"Which is why I said 'if' ... It's just a hypothetical." Seika dismissed his concern with a wave of her hand, urging him to continue.
A hypothetical, huh?
Minami wasn't dense.
He already understood exactly what she was implying.
But he still answered honestly.
"If Nijika were my wife…" He paused for a moment, picturing it in his mind. "Then she'd make a wonderful one. She's thoughtful, capable, and incredibly kind."
"Right?!"
Seika looked pleased.
"No matter how you look at it, my sister is wife material."
She set down her glass, exhaling deeply before meeting his gaze again.
"Then tell me this, Minami—do you realize she's still single?"
Her voice lowered slightly, her tone serious. "She's thirty-one already."
She didn't need to say anything else.
Minami already knew where this conversation was headed.
"And it's not just Nijika."
Seika's eyes sharpened. "You're aware that Ryo and Kita are also still single, aren't you?"
"At their age, that means something."
Time wasn't infinite.
Seika was already in her forties, and she felt the weight of that truth every day.
She could see how quickly the years passed.
She saw it in her sister, in her friends, in herself.
And yet, Nijika, Ryo, and Kita—they were still waiting.
Seika knew exactly who they were waiting for.
Her voice remained calm, but something heavy lingered beneath the surface.
"Minami, you know what turning thirty means for a woman."
Her words were simple, but they carried an undeniable truth.
A truth Minami couldn't ignore.
"They've been waiting for you all this time. You know that, don't you?"
He let out a slow breath. "Yeah… I do."
There was no point in denying it.
Lying to himself wouldn't change anything.
But—
"Even if that's the case, does it really not bother you?"
Minami asked, watching Seika closely.
She was Nijika's older sister.
If things really took the turn she was suggesting, if he were to accept all of them—
Would she really be okay with that?
Wouldn't she resent him for it?
Wouldn't she see it as something shameful?
Wouldn't she oppose it?
But Seika's response came without hesitation.
"So what if it bothers me? So what if I have an opinion?"
She let out a dry chuckle, shaking her head. "What can I do about it? Even if I had a problem with it, do you think I could actually stop Nijika from loving you?"
The answer was obvious.
No.
She couldn't.
And she wouldn't.
"You need to understand something, Minami."
PA-san, who had been quiet until now, finally spoke up. "We're not in our twenties anymore."
She took a slow sip of her drink.
"We're in our forties."
"The way we see things now is completely different from when we were younger."
At their age, they had already seen how fragile happiness could be.
They had seen how easily it could slip away.
They had learned that wasting time on regrets was the worst mistake you could make.
And Seika had come to a simple conclusion:
"What matters most is that Nijika finds happiness."
Nothing else was more important.
That was all she wanted.
And if Minami was the only one who could give her that…
Then so be it.
"Minami, do you really think things can stay the way they are?"
Seika's voice was calm, but her question struck deep.
Could he really just leave things as they were?
Could he really just pretend not to know?
This question wasn't just about this simulation.
It wasn't just a matter of what happened in this simulated future.
It was a question that applied to reality as well.
Because in real life, too—
Ryo, Nijika, Kita… and even Chisato, Takina, Hitori… they were all still waiting.
And deep down, he knew it.
Seika's words made him confront something he had been avoiding.
Something that had been building up for years.
Minami fell silent, lost in thought.
For once, he had no answer.
And Seika didn't push him for one.
She knew this wasn't something that could be decided on the spot.
"If you really choose to make all of them happy," she finally said, "then you have to be ready for the responsibility that comes with it."
Because if he took that path—
It wouldn't just be love.
It would be a lifelong commitment.
...
It wasn't the kind of decision one could make lightly.
Even after thinking it through, there were still a lot of things to consider.
Minami and the others finished their drinks and snacks, settling the bill before heading out.
He made sure Kikuri and PA-san got home safely before finally walking Seika back to her place.
Seika let out a deep breath, her voice steady despite the slight tipsiness in her tone. "I probably said a lot of weird things after drinking. Sorry about that, Minami."
She was as straightforward as ever.
Though she hadn't gotten an answer from him tonight, she had placed the question before him.
What happened next was entirely up to him.
Seika turned toward the door, about to head inside—
"Seika-nee, I think I've found my answer."
Minami's voice rang out behind her, calm and unwavering.
Seika turned back, a flicker of curiosity in her red eyes. "Oh?"
And when she met his gaze—
Dark, steady, and clear like polished black pearls—
She smiled.
She didn't need to ask what his answer was.
She could already see it.
There was nothing more to say.
She simply gave him a casual thumbs-up before stepping into her house.
Minami nodded slightly in return.
He had already made up his mind.
"Because, from the very start, this was never a complicated question."
Minami walked down the quiet street toward home.
There was no need to overthink it.
The question Seika had asked him was simple.
And once he stripped away all the unnecessary thoughts—
He realized the answer had been in his heart all along.
He had always wanted all of them to be happy.
And if even Seika and Hitori supported him—
Then what was there to hesitate about?
Back home, after washing up, Minami slid under the covers.
Hitori was still awake.
In the darkness, she spoke softly. "You're back?"
"Yeah."
A brief silence fell between them.
Then—
"Hitori."
"Mm?"
"I've given serious thought to what you said earlier."
A beat.
Then, as if realizing what he meant, Hitori murmured, "Ah… that..."
Minami exhaled slowly. "Just like how you don't want to see them unhappy… I feel the same way."
After all—
"They've already waited for over ten years."
The most precious years of their lives.
Ryo, Nijika, and Kita had spent their youth waiting.
If he continued hesitating now—
How many more decades could they afford to wait?
"Mm…"
Even though he couldn't see her face in the dark—
Minami could feel it.
The quiet relief in Hitori's breath, as if she had finally let go of a weight she had been carrying all this time.
She had been struggling with this for years.
The thought that she was the only one who had found happiness while the others remained alone…
It had been gnawing at her heart.
And now, at last, she could let that guilt go.
Her voice dropped to a whisper, hesitating slightly. "Nami…?"
"Yeah?"
"Sh-should we… get a bigger house in the future?"
Minami blinked. "Huh?"
Hitori fidgeted slightly. "W-well… with five adults living together… our house is kind of small, isn't it?"
A brief silence—
Then Minami chuckled.
She really is Hitori.
They hadn't even taken the first step yet, and she was already thinking that far ahead.
But—
"Yeah."
He murmured in agreement.
"If we're all going to live together, this house really is a bit small."
But that was something to think about later.
For now, his personal simulation still had about half an hour left.
And with the choice he had made tonight—
Would the ending change like it had with Ryo's simulation?
That was something Minami would soon find out.
He closed his eyes.
[Because the simulated future has changed, the outcome has been altered. Recalculating simulation score.]
Minami opened his eyes. "So, it really did change."
The system had recalculated the entire timeline just because of the choice he made tonight.
Which meant—
His decision truly affected the future.
"This time, I chose the 'All-Around Happy Ending'... I wonder how things turned out."
His eyes scanned the new simulation report.
[You were never one to hesitate.]
[You clearly understood your wife's wishes, as well as Seika's desire to see Nijika happy.]
[You had always known the truth.]
[Ensuring only Hitori's happiness was never enough. That was merely your own selfish way of avoiding the real problem.]
[They waited for you—for over ten years.]
[Were you really going to make them wait any longer?]
[You stepped toward Nijika's door first.]
[Once, many years ago, she had confessed to you. You had turned her down.]
[But now, as she had done back then, you stood before her door—and knocked.]
[It was February 15th. Just another ordinary morning to the rest of the world.]
[But to the five of you…]
[This was the day everything changed.]
Minami let out a breath. "The timeline really shifted…"
In Hitori's original Happy Ending, Nijika, Ryo, and Kita had very little presence in the final scenes.
But in this new 'All-Around Happy Ending'—
The simulation clearly showed him taking action.
Going to Nijika.
Choosing to face the feelings that had been waiting for him all these years.
The real question was—
What was the final result?
His gaze fell on the new score.
[Final Score: 97/100. You have achieved the 'All-Around Happy Ending.']
"97 points… even higher than before."
[System Evaluation: Decisions are difficult. But love, when shared, only grows stronger.]
[The bonds you formed over decades were never meant to be divided. Choosing only one among them would have been painful—both for them and for you.]
[And yet, none of them ever blamed you. Because their love for you had always been unwavering.]
[Not even ten years could diminish their feelings. Instead, like fine wine, their love only deepened over time.]
["I don't like you." They never once uttered such a lie—because even if they did, they knew they would never be able to fool themselves.]
[But life does not grant infinite decades. They could wait one decade. Maybe two. But not a third. Not a fourth.]
[They wished for your happiness. And now, at last—you wished for theirs as well.]
[And so, on that morning…]
[That perfectly ordinary morning…]
[You finally made your choice.]
[A love that never faded, even after more than ten years… like a sudden downpour, yet never once ceasing.]