"The vocalist's pushing herself a little too hard."
With long, slender, fair fingers tapping rapidly, he posted that comment casually under a music video on one of Japan's most popular video platforms.
It was midsummer—July, the peak season for raging teenage hormones.
Don't ask why it has to be July. Only in this kind of blazing heat can you easily witness a girl's pure white short-sleeve shirt clinging tightly to her skin from sweat, perfectly outlining her curves, with beads of sweat shimmering on her cute nose tip and hair strands misted with a gentle, steamy glow.
Don't you think... that's pretty hot?
[Want to feel the spark of youthful hormones? Curious about the flutter of an innocent first love?]
["Classic Romance Simulator" is here to serve!]
A light breeze, tinged with the faint sweet scent of sunflowers, softly brushed the dark bangs on the boy's forehead.
That gentle aroma seemed to intertwine with the warmth of the sunlight—an inexplicably nostalgic sensation that made the boy's eyes widen in shock.
Sitting by the window in the second-to-last row of the classroom, he abruptly stopped tapping away at his phone.
"…What the—A gacha box?!"
Crack!
The teacher on the podium, unable to endure Kazami Mei's blatant daydreaming, crushed a white chalk stick in his fingers out of restrained rage.
"Kazami, please come up and solve this problem!"
Suppressing his urge to spit a thousand curses, Mei stood up and, under a surge of stares, calmly walked to the front of the class.
Even without turning around, he could clearly feel the intense gazes on his back.
They say the eyes are the windows to the soul—and judging by the stares filled with excitement, curiosity, indifference, and... affection, he knew exactly what each one meant.
But being stared at with that kind of affection? Mei was long used to it—as long as it only came from girls.
Black hair, black eyes—a typical Asian look. But Mei's smooth, well-proportioned face and faintly melancholic gaze gave him a quiet, magnetic charm. His shoulder-length black hair was tied back in a neat ponytail, his aura both calm and alluring.
His looks alone were enough to draw attention like that.
While writing the solution to a math problem on the blackboard, Kazami Mei mentally searched for the voice that had just appeared in his head.
A "System," huh? For people who get isekai'd, it's practically part of the starter pack.
Honestly, he had expected something like this to show up eventually—but not this late.
Still, whatever. It's not like this world has supernatural elements.
No giant kaiju suddenly showing up to fight with Ultramen.No two muscle-bound dudes beating each other senseless with invisible spirit stands.And definitely no royal prince of some great empire being sent to Japan as a hostage, only to get slammed into the floor and die on the spot.
[Welcome to the "Classic Romance Simulator." This simulator allows you to perform 'simulations' with special females you've formed a connection with.]
[Simulations are text-based or virtual. Virtual Reality requires multiple simulation credits, and even full immersion won't affect your real personality.]
[After each simulation, you'll receive a score and rewards.]
[The simulator is here to help you climb the tower of love, one step at a time, and reach the pinnacle of a perfect life.]
To be honest, he was more interested in the rewards—especially if it involved cash.
"Sensei, I'm done."
Without looking back, Mei tossed the chalk straight into the bald math teacher's open palm, then casually walked back to his seat under a flood of impressed and surprised gazes.
His behavior was already well-known among his classmates. Normally, someone like him would be the target of whispered gossip—but with his stunning looks and top grades, those "flaws" didn't matter much.
After all, this was a world where looks are everything.
[Classic Romance Simulator]
[Host: Kazami Mei]
[Skills: Piano LV2 / Music Theory LV2]
[Assessment: Possesses an innate charm that easily wins over the opposite sex. Solid musical foundation and good potential in the music scene. May exhibit typical bassist personality quirks, but overall, a high-value individual.]
"What the hell? You really opened my damn box?!"
Mei muttered, clearly annoyed that the system had dug so deep into his profile.
Of course, the simulator couldn't care less—it just kept presenting info.
[Simulation Credits: 5]
[Available Targets: Ryo Yamada, Tomori Takamatsu]
At the moment he saw the names, his gaze instinctively flicked to a girl sitting in the same row.
Short gray hair, amber eyes, with a timid cuteness like a small animal—Tomori Takamatsu. Mei found her to be reclusive and pessimistic, making her hard to approach.
But he wasn't surprised she was listed. She was, after all, the main heroine of the anime Mygo!!!!!—and now, his classmate. So it made sense.
But Ryo Yamada? What's up with that?
No matter how hard he thought, Mei couldn't recall ever interacting with that woman.
Yet the simulator specified: targets must be special females you've formed a connection with.
So… what connection did he supposedly have with Yamada Ryo?