Act 15: Scene 8

Kiyotaka stood in front of Keyaki Mall, glancing at the nearby clock every few minutes as he waited for his companion to come. He and Haruka were supposed to continue their search this afternoon, but she wanted to accompany Akito back home to his dorm unit before that. He had no problem with what she wanted and simply said that he would wait for her in front of Keyaki Mall.

"Horikita said that she'll check out Class C with Kushida, so I guess there's no need for us to approach that class. We'll stick with Class B and Class A," Kiyotaka thought to himself. "Now, I have no doubts about Ichinose helping us, but Sakayanagi is a different story. As much as possible, I'd like to avoid her. If I can't, then I'll let Hasebe talk to her."

While he was thinking about how they would go about their investigation for the day, a girl suddenly walked past him, which managed to bring him back to reality.

She was a beautiful girl of average height with violet eyes and violet hair that's tied up in twintails with blue streaks. She was wearing the female school uniform, consisting of a white dress shirt, a white miniskirt, black socks, and black shoes, although she didn't have her red blazer on. Instead, the girl sported a gray vest over her dress shirt which was all underneath a light gray jacket.

Her school uniform alone presented an opportunity for him to approach her and unlike the other students around who were in groups, this girl was alone, which meant that he could talk to her without worrying about other students. Because honestly, if he tried to approach a group of students and ask them if they witnessed a commotion that happened a few days ago, then it's a likely scenario for him to mess up and cause those students to laugh at him. To add to that, Haruka isn't here with him right now.

Talking to only one student? That's way more manageable.

"I could ask her if she knows anything, but I'm supposed to wait for Hasebe..." he thought to himself, weighing his options as he stared at the girl who was walking away. Kiyotaka knew that he had to make a decision quickly, otherwise he would lose sight of this girl and a chance at knowing if she was the eyewitness that they were looking for. "Oh well, it's not like I can't ask other students even without Hasebe around. Even she wouldn't want that."

Shrugging to himself, he quickly followed after the girl but wisely kept his distance, not wanting to be accused of being a stalker or something worse. Once he was about a meter away from the girl, Kiyotaka finally spoke.

"Excuse me. May I take a bit of your time by asking a quick question?"

"The hell do you want?" she asked in return, but not turning around to face him just yet.

Kiyotaka raised his hands as if he was surrendering, despite the fact that the girl wasn't looking at him. "I just want to ask you a question, that's it."

"Well, get on with it. I don't have all—" The girl let out a loud groan as she finally turned around to face him. There was a frown on her face, which softened the moment she laid eyes on him and for some reason, she stopped talking as well.

Kiyotaka tilted his head curiously at her, wondering what got her to stop speaking out of nowhere.

"Is there something on my face?"

As he asked that question, a familiar pink screen appeared on top of the girl's head, which the young man immediately began to read. Maybe something in her 'summary' could explain why she was rendered speechless while simply looking at him.

[Himeno Yuki: 'Annoyed yet Curious Schoolmate']

[Relationship Status: ?]

[Affection Points: 0/100]

[Heroine Summary: Yuki is a student of Class B who is normally isolated from the rest of her classmates. While she is capable of being sociable and working with others without any problems, she mostly prefers to be left alone in peace and her classmates know it. It may look like she is angry most of the time, but she also has a sweet and caring side to her. She is fond of listening to music and likes just about anything, but has a slight preference for alternative rock and acoustic music, highlighted by her talents in playing guitar, the keyboard, and drums.]

"Another heroine, huh? I'm surprised the system chose someone from Ichinose's class. I was beginning to think that Ichinose would be my only heroine from her own class," the brown-haired teen commented in his thoughts, pleasantly surprised to meet another one of his heroines.

As he read the 'heroine summary' before him, his attention was quickly brought back to reality when he felt his face being pulled. He looked down at the girl named Himeno, and noticed that she was now right in front of him, pinching and pulling on his cheeks while having a frown of confusion on her face.

"What the hell is she doing?" he asked himself, absolutely baffled by her action.

"Where have I seen you before..." she muttered, leaning closer to his face as though she was trying to get a better look at him.

"It doesn't really hurt when you do that, but it's making me uncomfortable. Can you please stop?" he asked as she pulled on his cheeks even more.

It was after that question that Himeno finally realized what she was doing and moved away from the young man. "Oh, sorry. It just felt like I've seen you before, but I can't pinpoint when exactly."

"In my case, this is the first time I've seen you..." he replied, raising an eyebrow at her for a moment.

Yeah, he was completely sure that this was the first time that he had seen this girl, but he was interested in how this girl could have seen him before. Did they cross paths once and he had no idea? Or did Ichinose tell her about him since they're classmates?

"...but to make things easier, my name is Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. From Class D."

"Class D, huh? That's a lot of pressure on your class," she remarked while placing a hand on her hip. "So? Is there something you need from me?"

"What do you mean 'a lot of pressure'?" he asked curiously.

"You're part of the lowest class, right? That means a lot of eyes are on you and your classmates, whether you rise up or fall down in the class rankings. You're all gonna have to work hard to even catch up to one of the other classes," Yuki explained her stance with a serious look in her eyes, yet there was also a mix of sympathy in them. "Now are you gonna answer my question or not?"

"I would like to know your name."

Even though he knew her name through her 'heroine summary', in her eyes, he didn't. So, in order to prevent being referred to as a 'creep' and a 'stalker' in the case that he accidentally uses her name, it's better that Yuki introduces herself to him right now.

"It's Himeno Yuki. Is that your question?" the girl replied, rolling her eyes as if she was thinking that she just wasted her time being here. "If so, see you around."

Before Yuki could turn around and leave however, Kiyotaka quickly stopped her with his next statement. "Wait, that's not my question."

The girl let out an audible groan. "What is it, then? If you're looking for a date with me, then you have a long way to go before earning one, Ayanokouji. I don't like wasting time," she frowned at him.

His eyebrows rose at her strange response, which got her to smirk for just a moment before he continued with his words. "...that wasn't what I had in mind. I wanted to ask if you happened to come across a fight between students recently, particularly one student against several."

Yuki folded her arms across her chest and raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Fight? I haven't seen any fights lately."

"It happened two days ago. Right behind the newly-established bathhouse in the campus. My classmate was the one fighting against several students and he got beaten pretty badly," he explained.

She shrugged. "Sorry, I haven't been there yet. The idea of going to a place with so many people is just a big turn-off."

"It's fine. It was worth a shot," Kiyotaka waved it off. To be honest, he wasn't really expecting to get a lead this soon, so he wasn't surprised that Yuki didn't know anything. He also didn't expect her to be one of his heroines, even though he was supposed to be used to it at this point. "I guess I can ask your classmates instead. What class do you belong in, Himeno?"

"Class B."

"Ichinose's class? I suppose this makes things easier."

That caught her attention as soon as those words left his mouth. "You know Ichinose-san?" she asked with a look of interest.

"We're... friends."

Yeah, they were friends. That's about the most precise word he'd use to describe their relationship. Of course, there's no way he'd tell her that she's supposed to be one of his heroines, courtesy of divine intervention and an overpowered dating simulator system. There's no way he'd tell her that they had been almost naked in each other's presence as well.

No way.

"I never would have guessed... but I suppose Ichinose isn't the type of person to judge someone else based on their appearance."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"No offense, but it's that look on your face. Has someone ever told you that it looks a bit creepy? Can't you make another expression instead of that?"

Kiyotaka actually thought about her first question for a good moment, trying to think back and see if someone referred to him as 'creepy' even once. In the end though, there was no such instance. Maybe someone has, behind his back and without his knowledge. But as far as someone talking right in front of his face, no one has called him creepy.

"I don't think so. And no, I can't."

"Well, don't take it the wrong way. I just call 'em when I see 'em."

"Actually, I appreciate you being honest with me, Himeno. I am personally aware of this expression on my face, and I would like for it to change for the better."

"Heh. Good to see that you can take some criticism. Most of the people I meet can't even handle me being brutally honest with them," the frown on Yuki's face disappeared and it was replaced with a smug look. "Anyway, are you going to ask Ichinose-san the same thing you asked me?"

He nodded. "Yes."

Just when Himeno was about to say something, she stopped herself upon realizing something strange about the topic that they were talking about. "Wait, wait, hang on a minute. Why are you asking if someone saw the fight, anyway? Planning a revenge prank or something?"

"No. We're looking for a possible witness who saw what happened because there were no cameras to record what went down. Our classmate is due to prove his innocence in a hearing next week with the teachers and student council, so we're looking for evidence that can help him."

Himeno frowned in confusion. "Wait, I don't get it. Why would your friend have to defend himself when he was the one who got beaten up?"

Kiyotaka sighed. "That's the tricky part. When our teacher called our classmate to her office regarding the incident, she said that the students whom he fought had also sustained injuries, and they blamed the victim for the whole thing. They even went as far as to say that the whole fight was one-sided in my classmate's favor."

"I get it..." The violet-haired girl nodded slowly as things slowly began to make sense the more she learned about this case. "And since there weren't any cameras around to record the fight, nobody knows who started the whole thing for sure, so now you're looking for a witness who might have seen the whole thing unfold?"

He nodded. "My classmate said that he felt that someone was watching the whole time. Although I don't really think a mere hunch can prove that someone witnessed the fight, it's the only lead we have. Too bad it wasn't anyone from our class, because when Chabashira-sensei asked if someone saw the whole thing, no one raised their hands."

"That's gotta suck for your friend," Yuki said, donning a look of sympathy on her face.

He shrugged. "Some of my classmates have already begun to ask people from other classes and year levels. But since you said that you weren't around that time, I suppose my next bet is to ask Ichinose the same question. Or whoever I meet from your class. Or whichever student I meet, I guess."

"Tell you what, I could tell Ichinose-san about this whole thing for you," Yuki offered.

"Really?" he asked.

She nodded, seeing nothing wrong with her suggestion. "Yeah, that would save you some time, wouldn't it? Instead of asking every student of Class B, I'll just ask Ichinose-san for you and then she'll ask the whole class about it in return. If someone says they saw the fight, then she can tell you herself."

"Why would you do that? It's not like I'm asking you to."

"And you aren't. You can think of it as a little reward for being able to take that little comment I made about your face," she planted both hands on her hips and smirked as she looked up at him. "Plus, I got time to spare anyway."

If Kiyotaka had to be honest, he was still a bit curious as to why Yuki came up with that offer all of a sudden, but whatever. He wasn't going to dwell on it for long. If she wanted to help, then he'd let her help. It would indeed save him and Haruka from having to approach every student of Class B and ask them about the commotion between Akito and those Class C students.

"Then, by all means, I'll leave it to you. Thank you for lending a hand, Himeno," he bowed his head slightly out of gratitude.

"Don't mention it. Guess I'll see you around, then?"

Before he could answer the girl, Kiyotaka felt the world around him stop and lose all of its color, as a wave of realization hit him.

He had not 'unlocked' this heroine route yet.

A. [Cool. See you later.]

B. [I hope our paths cross again, Himeno. You're an interesting person, to say the least.]

C. [Sure. Can I get a date from you the next time we meet?]

The usual three pink screens that showed his possible choices then appeared before him and compared to the past ones that he had encountered, this set of options was relatively tame.

Huh. Was the system actually being merciful to him today?

"Ignoring the first option, it's either the second or the third one," he said as he observed the two remaining choices. He shifted his attention alternately between the two, thinking hard on what would be the more appropriate one to say in this situation.

Should he go for the safe route, or the shameless flirting route?

"I have no concrete idea on how she would react on either option, because I don't have a clear grasp on her personality," Kiyotaka observed the girl who was currently frozen before him and thought about what the most appropriate choice would be. "She frowns like Horikita, but she can also feel amused and her 'summary' did say that she has a caring side to her. I could go for the third option right here, but what if Himeno thinks I'm getting too ahead of myself?"

At this point, the third option was the obvious choice in most of these scenarios, save for a few people whom he wouldn't use it on, namely Suzune, Kei, Airi, Hiyori, and Haruka. Then again, he only avoided choosing the 'shameless flirting' route the first time he encountered those heroines. Who knows? He could pick Option C the next time those three choices appear...

Okay, Option B it is, then. It's definitely the safest choice this time around— WAIT, DID HE JUST PUSH OPTION C?! THAT WASN'T WHAT HE—

"Sure. Can I get a date from you the next time we meet?" Kiyotaka asked as the world returned to normal, unable to stop himself saying those words because of the system overriding his control over his own body.

The 'Masterpiece' of the White Room suddenly felt like committing seppuku right now. How embarrassing.

Yuki widened her eyes for a brief moment after his words, and she looked up at the young man with a slight blush dusting her cheeks. She didn't expect to hear a question like that from him and it caught her off guard. It reached the point that she had to take a step back in clear surprise.

Truth be told, no guy had ever asked her a question like that in her life. Seriously, no guy had ever dared to make a move on her or even flirt with her, mainly because boys were normally intimidated by her. While she did mention going on a date earlier while she and Kiyotaka were still conversing, it was only in a rhetorical way and Yuki didn't expect him to take it seriously. This made her completely inexperienced in this whole thing and had no idea how to respond to Ayanokouji after that question.

After a few moments of surprise, Yuki managed to regain her composure and she smirked at him. "Don't push your luck, Ayanokouji. You still have a long way to go."

Despite her growing red cheeks, Kiyotaka's newest heroine was able to walk away without a problem, leaving the young man in his place, watching her the whole time before she disappeared from sight. As he watched the girl leave, three new notifications appeared before him.

[You gained 12 Affection Points with Himeno Yuki!]

[Yuki Route has been Unlocked! You can now see 'Heroine Status' with Himeno Yuki!]

[Your current status with Yuki has changed to 'Elites, Delusions, and Feelings'!]

"Somehow, I survived that and Himeno didn't lash out on me for that question I asked her," he thought while dismissing the three notifications. "I wonder if it's because it was the right option this whole time, or it's because of the system making sure I was safe... probably the former. I guess I was just worried about Himeno reacting in the same way as Karuizawa and Horikita."

While he stood there wondering what the hell just happened, Kiyotaka was brought out of his musings by someone tapping his shoulder. He slowly turned around to see Haruka smiling brightly at him. She was still in her school uniform like him and she still had her bag with her, showing that she had not gone home yet.

"Kiyopon, did I make you wait too long? I hope I didn't," she asked, chuckling in embarrassment. "I made sure to head here as soon as I was done taking Miyacchi back home."

"Not really," he shook his head. He'd probably feel like he did if Himeno wasn't here to talk to him just now, though.

"Well, I'm glad to hear that. Come on, let's start looking for our witness."

"Lead the way, then."

With that, Haruka grabbed his arm and led him away to search for their eyewitness, feeling determined and eager to find their person of interest with someone whom she felt a lot of gratitude towards.

Number of days left before Akito's trial: 6