A crossover anime/manga story, set in everyday Tokyo, but within a loop of a game.

Asagiri showed no sign of backing down, but instead replied confidently.

"Being able to occupy that most important place in Utsunomiya Asagiri's heart is enough to prove Kato Megumi's worth. A tie for first place is the real first place. After all, a tie for first place means both love and friendship. If you were the only one to achieve first place, it would be a bit lonely, and you wouldn't be able to accept it. Don't you agree?"

"I said it all..."

Kato Megumi, with an air of having seen through everything, still looked gentle and compliant, and smiled tenderly at Asagiri.

"You are number one in my heart, so I will listen to you."

Asagiri returned the smile and said softly.

"As expected of the saint, Megumi's direct attack is terrifying."

Kato Megumi made a face and smiled mischievously.

"Perhaps this is what they mean by a worthy opponent?"

Just as Kato Megumi finished speaking, a crisp sound suddenly came from not far away.

"Clap!"

All the customers in the café instinctively looked over, only to see that Sakura Yamauchi, who was sitting there with her friends, seemed to have accidentally broken a ceramic cup, with white ceramic shards scattered at her feet.

"Sakura, were you not cut by any shards?"

Hearing her friend's concerned inquiry, Sakura Yamauchi smiled and waved her hand.

"It's okay, we just need to compensate the store for the cups."

Seeing that Sakura Yamauchi was alright, her friend breathed a sigh of relief, then said helplessly.

"Seriously, why did you look like you were suddenly startled by something?"

"I……"

Just as Sakura Yamauchi was trying to find an excuse to brush it off, she felt someone watching her. When she turned her head, her gaze met that of Asagiri, who was sitting there.

In just a brief moment of eye contact, Sakura Yamauchi felt an unprecedented fear.

"Let's go, Hui."

Asagiri withdrew her gaze, stood up, and walked out of the coffee shop with Kato Megumi. Once on the street, she spoke softly in a calm tone.

"As expected, she's a player."

78

Chapter 78 Hui's Date.

The thing Asagiri asked Kotoko Iwanaga for help with in the text message was very simple: she wanted Kotoko to find a scary-looking monster and have it jump out when Sakura Yamauchi was most relaxed and least on guard to scare her.

There are two types of people who can see "monsters": one is special people like Kotoko Iwanaga and Rikka Sakuragawa, and the other is players who originally couldn't see monsters but gained this ability by participating in the "game".

Furthermore, considering that Sakura Yamauchi noticed Megumi Kato's presence and even greeted her, it's almost certain that she is the player.

"Yanchi-kun...?"

Kato Megumi's expression remained calm as she walked along the street, arm in arm with Asagiri, lost in thought.

"Although she is a lively girl who is quite popular and has a lot of fans, her grades are average and she doesn't seem to be very good at sports. Why did the system choose her as a player? Or did she steal another player's phone... No, the Yamauchi I remember is not the kind of person who would do such a thing."

Instead of drawing a conclusion immediately, Asagiri first inquired.

What kind of person is Sakura Yamauchi in your impression?

"Hmm... She's very friendly, sunny, and has a strong presence. She's a bit boisterous, but not annoying. If I had to say... she's the type whose temperament is completely opposite to mine, but I don't dislike her."

Kato Megumi looked at Asagiri's profile beside her and said in a soft voice.

"Although I don't mind myself, Yamauchi greets me every day. Maybe she sees that I don't have any friends at school and is afraid that I will feel lonely. She has invited me to have lunch with her a few times, but I already have enough friends and there are many things I can't tell others, so I declined."

Upon hearing this, Asagiri couldn't help but tease him.

"You have enough friends... When you say 'enough,' you mean Asuna and Kotoko, two friends in total?"

Four.

Kato Megumi released Asagiri's hand, stopped walking, raised her hand to make a four gesture, and said seriously.

"Asuna and Kotoko are my second and third friends, Ashikaga-sensei is the fourth, and you are the first."

"Were we friends before?"

"You became my friend first, and then my lover."

Kato Megumi affectionately took Asagiri's arm, raised her other hand to tuck a strand of her long black hair behind her ear, and whispered.

"And from your perspective, you shouldn't say I have few friends, right? Besides Ashikaga-sensei, do you have any other friends?"

"Of course."

Asagiri answered without hesitation, just like reciting a menu.

"Kaguya Shinomiya, Chika Fujiwara".

"Um... putting those two aside, why didn't you mention Hayasaka-san's name?"

"Hayasaka Ai? We're really not that close; we've hardly ever spoken."

"Yo?"

Kato Megumi smiled faintly, her words carrying a profound meaning.

"I thought you considered every cute girl you knew who you weren't dating yet as a friend, but it turns out that's not the case."

"Xiao Hui, your words have a slightly sarcastic tone."

"Xiao Hui... What a cheesy way to address her."

Kato Megumi gently bumped Asagiri's shoulder, and the latter returned the bump without backing down. Kato Megumi, somewhat unconvinced, bumped into him again. The two continued bumping into each other playfully on the street until Asagiri said, "What kind of childish quarrel is this?" Only then did Kato Megumi stop laughing.

"Back to the topic."

Asagiri suppressed her smile and asked softly.

"Do you think Sakura Yamauchi, as a player, has any value that we should recruit? Or is she the kind of person we can trust?"

"Um……"

Kato Megumi did not answer directly, but instead asked a question in return.

"When you say 'recruitment,' do you mean the player faction that Ashikaga-sensei has formed, or do you mean joining our team and becoming teammates to clear dungeons together?"

"It has both meanings."

"If it's about joining a faction, I think Yamauchi is a good choice. If it's about joining a team, I've considered her personality and her compatibility with Asuna and Kotoko, and I don't think there will be any problems. But as for her strength and ability type... I'm not sure about that. After all, we don't know if she's already joined a team."

After sharing her impressions of Sakura Yamauchi, Megumi Kato couldn't help but ask Asagiri a question.

"Why would you ask that? I heard from Kotoko and Asuna that there's a girl named Shijou Maki in your Shuchiin Academy who seems to be a player and is excellent in every way. Haven't you thought about recruiting her?"

"Recruiting Shijou Maki? Impossible."

Asagiri shook her head and patiently explained.

"Shijo Maki is different from Shinomiya Kaguya. Shinomiya Kaguya has no say in the Shinomiya family, and she doesn't trust the people in her own family. But Shijo Maki is a genuine heiress of the Shijo family. Now that the game has progressed to this stage, the Shijo family may have already started to build their own player faction. As a member of the Shijo family, Shijo Maki would naturally join the Shijo family's faction, or even become the representative of that faction, just like we are with Ashikaga Miwa. How could she possibly abandon her own family's faction and come to join us? Do you really think I'm a Tokyo succubus?"

After saying the last sentence, which was clearly a joke, Asagiri noticed that Kato Megumi was seriously thinking about something, and couldn't help but look speechless.

"You don't actually think I can win over Shijou Maki, do you?"

Kato Megumi smiled sweetly and said charmingly.

"Hard to say."

Asagiri reached out and ruffled Kato Megumi's hair, smiling as she spoke.

"It's hard to say, it's hard to say, but you're plagiarizing my lines."

"Utsunomiya-san, that's not a very pleasant thing to say~"

Kato Megumi raised her hand and gently tapped Asagiri's nose, then put her hands behind her back, tilted her head slightly, tucked her long black hair behind her ear, and gave a playful smile.

"We're family, we can entrust our lives to each other. What's yours is mine, how can there be any plagiarism?"

"So you've been playing boomerang with me all this time, haven't you?"

Asagiri replied with a smile before asking the question.

"So where should we go next?"

"Huh? Aren't we supposed to continue with extra lessons?"

"You can fool me, but don't fool yourself."

Asagiri looked at Kato Megumi's face and said with a smile.

“Your grades aren’t particularly outstanding, but there’s absolutely no need for tutoring, right? Besides, you’re not the type to work particularly hard in your studies and use your free time after school for tutoring.”

"Really..."

Kato Megumi puffed out her cheeks, making a cute, pouty face, and muttered a complaint in a low voice.

"Sometimes, not exposing a girl's little thoughts will make her happier."

"Incorrect."

Asagiri took Kato Megumi's hand and walked with her toward the street ahead, whispering.

"The fact that I let you know that I actually saw through your little thoughts, but I'm still willing to come and be with you, shows that I also want to go on a date with you."

"Is that right?"

Although Kato Megumi spoke with a skeptical tone, the smile on her lips clearly showed that she had been appeased, and she held Asagiri's hand even tighter.

This is Megumi Kato. Although she occasionally throws a little tantrum, she is very easy to appease and doesn't seem unreasonable. Instead, she appears even more adorable.

"If that's the case..."

Kato Megumi pursed her pink lips and spoke softly.

"I've come up with a great date spot."

……

Half an hour later, inside Tokyo Skytree.

"Amazing……"

Kato Megumi stood in front of the transparent floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at Tokyo from a height of hundreds of meters, which had become a tiny speck. She reached out and tugged at Asagiri's sleeve beside her. Her usually calm tone revealed a rare excitement as she spoke like a little girl.

"Look, when you look down from here, Tokyo looks so small."

"Tokyo Skytree..."

Asagiri's gaze wasn't fixed on the window, but rather on Kato Megumi beside him. Bathed in the warm sunlight, Kato Megumi's already lovely face appeared even more beautiful. Kato Megumi noticed his gaze, a blush rising on her fair cheeks, but she didn't look away, as she too was admiring Asagiri under the sunlight.

"So you came here for a date? It seems... quite ordinary."

"Very ordinary..."

Just as Kato Megumi was feeling somewhat dissatisfied with Asagiri's assessment, she saw him raise his hand to stroke her long, smooth black hair and add in a smiling tone.

"But because I'm with you, it's not ordinary."

Kato Megumi, who was about to get angry, suddenly brightened up when she heard this, and a hint of shyness appeared on her face. She looked away and whispered shyly.

"You always launch these surprise attacks that I can't handle at all... Do you really like me that much?"

"Like it? No, no, no."

Asagiri shook her head, her smile fading. She took Kato Megumi's hands, and the two stood in front of the transparent floor-to-ceiling windows of the Tokyo Skytree. Bathed in sunlight, they resembled a beautiful painting radiating youthful energy.

"To simply say I like you would be too superficial. My feelings for you..."

"Wait a moment."

Just as Asagiri was speaking, Kato Megumi extended her fair index finger and gently pressed it against his lips, then tiptoed to his ear and breathed softly into his ear.

"I think I know what you want to say, but rather than here... I'd prefer to wait until tonight, when it's just the two of us, so you can say it then, and... I'll tell you then, okay?"

79

Chapter 79 A Night Spent with Megumi.