Tokyo: Oreimo

Chapter 125 "That day, it snowed heavily."

Has Shota gone mad?

A shut-in with social anxiety is now going out to work.

Hiroki Suzuki even wondered if there was something wrong with his ears.

"It's just a visual novel, is that guy obsessed with it?"

However, he didn't delve into it further, but instead made up his mind to open the packaging of the Clannad game disc.

Since Kikuchi Shota had given his recommendation, he trusted his friend's judgment.

Then let's have fun.

Hiroki Suzuki inserted the disc into the external DVD drive and started the game.

.....

They played from day to night, and then from night to day again.

For a NEET like him, playing games for nearly 24 hours is just a basic skill.

Hiroki Suzuki stretched, feeling sleepy enough to fall asleep the moment his head hit the bed.

"To be honest, it is a bit disappointing, but overall it's not bad."

He diligently completed all eight routes and interacted with almost every female character.

The screen is displaying a list of the production staff, as well as a slideshow of the ending CG.

"The most exciting part is indeed the Fuuko line."

His gaze fell on the small, adorable character on the screen.

The first-grade student who is always carving wooden blocks with a knife looks like a cute girl at first glance, but she is actually a ghost.

She carved many starfish and gave them to everyone in the hope that they would attend her sister's wedding, but her real body was lying in a hospital room, unable to wake up.

"To be honest, after reading her story, I felt a little sorry for her, but that's all. It's impossible for me to cry."

"Shota must have cried because he saw this route, right? He's so weak."

"I, Hiroki Suzuki, am heartless. I can remain unmoved even if I see my favorite character have their heart ripped out. Perhaps the only man stronger than me is Kiritsugu Emiya?"

"Kotomi and Tomoyo's route is also good, but it's really a pity that this kind of game lacks the most crucial 18+ selling point."

Hiroki Suzuki still prefers more erotic visual novels, as they motivate him to further develop the relationship.

Even though Rumiko Takashiro was the artist, the scenes from the previous work, though optional, could be removed without affecting the overall quality.

If we consider the subject matter of this work, it wouldn't work at all.

Pure love also involves those kinds of things, right? That's what makes it worth remembering.

Although we've cleared the border, is it worth the price of admission?

I didn't feel that way at all, because there are so many women in the game, and the content distributed among each main character isn't actually that long.

The things that consume a lot of his time are just funny daily routines, which is indeed worth criticizing. It's like he's doing this intentionally to fill his playtime.

In addition, one of the female leads had too much screen time; Nagisa Furukawa appeared in almost every route, which even annoyed him.

If this work sold for 5,000 yen, Suzuki might reluctantly give it a good review, but let's forget about it now.

However, he wouldn't go to the forum specifically to rant, since although the daily content was bloated, it also brought him a lot of joy.

He waited quietly for the ending announcement to finish, and then returned to the game's initial screen.

Just as I was about to shut down my computer, I suddenly noticed the background image that served as the startup screen: a twinkling star had appeared on the green grass.

"Jadeite?"

Hiroki Suzuki blinked and counted seven.

This is proof of successfully completing the game, mentioned on the official website. It is said that good things will happen after completing the collection.

"Shouldn't all the events be unlocked by now?"

"So, what's the good thing?"

He clicked the mouse, and the game's idle screen turned a dazzling white, as if it were breathing.

After the glow fades, an additional option appears on the main interface.

——“After Story”.

"These two words... let me look them up. Literally, do they mean 'afterword'?"

It turns out to be a bonus scene.

Hiroki Suzuki became interested; there must be new CG in here, right?

"If there are any scenes with Fuuko that are a bit suggestive, I'll forgive the production team!"

While playing FSN, he felt a bit disappointed that there wasn't a route specifically for Illya. Such a likable character didn't even have a single erotic illustration drawn.

However, Hiroki Suzuki was just thinking about it casually. If a game that has passed the review contains hidden agendas, it might be reported and suffer a terrible fate.

He clicked the option and continued playing.

"Hmm? Is this a continuation of Nagisa Furukawa's main storyline? I thought there would be something special about it."

Suzuki was somewhat uninterested, but considering that the game had cost him 8000 yen, he gritted his teeth and continued playing.

Playing games more often makes him feel a little better.

......

"Are you married yet? That's an interesting angle."

This was the first time he had ever seen a storyline in a visual novel where the protagonist and a female character embark on a married life together.

Shota Suzuki played for two hours straight, his drowsiness completely gone.

"You're pregnant? Does that mean Peng is going to be a dad?"

Peng is me, and I am Peng.

In other words, Hiroki Suzuki will have a child in the game.

"The plot here is much more interesting than the one on campus."

"Nagisa means coastline."

"It's the place where the tide rises and falls, so how about we call it 'tide' (汐)?"

"Not bad, that's a good name."

Hiroki Suzuki clicked the mouse and continued reading; this heartwarming storyline was like a delicacy to him.

Because I've never had this experience before, being called "Dad" by a child.

"That Shota guy, he must have played through this part too, right?"

"Is he taking this too far? Could it be that he's fantasizing about finding a woman like the one in the game in real life, and being willing to marry her and have children, which is why he's thinking about going out to work?"

"I was still too young. There's no such thing as a woman like Nagisa Furukawa in real life."

"But if it really existed, it sounds pretty good, I'm a little tempted."

"But that would be too tiring. I'd rather stay home and live off my parents, just playing games every day."

"As for the meaning of life, who cares? Just be relaxed and happy."

Hiroki Suzuki pursed his lips.

Looking at the happy and harmonious family on the screen, he couldn't help but feel envious.

In today's society, if there were a way out, who would want to stay at home and live off their parents?

He also wanted to start a family and have a harmonious family, but that would require taking on unimaginable responsibilities.

I have to go out to work.

The outside world is too scary. Someone like him can't survive on his own. He says he has hands and feet, but once he steps into society, the pressure from all sides will quickly crush him.

At home, all you have to do is get a scolding from your parents.

"In short, being a dad in a game is fine too, isn't it?"

Hiroki Suzuki suddenly muttered something to himself.

is it?

She watched as Sunohara, who had dyed her blonde hair back to black, came to congratulate her on the screen.

This character, who used to always be carefree and jovial, was showing such a serious demeanor for the first time, and he was somewhat unaccustomed to it.

Something seemed to have changed; he felt a part of his heart stir.

"They feel very similar, yet very different..."

"I used to think that becoming a parent was something far away from me, but when I turned around, the people around me started talking about boyfriends and girlfriends and getting married, and I realized that I had also reached this point. People don't stay young forever."

Yes, that's the feeling.

He is different from Tomohisa, and he is different from Sunohara.

I neither moved forward nor backward, but chose to stay where I was.

.......

Hiroki Suzuki continued playing, but for some reason, his mood became heavier than at the beginning.

"The town is constantly changing; nothing lasts forever."

That's all there is to life.

In the scene, Qiusheng witnesses the rise of buildings like large hospitals and sighs with admiration.

The slightly melancholic music emanating from the computer speakers sent chills down Hiroki Suzuki's spine.

He had listened to this music dozens of times in the previous 24 hours, and the name of the piece was played at the end of the film.

"If I remember correctly, it was called 'Tide's Echo'?"

What's going on? Why are they suddenly playing such sad music at a time like this?