Green plums cannot become lovers.

An and Asuka thought for a moment and then gave up guessing, instead asking the girl, "So what do you plan to do now?"

As he spoke, he waved the sheet music in his hand, the meaning of which was self-evident. This piece could be performed, but whether it could win an award was another matter, and it might not even pass the preliminary rounds.

"Hmm, I... I want to give it a try first..." Kaori Miyazono replied softly, "After all, this is the culmination of more than a month of my hard work."

At this moment, the once confident girl suddenly became insecure again. Her demeanor didn't seem feigned, leaving An and Asuka momentarily unable to tell whether she genuinely lacked confidence or was pretending.

But after thinking about it, he sighed and said, "Alright, let's give it a try then."

Whether it works or not, at least practice it once first. What if this piece of music just looks ordinary on the surface but is actually very powerful?

"it is good!"

At that moment, the girl's eyes immediately lit up.

After a burst of rousing music, the music room fell silent once again.

Neither of the two people in the room spoke, but the outcome was self-evident.

After a moment of silence, Kaori Miyazono said in a disappointed tone, "It really didn't work out."

She had never played this piece herself before; she wanted to play it with the boy, and she was even thinking of using this music to dominate the competition.

But the truth is, this music is very ordinary, and it would only be embarrassing to submit it to a competition.

"It's alright." Seeing the girl's face fall again, An and Asuka quickly comforted her, "There's still a lot of room for improvement. I can feel that its melody is quite good. With a little improvement, it will definitely become a very good piece of music."

"really?"

No, I was just kidding.

“...You bastard!” Kaori Miyazono gritted her teeth upon hearing this. Just moments ago, she had felt a flicker of happiness because of the boy’s words, but in the blink of an eye, this guy said this.

However, seeing the boy's slightly smiling face, the little bit of emotion in my heart quickly disappeared.

Kaori Miyazono quickly cheered up and said, "Fine, there's no time to lose anyway, so I'll just use this piece of music for the competition!"

"But you won't get a good ranking that way."

"I don't care." The girl shook her head, looking confident. "As long as I'm happy, that's all that matters."

Anyway, she has already tried her best and will definitely have no regrets.

Seeing the girl's appearance, An and Asuka couldn't help but smile.

Volume 1: Chapter 117 Saving the Critically Ill Girl

After trying several more times in the music room, the two finally gave up.

"Forget it, let's go outside and rest for a bit."

As Kaori Miyazono spoke, she put down her violin and walked outside. Seeing this, An and Asuka naturally had no reason to disobey.

However, before leaving, he still took the girl's sheet music. Kaori Miyazono happened to see this and asked curiously, "What are you doing with that?"

“I will take it back and examine it carefully. 2) Long time? Flag? | uO doctor (3) Stop looking up and admiring it.”

"You're such a mean-spirited fellow!"

Kaori Miyazono knew the boy was teasing her, so she reached out and pinched An and Asuka's waist. However, because they were wearing thick winter clothes, the girl only gave their coats a good twist as punishment before withdrawing her hand.

An and Asuka smiled but didn't say anything. They simply carefully put away the girl's hard work, which had taken her a month to complete.

Emerging from the music room, Kaori Miyazono stretched lazily, feeling relaxed and at ease. An and Asuka stood beside her, watching the girl who seemed detached from everything.

Upon entering the living room, the girl's mother was sitting in front of the kotatsu, knitting a sweater while watching television in the distance. On the kotatsu table was a magazine, which, judging from the cover, was a medical journal with articles about cancer.

"With the development of science and technology, medical experts predict that some cancers will be completely eradicated in a few years."

The television channel was also showing a medical channel, which mainly provided basic medical knowledge to the public and some medical news, such as which country had eradicated a certain disease and which disease would soon be curable.

Taking both factors into account, it's surprising that the girl's mother was also interested in this.

"If only all cancers in the world could be cured."

Watching the news on TV, the woman said something that sounded both wistful and hopeful. The girl quickly chimed in, smiling, "Of course it will! After all, technology is developing so rapidly these days."

"But......"

Before the woman could say anything more, the girl interrupted her, saying, "Mom, I want to watch magical girls!"

"You're so old, yet you still like watching cartoons that only little kids watch." The woman looked helpless, but still handed the remote control to the girl.

The medical channel was quickly switched to an anime, and at that moment, Kaori Miyazono, who had crawled into the kotatsu, looked at An and Asuka again.

"Anhe, what are you still doing standing there? Come over and warm up with me."

"I won't go." An and Asuka shook their heads, declining the girl's offer. "I'm going home."

"Huh? So early?"

"Yes, Anhe, lunch is coming soon. Why don't you stay and have lunch before you leave?"

The girl and her mother tried to persuade her to stay, but An and Asuka declined their offers. Seeing that they couldn't convince them otherwise, the two regretfully gave up.

Do you want us to give you a ride?

As Kaori Miyazono was about to crawl out of the kotatsu again, An and Asuka said, "No need, I can walk by myself."

"Alright then, goodbye." Kaori Miyazono didn't insist and stayed snuggled in the kotatsu. Seeing this, the woman shook her head helplessly, then got up and saw An and Asuka to the door.

"Auntie, I'm sorry to bother you. Please help me say goodbye to Uncle."

After changing her shoes, An and Asuka politely said a few more words before turning to open the door.

"Okay, be careful on the road."

"Ah."

After saying goodbye to the woman, An and Asuka left the girl's house completely.

After he left, the girl who had been sitting in the kotatsu suddenly turned deathly pale. She could no longer support herself and collapsed to the ground in pain, curling up in agony.

"Xiao Xun!"

In her hazy consciousness, the girl heard her mother's anxious calls.

On the other side, An and Asuka had just left the house and hadn't gone far when they heard the system's voice in their heads.

[Mission issued: Rescue Kaori Miyazono.]

[Task Description: The seemingly cheerful girl actually lacks self-confidence and suffers from a rare disease that constantly threatens her life. If left untreated, the consequences could be unimaginable.]

[Mission Time Limit: Four years from now]

[Quest Rewards: Attribute Points *100, Skill Points *100, Fate's Bond, Character Effect *Healing]

【Destiny Link: Can only be used on one person. After use, the fate of that person will be inextricably linked to that of the host, inseparable in any way, even to the point of sharing life and death】

[Task Effect *Healing: After use, it will slightly affect those around you; those suffering from illness will experience temporary relief from their pain. Note: It cannot cure any disease!]

[Mission Failure: Kaori Miyazono will lose all mobility and die completely!!!]

[Punishment for mission failure: None]

[Additional task: Get liked by 10,000 people!]

[Task Description: Get more people to like you, whether they are romantic partners, friends, or just your fans.]

[Task Time Limit: None]

[Task Rewards: Attribute Point *1, Skill Point *1, Stamina Potion, Unlock Shop Functionality]

[Energy Potion: Relieves physical and mental fatigue.]

[Shop: Earn points to purchase various amazing items in the shop.]

[Punishment for mission failure: None]

Upon seeing the task suddenly issued by the system, An and Asuka staggered and almost fell to the ground.

He read the words in front of him over and over again in disbelief, but the cold words still conveyed a cruel reality to him.

That cheerful and lively girl, like a little sun, was actually suffering from a life-threatening illness. If she couldn't be saved, she would die.

No wonder...no wonder he saw handrails on both the hallway and living room walls when he entered the house; no wonder the girl's mother was so interested in medical news; no wonder the girl's behavior in the music room was so varied.

An and Asuka's breathing became heavy involuntarily, and they felt a tightness in their chests.

Looking at the mission reward, he felt it was a handout from Death. Then he saw the penalty for failure, marked 'None,' and it seemed like a trap deliberately designed to lure him in.

It wanted to avoid caring about it, to not have to put in any effort, since there would be no punishment in the end. Besides, it didn't know anything about medicine, so it didn't need to feel any burden about it.

But if the girl dies, that would be the greatest punishment for him, after all, they were just beginning to get to know each other as best friends.

How could he accept that the girl was leaving this world like this?

An and Asuka took two deep breaths, forcing themselves to calm down.

Volume 1: Chapter 118 The Girl's Frail Health

[Host, Miyazono-kun has been frail and sickly since childhood, which has resulted in her being sensitive and delicate rather than cheerful and lively as she appears on the outside.]

Therefore, even if you know this news, it's best not to show it to Miyazono-kun. Just continue to treat her as a friend. Excessive concern will only make the girl more desperate.

The system's cold reminder caused a pang of pain in An and Asuka's heart. He recalled the time not long ago when the girl showed him her composition and asked for his opinion. When he casually said "ordinary," the disappointment on her face was genuine.

She's not as strong as she looks.

“I understand…” An and Asuka remained silent for a long time before nodding.

The system was right. The girl was using a strong and cheerful exterior to cover up her inner vulnerability. If he told her everything he knew, then no matter how they got along afterward, she might see it as charity or pity, and their relationship might come to an end.

So, he had to pretend he knew nothing about the girl's illness and suffering.

This must have been incredibly painful for him. Had he done something utterly heinous to deserve this?

But what pained him even more was that he was truly helpless in this task, and he could find no solution other than pinning his hopes on technological advancements.

After all, apart from the most basic health manual, he didn't have any other advanced medical knowledge, let alone the fact that the girl was suffering from what is known as the king of all diseases—cancer.

Even if he started learning now, with the system's support, he wouldn't be able to learn everything, let alone the fact that he only has four short years left.

If the girl cannot be saved within this timeframe, she will die from her illness.

So now our last hope is the system.

An and Asuka focused their attention on the second additional task issued by the system.

Once this task is completed, the so-called system shop will be unlocked. Having been with the system for so long, this was the first time An and Asuka had ever heard of this feature.

He didn't want to ask the system why it was only now telling him about this function; he just wanted to know what amazing items were available in the system's shop.

With the technological level of their world, it was impossible to save the girl, but if it were a system, that would be a different story.

Perhaps you're wondering what kind of magical cure-all is being sold in the system's shopping mall.

However, to open the store, he must complete a task—gaining the favor of 10,000 people.

An and Asuka continued to look down and found that the mission progress had actually advanced a little.

[Task completion progress: 101/10000]

In other words, there are currently 101 people who like themselves in various ways.

[Xiaomei, don't my followers from those accounts count?]

An and Asuka pressed for details, saying they just wanted to complete the task as soon as possible. If fan likes were included, their account had over 100,000 followers, so they should be able to complete the task immediately.

[No, because those people have never seen the host's face. Most of them can only be considered as liking your work, not as you.]

"..."

[Host, please try your best to gain more people's favor, and please try your best to save that girl.]

Seemingly sensing An and Asuka's disappointment, the system offered encouragement.

I know I will.

An and Asuka roused themselves; now was not the time to be passive. They had to complete the task as quickly as possible and find the tool to save the girl.

With that thought in mind, An and Asuka resumed their steps in the cold wind. At this moment, he put his hands in his pockets and unconsciously clenched the folded sheet music.

An and Asuka thought about it for a long time before they came up with a plan.

If he wants to be liked by others, he must constantly showcase his talents and let more people know him.

The only places that can provide him with this stage are schools, various competitions, and live music venues.