I have a life simulator.

Faced with Horikita Suzune's somewhat questioning gaze, Kitagawa Ryo simply let out a long breath and gave this ambiguous answer, which was not actually a lie.

In fact, Kitagawa Ryo himself sometimes had doubts about this issue. After all, after experiencing so many simulations, he could actually feel that the talents he extracted, though seemingly strange, were almost all things that did not go against his true nature, did not distort his personality, and were mostly based on fundamental abilities.

In terms of personality, even though he had previously extracted seemingly strange talents such as 'Tokyo hottie' or 'carnivore', they were not obvious in those two simulations, or even at all.

In terms of ability, just like the golden talent 'Grand Master', Kitagawa Ryo had already demonstrated his talent in chess before his transmigration and rebirth.

That's why the talent called "veteran actor" is so dazzling; it was never something that should have belonged to him in the first place.

It was as if it had been taken from him and forcibly given to him.

"So, for me, the possibility of opening a dessert shop with Lingyin again in the future is probably greater than going back to acting."

Unwilling to look into Horikita Suzune's eyes and recall those vague and distant past events, Kitagawa Ryo turned his gaze back to the future, smiling at the girl and making another promise:

"However, by then, it won't be a game of playing the family anymore."

"It should be a family role-playing game between me and Rinne."

Chapter 494: Really Unlucky?

Before long, it was lunchtime at Tokyo Advanced Educational Junior High School. As usual, the students who had finished their morning classes called out to each other, either heading to the student cafeteria for lunch or grabbing some bread from a convenience store, chatting and laughing about topics they hadn't finished during the break.

At this time of day, Shiina Hiyori would already be walking briskly to her classroom in Class 1-B. But today was different, because Kitagawa Ryo had sent her a text message that morning saying, "Something came up today, so please make sure you have lunch by yourself."

"Huh? Why didn't Hiyori go today?"

Sitting next to Shiina Hiyori, Ibuki Mio took out a wrapping cloth from her bag and casually asked her a question with some doubt.

Since learning to cook from Horikita Suzune for a while, Ibuki Mio is now able to take care of her own meals. Although the taste is only barely palatable, it is a huge breakthrough for a sports student like her, and she will definitely continue to improve in the future.

"It seems Liang took the day off today."

Perhaps because she was slumped listlessly on her desk, Shiina Hiyori's voice sounded muffled, like that of an abandoned little animal.

"Are you sick? You seemed perfectly fine yesterday."

Mio Ibuki continued unpacking her bento box, chopsticks in her mouth, and gave a brief reply.

"I've never seen Ryo get sick before. I heard Fanbo also took leave... Well, that's about it."

Thanks to a certain mystery writer, Shiina Hiyori, who learned about mouths, non-humans, and placement play from just one book, "Rainbow Toothbrush," still possesses a lot of imagination in related fields. After all, the rumors that Kitagawa Ryo spread during the mixed training camp special exam were too astonishing.

The thought that Ichinose Honami, who frequents the gym and is obviously much better in physical condition than her, had chosen to take a day off rekindled, or rather confirmed, the idea that Shiina Hiyori had told Karuizawa Kei yesterday.

"Oh, that's it."

Ibuki Mio remained remarkably calm, as she wasn't particularly interested in such matters. She scooped up a large mouthful of rice with her spoon, chewed, and mumbled a concerned inquiry:

"So you won't eat lunch or dinner then? That's not good for your health. At least grab something from the convenience store. I heard they have new bread flavors. It's just that I'm not a good cook, otherwise I would have shared half with you."

"It's okay, I'll just go to the convenience store and check. Thanks."

After saying goodbye to Ibuki Mio, who was still engrossed in eating, Shiina Hiyori perked up, stood up from her seat, and left the Class 1-D classroom. However, instead of going to the convenience store immediately, she walked towards the Class 1-B classroom at the other end of the corridor.

Compared to Class D, which scatters like birds during lunch break, Class B has a relatively high percentage of students who bring their own lunches. This is partly due to the students' personalities, and partly because the three main figures in the class—Kitagawa Ryo, Karuizawa Megumi, and Ichinose Honami—all bring their own lunches, which does influence some other students.

However, due to the absence of Kitagawa Ryo and Ichinose Honami today, the four-person group that should have been formed with her couldn't get together. Shiina Hiyori glanced inside through the window, but didn't see Karuizawa Megumi either. She was probably out eating with the other girls in her class.

Just as she was thinking this, Shiina Hiyori heard a familiar voice behind her again. It was Karuizawa Megumi, who seemed to have just come out of the teachers' office.

"Huh? What's Hiyori doing here? Didn't Ryo text you? He didn't come to class today; he and Honami took the day off."

"I came to chat with Hui—and maybe get a free meal."

"Sure, but I need to make it clear beforehand that my bento isn't as good as the ones made by Ryō. I hope Hiyori won't mind."

After all, they had been best friends for several years, so Karuizawa Kei didn't stand on ceremony at all and pulled Shiina Hiyori into the classroom. Since Hiyori had always come to visit during lunch break without fail, the other students in Class B didn't pay much attention.

"Did I just see him coming out of the office?"

"Yeah, I was called over by Hoshinomiya's homeroom teacher for something. It's nothing serious, she just asked me to keep an eye on Ryo and Honami. After all, this is still high school, and if anything happens, she, as the homeroom teacher, will definitely be held responsible."

At this point, Karuizawa Kei herself couldn't help but chuckle. The idea of ​​her supervising Ichinose Honami and Kitagawa Ryo sounded abstract, but in fact, she was the one who started it first.

"Then the class teacher gave her a long, rambling complaint about what happened at yesterday's matchmaking event. All I can say is that she and Mr. Chabashira really need to stay together and not let them out to mess with other people."

What happened at the matchmaking event?

"It's because they feel like Chabashira-sensei has stolen their thunder. From yesterday to today, quite a few male teachers have been jumping around trying to help Chabashira-sensei find the cat, one or two of them like they're completing some kind of Kaguya-hime trial."

As she spoke, Karuizawa Megumi lowered her voice again, leaning closer to Shiina Hiyori and whispering:

"Actually, the cat that Chabashira-sensei is looking for is Hotaru. This whole thing was probably Ryo's plan from the beginning, to whitewash Hotaru's identity."

"Whoa whoa."

Shiina Hiyori quickly understood what the other person meant and couldn't help but sigh:

"Liang really likes her. Last time, she went to great lengths to get her into the school."

"Yes, Hotaru is indeed a very cute and smart little cat. It's just that sometimes when I see Ryo being too nice to her, it makes me a little jealous for a cat."

Half-jokingly, Karuizawa Kei emptied half of her lunchbox and handed the spoon to the other person. The two chatted and ate lunch together.

However, this leisurely time did not last long. Kanzaki Ryuji rushed in from outside and came to the two of them. Without saying a word, he directly showed them his phone screen.

That was a new post published a few minutes earlier on the campus forum by the official account of the Investment and Financial Management Mini-Class:

With the student council election approaching, who is your ideal candidate for student council president?

Below the large title, the first line prominently displays Horikita Suzune's name and personal information, detailing her various data and score rankings on OAA, along with her own opinion:

"Without a doubt, she is the most popular candidate in this student council election, without exception. Since joining the student council, under the guidance of former president Horikita Manabu, Horikita Suzune has demonstrated an extremely high level of competence and ability. Not only has she never missed a day of the student council's daily work in the past year, but the outstanding achievements of the drama club, which she strongly supports and favors, also prove her excellent vision."

Although they had only read the first paragraph, Karuizawa Kei and Shiina Hiyori had already frowned in unison, clearly having noticed the subtle hints behind this euphemistic writing style.

"Where's Lingyin? I'll go talk to her about this."

Since Class 1-B had already firmly sided with Horikita Suzune, and Karuizawa Megumi herself had a good relationship with her, Karuizawa Megumi realized the problem the moment she saw the post and decided to immediately get up and go to talk to Horikita Suzune in person.

Since Kitagawa Ryo and Ichinose Honami are both absent due to leave, she, as the class president, has to take over for Class B.

"I asked when I passed by Class C on my way back."

Having finally caught his breath, Ryuji Kanzaki answered:

"Horikita is not in class; she took the day off today."

Upon hearing this, Shiina Hiyori nearly choked on her food, a great look of confusion flashing in her amethyst-like eyes.

No, surely no one could possibly beat her to it?

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In fact, Tsukishiro Tsunehira has always been quite fair. In this post, not only Horikita Suzune, but also the other three candidates were mentioned by name in various ways. In fact, compared to them, Horikita Suzune was just nitpicking.

"Katsuragi Kohei, a first-year student in Class C, previously had a 'glorious record' of leading Class A to Class D as a class leader. He was also specially recruited into the student council by the former student council president, Nagumo Masaya. His abilities are questionable..."

"Sakayanagi Arisu, a first-year student in Class A, openly missed a semester of routine duties after joining the student council, claiming it was due to health reasons. Therefore, it's hard to believe that she can handle the daily pressures of being the student council president..."

"Ayanokouji Kiyotaka, a first-year student in Class C, has performed adequately since joining the student council. He was also specially recruited by the former student council president, Nagumo Masashi. Rumor has it that this matter may also involve a large loan transaction..."

In Class 1-A, Arisu Sakayanagi was idly scrolling through the rest of the post. The other students around her were also discussing the matter enthusiastically, but because she was the person involved, they mostly avoided talking about her and Suzune Horikita and focused on the two candidates from Class C.

"Katsura's odds are indeed the highest. Is anyone thinking of betting on him, this big upset? If he pulls off a major upset, we'll be rich!"

"They dare to push for such a pure and simple sham? I don't even know how many votes Katsuragi will get in this student council election. Let alone the student council of Class C voting for Ayanokouji, I reckon even he himself will stand up and campaign for Ayanokouji. After all, Ayanokouji is the one in charge of Class C now, okay?"

"Well, there's nothing I can do about it. Some people lead their classes from A to D, while others at least managed to turn things around in the last special exam. I'm a student in Class C, and I'd still choose Ayanokouji."

"What comeback? I think it's just that they clung to Kitagawa's coattails and took advantage of the small group and the larger group."

Upon unexpectedly hearing the name Kitagawa Ryo, Sakayanagi Arisu subconsciously shifted her gaze to her left middle finger. The sports ring she had been wearing there, meant to deceive herself, had been replaced with a shiny, genuine one, which shimmered with a captivating luster as she turned it, reflecting light from different angles.

To be honest, the reason why Sakayanagi Arisu didn't go to see Kitagawa Ryo this morning is actually quite similar to Horikita Suzune's: she also stayed up too late last night.

However, unlike Horikita Suzune, who texted Kitagawa Ryo until late at night and then looked through the chat history over and over again, Sakayanagi Arisu looked through news reports and comments from outside the school.

Although Tokyo Advanced Educational High School does not prohibit students from receiving information from the outside world, most students have gradually lost some of their awareness of the outside world due to their accustomed to the completely closed environment. Therefore, the incident that occurred near Tokyo Tower last night did not cause any disturbance on campus. For them, the school's celebration yesterday was the main event.

But for the citizens of Tokyo and many other netizens around the world, it was a different story. After the performance ended, the related trend quickly became a hot topic. After all, everyone was curious about the truth behind this inexplicable confession ceremony, which ended without a clear beginning or end, and it was unclear who gave the confession to whom.

However, it is undeniable that the vast majority of female netizens highly approve of this performance, which is extremely romantic in every aspect. After all, it is much grander than setting up a flower arrangement with candles downstairs.

Of course, many netizens simply commented that this was just another whim of some rich kid. After all, getting a landmark like the Tokyo Tower to change its color for one person is no easy feat. Judging from this alone, the man must be no ordinary person. Forget about romance; all I can see is money.

Although on the other hand, someone immediately said that the fact that the two are willing to put on such a grand show despite their wealth proves their genuine feelings for each other, I'm already shipping them.

In short, it was comments like these that kept Sakayanagi Arisu scrolling through the comments until she lost track of time. It just made her feel like she was back in the days when she was envied and blessed by millions of people. After all, the Alice that the whole internet was looking for was her.

"……Good for you."

At this point, even Sakayanagi Arisu herself had to admit that Kitagawa Ryo's plan did indeed hit a nerve, but it wasn't a very satisfying one; it was almost like adding a little bit of revenge to her intentions.

However, she couldn't bring herself to retaliate, because she was the one who started it, and all Kitagawa Ryo did was pretend to be confused in response.

After letting out a small sigh, Sakayanagi Arisu unconsciously glanced at Horikita Suzune's seat, which had been empty since morning.

This was the first time she had seen Horikita Suzune absent from work due to illness.

Anyone would feel unlucky if someone got sick and took the day off on their birthday, right?

Should I send her a message or make a phone call to check on her later?

Sitting in her seat, Sakayanagi Arisu rested her chin on her right hand and continued to admire the ring on the middle finger of her left hand with her eyes half-closed, exuding a sense of ease and contentment in every way.

……but.

No matter what.

I would still prefer the other person to put it on me personally.

Bonus: The World's Smallest Collar

Important note before reading: This chapter is the second epilogue of Karuizawa Kei's first simulation, namely the epilogue of the volume "Karuizawa Kei's Autumn Reminiscences". It is a story on the same timeline as the first epilogue, "Taming and Being Tamed". It is also used to supplement the story that takes place on the extended timeline of that simulation, so as to help readers better understand the character's current mental journey and actual actions.

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I tried to impress you with confusion, danger, and failure.

— Jorge Luis Borge (Argentina)

If Hotaru's most unpleasant memory is the aftermath of Sakayanagi Arisu's first simulation, then Kitagawa Ryo's most unpleasant memory is undoubtedly the aftermath of Karuizawa Megumi's first simulation.

If he were to define it, it would be the worst ending where no one finds happiness. Whether it's Karuizawa Kei, who watered her paper rose with self-harm and lies, or Shiina Hiyori, who couldn't get what she wanted and never dared to reveal their relationship, or Horikita Suzune, who worshipped a new shrine in her own world with even greater devotion, none of these four people, including himself, truly achieved their wishes.

That is why Kitagawa Ryo only ever admitted to the rings he received and gave away in all the simulations, and that was the only one related to Shiina Hiyori.

However, it must be said that it was also because of this simulation that Kitagawa Ryo fully understood Horikita Suzune's entire past and personality. In this respect, the reason why he was able to perfectly complete her chapter in one go is also due to this.

If Hotaru hadn't betrayed him during this Valentine's Day celebration, Kitagawa Ryo would probably have kept that memory buried deep in his heart. But this unplanned action forced him to take back the ring related to Horikita Suzune from Hotaru.

He stared at the ring that was scheduled to be given away again today, and suddenly this thought popped into his head.

If we were to add a title to that period of time, the time after marriage could be called "Taming and Being Tamed".

As for before marriage...

It can be called:

The world's smallest collar.

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Do you know a famous proverb from abroad?

Kitagawa Ryo, resting his chin on his hand, raised an eyebrow at Horikita Manabu, who was sitting opposite him, his tone slightly wistful:

"Get married quickly, then slowly regret it."

So, you mean you're not in a hurry to get married?

"No, I just suddenly realized that if you think about this proverb in reverse, the situation seems even worse."

Kitagawa Ryo took a sip of the tea in front of him.

"Isn't that just getting married slowly and then quickly regretting it?"

Taking this sentence as a starting point, he finally began to vent his true feelings to a friend he had known for over ten years:

"As expected, I still regret it now. I shouldn't have accepted your request to contact and communicate with Lingyin. Otherwise, things would never have turned out like this."

"But you also know that I can't persuade Lingyin to change her mind right now. Rather, no one in the world can convince her right now, not even God."

Horikita Manabu maintained his calm demeanor, but his tone also carried a hint of apology and helplessness.

"Moreover, everyone except Liang already believes that this is the best outcome."