I have a life simulator.

At this point, Kitagawa Ryo reached out and brushed aside Karuizawa Megumi's bangs, carefully removing strands of hair from her forehead so that his pupils could fully focus on her gaze. He then took the opportunity of her birthday to say everything he wanted to say to her.

"Of course, if Hui can't say it, then let me say it for her."

"Hui is the person I am most proud of. Every step of her growth and change is like that. They are never something that happens naturally or as a matter of course, but rather something that Hui has truly earned through hard work."

"Just as Hui said, redemption is never a one-way thing."

"Save yourself first, then be saved, and finally save others."

"Megumi also redeemed me."

"Therefore, I am sincerely grateful to you, respect you, and love you."

Chapter 509: The Three-Way Meeting of the Senior Students

Since March, Kitagawa Ryo himself has noticed a significant increase in the number of outsiders at Tokyo Advanced Educational High School. This is because the tripartite talks for second-year students have officially begun. Parents of each second-year student are invited to the school to talk with their homeroom teacher and children about their future aspirations, and also to learn about their children's life and changes at the school.

In theory, this matter should have had nothing to do with Kitagawa Ryo, since he was no longer the acting president of the student council, and it was not his place to do the related reception and venue arrangements. However, he had agreed to Asahina-senpai's request last month and was asked to accompany her on that day.

The Tokyo Advanced Educational High School specially requisitioned several venues, including classrooms, educational consultation rooms, and student council activity rooms, for this tripartite meeting. Asahina Nazuna's schedule was arranged in the classroom of Class 2-A. Because she was required to arrive 15 minutes early to wait, Kitagawa Ryo also arrived a little earlier than usual to go to the teaching building where the second-year students were located.

"Two years have passed without me even realizing it. It seems like my mother is here today. The last time I saw her was two years ago when she took me to school."

Perhaps wanting to ease her nervousness by talking, Asahina Nazuna immediately started chatting with Kitagawa Ryo as soon as he arrived.

"I think based on her performance on campus over the past two years, she shouldn't be so nervous. Her data on OAA is also very good."

In response to Kitagawa Ryo's words of comfort, Asahina Nazuna simply leaned forward and rested her head on the railing at the edge of the corridor, reaching out her hand towards the setting sun as if to grasp it in her palm.

"The issue isn't the past, but the future. This tripartite meeting was originally intended to discuss the students' plans after graduation."

“My parents definitely hope that I can work for a big company in the future, which is both respectable and has a high salary, but I actually want to try to continue my studies. After all, I can’t say for sure what I want to do in the future. I still hope to stay in the familiar campus environment and think it through.”

"This is a common mindset among high school students and even college students. I feel that if I say it out loud, people will understand."

"Waaah—even though she's a year younger than me, why does she always say those lines with such a matter-of-fact tone?"

"Because age doesn't always represent experience. Even if you compare yourself to other high school students of the same age now, after spending two years at Dongyu High School, you should have more experience."

Not everyone can make a clear plan for their future during their student years. After all, even Karuizawa Megumi, who is reborn, will feel confused and doubt herself. Rather, most students should have thoughts like Asahina Nazuna.

"That's true..."

After chatting for a few minutes, Asahina Nazuna seemed much more relaxed and quickly thanked Kitagawa Ryo.

"You first graders must be busy with the end-of-year special exams these days. It's so kind of you to make the trip to see me, with such a tight schedule. Thank you."

"It's alright, after all, I had promised my senior a long time ago, and it was only a few tens of minutes. Speaking of which, I also want to meet my senior's parents. They must be very nice people, to be able to raise a senior with such a personality."

"What do you mean by 'that kind of personality'?"

Asahina Nazuna pouted and waved her little fist at Kitagawa Ryo in a show of defiance.

"That's the kind of personality that leads people to do such things."

Kitagawa Ryo couldn't help but chuckle at this. Apart from seeing her crying face during the special exam of the mixed training camp, Asahina Nazuna had always given him the impression of being as bright as her orange hair, like a sunflower that always faces the sun.

"Ah, time's almost up. I'm going into the classroom now. Ryo is waiting at the other end of the corridor. The meeting will last about fifteen minutes. I'll bring my mom to find you then, so don't run away."

After glancing at the time on her phone, Asahina Nazuna gave Kitagawa Ryo the same instruction before returning to the classroom. Kitagawa Ryo responded with a nod and then distanced himself slightly from her.

A short while later, he saw two adult women walk into the classroom of Class 2-A. They were the homeroom teacher of Class 2-A and the parents who had been invited to participate in the tripartite meeting today.

As Kitagawa Ryo was scrolling through his phone and chatting in the class group chat to pass the time while waiting, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a pair of figures passing by on the other side of the corridor. It was an elderly man and a high school student. Her flamboyant white waist-length hair was quite eye-catching. It was Kiryuin Kaede from Class 2-B. The person next to her should be the grandfather who had also been invited to participate in the tripartite talks and had been mentioned by the other party before.

I remember that the other person didn't have a particularly good relationship with their parents. They entered Tokyo Advanced Educational High School to avoid their family's arrangements, and even spent a long time figuring out how to repeat a grade at the school.

Since he was right in the other person's path, Kitagawa Ryo had no choice but to put away his phone and politely greet them first.

"Good afternoon, Senior Sister Kiryuin and Grandpa."

Unlike Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, who grew up in a white room and knew little about most things, only able to learn from Tsukishiro Tsuneshige, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji had a thorough understanding of the Japanese zaibatsu and political parties after several lifetimes of simulations. Naturally, he had also seen the old man before him.

"Oh, it's the Kitagawa family's kid. You did attend this school too."

Upon seeing Kitagawa Ryo, the old man Kiryuin tapped his head. The events of a few years ago were too bizarre, so most people in the circle knew about Kitagawa Ryo, who had been found again, and he was no exception.

"So you two know each other?"

Perhaps because she was used to this way of communicating with Kitagawa Ryo, Kiryuin Fuka, who had always maintained a polite demeanor in front of her grandfather, finally couldn't hold back and was immediately glared at.

"We met once more than a year ago, and it's so good to see that you are in such good health."

After exchanging a few casual social pleasantries and small talk, if it weren't for the fact that he had to wait for Asahina Nagisa to come out, Kitagawa Ryo would have wanted to say goodbye and leave immediately. After all, familiarity is one thing, but whether you like this atmosphere is another. Talking to her is not as good as chatting with Kiryuin Fuka later.

"I've heard from Fenghua that you two seem to have a pretty good relationship? There aren't many boys that this child values."

But the other party didn't seem to have any intention of letting him go. Judging from their tone, it almost felt like they were on a blind date, which made Kiryuin Fuka and Kitagawa Ryo feel a chill run down their spines.

"My senior and I are indeed very good friends, and she has taken care of me a lot this year."

"Well, having more friends means having more options, so I certainly don't object to you two being friends. In fact, I would say I'm quite welcoming."

Feeling that the conversation was heading straight for Asahina Nazuna, Kitagawa Ryo quickly gave Kiryuin Kaede a wink, who immediately understood and smiled as she pulled the old man's arm.

"Grandpa, the car you booked arrived at the school gate five minutes ago. Don't keep them waiting."

"Okay, okay, we've only been together for a few minutes, and you're already urging me to leave. I came all this way for nothing."

"Well, there's nothing I can do about that. Your son and daughter-in-law are even less available, and I don't want to see them either. Come on, let me help you down the stairs."

Seeing that Kiryuin Fuka had finally managed to coax and trick the old man away, Kitagawa Ryo breathed a sigh of relief. He turned around and saw that the three-way meeting in the classroom with Hina Nazuna seemed to be coming to an end, so he took two more steps in that direction.

Actually, the reason he wanted to end his conversation with Kiryuin so quickly was not only to avoid running into Asahina Nazuna, but also to give the other person as much time and space as possible.

In the stairwell of the teaching building, the grandfather and grandson Kiryuin, who had just parted ways with Kitagawa Ryo, bumped into another student by chance after turning a corner.

"Excuse me, are you Mr. Kiryuin?"

A boy in a first-year high school uniform feigned surprise and stepped forward to greet them with a bow.

"I am Kiyotaka Ayanokoji."

----------------------------------

"Thank you so much for today."

"Not at all, I'm the one here. Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to come over."

With the homeroom teacher and mother bowing politely to each other again, Asahina Nazuna's three-way meeting officially came to an end.

"I didn't expect Qi to perform so well at such a top national school. Although I'm a little surprised by your own thoughts, if you really insist, I will explain it to your father properly when I get back."

"Yes, thank you, Mom."

After thanking her understanding mother, Asahina Nazuna immediately led her mother towards Kitagawa Ryo's direction.

"Oh, right, besides these things, there's something else I want to tell Mom, or rather, I want Mom to meet someone."

As she spoke, Asahina Nazuna also let go of her mother's hand, took two quick steps to the corner, and pulled Kitagawa Ryo, who had been sitting in the shadows, out by the hand:

"This is Kitagawa Ryo from Class 1-B. He helped me a lot this year and is my best... um, friend in school!"

Seemingly feeling a bit shy about holding another boy's hand so openly in front of her mother, Asahina Nazuna also let go of Kitagawa Ryo's hand after pulling him out. Like cosplaying a meme of "When someone says nothing in the world is perfect, I belike," she spread her arms to the side, showing them off to Kitagawa Ryo.

"I am Kitagawa Ryo. I am grateful for the care and attention you have received from your daughter this past year."

Although Kitagawa Ryo wanted to laugh at Asahina Nazuna's reaction and actions, he managed to suppress the urge with his strong ability to control his expressions. He politely introduced himself to Mrs. Asahina, and his manners were impeccable.

To be fair, even if Asahina Nazuna said she was her best friend, the fact that she specifically brought her to meet Kitagawa Ryo during this rare three-way meeting shows that Mrs. Asahina had already habitually switched to a different perspective the moment she saw Kitagawa Ryo.

Judging solely from his appearance, Kitagawa Ryo was indeed flawless, leaving her with a stunning first impression. Therefore, she smiled warmly and said:

"I just heard some things about you from Qi. Although you're still a high school freshman, you're already a very famous drama actress. You're truly a young talent. I hope you can help her out more in the coming year. Actually, although this child always seems..."

In no time, Kitagawa Ryo had collected a whole bunch of embarrassing and highlight stories about Asahina Nagisa from her childhood to adulthood from her mother. Asahina Nagisa herself didn't seem to care at all, and even added details and her own thoughts at the time with a look of emotion. Before they knew it, the three of them had been chatting in the corridor for another half hour.

Since the temporary permission to enter the school was only granted through a tripartite meeting, the parents couldn't stay any longer after the meeting ended. Therefore, Asahina Nagisa reluctantly saw her mother off again, promising to come back to pick her up for graduation at the end of March next year.

"It seems that the senior student and the aunt communicated quite smoothly."

After waving goodbye to Mrs. Asahina, Kitagawa Ryo also nodded his chin at Asahina Nazuna:

"I told you there was no need to worry."

"Actually, the reason it went so smoothly is mainly because of Nagumo."

Asahina Nazuna shrugged in response:

"He's already been used as a negative example by our class teacher. It was mainly my mom who asked him first, but she was silenced by his violation of school rules, which resulted in a major demerit and the fact that he disfigured himself. Otherwise, who knows what else she would have said."

At this point, Asahina Nazuna raised the corners of her mouth again, held up one finger at Kitagawa Ryo, and a bright smile appeared on her pretty face:

"Actually, this is one of the reasons why I kept having my mom and Liang talk about those past things. After listening, do you feel like you understand me a little better?"

"I really do know a lot about what my senior sister was like when she was a child..."

"Yes, I'll keep talking to Ryo about these kinds of topics, but Ryo has to talk to me a lot too, that's fair."

As she spoke, Asahina Nazuna once again extended her right hand to Kitagawa Ryo, raising her little finger in a gesture of agreement.

"Although I haven't known Ryo for very long compared to others, once I learned about Ryo's entire past, and Ryo also learned about my entire past—"

"Then we can be considered an artificial version of childhood sweethearts."

Chapter 510: Open Schemes and Covert Calculations

For first-year students who are not members of the student council, the three-way talks of the second year are obviously not a topic of interest to them. Moreover, with the special exams at the end of the school year approaching, most students are busy preparing.

Among these, the behavior of the students in Class 1D is the most eye-catching.

Stalking, verbal harassment, and violent threats—these practices that were commonplace for the students of Class D before every special exam—all disappeared overnight. What's even more astonishing is that these notorious troublemakers in the grade even went to places like the library or study rooms and started holding study sessions with all their might.

As their rivals who would face Class D in the special exam, Class C of the first year naturally paid close attention to Class D's behavior from the beginning. Therefore, after witnessing their unusual behavior, they immediately held a discussion.

"Where's Kiyotaka Ayanokoji? He's not here again today?"

At the start of the meeting, Morishita Ai glanced at the desk and chair that had been empty immediately after school and asked Katsuragi Kohei this question.

"He has student council matters to attend to today."

Kohei Katsuragi offered a perfunctory explanation to Kiyotaka Ayanokouji, though he himself found the reason unreliable, since he, as a fellow student council member, was still standing there unharmed.

However, there was nothing he could do. When Ayanokouji Kiyotaka left, he only told him that something came up, so as his deputy, he had no choice but to temporarily take over the class meeting.

"Okay, so what are your thoughts on Class D's actions over the past two days? Feel free to share your opinions."

After clearing his throat and forcibly steer the conversation back on track, Katsuragi Kohei talked about the strange situation in Class D recently and asked the other students to share their opinions on the matter.

"The reason is actually very simple. It's just cramming for the upcoming special exam, but with a little bit of cleverness added."

Perhaps because Ayanokouji Kiyotaka was absent, Morishita Ai seemed to be in good spirits today, and she expressed her thoughts in just a few words:

"Before the project of the opposing class number fourteen is revealed, theoretically, the class can only practice the project it will apply for. However, this makes it easy for the opponent to deduce it through intelligence warfare. Therefore, it is better to practice the project that the opponent is likely to propose in advance. This can prepare in advance and put some psychological pressure on the opponent, making them suspicious that their class's information has been leaked."

"From Class D's perspective, there's no doubt that Class C would prefer to choose academically challenging projects. So it's understandable that they're cramming at the last minute. However, this tactic is useless except for self-deception. After all, given the academic level of Class D students, the gap between us and them can't be closed in just two weeks."

When Morishita Ai gave her explanation, most of the students in Class 1-C nodded in agreement. However, they were just as unconcerned as she was. After all, as she said, Class 1-C was clearly going to use their academic advantage to crush everyone, and two weeks of last-minute cramming would hardly be effective.

"If you ask me, this might just be a smokescreen by the students in Class D. They're just trying to launch a sneak attack when we're off guard. Class D is capable of doing things like that."

"Indeed, I don't believe that Longyuan would allow students to attend study sessions peacefully. Has it changed its ways?"

Following the speeches of the students in Class 1-A, Kohei Katsuragi summarized them as follows:

"Yes, we do need to be careful about the underhanded tactics of Class D, but there's no need to worry too much. If anyone is verbally or physically harassed or threatened by students from Class D, just report it to the student council, and Ayanokouji and I will intervene."

Seeing Katsuragi Kohei's words implying that he had connections in the student council, Kamuro Masumi, who hadn't said much, just silently curled her lips.

After all, the last student from Class C who actually caused trouble in the student council, Masayoshi Hashimoto, didn't seem to receive any special treatment.

Kamuro Masumi, who never hesitates to speculate about Class C with the worst intentions, rested her chin on her hand and looked out the window. In fact, even if they really lost this special exam, hadn't Class C already found a scapegoat?

Speaking of which, Class 1-C seems to have no shortage of such tanks. Last time it was Totsuka Yahiko, and this time it's Hashimoto Masayoshi.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who is a hands-off manager; Katsuragi Kohei, who seems unchanged from before; and Hashimoto Masayoshi, who has already been ignited.

Taking all these factors into account, it seems that the prospects for Class C in this special exam are not very clear.

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While the meeting of Class C in the first year was in full swing, Class A in the first year also began to express their opinions based on the information they had gathered over the past two days.

"Class D has recently been focusing on the academic level of the students in the training class. It seems they have guessed or obtained some information about Class C. But thinking about it, it makes sense. Class C will definitely try to win against Class D by using their significant advantage in academic ability."

"Actually, there's nothing wrong with Class D's approach. We can follow suit in preparing for Class B's exam. What direction do you all think Class B will focus on for their project application in this special exam?"

"Personally, I think we can't rule out the possibility that Class B will ask academic questions. Although our class's overall academic performance has improved significantly since we first entered the school a year ago, I still feel that we might not be able to compete with Class B if we encounter academic questions that require a large number of students."