I have a life simulator.

Among the members of the drama club, apart from the two first-year students, Sakurako Tsubaki and Tsubasa Nanase, the remaining second-year members, whether it was Honami Ichinose, Megumi Karuizawa, or Airi Sakura, were all quite familiar with Hotaru. Therefore, when they saw her skipping and hopping into the auditorium, they all immediately raised their hands to greet her.

After all, even setting aside her relationship with Kitagawa Ryo, it's easy to develop a high level of affection for Hotaru, who is intelligent, cute, and well-behaved—although Kitagawa Ryo himself feels that these adjectives don't seem quite right now.

But there was nothing they could do. Just as Hotaru had lost Kitagawa Ryo's social connections for the past two years, Ichinose Honami, Karuizawa Megumi, and Sakura Airi's impressions of Hotaru were stuck two years ago. When they actually approached them, they were somewhat dazed to find that Hotaru had grown from a little girl who had just graduated from elementary school into a young woman about to enter high school. During this period of rapid female development, she had inadvertently undergone a transformation.

“This is my younger sister, Hotaru.”

Considering that there were two girls, Nanase Tsubasa and Tsubaki Sakurako, who didn't know Hotaru, Kitagawa Ryo gave them a brief introduction first.

He initially thought that Hotaru would pounce on him like she did last Christmas, and he was even prepared to catch her. But perhaps because there were many people present, and most of them were old acquaintances, Hotaru behaved quite normally this time, greeting everyone with a bright smile.

"Okay, just call me Ying."

Nanase Tsubasa didn't think much of Hotaru's words, assuming that her captain's younger sister was a gentle and kind girl just like her captain. Therefore, while enthusiastically introducing herself, she started using this rather intimate form of address:

"Is Ying here at Dongyu University also for the club exchange meeting? Could it be that you're the opponent we'll be facing next?"

"No, I'm here as a documentary photographer."

As she spoke, Hotaru raised the camera hanging around her neck again and gave a slightly comical salute towards Nanase Tsubasa:

"I'll definitely take some nice photos of my senior in a bit."

"Okay, okay, it's settled then—"

Unlike Nanase Tsubasa, Tsubaki Sakurako knew more about Hotaru. After all, in the nearly one year before entering Tokyo Advanced Educational High School, she had studied almost everything about Kitagawa Ryo, trying to use it as a breakthrough to uncover the truth about her sister. Therefore, she also knew about Hotaru.

Although Kitagawa Ryo himself has never actively promoted his family, there are always enthusiastic fans who will dig up such things themselves. So, a long time ago, Tsubaki Sakura already knew about Hotaru's existence, and even knew that Hotaru herself suffered from a certain congenital disease. Kitagawa Ryo had spent most of his earnings as a child actor in the early and middle stages on this kind of information.

From Tsubaki Sakura's perspective, Kitagawa Ryo and her older sister both entered the White Room in their childhood, and she and Hotaru, her two younger sisters, should have similar thought processes in some aspects.

It was precisely because of this that when Tsubaki Sakura left school during Golden Week in May this year, she vaguely sensed that the relationship between the brother and sister was not as simple as it seemed on the surface. After all, even a younger sister like her, who was in a psychological breakdown because her older sister was eliminated from the White Room, would develop a kind of obsession or desire to save her that transcends ordinary sisterly relationships.

If this person is also of the opposite sex, and immediately after leaving that place, continues to exploit their talents and spirit to raise money for their illness, then unless they are completely unaware of the truth, this will definitely give rise to another kind of feeling.

Although the reality that Tsubaki Sakura had always envisioned did have some errors and was completely different from what actually happened, perhaps due to some kind of telepathic connection between the sisters, they actually managed to capture some of Hotaru's true thoughts in the end, at least faster than the seniors on the field who had known Hotaru for a long time but were still lamenting how much a girl changes as she grows up.

Furthermore, regarding Hotaru's earlier statement that it's fine to just call her by her name, Tsubaki Sakura couldn't help but think of more things, since her older sister also had this habit of disliking surnames and only wanting others to call her by her given name.

If the older sister simply felt no sense of belonging because of her surname, while her given name truly carried her memories with Kitagawa Ryo, then what kind of mentality did Hotaru have when she said this?

Recalling what her father had once said about Kitagawa Ryo's background and the whole series of things that followed, Tsubaki Sakura felt that she had found part of the truth, after all, this once again confirmed her initial thoughts.

After all, if the other party really had that kind of thought, then this would definitely be a good thing for her rather than a bad thing.

"Is it okay if I don't film your school's clubs?"

When Kitagawa Ryo asked her question, Hotaru shook her head indifferently.

"It's okay. I'm not the only photographer from our school this time. Originally, the task was to have two people focus on our school and one person take pictures of the clubs at Dongyu and other middle schools."

"Speaking of which, if we're talking about the best-performing, most talked-about, and most popular club in the entire Tokyo Advanced Educational High School, it has to be my brother's drama club. So I have absolutely no problem coming here."

Although she said that, Hotaru immediately took the camera off her neck and handed it to Ichinose Honami, then moved back to Kitagawa Ryo's side, tiptoed, and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Come on, let's take a picture together, brother. Could you please take the photo for me, Sister Fanbo?"

"Okay, but did Hotaru see Maki when she came?"

Honami Ichinose nodded in agreement and began adjusting the camera to take pictures of the close brother and sister, while casually asking about her own sister.

"Maki is here too, but she should be on the track now. After all, she's in the track and field club. If Honami-neechan has time later, she can go there to watch her competition. She'll be playing today."

As if she had completely forgotten that her best friend had asked her to say hello to Kitagawa Ryo for her, after saying this, Hotaru closed one eye, winked at the camera, held her brother's arm tightly with her left hand, and raised her right hand in a V-sign in the air.

Although it's still nine months until the next Valentine's Day, Hotaru has already planned what she'll write on the letter:

So, will my brother accept my special chocolate, or the one from my brother's side...?

P.S.: Thank you for reading and subscribing.

PS2: Happy Valentine's Day. The last sentence of this chapter comes from this picture I saw today.

PS3: I finally found a place to live and moved all my things over in the last two days. I'll start catching up on updates tomorrow.

Chapter 47: There are still experts (5k5)

After all, the focus today was still on the special exam for the first-year students, so Kitagawa Ryo didn't let Hotaru steal the show any longer. After taking a few photos with his sister, he temporarily pushed her to Ichinose Honami's side, while he gave his final instructions to the two first-year students who were about to take the stage.

Because the Tokyo Advanced Educational High School had already released information about the other schools coming for the club exchange two weeks prior, Kitagawa Ryo couldn't be said to be completely unprepared for Azabu Middle School's challenge today, but he certainly wasn't much better prepared.

"Huh? I thought this was the senior's alma mater, and that all the participants would be juniors the senior had mentored. Turns out it wasn't?"

"That's true, but I didn't pay much attention to the drama club back then, not even as much as I do to the current drama club."

Kitagawa Ryo himself was a little helpless. After all, theoretically, it had only been less than two years since he graduated from there. This time, there were indeed quite a few students from Azabu Middle School who came to Dongyu, but they were only familiar faces.

"If we're really talking about it, Kushida from Class 2-C is probably the senior who knows them best, since she was in charge of the drama club back then, like a club manager."

"So you and Karuizawa-senpai didn't go to the same middle school?"

"Yes, Honami is in the same school as me, but she's on the student council side. Besides Kushida, Suzune is the only other person in my department."

"As a result, Horikita-senpai is now in the student council of Dongyu University... It sounds like a story of life swapping."

Looking at Nanase Tsubasa, who seemed more concerned about the love and hate of her seniors than the upcoming special exam, Kitagawa Ryo didn't know what to say. At least he wasn't nervous.

"Senior Liang's younger sister is two years younger than Senior Liang, right?"

Tsubaki Sakurako, on the other hand, was clearly more interested in Hotaru.

"Ah."

"Your pupil color is the same as your name. Was that why you were named that?"

Perhaps influenced by her older sister, Tsubaki Sakurako has an exceptionally high sensitivity to names, and with her keen observation skills, she quickly came to this conclusion.

"That's part of the reason, but the name Ying is related to me; its origin is..."

Kitagawa Ryo had originally intended to take the opportunity to explain the ancient poem, but considering Tsubaki Sakura's older sister, Yuki's, opinion on the two names, he refrained from saying it and instead gave a vague, perfunctory answer:

"It was something my parents had planned long ago."

Whether you call him a seasoned veteran or someone who speaks to people in a way that suits them, if he were beside Xue, he would be the coolness that embellishes Xue's name; if he were beside Ying, he would be the coolness that adorns Ying's autumn.

"Alright, let's focus on the competition first. The other side is actually quite restrained. They chose Shakespeare's 'As You Like It,' and their attitude is quite friendly. It's similar in theme to our 'Much Ado About Nothing.' It all depends on your performance."

Seemingly sensing that the two might become overly relaxed after he took the field, leading to some completely unnecessary mistakes, Kitagawa Ryo earnestly gave them further instructions:

"The judges this time all know my background, so they definitely won't give us a high score just because of me alone. On the contrary, they will value the performance of both of you more. The stage is a whole, after all, it's not a solo performance, and you both have to be able to keep up with the performance."

"I've recently rewatched Ryo-senpai's old videos many times, and I've also consulted with Karuizawa-senpai a lot. I'll try my best to do well."

Unlike Tsubaki Sakurako, who responded to Kitagawa Ryo's expectations very seriously, Nanase Tsubasa's attitude was not so formal. After all, this was not her usual personality. She seemed a bit nonchalant, but she was still thinking about Tsubaki Sakurako's reaction and the questions she had asked.

These two younger sisters—

I always feel like some people are putting on a show for real, while others are trying to make it real.

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As Kitagawa Ryo was talking to the two first-year juniors, Hotaru unconsciously began to re-evaluate the three older sisters in front of her whom she had known for a long time.

Although Hotaru pretended to inquire about Honami Ichinose from Maki Ichinose before coming here, she never doubted whether Honami had actually gone that far with her brother. In fact, in her opinion, Honami Ichinose was the girl with the best chance and the most right to be with him.

This impression, which has persisted from the past to the present, did not waver in Hotaru's heart as those past events were revealed. Instead, it made her understand more deeply why she felt that Honami-neechan was a very good person when she was in elementary school, but she never competed with Karuizawa Megumi, who suddenly jumped in front of her brother in the theater.

After all, she was just an observer watching the story. When she saw Kitagawa Ryo fall under her knife, even Hotaru herself couldn't help but feel a dizzying, almost suffocating sensation. How much more so for the person involved?

So now that Hotaru has heard Ichinose Maki say that Honami has moved on from the shadows, and that she has personally confirmed it, it is only natural that Hotaru can make such a deduction, because this should be the most natural step in the whole.

In Hotaru's own opinion, if she ever had to confront someone for help in the future, then Honami-neechan would definitely be the most suitable one.

Next up is Karuizawa Megumi.

Although Hotaru's impression of Karuizawa Kei wasn't particularly good before going abroad, because she always felt that compared to Ichinose Honami, the other party's every move seemed a bit deliberate and utilitarian, many situations in reality don't actually conform to the idea of ​​'not competing is competing.' On the contrary, Karuizawa Kei's superb execution ability is definitely something she should learn from.

Rather, among the videos edited for her by her own allies, Karuizawa Kei is the most classic example, personally demonstrating countless wrong choices through her three case studies.

With her own age increasing, Hotaru can now understand more and more why her brother seems to have a special fondness for Karuizawa Megumi among so many girls. Perhaps from her brother's perspective, such a girl is indeed the one who makes him the least worried.

After all, among the girls around her brother, including herself, there was one of them who he could never truly trust. So Hotaru was willing to thank Megumi, who had not only not caused her brother any trouble over the long period of time, but had also genuinely helped him and herself a lot.

As for Sakura Airi, since she had always been a fan of Ichinose Maki, and since she hadn't seen Ichinose in those clips, Hotaru's attitude towards her remained the same. After all, an idol who could shine on a stage in front of thousands of people was a huge advantage for her when she was just a little girl, much more impressive than the drama she knew so little about.

Furthermore, compared to Honami Ichinose and Kei Karuizawa, Hotaru always felt that the story about a national-level beautiful idol who was actually my older brother's childhood friend in some sense and who graduated was probably just too much like a light novel. However, this story had absolutely no influence from her past life, and all the details actually happened in reality.

For this reason alone, Hotaru could never hate the other party, because for her, the experiences of these past years in the present world are the true source of her feelings, while the memories of her past life are just the last straw that broke the camel's back and a complete guide.

However, while Hotaru was sincerely communicating with these three older sisters, she couldn't help but remind herself that she was still far from getting there. She thought about all the chocolates she received for her birthday last year. If even one of them was someone she couldn't accept about her and her brother's situation, or someone she herself couldn't accept, that would be a real problem.

After all, not everyone is like these three people in front of us, who know each other inside and out.

Judging from the memories alone, among the people she hasn't met, Horikita Suzune, Sakayanagi Arisu, and Yuki are clearly not easy to deal with. Each of them has had a rather outstanding or rather morbid side. It's just unknown whether her brother has properly resolved these issues, since mental illness is obviously more difficult to cure than physical illness.

Thinking of this, Hotaru casually brought up the topic of the previous birthday present and asked Ichinose Honami and the others about the whereabouts of the others.

"Rinne and Yuki should be at the student council right now. That's where they're taking their exams. Rinne, like Ryo, is a first-year student who requested help using her aid card. As for Arisu, I don't really know. Speaking of which, I haven't seen Ichika either. She should be free today. Hotaru asked this because she wants to go over and thank them one by one later?"

"Yes, after all, everyone asked my brother to send me very expensive gifts for my birthday last time, so I should at least express my gratitude to them in person."

"I'll contact Arisu and Ichika for you later, or you can ask Megumi and Airi to help. I'll go check on Maki's situation."

After chatting with Hotaru for a while, Honami Ichinose took the initiative to say goodbye to everyone and headed to the playground where her sister was. After all, Hotaru wasn't as free to move around as Hotaru, and might have to go back to her club team after the competition, so it was better to go there in advance.

Ultimately, Honami Ichinose's change of heart was simply a re-examination of her relationship with her family and relatives. However, this does not mean that she has directly completed a sacred severance from her family of origin. Especially for her younger sister, Maki Ichinose, she is still the gentlest older sister, but this time she will not think of stealing for her anymore.

"By the way, what are my brothers performing today?"

Although the drama club from Azabu Middle School was the first to take the stage, Kitagawa Ryo, Nanase Tsubasa, and Tsubaki Sakura had already gone backstage to prepare, such as changing costumes. In order not to disturb the judges who were already seated in the front row of the audience, Hotaru and Karuizawa Megumi also took the initiative to step back to the end of the audience and continue talking in a low voice.

"Much Ado About Nothing"

"Oh……"

Although Hotaru's face showed a knowing expression of "Oh, is that so?" and her tone was particularly meaningful, Karuizawa Megumi and Sakura Airi were old friends who had known each other for a long time. Seeing this, they smiled at each other and did not point out that the other did not understand drama at all and was not interested in it.

The two of them had originally intended to give Hotaru a brief overview of the plot, but they didn't expect her to stand up from her seat:

"Let's come in when my brothers go on stage. I can use this time to wander around other places, like, for example, the student council area?"

"The student council's activity room is on the top floor of the club building. Although it's uncertain whether it will be open to outsiders today, it should be fine for someone like Ying, given her identity?"

"Okay, then I'll go take a look first. Goodbye, Sister Hui! Goodbye, Sister Airi!"

Watching Hotaru run off again with her camera in hand, Karuizawa Megumi turned to Sakura Airi and complained:

"I wonder when Yingnian's brother will change this habit. He came here just to see Liang, and then left again as Liang wasn't going on stage for the time being. His purpose is too obvious."

"After all, they haven't seen each other for quite a while. Although Ryo manages to meet up with them every time she leaves school, it only happens a few times. Hotaru seems to have just returned from abroad at the end of last year, which is normal. But speaking of which, she has indeed grown up a lot all of a sudden. She was completely like a child before compared to now."

"That's right, I used to think that when she grew up to be my age, she wouldn't be as clingy as she was when she was little."

Sakura Airi smiled slightly upon hearing this:

"Isn't Megumi clinging to Ryo herself? And why does it sound like she's jealous of someone?"

"Tch, when have I ever been jealous of anyone else? But Hotaru is definitely a bit different. Airi knows what kind of state Ryo was a few years ago. To put it bluntly, he was almost obsessed. All he could think about was his sister. That's probably why I'm a little concerned about him."

"You said yourself that she's your younger sister, and I actually like that about Ryo. Do you think Megumi would have been better off if Ryo hadn't chosen to do what she did?"

"...No, that's not it. Never mind, let's watch the show."

Karuizawa Kei didn't want to tell Sakura Airi about Kitagawa Ryo's mental breakdown tendencies at one point in the past. One of the most important lessons she learned from her past experiences was that the person who wants to save you and the person you want to save may end up being the one you hurt the most or the one who hurt you the most.

So she has been puzzled by Kitagawa Ryo's obsession with Hotaru until now. After all, in her past life, there was no such thing as Ryo's younger sister. The only one named Hotaru was a kitten with the same eye color.

However, since Kitagawa Ryo didn't bring it up to her, Karuizawa Megumi naturally wouldn't ask her either. But every time she saw Hotaru, this question would still involuntarily well up in her mind, and today was no exception, even stronger than before, for some unknown reason.

So, what exactly is the relationship between Ying and Ying?

So, how do we view them in the end?

Even as the Azabu Middle School drama club's performance neared its end, Karuizawa Megumi still hadn't truly figured out the problem. Instead, the more she felt that her past, which she had almost completely understood and had nearly achieved a breakthrough in her life, was now shrouded in a layer of mystery.

Isn't this a kind of "making trouble out of nothing"?

However, if things can end happily like a drama, then it doesn't seem to matter.

Karuizawa Kei no longer wanted to create any more complications; she was satisfied with the current situation.

But just like back on the cruise ship, if one day Kitagawa Ryo were truly willing to reveal the whole truth, she would hope to be the first.

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