Unbeknownst to anyone, the sky outside gradually darkened. The afterglow of the setting sun painted the western sky a deep crimson, its glow spilling slowly eastward. Wisps of white clouds became blazing streaks of fire, golden and dazzling.
If someone had casually snapped a picture, it would have made a stunning desktop wallpaper.
Kasumigaoka Residence, Second Floor —
Kasumigaoka Touji's room.
Having just negotiated his commission up to 17%, Kasumigaoka Touji leaned back, checked the time, and realized it was nearly five o'clock. Reaching for his phone, he tapped open the food delivery app.
Wako City wasn't exactly Tokyo. With a population of under 80,000, restaurant options were few and far between. Still, one name stood out — Miyamoto Musashi Pizza.
Touji clicked into the menu. It had been a while since he ordered from them, and it looked like they had a bunch of new flavors. One, in particular, caught his eye: Beef Mashed Potato Pizza. It had quickly become a bestseller. Sounded perfect for his current mood.
He ordered an eight-inch. Nothing too heavy — just a light snack to tide him over.
"..."
Over in the quiet Nap Club group chat, a sudden ping popped up. Mayonaka Kokonoka had tagged someone.
[Nap is Great]: "Kojima Kana, when will the club approval results usually come out?"
A minute later, Kojima Kana replied.
[My Youth is Over]: "Hmm, about one or two days? Did you submit all your materials?"
Kojima Kana wasn't completely sure either. She'd only been a teacher for a year and hadn't advised any other clubs before this.
[Nap is Great]: "I submitted everything, ≡ω≡."
[My Youth is Over]: "Mm, then just wait patiently."
[Nap is Great]: "Okay~."
"..."
And just like that, the conversation ended.
Staring at the brief exchange, Touji finally understood why his task hadn't been completed.
—The Nap Club wasn't even officially approved yet.
Even if it did get approved, it would only earn him 800 Dream Points. A measly drop in the bucket compared to what he needed to unlock the Dream Mall.
Touji sighed and found himself wishing for Saturday to hurry up.
Not just because of the confession. He needed to vent the tangled emotions in his chest and finally redefine their relationship... but he was also incredibly curious.
What on earth was inside the Dream Mall?
According to the info he'd received from the system when he first got his cheat ability — fulfill others' dreams, and you'd gain Dream Points. With enough of those, you could achieve your own dreams.
In the Dream Mall, supposedly, you could exchange Dream Points for anything.
Lifespan, physique upgrades, supernatural powers, magic… maybe even more outrageous stuff.
But those things had to be insanely expensive.
...Not that it mattered now. The Dream Mall wasn't even unlocked yet. He had no idea what was in stock, so speculating on the prices was pointless.
"Speaking of which…"
He thought about accepting another task.
He had been meaning to peek into Eriri Spencer Sawamura's dream before deciding, but these past couple of days hadn't offered a good chance.
As soon as the school bell rang, she was always surrounded by classmates. And after school, it was the same.
Mixed-race beauties really did have a different aura.
"Tsk."
Touji clicked his tongue. Maybe it was time to look for a new task instead of staking everything on one girl.
Maybe Kato Megumi had one.
One thing had become very clear these past two days: unless they were Protagonists or Supporting Characters, nobody else had dreams that the system cared about.
It was proof.
—Extras really didn't deserve dreams!
Oh, right—
When he had shared dorayaki and snow meiniang with Izumi Masamune earlier, Touji had also gotten a glimpse of the boy's dream.
(See attached.)
[Izumi Masamune's Dream]
Establish himself in society as a light novel author!
Dream Level: ★★★☆
Dream Description: After the unexpected death of his parents, Izumi Masamune had become the backbone of his family. His goal was to make a name for himself as a light novel author, earning over 10 million yen in net income for three consecutive years.
(Note: This task is divided into three stages. Each completed stage offers partial rewards and unlocks the next.)
First Stage: Earn a net income of 10 million yen in the first year. Reward: 3000 Dream Points
Full Reward: 9000 Dream Points
Help his shut-in younger sister go to school!
Dream Level: ★★★★☆
Dream Description: As an older brother, Masamune hoped his younger sister could one day step outside and attend school like a normal girl.
(Note: This task is also divided into two stages.)
First Stage: She leaves the house. Reward: 15000 Dream Points
Full Reward: 50000 Dream Points
"..."
Kasumigaoka Touji silently reviewed the two dream tasks but didn't take action on either of them for now.
The first task, becoming a successful light novel author, actually seemed pretty doable for Touji. With his turbo-speed writing skills and his ability to self-promote, making 10 million yen within a year was well within reach.
However… If he did that too easily, wouldn't it look like he was just chasing yen? Wouldn't people question his artistic integrity?
Besides, the task required him to maintain that income for three years straight. That was practically a corporate job in disguise! So for now, pass.
As for the second task… just looking at its dream level made Touji wince. Getting Sagiri-chan to leave her room and attend school? That wasn't just hard—that was near impossible!
He didn't even know where to start. In the original timeline, hadn't Sagiri remained a shut-in until the very end? If the original protagonist couldn't do it, how was he supposed to?
Another pass!
"Tsk! High-difficulty dreams really are no joke!" Touji clicked his tongue with a mix of awe and frustration.
"But I guess that's why the rewards are so insane…"
The gap between dream levels wasn't just cosmetic. Even a half-star difference could mean tens of thousands of Dream Points more. A ★★★★☆ dream could net you rewards that ★★ dreams couldn't even begin to touch.
He slumped back slightly, letting out a sigh. "Well, no risk, no reward, huh?"
Shaking off the mental weight, Touji turned to face his computer again.
He still had work to do.
Next up was editing the product endorsement video…
...