[You met bassist Ryo Yamada near the overpass. Current relationship: …?]
Toru looks at the system's message, with its glaring question mark at the end, and feels amused.
Ryo's as cute and interesting as expected—even the simulator's stumped by her.
Instead of continuing his training plan, Toru opens the Bonds menu.
It's sparse, with only Ryo listed.
No big deal—one paper wife is enough. More would be too much to handle. This is a Game Life Simulator, not a love simulator.
Toru's always prioritized career over romance.
He clicks Ryo's icon, exuding silent-cool-girl vibes, and checks her info.
[Ryo Yamada] [Current Affection: 68] [Traits: Silent Type, Rock Girl, Scheming, Narcissistic, Teardrop Mole, Ice Queen] [Skills: Bass Playing LV.4] [Talent: One in a Thousand] [Relationship History: None]
Nice, nice. At this rate, they'll be dating in half a year.
2D paper wives are awesome—such high affection right off the bat. Love it.
The Bonds menu has plenty of options: Gift, Date, Confess, Consult…
Toru picks Consult, naturally about bass playing.
With an LV.4 teacher, he'll leech her skills and skyrocket his EXP!
[Your trainer requests to learn Skill: Bass Playing, two days a week for a year, with a monthly salary of 100,000 yen. Agree?]
Ryo, sitting on a chair, sees the simulator's sudden message.
Time moves fast in the simulator, and you can multitask with your consciousness, so Ryo can play a quick game during practice breaks without affecting reality.
"Ryo-senpai, something wrong?"
Ryo's bass pauses for a few seconds. She shakes her head at Ikuyo Kita. "Nothing."
Just surprised that her leech target wants to leech her back.
Should she agree?
Ryo sees no reason to refuse. The stronger her "Pokémon," the stronger she gets. It's just a simulation—she's got nothing to lose.
After a quick thought, she agrees.
[Your quarterly schedule is set. Auto-mode activated. The simulator will only report special events from now on.]
Ryo's pleased—this feature's nice, letting her multitask.
"Ijichi-senpai, is Goto-san really okay?" Ikuyo Kita eyes Bocchi-chan, strumming her guitar from inside a cardboard box, a bit worried.
Their first audition is coming up. If they fail, Kessoku Band might disband…
At such a critical moment, Bocchi-chan's too scared to even show her face.
Waaah, it's over.
Everything's over.
Master, Third Junior, let's pack up and go home!
"Ah… she's still making noise, so probably fine?"
But Bocchi-chan's playing is way better than yesterday. How?
Nijika Ijichi twirls her drumstick with a fancy flourish.
She can't wrap her head around it.
Inside the dark cardboard box, Hitomi Goto's eyes glaze over, as if she's entered another world. And she has—she's running her Love Simulator. The box is Bocchi-chan's disguise, like a hermit crab's shell, a snail's house, or an urn… cough, never mind.
With her attention split, Bocchi-chan is playing purely on muscle memory. Free of her social anxiety debuff, her guitar skills have skyrocketed to LV.5—the peak for ordinary people. No wonder Nijika, the little angel, is stunned. It's too weird.
Yesterday, her teammate was average; today, she's carrying the band.
For this simulation, Bocchi-chan deliberately activated Full Immersion Mode. Unlike the rough text-only simulation last time, she can now see visuals.
[One month into the school year, you and Toru Kitahara still have no contact. After rejecting his attempt to talk, a disheartened Toru gives up on being your friend. You feel guilty. Consideration +1]
Wait, why?
Bocchi-chan realizes that real-world events affect the simulator's content.
In the simulator's visuals, she sits alone in the classroom, surrounded by a strange aura.
Hitomi knows it's her social anxiety AT Field, aka the Wall of the Heart, constantly repelling anyone trying to talk to her…
So lonely.
Even knowing the simulated people aren't the real her, Bocchi-chan can't help but empathize.
C-Cancel it.
Just turn off the visuals! Back to text mode!
After some fumbling, Hitomi sighs in relief.
Phew, that comforting feeling… the unique comfort of a socially anxious soul.
Text mode is so much cozier.
[One day in mid-May, passing the music room after school, you hear the sound of an instrument being practiced…] [The sound grows familiar. You quickly recognize it as a bass, since you often hear Ryo Yamada play. Curiosity drives you to peek through the window—and it's Toru Kitahara!]
Hitomi's guitar strumming speeds up as she reads the message.
A chance encounter!! Yes!!
My youthful love story is reborn!
Bocchi-chan's popular-girl saga is unstoppable! Season two, officially serialized!
"Hehehe, hehe—slurp~"
Fantasizing about a bright future, Hitomi lets out her signature socially anxious weird noise.
"Bocchi-chan? You're going too fast; you'll mess up the rhythm… Wow, that solo was amazing!"
"Goto-san's strumming is awesome!"
[You deeply regret rejecting Toru Kitahara's friendship offer. He's now learning bass. You had planned to muster the courage to talk to him about guitars, but now your plan is ruined, and you feel down.]
Huh?!
Right, why is Kitahara-kun learning bass? Hitomi spots the plot hole.
[Listening to the bass, timid-as-a-groundhog you gives up on going inside to talk. You hate it—hate your weak self! You can't do anything! Courage +3]
Groundhog? What's with that?!
Why always rodents? First a mouse, then a giant rat!
I'm not a groundhog!!
Bocchi-chan gets mad, her guitar picking up speed again, unleashing a fierce, intense rhythm that echoes wildly in the live house practice room!
"Bocchi-chan? What's wrong?"
"Bocchi's angry," Ryo Yamada says flatly. "Like a screaming groundhog."
"Groundhog, pfft… Sorry, sorry, Bocchi-chan." Nijika snickers, recalling a meme.
Hitomi doesn't respond.
Hmph, she's now an emotionless playing machine.
[Over the next half-month, you and Toru Kitahara don't get any closer. In Kessoku Band, Ryo Yamada frequently skips practice, cutting rehearsal time. You're annoyed… but too scared to say anything. Consideration +2]
Mooo~
This Consideration stat boost is so bittersweet!
But Hitomi knows true social anxiety means not even daring to complain—she's just a slug.
[Summer break. You teach your sister guitar at home for two months, passing a lonely, uneventful first-year summer with no memorable moments.]
This message hits too close to home, and Bocchi-chan's heart suddenly aches.
Ow, ow, my heart hurts so bad.
She frees one hand to clutch her chest.
Attention all units: Heart stent installed! Relief in 10 seconds, 9 seconds…
[Soon, the new semester begins. With the cultural festival approaching, you're excited. If you perform well, you might catch his attention.]
Cough, cough…
Pounding her chest twice, Hitomi recovers from the pain.
Just repeat the last simulation's moves, and she can confess successfully, right?
[One day, on your way home, you see Toru Kitahara…]
It's here? My chance?!
Hitomi's heart races.
[He's walking with a blue-haired girl, chatting and laughing. You know her name—she's your good friend, your bestie, your bandmate. But you never imagined she'd steal your crush.]
What?!
This isn't a pure love story?!
Hitomi Goto: "6д9"
[You want to confront Ryo Yamada, but timid-as-a-hamster you can't muster the courage and slinks away. Courage +3]
Huh?
Wait!! No options?!
Caught off guard by the critical hit, Bocchi-chan freezes, her strumming stops, and the live house falls silent.
Hold on! My husband?!
Gone?