The August sun blazed mercilessly at noon. Outside the window, cicadas droned incessantly. It was the hottest time of the year, so sweltering that even the stray dogs on the streets chose to forage only at night.
Returning home, drenched in sweat, Haruki Kaito took a bottle of soda from the refrigerator. Using a bottle opener, he popped the cap off and immediately began gulping it down.
"Ahhh~ that's better."
A transmigrator from Blue Star... No, to be more precise, a reborn soul. It had already been a full sixteen years since Haruki Kaito arrived in this world that felt both strange and familiar.
Orphaned, with a house to his name—it was the standard protagonist template. He ticked all the boxes, except for the "having a younger sister" part.
It was August now, with one month left before he entered high school. Since he was a student, he had virtually no source of income.
Fortunately, he had an uncle. He heard this uncle ran a company with numerous business chains under its umbrella, pulling in an annual income exceeding thirteen digits. Though it was in yen, it still placed him above ninety-nine percent of the world's population.
This uncle had been very close to Haruki's mother. So, every month, he sent a seven-digit sum as allowance and was also Haruki's current primary legal guardian.
Initially, the uncle wanted Haruki to come live with him, but Haruki refused. His uncle had his own family, and Haruki didn't want to disrupt their harmony with his presence.
He drained the soda in his hand. After savoring the moment, Haruki shook the empty bottle and tossed it into the trash bin. He then turned and picked up the air conditioner remote.
"This damn weather is really trying to kill you."
Turning on the AC, Haruki reached for the TV remote on the sofa. He switched the TV on; it was airing a recently popular drama series.
"Yusuke... do you really not love me anymore?"
On screen, the female lead held a fruit knife, her eyes vacant as she slowly advanced toward the male lead.
"N-no, Kotone, it's a misunderstanding!"
The male lead's legs had gone weak from fear. Pressed against the corner, the terror on his face was unmistakable.
"Then why were you so intimate? You even went to a love hotel together! Why won't you just admit it?"
"That was... that was... Ah!"
Unable to justify himself, the male lead was killed by the female lead's swift, downward slash. The scene was gruesomely bloody.
"Yusuke... I won't let you be alone."
After killing the male lead, a bizarre smile spread across the female lead's face as she then plunged the fruit knife into her own throat.
With both leads dead, the drama concluded.
"What in the world..." Haruki Kaito was bewildered. It wasn't that he couldn't accept it; he just didn't understand why the writer would choose such an ending.
"So this is a yandere..." Then it clicked. This was yandere, a subculture from the anime world that had recently exploded in popularity for some unknown reason.
As a transmigrator from Blue Star, Haruki was familiar with the concept of yandere in his previous life. But back then, to him, yandere was merely "love distorted to the point of sickness."
"Is yandere really like this?" The female lead's actions in the drama refreshed Haruki's understanding of it.
If it was just in dramas or anime, he could accept it. But if real-life yandere were like this... well, it'd be best to stay as far away as possible.
Just as this thought crossed his mind, suddenly, an unfamiliar voice rang out in his head.
[Yandere Girlfriend Simulator loading... 1%... 10%... 20%... 66%... 93%... 100%... Loading complete.]
[Important Notes:]
[1. Before the countdown ends, you may only simulate once per day, and simulations will only occur on a single timeline. Death in the simulation world will not affect reality.]
[2. You have many chances now, but once the countdown ends, you will have only one opportunity. Please choose carefully.]
[3. Do not attempt to escape the yandere, for she has already set her sights on you, even before you realized it.]
[Then, the countdown officially begins.]
[15 Days 12 Hours 0 Minutes 0 Seconds]
[Today's simulation opportunity is unused. Begin simulation?]
"Uh..." The voice in his head didn't provoke an overly dramatic reaction from Haruki Kaito because he knew—this was the System arriving.
For every transmigrator, a System was an essential item. With it, even a stray dog on the street could potentially stage a comeback and become the Prime Minister of Japan.
Haruki Kaito had waited sixteen years. He had finally waited for the System's appearance, only... this System felt a bit odd somehow.
Yandere? What did that mean? Were Systems these days so keen on following current trends?
"Begin simulation..." Looking at the two options on the ethereal panel, after a moment's hesitation, Haruki directly selected [Yes].
"Let's just start. I refuse to believe the System would screw me over."
[Simulation beginning... Good luck.]
As the world before his eyes gradually grew indistinct, Haruki Kaito's consciousness also faded. By the time his vision cleared again, he found himself already at school.
It was the first day of the new term. Everyone was wearing their school uniforms, and he was no exception.
Only... wasn't my summer vacation supposed to last another month? How did it end so quickly?
"Good morning, Haruki-kun."
Suddenly, a sweet voice sounded by his ear. Haruki turned to find an unfamiliar girl.
She wore the same school uniform seen everywhere around them. Her looks were exceedingly cute, almost guaranteed to turn heads anywhere she went. The glimpses of her snow-white thighs beneath her skirt were particularly dazzling.
Without a doubt, she was a top-tier beauty. Her figure was perfectly proportioned. The swell of her chest wasn't particularly large, but it was certainly acceptable.
"Um... do I know you?"
A question mark seemed to pop up over Haruki's head. In his memory, he shouldn't know this girl before him. So why did she know his name?
Even if they were classmates at the same school, today was the very first day. It shouldn't be possible to get acquainted this fast.
"Haruki-kun doesn't remember me?" The girl's expression looked somewhat disappointed, but she quickly recovered her smile.
"It's okay. Let me introduce myself then. My name is Moriyama Shiori. It's nice to meet you, Haruki-kun."
"Uh... ah, my name is Haruki Kaito. Nice to meet you too."
Counting the over ten years from his previous life, in his total of thirty-some years of living, this was the first time Haruki Kaito had been approached by a strange girl. While he hadn't quite grasped what was happening, this development didn't seem too bad.
[Attention!]
[Yandere has appeared. Now providing the Yandere Character Panel!]
The familiar voice echoed in his mind. Before Haruki could even react, a translucent panel materialized before him.
[Yandere Character Panel]
[Name: Moriyama Shiori]
[Age: 16]
[SAN Value: 80]
[Favorability: 60]
[Yandere Value: 120]
[Interest 1: ???] (Observe and unlock independently)
[Interest 2: ???] (Observe and unlock independently)
[Interest 3: ???] (Observe and unlock independently)
[Current Evaluation: Hopeless]