...lunch break...
"Brother, let's eat our lunch!"
"Ah, yes, that's right."
Nakagawa, in Elsie's state, calls out to me.
But wow, she's really good. Aside from her voice and appearance, there's absolutely no sense of incongruity. As expected of a current idol.
"So...is the rooftop okay then?"
"Yes♪"
The two of them left the classroom and headed towards the stairs leading to the rooftop.
"Oh, Katsuragi-kun, wait a minute!"
I heard this voice coming from behind me just as I was about to turn the corner in the corridor.
I turned around, wondering about the voice that sounded both familiar and unfamiliar.
Then, a girl came running towards us from our classroom.
"Haa, haa... S-So, is it lunchtime now?"
"Ah, ah..."
"So, how about we have lunch together?"
"...I don't mind. Elsie..."
"...Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine too..."
"Great! Let's go then!"
That girl is Yoshino Asami.
...Is that right?
Outwardly, she is undoubtedly Asami, but her overall demeanor and other qualities are fundamentally different.
She didn't seem like the kind of person who would take such proactive action until yesterday, and she certainly wasn't this expressive.
Nakagawa was so surprised that he let his true personality show a little.
I welcome more information, so I don't mind them contacting me, but...
...I have a bad feeling about this...
"So, the other day on TV..."
"Oh, I saw that too! It was amazing, wasn't it!"
Nakagawa and Asami are having a lively girls' talk.
I mean, is that really Asami? I could totally believe it if someone told me it was someone else!
...But there's no point in getting so upset. If I calmly analyze the information, I should be able to solve the mystery.
Their personality can change this much depending on the situation.
It probably means the character has a "dual personality."
It's not a split personality, is it? It's a dual character.
A dual personality refers to a situation where the heroine's personality and character are two distinct and contradictory.
For example, they might act aloof in front of others, but become affectionate when you're alone together.
For example, they might be very responsible and reliable normally, but become completely helpless when they're alone with you.
...Incidentally, Nakagawa also uses different characters now, but this is simply acting, so it doesn't qualify as having a dual personality.
So, yesterday Yoshino Asami looked like she was wearing clothes that were just average, but now look at her.
It's likely that something inside her was triggered, leading to this outcome.
...I can imagine that...
"Hey Katsuragi-kun, what do you think?"
"Huh? Oh, sorry. What were we talking about?"
"Come on, listen to me properly."
Let's talk about Kanon Nakagawa!
...Apparently, the girls' talk had somehow gone in a strange direction. Nakagawa is giving a wry smile.
"Sorry, sorry. So, what happened to Kanon-chan?"
"During the live TV broadcast the other day, she tripped over nothing and was wondering if something had happened."
"...Oh, so that's what happened."
Elsie must have messed it up. I'm sure of it.
But a simple stumble isn't a problem. Let's just hope he doesn't cause any fatal damage.
"What? You didn't know?"
"Is it possible that Katsuragi-kun doesn't watch TV?"
"Yeah, I don't see it very often."
I only recently got to know what Nakagawa Kanon looks like.
A monitor only needs to be able to display the game screen.
"Wow, Katsuragi-kun is quite unusual."
"Well, yeah."
My thoughts were interrupted by being suddenly put on the topic, but let's get back to it.
It seems that something inside her was triggered, causing her personality to change.
However, I have no idea what that switch is.
I haven't done anything wrong since leaving school yesterday, and my surroundings haven't changed much either.
At this point, I'm starting to think they might just be different people... but let's think about it.
It would be easier to understand if they were just hyper on holidays or bolder when we're alone, but...
Wait a minute... There's one clear difference between yesterday's departure from school and the current situation, isn't there?
...No, surely not, right?
Even after finishing lunch, Yoshino Asami's chatter continued.
I generally don't participate in small talk, but I get asked questions fairly often.
It almost looks like they're gauging my reaction... Am I overthinking it?
"Oh, look at the time! Let's head back to the classroom now!"
"Yes, that's right. Thank you so much for today, Asami. I had a great time!"
"No, I had fun too."
Hmm, I wanted to discuss future plans with Nakagawa, but there's no time for that.
Well, we can just talk about it via email during class.
And during class, Nakagawa secretly exchanges emails under the desk, while I openly do so.
"Keima, did you gain anything?"
"Well, yeah."
I'd like to hear your opinion too, is now a good time?
"Yes, you can tell me what we covered in today's lesson later."
"That much is fine."
First, I want to confirm, is that really Yoshino Asami?
"I'm pretty sure it's a different person, but... that girl has a runaway soul, doesn't she?"
"Yeah, that's true..."
Since there's a void in his heart, I suppose it's not so strange that something like that might happen.
"...What should I do?"
If you want to determine if it's a different person, I think you could just bring Elsie over and have her check it with her soul-snatching sensor, but unfortunately, she's not here right now.
There's no point in wishing for something we don't have, so we'll just have to make do with the information we have.
"I considered her in two different scenarios."
First, let's consider the possibility that she was a twin sister or something similar.
In that case, I think the plan we discussed on the way to school is correct."
"What's the other one?"
"If she is indeed Yoshino Asami herself."
She might like women, not men.
"Whaaaaaat!?"
"Hey Katsuragi's little sister, be quiet!"
"Oh, I'm sorry..."
Nakagawa couldn't help but cry out, but a reply came back immediately.
"Wait a minute!? What's going on!?"
"I don't think that's possible."
"That's impossible!!"
"Listen up."
The clearest difference between the environment when leaving school yesterday and during lunchtime today is whether you were there or not.
"Your attitude changed so drastically just because Elsie wasn't there."
"But... that's not right, is it?"
"The reason she's in the tea ceremony club is because she likes women in kimonos, and the reason she was so unresponsive when I talked to her yesterday is because she's not interested in men."
That makes sense.
"No, no, no, no, isn't that a bit too forceful!?"
I feel like you were really concerned about Keima-kun's condition even while we were chatting earlier!
"If that means she resented him because he was getting in the way..."
"Please, no more!!"
Or rather, isn't it possible that he can't talk properly unless there are other girls present?
"That's certainly a possibility, but... if that were the case, I think I'd hear more voices about it in the classroom."
Well, that's just a possibility. Even if it does happen, the probability is probably less than 1%.
But just to be sure, let me check.
"Um, what are you planning to do...?"
"Don't worry, your life is not in danger."
First, you, me, and Yoshino Asami will walk home together.
After that, I'll pretend I have an urgent matter to attend to and you'll leave first.
Let's see what Mami does next.
That's all."
"So if it ends up being the same as yesterday..."
"...I hope that doesn't happen."
Absolutely.
While heroines with mild yuri tendencies are fairly common, those with more severe yuri tendencies don't appear as romance options in dating sim games.
I really hope my worries are unfounded.