As the game window opened, Aimi’s eyes landed on the title in the top-left corner: FLOWERS – Spring.

“Spring? Maybe it’s the series order?” she muttered. She recalled seeing Summer, Autumn, and Winter folders back in the D drive. “Is this a seasonal series that I should play in the order of Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter?”

With her curiosity piqued, Aimi, encountering FLOWERS for the first time, resolved to start playing the series in order, following the seasonal progression, without needing to call her sister and ask.

The saying “luck favors the clueless” certainly fit here; Aimi’s guess turned out to be right.

Accompanied by a soft and soothing melody, the game’s main menu screen appeared. The serene, flowing background music made Aimi close her eyes for a moment, enjoying the tranquil sound. She found the tune perfect for relaxing, something she could imagine looping endlessly while listening to the sound of raindrops falling outside.

She pressed Start, and the game began.

“What I long for is something I can never attain.”

“It resonates—because of a promise made with her.”

“The accompaniment for the Virgin Mary Festival…”

“But… can I fulfill her expectations?”

“Me, a mere failure…”

Watching the words roll across the screen to the soothing background music, Aimi felt her curiosity deepen as she encountered her first-ever galgame. The story quickly captured her attention, pulling her into its world. For the first time, she truly wanted to see a galgame through to the end.

In this moment, Aimi had officially fallen into the galgame rabbit hole.

At the same time, unbeknownst to Kotomi, her little sister was lying on her bed, aimlessly browsing her computer’s D drive when she came across the galgame folder and just happened to click on FLOWERS.

Meanwhile, where was Kotomi?

She was still enjoying herself at Togoshi Ginza Shopping Street, letting Megumi feed her a seaweed-wrapped sushi roll, smiling widely as she took a bite.

“Would you like another one?” Megumi asked with a playful smile.

“Of course!”

“Alright then, but next time you’ll have to bite my finger too,” Megumi teased, her voice dripping with mischief.

If she hadn’t worried about startling Kotomi, Megumi would’ve snuck her finger right into Kotomi’s mouth along with the sushi, just to see how Kotomi would react to having her mouth “blocked” like that. While Kotomi’s XP level might be as complex as an underground dungeon, Megumi knew the current “progress” was still limited, and surprising Kotomi too abruptly might backfire.

Like cooking porridge over a low flame, rushing things by cranking up the heat too high would only risk burning it.

As Megumi entertained her own mischievous thoughts, Kotomi was happily absorbed in finishing the snacks they’d bought. After finishing her sushi, she opened a container of egg tarts and ate one. Remembering how Megumi had just fed her, she picked up another tart and held it up to Megumi’s mouth.

“Megumi, say ‘Ah~'”

“Ah~”

Egg tarts weren’t her favorite, but since Kotomi was feeding her, Megumi ate several pieces without even realizing it. In no time, they had polished off all ten tarts in the container.

When the box was empty, and with Kotomi looking at her phone, Megumi took the chance to gulp down some water from the bottle she had bought earlier, staving off the overly sweet aftertaste of the egg tarts. She let out a quiet sigh of relief, silently reminding herself:

I really don’t like egg tarts… but Kotomi seems to love them, so I’ll just keep pretending to like them, just like I did with eggs.

“I knew it!” Kotomi said unexpectedly. “You don’t like egg tarts, but you pretended you did because I fed them to you. Just like before, when you noticed I liked egg dishes, so you brought eggs in your bento every day—scrambled eggs, omelets… You don’t actually like them, do you?”

Her sudden words caught Megumi off guard, making her pause as she set down her water bottle. Turning, she noticed Kotomi watching her intently.

“Oh, no, that’s not it,” Megumi said with a forced laugh, still trying to cover up her feelings. “It’s true that I wouldn’t call myself a fan of eggs, but I’m not a picky eater. Even if my mom packs an egg dish every day, I’m perfectly happy to eat it all up.”

But Kotomi didn’t buy it. Her gaze softened, her voice trembling just slightly as she pressed on.

“You’re lying… You don’t like it at all, so why did you pretend you did? Was it for my sake?”

Realizing her cover was blown, Megumi could only sigh, rubbing her short, dark hair with a resigned smile.

“Kotomi, you know, you have this knack for catching people off guard with surprise questions right when they least expect it. I guess that’s one of your charms. Even if I had a thousand and one nights to say how much I like you, it still wouldn’t be enough~”

After that, Megumi gave in, confessing:

“Yes, it’s true. I don’t like eggs or egg tarts. No particular reason—I guess you could say it’s just how I am. Some people hate onions, others can’t stand garlic, and for me, it’s always been eggs. Every time I have to eat them, I scrunch up my face.”

“I can’t stand green onions,” Kotomi replied, suddenly recalling her own aversion. The very thought of them made her shiver.

Next time I see green onions in my food, I’m giving them all to Yui! Kotomi decided, recalling a particular breakfast she’d made for Megumi, when she’d “helpfully” served her a plate of omelet with a drizzle of ketchup—a combination Kotomi adored. She remembered how Megumi, despite disliking eggs, had pretended to enjoy them just because Kotomi had made them.

As this thought settled, Kotomi’s eyes grew misty. “Megumi, why do you keep making yourself uncomfortable for me? You could’ve just told me you didn’t like eggs. I’m not some spoiled child who gets mad when someone doesn’t like what I like.”

Seeing Kotomi’s teary eyes and red nose, Megumi felt a wave of warmth and affection. With a gentle smile, she took a tissue, placed it on Kotomi’s nose, and said tenderly:

“Here, hold still and blow.”

Obediently, Kotomi blew her nose. When she was done, Megumi stood, took the tissue and the empty snack boxes, and threw them in the trash.

When she returned, she joked with a light-hearted smile:

“For a second there, I thought you were getting teary-eyed from a runny nose.”

“N-no, I was just upset… Seeing you pretend to like eggs, even though you don’t, just for my sake…”

Kotomi’s cheeks turned pink as she rubbed her nose, feeling much better now.

I got Megumi taking care of me yet again, Kotomi thought to herself. What do I have to do to take care of her in return?

After a moment of pondering, she realized she had no answer.

So she let the thought go.

“We’re making a deal here: if there’s ever something you don’t like, don’t pretend otherwise or hide it from me. Just say so, alright? If we both like something, we’ll indulge, and if we don’t, we won’t touch it,” Kotomi said seriously, looking straight at Megumi.

“Alright, alright. I promise,” Megumi replied, nodding.

With this promise in place, Kotomi felt a weight lift, making her feel much better. And when Kotomi felt better, she found herself wanting to talk more, like right now.

“So, Megumi, what do you actually like to eat? The kind of thing you start craving if you go too long without it? Something you’d love to have all the time?”

Megumi hesitated briefly, then smiled and replied, “That would be you.”

“Oh, stop joking around!” Kotomi’s face turned red, and Megumi, seeing her blush, couldn’t help but laugh. Though in her heart, Megumi meant it quite seriously, knowing that Kotomi would just get more embarrassed if she took it as truth.

“Alright, alright. Just teasing! If you want the honest answer, I’d say it’s lasagna.”

“Lasagna with meat sauce?”

“That’s right. There’s a pizza place in Chiba City that makes great lasagna. I go there every so often just to get some. One time, when I was really hungry, I managed to eat two servings in one go.”

“Wow, impressive!” Kotomi laughed, applauding her as if celebrating a grand achievement.

Of course, two servings wouldn’t be enough for Kotomi herself if it came to it.

After finishing all the street food they had bought, the two strolled the length of Togoshi Ginza Shopping Street from one end to the other. From what Kotomi had read online, she already knew this shopping street was quite long, but actually walking it really made her appreciate the never-ending feeling, as if it went on forever.

Still, the length was perfect for them. Walking the whole stretch once and then back felt just right, a pleasant walk to enjoy together. And, even if they weren’t buying anything, it was a perfect post-meal stroll.

Just one word of caution—if you come here intending to exercise, it might be best to go elsewhere. The street is lined with endless snack stalls and shops. If your guard’s down, you’ll end up buying more food without even realizing it, turning your “exercise” into an unintentional feast.

As they were about to leave the shopping street, Kotomi thought about suggesting they go to an internet café for a bit, but she quickly realized she wasn’t alone—she had Megumi with her. While Megumi would likely go along with the plan, Kotomi realized she should take Megumi’s preferences into account as well.

Kotomi remembered how Megumi had pretended to like eggs just for her sake, and Kotomi didn’t want to make that mistake again. Knowing her mistakes, Kotomi was committed to learning and improving. And so she suggested:

“Megumi, I was thinking of heading to the record store for a bit. Want to come with me?”

Megumi always enjoyed observing Kotomi’s interests, and Kotomi, in turn, liked noticing her friends’ preferences. She knew, for instance, that Yukino loved to read. Kotomi also loved books, but their tastes were worlds apart. Kotomi leaned toward novels, light novels, and manga, while Yukino enjoyed classic literature, often reading books filled with English or German texts. When it wasn’t literature, it was something solemn and profound.

Kotomi remembered borrowing one of Yukino’s classic novels out of curiosity once, and while she could understand it thanks to her learned abilities, reading such thick, dense literature still made her head spin.

“Gotta admire Yukino for being able to read through so many classics without a fuss,” Kotomi thought to herself. Their reading preferences meant their book discussions would be short, but they always managed to enjoy a conversation before moving to other topics, something Kotomi considered one of her hidden talents.

Thinking about it now, the only book they both loved was A Song of Ice and Fire.

But back to Megumi. Kotomi had noticed how much she loved music. During her last visit to Megumi’s place, she’d seen stacks of CDs on a shelf and a small, minimalist record player on the side table. It wasn’t fancy, but it seemed perfect for playing vinyl records. On her bedside table sat a pair of Audio-Technica headphones.

“A record store, huh?” Megumi perked up at the idea. “Sure, let’s go! I’ve been meaning to pick up a CD.”

Going to the record store was definitely the right call! Kotomi thought with a smile.

Together, they left the shopping street and made their way to the store.

The record shop, located in Shinagawa, had been in business for nearly sixteen years. With the rise of smartphones and online music streaming, it had taken quite a hit. It was just like vinyl records in their heyday—overshadowed by the rise of CDs, seemingly on the brink of extinction.

But even with the best music apps on the market, there were still plenty of people who enjoyed purchasing CDs and vinyl records, and so vinyl had never truly disappeared.

Inside the record shop, Megumi busily picked through the selection while Kotomi took her time exploring the shelves. Kotomi found herself quite interested in the records after seeing them in person, but she quickly gave up on the idea of buying one herself, imagining the cost of the equipment she’d need to enjoy it at home.

With a full lap around the store completed, Kotomi wandered back to where Megumi was. She paused partway, watching Megumi standing at a listening station, headphones on, engrossed in the music. Her face took on a rare look of peaceful serenity, as if she were fully immersed in another world.

Kotomi didn’t want to disturb her, so she stood at a distance, waiting quietly.

If I could unlock a music skill through the system, maybe I could record some songs and make a CD or even a vinyl for Megumi! Heck, maybe I could even release a whole album, she thought, smiling to herself.

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep