I Just Want A Single Ending!

As soon as Kamigawa Saku accepted Nijika's invitation, the system registered his choice with a new reward notification.

[You've earned a Study Card (One Hour): During use, greatly increases learning capacity at the cost of energy.]

Seeing this new Study Card, Saku's mood brightened. With this, he now had two full hours of concentrated study time saved up, and he was inching even closer to his goal of mastering composition and arrangement.

That card was worth its weight in confidence.

"Really? You'll go?" Nijika's excitement was evident.

"Sure, of course," Kamigawa assured her. "It's just an amusement park."

After all, like he'd told her, a guy and a girl going to an amusement park together was the kind of thing people might misinterpret. And if that was true, then hadn't his last outing with Kita Ikuyo to the movies been equally open to misinterpretation?

But looking back, the movie trip hadn't sparked any confusion. No one misunderstood, and nothing between him and Ikuyo had changed after that day.

So even if anyone did think it was a date, he could always clear it up. Besides, going along with Nijika's idea actually had a lot of upsides.

Not only would he get to know her better, but he'd also get a much-needed break.

These last few weeks had been a whirlwind, and treating himself to a day of fun at the amusement park sounded just about perfect.

In fact, this time, it wouldn't be about edging his way closer to any future goal or outcome—just an ordinary day of fun with Nijika. After all, they were already pretty close as friends. Keeping things relaxed, they'd naturally move into a best-friend type of friendship over time.

He'd decided—come Sunday, he wouldn't be thinking about any "lone wolf" endgame strategy. No distance-bridging, no plans—just the two of them having fun, with no strings attached.

And this meant he wasn't agreeing for any ulterior motives.

He simply wanted to go.

"Yeah, it's just a trip to the amusement park," Nijika agreed, nodding. With that reassurance, there wouldn't be any talk about playing favorites. And the idea of spending a day at the amusement park with Kamigawa…it felt exciting.

It might even be…a lot of fun.

"Oh, that reminds me—since it's on the weekend, is Sunday okay?" Kamigawa asked, recalling her earlier mention of weekend weather. "I'm not free on Saturday."

Saturday was already reserved for helping Tomori to get past her lyric-writing block…a contribution strictly for the band's benefit, of course.

"Sure, actually, Sunday works best for me too."

Nijika's response was instant and enthusiastic.

"Saturday still has a small chance of rain, even though they say it'll be mostly sunny all weekend. I'd rather we wait for Sunday just to be safe."

"Alright, then it's settled."

After setting up the specifics, they decided on a time and place to meet. Nijika had to return to STARRY to help with preparations, so she headed off.

"See you then!" she called, waving goodbye as she walked off.

As Kamigawa waved back, Ryo's voice cut in beside him.

"Done with your date plans?"

"It's not a date," Kamigawa protested firmly. "We just agreed to hang out."

Ryo, still munching on the snack she'd dug from his bag, didn't skip a beat. "Even so, that's still technically a date."

"…Well, I guess, technically."

By the literal definition, any planned meet-up was technically a "date."

"But ours is definitely not the romantic kind of date," he clarified.

Rather than argue, Ryo just flashed a thumbs-up and assured him, "Relax, your secret's safe with me. After all, you just gave me snacks, so I won't spill a word of this to anyone else."

"...Why do you make it sound like I'm sneaking around having an affair?" Kamigawa grumbled.

He was single; he had no reason to hide his plans with Nijika.

"Isn't that basically what it is?" Ryo replied slyly. "I mean, aren't you Kita's boyfriend?"

"That was a one-day act. We only pretended to be a couple for a day, and it was entirely fake. We're not actually dating."

"Oh? So you two didn't catch feelings during the act?" Ryo teased.

"What do you think this is?" Kamigawa shot back, half amused, half exasperated. "You think feelings just develop after one day?"

"Oh, so what you're saying is…if you two did it long enough, you'd probably catch feelings for her?"

"Honestly? I doubt it."

Developing romantic feelings for someone just because they acted as his "girlfriend" wasn't likely to happen. No matter how long they pretended, he was certain he'd never feel anything romantic.

But Ryo pressed on. "Wanna give it a shot?"

"Huh? How would we even go about 'giving that a shot'?"

"I could pretend to be your girlfriend," Ryo said matter-of-factly, pointing to herself. "What do you say? Want to try it out with me?"

[Sure, let's try it out]

[No thanks, I'm not interested]

Kamigawa stared at the options before him. After a beat, he glanced over at her, his expression dubious. "Let me ask you this—if we did pretend to date, what exactly would you want me to do?"

"Buy me a bass," Ryo replied without missing a beat. "Or just give me the money—I'll go buy it myself if it's easier."

"So you're telling me the whole 'pretend to be a couple' thing is just an excuse to get money out of me?"

So that was her angle all along—just another one of Ryo's schemes to coax some cash out of him.

"In return, I'd hold up my end as a girlfriend," Ryo continued seriously.

"For instance…?"

Kamigawa was actually curious to know what she thought that would entail.

"Let you hold my hand," she replied, as though that settled the matter.

"…That's it?"

If they did pretend to date, would he basically be buying himself a Ryo Yamada hand-holding ticket?

"What more were you expecting?" she asked, feigning innocence.

"Never mind. I didn't say anything."

Kamigawa would like it noted he was above wanting that sort of thing.

"So, are we pretending to date or not?" Ryo asked again, unbothered.

"Pass," Kamigawa replied, shrugging. "I'm not interested. The cost-benefit ratio just isn't there."

[Stamina +10]

---

Ahem! Gather close, esteemed audience! Do you comprehend the privilege of basking in my radiance? Truly, you're witnessing history in the making—a performance unparalleled in the annals of Fontaine!

Ah, but don't get distracted! Let me be clear: this brilliance isn't conjured from thin air. No, no, no! It requires effort, dedication, and… well, a touch of your generosity. If you fancy being part of something truly extraordinary, do step forward here: [patreon.com/WiseTL].

Oh, but wait! You're probably wondering, "Furina, how can someone as magnificent as you need assistance?" To that, I say: why deny mortals the honor of contributing to such greatness? Supporting me is supporting art, and who doesn't want to say they were instrumental in a legend's rise?

Now, off you go. Make your offerings, and perhaps, perhaps, I'll acknowledge you in my next soliloquy!

— Furina ✨