"So, you're willing to do anything as long as you're paid?"
A voice as cold and clear as a mountain spring came from ahead, making the drowsy Kiyono blink his eyes.
The first thing that came into view was a pair of clean ladies' leather shoes. His gaze slowly moved upward—black knee-high socks wrapped around slender, straight legs, the snow-white skin between the socks and plaid skirt was dazzlingly bright, and looking further up...
The clouds dispersed, and the bright moon hung high. He saw a beautiful face.
It was a girl who seemed to have stepped out of a painting scroll, with a cold expression like fine snow on her pretty face, soft long hair hanging straight to her waist, and combined with those exquisite features, giving off a cold and serious impression.
At this moment, the girl was looking down at him from above with those bright eyes, extremely serious.
She was carefully observing this boy leaning against the corner of the roadside... or perhaps it would be more appropriate to call him a homeless person?
He wore ragged clothes, his hair was messy, his face was stained with quite a bit of dust, and with an empty bowl placed in front of him, he looked like a little boy who had ended up on the streets in every way—
But looking more carefully, he actually had a delicate face that couldn't be hidden even by dust and messy hair, with a thin facial structure.
This made her slightly stunned.
While the girl was lost in thought, Kiyono finally realized what was happening and spoke up excitedly: "That's right! For just five thousand yen... ahem, just for one dinner, you can do whatever you want with me. Whether it's fortune telling or love counseling, whether it's shoe shining or... anything else, I guarantee your satisfaction!"
He stared intently at the girl in front of him, his eyes bright, his whole body radiating an obvious message—"Rich lady, hungry, food."
This charlatan-like attitude made Yukinoshita's expression somewhat strange. He was almost unable to afford food, yet still had the mood to make such jokes?
After a long silence, she said: "How old are you?"
Kiyono put on what he thought was a very refreshing and handsome smile: "I'm a vibrant eighteen years old."
"Lying." Yukinoshita raised an eyebrow, her gaze sweeping from his arms to his throat and face in turn, her tone flat but certain. "You're at most fifteen years old."
"...That's absolutely untouchable territory!"
Kiyono gasped and quickly denied it.
Yukinoshita looked at him with surprise, somewhat puzzled about why he wanted to deny his age. However, after confirming her guess, she sighed softly in her heart.
Clearly younger than her, yet...
If an underage boy was begging for food, there must be something wrong with society.
She suppressed unnecessary thoughts, then took out one, two, three... five Fukuzawa Yukichi bills from her small wallet and, under Kiyono's shocked gaze, placed them in his hands.
"Use this. If you spend it carefully, this money should last you a week."
The girl's expression was still indifferent, yet not cold—like moonlight during a full moon.
At that moment, Kiyono's gaze toward Yukinoshita changed. It transformed from seeing a rich lady to seeing the Virgin Mary descending with a divine glow. He stared at Yukinoshita in a daze, a crystal tear suddenly appearing in the corner of his eye, and pressed his palms together toward her like a devout believer.
"Sister, no! Goddess-sama! You are truly as great as a salvation goddess!"
With this startup capital, he was confident he could escape his current homeless life and live a bright and beautiful life!
"If you don't want to continue wandering the streets, please be more serious, homeless gentleman." Yukinoshita's mouth twitched, her voice somewhere between helpless and indifferent. "Tonight, first buy some clothes, find an inn, take a bath and rest well. If you clean yourself up, finding simple work shouldn't be difficult."
"You're absolutely right. But really, is there nothing I can do for you?" Kiyono obediently put away the bills and looked up at her intently.
"The wealthy extending mercy to the poor based on compassion—this is my philosophy. So, as long as you can escape this kind of life, that's enough."
Hearing the boy's sincere words, Yukinoshita Yukino paused, and her tone softened considerably.
She wasn't doing this for any reward—a poor little boy couldn't help her with anything. She was acting based on a certain ideal in her heart.
Of course, this didn't mean she would extend financial aid to every person in difficulty. The girl believed in "give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." Only those who truly worked hard, took action, and needed help would she choose to support.
The girl suddenly remembered what had happened earlier. It was during evening dismissal time, and on her way to the supermarket, she had coincidentally seen a boy job hunting. Out of curiosity, she stopped to watch for a while. This disheveled boy, even when driven away by others' disgusted and rejecting gazes, never wavered. He always wore a passionate and sincere smile as he entered store after store. That never-give-up attitude made her feel that perhaps she could give him a chance.
Yukinoshita took a light breath, glanced at him, and said calmly: "Well then, goodbye."
The moment her words fell, she turned and left without hesitation, leaving only a stern and slender silhouette.
At this time, she heard shouts from behind.
"Thank you! I will definitely repay you in the future! And one more thing..."
He called out loudly.
"Can you tell me your name?"
The girl's steps paused. She didn't turn around, only her light voice, carried by the melodious night breeze, reached the young man's ears.
"Yukinoshita Yukino."
"Phew, finally I can end this hack life..."
Finding a random inn and soaking in the narrow bathtub, Kiyono couldn't help but sigh.
I, Kiyono, sixteen years old, am a transmigrator.
These few simple words adding up to less than ten characters were very simple, but every time he recalled his experiences, he would shed bitter tears.
First, he had transmigrated with his body.
Body transmigration, as the name suggests, means the entire person directly transmigrates to a parallel world. One day he was hit and sent flying by a heavy truck, and found himself lying on the streets of a foreign country. Of course, this wasn't the main point. The main point was...
Body transmigration.
Initialization state.
No money, no housing, no relatives, no identification, and in a foreign country at that.
Naturally, he became a member of the street homeless.
Although he had tried to find a job first to solve the food and clothing problem, in this cold metropolis, no shop would hire a suspicious person with a questionable appearance and no residence. Later on, he couldn't even get through the door.
He had reason to believe that if it weren't for this girl named Yukinoshita, such a life would have continued.
"But now, I've taken the first step toward dominating Tokyo!"
Thinking of those bright 50,000 yen, Kiyono couldn't help but clench his fist excitedly.
What was his biggest problem?
Wasn't it just the lack of startup capital?
With this money, he could find a simple place to live, fix up his appearance, and with his abilities, he was confident he could find an economic source to maintain his life—worst case scenario, he'd find a host club to work at!
Thinking about it, Kiyono's mind conjured up that stern and beautiful figure under the bright moon.
This girl had given him the most important help—it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say she had saved him.
"I must repay her properly in the future." With a splash, in the hazy mist, Kiyono gently reached out his hand, as if trying to reach through the ceiling to touch the bright moon in the sky. Water droplets dripped down his arm, silently melting into the bathtub.
However, what was most important for him now was still finding a job and establishing himself in this steel city!
This grand goal could only be realized slowly later.
—Unless he had a golden finger!
[Ding dong.]
[Congratulations, Master, for successfully activating the Beautiful Life Simulator!]
Holy crap, it really came! And it's the classic simulator?
Kiyono's eyes widened as he stood up abruptly.
"System, let me see your power!"
[In the simulation, you will encounter many heroines, intertwine with their lives, and walk toward the future together. There will be sweetness, sourness, dreams, and youth...]
So it's a romance simulator?
Kiyono pondered thoughtfully. He had originally thought that with his hardcore opening, he should be a protagonist from a certain website, but looking at the system's statement now, he had probably transmigrated to a light novel world...
"So what's your main quest for this simulation? Is it normal romance? Soft rice lifestyle? Or ending with regrets?"
For some reason, the system was silent for a moment, then said slowly.
[...Your main quest is to make the heroine absolutely devoted to you.]
Hearing this, Kiyono instinctively felt something was off.
He said seriously: "Be more complete!"
[...In the simulation, you will encounter your destined heroine, and after meeting you, the heroine will understand who she truly desires as a lover. Finally, she will throw herself into your arms in front of her boyfriend.]
"???"