Yuu puffed out his chest, as if calmly prepared to sacrifice himself.
"If hitting me will make you feel better, go ahead."
He understood now.
This overtime wasn't about making up for regrets at all—it was the system deliberately messing with him. Perhaps it wanted him to experience the reactions of the target girls after learning the truth?
Truly, there was no crueler joke than this.
At this point, if hitting him could ease Asuna's heart even a little, Yuu didn't care about the pain in his flesh—he'd even feel relieved.
Unfortunately, as he expected, Asuna had no interest in hitting her boyfriend, nor did she intend to draw her rapier again to scare him.
"Even though I'm really upset, this is a factor beyond our control. There's really nothing we can do… Oh well."
She straightened her hands on her knees, sighing in complaint as if venting, then suddenly asked:
"What's the name of your ex-girlfriend? What kind of person was she?"
Yuu shrugged, without a hint of longing or reluctance, his tone casual as ever. "Yukinoshita Haruno. She's not as open as you are."
"So it's that older sister… During the autumn exhibition, she seemed to help a lot."
Asuna replied softly, letting out a sigh of relief, though for some reason, she also felt uneasy.
If this wasn't a dream, would she, in the future, call out to Yuu in the same way?
Just imagining it made her heart ache as if torn apart.
Shaking her head to dispel the gloomy thoughts, Asuna changed the topic. "When did you meet her? How long did you date?"
"We met during summer vacation, dated for thirty-three days…" Yuu paused, glancing at her hesitantly. "It's a bit of a long story. Are you sure you want to hear it?"
"Maybe later." Asuna shook her head, her bright, clear hazel eyes fixed on him. "I still have a lot I want to talk about with you, Yuu-kun. Let's put other people's matters aside for now."
"Later?" Yuu couldn't help but smile. "Later, you won't remember anymore—unless the system goes crazy again and makes me your boyfriend for a second time."
"If there was no God, would you not have liked me?"
"Even if I liked you again, it doesn't mean I could date you." Yuu leaned back, as if resigned to everything, speaking in a defeated tone. "Until the system is gone, my possibilities will always be controlled by it… No matter the choice, the outcome might not be right."
"So, I'm sorry, Asuna."
He gazed at the cathedral's ornate ceiling, his eyes reflecting a cold light from some unknown source.
His flat voice fell into the air, carrying heavy emotions.
"After this overtime ends, you and I will be strangers… For the sake of the next mission, I probably won't approach you directly. At most, I'll ask about you through your brother."
"Since you won't know who I am, please let me do that."
As if delivering a final message, Yuu smiled, his tone finally becoming lighter.
"From now on, decide your own life. Don't listen to others' words—remember this well, even if you forget it after today. Follow it with your instincts."
"Don't waste my seventeen days of effort. You're my girlfriend, Asuna, who's grown up. You can definitely handle something small like this, even without memories."
Casually talking about things that burden others, Yuu let out a soft sigh, then turned to look at Asuna.
For some reason, she was still gazing at him, acting alone, with a gentle look that seemed to accept and forgive everything.
"Yuu-kun, why are you apologizing?"
"…Huh?" Caught off guard, Yuu opened his mouth dumbly.
Asuna suddenly grabbed his left hand, took the crystal ring from her pocket, and naturally slipped it onto his ring finger.
"I was never mad at you, and I don't think you owe me anything. At most, I'm just a little dissatisfied… Who told you to still not be honest with me even now?"
"No way." Yuu put on an innocent face, complaining, "I swear, everything I've said to you now is sincere, not acting at all…"
"Even to yourself?"
"…"
In front of Yuu, who suddenly fell silent, Asuna pressed her hand to his cheek, using its warmth to melt the coldness in his palm.
Her serious voice fell into the air.
"Yuu-kun, what made me mad was that God."
"It arbitrarily told me the truth, making the person I like feel troubled."
"It controlled others' lives for no reason, forcing the person I love to deceive himself."
"It made me meet my boyfriend, but at the happiest moment, it tore us apart."
"It made me meet the most important person in my life, but forced me, starting tomorrow… to ignore him."
At the end of her words, a faint sob crept in.
Yuu seemed to forget how to breathe, staring blankly at the grieving girl before him, full of reluctance.
Asuna tried to swallow the pain in her throat, rapidly blinking her red eyes, wrinkling her slightly sobbing nose, and forcing out her voice:
"This is so unfair, isn't it? Why do we have to go through something like this?"
"And why, when Yuu-kun is suffering the most, can't I help at all, and instead, you have to apologize to me?"
"When the one suffering the most, the one who least wants to forget, the one who should be the angriest—it should be you, Yuu-kun!"
Yuu: "…"
Speechless, after a long pause, he forced a wry smile, speaking in a hoarse voice. "Asuna, don't make me sound like the biggest victim… I got rewards from the system too. I was thrilled getting money and items. I'm not that pitiful."
"I'm not pitying you." Asuna shook her head, using her thumb to wipe the tears falling from her eyes, looking at him directly.
"Yuu-kun, are our feelings just one-sided?"
Yuu: "…Now, yes, and later too."
"Yuu-kun, can you really accept this ending? Me forgetting you, and you moving on to date other girls, only to be forgotten again?"
Yuu: "…Of course, I'm almost used to it."
"Yuu-kun, do you really think this is enough?"
Yuu: "…Don't think I'm too weak. I've already made the resolve I needed."
Asuna suddenly laughed.
Like a rainbow after the rain, blooming beautifully and gently before him.
"All of that is a lie."