'The Midas Touch' : The words and stories you write possess a bewitching quality over readers, making them believe it's real. Effect duration depends on dissemination scope.
'Vocal Maestro' : Your vocal skills improve from "first-class" to "masterclass."
All will be moved by your artistry, and your future works will undoubtedly leave a mark in history. Side effect: Creation time extends from months to years.
'Black Formal Suit' : Once worn, the wearer's actions will align perfectly with everyone's perception of a gentleman—exemplary in etiquette and social conduct.
'Cup of Greed' : The user may forfeit current gains to double the next reward.
Effect stacks up to three times.
'Four-Star Dragon Ball', 'Blue Pill' , 'Combat Power Detector', 'Magic·Expelliarmus' , 'One Piece Luffy·Logbook' , 'Sharingan'...
Due to Kaoru's complaints about the Wish Machine, it finally made a minor adjustment.
The gacha pool was renamed the Wishing Pool.
Kaoru could now make wishes to the pool, allowing him to search for specific reward types before randomizing the draw.
The previous ○○ Pool and ○○ Pool mechanics were completely removed.
Compared to the abysmal rates before, the new Wishing Pool was far more user-friendly—so much so that even Kaoru couldn't help but applaud.
The old ○○ Pool and ○○ Pool systems were absurd, like pulling weapons from a character pool.
After two years of complaints, the Wish Machine finally conceded.
Today's 10-pull came from Kushida, Horikita Suzune, and Asahina Nazuna.
Kaoru still had a 5-pull saved, courtesy of Airi Sakura.
When Kaoru made his wish to the pool, the 10-pull could even be subdivided—each pull corresponding to a specific reward type.
This meant one 10-pull could yield both characters and weapons!
'Wait... something felt off.'
Kaoru quickly realized and scowled—wasn't this just a mixed pool in disguise?
So the Wish Machine had mixed all the rewards together—no wonder it was willing to provide a search function.
Without it, Kaoru would have thrown in the towel on the spot.
Kaoru cursed at the Wish Machine a few times, and it quickly grew agitated, manipulating a caterpillar plush on the bed to fight him.
The battle ended in a draw.
It wasn't until Tachibana Akane sent a few messages that Kaoru stopped.
Today was their date—though simulated—and Akane was thrilled.
Kaoru exchanged for the "Black Formal Suit" and put it on, examining himself in the mirror.
With every movement, an inexplicable air of elegance emanated from him.
In a place like school, it was admittedly a bit flashy.
But since he had the reward, why not flaunt it?
The dormitories for each grade were in separate buildings.
As Kaoru left the first-year dorm, he drew many gazes from passersby—mostly the sparkling eyes of female students.
If he were holding a bouquet, it might as well have been a proposal, Kaoru mused.
Arriving at the third-year dormitory, Kaoru waited patiently.
During that time, he spotted Fujimaki Hiroki who seemed surprised and greeted him.
Kaoru smiled politely in return but didn't engage further.
Yet Fujimaki inexplicably struck up a conversation, covering a range of topics.
Interestingly, even when Kaoru deliberately showed displeasure, Fujimaki failed to read the room—as if he'd suddenly lost this quintessential Japanese skill.
And so, Kaoru understood.
The effect of the "Black Formal Suit" wasn't to change the wearer but to forcibly distort others' perceptions of them.
No matter what the wearer did, everyone would see them as the perfect gentleman.
"W-what on earth are you wearing?!"
At this loud exclamation, Kaoru finally saw Akane.
The senior was no longer in her usual school uniform but wore a light-colored coat over a white sweater, a crossbody bag slung over her shoulder.
Below, a dark-hued pencil skirt cinched at the waist accentuated her slender figure—so delicate it seemed you could wrap a hand around it.
A glimpse of white stockings hugged her calves, her small, rounded jade feet tucked into little leather shoes. She looked every bit the vibrant heroine from a TV drama.
Fujimaki gave the two an ambiguous glance, bid Kaoru a "see you later," and tactfully took his leave.
"This is the most expensive outfit I have," Kaoru said. "I wanted to make sure you'd be satisfied with the date—and to live up to my admiration for Horikita-senpai—so I mustered the courage to wear this."
Akane didn't quite believe him, but as she took in his appearance, her cheeks flushed slightly.
She fidgeted before stepping closer.
"Who told you to dress like this for a date?"
The petite senior noticed his height—she had to tiptoe just to reach his nose—and puffed out her cheeks.
"It's too formal! You're making me look like an awkward duckling!"
Not only that, but the surrounding stares were so intense they left her flustered.
"Should I go change?" A faint smile played at Kaoru's lips.
Akane hesitated for a long moment.
She had to admit Kaoru looked undeniably handsome—even the passing girls were raving about his looks.
She could even see some people getting restless, as if they were about to ask for his contact information.
It was infuriating to hear—she was right here, and they still dared to try and steal him away?
"Forget it, I don't want to waste time." Tachibana Akane grabbed his hand. "There are too many people here. Let's go!"
Kaoru let her pull him along.
The girl's small hand was soft, and today, instead of her usual bun, she had styled her hair in a half-up princess look, the ends slightly fluffy.
He could faintly catch the sweet scent of pure milk from her—she had clearly showered and dressed up carefully for today's date.
"I read a lot of guides—shopping, eating, watching movies, giving gifts, and confessing under the legendary tree. What do you think?" Tachibana Akane spoke very seriously, even though her "research" was practically nonexistent.
"What if the confession fails?" Kaoru raised a critical question.
"Ahaha, failure? As if that's possible!" Tachibana Akane's voice wavered before she quickly changed the subject.
"If it fails, it's your responsibility!"
"What am I supposed to take responsibility for if you fail?"
"Of course, the responsibility for the failed confession! You're the one accompanying me on this date today. Horikita-kun clearly thinks highly of you, so if I fail, it's definitely your fault."
"That has nothing to do with how much he values me. The real question is—how does senpai want me to take responsibility?"
As he spoke, Kaoru gently stroked Tachibana Akane's small hand.
There was no roughness—just smooth, delicate warmth, like holding a piece of heated jade.
Tachibana Akane's expression froze.
She quickly yanked her hand back, but not before seeing the faint smile on his face.
Her heart pounded wildly, her ears burning.
What exactly did she want him to take responsibility for?
"W-We'll talk about that later! S-Suddenly doing something like that… it's too… too rude!"
She turned away instinctively.
'Calm down'
'I need to calm down right now. He's just a junior two years younger than me.'
'Don't panic. I have to act like a proper senpai'
'Today is just a practice date—I only invited him because I don't have any close male friends.'
Her goal was Horikita Manabu.
She had always admired and yearned for his strong yet gentle presence—not this guy who took every chance to tease her and acted so disrespectfully.
This much… this much isn't enough to shake me!
"Don't walk so fast. The path is slippery—watch your step."
At Kaoru's voice, Tachibana Akane felt a light tug on her shoulder, pulling her back.
Then, she caught a faint, dizzying scent—something distinctly masculine.
Snow-covered paths were slicker than usual, sometimes coated in a thin layer of ice.
If she wasn't careful, she really could trip over nothing.
"I-I know! I don't need you meddling!" Akane's face flushed as she stole another glance at him.
'I have to admit… he's a little good-looking. Long eyelashes, a high nose bridge, thin lips—his features are so well-proportioned there's not a single flaw.'
"You can act like this with me normally, but this is a date. Are you going to say the same thing to Horikita-senpai later?" Kaoru released her shoulder.
Akane snapped out of her thoughts but didn't find anything strange about it.
She huffed and crossed her arms. "Don't worry about that. I'd only ever act like this with you!"
Kaoru felt a sudden urge to spank this senior.
She was probably the most arrogant person in the entire student council.
"Don't butt into my date plans. Today, you're listening to me!"
Seeing his slightly deflated expression, Tachibana Akane was thoroughly satisfied.
"First destination—Keyaki Mall!"
"Are we getting parfaits?"
"Uwah, what kind of person do you take me for?!"
"Hmm, I'm just curious about your plans."
"...We're getting parfaits."
"..."
Perhaps realizing she'd slipped up, Akane quickly added with exaggerated seriousness.
"The parfait is just the first step! After that, we're picking out a gift."
"A gift?" Kaoru's face darkened as a thought struck him. "You haven't even prepared the gift yet?"
"That's why I'm dragging you along to pick one now!" Akane felt her cheeks heat up.
"Tomorrow's Christmas Eve, and the day after is Christmas. It's not too late!"
"If you're expecting me to help pick out a gift that'll impress Horikita Manabu, you're overestimating me." Kaoru didn't consider himself an expert on men's tastes—how would he know what Horikita liked?
"Obviously, I know that. You're just here to give me suggestions." Akane snorted.
That was more reasonable.
Kaoru accepted the task.
"If you make me happy today, I might even give you a Christmas gift too."
"Don't bother if you don't want to."
"What's that supposed to mean? Did I say I didn't want to?"
"You sounded reluctant."
"I wasn't! I'll definitely give you one!"
Watching Akane fluster, Kaoru remained unfazed.
He was all too familiar with handling tsunderes like her.