The second simulation begins!

“Mu Yue…?”

Even just thinking about her, Lin Yuxuan found herself whispering the name out loud.

The red-haired girl noticed someone calling her and turned around—locking eyes with Yuxuan in an instant.

Crap.

Yuxuan’s heart sank. In reality, she didn’t actually know Mu Yue at all. She didn’t even know who she really was—her only memories of her came from that simulation. Her impression of her was hazy, blurry, like a half-remembered dream.

She hadn’t expected her to actually turn around when called!

Mu Yue was confused too.
Did someone just call my name?

But there was no one familiar in sight…?

Wait…

That white-haired girl looked oddly familiar. Wasn’t she the same older sister from her dreams—the one who held her close while they slept together?

Just thinking about it made Mu Yue feel warm inside. Her gaze softened.

But suddenly, a large, fat man pushing a shopping cart blocked her view.
In the blink of an eye, the white-haired girl had vanished.

“Huh? Xuanxuan…?” Mu Yue felt a wave of disappointment.

Could I have imagined it?

No way!

She was real—I’m sure of it!

Damn it… why didn’t I go over and say something?!

****

Back home, Yuxuan was also filled with regret.

“Oh no… now I’ll never get to contact her again. I don’t know anything about her besides her name. Who knows if we’ll ever meet again…”

She regretted not approaching her for a contact number right then and there.

But then again, maybe it was better this way.
If she had gone up and started talking to her, things would’ve gotten complicated. After all, there was no reason for them to know each other in real life. And real-life Mu Yue wouldn’t know anything about what happened in the simulation. There was no way she’d believe her if she said they already had a connection.

And how could she possibly explain why she knew her?

Should I say, “I saw you in my dreams,” or “I met you in a simulator”?

Of course not. That would’ve been insane.

The system and the simulator were both secrets she had to guard carefully.

For the first time, Yuxuan felt that unbearable sense of closeness and distance—so near yet so far.
Her heart raced the moment she saw her, but she couldn’t approach. Couldn’t confess her feelings.
This sweet, secret affection belonged solely to her. No one else would understand. No one else would care.

And that thought alone made her chest tighten with loneliness.

Thinking about it, Yuxuan felt as though a hand had gripped her heart, squeezing it painfully. Tears welled up in her eyes.

“Ugh, damn it! Why is it so easy to cry now that I’m a girl?”

It seemed that since becoming female, her emotions had become far more sensitive.

Unspoken, unreturned love… perhaps this was what it truly felt like.

In the end, Yuxuan held back the tears.
After all, she used to be a boy! She wouldn’t let herself cry over something like this!

****

After dinner.

Yuxuan glanced at her phone.

Nothing.
Just one boring notification from a penguin-logo app advertising some stupid free-to-play gacha game.

She swiped it away and paused for a moment before opening the class group chat.

Right!

She completely forgot to add Tang Yawen on WeChat after school today!

Can’t let her slip away~ Better find her in the group~

Thinking about Mu Yue tonight would only keep me awake anyway. Might as well tease cute little Wenwen instead to distract myself~

Wenwen is adorable~ Such a beautiful girl, yet completely unaware of it. Even has a bit of an inferiority complex. I really like how shy and timid she is—like a little animal~

As soon as Yuxuan sent the friend request, it was accepted almost instantly.

****

At that moment, Tang Yawen was drawing sketches when she noticed the penguin icon light up.

She immediately checked it.

Seeing that it was Lin Yuxuan’s request, her heartbeat skipped a beat.

“Eh? It’s Xuanxuan!”

She quickly accepted the request.
Receiving a message from the girl she liked made her heart flutter with joy.

Truthfully, Tang Yawen had been restless ever since coming home.
Her mind kept drifting back to Lin Yuxuan.

Is she thinking about me too?

Just imagining that made her feel the warmth of young love.

To be loved by a beautiful girl like that—what a wonderful feeling!

But such a luxury—reserved for the popular girls—was something she never thought she deserved as a shut-in otaku.

All night, she had been caught in wild thoughts.
Was this all just a hallucination?

《A gloomy girl meets a beautiful girl》—a title straight out of a Bilibili light novel parody. Could something like this really happen to me?

Because of these doubts, she became anxious and afraid—wondering if she was just being played, unaware that Lin Yuxuan was secretly laughing about it with her friends in a private chat group somewhere…

She thought this mainly because of that “very realistic dream”.

But then again, maybe she was thinking too negatively.
Dream-Xuanxuan was just a dream. She shouldn’t jump to conclusions based on that alone. She should still respond politely.

Before she could reply, however, Lin Yuxuan messaged first.

“Wenwen Teacher, good evening~”

Then came an emoji—a white-haired anime girl waving hello.

“E-Evening!”

“After this, please treat me kindly, dear Wenwen Teacher~ See you tomorrow~”

Yuxuan didn’t push for a long conversation. It was normal to lack common topics when first contacting a girl you barely knew. No need to force small talk. There’d be plenty of chances later.

“Okay… see you tomorrow.” Tang Yawen replied politely.

But while her words appeared calm and collected on the screen, in real life, Tang Yawen was practically melting.

“She… she called me ‘Wenwen Teacher’ again… How cute… It feels like we’re playing a little couple’s game…”

Tang Yawen’s doujinshi artist instincts kicked in, making her imagination run wild.

Thinking along those lines only made her even more flustered!

The next second, a steaming-red Tang Yawen rolled around on her bed clutching her pillow.

“Aaaaaah! What am I even thinking?!”

****

After washing up, Yuxuan lay in bed, unable to fall asleep. She opened the curtains hoping to count stars.

But of course, in the city, not a single star pierced the light-polluted sky. Her hopes fell flat.

Sigh… Can’t sleep at all…

Her mind kept replaying the chance encounter with Mu Yue earlier that day.

She turned around when I called her name—that proves I wasn’t mistaken!

“Ahhh~”

Frustrated, Yuxuan hugged her pillow tightly against her face.

“Forget it! Since I can’t sleep anyway, might as well start a simulation round to tire myself out! Maybe I’ll finally fall asleep if I’m exhausted enough~”

Unable to sleep either way, Yuxuan summoned the system and selected the target: Tang Yawen.

Only one simulation subject available—no other options.

“Wenwen, don’t worry. This time, I promise to be gentle with you! I won’t let you suffer ever again~”

“Simulation Start!”