"Welp... ain't this some BS."
Staring at the scene before me, I accidentally cursed. I curse in general, but this? This was purely from aggravation!
Let me paint it out for you...
{An hour ago}
"Saeko-senpai, what time do you guys usually practice?"
God forbid I'm late and she makes the training damn near impossible. I know my limits very well!
She tilted her head, her purple hair leaning to the left, giving her a childish look. I didn't dare bring it up—there were times and places for that kind of exchange. No need to mention that I'm scared of what she'd do if I did.
"Fifteen minutes after school. Anything later is considered late, and punishments will be given."
"So, 3:45?"
She nodded to confirm, then waved me off. I watched her walk away while planning the rest of my day in my head. One glance at the sky showed night approaching quickly. I checked my phone—it was already 6 PM, meaning I'd be home around 6:30, possibly 7.
I should just get takeout then.
I couldn't cook anything edible. Well, I hadn't tried since being in Amane's body. I could cook in my previous life, but that skill didn't seem to transfer. Oh yeah, my skills did improve after completing the quest with Mahiru! However...
Lost in thought, I left the school and found myself approaching a McDonald's. With my body still sore from training, the thought of cooking sounded like torture. Fast food it was.
Walking in, the typical fast-food atmosphere hit me. Surprisingly, it was busy for a Monday. I spotted people from my school and others chatting with their friends. I ordered a lot of food: a 20-piece nugget, basket fries, a Big Mac, and a strawberry banana smoothie.
Order number 556. Thankfully, it's not 666, haha.
Anyway.
One thing to remember is that Japanese portions differ from American ones, so I'd probably need to order more—but hopefully not.
I walked over to an empty booth and sat down. While waiting for my food, I pulled out my phone and opened the most popular app in this world: Tiktok. It had surpassed every other app in just a year, leaving competitors scrambling.
Oh! A soccer tournament between U-20 Japan vs. Blue Lock Eleven. What the hell?! Even Bluelock is here! I really hope I don't run into any of them.
I scrolled further, trying to push the thought of those cursed players out of my head. I didn't hate them, but I definitely didn't want to deal with them.
"Huh?"
I paused. My FYP had just delivered a mythical pull: two kids, each with a star-like pattern in one eye. Ruby and Aqua? Oh lord...
I've never—and I mean NEVER—opened this app in this life. I'd been too busy or tired. But I'd learned more about this world in four minutes and eleven seconds on Tiktok than I had in two weeks.
I watched the video in its entirety. Based on the likes, comments, and profile, the two had just started their journey—what I'd call Chapter 10 or 11 in the manga.
"Number 556!"
Hearing my number, I grabbed my food and returned to my seat—just in time for some BS.
{Present Time}
"Welp... ain't this some BS."
I stared at the blonde-haired girl and boy. One had ruby eyes; the other, aquamarine. Each had a single eye with a six-star pattern. Their group consisted of three girls and one boy—the blonde-haired guy.
Hearing my comment, the group turned toward me, their expressions questioning and annoyed.
"Don't worry about it. I was sitting here before I got my food, but you have a group, so I'll just..." I looked around. There were no seats left.
"...I'll just go then." I turned to leave.
"Wait!"
A pale hand grabbed my school blazer, nearly making me drop my food. Turning back, I saw the ruby-eyed blonde—Ruby Hoshino—holding onto me.
"Yes?" I tried hiding my aggravation.
"Can you help us?" she pleaded, her eyes boring into mine.
"With?" I asked, still annoyed.
"How about you sit and eat? Your food will get cold if you leave."
Tch. She knew exactly how to keep me. I don't want my food tasting like garbage.
I sat down next to—you guessed it—Ruby Hoshino. The group included her, her brother Aqua, a red-haired girl, and a green-eyed girl. I didn't remember the latter two's names. Aqua and Ruby were hard to forget, but those other two? Yeah, no.
As I ate, I noticed Ruby's eyes darting to my nuggets. I wanted to ignore it, but remembering her backstory, I felt pity.
"You can have a few. Just a few, though!"
"Really?!" She smiled and grabbed three, dipping them into the ketchup I'd set aside.
I didn't say anything about the ketchup!
I grimaced but stayed quiet. I didn't want to start anything.
"So, we're working on this promo video to introduce ourselves! Something simple but impactful... except we're broke."
I paused, recalling the video I'd seen earlier.
"Hahaha, yeah, that video I saw on Tiktok was pretty bad."
"W-Which one?" Ruby stuttered, clearly not expecting my honesty.
The green-eyed girl jumped in. "Yeah, I could only do so much."
"Because of the budget?"
"No, because they didn't have direction," she said, pointing to Ruby and the red-haired girl. Aqua remained quiet, staring at me. I didn't care. I was here to eat.
[Side quest: Help Ruby and her group]
[Reward: Connections in the entertainment industry]
Really? System, for the love of God, why now? Whatever. I already had a clue on how to help with the least amount of effort.
"I see. Well, how much money do you need? Preferably in USD, by the way. It's easier for me to understand," I asked, finishing up my fries and moving on to my Big Mac. I still didn't feel anywhere near full!
The group stared at me strangely, but Aqua was the first to speak. He grabbed his phone, did some typing, and showed me the screen.
"The lower budget is our limit—$3,000 USD. The higher amount, $6,000 USD, would allow us to incorporate both ideas."
"Okay... I'm assuming most of the budget went toward good equipment?" I asked. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"So, you just need $3,000 more to do both ideas?"
They nodded again.
"Alright, I'll sponsor you—or whatever it's called. I can send you $3,000 right now."
"Eh?"
"Huh?"
"N-No way."
Aqua: "O"
I tilted my head in confusion. "What?"
"You're in high school and can just... give away $3,000?!" Ruby couldn't believe it, and neither could the rest of the group. But they didn't need to know the details.
"I could give you more, but I don't like wasting money."
"Then why invest in us?" Aqua asked, his doubts evident.
"It's not every day I run into aspiring individuals. Let's say you achieve your goals. That would mean I now have connections with you when you make it big, wouldn't it?"
My reasoning made sense to them, but honestly, it was just hogwash. If the system hadn't given me the side-quest prompt, I would've listened, offered a few ideas, and left.
"Ah. Speaking of which, can I get your names? I'm Amane Fujimiya. Feel free to call me Amane."
Ruby quickly followed. "I'm Ruby Hoshino, and that's my twin brother, Aqua Hoshino!"
"Frill Shiranui," the green-eyed girl said next. Her appearance caught my attention as I studied her: waist-length dark-green hair with loose bangs parted on the right side, slit-like pupils resembling a cat's, and two beauty marks—one on the lower right side of her lips and the other under her left eye.
A pretty girl for sure. I didn't find her particularly attractive, but facts were facts.
The red-haired girl came last. "Kana Arima." Her appearance didn't stand out much to me, but I wasn't really paying attention.
"So, Ruby, do you have an account I can send the money to?"
"Y-Yeah!" She surprisingly had a PayPal. Who would've thought.
I sent the money, and her face lit up immediately.
"GUAH!!" She hugged me tightly, and I almost started choking on the last bite of my Big Mac.
So she takes my money and is trying to kill me?!
"Ruby," Aqua interjected, saving me just in time. I couldn't tell if he actually wanted to help or if it was just brotherly instincts, but I didn't care. I was saved!