My portable gaming girlfriend

"...up to your own decision?"

"right."

Although I am not good at persuading others, but at this time due to the needs of the strategy, I must persuade her and help her out of the psychological predicament.

After a dozen times of groping, I have roughly understood her predicament——

She has been living under the command of her mother. The mother is a perfectionist with a strong desire for control, and the expectation of her is a star, which is simply terrible.

Not only does Mizuhara Mina have no ideas of her own, but she also dares not express herself... If she continues to force herself to be an idol who needs to express herself all the time with such a character, it will not work at all.

Maybe it was too late when she wanted to resist one day.

"impossible."

She shook her head.

"My mother said that my future will only be meaningful if I practice singing hard, give a good concert and become a star."

"So, do you really want to do this?"

"I……"

"I just want to know what you think."

She looked at me with wide eyes.

"……my thoughts?"

"Yes, what you think."

"But no one ever wanted to know what I thought..."

Mizuhara subconsciously took a few steps back and didn't seem to want to continue this topic.

"That doesn't mean you don't have ideas—"

Of course I won't stop there, it will never be fruitful, not only because I want to pass the game, but also because this girl who is expected to become an idol is very conflicted and painful.

"I'm going back."

"Don't evade this question, think about what you really want to do? Not as a daughter, but as Mizuhara Mina!"

Holding on to Suwon who was about to leave, just when I thought my victory was in sight——

"Don't ask any more!"

Her sudden personality change really startled me.

"What's the use of telling Gaocheng classmates? - The cute candies I saw when I was a child were always pulled away by my mother on the grounds of 'getting fat'. Seeing the children next door playing in groups, my mother Said to me 'it's time to practice the piano' - and over time I realized there was no point in thinking about those things."

"So, don't ask me any more..."

She turned away, breathing heavily.

"I also understand these things... But if I encounter rejection, I will still fight for it myself."

Except for being rejected by a girl... But, is this the tenth time you have said something like this? Already numb to expressionless.

Come on.

No matter what kind of theory you use, even if it is fallacious, as long as you can persuade her, you will pass the test. Even with AI, I can't stand them living such a tangled life. This is something that I can't ignore for my own dreams.

By the way, it was the same when facing Narumi Lily later.

"That didn't work for my mother."

She shook her head, her mood seemed to calm down.

"My mother always said to me 'everything I say is for your future, you just have to do what I say'... For me, it was right to do what my mother said."

"But you like cooking, right? Is it really okay to obey your mother and never cook again?"

"..."

If it was in the anime, her pupils must have turned into swirls.

"Aren't you very happy when you play games? Isn't it against your mother's words to do so?"

"I……"

"Studying hard at school is also a wish from the heart, right?"

"...!"

Seeing such a look of 'how do you know', it seems that what the two girls said was not exaggerated, she must have studied hard in class every day.

"...Gao Cheng, you are right."

Sure enough, she dropped the handle and turned to face me.

"I like cooking, I like playing games here, I like learning more than being an idol... But even if I know this, what can I change? I still don't know, living as simple as a marionette It's easier... I've said too much today, so Gao Cheng should act as if he doesn't know?"

Was it because she had such a self-defeating idea, but——

"Since Mizuhara-san has expressed his true thoughts, I won't act as if I don't know. Don't think you are alone anymore, I will help you."

"...Why do you want to help me like this?"

"Mizuhara-san is my friend, isn't it natural to help a friend?"

"Friends... I've never had a friend. Is this what a friend should be like?"

"A friend is someone who listens to you and helps you when you are in trouble."

"..."

Her eyes are a little red.

"how come……"

She stretched out her hand in panic and rubbed her eyes.

Are you moved by this? This young lady is too naive...

What's more, I said these words just to attack her. In reality, I would never say such nasty words. This made me a little embarrassed.

"My mother said that although this concert is only a campus concert, she has invited very important people to come... She told me not to make any mistakes. If I am seen, I may have to give up my school life Go to rehearsals and tape shows."

"But I don't want to be like that... I want to study and get into college on my own. Maybe I will go on this path in the end, but at least now I want to live a high school life that is no different from others!"

She finally told her true thoughts.

Although I don't know which sentence hit the key point, I finally succeeded in persuading her, a historic breakthrough.

"I agree with your idea."

"Thank you……"

I patted her head.

Of course, this action is purely inadvertent, and it doesn't mean that I have any special thoughts about her... Even if I have special thoughts, I have to wait until I play the hidden ending before thinking about it.

In the end, after being touched by me, she remained motionless as if she had lost her soul... It was like Sakura, this reaction!

How should I put it, it's really kind of cute...

No, no... I shook my head, I had given up on the idea of ​​a harem ending a long time ago, and achieving the hidden ending wholeheartedly is my current goal.

Since we want to play a hidden ending, we can't confess our love to her... At least this week is destined to have no results between us.

So it's better to think about what to do next and how to solve this problem.

It's after school now.

The school gates are full of leisurely students who are about to leave school, so happy to live in the game...

I suddenly remembered that a sage once said: Things that can be solved by words can never be solved by money.

But for me, who has neither money nor sweet words, the only thing I can rely on is my mouth.

In the game animation works, this thing is called mouth cannon, which is a kind of magical thing.

How many times has the protagonist faced a character dozens of levels higher than himself, and turned defeat into victory by relying on his mouth. I used to be unable to understand it, but after seeing countless successful examples in reality, I gradually accepted this setting.

Of course, the talk in reality will not center on the spirit of 'love', 'justice' and 'friendship'...

Going back to the game "Sakura Story", it seems that I still have to use similar actions to answer the question...the so-called mouth gun...

I specially asked Suyuan to exchange the date of duty with other students in the class, just to come out first and have a good talk with her mother.

I walked to the limousine that was out of place in this small town.

"Who are you?"

After I knocked on the glass a few times, the window slid down.

Ms. Suwon has her hair up today, and the crystal pendants around her neck and ears sparkle in the sun.

"Hello, Auntie."

I decided to start with a mundane salutation.

"I'm a friend of Mina Mizuhara, and my name is Takashiro. Excuse me, is Mizuhara going to hold a concert on Saturday?"

"Are you here for concert tickets?"

Her eyes still stayed on the magazine in her hand.

"No, I'm here for Mizuhara-san's own thoughts. I want to ask, as her mother, do you know her thoughts?"

"...It has nothing to do with you."

She was impatiently about to close the window, so I pressed the glass quickly.

"I'm Mizuhara-san's friend. She is very distressed now, so please let me talk to you about something."

"If she has any troubles, she will tell me. I'm very busy."

Well, such a merciless rebuttal would make even me angry.

"No, I don't think you understand her thoughts. Because her character is becoming more and more inferior day by day under your oppression, and she dare not show herself at all."

"What did you say?"

She finally put her eyes on me, but her expression was not friendly.

"Mizuhara-san lived a miserable life every day, was forced to do things she didn't want to do, and was isolated by everyone at school."

"How do you know that she is suffering? And she doesn't need those ordinary people to be friends. Being friends with the weak will only drag her down."

"No, I'm her friend, she told me this. She used to have the interest of cooking to support her, but now you have taken away her only interest. I have seen her happy and sad Then she is the real her. Although I am only a high school student, I know that if this continues, her spirit will definitely go wrong."

"You don't understand anything at all, and you can endure any pain. When she becomes a popular star in the future, you will definitely appreciate my strictness with her now."

This statement is difficult to refute without sophistry.

"If she becomes a star and feels happy, of course she will appreciate you. But is it really her wish to be a star?"

"Who doesn't want to be a star?"

"She's not your shadow, Ms. Suwon. She doesn't like the daily social life you planned for her. She said that she wants to be like a normal child of this age, going to class every day, participating in clubs, and meeting classmates after school. Going to drink coffee, go shopping and watch movies... You must not know about this..."

"When she becomes a star, you don't know how many friends, food, and beautiful clothes she wants?"

"Mizuhara Mina, who was deliberately carved like that, is just a soulless person, I don't want to see..."

"This is my housework... She is my daughter. You don't have to take care of her affairs. It's not up to outsiders to intervene. Please leave."

Even after saying so much, is it still a failure, and being treated as a naive boy also makes me very uncomfortable. You have to find a way to convince her...

But think about it, after all, it is a stranger who suddenly comes to teach and no one can accept it.

【Eleventh day】

What I didn't expect was that Suyuan didn't come to school today.

If it's not sick, something must have happened, such as being ordered not to go to school by my mother or something.

Damn, why is this happening.

Anyway, go visit her after school. You have to know her situation before the plot can proceed.

With the help of Haruji Sakata, I obtained her home address from her homeroom teacher.

But what I didn't expect was that when I actually came to this address, I realized that her house was not a mansion as I thought—it was just a room in an ordinary apartment building.

Ms. Suwon's life doesn't seem to be as glamorous as it looks. Is that why you desperately want your child to be a star and live a better material life? The so-called young lady's life is actually an illusion deliberately cultivated by her mother. Mizuhara, like this, must have put in a lot of effort in her daily life to keep the truth from being known, right? At the same time, she also accepted the ridicule and isolation of her classmates. I don’t know how she managed to survive until now——

"Ding dong—"

I pressed the intercom.

"May I ask who you are?"

It was her mother who answered the phone, who didn't seem to recognize me, whose voice had been slightly altered by the intercom.

"Hi, I'm looking for Mina Mizuhara to deliver today's test paper."

"Thank you, please put the test paper in the mailbox."

"...There are some topics that need to be explained to her personally."

"She's sick. I'm afraid it's inconvenient now. Sorry."

"...Is that so, excuse me."

Her mother's attitude was firm, and it seemed that there was no hope.

go home.

A complete failure, ready to meet tonight's GAMEOVER again...

【Twelfth day】

I opened my eyes in confusion.

The game that I thought would end did not have a game over, but it ushered in the morning of the twelfth day.

This is a situation that has never been encountered before. Could it be that I made the right choice unintentionally?

It is impossible to predict how the plot will develop now... let's go to school to see...

...

Mina Mizuhara still didn't come to school.

Are you going to visit her house after school?

The answer is yes, otherwise I have no way of knowing what will happen to her.

But what I didn't expect was that her mother took the initiative to find me at the school gate after school, but she didn't drive that luxury car today.

"Student Gao Cheng!"

Ms. Mizuhara remembered my surname accurately, and said in a rare eager tone——

"May I ask, do you know where Mizuhara Mina went?"

I thought about the meaning of this sentence. If you don’t know where your daughter who should be at home is——

"Mizuhara, is she missing?"

"……Yes."

Ms. Mizuhara hesitated and reluctantly admitted the incident.

"But isn't she sick and resting at home?"

"Actually it was to prepare for the concert. I took her to rehearsal yesterday, and she practiced singing in her room at night. But this morning I found out that she was no longer at home - she must have sneaked out in the middle of the night while I was sleeping. Yes. Tomorrow is the day of the concert, but something like this happened..."

"A mother should care about her daughter's safety at a time like this, right?"

"How do you know that I don't care about her safety!... I have no clue now. You said that you are her friend, so you must know where she will go?"

Did you come to me as a 'friend' for help at this time?

"I have no idea."

"You must know, please think about it."

"I've known her for less than two weeks, we've only seen each other at school and I really don't know where she's going."

I spread my hands, this is the truth.

"Her class teacher and classmates have no clue, so they can only ask you for help."

After losing her daughter, she finally lowered her proud head.

"...As a friend, I will naturally go to her. But this is because I am worried about her safety, and I don't want her to live in torment when she comes back. The reason why a child like her runs away from home must be The pressure is too great to support. Please think about it."

"I will consider this matter, as long as you can help me find my daughter back, the reward will never let you down."

She obviously hasn't realized her problem yet. Just thinking about it is far from enough. I can foresee that Mina Mizuhara will be treated more harshly by her when she comes back.

But Mizuhara Mina is a 'Miss' who seldom goes out alone, so she might starve to death if she is left alone. From my personal point of view, I also think that we must find her first.

"There is no need for remuneration. I care about her because I am her friend, not because of any remuneration or status. I will try to find her from now on. I believe she will be fine. Please don't worry too much."

After bidding farewell to Mina Mizuhara's mother, I began to think about where to start looking.

Where will she go, what will her interests be...

Let's start with the commercial street first...

The shops and cinemas in the commercial street of the small town were all closed when I went there, and it really is a small town without nightlife. The few shops that are still open are coffee shops, movie theaters and game halls.

In coffee shops and movie theaters, I didn't see Mizuhara Mina. Only the game room is left.

But then again, I wouldn't have noticed there was a gaming arcade if most shops weren't closed in the evening. The entrance to the store is very inconspicuous, and the entire store is also located upstairs from a game store.

Mina Mizuhara...will she be here?

I went up the stairs and into this arcade. This game hall is much larger than what you see from the outside, with racing, fighting, design, music games, and dancing games all available.

Probably because of Friday evening and the upcoming weekend, there are still many students here.

Such a game console with a huge body and a physical screen is very old, and I have never seen it except in games and animations. Maybe try it now... No, finding Mizuhara is the point.

Beside the dance machine over there, many people gathered together... I suddenly had a bad feeling.

I walked over and saw the center of the crowd, which was—

The blue-haired girl was dancing to her heart's content, the frequency was so fast that she couldn't see her movements clearly.

"Brilliant dance! Must have been practicing for a long time, but I've never seen her in this arcade. From out of town?"

"It's also the first time I've seen her here. She's been dancing all afternoon. Give her a glass of water."

"It's so beautiful! This look seems a bit familiar, I forgot where I saw it..."

"Is that Mina Mizuhara who is going to have a concert tomorrow?"

"That's how she looks a bit like her... But there's probably no time to play dancing games here because of the concert tomorrow."

"That's right, I must have read it wrong."

Passers-by's comments about Mizuhara Mina are completely different from her classmates' attitudes at school.

"Nana, rest for a while."

I stopped her when she finished dancing to a song.

"Student Gaocheng?"

Her whole body was soaked in sweat, and she didn't know how long she had been playing here continuously.

"Your mother and I have been looking for you, why did you...leave home?"

When I got to a place where no one was around, I asked her in a low voice.

"...I don't want to go to that concert."

"But haven't you been preparing for the concert for a long time? Wouldn't it be a pity to give up?"

"I found myself really nervous after the rehearsal... If I go to the concert like this, it will only become a farce. I don't know what to do. I only have a blank mind. When I came to this place... I know that my mother has done a lot to make the concert a good one, and my giving up is unfair to her. But I really can't perform on stage in my state..."

"Then don't deliberately perform anything, just express yourself like you usually do when singing. Just like when you were dancing just now, you didn't deliberately perform anything, but you were praised by everyone, right?"

"……Have it?"

"I've heard it all, and I've seen with my own eyes how outstanding Mizuhara-san is. If you perform on stage in that state, I'm afraid it won't be worse than any of your past performances."

"However, this is my first concert, and it's different from the previous live broadcasts or others..."

"What about the first concert? If you can have a wonderful performance, it is a proof of your strength. If you perform poorly, you can leave the stardom and do what you want. In any case, the result is uncertain, Only by trying will you know."

"Since Gao Cheng said so..."

She nodded.

"Nervousness is normal for everyone, just know that me and your fans will always have your back."

"……I see."

"Hey? Don't cry, your eyes will be swollen tomorrow."

I saw that her eye sockets were slightly red, and I immediately found a tissue and handed it to her.

"good……"

She wiped her eyes with a tissue.

"That... I'll take you home."

"...But I don't want to face my mother today. I'm afraid I will be more nervous when I face my mother."

"Mizuhara-san can stay at my house for one night. It just so happens that my parents are traveling recently... No, no, I won't do anything! Let me go to hell for what I did to you!"

After hearing what I said, she put away her suspicious gaze.

"Pfft... I believe in you, Gao Cheng."

Fortunately, she didn't know that I touched Sakura's breasts...... Otherwise, she would definitely think I'm some kind of dirty scum.

I helped Mina Mizuhara to call Ms. Mizuhara to tell her that her daughter was fine, and I spent a lot of time trying to persuade her not to worry, Mina Mizuhara would arrive at the concert venue tomorrow. Although Ms. Suwon was very dissatisfied, she had no choice but to agree to the matter.

——After taking a bath, Mina Mizuhara put on the pajamas I found at home. I didn’t understand until today why this house prepares female pajamas for the male protagonist. Is this a spoiler in disguise? It's a pity that I didn't realize this at first when I saw women's pajamas. I thought it was for some players with special hobbies to entertain themselves...

"Student Gaocheng, tomorrow's concert...will it really be a success?"

"Well, if you can rest well, you will succeed."

Her tension cannot be eliminated, I can only comfort her as much as possible.

"Anyway, thank you today, Gao Cheng."

She closed the door softly.