"I'm home." you mumbled, stepping through the doorway.

Silence greeted inside the dark house as you sluggardly tugged off your shoes and stumbled about the hallway, looking for a light switch. You yelped as your pinky toe found a corner, throbbing painfully like the rest of your body.

Izumi's latest explosion was to blame for that.

Three beds, four stools, two windows, and an uncountable number of the school's medical equipment had been destroyed in the explosion. One wall now sported a Shujin-shaped hole in it, curtesy of you. The spot where Izumi had been sitting was no longer usable, needing some extensive repairs to the floor and ceiling before it can be used again. All and all, the busty young woman was facing some sever penalties for letting her powers run rampant outside of school sanctioned areas.

And when you came to in the aftermath, several of the school's faculty were trying to carefully yank you out of the wall.

The nurse, a very pleasant woman and a fellow esper, had the ability to speed up a person's natural recovery via a nice, wet smooch on the cheek. It hurt like hell as your body slowly put itself back together, but it's why you're coming home painfully sore rather than being bedridden with broken bones.

You finally found the light switch and flicked it on, flooding the house with bright light.

Given how hectic your morning had been, waking up as the Harem Protagonist and all, you hadn't gotten the chance to check out your new abode.

Because, for better or for worse, you were now Shujin Kou, and you were going to live his life.

So the first thing to do was find out what kind of person he'd been.

Walking around the house, you tried to familiarize yourself with the home's layout. Though this place was completely different from your previous home, for some reason, everything here just felt...right. Like you how you knew where things were that you shouldn't have any knowledge of. Like the false trim behind the couch that hid Shujin's porn stash or how the dryer made a god-awful racket if you didn't brace it with the wooden block by the door.

Memories that definitely weren't your own came forth the more you thought about it.

Everything except for his...no your parents.

"Ow!"

You'd been trying to think of your new parents, and... your head had started pounding, like you were getting a really bad migraine.

The memories of them- of the parents who had 'created' this body that you inhabited- for some reason you couldn't access them.

And even after rummaging through everything in the house, you found absolutely nothing.

No pictures. No photos. No mementos. Nothing to indicate that you even had parents in the first place.

A vague sense of loneliness and yearning filled your heart. It made you think of your old parents. What's going on with them right now? And how they might be faring with you no longer in their world?

Unable to take it, you turned to the one person that should have all the answers. "Hey Narrator...Where are Shujin's parents? I can't find a photo of them anywhere." Or remember anything about them.

(((I don't know.)))

You blinked at the Narrator's rather blunt answer. "What do you mean 'you don't know'? You're the Narrator, aren't you? Shouldn't you, like, know everything about this world?"

(((Much to your disbelief bud, no. I'm not omnipotent. There are things in this world that even I, your hyper competent sidekick/companion, have no knowledge of. Shujin's parents being one of them.)))

"How can that be? I must have parents, otherwise I wouldn't be standing here." Biology left no room for any other alternatives.

(((Like I said, I just don't know. What I do know is that even if they were here, they weren't really ever going to be present in your life. You're like an anime protagonist now Shujin. Most of those guys don't have parents either and even the ones that do, they almost never appear anywhere in the story.)))

"Well yeah...but that's for the shounen genre. Not for the harem romcoms. I mean don't you always have that one parent who keeps pestering them for grandbabies." You were getting more than a little frustrated with the Narrator. It was hardly a deal-breaker (not that you really needed parental supervision) but it was a key detail that you'd like to have known beforehand.

(((Well, you're the exception here. So how about instead of dwelling on it, why don't you use that depressed charm to woo a lovely lady into filling that void in your heart. Chicks always dig the sad, loner types. Just tell'em you miss your mommy and daddy. Add little bit of water works, then sit back and watch them come a'knocking.)))

"Uh...isn't that just a scummy thing to do? I mean the pity love."

(((Whatever works my friend. And to give the simplest explanation on why your parents aren't here, the guy that made the game just didn't bother to write them in. I know this sounds cold but YOU'RE the Protagonist, not your parents. So, __________ just saw no need to include in your harem exploits. But if you ever need someone to cry your heart out to...I'm unfortunately your guy.)))

You took a moment to swallow what the Narrator had said.

It made sense of course.

Your parents weren't going to be involved in any of your romances, so there's no need for them to be here...yet.

You couldn't shake the sense of loneliness.

Sighing, you nodded your head.

(((That a'boy. So, how about you get something to eat and shower for now. Today sure was hectic, and tomorrow is sure to be one as well. So, try to relax and get some sleep tonight. I have a surprise for you tomorrow.)))

"Really!" Your head snapped up, "What is it?"

(((Na Uh Hunh. Spoilers. You'll have to wait till tomorrow.)))

And with that, the Narrator went silent.

So, taking his advice, you meandered over to the kitchen. Your cooking skills were nothing to brag about, so you just made yourself a simple sandwich. You continued your exploration of the house but found little else of interest. Nothing was on tv, so unable to go against your aching body, you crawled into bed.

Sleep, however, didn't come easily as today's events went round and round in your head.

Harem Protagonist. Narrator. Izumi. Espers.

These thoughts kept you awake, but eventually they faded away as your tired body won out and you slept.
................................

(((GOOD MORNING SHUJIN!!!)))

You screamed, jolted awake and jumped a foot in the air as the Narrator's voice suddenly blared in your ears.

"God Damn it." You swore, covering your ringing ears. "Don't do that!"

(((Sorry, sorry. Just thought you'd like to see what I have in store for you.)))

Now that your ears were no longer ringing and your brain was actually starting to wake up, you remembered what the Narrator had told you yesterday. Pushing the heavy stuff aside, you felt yourself growing excited.

"Let me get ready first." You scrambled out of bed, rushing through your morning routine in record time.

(((Alright. Now it's time for today's selection.)))

You smiled as the window popped up in front of you. It grew even larger when you saw the +14 affection next to Izumi despite yesterday’s mishaps. If you keep this rate up, you'll hit triple digit affection points within a couple weeks. Your finger hovered over the list of options for today and as you were about to tap Izumi again.

(((HOLD IT!!! I don't you dare touch that option yet.)))

"Huh???"

(((It's time for the surprise. Now Shujin if you would kindly tap on Izumi's icon.)))

You obliged, curious as there wasn't an option like this in the game.

Your eyes widened as the screen changed.



Name: Izumi

Age: 18

Esper Ability: Explosion - Releasing a powerful telekinetic burst from her skin. Difficult to control during emotional state.

Likes: ???

Weakpoints: Breasts, ???

Perversions: Peeking.



(((Congradulations! You've unlocked the Status Screen.)))

You stared at the window; a full-body photo of Izumi displayed beside a list of her various attributes. Some of the slots were filled out, but most just had question marks. Beneath it were two gauges. One had a picture of a broken heart on the left side and a winged heart on the other side with a marker that read +14. Below that one was a completely different one.

This one had a halo on the right side that glowed brightly...and on the other side a skull-and-crossbones. The skull seemed to leech the colors away from the bar, the end completely pitch-black. The dial on this gauge, instead of pointing to the halo, was slightly skewed more to the skull.

A chill went down you spine looking at the second one.

(((Mhmm. That's the Karma gauge Shujin, the second most important gauge in the game.)))

"W-What does it do?" You asked, but something deep inside you knew the answer.

(((It tracks your actions. You saw the perversion section in Izumi's status window right. Well, that's what you're allowed to do to her for now till your relationship progresses. If you get caught doing it, no big deal, just some lost affection points but your good karma goes up. Which means you get more lucky pervert moments with her. Though, on the other hand, if you do something outside what you're allowed to do, then you get bad karma regardless if you're caught...and if you do get caught, you don't want to know.)))

You gulped as the temperature in the room seemed to drop.

(((But I don't have to worry too much if it's you. So Shujin, who’s the lucky lady going to be this morning?)))