For Jingūji Sougo, it was a day he would never forget.

“—Long time no see, Sougo-kun.”

Her silver hair swayed in the wind as she smiled gently at him.

Though her hair was slightly short for a girl, and she wore the boys’ uniform, Sougo knew her true identity.

“You kept your promise to me, didn’t you?”
“…Yeah. I didn’t tell anyone. Not about you… or about Sorciera.”

At his words, Sorciera’s eyes widened slightly in surprise before she narrowed them with a smile.

“Fufu, so you even know the name Sorciera?”
“I saw it online. I knew right away it was you! You looked just like you did back then at the amusement park…!”

Sougo desperately strung his words together.

He wanted her to know—he had known about Sorciera before anyone else, before her identity was revealed to the world.

Driven by childish possessiveness, Sougo tried hard to prove he knew her better than anyone else.

Sorciera watched him with an amused smile.

“Everyone wanted to know your identity, but I stayed quiet.”
“Is that so? Thank you. I like people who keep their promises.”

Even his awkward attempts to impress her were met with kindness.

Yet, it somehow made Sougo feel like he was being treated like a child, stirring an indescribable emotion in him.

(If I were more grown up… would she look at me properly?)

A pure, selfish desire—to be seen.

In that moment, the innocent boy was ever so slightly tainted by something.

“…? Is something wrong?”

Noticing Sougo’s odd expression, Sorciera tilted her head.

Then, without warning, she leaned in close.

“S-Sorciera-san!?”
“Hmm, do you have a cold or something?”

Her face was right in front of his.

He could feel something pressing lightly against his forehead—her own.

By the time he realized what was happening, Sougo’s mind had gone completely blank.

The rustling of leaves and chirping of birds were the only sounds echoing around them for a while.

Eventually, Sorciera pulled back.

“You seem fine. …Wait, your face is even redder than before?”
“N-No…! It’s nothing!”
“I-If you say so. Also, don’t call me ‘Sorciera-san.’ If anyone hears, my identity will be exposed.”

Sougo gasped, realizing his mistake.

There was no reason to call her by that name when she was hiding her true self.

If he accidentally revealed her identity, he would never forgive himself.

“…Sorry.”
“It’s fine, I’m not angry. From now on… how about you call me ‘Kei-nee’?”

Sorciera smiled warmly.

His mouth dry from nerves, Sougo repeated the name as if savoring it.

“Kei-nee.”
“Good boy. Now, shall we go?”

With that, Sorciera took Sougo’s hand.

“Ah—”
“What’s wrong?”
“N-Nothing…!”

He had held hands with his parents and sister countless times before.

But this moment etched itself deeper into Sougo’s mind than any of those.

The warmth of her hand, its softness, the slenderness of her fingers—each detail made his heart race.

Unaware of his turmoil, Sorciera hummed cheerfully as she enjoyed their walk.

Sougo, mesmerized by her profile, kept pace beside her.

Seeing her dressed as a boy, he couldn’t help but mutter—

“…Your hair.”
“What about it?”

Realizing he had spoken aloud, Sougo floundered to explain. His mannerisms were oddly similar to his sister’s.

“W-Well, last time I saw you, it was longer, so… I was just wondering why it’s shorter now…”
“…Sougo-kun, which version of me do you prefer?”
“Eh…!?”

At the tender age of ten, Sougo faced the most critical choice of his life.

Had he been more mature, he might have found a diplomatic answer—but he was still a child.

So, he blurted out his honest preference.

“L-Long hair! I like how you looked at the amusement park…!”

Watching his earnest response, Sorciera ran a hand through her hair.

Instantly, her short locks lengthened, fluttering in the breeze.

“I keep it short at school, like before. How’s this?”
“Y-Yeah! It’s… really pretty!”
“Fufu, thank you.”

Tucking a strand behind her ear, Sorciera smiled and patted Sougo’s head.

Then, she took his hand again and resumed walking.

■

This is basically S○X at this point, right?

Manipulating a pure-hearted boy’s innocent crush like this…

『If you think so, then stop.』

No way! A boy desperately trying to act mature in front of a mysterious beauty is peak storytelling! We’re continuing!

『This guy…』

Ignoring Starreader’s Staff’s exasperation, I strolled through the abandoned school building with Sougo.

Honestly, Fectom Comprehensive Academy has nothing interesting. Situations like this are tough.

Hey, Sougo-kun.

Your face is bright red, Sougo-kun.

Twist those preferences and grow up strong…!

『I can’t agree with this. I’m not specialized in this area.』

Starreader’s Staff seemed to prefer yuri.

But sometimes, playing the mysterious beauty for a boy is necessary for balance.

Don’t just eat meat—have some veggies too.

You’re one of the few male characters besides Gatou Touraku and Rokuhara, after all.

“Oh, what’s wrong?”

Sougo had stopped walking, so I did too.

His gaze was fixed on a classroom, its door long rotted away.

Inside, a handful of desks and chairs—remnants of a time when this place was filled with students—lay scattered.

I leaned in and whispered near his ear.

“If you’re curious, let’s go in.”
“H-Huh!? O-Okay…”

Look, Starreader’s Staff—he’s looking down, but his ears are bright red! He’s totally smitten with me.

『How is this not illegal?』

With a mysterious beauty smile, I led Sougo into the classroom.

The dilapidated room, with its broken blackboard and sparse furniture, felt eerily empty.

And yet, Sorciera stood out even more here.

Especially in this form—a long-haired beauty in a boys’ uniform, the epitome of fetish fuel.

A mysterious cross-dressing girl exploring an abandoned school with him.

I’ll burn this image into the boy’s retinas!

“Long ago, many students had classes here. Hard to believe, right?”

I trailed my fingers along a desk, then lowered my eyes.

Ugh, my fingers are dusty now.

“Now, only a handful remain. But… I find this daily life surprisingly enjoyable.”

“Is this school… going to disappear?”

I smiled and shook my head.

“No. This school won’t disappear. That’s why we’re here.”

Second still frame, here we go, Starreader’s Staff!

『Sure…』

No enthusiasm, huh?

A strong breeze blew through the broken window, ruffling my hair.

Holding it back, I gave Sougo my most mysterious smile of the day.

He stood there, speechless, utterly captivated.

Look, he’s totally fallen for me!

This must be intense for a kid who’s only interacted with peers before!

This is how you do a first love!

『This is some aggressive first-love pushing.』

Sougo remained frozen for a while, staring.

By the time my hair-holding pose started to tire me out, he finally rebooted and spoke with determination.

“…Then, I’ll enroll at Fectom Comprehensive Academy too! I’ll bring lots of friends! That way… Kei-nee, you’ll… be happy?”
“Yes, very much.”

Got him.

I’ve captured the rich boy’s first love.

『If this is what’s inside, poor Sougo-kun’s gonna cry. At this point, maybe I should just take over and mush you into paste right in front of him…? That’d end his first love right here.』

That’d just traumatize him more.

Why are you accelerating toward that route?

What if Sougo-kun ends up a fetish monster who only gets off on yuri NTR?

Even I wouldn’t go that far.

I’m going for the mysterious first-love route here.

This is an all-ages galge world!

『All-ages? How naive. Hah, what’s the point of such bland flavor? It’s the inclusion of eros—the essence of human love—that elevates pure romance. Turning a blind eye to that is foolish.』

Huh?

『What?』

While smiling at Sougo, I was locked in a fierce battle of sexual philosophy behind the scenes.

If Sougo weren’t here, I’d definitely be fighting Starreader’s Staff right now.

“Then, it’s a promise! I’ll definitely enroll here!”
“Fufu, you’ll need to become an Explorer to join Fectom Comprehensive Academy, though.”

I just want to capture his first love—what happens after doesn’t matter.

By the time he enrolls, I’ll probably be long gone.

Wait, rich kids don’t have much reason to become Explorers, right? He’s set for a cushy corporate heir life.

“Then I’ll become an Explorer! And I’ll go into dungeons with Kei-nee!”
“Hmm, well…”

Such adorable resolve.

Fine, if he’s this determined, I’ll lend him a hand.

No choice, right?

I think he should reconsider, but if Sougo-kun insists on becoming an Explorer, who am I to stop him?

『This is next-level irresponsibility.』

But a rich kid forging his own path, relying on his own strength instead of family connections—isn’t that cool?

A silver-haired mysterious beauty from his past. And his surname is Jingūji.

Let’s make him the protagonist for later!

Gatou Touraku can handle the messy stuff anyway!

Let’s turn him into a light novel protagonist in a peaceful world with plenty of blank pages left!

I’ll take the beauty route, and you take the harem protagonist route!

“To become an Explorer, you’ll need to sense magical energy. At your age—”

I stepped closer to Sougo.

Startled by the proximity of the high-level mysterious beauty’s face, he stumbled back, but I grabbed his hand and pulled him into a gentle embrace from behind.

As he stiffened in surprise, I whispered in his ear.

“Stay still.”

He froze. Good boy.

I guided his hand toward the blackboard, intertwining our fingers.

Gathering a faint amount of magical energy at my fingertips, I let it flow into Sougo.

『I wanted to do this ‘magic energy transfer’ thing with a cuter girl…』

Despite Starreader’s Staff’s complaints, it did its job flawlessly.

My magic flowed through Sougo’s body, and a meaningless magic circle glowed faintly at our feet.

“Can you feel my magic?”
“Yeah… It’s warm.”
“This is magical energy. If you want to be an Explorer, you’ll need this.”

I continued whispering in his ear.

Listen, Sougo-kun.

When you’re fighting some strong enemy and about to lose, flash back to this moment.

Then power up.

『First time seeing someone preemptively assign a flashback.』

“Let’s try aiming for that target.”

Starreader’s Staff created a simple bullseye on the blackboard.

I guided Sougo’s palm toward it.

Then, I activated a severely weakened Converged Slash in his hand.

“Don’t worry. Trust me.”

Hugging him tighter, I fired.

The blast, about as strong as a water gun, arced gracefully through the air and hit the target dead-on.

The crystal shattered with a chime, scattering particles of light.

Is this… the third still frame!?

『Not really…』

“Well done. Don’t forget that feeling.”
“…Yeah!”

Patting his head, I smiled softly.

Gotta keep the expressions gentle—He’s my first love target, after all!

Now, Starreader’s Staff!

Interfere! Interfere already!

Awaken his talent in a cool way!

『Ugh… Fine. —Whoa, what the hell is this talent!?』

Under Starreader’s Staff’s interference, Sougo’s potential irresponsibly bloomed.

A surge of magic erupted from him, swirling like a storm for a few seconds.

But in that time, Sougo undoubtedly awakened as an Explorer!

Congrats!

『It’s still raw power. His choices will shape it into an ability later. Honestly, I’m kinda weirded out by how much talent he has.』

To make Starreader’s Staff say that… As expected of my toy—no, future harem protagonist!

Amazing! You unlocked your potential! ♥

“Kei-nee, was that…?”
“Good boy. Let’s stop here for today, since it’s your first time. Ready to head back?”

I stood up and ruffled Sougo’s hair one last time.

Come back soon, Sougo-kun.

The Sorciera First Love Route has six chapters in the append disc…!

『Better save at every choice.』

■

“Thank you for today. We’ll finalize the details and equipment later.”
“Yes, looking forward to working with you.”

While his sister and the Fectom Comprehensive Academy student council president exchanged formalities, Sougo’s gaze wandered elsewhere.

There stood Kei, polite and composed in the boys’ uniform, accompanying the council president.

“Let’s go, Sougo.”
“Yeah.”

As his sister led him away, Sougo glanced back one last time.

Noticing his gaze, Kei smiled discreetly and waved.

“—!”

Feeling his face burn, Sougo waved back shyly before tightly gripping his sister’s hand.

“Nee-san, do you think… I can become like them someday?”

His sister, Hinami, looked surprised for a moment before softening her voice.

“Yeah. I’m sure you can.”

A powerful admiration for the ones who had saved his life.

Hinami likely understood—this was more than enough to shape the young boy’s future.

“Let’s come back together next time. You can learn a lot from them.”
“…Yeah!”

Tucking away the many things he’d already learned deep in his heart, Sougo nodded with a smile.

First love and admiration.

That was his origin.