Hobby Modification App, Episode 1: I changed my step-sister's hobbies.

"― Ahh, even though I just bought it... "

　I can't help but blurt out words as I look at the phone I just bought last week, which accidentally slipped from my hand and dropped on the side of the road.

　I guess I'm not really paying attention. I let out a deep sigh, though it was my carelessness.

　I hope the LCD is not broken.

　With that in mind, I pick up my dropped phone and notice something.

　

    ...it's glitching.

　The LCD screen was covered with a rainbow-colored swirling pattern.

　Discouraged at the thought that the smartphone was broken, I clicked and held the power button for a while to restart the device, and then I see the manufacturer's logo on the screen.

　With relief, I tried to use the home screen to see if there were any usability problems, such as dead touch screen functionality and found that the home screen was still fine.

"Hmm?"

　I notice an app on the home screen that I don't recognize.

　If I remember correctly, there was no app like that before.

　Because just before I dropped it, I had been reorganizing application icons on my home screen 

　....What is this?

　I tap the app's icon without thinking about it, though I am suspicious of it.

[Hobby Modification App]

　The upper part of the app that I opened said so.

　Then, a red dot appeared mysteriously in the middle of the screen.

　As I wonder what the meaning of this red dot is, the number of red dots increases.

　Suddenly, I felt a presence ahead of me, and I looked ahead and saw a man walking toward me.

　It might have been a coincidence.

　But the strange movement of the red dots made me think that the man might be approaching.

　I was convinced when I looked at the application, and the man alternately to confirm it.

　――The man and the red dot are linked.

　I watched the red dot disappear from the screen on the app as I looked at the man who passed by me with my sideways glance.

　In other words, the red dot in the middle is me.

　Then, when I press the red dot in the middle without any hesitation...

　Some information appears,

[Name: Keisuke Sato]

[Hobby: Game]

　Appears next to the red dot.

　...... it's correct.

　My hobby is undoubtedly games, and my name is correct.

　I tapped on the window to see if there was anything else, and another pop-up window came up, [Do you want to modify a hobby?] popup appeared.

　I hesitate, looking at the text in the popup and the letters [Yes ] and [No] displayed below it.

　Well, rather than wasting time, I immediately clicked [Yes].

"...What is it"

　The text that appeared as soon as I tapped the button was a warning message [You can't modify yourself].

　I close the app with a sense of disappointment.

　Well, let's try to play around with it in a more relaxed manner.

　So, I put my phone in the back pocket of my pants and went home.

　One thing I learned from playing with it at home was that the detection range of the red dot was about 15 meters.

　There was only one red dot, except for me.

　When I tapped it, 

[Name: Suzune Sato]

[Hobby: Reading]

    And it displayed the following message.

　The red dot is located in the room right next to mine. In other words, it must be my sister's room.

　In other words, this app can recognize people at least across the room.

　Once again, I am amazed.

　Looking at the red dots, I can see that my sister has just moved from her bed to her desk in her room.

　Is it some new kind of super-technology being used here?

　As for the person that was recognized, I don't know where they are getting the person's data.

　I have a question about whether the data is correct or not, but my data is accurate, and at least my sister's name is correct.

　If so, it is reasonable to assume that my sister's hobby is also correct.

　I look at the screen again.

　Suzune Sato. She is my younger step-sister, three years younger than me, but to be honest, I didn't even know that her hobby was reading.

　Last year, when I was in my first year of high school, my father remarried, and Suzune became my stepsister, but even a year later, we were still strangers.

　I still remember my first impression of her when I first met her.

　Her silky black hair was cropped to her shoulders.

　Large almond eyes accented with long eyelashes and cherry-red lips.

    Her slender body of less than average height, and her white skin is so beautiful that it looks as if it has never been exposed to the sun.

　She can be considered a beautiful girl without a doubt.

　When I first met her, I was so happy to have such a beautiful girl as my sister, but I soon realized it was nothing but an illusion.

　From the time I met her until now, I have not even had a conversation with her.

　On the contrary, if I tried to say hello to her, she would turn her absolute zero gaze on me.

　Therefore, Suzune is just a stranger living in the same house.

　Suzune herself probably thinks so, too.

　But reading.

　What comes to my mind is the image of Suzune, who is always quiet and always has a somewhat contemplative look in her eyes.

　I thought that it surely suited Suzune's atmosphere.

　So, can this be changed?

　I thought so and tapped the string of Suzune, [Do you want to modify a hobby?] string.

　I tapped [Yes].

　Then, the following message appears on the screen, 

Hobby 1: Reading

Hobby 2: 

Hobby 3: 

Hobby 4: 

Hobby 5: 

　and so on were displayed.

　Swiping the display vertically, hobby 5, hobby 6, hobby 7, and so on were displayed, as if there were an infinite number of hobbies after that.

　Apparently, there are so many hobbies that they cannot be counted.

    At any rate, I went back to the first screen and tapped the [Reading] string, and a text bar appeared to indicate editing.

　I guessed that if I deleted the content at number 1, the [Reading] string will disappear, but I felt sorry if the app was real.

　Thinking so, I tapped on [Hobby 2].

　An empty text box appears with only a blinking text bar.

　Now, what to do?

　After thinking about it for some time, I remember since she came to this house, I have never seen Suzune staying in the living room and watching TV, I put  [watching TV] , and tapped the [OK] button which is displayed in the lower right corner.

　Then, the screen appeared without a particular change, 

[Name: Suzune Sato]

[Hobby: Reading, watching TV]

　And then, the screen displayed the following message.

　...Will she be changed by this?

　While looking at the red dot indicating Suzune with doubt in my mind, I see the red dot moving.

　As I looked at it, thinking it was impossible, the red dot suddenly disappeared.

　The location of the red dot is the stairway to the first floor.

　......Did she go to the living room on the first floor?

　Thinking so, I leave the room as quietly as possible and go to the living room.

　―I slightly open the door leading to the living room from the hallway.

　Then I found Suzune watching TV.

　At the sight of her, my eyes involuntarily widened. 

　It seems that the app was real.

" ... "

　I open the door, silently enter the living room, and move to a position where I can watch the TV, keeping a distance from Suzune.

" ... "

　Suzune is still watching TV without taking a glance at me.

　Her face seems  uninterested, but honestly speaking, I have never seen Suzune's smiling face before, so I can't tell.

    Hobbies are generally done because we like to do it, since we do it proactively.

　Does this mean that Suzune likes TV at this moment?

　Hmm, who knows.

　I'm going to try to ask the questions honestly, anyway, it seems that i can't resolve the problems by thinking.

"......Does Suzune like to watch TV? "

　Suzune turned her eyes to me as I said that.

　Her gaze at me is still at absolute zero as the surroundings start to freeze.

" ... "

　After a few seconds of freezing me with her gaze, Suzune returns her gaze without answering my question and continues watching TV.

    It doesn't look like she likes to watch TV, as usual.

　Well, I am used to being ignored by her.

　However, in the end, I do not know.

　It may be an egg first, or a chicken first question, but is Suzune watching TV because she likes TV or not?

　Or, does she watch TV because it is her hobby, even though she does not like it, but because the application specifies it?

　Can something we do not like really be a hobby?

　For example, I watch TV even though I don't like it. It seems to me that this is the stage before it becomes a hobby.

　Well, I don't know. I have no idea what Suzune's feelings are at the moment.

　I was tempted to figure this puzzle out of this application like a game, the same way I play games as a hobby..

　For simplicity, I should try to make the person in the app have a hobby they normally didn't like.

　But what is it that Suzune hates?

　I don't know anything about Suzune. All I know is that she must dislike me--

　...I see, I should subject myself to it.

　Well, what kind of hobby should I create?

　I think about it while glancing at Suzune, who ignores me and continues to watch TV.

　Something that can be easily connected to the feeling of liking or disliking something, maybe?

　And in this case, it's not a thing but a person.

    It is easy to say what makes people like other people.

　There is the primitive and simplest one that comes to mind.

　Sexual desire. In short, it is for procreation.

　There are many kinds of love, such as love for family and others, but if we think of love as a simple emotion, the one rooted in sexual desire is the easiest to understand than such complicated and bizarre ones.

　I picked up my phone and opened the [Hobby Modification App.]

　Then, I tap the red dot on my phone which supposed to be Suzune, and bring up the Hobby Modification screen.

　Then, I tap the part of [Hobby 2: Watching TV], and change it to [Hobby 2: Masturbating while thinking of Keisuke Sato]

　It seems to be intuitive and straightforward, but is it okay?

　Soon after the change, Suzune turned off the TV as if nothing had happened, took one look at me, and went back to her room.

　The...gaze itself remained at absolute zero.

　I see, so the hobby is not caused by emotion?

　Let's leave it as it is for the time being and repeat the experiment.

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Source : https://novel18.syosetu.com/n5258gt/2/