Ikasama Life Game (Novel)

Ikasama Life Game
Name
Kanji	イカサマライフゲーム
English	Life Cheating Game
Novel Information
	Novel Guide
Invisible	A Tale Of Six Trillion Years And A Night

Life Cheating Game (イカサマライフゲーム) is the 3rd Novel in the KEMU VOXX series.

Spoiler Warning: Plot and/or ending details follow

Blurb[]

I simply, just wanted to live in peace - the boy Natsuhiko who has the trauma of losing his parents due to a sudden accident has become extremely fearful of misfortune that happens to him. Surrounded by his childhood friend Sora, friend Akito and clever sister Momiji, he’s begun to return back to peaceful days, when one day he meets a girl of mystery called “Maki-chan”, and is given a mysterious card that can predict the future. The fate of the boy who wanted “peace” begins to move slowly…!^[1]

Summary[]

After learning that the famous young actor Itsuki Shindou, who killed Natsuhiko’s parents in a drink-driving accident 7 years ago- is going to be releasing a collection of prison memoirs, Natsuhiko desperately wishes to be able to live in peace.

He meets a strange girl who calls herself a God in his dream, Maki-chan, who first asks if he knows where a girl called Ruma is. She is a being Maki-chan wished into existence who also has the wish granting ability. In this dream, Maki-chan promises to grant Natsuhikos wi'sh. This is granted in the form of a future predicting card. Each night two sentences appear on the card: the most unfortunate event that could happen tomorrow, and the means of changing it. Though, Maki-chan warns, there is a price that comes with using it.

With this card, the peace returns back to Natsuhikos life. With his friend Akito, his younger sister Momiji, his grandparents, and most importantly, his childhood friend Sora, who he starts dating.

This is until Sora points out a contradiction when he tells her about the card. In order for future predicting to be perfect, the future that is predicted absolutely must happen. Else, it isn’t a prediction of the future. This is also until it’s predicted that Natsuhiko will be hit by a train and killed. By following the means on the card Natsuhiko isn’t killed, but that evening Natsuhiko is called to the police station when Sora is hit by a train and killed instead.

After which Natsuhiko begins to grow suspicious of the card. Why didn’t it predict Sora's death? And why was Sora killed by a train when Natsuhiko wasn’t? When he brings these questions to Maki-chan, the nature of the card is then revealed:

Maki-chan made the card. Since Maki-chan is a God, and God is a perfect existence without other people, Maki-chan doesn’t understand the importance of others. This is reflected in the price of using the card; to cancel out the contradiction that the unfortunate events must happen in order for the future prediction to be perfect, the price of using the card is that this misfortune happens to other people. So the misfortune Natsuhiko avoids is pushed onto others, like a joker in old maid.

Now overwhelmed with guilt about effectively letting Sora die instead of himself, Natsuhiko opens up to Akito about the card. Akito wishes karma upon Natsuhiko, which Natsuhiko understands as Akito wishing some positivity for all the suffering he’s been through. But that night, and the night after, and every night that week, predictions of death appear on the card, all of which Natsuhiko avoids and pushes onto those around him.

Since he’s too afraid to throw the card away, but can’t handle the guilt of letting people close to him die, Natsuhiko plans to run away from home. When he reaches the suburbs of Hachiougi, he then encounters Ruma who is trying to kill him, as the card predicted.

Ruma chases after Natsuhiko, who runs away from her out of the fear of death. When she finally gets close to him, Maki-chan appears.

Ruma reveals that she has been trying to kill Natsuhiko because somebody wished for it, but her power wasn’t able to surpass that of Maki-chan’s (i.e. the card). So instead, Ruma aims her scythe towards Maki-chan in order to remove the obstacle. However, Natsuhiko jumps out in front of Maki, the scythe ripping his stomach apart.

In the final moments before he dies, Maki asks if he has any wishes left. But even though the death he was so afraid of is now right in front of him, Natsuhiko realizes that he misunderstood his true wish: he wanted to be happy. He now realizes that living in peace didn’t necessarily make him happy. His last wish now, is simply to see Sora again.

Maki travels back in time to the point right before Sora is pushed onto the train tracks and killed in order to save her life. The reason is simply because at the point before Soras death, she wishes to be with Natsuhiko. In this version of the past, Natsuhiko's card instructs him to go to the train station and then disappears. Sora and Natsuhiko are together at last.

Involved Characters[]

Illustrations[]

References[]

↑ Life Cheating Game - Translation https://natsuhikoshidou.tumblr.com/post/175883196841