Chapter 116

"Get ready for the performance."

He said with a smile.

100. Listen

In the dimly lit venue, the performers were making final adjustments for the performance: the drums thumped, the bass groaned, the keyboards sang magically, and the guitars hummed.

But only a handful of people in the audience were paying attention to them.

Within the field where only the outlines of objects can be vaguely seen.

A series of figures stood there, many with their faces illuminated by the white light of their phones, their eyes following the screens of their devices.

Some people were whispering among themselves.

Ninety percent of the people in the audience didn't pay attention to the stage.

The performer, who had prepared so diligently, seemed to have been left behind in another dimension.

They faced such a lonely performance scene.

Lacking fame and performing on streets battered by wind and rain, there was nothing they could do.

Sitting at the very back of the stage, Nijika nervously gripped her drumsticks.

After struggling for a long time, she mustered up the courage to look away from the drum kit and glance ahead, but then looked away again, seemingly trying to escape.

In the brief frame of the image, she saw...

The audience was indifferent, their expressions unreadable, except for two fans who watched them expectantly.

She was very uneasy.

Will the guests listen?

Will the other members of the band be nervous?

Can they really deliver a performance that satisfies the fans?

In such a terrible situation.

The sound of the five musicians tuning their instruments stopped, and the lighting technician turned on the lights, illuminating the stage.

As soon as the lights came on, Kita quickly put on a smile and began the performance.

Although she was taken aback by the conversation with the customer, she wasn't too nervous, since she could sense that there was a very reliable person behind her.

He's only reliable during crises.

She smiled and looked at the deserted audience, speaking casually.

"Nice to meet you, we are the Kessoku Band."

"Thank you all so much for braving the wind and rain to come and watch our performance today."

Following the lines they had prepared before going on stage, Nijika jokingly teased Kita.

"Kita- chan, really, they're a rock band, yet they're so polite..."

But the lack of response from the audience, coupled with her own increasingly strained voice, only made the atmosphere in the room feel colder and more awkward.

Only two of their fans responded with a few laughs.

I'm also glad they cooperated; otherwise, the scene would have been as desolate as a funeral parlor.

Seika and Hiroi Kikuri stood at the very back of the store, she watched this scene with her arms crossed and expressionless.

Hiroi Kikuri, who had changed into dry clothes, glanced at her and seemed to sense the anticipation in Seika's heart.

Just get through it... just get through it.

We weathered the coldest times and used our strength to uphold the situation.

On stage, Kita was at a loss for what to do because of the awkward situation. Even Nijika had failed miserably, so Kita, who was still a novice in performing, was even more helpless.

She glanced around, but no one gave her any hints, so she had no choice but to end the MC abruptly.

"Then, let's start the first song right away."

Please listen to our original song, "Guitar, Loneliness, and the Blue Planet."

Beside her, Bocchi had a mischievous look on her face. She was shuffling her feet on the ground almost imperceptibly, and her restless manner gave the impression that she would dig a hole and hide in it at the first opportunity.

But upon hearing Kita's reminder to start playing, Bocchi quickly composed himself and glanced at his friends beside and behind him.

With a few glances exchanged, she pressed the distortion pedal on the effects pedal, then turned it off, causing the speaker to emit a whistling sound.

Midway through the sound, Nijika struck the cymbals, and the lead guitar, rhythm guitar, and bass joined in one after another.

The five voices instantly merged together, forming music that surged forth amidst the repression.

Hearing music that sounded Kita the same as usual, Kita smiled with satisfaction and looked down at the audience.

When they performed on the street before, they immediately caught the attention of passersby.

She eagerly hoped that this would be the case at this moment.

But.

As far as she could see, there were still not many people in the audience enjoying their music.

Kita gasped for breath.

Clearly, a performance that was merely of a decent standard was not enough to attract the music lovers who would brave the wind and rain to come.

Then disaster struck again.

The moment the problem appeared, Kita immediately realized that the drumbeats were out of sync with the music!

Although the audience wasn't watching her, she still didn't dare turn around to confirm with Nijika.

She panicked; they had already reached the verse, so she had no choice but to start singing.

"The sudden evening rain made me so fed up with not bringing an umbrella."

What do I care about the sky's mood?

In her panicked singing, she felt as if her voice was being gripped in her chest.

Behind her, Nijika understood the problem better than Kita, and Nijika also knew how to change it.

Her mind was in complete chaos at that moment.

Fans' opinions, their first official performance, guests who had absolutely no interest in their show, the opportunity they had finally managed to get from their sister, and even more irrelevant thoughts flashed through their minds...

What was initially just a slowed-down drumbeat, under her control, is now becoming increasingly chaotic.

She had no idea how to get back into rhythm.

After hearing Kita's voice become low and deep, she felt as if her consciousness was being immersed in a dark and silent deep sea.

I can't hear anything.

She relinquished all control and stiffly began to play the drums out of habit.

The music they composed was smeared with black marks by them.

The opportunity to perform on stage, which I worked so hard for, was wasted by my own actions.

The fans who came to admire their performances gradually became disillusioned.

They were powerless to change it, and could only continue downwards along this chaotic rhythm, as if blocked by a wall.

"It really wasn't a big deal after all."

"The drummer and lead singer are completely incompetent."

"It's too early for this band to perform here."

Hearing the comments and sighs from the surrounding audience, Seika's gaze grew increasingly somber.

She saw her younger sister's dejected look with her head down again, and she even felt that Nijika was about to cry this time.

This was the only thing she absolutely did not want to see, especially not on the performance stage in her shop.

My heart was in turmoil.

At this point, she began to hesitate about whether to stop her sister from taking this path.

On stage, their terrible performance continued, with the lead singer, drummer, and guitarist spinning around aimlessly like headless flies.

"In my ignorance, all I can do is sing aloud..."

"A heart pounding ever louder..."

Only.

After Kita sang those two lines Kita, Ishikawa Hayato suddenly couldn't take it anymore and, as if to cut off all sound, slammed his fingers down on the keyboard repeatedly.

The synthesizer transmitted a sharp audio signal to the loudspeaker, which converted it into sound, causing screams throughout the venue.

The first to be startled was Bocchi, followed by Kita, Ryo, PA-san, and the manager.

Then the customers who had been looking down at their phones gradually came to their senses and looked at the inexplicable stage.

Is this not just a case of poor performance, but also an attempt to start an argument?

Interrupted by Ishikawa Hayato, the musicians gradually stopped playing.

Lead guitar, bass, melody guitar, and finally only the piercing sound of keyboards and drums remains.

But soon, the drumming stopped, filled with a sense of desolation.

PA-san, who could have stopped all of this, did not take any action. She looked at the stage with a smile and eyes that seemed to reveal admiration.

On stage, Ishikawa Hayato glanced at the four people who were all looking at him.

Nijika looked tense, timid, and uneasy, as if she were afraid.

Liang remained calm and serious, awaiting his explanation.

Kita kept his gaze fixed on the keyboard, avoiding eye contact with him.

Bocchi looked at the group in a panic.

Ishikawa Hayato said to the four of them.

"Wouldn't it be such a waste if such a beautiful piece wasn't performed perfectly at this moment?!"

His voice grew louder and louder, spreading heavily throughout the entire underground space.

"We're a rock band, we have nothing to be afraid of! If we can't find the rhythm, we'll stop and start over, from where we were before!"

After saying that, Ishikawa Hayato ignored the others' reactions, switched his voice, and began his solo.

Although the audience had some reservations about Ishikawa Hayato's disruptive behavior earlier, all noise stopped once he started his solo performance.

The thunderous, stormy tone and the high-speed yet emotionally explosive playing completely masked any failures.

The audience stared blankly as Ishikawa Hayato broke free from the chaotic rhythm and unleashed his full power.

The layered and mesmerizing sounds produced by the keyboard silenced all doubts!

Then.

Bocchi also turned around to face the audience. She placed her hands on the guitar and made a couple of feints to the rhythm of Ishikawa Hayato before stepping down on the effects pedal without hesitation.

Ishikawa Hayato's sudden outburst was already surprising enough, but at this moment, the guitarist, who was in no way inferior to the keyboardist, joined in, producing an incredibly frightening level of sound.

Everyone present was truly stunned.

This is completely different from the band that just gave up!

Apart from the two people on stage, everyone else seemed to freeze, staring blankly.

But soon, the bass, having found the insertion point, joined in.

Kita looked over in surprise at the commotion around him, and Ryo followed them, amplifying the rhythm of their music with his bass.

Just then, she heard the faint sound of drumsticks striking among several musical instruments behind her.

She turned around and saw Nijika staring at her Kita. When Kita turned around, Nijika nodded, signaling Kita to follow.