Qianyi sighed, but his gaze never left the bass in his hands. Sitting beside the equipment case, he pulled over the effects pedal's output cable and connected it to the bass jack. With a soft click, the signal light glowed a dim blue.
After confirming the connection, his right hand brushed over the neck while his index and ring fingers lightly pressed the frets, his other hand plucking the strings.
—Bwoom...
Low-frequency vibrations rippled through the rehearsal room and reached his ears. He swiftly adjusted the bridge screws to alter the string height, and only when the lingering sound had finally become clear did he raise his head and look toward the Halovian girl sitting on the sofa.
"Mr. Qianyi, you noticed my bad intentions and still chose to be my accomplice. Doesn't that make you just as mean?"
Robin propped up her cheek, smiling as mischief shimmered in her eyes.
"Shirking responsibility isn't a good habit."
Qianyi said.
"This isn't shirking responsibility~."
Robin chuckled and flopped onto the sofa cushion, her legs swinging lightly in the air. Her smooth skin gleamed softly beneath the lights. "I'm merely saying that you're just as mean as I am, and you became my accomplice too. My~ dear~ co-conspirator~."
"What you want to know is actually very simple. While your brother served as a [Charmony Dove], he witnessed far too much absurdity. Even the most heinous criminals could be forgiven and welcomed into The Family as long as they sang praises to Harmony. Yet the suffering of the weak, those who truly needed protection, was drowned out by the grand chorus. So he began to question Harmony's principle of [the strong aiding the weak], and started accepting Order's value of [the strong compelling the weak]. Later, the injuries you suffered while spreading Harmony's