Why play in a band if not for life?

Lisha glanced at Shiko. Regarding her condition, Nijika had already found opportunities to talk with them and discuss how to cure her.

"We tried explaining the current situation to her other self, but as soon as she hears the name 'Marina,' her personality switches immediately," Nijika had said, also distressed at the time. "While this allows us to wake her up when needed, we really don't know how to cure her."

Sensing Lisha's gaze, Shiko met it briefly before quickly looking away.

Seeing this, Lisha picked up a plate of cookies and placed it in front of her. "Try these, I made them myself."

"Ah, thank you." Shiko picked up a piece and put it in her mouth. It tasted similar to the ones at CiRCLE, but Shiko felt no sadness. Instead, a warmth surged from her mouth to her limbs, dispelling all negative emotions.

Noticing Shiko's surprise, Lisha smiled. "This is my ability." She raised her hand and brushed over an empty plate, which was once again piled high with cookies.

"My ability is called [Goddess's Hearth]. I can create cookies with various effects. Currently, I can make original-flavored cookies for healing, matcha cookies for relaxation, and buff-type cat, rabbit, dog, and fox-shaped cookies. The one you ate was the second type."

Kita picked up a small cat-shaped cookie and took a bite. Feeling something, she opened her status panel. "[Physical Body] points increased by 1!"

"Ah, that one is a buff-type. It can give you buffs to all stats except [Shine], increasing them by up to 20 points, though it's time-limited."

With Lisha starting things off, the others also began to showcase their abilities.

Yukina's ability was called [Frenzied Blooming Violet Flame Roses]. It allowed steel-hard, blue-purple roses and vines to wrap around her, primarily boosting [Physical Body], followed by [Reaction] and [Intelligence]. She was the only close-combat specialist among the ten.

Saya conjured a guitar, and as she played, it began to rain over the area, though no one or their food got wet. "[Sudden Autumn Rain Umbrella Layers]," she stated simply. Seeing this, Ichiri and Ryo also revealed their guitars and bass.

"Your guitarist and bassist can both conjure instruments..." Lisha said with a hint of disappointment. As string instruments, it seemed only she couldn't conjure one.

"Actually, I can't either," Kita comforted.

Next was Rinko. She stood up and stepped back, clearing a large space. A pipe organ rose from behind her. She bowed gracefully, sat on the bench, and began to play a solemn hymn. As the melody swelled, she opened her mouth and sang with a tense but strong voice, seemingly in Latin. With her song, everyone saw their own status panels gain buffs to their specially enhanced attributes. The music shifted, becoming majestic, and Shiko felt a pressure settle on her shoulders.

"[Ringing Bloom]... After I got this ability... I inexplicably... learned to play the pipe organ..." Her voice, however, was not as solemn as the music, but rather shy.

"Ako knows dark magic." Ako seemed a little more energetic, but didn't use the "Archdemon Ako" introduction. She covered her left eye, and the surrounding light was immediately swallowed, leaving only darkness.

Ako lowered her hand, and the surroundings returned to light. She grabbed a fruit again, crushed it in her hand, and threw it into the air. The rain Saya had conjured immediately released a fruity aroma. She looked proudly at Kessoku Band. "Ako's [Primordial Abyss Sorcery] is far more than this, and requires a lot of research. You guys in Kessoku Band, just stay behind me!"

That night, after getting acquainted with each other's abilities, Nijika and Yukina shared information. The other Shiko also made occasional appearances, and the members of Roselia were still a bit unaccustomed to it. Later, everyone dispersed of their own accord; they still needed some time to process their emotions.

The next day, as dawn broke, Yukina was already up. She saw Shiko performing final checks on the equipment.

Chapter 4: A Crisis Ignited Early

"Wu-san? Are you here alone?" Yukina walked towards Shiko. She remembered that Wu-san required someone to accompany her.

Shiko shook her head and pointed to the side. Lisha emerged from the corner of the wall. She was scheduled to be responsible for the final watch. Before her, the night watch had been members of Kessoku Band—even Ryo had stood watch for a short while.

"Good morning, Yukina. How did you sleep last night?" Lisha yawned.

"Not very well. How are things?"

"Just that a few monsters approached during the last shift. I was about to call for help, but luckily Shiko appeared in time and finished them off with a few 'swish-swish' moves." Lisha smiled at Shiko.

Did Wu-san get up this early? Yukina looked at Shiko, who was still checking the equipment. It was no longer the original hot air balloon. Shiko's hot air balloon lacked safety guarantees from the start. Before, with only five people and luggage, it was fine, but Shiko couldn't be sure if it could support the weight of ten people. Moreover, there was now a large river, and they could choose to travel by water. As for the dangers in the water, Ichiri could monitor them at any time.

However, Shiko had no experience building boats, so she imitated the "chain of linked rafts" and nailed several simple canoes together. It was less of a boat and more of a large wooden raft.

"You've worked hard." Yukina saw the scribbled and revised design drawings in Shiko's hand, imagining the hardships of her repeated experiments.

"Um... um. Thank you." Shiko glanced at the two, her expression nervous, stuffing the drawings into her pocket and hurrying away as if fleeing.

Lisha watched the direction of her departure in surprise. "Yukina, are you a bit too fierce for her?"

"..." Yukina merely watched Shiko's retreating figure in silence.

Last night, Shiko had prepared clothes for Roselia, identical to Kessoku Band's outfits—black, white, and gray single colors. Today's breakfast was also prepared by Shiko. Having catered to everyone's preferences, the Roselia members couldn't help but wonder how she knew them so well. Some food needed to be cooked. Before Ako could act, Kita had prepared a bonfire, and Nijika handled the cooking. The result was that before all of Roselia had even woken up, everyone in Kessoku Band had prepared everything—though some of them were also still asleep.

"This is delicious, Nijika." Lisha, who was originally in charge of cooking, also praised Nijika's work.

"That's good, thank you for the compliment." Nijika wiped sweat from her brow before picking up her own bowl. It wasn't a wooden bowl made by Roselia, but one made by Shiko.

After eating, just as Lisha was about to clear the bowls and deal with the leftovers, Kita had already burned the food scraps clean. With a snap of Shiko's fingers, the bowls and chopsticks she had just conjured disappeared. Cleanup was complete.

"Kessoku Band has been a great help," the Roselia members, whose work had been significantly lightened, exclaimed.

"We'll proceed as planned: one day on the water, stop to explore the surroundings, then continue on the water, and repeat this cycle," Yukina naturally became the center of the new team. She led everyone to the dock. As soon as Saya saw Shiko's boat, she frowned. "Can this really be used?"

"I tested it, it's fine," Shiko replied. Nevertheless, Saya conducted her own test before finally feeling at ease and letting everyone board one by one.

On the canoes, Yukina sat at the front as the navigator, Nijika behind her. Ryo sat alone in a back corner. Ichiri, Shiko, and Kita sat at the stern, while the others sat in the middle. Lisha was closer to Kessoku Band, Saya next to her, Rinko was surrounded by them, and Ako was beside her.

As Ichiri played, waves rose on the river surface, propelling the raft forward. Monsters occasionally approached from the river, but they were frozen at the riverbed before they could surface. After that day, Ichiri's ability changed; she could freeze water as if controlling its flow.

"Gotou-san's guitar playing is excellent," Saya said, turning her head.

"Ah, is that so? Hehe..." Ichiri couldn't help but beam at the praise.

"She practices for about six hours every day," Kita said proudly, as if praising herself.

"Hmm? That's indeed very diligent," Saya felt a sense of familiarity in the guitar sound. Recalling carefully, she remembered something. "Gotou-san, are you perhaps Guitar Hero?"

"Guitar Hero?" Ako found the title a bit awkward.

"She has a large following on video-sharing sites, often covers popular songs, and her skill level is professional," Saya explained. "Come to think of it, the guitar playing is indeed the same."

"To be praised by Saya-san, that's truly amazing," Ako looked behind her.

"Hehe... Hehe..."

"?" Ako felt a strange tension in Ichiri's guitar playing.

She felt that Ichiri gave off a vibe very similar to Rinko's, completely opposite to Kita next to her.

Kita was chatting with Shiko.

"I thought you'd get along with them quickly," Shiko said, a little confused as to why Kita hadn't gone to where the most people were.

"Ahaha... I think it's strange too..." Kita's expression was awkward. "Whenever I talk to someone from Roselia, my chest tightens, and I can barely speak clearly... What is this? Social pressure? Do you get like this too, Wu-san?"

Watching Kita's awkward laugh, Shiko fell silent. It was hard to imagine Kita experiencing social pressure. If it were another version of herself, she'd probably be shouting "This is out of character!"

However, she could understand.

Miss Marina's sacrifice, Miss Niiki's sacrifice, were ultimately because Kessoku Band wasn't strong enough. It could be said they died because of Kessoku Band. Facing Roselia, who had such a close relationship with them, it was natural for even the sunny Kita to feel some guilt, wasn't it?

For Shiko, who was intimately familiar with Roselia and Marina, this was even more so.

Did the others have this thought? They certainly must have. Since morning, most of the work had been taken care of by Kessoku Band.

So, what should they do? Shiko looked at the Roselia members conversing, Ryo sitting in the corner watching the scenery, Nijika and Yukina discussing something at the front, and next to her, Ichiri focused on her guitar, and Kita who had unconsciously curled into a ball.

This thought, it was fine at first, but if it continued to develop, what would happen?

She could even imagine a scene one day where Kessoku Band, mentally, became subordinate to Roselia, waiting for them to pick up their chopsticks before they even started eating.

She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and stood up.

"Wu-san?" Kita looked up, not knowing what she was going to do.

Shiko stepped over rows of iron bars and sat down next to Roselia.

"Huh, Shiko?" Ichiri looked over.

So nervous. All four of them are looking at me. My chest is tight, my tongue is stiff. I don't know where to put my hands and feet.

But I've already run away once. That time I ran away turned me into a madwoman.

So this time, to avoid future pain, let me detonate the crisis in advance.

Shiko seriously asked the bewildered four a question: "Um... excuse me, how does Roselia view us?"

"Huh?" The question was too sudden.

Ichiri's guitar playing stopped for a moment. The only sounds left were the wind, the waves lapping against the wooden raft, and the distant sounds of monsters moving.

"Even if you ask how we view Kessoku Band... we haven't heard your live performances yet..." Lisa felt something was wrong.

Sayo agreed, "Exactly. Without seeing your live performance with my own eyes, I won't judge you as a band."

Rinko instinctively felt the heavy atmosphere, hunched her neck, and said nothing, pulling Ako closer and gesturing to her.

"No, I'm not talking about the music," Shiko insisted stubbornly, "I'm asking, how do you view us who escaped from CiRCLE?"

The air fell silent for a moment.

This question was too dangerous, too direct. No one knew how to answer.

"Escaped?" Yukina had walked over at some point.

"Do you guys think so too?" She crossed her arms, looking sternly at Nijika, who hadn't turned around, at Ryo, who seemed to be watching the scenery, at Ichiri and Kita, who were silently watching the situation from behind.

Finally, she looked at Shiko, who looked up at her. Shiko's mouth opened slightly.

Her expression remained unchanged, cold as ice.

"Regrettably, with you like this, you can't even be called a band."

Chapter 5: Become Stars!

Yukina's merciless words shocked everyone.

"Yukina?!" Lisa suddenly stood up.

"Minato-san, I don't think those words are appropriate," Sayo frowned.

"Yukina-san..." Ako stared at her blankly.

"Is that so?" A cold reply came from the side.

Yukina turned around. It was Ryo, who had been sitting in the corner. She had already stood up, meeting Yukina's gaze without flinching.

"Are you saying we can't even be considered a band?" Her face showed none of her usual carefree demeanor; it was cold, and her eyes blazed with anger.

"Understand it however you like," Yukina didn't back down. Lisa tugged at her sleeve, but she ignored it.

"Kessoku Band," Ryo said, her bass appearing in her hand, "is not for you to judge, Yukina Minato."

Seeing the situation about to spiral out of control, an axe blade struck the iron bars with a clang, sparks flying. Everyone looked to see Shiko holding the axe handle, her voice hoarse, "Stop arguing... calm down."

Taking advantage of this opportunity, the two sides quickly separated Ryo and Yukina. Roselia sat at the front, and Kessoku Band returned to the back.

The wooden raft had long since stopped in the middle of the river and was now bobbing with the waves.

"Kessoku Band isn't a band... what does that mean?" Kita clutched her chest, dejected. In her eyes, Kessoku Band perfectly embodied all her expectations of a band; why would they be denied like this?

"Kessoku Band is of course a band," Ryo said, still angry.

"Alright, calm down, Ryo. Senpai Yukina probably didn't mean it that way." Nijika exchanged a look, seeking help from Shiko.

"..." Shiko composed herself. "Yukina may not be good with words, but she wouldn't..." She faltered, unable to find words to excuse Yukina.

"Classmate Sayo is coming over," Ichiri reminded them at this moment.

Nijika and Shiko quickly went to meet her.

Sayo still had the same icy expression as Yukina.

"First, I want to apologize for what Classmate Minato said," she said crisply. "Her remarks were a bit rash. If she hurt you, we can compensate."

"Second, I'm here to convey Classmate Minato's meaning: Kessoku Band currently lacks the essential qualities of a band, but this quality cannot be given by Roselia; you must find it yourselves."

"That's all. I hope we can get along well." Sayo turned to leave.

She remembered what Yukina had just said: "Kessoku Band is demeaning themselves. What they lack is 'confidence'."

Everyone heard Sayo's words.

"...Everyone, cheer up. At least Yukina-senpai doesn't look down on Kessoku Band," Nijika said, trying to smooth things over after a moment of silence.

"What is Kessoku Band lacking?" Kita pondered deeply. "Technique? I really don't have that... but they haven't heard me play either..."

Ichiri lowered her head and plucked the strings of her guitar, but no sound came out, nor did any movement stir the river water. She was just spacing out.

Shiko walked over to Ryo, who was by the edge of the wooden raft, idly flicking the river water.

"I didn't expect you to be so angry," Shiko said. In both lifetimes, this was the first time she had seen Ryo truly angry. "Regardless, I don't want Kessoku Band and Roselia to fall out."

Ryo stood up. "I've always been like this." However, her tone sounded much calmer now.

Shiko said, "Actually, I can guess what Yukina meant by 'what Kessoku Band is lacking'."

Ryo looked at her, her expressionless face. "I can probably guess too. I admit, she's not wrong."

"Is that so?" Shiko smiled. "That's good."

"So," Ryo squatted down again, "what should we do?"