Chapter 301

Just as she was thinking about this, her movements froze as if a pause button had been pressed.

A burst of intense yet familiar Piano, instantly recognizable as to who was playing it, faintly reached her ears through the noisy background.

This is...

She changed her mind, picked up her bag, and headed towards the familiar place where the sound was coming from.

After a short while, the sound of the piano keys stopped.

Ogura Asahi stopped what he was doing and gently closed the piano lid.

Sending out a campus call signal is enough; continuing to bounce it might attract the troublesome "Asahi Chase Team" members.

Two minutes later, the classroom door was gently opened, and Toyokawa Shoko walked in.

"Greetings, Senior Ogura."

"Good afternoon, Toyokawa-kun, you've finally arrived."

"Really?"

Something occurred to Toyokawa Shoko: "Could it be that Ogura- senpai suddenly stopped playing just now to call me over?"

"Right?"

"Please don't do that. What if I can't come next time?"

She walked over, put her schoolbag on a table, and sat down at the Piano.

"Then you won't get the reward for completing the mission. Here, take it."

Ogura Asahi smiled and handed her half of the few remaining snacks.

"... Really, Ogura- senpai really knows how to understand people's psychology."

Toyokawa Shoko, though reluctant, blushed slightly and accepted the gift.

"I always feel embarrassed receiving 'candy' from Ogura."

"Then, how about you treat me to a meal? How about a family-run restaurant?"

Ogura Asahi squinted at her teasingly.

"Um, that..."

Toyokawa Shoko's body stiffened, and she looked embarrassed.

After struggling for a moment, he gritted his teeth, as if making a major decision, and nodded emphatically. "Okay..."

Her expected reaction made him burst out laughing, "Haha~! I was just kidding!"

"Huh?"

She looked up, her expression a mixture of surprise and delight, her gaze filled with astonishment.

"I know, high school students don't earn much from part-time jobs, right? Although it's a bit better than what junior high students earn."

While society allows high school students to work part-time, it doesn't allow junior high school students; they struggle to find even ordinary jobs, much like how the neighboring country prohibits child labor.

Even high school students have strict limits on the number of hours they can work part-time each week, and they will be punished by the school if they are caught. Some schools with strict rules and a focus on college entrance exams even prohibit students from working.

Needless to say, his part-time freak and Part-time Emperor have long exceeded the permissible limits, and in one aspect alone, they have exceeded the limit.

--So, a dream school with such loose management as Rowing Boat is really rare.

If you're asking why Aoyama Nanami was able to be Part-time Job Superman before... it's because Suimei University of Art High School isn't a purely college entrance exam preparation school, and her family situation was known to her teachers. Her academic performance was also far ahead of others, making her an exception.

From the above, we can see that those who play the art game are doomed sooner or later!

"Yes, but the cost of treating Ogura- senpai to a meal is still..."

"I'd feel guilty about that, so let's forget it."

Ogura Asahi waved her hand in refusal, indicating that she could repay the debt with a performance.

Toyokawa Shoko pursed her lips slightly, said nothing more, and began to create flowing musical notes in the classroom where there were only the two of them.

Ogura Asahi also felt comfortable, lying on the table, slowly closing her eyes, listening to the musical score that revealed her inner thoughts.

Time ticked by, and normally he would have listened a little longer, but not today.

Just before she finished playing two rock songs and was about to start the third, he interrupted, "Toyokawa-kun, I have a question for you."

"Um?"

Toyokawa Shoko's body trembled, and her knuckles, which were about to press down, stopped abruptly.

She turned to look at him, her head bobbing together. "What's wrong, Ogura- senpai?"

"Hmm, something just came to mind."

Ogura Asahi looked up from the table, his red agate eyes meeting hers meaningfully. "What kind of part-time job are you doing now?"

"Huh?"

Feeling a bit bewildered by this abrupt question, she hesitated for a moment before answering, "It's online customer service."

"I see. The salary must not be high."

He said something that sounded somewhat provocative.

"... I think it should be considered average."

"Um--"

Ogura Asahi scratched his head.

"What's wrong?"

Sensing that he had something to say, Toyokawa Shoko asked curiously.

He glanced at her. "I told you, I also do part-time work, right?"

"Oh yes, and I remember, there was more than one..."

"Actually,"

He leaned forward about twenty centimeters with a serious expression, lowering his voice slightly to keep things confidential. "I suddenly remembered that one of my part-time jobs would be quite suitable for you. Would you like to try taking orders from me?"

"Will you accept the order?"

Toyokawa Shoko's heart skipped a beat; she couldn't quite describe her feelings.

But if she could earn an extra income, it would certainly be a good thing for her, and since the other party was already doing it, there shouldn't be any danger... maybe?

"... May I ask what kind of job it is?"

"Okay, sure."

He leaned back, put his legs on the table, and tilted his chair backward.

Toyokawa Shoko raised an eyebrow at the sight. Such an unladylike posture... but surprisingly, when he did it, it didn't seem vulgar at all. Instead, it had a kind of carefree and casual feel to it.

"It's what you're best at."

"What I'm best at?"

"You're very good at playing the Piano, aren't you? Your technique seems quite good to me. The job I want to introduce you to is composing."

"!!!"

Toyokawa Shoko's pupils dilated, and her brain buzzed.

Ignoring her reaction, he continued, "There are a lot of kids in Haneoka who are in bands, right? But 90% of them don't even make any money; in fact, they keep losing money."

"Although playing in a band with friends is fun, it's not cost-effective from an economic point of view."

"If you want to make money quickly, it's faster to write lyrics and compose music for professional singers than to start your own band."

"Of course, this only applies to Talent children; after all, if the quality is too poor, no one will want them."

"I think with your abilities, you're more than capable of meeting the requirements. What do you think? Are you interested in giving it a try?"

After he finished speaking, he quietly observed her reaction.

Perhaps he hadn't thought of this at first, or perhaps he was struggling with a lack of channels or confidence in his own skills, otherwise he really couldn't understand why she would rather deliver newspapers or work as a customer service representative than pursue a music-related career.

Given her skills and age, even if she can't pursue a more formal job, she still has many options, such as teaching piano to elementary school students at a low price per lesson, writing lyrics and composing music for others, or assisting sound engineers at live music venues.

Of course, the latter one might be unwilling to do it because they feel ashamed of being recognized.

After all, customer service is a job that doesn't require meeting people in person...

As for whether she felt she had betrayed the band and therefore didn't want to be involved with the band and music anymore—that's obviously not the case. Otherwise, she wouldn't have come here to play the piano so often, and later she would have gone back to making money with the band professionally.

Seeing that she didn't speak for a while, Ogura Asahi stood up and picked up her Backpack: "Well~ I'm not asking you to give me an answer right away, just think it over carefully, and reply to me online when you've made up your mind."

"Don't think this is too difficult. Whether the piece you write is difficult or simple, I won't shortchange you on your salary."

Collecting music was a win-win situation for him.

Not only will it allow for more contact and conversations with Toyokawa Shoko, but it will also increase the resource reserves for the entertainment record company, since they will need to collect songs eventually anyway.

They don't sing themselves, but they can get others to sing, so they're not losing out either way.

Furthermore, if Toyokawa Shoko agrees, she might even help him accelerate the achievement of another goal...

"Then I'll..."

"Wait! Senior Ogura!"

Seeing him turn to leave, Toyokawa Shoko finally couldn't suppress her feelings any longer and tried to stop him, asking with a slightly embarrassed expression:

"Excuse me, how much does a piece of music typically cost?"

"Hmm... the price varies depending on the purchase method; there's profit sharing and outright buyout. It also varies depending on the quality of the music, the composer's reputation, and the duration of the copyright purchase, but at least..."

He held out both palms. "There will be this many, right?"

"... There are that many, I understand! Thank you!"

Toyokawa Shoko covered her mouth slightly in surprise, then suddenly bowed deeply to him.

This number meant nothing to her before, but for her now, it's almost a month's salary from a hard-working part-time job.

If she does it this way, she won't have to be in such an embarrassing situation anymore...

"Hehe~ Don't worry about it! You can take your time to think about it. Feel free to contact me anytime."

"Hi! Medical Zero Qi 1l Bar Siqi Si V Lu"

After leaving the classroom and closing the door behind her, Ogura Asahi put on a mask and walked quickly towards the school gate.

The time spent here has been a bit too long; I wonder if it has affected the situation over there. I need to hurry.

At the entrance to Haneoka School, groups of students from the Homecoming Club and the band were leaving the school, pointing and whispering with amazement at someone standing at the gate.

"That person's uniform looks like it's from the Tsukinomori Academy."

"It's like a doll! So cute!"

"Hey, could it be the daughter of comedian Wakaba?"

"Really?"

"You're kidding!"

"I saw it on TV..." (Moon = Ripples | First Release)

"See, that's definitely it!"

"As expected of the Tsukinomori!"

"After all, her mom is a big star, so this is definitely how a super-rich heiress would be~"

"..."

After quickly changing her shoes at the shoe locker, and listening to the conversations of the students around her, Ogura Asahi sighed inwardly:

As expected of Minami Moriyama's daughter...

As he stepped out of the teaching building, he immediately spotted the doll-like girl with light blue hair at the entrance, whose looks were almost as striking as his own.

Just as he expected, today was the day she was forced to come by Sōse's mother.