There are so many geniuses in the anime compilation! What's wrong with me joining?

Hearing the keyword, Sakurakoji Talent felt a surge of joy, but he remained outwardly composed.

"Livehouse?"

"You don't know? It's a place that provides a venue for bands to hold concerts, making a profit by taking a percentage of the ticket sales."

Yamada Ryo didn't notice anything amiss and began to explain, then immediately wore an expression of resignation and mockery.

"Well, if the official performance doesn't reach the minimum amount, the band has to pay the ticket money out of their own pockets."

"Hmm~ sounds quite interesting."

"Interested?"

"A little."

"Then I'll take you there, consider it a return favor for the meal."

"Is that okay?" Sakurakoji Talent was astonished.

"Leave it to me." Yamada Ryo patted her modest chest, looking confident.

Hook, line, and sinker.

Sakurakoji Talent gloated inwardly, a triumphant smile appearing on his inner self.

"Then I'll trouble you, let's head over now."

The two stood up, and Sakurakoji Talent took out his wallet, pulled out a crisp Yukichi to pay the bill, and followed half a step behind Yamada Ryo toward their destination.

Outside, the rain had eased, and since they walked along the sheltered eaves, they didn't get very wet.

The destination was also in Shimokitazawa, not far from there, and before long, the two arrived at this Livehouse named "STARRY".

"'STARRY'? Like the stars?"

"Is that the name of the Livehouse?"

Standing before a staircase leading underground, looking at the English letters made of neon lights on the wall below, Sakurakoji Talent asked the person beside him.

"Mm-hmm, that's right." Yamada Ryo confirmed.

"The location is quite unique."

"Being underground means it won't disturb the nearby residents, and the manager lives right above, so it's very convenient."

"That's true."

"Let's go."

The two followed the steps down, entering this dim, mysterious realm.

"So, you brought someone here?"

Inside the shop, a mature woman with blonde hair, red eyes, a triangular tuft of hair sticking up on her forehead, and wearing a black shirt sat behind the bar, resting her expressionless face in her hands as she spoke to Yamada Ryo.

"That's right!" Yamada Ryo puffed out her chest, not feeling that anything was wrong at all.

"I'm telling you, this is a legitimate business, you know. Using my place to pay back your personal favors isn't really appropriate, is it? The ticket money will be deducted from your future part-time wages."

"How could you!"

Yamada Ryo's mental state exploded; she looked at Ichiji Hoshika in shock and disbelief, never expecting such cold words to come from her.

"Ticket is 1500 yen, drink is 500 yen, total of two thousand yen."

"That's enough for my food for a whole day..."

Yamada Ryo collapsed to the ground, lying there and muttering to herself, having suffered a massive mental blow.

"Um, I'm the one who asked her to bring me here, so I'll pay for the ticket."

Facing the prostrate Yamada Ryo, Sakurakoji Talent stepped forward to smooth things over; he couldn't bring himself to be thick-skinned enough to let someone else pay his way.

Hearing his voice, Ichiji Hoshika finally looked over, sizing up the newcomer.

"Ugh!" Ichiji Hoshika's pupils constricted, and she couldn't help but cover her eyes, peering through her fingers.

She hurriedly stepped out from behind the bar, pulled the still-drawing-circles Yamada Ryo aside, and whispered.

"Hey, hey, what's the situation? Where on earth did you find such a great beauty?"

"She found me first. She couldn't bear to see me eating grass, so she treated me to a meal, although I've already paid it back and have some left over."

Yamada Ryo corrected her, her delicate face turned to the side, looking utterly hopeless.

"You went to eat grass again..." Ichiji Hoshika grabbed her collar, covering her face as she couldn't bear to look.

Image: "The Mature Manager", Location: "Images/1753552339-100446961-113645090.jpg"

Volume 1: The Daily Life of Attracting Bees and Butterflies : Chapter 5 Gender Dispute

"The New Year just passed, you should have just received your New Year's money, right? You spent it all so quickly?"

"It's because I got a large sum of New Year's money, and when I was being sold instruments, I couldn't help myself and accidentally bought too many, hehe."

Yamada Ryo made a cute face, trying to charm her way out of it.

"You..." Ichiji Hoshika pressed her forehead, speechless at this friend of her sister's. Forget it, she was used to it anyway.

"Um..."

Sakurakoji Talent interjected to remind them; if he didn't interrupt, who knew how long these two would keep talking to themselves.

Although Starry was located in such an inconspicuous corner, business was surprisingly good. With the performance time approaching, a crowd had already gathered below.

Many people were already casting their gazes over, especially those looking at him with particular intensity. One Black Long Straight Hair beauty near the bar counter, in particular, gave him the creeps with her stare. Although he was used to being watched, he still felt somewhat uncomfortable.

And for some reason, the proportion of males looking at him was even higher than that of females.

Could it be that this street was teeming with his own kind?

Come to think of it, when he searched for Shimokitazawa online, he seemed to have seen some baffling phrases like "Beast Senior" and "114514."

"Ah, sorry. I'm Ichiji Hoshika, the manager of this shop."

"I was just joking with Ryo earlier, so don't worry about the ticket fee this time."

Ichiji Hoshika released the Iron Hand that had been restraining Yamada Ryo and turned back to explain the situation to Sakurakoji Talent.

"Eh? Does that mean my wages are safe?"

"You, be quiet for a moment."

"Ow, ow, ow, ow!"

Yamada Ryo's surprise didn't last long before her head was controlled once again by Ichiji Hoshika's Grasp of Undying.

"I see... thank you for the trouble."

"I'm Sakurakoji Talent, nice to meet you."

Sakurakoji Talent expressed his thanks. Ichiji Hoshika waved her hand dismissively, then returned behind the bar to sell tickets and serve Drinks to the arriving audience.

"Here." After finishing with the waiting customers, Ichiji Hoshika handed him a glass of orange juice.

"Thanks." He took it carefully and took a sip; he happened to be a bit thirsty.

Well, how should he put it?

The taste was average, very average.

It seemed this shop took the route of performance talent and had no intention of using food to keep customers.

Quietly waiting for the show to start while sipping the yellow liquid from the cheap, transparent plastic cup, Sakurakoji Talent thought to himself.

"Ah, Ryo, you're here!"

A vibrant voice rang out from the direction of the backstage, as if it had brightened the entire gloomy space a little.

Sakurakoji Talent looked toward the sound and involuntarily squinted his eyes, blinded by a radiance that made it hard to keep them open.

It was light! Someone was emitting light!

He saw a girl with the same blonde hair and red eyes, bearing a sixty or seventy percent resemblance to Ichiji Hoshika, walk out from the backstage. The smile on her face was as warm as a little sun, instantly illuminating this space.

"Yo, I'm here." Yamada Ryo made a cool greeting gesture to the other girl.

The girl smiled, her gaze shifting slightly to notice Sakurakoji Talent sitting next to Yamada Ryo. She was briefly stunned by his appearance, and after coming to her senses, her face flushed slightly as she hurriedly asked:

"Who is this?"

"This is Sakurakoji Talent-san, a friend I just met!"

"Hello, I'm Sakurakoji Talent."

Yamada Ryo introduced him with her usual familiarity, and Sakurakoji Talent cooperated by waving his hand and greeting her with a smile.

Ichiji Nijika hurriedly bowed, "Ah, I'm Ichiji Nijika, a friend from the same school as Ryo. Please take care of me."

"I'm the one who should say that, please take care of me too."

"By the way, Sakurakoji-san is so beautiful." Ichiji Nijika looked at Sakurakoji Talent's exquisite, jade-like cheeks and let out an exclamation. She had never seen someone so good-looking in real life; it was as if he had walked right out of a painting.

"Mhm, Talent's looks are not beneath my own." Yamada Ryo nodded firmly in agreement.

"Thank you for the compliment... but, I'm actually a Male." Sakurakoji Talent's facial muscles twitched as he awkwardly but politely corrected her mistake.

"Eh?"

"Eh?!"

"Eh!!!"

"You're lying!!!"

Yamada Ryo, Ichiji Nijika, and Ichiji Hoshika all turned their gazes toward him, their expressions shocked as they each let out strange noises.

The Black Long Straight Hair lady by the bar even let out a sharp shriek, causing Ichiji Nijika to glance over involuntarily; it was the first time she had ever heard PA make such a loud sound.

"Y-you, what did you just say?"

Ichiji Hoshika was the first to calm down, asking in a halting voice. The "Good Child" brand boxed juice in her hand was trembling slightly.

"I said I'm a Male?" Sakurakoji Talent tilted his head in confusion. Was what he said so hard to understand?

"No way..." X4

The group stared at his flawless, crystalline, and exceptionally delicate cheeks, muttering to themselves as they felt their worldviews on the verge of collapse.

How could such a beautiful face belong to a man?

Good heavens! It was one thing to lose to women, but were they now losing to a man as well? The group let out a silent wail in their hearts, unable to help but cover their faces with their hands.

Sakurakoji Talent felt wounded inside as well; he wasn't even wearing women's clothing today, so how could he be mistaken for a woman? Had he truly lost all traces of his masculine features?

"Could it be that even Miss Yamada thought I was a woman?"

Yamada Ryo lowered her hands, and even she felt a sense of complicated frustration at this moment: "Yes."

"..."

Sakurakoji Talent threw his image to the wind and slumped over the table, propping his chin up with his arms, his brows furrowed as he wondered if there was a flaw in his personal image strategy.

"No wonder your figure is so tall; I actually thought you were a professional model just a moment ago."

"But hasn't anyone ever told Talent-kun... er, Mr. Talent, that you are as beautiful as a woman?"

Ichiji Nijika spoke up at the right moment, attempting to break the awkward atmosphere.

"I rarely go out, and I don't have many friends, though I was approached by a few boys while walking on the street today."

"That's exactly the problem!" X4

The group spoke in unison to retort; if you walk down the street looking like that, of course people are going to misunderstand.

"No, there were also quite a few girls who asked for my Contact Information."

"Besides, I'm not wearing women's clothing today, nor am I using a falsetto, so I don't think it should be that easy to mistake me for one."

Sakurakoji Talent looked to the side, attempting a final, desperate defense.