Chapter 408

Five minutes later, the three of them returned to the same spot.

Chihaya Aine and Takamatsu Akari looked at him with complicated expressions, unable to accept this blow for a moment...

"Asahi -senpai... no, Asahi- kun, are you really Riki's classmate?"

"Huh? What did you call me?"

He gave me a sharp look out of the corner of his eye. "Have you forgotten what you promised me?"

"Oops! I'm sorry!"

Chihaya Aine instinctively apologized, but quickly realized her mistake, pouted her cute little lips, and muttered softly, "I didn't know you were lying to us..."

"What nonsense! What kind of talk is this!"

He pointed at her with exasperation, his face contorted with grief and indignation. "Can you call something about the band members a lie?!"

"Besides, I never said I was a third-year student at Haneoka High School. You all guessed it yourselves after seeing my school uniform!"

"Do you two think you can just turn your backs on us after picking up your instruments? I never imagined you were like this! I misjudged you!!!"

"..."

Chihaya Aine and Takamatsu Akari exchanged a glance, speechless.

So it seems he never actually said he was Haneoka's student...

But you're not from Haneoka, yet you shamelessly wear Haneoka's school uniform. What right do you have to say that!

On one side, Shiina Rikki looked at him with the eyes of someone looking at scum, her tone icy. "I know you usually behave strangely, but I didn't expect it to go this far... You skip class every day, is it because you're going to other schools to pretend to be a student?"

"It's not like that, it's just one of my hobbies... you know what I mean?"

He gave her a look that said, "You should be able to understand me."

"Life is precious. If you don't experience more of the different cultures and customs... don't you think you're wasting your life?"

"Absolutely not, Miss Scum!"

Shiina Rikki spat at him and continued, "So how did you get your school uniform?"

"You also want to try infiltrating?"

Don't compare me to a criminal like you.

"How boring!"

He shook his head, saying, "There's a generation gap between us. Have you forgotten what my profession is?"

"Students, no, could it be...?"

Shiina Rikki, lost in thought.

In truth, the legitimate excuse he used for skipping classes, just like Miyako Shizuka, was that besides having good grades, he needed to find time to work.

The job involves designing...

Thinking of this, she froze instantly, looked up, and realized she had forgotten about it.

So, does that mean their band's costumes will be...?

"Great! Rikki-chan, you've found such a convenient teammate!"

He saw right through her Kokoro and gazed up at the beauty mark on her face with amusement, resting his chin on his hand.

"... long-winded."

She shyly turned her face away, closed her eyes, and ignored him.

"Um, that..."

"Hmm? What's wrong, Aine-chan?"

"No, I just heard Riki say that Asahi... senpai agreed to be our last member, is that true?"

After hesitating for a moment, she still chose this wording.

The other person's aura made them feel a little uncomfortable even when calling them "classmate."

"Alright, I won't tease you anymore. From now on, just call me by my name when things are normal. You can call me 'senior' when I want you to."

He straightened his posture, his expression calm.

It would be so pitiful if everyone else called him by his name and he was the only one who called him "senior".

"Back to what we were saying earlier, yes, that's right, please take care of me from now on! Aine-chan, Tomorou-chan!"

"Ah, okay, please guide me!"

Takamatsu Akari quickly bowed, looking somewhat happy.

"Wow, that's so cunning!"

Chihaya Aine frowned, seemingly disagreeing. "You didn't agree when I called out to Asahi... Asahi- san before."

"Something came up back then, and things have changed a bit since then. Anyway, I want to apologize to you first."

"Hmm, I see... Alright then."

She quickly composed herself and became excited. "Great! Now our band has everyone we need!"

"And the last person is actually such a powerful yet gentle person as Asahi -san! We're sure to shine brightly from here on out! Hehehe..."

As she thought about it, she began to imagine herself being a huge star, constantly giving interviews.

"Is Asahi-chan really that strong?"

Takamatsu Akari asked her curiously.

"Wow! That's amazing! You're just as good as those professional guitarists on TV, you're definitely a pro!"

"So, from now on, we'll be a two-guitar band!"

Takamatsu Akari squinted like a squirrel.

"That's hard to say."

Shiina Rikki interrupted.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Shiina Rikki sighed helplessly, probably wondering why someone like that would have such talent, and then explained it to her.

"That's amazing..."

Takamatsu Akari opened his eyes wide, his mouth slightly open, and his eyebrows and eyes looked at him again with a puzzled expression, as if he had suddenly added several layers of filters.

"Hehe~ It's really amazing, isn't it~"

"Why are you the one who's so smug? It's infuriating!"

"What does it matter? I was the first person to invite Asahi- san!"

"But I'm the one who succeeded!"

"Tch, so stingy!"

"..."

A few more minutes passed.

After ordering the tea, Chihaya Aine rested her Hands on the round table and complained, "Soyo-san is so slow~ Isn't he here yet?"

Ogura Asahi twitched her ears and casually asked, "Soyo-san, is that the last member of the band Aine-chan mentioned?"

"Hmm! She's the young lady of Tsukinomori! And she's incredibly understanding! Completely different from someone else..."

She changed her expression, her eyes shifting to Shiina Rikki sitting next to her.

"Speaking of which, are you sure you're okay not going to work?"

"It's okay, there aren't many people around anyway."

Shiina Rikki kept a stiff expression to herself, then quickly chuckled, "Speaking of rich girls, this one is one too~"

"Huh?"

X 2.

The two followed her finger and looked at Ogura Asahi was idly drinking tea.

"This guy has an incredibly luxurious lunchbox every day, and he even has a private car to pick him up and drop him off."

Shiina Rikki deliberately steered the conversation toward him, a small surge of vengeful excitement rising within him.

"Really... Is Asahi -san an even more high-class young lady than Soyo-san?"

"Just like Shōko... that's amazing!"

"Ha..."

He raised an eyebrow and sighed, amused by her Kokoro. "It's not like we come from any particularly prestigious family. Don't worry about it, just treat me like any other teammate..."

He stopped halfway through his sentence—besides the somewhat insecure little penguin, were there any ordinary people in this team?

Even if she's just an ordinary Takamatsu Akari, don't forget, her family lives behind the Tsukinomori.

"But why not go to the Tsukinomori?"

Chihaya Aine doesn't understand.

"Tsukinomori isn't exactly a great school, it's nothing special for families who value modern education... Besides, the young lady from Hanasakigawa is quite impressive."

"Is that so?"

That's right.

"From the moment you said Tsukinomori wasn't a very good school, you were already something else..."

The emotions in Shiina Rikki's eyes were hard to describe.

"But given your national first-place ranking, perhaps it's the same everywhere."

"Huh? That's that again...?"

Tsk!

Ogura Asahi secretly rolled her eyes. Is this never going to end?!

But there's nothing he can do; he's just that outstanding. Even though he tried his best to conceal his powerful aura, only releasing a portion of his information and disguising himself as an ordinary person, it still...

He only made a slight move, and it already represented the limits of human capability...?

Life is so lonely, like snowflakes! Just like my hair!

Your hair is as white as snow, making our parting all the more poignant...

"..."

After Shiina Rikki dropped another bombshell about him, Chihaya Aine and Takamatsu Akari looked at him as if he were a monster.

Are you even human?!

Tell me! Which research institute did you run away from?!

Their feelings at this moment, like Shiina Rikki's, became heavy.

On one hand, I'm happy that my teammates are so amazing; on the other hand, I'm also trembling with fear at the uncertainty of what the future holds...

"Speaking of which, what is your band's philosophy?"

"Idea?"

Chihaya Aine Kokoro responded.

Or maybe I should just call him "senior" again. It's not shameful; other people wouldn't even have the opportunity to ask for his help...

"It's something long-term, like a goal or a belief."

Ogura Asahi explained to her, "No?"

"Hmm, I can't really explain it..."

Takamatsu Akari, who seemed to understand, pressed down on the corner of the table, her petite body leaning forward. "Form a Hughie band!"

"Eh..."