Chapter 418
After thinking for a moment, she followed after them.
"..."
Tanaka Asuka, who was not far from her, watched the three figures—one fleeing and two chasing—frown slightly, but said nothing or did anything.
Unlike the commotion below, Himemiya Chihaya focused intently on her instrument, carefully controlling every subtle breath, even closing her eyes.
While he was certainly very skilled, it wasn't an instrument he played often, so he couldn't rely on muscle memory to reduce the required concentration. In order to ensure accuracy and emotional expression, he didn't even have time to pay attention to Kitauji group, whom he cared about most.
Soon, the song ended, and loud applause and cheers erupted from all around.
"Ugh, hoo--!!!"
"Marvelous!!"
"Amazing!!!"
"One more song!"
"One more song!"
"..."
Himemiya Chihaya looked down helplessly. If her voice could drown out theirs, she really wanted to say:
[Foolish Kansai! At a time like this, they should all shout "Encore!"]
However, as a musician, he certainly wouldn't refuse when asked to sing another song—at least he shouldn't have refused the first time.
He crouched down and pressed a button on the speaker to start playing the second track's accompaniment.
Seeing that he was listening to the advice, the noisy audience gradually quieted down.
"?∮※?∽..."
First came the slightly electronic Irish Whistle from the sound system, its ethereal, resonant, and lingering bird calls, like flowing water in the mountains or a cuckoo in the forest, instantly captivating people's eardrums.
People who were initially drawn in by the catchy melody of the whistle, before they could even express their amazement and immersion, were completely overwhelmed by the even more powerful sound of the Saxophone.
Compared to the jubilation and comfort just now, this song is entirely lyrical.
The Ghost, gentle Saxophone notes lacked the piercing high notes and the rapid rhythmic cadences of the previous passage; instead, they played slowly—a very slow, beautiful melody.
From a technical standpoint, it may not seem difficult, but anyone with even a little knowledge of the game knows that without a deep foundation and emotional preparation, one can only produce a haphazard imitation.
The hundreds of people, whose hearts had just been ignited with excitement and passion, were now soothed by this exquisitely beautiful and serene music...
"What a beautiful melody, it's like watching a movie..."
"I feel the same way, it's like watching a bard in a fairy tale!"
"Is this really the same instrument I'm playing...? I'm starting to lose faith."
"Uh oh~ the song recognition function can't identify it at all. Has any of you heard these two songs before?"
"No, no~ Should I ask the teacher?"
"Teacher..."
"..."
As a result, many of the high school advisors present underwent one or more rounds of questioning about their ignorance.
Five minutes passed in the blink of an eye.
Although Himemiya Chihaya didn't get a clear look at the expressions and movements of the people below, Kasamaki Nozomi, who had been positioned next to him in a favorable spot, saw everything... and was even a little scared by their stares.
Even knowing they weren't looking at him, he still... wait, that's Kitauji's team?
At one point, she caught a glimpse of that familiar color out of the corner of her eye, and then saw familiar people. Her heart skipped a beat, and her pupils contracted.
Oh no! I forgot about this!
Chapter 390: The Opening of the Arena and the First Performer.
Leaving now... seems too late, Asuka and the others must have seen me by now.
Ah~ I was originally planning to just observe for a bit and then leave.
A slight bitterness touched her lips. Unable to bear the atmosphere within the department last year, she chose to leave, and now she naturally felt awkward meeting them.
At some point, the loud musical instruments gradually subsided, and the growing crowd below began chanting the lines from the previous dialogue again:
"One more song!"
One more song!
"..."
"The audience is greedy," Himemiya Chihaya sighed, "But if this continues, there will be no end to it."
So he tucked the Saxophone under his arm and made a gesture of silence.
The noise below quickly subsided, and hundreds of pairs of eyes, which did not emit light, stared at him with varying expressions, leaving him with a somewhat peculiar feeling.
The last time I stood in front of so many people and spoke was probably at Hanasakigawa's entrance ceremony.
He didn't rush to speak to the audience, but instead squinted at Kasamaki Nozomi beside him. "How are you feeling?"
Kasamaki Nozomi was taken aback, not expecting him to speak to her at this moment, but she still said sincerely, "A very beautiful melody! It really surprised me; I didn't expect your technique to be so superb."
"Hmph~"
Himemiya Chihaya smiled smugly, then teased her, "It's a pity you didn't bring your Flute, otherwise I could have joined you."
Kasamaki Nozomi rolled her eyes at him and didn't reply.
"Well, actually I can also play the Flute. If you need help later, you can contact me and I'll give you some private lessons."
Just in case, he added another layer of insurance.
Tsk, if this keeps up, the number of my private tutor students will...
The three who Kessoku Band, Chihaya Aine, and Inoseri Nina who returned to Kawasaki Kumamoto... He had a premonition, or a guess, that on this side, where the average strength was much weaker than that of the Tokyo Monster Rooms, he might have more students.
"Hey~ hey~ you'd better hurry up and say something to them, or they'll riot."
Kasamaki Nozomi helplessly gestured downwards with her eyes.
"Yes, that's true."
After concluding that topic, he looked at the crowd below, adjusted his mood and wording, cleared his throat, and said in an almost shouting voice, "First of all, thank you all very much for your performance today!"
"As a tourist, I'm so happy to see everyone shine today! So I thought I'd give back with some music and give today a perfect ending!"
"But it would be a bit monotonous if it were just me, so the next song will be my last one!"
These words immediately caused an uproar below:
"Eh--~!"
X N.
"More! More!"
X N.
"..."
"..."
He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination, but he thought he heard Tanaka Asuka's enthusiastic voice joining in the fun.
Despite the increasingly enthusiastic voices below, Himemiya Chihaya knew.
This is not only because his performance was quite good, but also because they didn't want this time to end so soon.
Once you board the bus back to school or leave this small hill in your own car, that feeling of satisfaction and liveliness immediately transforms into loneliness and desolation...
They were willing to make this heartfelt appeal, even if it was just to prolong this destined-to-be-extinct celebration a little longer.
He raised his hand again to signal for quiet, this time taking a little longer.
"Seriously, everyone's too impatient!"
He instantly switched to the public persona of some idols, clapping his hands in front of him with a relaxed smile.
He raised a jade-like finger, leaned forward, and surveyed the stage from left to right. "I only said it was my last song, not that this would be the only one coming up, okay?"
"It would be so boring if I were the only one to bring today's festival to a close!"
"Most of you here are practically musicians... So, to make sure everyone has a good time, I'll postpone my last song!"
"If any student or audience member is willing to come up and play a piece, and their voice moves me, they'll receive a 10,000 yen allowance! How about that!"
Oh my god...!!!
The allure of money is still very strong. After these words were spoken, the noise below became even more intense than before.
Even for an average adult in Tokyo, 10,000 yen is about a day's wages. In Japan, where prices are Japan, it can be a bit painful to take out of your monthly savings unless you're a relatively wealthy middle-class person.
Not to mention this isn't Tokyo, it's Uji, and everyone here is a high school student in the Wind Ensemble Club who doesn't have much pocket money each month, and some don't even have the money to work part-time... Ten thousand yen is quite a "huge sum".
And all it takes is playing a tune, it's simple and risk-free... so many people in the room were eager to try it out.
However, aside from the novices who lack confidence in their abilities and those with mild Social Anxiety Disorder who dare not perform in front of so many people, there aren't many left.
But Himemiya Chihaya still felt she'd been ripped off—Ugh! She'd set up the stage for them, and now she had to pay to "invite" them up! Was that fair?!
If this were in Tokyo, they'd be lucky if they didn't even have to pay their appearance fees!
Off the field.
"Hey! Do you want to participate? It's 10,000 yen!"
"Forget it, I'm not confident in my skills with my Trumpet account..."
"Damn it! I should have been more diligent all the time!"
"Senior! And you?"
"You... you don't know I'm afraid to speak when there are many people around?"
"Oh, what a pity~"
"Shut up..."
"..."
Kitauji, first-year students.
"Kumiko! What do you think?! Ten thousand yen! Ten thousand yen!"
"Ah~ she is very charming, but I don't think my skills are good enough to earn his approval... Kogoro, you... Oh right, you didn't bring your Double Bass."
"What a waste! Opportunities to perform in front of so many people don't come around often!"
"Is this what you care about...? I'm sorry, we were the ones who were corrupted..."
"Speaking of which, is Himemiya student very rich?"
"..."
During a break in her conversation with her friend, Kumiko Oumae's pale golden eyes glanced at the purple-eyed girl. The slight pursing of her eyes made her heart skip a beat; she had a premonition—that was a look that wanted to approach her.
Kousaka student, she's still Kousaka student...
Next to it, the piece with the power of three incense sticks --
What do you say?
Ogasawara Haruka looked at her two friends.
"Hmm... it's not that it's impossible to go up, what does Asuka think?"
Nakasako Kaori brushed her bangs aside, tucked them behind her ear, and looked to her best friend for her opinion.
Tanaka Asuka silently pushed up her glasses; the flat lenses reflected a blinding light in the sunlight, obscuring her eyes.
"Looks like there's no need to ask..."
"That's true..."
The other two exchanged a glance, their eyes conveying a tacit understanding.