Chapter 511

"I see. So, are you going to start reviewing?"

"Yes, I'll try to find some time this week to review the textbook for half a day to reinforce my understanding."

"Uh... Xiao Chaoyang, you are really the public enemy of students... you"

"Shizuka, do you need any guidance from me?"

"Hmm~ I think it should be fine. Although I won't get a particularly high ranking, I'll still trouble you if I need anything!"

"Leave it to me!"

"..."

"..."

Holding umbrellas and watching their step through the puddles, the two walked side by side out of the school gate. Miyako Shizuka decisively waved and hailed a taxi.

If you can't really tell how popular Miyako Shizuka is in class, just look at the thickness of her wallet.

Aside from him and Hachiman Kairin, who hides her family background, you can easily imagine what it would be like if you were a freshman in high school, feeling lost and overwhelmed by the suddenly increasing workload and the onslaught of adolescence—

In your class, there exists a blonde, purple-eyed, beautiful, talented, and cheerful singer in a rising star group, earning more each month than your parents combined... What kind of feelings would you have for her?

It's only because she's low-key enough, and because Hanasakigawa is indeed full of hidden talents, that if she were in another school, Miyako Shizuka's popularity and Shiina Mahiru would probably be similar to Kasumigaoka Utaha who hides her identity as a writer, and below Ouka Mai.

Before long, the two arrived at the building below the agency [Win-Wing Production].

After paying the fare, they went upstairs to the lounge with practiced ease.

"Mana! Long time no see!"

Without even knocking, he pushed open the door to the lounge and shouted loudly at Ms. Five-Crown King, who was lying idly on the Tatami.

"Ah~ it's Xiao Chao! Long time no see!"

"Hey! Wait! Don't be in such a hurry, there's still time to rummage through the bag later!"

"Mana..."

Miyako Shizuka looked on with a slight headache as Sumiida Mana darted up to Ogura Asahi and started grabbing her bag for snacks. She didn't know whether to feel relieved or sad.

Wow~ So many Donut!

Sumiida Mana, holding several boxes of Donut, beamed with a smile.

I made this especially for you today!

"Thank you, Xiao Chao! I love you!"

"Do you love me more than you love Shizuka?"

"Uh, well... Mo~ is really mean!"

"If you don't tell me, you won't get any!"

"Mwah--Okay, I love you even more now!"

"Great, I love you too!"

Ogura Asahi looked very satisfied.

"You two are so childish."

Miyako Shizuka walked past the two without looking at them.

Sumiida Mana giggled and squeezed next to her, pressing herself close and dividing her spoils in two. "Hehe~ Don't be angry, Little Shizuka! Here, I'll share half of the Donut with you!"

Chapter 465 The Light of the Sakurakoji Family.

"Thank you, I'll put on my makeup first, Mana, you eat first."

Taking the "trophy" she handed over, and placing it on the coffee table in front of the sofa, Miyako Shizuka walked to the long dressing table on the left and sat down to touch up her makeup.

"Seriously~ It's okay to cook it after you've finished eating~"

Sumiida Mana was speechless at her earnestness.

After saying that, she opened a box of Donut and began to enjoy them.

"Mmm~ This is the taste! As expected of Xiao Chao's masterpiece!"

As an observer, Ogura Asahi sometimes felt a sense of disharmony regarding the two individuals' personalities.

On one side is the younger, but more mature and earnest Miyako Shizuka; on the other is the slightly older, but more lively and cheerful Sumiida Mana... What caused this situation? Was it due to the different pressures they faced since childhood, or something else?

"Mana, how are things going with your relationship with Shizuka lately? Is your work still very demanding?"

"Well, how should I put it? It's basically the same as the rising phase of my career, I guess."

Sumiida Mana muttered as she chewed on the crumbs of bread in her mouth.

During her time at Miyako Shizuka School, she wasn't completely idle. She was responsible for many preparations, such as coordinating with on-site staff, verifying work contracts, communicating with agents, conducting interviews with reporters, and compiling lyrics and music.

I just took a quick break to relax before my partner arrived.

If she hadn't chosen the young Miyako Shizuka as her partner, her life might have been easier, but she didn't care at all.

Putting aside the fact that Miyako Shizuka's vocal ability truly matches this, Sumimi is essentially two people in one!

"What's the compensation like? Is the company exploitative?"

Ogura Asahi raised an eyebrow with concern.

"It's alright for now. The company is working quite hard to get us all sorts of performances, show recordings, and promotional events... Well, the workload and schedule are definitely a bit heavy."

Sumiida Mana sighed with emotion.

To be fair, the firm they worked for was actually quite good. The pay wasn't exceptionally generous, but it was far better than some unscrupulous firms. After all, it was a medium-to-large-sized, reputable company, and at least they wouldn't deliberately withhold wages.

However, regarding the time... well, it's not her problem, but for Miyako Shizuka, who is still a high school student, such a schedule is indeed very packed.

It's common for me to get back to my apartment in the middle of the night, and by then I'm exhausted, so I don't have much energy or time to study.

Ogura Asahi was certainly aware of all this, which made things a bit difficult for her. Unlike Pastel*Palettes, with whom she was 90% certain, this side was legitimate. What to do?

Regardless, he needed to bring them both into his camp as soon as possible, making them subject to his company's control, and he had to be quick about it. Why? Because MyGO's first stage performance was about to begin.

Once the performance ended, a tearful Little Shoko begged Miyako Shizuka to help her forget everything...

Then, Miyako Shizuka, driven by love (familial affection), will agree to her request without hesitation and start Ave Mujica with her at the same agency as Sumimi, [Win-Wing Production]... That name really sounds evil.

Then came the fact that Sumimi was practically dead, Wakaba Mū was called over as a tool and her personality collapsed, and Hachiman Kairin couldn't see her own feelings... Of course, he wouldn't allow such things to happen.

However, even if Ave Mujica were to be formed, it must be done under controllable circumstances, for example— Miyako Shizuka is one of our own people and has no right to make decisions arbitrarily.

New bands are fine, but not at the expense of established groups.

Besides, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. By bringing them under his control, he now has a legitimate reason to protect them and prevent them from being corrupted by "the darkness of so-and-so's family."

When Toyokawa Sadaharu asks her to come to the island, she can stop him and object, right?

Given the current situation, Toyokawa Shoko would probably call me immediately after the incident, since she hasn't contacted Miyako Shizuka for a year. But—what if I'm the only one standing on the stage?

Encouragement, shock, tears, breakdown, betrayal, despair, screams... there are just too many elements!

Well, there's nothing we can do about it.

Fortunately... Miyako Shizuka, Hachiman Kairin, Wakaba Mū —he now controls three or even four of them! How could the power of the Dark Puppet Theater possibly touch his youth?

Even if Shōko really did call Miyako Shizuka over then, what difference would it make?

To prevent their "Adolescence Syndrome" from ruining my own happy ending, I can use my boss's authority: if they want to create an extra group, they have to include me!

I'll fill in for Wakaba Mū, who isn't ready yet, and cover for her for a while until she's really ready to perform.

He's even come up with a nickname for his doll!

--Let me state upfront, it's absolutely not because he was addicted and thought it was funny, and wanted to go up and perform for fun, absolutely not!

However, to think that his HE Company band plans are so shallow would be to underestimate him.

With so many bands under your control, yet everyone's going their own way, don't you find it boring and a waste?

Ah... that's right, from the very beginning he never intended to develop a fixed band lineup.

The most important thing is that everyone is happy. Maintaining the pure spirit within each team is certainly good, but wouldn't it be more fun to occasionally swap members?

For example, he could learn to replace Kanau in Wakaba Mū's place, or have Wakaba Mū wants to play or when he himself is unavailable.

Even as for Nagasaki Sōse, who is still thinking about kicking him out, he could consider having them perform twice under the name Crychic after things stabilize within the team—provided she identifies more with the current group.

In any case, he doesn't consider himself a purely simple person. He can't stick to the idea of being in a band for life without complex random variables.

Especially with the upcoming "era of virtual Songstress (bands)," switching between live performances will be even easier.

--I'll immediately have Yachiyo help me build a giant world-class performance channel that can accommodate countless viewers at once! A one-to-one replica of the Budokan and Tokyo Dome's live effects!

In short, the Mirai holds endless possibilities, and having fun... no, the most important thing is that everyone is happy!

The most urgent task is to first lure Sumimi into joining the alliance, and then use my influence to free them from the [Win-WingProduction] agency and bring them into the "Light of the Sakurakoji Family"!

Suddenly, his eyes flashed, and he seized the opportunity.

"By the way, Little Asahi, you said you had something to say, right? What is it?"

While applying powder to her face with a sponge, Miyako Shizuka asked her reflection in the mirror.

"Hmm~ it's nothing serious, it's just..."

Ogura Asahi moved closer to Sumiida Mana, put his arm around her soft shoulder, and whispered, "Are you guys thinking of switching jobs?"

After saying that, he pinched her smooth, fragrant shoulder again—it felt really nice.

"Huh?"

X 2.

Miyako Shizuka stopped applying powder, Sumiida Mana even forgot to eat her Donut for a moment. Both of their unusually beautiful eyes turned to him at the same time, staring at him in disbelief, as if they had misheard him.

"Um, Xiao Chao, what did you just say?"

Even though she was so close, she still wanted to confirm it one more time.

"..."

Miyako Shizuka silently perked up her delicate ears.

"I asked if you'd be interested in switching to another firm?"

Ogura Asahi repeated it, his eyes thoughtful.

I wonder what the cost would be to poach them? Probably similar to poaching PP?

However, this agency is larger than PP's unscrupulous management company, and they are also on the rise with considerable recent fame, so perhaps it will be more difficult for them?

However, considering that Toyokawa Sadaharu could send Miyako Shizuka back to the island with just a word, without having to consider this side at all, perhaps their contract wasn't strict.

The only area where they lost money was the penalty they paid for Mujica's unauthorized disbandment and termination of the tour, but that was because a lot of money was needed for promotion and preparation before the tour.

They're both very capable, and they wouldn't sign overly strict contracts, so there shouldn't be any major problems.

"Change to another firm... which firm?"

Sumiida Mana's tight, smooth skin twitched, her expression becoming dry.

Ogura Asahi confidently curled the corners of her mouth, pointing a thumbs-up confidently at herself. "Mine."

"Ah?"

X 2.

"To be precise, it's mine. I recently started an entertainment company and we're short of artists. Want to consider it? Excellent benefits!"

After a few soft breaths, Miyako Shizuka stammered and asked:

"Asahina, Asahi-chan, when did you start your own company?"

"I've had it for a while, but I used to work in other industries. I only recently started to get interested in the entertainment industry."

"Oh, I see. You're really amazing..."

She was sweating profusely, but forced a smile to maintain her composure.

My classmate, who likes to skip classes, is just too amazing... No, I knew he was amazing before, but now he seems to be even more amazing?

Are you busy with these things when you're not in class? Then it's understandable.

Compared to that, she felt ashamed of herself, barely managing to balance teaching and work... She felt a little guilty.