Chapter 624

"Oh, don't worry about it~" He patted the cute Little Mū's head and asked with a smile, "How have you been lately?"

"It's alright," Wakaba Mū said succinctly.

"Were you pressured by Sōse and Shōko?"

"..."

"If they are, I'll go and teach them a lesson for you!"

"No..." She quickly denied it, glancing at him furtively.

He sighed softly and continued stroking her soft hair, advising, "Well, Mutsuko-chan, caring for your friends is good, but you can't always do it at your own expense."

"I've told you before, you can do whatever you want without caring about what others think. This is the same as that."

"Hmm..." Wakaba Mū nodded quietly.

"Since you said no, let's just pretend no." He didn't intend to pursue the matter further, and said with a wistful look in his eyes, "However, you and Sōse have very limited understanding of Shōko."

"Huh?" She looked up in confusion, staring at him with incomprehension.

"Do you really think Crychic disbanded because of you?"

"..."

"By the way, Little Tomori thinks so too."

"Huh?"

He lowered his head, meeting her bright, golden eyes, and stroked her small face. "You know a little more than Sōse and the others, but that's about it. Do you really know why Shōko left the team?"

Because of their childhood friendship, she knew about Toyokawa Shoko transferring to Haneoka, but that was all she knew.

Out of pride, Toyokawa Shoko did not tell her that she had left the Toyokawa Family and moved outside.

Naturally, she had no idea why she had moved out.

Wakaba Mū's eyes widened in shock, and even her expressionless face betrayed her astonishment. "... What do you mean?"

"Let's talk about that after tomorrow's live performance. That's what I told Sōse too." He chuckled, withdrawing his hand and lightly stroking her delicate nose. "You and Shōko will be there tomorrow, right?"

Although she didn't understand what he meant, she nodded slightly and said, "Mm."

"That's good—what have you been learning from Roselia and the others lately? Has it been helpful?" He changed the subject.

Seeing his expression, Wakaba Mū withdrew her gaze. "... They are very capable."

"So you mean it's still a bit short-term?" He directly caught her underlying meaning. "That's okay! As long as you're happy! To play a guitar that makes it sing, your own happiness is the most important thing!"

"Accurate notes can be achieved by computers and synthesizers, but the so-called emotional expression in a performance depends on the dynamics of the notes and the transitions and pauses within them."

"The same note, high or low... will produce slight differences in volume, dynamics, and duration when played or blown by different people, resulting in a myriad of variations in sound, especially between measures and short passages."

"The music that truly belongs to a particular person is the result of countless different elements overlapping together."

"In other words—!" He picked a healthy, dark green cucumber growing nearby and pointed at her with the other end—the scene was slightly murky and strange.

"Correctness is certainly important, but the correctness of the notes and rhythm is only the foundation! What Mutsuko-chan wants is not about being correct, but about the 'mistakes' that lie beyond correctness!"

"If you only practice alone and strive for consistency, you can only produce 'correct playing,' but that's not truly your own music."

"When you can add countless 'mistakes' of your own to the correct score, you will achieve the result you want."

He patted her thin shoulders with a cucumber, then walked to the nearby drain and rinsed its surface with water.

Click!

He bit off one end of the cucumber, and the refreshing, naturally fragrant juice dripped into his mouth, serving as a way to rinse his mouth after lunch.

"A mistake?" Wakaba Mū pondered his suggestion, the more she thought about it, the deeper the meaning became.

"No, no service, or no personality!" he mumbled, chewing on something.

If the so-called emotional expression in performance sounds too idealistic and story-like, then breaking it down and analyzing it reveals roughly this meaning.

Within a fixed musical score, each person's unique style creates distinct effects through their own performance.

But to surpass the vast majority of people and reach a transcendent level that can evoke the emotions of the audience—that is what makes a performer.

Too much of a good thing can be bad. In order to achieve normalcy, Wakaba Mū directly suppressed almost all of her emotional expressions. What she lacks most now is to rediscover her personality and be willing to express it again.

"Take your time~ There's no rush, enjoying yourself is the most important thing!"

He rudely put his hand over her back and put it on her shoulder, making a gesture that the young ladies of Tsukinomori were forbidden to do at school.

"For example, I'm really enjoying myself right now because there's a beautiful Little Mū, fresh air, clear sunshine, classic and beautiful architecture, well-maintained and manicured gardens and groves, fluttering blue butterflies... Isn't all of this very pleasant?"

"That's what living is all about."

"Perhaps you don't lack the ability to make a guitar sing, but rather the ability to discover a 'guitar' that can sing—you know what I mean?"

He used half a cucumber to point out the familiar sights in the Tsukinomori to her. In his view, what this child needed to learn now was not knowledge, but how to "live" properly.

The more accustomed you are to something, the harder it is to find enjoyment and merit in it, and that won't do.

"And your cucumbers! Mutsuko-chan, the cucumbers you grow taste really good too~ I can feel how much care you take for them... Would you like one?"

"...I just ate." Wakaba Mū pursed her lips gently, the corners of her mouth turning up slightly.

She didn't want to condemn his invasiveness in picking her fruits and vegetables without permission; instead, she was somewhat pleased that he praised her small interest and effort.

But she really doesn't want to eat right now, otherwise she would be with him.

"Really? Then forget it. Not forcing yourself to eat just to please others is also part of freedom and being yourself."

"..." Wakaba Mū blinked her cute big eyes, seemingly understanding a little.

"Here, this is a gift I brought you for today. Take it to the studio and have some."

Thank you~

"You're welcome. Let me pinch you again next time."

"..."

Chapter 565 Costume for the First Commercial Performance

After leaving the Tsukinomori, he returned to his apartment and continued working.

There's no way around it; we're all students, and we all have to follow the basic school hours.

Even though he's a notorious truant, he can't expect everyone else to be like him, can he?

However, his afternoon work wasn't about earning money to support his family; it was about checking and correcting the cosplay outfits for Kitagawa Marin and the others.

Tomorrow is MyGO's first time performing at a Livehouse, and the live show was great. But the day after tomorrow is also my first group photoshoot with Kitagawa Marin and the others—this weekend is going to be really busy!

But whether next weekend will be more relaxed... well, that's not necessarily true.

He inspected and finished one of the items, then folded it up with satisfaction, and put it, along with the wig, Flower Princess jewelry, and other accessories, into Tuba luxury brand clothing bag.

As Fashion Designer and a seasoned playboy, he had countless bags like these in his room.

I often use this kind of bag when I bring snacks to Toyama Kasumi and Chihaya Aine.

To change his mood, he stretched and decided to change jobs.

After a while, he arrived at the Starry.

Under Ichiji Hoshika's surprised gaze, he began to prepare the kitchen meals for tonight.

"Skipping class again?"

"That's strange?"

"No, it's not surprising at all that you made it."

"PA hasn't arrived yet?"

"After all, there are no live performances scheduled for tonight, so she doesn't need to come so early."

Oh, really? Then you're probably still playing games right now...

"Manager, I probably won't be coming over tonight."

"I guessed it." Ichiji Hoshika without any surprise, still sucking on her lollipop without looking up.

"After you finish cooking, go and move those musical instruments back to their original positions on the stage; also, could you help tidy up the lockers area a bit?"

"Please check if there are any issues with the band's application and acceptance for merchandise sales; PA mentioned a couple of days ago that the mixing console is malfunctioning, possibly due to a button problem. See if you can fix it; if not, I'll get someone to come."

"One of the moving head spotlights on the right side of the stage is broken, and one of the strobe lights in the middle is also malfunctioning. Could you please replace them? The lead singer has complained that the spotlight at the back is too bright; could you check it out?"

"There are also cables in the stage, recording studio, and storage areas that need to be categorized and neatly organized. These days, musicians are really unacceptable; they lack basic professionalism. Some don't even know the function of different sound source cables—it's a complete mess."

"These are our recent income and expenditure statements and contracts. Help me see how much we've earned. You know I'm not good at handling these things..."

"..."

Ichiji Hoshika fully utilized her potential as a ruthless capitalist, directly assigning him a whole host of tasks.

Some of them were tasks he had accumulated over the past few days but hadn't completed, while others were routine tasks.

Sakurakoji Talent remained unfazed, already used to this, and accepted the various ledgers, Sticky Note, and papers she handed him. "Okay~ okay~"

He glanced at the contents, raised his eyes, and estimated that these tasks would take him about forty minutes in total.

"But store manager, you're a college graduate, how come you don't even know how to keep accounts and contracts..." He glanced at her disdainfully, looking down on her academic abilities, which were comparable to those of Minato Yukina.

If you ask her about a linear equation with two variables now, she'll probably be completely stumped and won't know where to begin.

"What do you know?" Ichiji Hoshika blushed slightly, crossing her Hands and stubbornly saying, "Anyone can go to university if they're not picky!"

As the saying goes, the closer you are to the band, the further you are from academic qualifications.

In high school, she was already a band enthusiast, spending her days performing or working, and never really studied properly.

Even so, simple bookkeeping is still possible, but why should she do it herself slowly when he can solve it quickly?

That's true.

He put down the documents and went back to his work, planning to finish the paperwork while the bread was baking.

Because of what's going on in the Mirai two days, tonight is destined to be very busy.

First, she went to RiNG to meet up with Chihaya Aine and the others for the final round of practice.

After resolving all the issues that had accumulated in Starry, he returned to his apartment, changed his clothes, took his guitar, and several bags he had prepared beforehand, before heading to RiNG to meet up with Chihaya Aine and the others.

Considering their school dismissal time and travel time, he wasn't too late, at least not by too much.

"My dear teammates! I'm here! Did you miss me?" He entered the recording studio, opening his arms wide in the sunlight, interrupting the ensemble practice that was taking place inside.

"Ah, Asahi- san! Wow! So many things!" Chihaya Aine, and curiously looked into the clothing bag.

What's inside?

"That's a strange question, Aine-chan. Could there be anything else in the clothing bag?"

"Ah, that's true, but I initially thought it was the dessert you made."

"That... of course, there is too."

Chihaya Aine realized what was happening, her eyes shining brightly as she guessed the answer, "Could it be! These are our costumes for tomorrow's performance? Are they already finished?!"

"Okay, that's about right. Everyone, come and get yours."

He first took the guitar off the table, then called the others to come and get their clothes.

Yes, even though it was just an emergency performance to make up the numbers, I couldn't go back on my promise to make costumes for them.

And no matter what, this is their first real commercial performance, so they still need to have costumes.

However, because he was very busy, he couldn't possibly sew five more sets of clothes himself. He drew the designs himself and then handed them over to other professionals to sew.

"Wow! That's the best! Which one is mine?" Chihaya Aine asked eagerly.

If we're talking about who cares most about clothes among them, it's definitely her.

"You even brought your clothes?" Shiina Rikki also stepped forward with great interest, took her share, and showed a rare look of joy.

Although she can be quite sharp-tongued, she cares a lot about the band; it's just that her tendency to express herself often makes her seem angry and stern.

"Hmm, here, this is for you, Little Tomori." He glanced at the style of the clothes inside and handed the third set to Takamatsu Akari.

"Thank you! You've worked so hard! Asahi-chan!" Even Takamatsu Akari, who is usually not good at expressing herself, hugged the clothing bag tightly, her little face full of gratitude and joy.