There Are So Many Geniuses in Omni-Anime! What's Wrong with Adding Me?

"Later, unable to afford Tsukinomori's steep tuition, she transferred to Haneoka, which offered scholarships."

"In her third year of middle school, finding work was difficult, and juggling the band, her living expenses, and her studies proved too much, so in the end..."

He did not need to explain what happened next. They all knew.

In mere moments, the somewhat hostile, puzzled looks from earlier turned to shock, understanding, heartache, and admiration.

"Little Shoko!"

"Why didn't you tell us before?"

"I'm sorry! Things must have been so hard and overwhelming for you back then!"

"So that was what Toyokawa-san was dealing with..."

Looking gloomy, Toyokawa Shoko rose from her seat. First, she shot a resentful glance at Ogura Asahi for spilling her secrets, then turned a stubborn, defiant gaze on the others.

"It's nothing. This is my own family business. Failing to balance both sides of my life was my fault, and I did cause you trouble and leave you with unpleasant memories... But even if I'd told you, what would that have changed?"

"Huh...?"

She steadied herself, recovering the composure she normally made a conscious effort to maintain, and looked down on them with the superior air of someone who had half a foot in the working world—on a psychological level.

"Do you have jobs? Can you earn money? Are you prepared to get deeply involved in someone else's life? Do you have the will to endure all the hardships that come with that?"

"As ordinary students, can you really shoulder the weight of someone else's life?"

Granted, "ordinary" hardly seemed appropriate for any of them... But by her standards, perhaps it was close enough.

"Ah..." The others fell silent.

Right. Even if they had known, what could they have done?

Helping her out for a while would have been