Ryo Has Given Up Music

Goto Hitori wanted to refuse, but she couldn't get the words out.

She looked to Bai Qiu for help. "Bai... Bai..."

Bai Qiu smiled gently.

Goto Hitori thought she'd been saved, but then her face fell.

"Absolutely no problem!"

"Really? That's great! Thank you!"

Ijichi Nijika was delighted. She grabbed Goto Hitori and set off.

Of course, Bai Qiu went along too.

On the way, Nijika enthusiastically tried to find things to talk about with the two of them.

"Oh, right. You can just call me Nijika."

Naturally, Bai Qiu was happy to oblige.

Besides Yui, there was finally another heroine he could call by her first name.

"Come to think of it, Hitori..."

Nijika glanced at Hitori, then looked at Bai Qiu questioningly.

Ever since they'd started walking, Goto Hitori hadn't said a word. She'd curled up to one side, looking rather strange.

Nijika couldn't help thinking that maybe she'd asked too much of her.

Seeing this, Bai Qiu explained Goto Hitori's social anxiety.

Though they probably shouldn't get their hopes up too much about her guitar skills.

Nijika didn't mind. This performance was just an ordinary tryout, after all.

Besides, the audience would all be her friends, so it'd be fine.

"That smells so good."

As they walked toward Starry, Goto Hitori suddenly murmured. She even sniffed at the side ponytail beside her—Ijichi Nijika's.

A fashionable girl like Nijika was what a real band member should be like.

Unlike her. She probably only smelled of the mold in her closet.

Wah... T_T

Hearing Hitori, Bai Qiu nodded slightly. "Yeah."

Nijika looked confused. "What smells good?"

Goto Hitori shook her head frantically.

Bai Qiu joked, "Maybe Hitori's hungry."

Goto Hitori's body twitched, and she looked at Bai Qiu in horror.

"Wait, you two wouldn't actually—!"

Nijika suddenly realized something and pulled her side ponytail in front of her.

Bai Qiu and Goto Hitori gave awkward smiles.

Seeing them, Nijika seemed to understand.

"You can't do that kind of thing out in the middle of the street!"

Ijichi Nijika shouted at them, flustered and embarrassed.

"Sorry!"

Bai Qiu and Goto Hitori bowed their heads and apologized sincerely.

"Honestly... You two..." Ijichi Nijika shook her head helplessly.

I hope I didn't pick the wrong people...

I hope Nijika doesn't think less of me...

Did I pick the wrong people after all...?

The three of them each had their own thoughts.

Before long, Ijichi Nijika led Bai Qiu and Goto Hitori to a live house called "STARRY."

"By the way, it's my older sister's place. I work here too."

When Nijika mentioned her sister, her eyes narrowed slightly. She looked happy.

A long flight of stairs led underground. Starry was on the basement floor.

Bai Qiu looked over the ground around the entrance. The drainage was good, so rainwater wouldn't seep in.

"M-Magic mirror?"

Looking at Starry's door, Goto Hitori suddenly spoke.

Bai Qiu and Nijika were puzzled.

Never mind. They went into Starry.

"How do you like it?"

Ijichi Nijika asked the two of them with a light laugh.

The dimness and oppressive feeling were just like the closet in her home.

A sense of security welled up inside Goto Hitori, and the corners of her mouth lifted slightly.

"I'm home!"

Ijichi Nijika blinked, then gave an awkward smile. "This is my home!"

"Huh? I didn't expect Bai Qiu to be this excited too."

Nijika looked at Bai Qiu in surprise. From the park until now, he'd seemed so mature and composed.

Now, too, his face was alight with joy as he looked around, eyes shining.

Bai Qiu smiled gently.

He couldn't help it. This was a pilgrimage to a sacred site.

"Can I take pictures?"

Bai Qiu asked expectantly.

"Sure."

Seeing how much Bai Qiu liked her sister's live house made Nijika happy too.

"Oh? Nijika actually brought a guy to the place."

A voice suddenly came from the dim audience area. A mature-looking, aloof woman sat there with her eyes narrowed.

Earrings, a tongue piercing, a lip piercing, a collar around her neck...

Bai Qiu froze too, stopping mid-photo.

That was seriously rock 'n' roll!

Goto Hitori suddenly felt that this place was terrifying. Home, home—she wanted to go home!

Nijika smiled faintly and said:

"They're friends I just made. This is PA Miss, who works here."

PA Miss. He didn't know her name.

He only knew she was Starry's sound engineer.

"Hitori, you don't have to be so scared."

Nijika took one look at Hitori, who was practically a wreck, and hurriedly said, "Let's go to the practice room!"

Chapter 13: Ryo Has Given Up Music

When they entered the practice room, the instruments were already set up.

Bai Qiu looked around.

Was someone missing?

Where had she gone to slack off?

Ijichi Nijika, meanwhile, seemed completely unbothered. She took out the sheet music and showed it to Goto Hitori.

"How does it look? Can you play it?"

Goto Hitori said, "Ah, yes."

Then Bai Qiu asked, "Um, what about the bassist?"

Nijika blinked. "We don't have a bassist yet."

Bai Qiu's expression changed.

Had Yamada Ryo not joined Nijika's band?

Had her old band not disbanded? Or what?

If it hadn't, then hurry up and disband!

"Then what will we do about the bass part?"

Bai Qiu asked tentatively.

Generally speaking, you couldn't play a whole song without both guitar and bass.

The audience might not even be able to hear the bass.

But they still needed a bassist up there for show.

"Bai Qiu-kun, can you play?"

Nijika looked at Bai Qiu hopefully, wishing for another miracle.

Bai Qiu shook his head.

Nijika's eyes dimmed.

"Hmm... What about using a prerecorded bass track?"

Ijichi Nijika somehow produced a cassette recorder.

Bai Qiu froze. "..."

Don't ask me like it's a question!

"B-but wouldn't that be deceiving the audience?"

Goto Hitori rarely spoke up.

Nijika looked troubled too.

"Actually, I already had someone in mind to recruit as our bassist."

"But Ryo isn't playing music anymore..."

Nijika said dejectedly.

Bai Qiu was shocked.

Would the Kessoku Band he'd been yearning for really be over before it began?

What on earth were you doing, Yamada Ryo?!

"If that's the case, I won't let a half-baked band perform onstage."

A calm voice came from behind them.

At some point, Ijichi Hoshino had leaned against the doorframe, one hand on her hip and an apple juice bottle in the other. She took a sip through the straw.

The three of them turned around.