What About Me?

Proud! So proud! Hands on hips!

Private Chihaya Anon, receiving orders!

Hehehe.

Chihaya Anon wanted to stand up and salute, but after looking at her classmates, she obediently sat down and continued reading the last paragraph of her diary.

That is, it came from his 'instructions'.

Following Toyokawa Sakiko, news of the Stray Cat with no vision, secretly filming female high school students, and wealthy wives Widow!

Let's go home together.

Are we practicing today?

"Let me tell you, that store I went to before..."

After the initial excitement comes the torment.

The diary entry arrived too early, and Chihaya Anon, being a student, was once again confined to the classroom, obediently patiently listening to the lessons.

Fortunately, the agonizing time passed quickly, and soon the school bell rang, and the students around me gathered in groups, chatting and laughing as school ended.

Originally, she should have been a member of the 'small group' as well, and should have gone to the Astronomy Club with Takamatsu Tomori, who sat in front of her, and then patiently waited for a response that might come or might not.

But today is slightly different.

"I'm sorry, Akari, I have something to take care of. You can go to the Astronomy Club first." Chihaya Anon apologized to Takamatsu Tomori with a face full of apology.

She's going to follow Toyokawa Sakiko.

"Ah, um, okay..." Takamatsu Tomori seemed to want to say something, but she looked up at Chihaya Anon and then lowered her head again.

The girl wouldn't refuse anyone in this kind of situation.

"Hmm..." But this nod made Chihaya Anon frown deeply. "I don't like it."

"Just say what you have to say. Why keep it to yourself? I'm not going to yell at you."

In the past, she might have chosen a gentler approach to try and figure out what the little animal in front of her was thinking.

But now, she feels that being more direct is better.

The reason, of course, is yesterday's diary entry.

Suppressing yourself will make you uncomfortable; suppressing your emotions will make you suffer.

In that case, no one would be happy.

The approach can be gentle, but the attitude must be decisive.

"Soyo... practice... everyone... band... Sakiko..." The little animal uttered fragmented words, its head bowed.

Ugh, really.

"Then come with me," she said.

Chapter 142 What about me?

"I'm not practicing today; I have other things to do."

Looking directly into Takamatsu Tomori's eyes, Chihaya Anon said this.

"W-what's wrong...?"

"Follow Sakiko," she said.

Toyokawa Sakiko's actions generally followed a similar pattern.

During class, after class, if there was a class, I would go to work; if there wasn't, I would borrow the Wind Orchestra Club's activity room to practice piano. Then, when most of my classmates had left, I would take a slightly roundabout route and take the train to Akabane from a less-seen place.

Then, after getting off the tram, there was a long downhill slope, an empty park, and finally I arrived at my rented room.

... However, today, Toyokawa Sakiko is not going back to her rented apartment.

It wasn't that she wouldn't reply, but before she went back, she received a slightly unexpected message.

It came from her best friend, Ms. Wakaba Mutsumi, with whom she had been together since childhood, playing together, in the same band, and knew each other very well.

"..."

So, the girl, who had paused briefly on the slope to check the information, turned around.

"Whoa, quick, quick, Akari, hide over here!" Chihaya Anon in a low, urgent voice, turning around and pulling the slow-witted Takamatsu Tomori to hide around the corner.

She truly hadn't expected that after following him all this way, Toyokawa Sakiko would still change direction?!

Has she been exposed?!

I should have known better than to follow them with just the two of us; the more people there are, the easier it is to be discovered.

Just as the girl was beginning to regret her actions, Toyokawa Sakiko, completely unaware, turned back towards the tram station.

Didn't find it!

Very good!

The girl clenched her fists with immense relief.

"Love, Anon..." However, the little animal she pulled and pressed into the corner wasn't so happy.

Upon hearing Takamatsu Tomori's soft, sweet voice, Chihaya Anon quickly released her grip.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, it's an emergency. Anyway, let's hurry and catch up!"

There's no time to waste on apologizing; if we don't hurry and catch up, we'll lose them!

"...Ah." Following in Toyokawa Sakiko's footsteps, Takamatsu Tomori tried her best to run alongside Chihaya Anon.

Even now, she still doesn't understand why Anon is following Sakiko.

Following their footsteps, they boarded the tram heading towards Sanwabashi, and under the cover of the crowd, they quietly hid in a corner, spying on Toyokawa Sakiko seemed slightly agitated.

"Bite--"

"We've arrived at Asukayama."

The tram arrived at the station, and Toyokawa Sakiko quickly stepped off the tram.

"Hurry, hurry, get off the bus!" Footsteps flew, the girl's body nimble and light.

This should be the first time she has ever tracked someone down.

Following closely behind, hiding and dodging, afraid of being discovered yet also afraid of losing them, they grasped the thrill of maintaining distance.

... It was surprisingly interesting.

With a slightly clumsy teammate like Akari by her side who might be exposed or fall behind at any moment, Chihaya Anon felt a great sense of accomplishment whenever she pulled Akari along or hid.

Following closely in Toyokawa Sakiko's footsteps, Chihaya Anon... caught a glimpse of the dazzling flowers by the roadside.

She then suddenly realized that, without realizing it, they seemed to have gone in a slight circle and arrived at...

Kyu-Furukawa Gardens, Kyu-Furukawa Residence, Tokyo.

The courtyard, like a castle, stands within its fence, exuding an air of extravagance.

Was Toyokawa Sakiko's destination this very house where she originally lived?

Is the wealthy, Widow woman I'll see in the Diary a relative of hers?

But what about the female high school student Widow?

Confused and hesitant, the girl saw her target Toyokawa Sakiko, and stopped once again.

This time, she stopped at a small park not far from the Mansion, which seemed to be part of the surrounding area.

The gushing spring water gurgled out, the dim streetlights surrounded the area, and various fake stones, whose prices were hard to discern but were certainly expensive, were arranged to the side.

Hiding in the shadows, Chihaya Anon pulled Takamatsu Tomori down to crouch.

She took out her phone.

She hasn't seen the message yet, despite our investigation.

Ranai: [Do you play in a band?]

The message was sent about an hour ago.

She didn't check the message, nor did she look at the light. Naturally, Taki, who was working at RING, probably wouldn't respond either.

Although she actively asked for people to join her band, she probably won't be able to find anyone this time.

I'm sorry, Ranai, I'll buy you a matcha parfait next time to make it up to you.

Chihaya Anon Aine didn't reply to Ranai's message, but instead simply started recording video on her phone.

She had a feeling that what the Diary was about was probably now.

"Eh eh eh..." Takamatsu Tomori's eyes widened as she watched the recording she started.

Why record video???

She didn't understand, but she didn't dare to do anything either. She just cowered there with her head down, hiding with Chihaya Anon to spy on them.

"..."

Night had fallen long after the long pursuit, and the summer cicadas' chirping was incessant even in the affluent area.

Toyokawa Sakiko seemed to be waiting for someone.

Soon, Chihaya Anon saw the person she was waiting for.

A minor female high school student Widow woman.

Nagasaki Soyo.

A girl with an expressionless face but an extremely majestic appearance, as exquisitely beautiful as a doll.

"Mu?!" Deng exclaimed in a hushed voice.

Fortunately, the sound wasn't too loud, and by maintaining a certain distance, I managed to avoid being detected thanks to the cover of the cicadas' chirping.

Thank you for meeting me today.

A gentle voice came from afar, Chihaya Anon held her breath.

She began to understand what Mr. Diary wanted her to record.

Nagasaki Soyo's last hope was... after missing band practice, ignoring their messages, and even taking leave from Tsukinomori.

It was a meeting with Toyokawa Sakiko.

One-sided complaints, one-sided apologies, one-sided explanations.

The usually gentle, composed, and refined Nagasaki Soyo revealed a side of herself that was unknown to most young girls.

That expression looked so... humble?

"..."

It's incredible! It turns out that a person can really show completely different sides of themselves when facing different people.

A cold rejection, a firm resistance, a decisive break.

Toyokawa Sakiko, who already appeared aloof, revealed an even more resolute side when facing Nagasaki Soyo.

The Widow trembled, Widow expression changed, Widow forced a smile as he said:

"The band is a community of shared destiny; isn't that exactly what Xiao Xiang is saying?"

"So, what is that band?" the young lady demanded.

"No!" the Widow denied repeatedly.

In a farcical manner, she made her request.

"Please, I want to reunite CRYCHIC!"

The clear, earnest, and unconscious words echoed in the surrounding silence.

Chihaya Anon was dumbfounded.