"Thank you so much!"
At that moment, two fans were thrilled to have gotten their idols' autographs, while off to the side, Honoka Kosaka looked up at the lofty A-Rise and said in confusion, "But why?"
"Hehehe. You're school idols too, aren't you? And from the same area, no less." The way Yuki Anju said it made it sound as if she was emphasizing that last part.
"Speaking of which, we've always wanted to say hello to you, Honoka Kosaka." The one who picked up the conversation was Kira Tsubasa. "Though I really didn't expect we'd meet like this. And you're much more charming in person than you look on video."
"I suppose you could call it a magnetic personal charm. Even with nine people, you still shine so brightly." The one who added that was Elena Tsundo, seated on the other side.
"...Oh." Faced with their praise, Honoka Kosaka instead seemed a little unimpressed.
"We've been keeping an eye on you."
"Huh?!" Kira Tsubasa's words surprised all of them.
—Slurp.
Sitting to the side, Senba Gari calmly took a sip of tea. Compared with the two people seated restlessly on either side of him, he was clearly much calmer, though in truth, his inner state was the exact opposite of his expression.
They're rivals, after all, so it's normal they'd keep an eye on them. But are you people seriously okay? From the look of it, you all came here as guests, right? How did this suddenly turn into a meeting between two sides? The two beside him are practically trembling. Should I be cheering "666" from the side or saying "XX is right"? And I'm the host here, hello? Why is my presence so weak? Forget it. I'll just be part of the tea-drinking crowd.
Thinking that, Senba