Two weeks later.
The selection venue for the undecided Riot Music Festival.
Hitori paced in circles on the spot. The incident of being late at the start of the new semester was still vivid in her mind, as if it had just happened.
But that kind of thing was not important right now, because…
"We are about to step onto Kessoku Band's very first big stage. Everyone, do your best!"
As the band leader, Nijika felt she needed to maintain a calm front, but under these circumstances, that was really hard to do.
Cheers from the audience rang in their ears.
Even backstage in the venue, they could hear them clearly. The atmosphere was even more heated than the cultural festival at Shuka High School last time.
A crowd of over a thousand people.
Just thinking about performing in front of so many people in a moment made everyone present feel nervous.
Yamada Ryo looked calm on the surface, but inside she was still sweating over the performance.
Hitori was even searching for the mango box that usually brought her peace of mind.
Kita started using her phone to distract herself.
"Finally, someone familiar…"
At that moment, Ohtsuki Yoyoko walked in with several members of her band.
She was not very good at dealing with unfamiliar environments. Fortunately, Kessoku Band was not absent today.
"Ohtsuki-san."
Hitori greeted her.
"Where is Toru? I did not see him. Hiroi Onee-san is not here either. Is she not supposed to go on stage today as the opening guest?"
Hitori scratched the back of her head and let out a few awkward laughs as she replied, "Kita
hara-kun is talking business with some important people. We released a digital album recently, and the sales were pretty good."
"Sigh, having a manager is really nice. Our sideros does not have one, so I have to negotiate a lot of things myself. Sometimes I really want to find someone to help share the burden."
Yoyoko complained for a moment, then asked again, "What about Hiroi Onee-san?"
"That big sister?"
Bocchi-chan shook her head and said softly, "I do not know about that."
Maybe she was drinking somewhere?
"There are only a little over ten minutes left before we go on stage. What on earth is Hiroi Onee-san doing?"
As soon as Yoyoko finished speaking, a familiar voice with a slight hint of drunkenness came from the entrance behind them.
"Little Ohtsuki ? Why are you calling me?"
Hiroi Kikuri scratched her head.
She had not drunk much today and was still fairly clear-headed.
After all, this was an important moment for Kessoku Band. Hiroi Kikuri did not plan to miss it. One could say that Kessoku Band was a band she had watched grow up like her own daughter.
"N-no, nothing."
"Do your best in the performance later. Although the judges' scores are important, the audience vote also takes up a large portion. Your sideros is good at heating up the atmosphere…"
Hiroi Kikuri went on talking for a long time.
After listening for several minutes, Ohtsuki Yoyoko suddenly felt that Hiroi Kikuri might actually be better when drunk. When this big sister was sober, she felt even more abnormal.
Time passed slowly.
It reached the point for Ohtsuki Yoyoko to go on stage.
Before that, a band called [Beast Ria] had captured most of the audience's attention. Their electronic-style cute pop music made the overall rhythm of the venue very relaxed. Under such circumstances, whether Ohtsuki Yoyoko's band could ignite the atmosphere was quite a challenge.
Ohtsuki Yoyoko took several deep breaths.
Relax.
Do not be nervous.
They had already crossed countless terrifying battlefields. This time was just a small scene.
Seeing her so tense.
Sideros's drummer, Hasegawa Akubi, teased her.
"Yoyoko-senpai, are you nervous again?"
"Shut up."
Yoyoko rolled her eyes at her teammate, swished her proud twin ponytails, and left the sight of everyone from Kessoku Band.
...
"So even Ohtsuki-san gets that nervous."
Seeing this, Hitori relaxed a lot. Yamada Ryo and Kita felt the same.
"It is almost our turn, right after Ohtsuki-san and her band," Nijika reminded them.
Her luck with the draw today was not very good.
The two strongest bands of the entire event were both performing before them. If they could not bring the audience a surprise, the score was easy to imagine.
"I-it is fine. Relax a bit."
Kita moved closer to Hitori and buried her head in her hair, trying to become a groundhog to ease her own nerves.
"Kita-chan, you do not look relaxed at all like that."
Nijika could not help but complain.
"Bocchi, we are counting on you later. You are the main character today."
Yamada Ryo decisively piled pressure onto Hitori.
That was just how a pressure monster was.
Nijika was just about to lecture Yamada Ryo when she heard Hitori speak seriously.
"No one in Kessoku Band can be missing… so today's main character is not me, but Kessoku Band."
Kita hid in Bocchi-chan's pink hair. Her voice was still slightly trembling, unable to hide her nervousness.
"E-everyone, let the audience see our bond."
It really felt like…
Bocchi-chan and Kita-chan had swapped personalities.
Nijika did not even know where to start complaining.
"Kessoku Band, it is almost your turn. Get ready to go on stage."
A staff member walked into the backstage area.
The four girls looked at each other and nodded.
Do your best.
————
A grand stage, a heated atmosphere, and cheering audiences raising their hands.
Toru showed a satisfied expression backstage.
The aloof guitarist who once refused to look people in the eye could finally raise her head openly, no longer socially anxious.
The bassist who once immersed herself in her own world had learned to coordinate with her teammates' performance.
The drummer who had once been as gentle and delicate as water now struck passionate drumbeats.
The red-haired girl in charge of vocals shone like a sparkling diamond, becoming the focus of everyone present.
A band full of cohesion.
...
Below the stage.
"They have grown so much over this year. It really has not been easy."
"Kids these days are really scary."
"Haha, senpai, the way you are talking right now really sounds like an old auntie," Hiroi Kikuri said with a smile.
If you cannot speak properly, then do not speak.
Ijichi Seika really wanted to force a few more cans of alcohol down her throat. A sober Hiroi Kikuri was not cute at all.
"You are only two years younger than me. You are 28 and still have the nerve to call a 30-year-old woman an auntie?"
"..."
Hiroi Kikuri took out the alcohol she carried with her and gulped down a few mouthfuls.
If you want to chat, then chat properly. Why bring this up for no reason?
Come to think of it, she had never even been in a relationship…
"What a pity Toru is only 16
years old and not an adult yet."
Cannot touch that, cannot touch that.
If there really were women around who dared to go after someone so young, Hiroi Kikuri would actually admire them. After all, that would be illegal.
"Senpai, have you ever been in a relationship?"
Hiroi Kikuri wanted a standard answer. How should a woman approaching thirty deal with marriage issues?
"...No."
"Really?"
"Why would I lie to you?"
When Ijichi Seika said this, she felt a little guilty.
Even her younger sister Nijika did not know about what had happened between her and Toru…
So how could she possibly tell Hiroi Kikuri?