They entered the luxurious villa.
On both sides stretched wide, open courtyards, neatly lined with patches of green plants.
Hongxia led the way along a straight stone path paved with small pebbles.
Having never set foot in such a fancy place before, Gotou Ichiri couldn't help but look around in awe, taking in everything with wide eyes—
like a child who had never seen the world.
Bai Qiu was just as curious, though not because he couldn't afford a villa.
It was simply that, for someone living alone, such a large house would only feel… empty.
Too quiet. Too much to clean.
Just then, Bai Qiu's pupils shrank—as if he had seen something unbelievable.
He stopped instinctively.
Gotou Ichiri, walking behind him, accidentally bumped into his back and froze on the spot.
Startled out of her wits, she was about to kneel and apologize.
Hongxia turned around with a puzzled look.
"What's wrong?"
"...I don't think we need to go any further."
Bai Qiu pointed toward a large tree on the left.
Beneath the shade of that tree was a tent—and in front of the tent, someone was lying down.
Though he couldn't see the person's face clearly, instinct told Bai Qiu that it was most likely Yamada Ryou.
Hongxia seemed to think the same.
"Let's go check."
The three of them approached the tent.
They exchanged looks, their expressions subtle and complicated.
On the ground lay a long, worm-like lump that twitched slightly every now and then.
It was actually a person wrapped inside a sleeping bag.
...Who sleeps like this?!
All three of them had strange looks on their faces.
There was also a light novel resting over her face, blocking the sunlight.
Through the strands of blue hair spilling out, Ichiji Hongxia could confirm without a doubt—this was Yamada Ryou.
Hongxia crouched down and picked up the book.
"Ah!"
She let out a startled cry.
That scream made both Bai Qiu and Gotou Ichiri's hearts jump—they even stepped back out of reflex.
Turns out, when Hongxia removed the book, she found Yamada Ryou's eyes staring wide open beneath it.
"Oh, Hongxia, you're here."
Yamada Ryou's tone was calm.
But somehow, Bai Qiu could sense a bit of smugness behind that calmness.
With the book no longer covering her face, Yamada Ryou revealed her short, deep-blue hair—and the beauty mark beneath the corner of her left eye only made her more striking.
"Ryou, don't scare people like that! What are you even doing?"
Hongxia clutched her chest, still pale from the shock.
"I was planning to go on a trip somewhere far away," Ryou said lazily, "but while I was packing, I suddenly realized how much of a hassle that would be. So I decided to just camp out here instead."
"You—! Don't underestimate camping!"
Hongxia clenched her fists and scolded.
Ryou smirked slightly.
Bai Qiu couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth—he had noticed the pile of empty takeout containers beside her tent.
This woman really knew how to enjoy herself.
"Oh right," Hongxia said brightly, "these are the two new friends I mentioned—this is Bai Qiu-kun, and this is Gotou Ichiri."
"Ichiri's the temporary guitarist I found!"
Then she pointed to Ryou, "And this is the bassist I told you about—Yamada Ryou! Just call her Ryou!"
"Yeah, just Ryou's fine. 'Yamada' sounds so dull."
Bai Qiu actually thought that made sense—"Yamada" was a pretty common surname in Japan.
"Ryou, nice to meet you," Bai Qiu said politely.
Ryou turned her gaze toward him.
Her eyes lingered on him for a few seconds.
"Have we met somewhere before?"
Bai Qiu blinked. "I… don't think so?"
Come on—if he had met Yamada Ryou before, he would definitely remember.
"Hmm. You've got a cool name. I like it," Ryou said with a small smile.
"Bai Qiu-kun's from Tianchao," Hongxia added, facepalming slightly.
Ryou didn't seem to mind, though—her gaze had already shifted to the girl hiding nervously behind Bai Qiu.
Gotou Ichiri looked absolutely terrified.
She wanted to go home. This was too scary—she felt like she was being stared straight through.
"M-my name is Gotou Ichiri! I'm terribly sorry for intruding!"
She bowed deeply, clutching her guitar.
"Don't be scared, Ichiri," Hongxia reassured her. "Ryou just doesn't have much facial expression. If you call her a weirdo, she'll probably be happy about it!"
"I would not."
Ryou twisted slightly inside her sleeping bag as she spoke—but the faint upward curve on her lips completely betrayed her words.
...She didn't look unhappy at all. The other three thought in unison.
Ryou then struggled to climb out of the sleeping bag.
"Ugh…"
She fell heavily back to the ground.
"Hongxia… help me…"
Hongxia sighed, passing the book in her hand to Bai Qiu.
"Honestly, I was worried about you! You haven't shown up to school since the semester started—if you keep this up, they're going to expel you! And you haven't come to your part-time job either…"
Despite her scolding tone, Hongxia's hands moved quickly, tugging at the sleeping bag's zipper to free Ryou.
"Getting expelled would be great," Ryou said casually. "I've wanted to become a shakaijin for ages."
Bai Qiu, meanwhile, glanced down at the book he was now holding—and froze.
Wait… wasn't this the light novel he wrote?
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime.
One of his plagiarized works, to be exact.
Just like the title suggested, it told the story of Mikami Satoru, who was stabbed to death and reincarnated in another world as a cute blue slime.
He then built a monster nation, became a Demon Lord, and conquered the world.
Even though only a few volumes had been released, it had already gained a solid fanbase.
And now—Yamada Ryou was reading his book.
Well then, no problem! Bai Qiu smiled smugly.
He still had confidence in his writing, after all.
It seemed Ryou had good taste. No wonder she'd "fallen from grace"—
—or rather, found her way out of the darkness after the band's breakup.
By then, Hongxia had successfully freed Ryou from the sleeping bag.
Ryou stood up.
She was dressed entirely in black—
A black long skirt, a black unisex T-shirt, and black sun sleeves on her arms.
"Who wears something like that in a sleeping bag?!"
Hongxia looked exasperated.
Ryou gave a thumbs-up in response.
"Anyway, Ryou," Hongxia began, "we actually came to ask if you could help us play bass."
"Ah, I see…"
Ryou let out a small sigh.
"Sorry, Hongxia. My musical soul is already dead."
Hongxia's eyes dimmed a little. Her lips pressed together.
"It's buried right here," Ryou added.
"Eh?!" ×3
All three of them stared blankly.
Ryou, however, had already lifted the tent flap and said, "Come in."
Hongxia followed without hesitation.
Bai Qiu was about to step forward too—but his right eyelid began to twitch uncontrollably.
There's a saying: Left eye for fortune, right eye for disaster.
A bad premonition rose in his chest.
"What's wrong?"
Gotou Ichiri asked from behind, seeing him block the path.
"...Nothing," Bai Qiu said, shaking his head.
Then he stepped inside.