Back in the school club room, Sonoda Umi looked at the notes in her hand.
The notes recorded the average comparisons of everyone in dancing, singing, and handing out flyers.
Minami Kotori and Yoshino, because of the rabbit doll, had been sticking together since then, making Kousaka Honoka next to them pout with a hint of jealousy.
"Um... Kotori. These are the cookies I made, would you like to try some?"
She took out the cookies she had baked last night from her rabbit-shaped bag.
She had originally planned to share these with Toujou Nozomi, but Yoshino intended to enjoy them with Minami Kotori.
"Wow~ Are these cookies Yoshino made? They're so cute."
Minami Kotori smiled as she looked at the rabbit-shaped cookies. Just how much did Yoshino love rabbit-related things?
"Ah~ Mm~" She picked up a piece without hesitation and put it in her mouth.
It contained Yoshino's full heart; even if they didn't taste good, Minami Kotori declared she would eat them all with a smile.
"They're really good, Yoshino. Delicious." She was a little surprised; it was unexpectedly tasty.
Yoshino had previously shared her bento with everyone, so they knew her cooking skills were very high.
But now it seemed her skills in desserts and cookies were also excellent.
"Really? Hehe, it's my first time trying to make them, so it's great that you like them." She scratched her head a little shyly.
This was part of the knowledge about cookies that Yoshino had asked Shiina to share with her regarding cooking.
Yoshino, who had been a little unconfident, was now relieved. So, after Kousaka Honoka as the guinea pig, Minami Kotori was your second guinea pig, Yoshino?
"Ah! I want to eat too! Koto, don't hog them all to yourself."
Kousaka Honoka, unable to bear her loneliness, saw the two eating biscuits there and jumped in front of them, snatching Yoshino's packet of biscuits.
"Ah, then Rin wants some too, meow!" Hoshizora Rin couldn't be left out when there was good food.
"Me too." Ayase Eli stated that she also wanted to taste Yoshino's cooking.
"Oh my, since Yoshino made it, how can I be left out?"
This really won't do. I only looked away for a moment, and now Yoshino is already so close to Minami Kotori.
"I... I want some too." A slightly shy Koizumi Hanayo didn't want to be left out, so she also reached out to take some.
In the end, everyone except Yazawa Nico, who was completely petrified, got to taste Yoshino's biscuits, which quickly depleted the already small quantity.
But everyone seemed very satisfied.
"Yay~ Why does Rin feel like she has more energy after eating Senior Shiino's biscuits, meow?"
Hoshizora Rin declared that she could now climb five floors in one go, effortlessly!
"Isn't it because it contains Yoshino's heartfelt sincerity?"
Toujou Nozomi, who seemed to know something, explained for Yoshino, and it was a perfectly good explanation.
'It seems that biscuits made with spiritual power can not only enhance the taste but also restore stamina. I must remember this.'
"Looking at the results now, everyone's scores are pretty similar, except for Koto, who dropped out midway during the dance..."
Sonoda Umi, having tallied the results, said to everyone, feeling a bit troubled because everyone was so excellent.
Holding Minami Kotori's hand, Yoshino looked at her apologetically.
However, Minami Kotori smiled and shook her head, indicating that Yoshino didn't need to worry.
After all, she had obtained something more important than that.
And that was the position of her best friend; Minami Kotori also believed that it would definitely be the position of her best friend.
"Hmm, Hanayo, who isn't good at dancing, has the highest score in singing. And Kotori, while having a low score in singing, was the fastest at distributing flyers. As for Senior Ayase, although her scores are high across the board, she can't be the leader due to her student council duties."
Suddenly, everyone began to ponder with a bit of a dilemma... except for Yazawa Nico, who was still petrified.
However, among these people, two were very calm.
Yoshino was calm due to her mascot status, and Kousaka Honoka...
"Then why don't we just not have a leader? Everyone is a member of Muse, and we all train together. So I feel like a leader is completely meaningless."
Kousaka Honoka suggested, isn't this the best solution?
"But the leader decides who stands in the very center. If there's no leader, we won't even know our positions during a performance." Yazawa Nico refuted her opinion; this wouldn't do.
"Why don't we all be the lead dancers? I've been thinking about this ever since I watched idol videos at home. How great would it be if everyone could take turns singing? Can't we create a song like that?"
Kousaka Honoka looked at Muse's composer, Sonoda Umi, and arranger, Nishikino Maki.
"Taking turns singing... lyrics like that aren't impossible to write. But if there isn't a suitable melody..."
Turning to look at Nishikino Maki sitting opposite her, lyrics were no problem for Sonoda Umi.
However, if the melody wasn't suitable, that would be a big problem.
"A melody like that isn't impossible either," Nishikino Maki said, unwilling to be outdone.
"As for the choreography, leave it to me and the President. After all, with the President's support, I don't think there will be much of a problem." Minami Kotori tilted her head in thought, then nodded without issue, saying softly.
"That's great! Then this is the best arrangement. Everyone sings together, and everyone takes turns standing in the center." Kousaka Honoka looked happily at everyone; now there was nothing to worry about.
"To not be bound by anything, to just do what we most want to do, anything interesting. This is our Muse, a Muse different from all other idol groups."
Looking at Kousaka Honoka, who had reignited everyone's passion, Yoshino thought to herself:
You are indeed the rightful leader.
She didn't have Sonoda Umi's composing ability, nor Minami Kotori's excellent costume and dance design skills, nor Nishikino Maki's outstanding arranging ability.
Yet, she was the one who repeatedly encouraged everyone to move forward, igniting their enthusiasm.
You are indeed a born leader; this girl named Kousaka Honoka is truly a girl who can create miracles.
"Then let's first properly set out a new training plan. Judging from today's situation, everyone's stamina is still not up to par, so everyone's physical fitness needs to be strengthened."
"Eh!!!"
A cry of despair rang out in the Idol Research Club, but there was no longer any thought of changing the leader, because the choice of leader had already been decided, hadn't it?