School Grand Auditorium.
Upon the stage.
Nijika, Ryo, Kita, and Hitori—the four girls were all in position, waiting for the signal to start the performance.
Kita's small face beamed with a bright smile, overflowing with confident radiance: "Kessoku Band, taking the stage grandly!"
The corners of Scum Ryo's lips curled up slightly into an arc: "Feels like I'm getting a bit fired up."
"Good luck, everyone! Just perform like we usually do, no need to be nervous," Nijika cheered them on while looking toward Hitori, saying softly, "Hitori-chan, how are you feeling right now?"
"Feeling..."
Hugging the brand-new guitar she won from yesterday's lottery draw, Hitori's peach-blossom eyes quietly widened, peering down at the area below the stage through her bangs.
People, people, people, people, people.
As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but people.
The academy was very wealthy, so the auditorium built was naturally not small, easily accommodating over a thousand people.
At this very moment, the auditorium was already packed with guests, virtually every seat filled—whereas STARRY's live house was very small, where a hundred people was already the absolute limit.
"Feeling... as expected, I'm still super nervous..."
Hitori could clearly hear the rapid thumping of her own heart, clutching her chest with her right hand:
"If it were middle-school me standing on such a grand stage, I would have been trembling all over, struggling to breathe, my mind completely blank... or maybe even fainted on the spot, right?"
"But now..."
Hitori took a deep breath, summoned her courage, and her previously somewhat hunched back quietly stood straight and tall.
"After meeting Kitahara-kun, I am no longer who I used to be."
Though she was still nervous—her palms sweating, body stiff, and heart pounding non-stop—Hitori's mind was remarkably lucid.
Beyond the nervousness, she could clearly sense that intense anticipation within her heart.
Looking forward to stepping onto the stage with her bandmates, looking forward to the rock music they played with all their heart receiving everyone's affirmation...
Thump!
With a light tap of the drumsticks on the drum kit, the performance officially began.
The gaze in Hitori's eyes quickly hardened with resolve; everything below the stage seemed to quietly fade into the distance, leaving behind only the bandmates on stage and the guitar in her hands.
Guitar, drums, bass... each melody was distinct yet seamlessly blended together, swiftly weaving into dynamic, pulsating rock music.
Before long, as Kita's crisp, melodic, and highly recognizable singing voice rang out, the lively atmosphere finally detonated across the entire hall.
"Kessoku Band!"
"Aaaah! It's Kita-chan!"
"Feels like even the air is about to ignite!"
"..."
In a corner.
Kitahara had already set up the tripod, positioned the camera, and switched on recording mode.
Kessoku Band's very first school festival live performance naturally held immense commemorative and collectible value.
"Secretly filming is an illegal act, you know," Anon tilted her delicate chin, "Classmate over there, put your hands up—you're under arrest."
"Wait a second," Kitahara raised both hands, playing along, "Lady Police Officer, may I ask if you accept bribes?"
"Of course not, I am a law enforcement officer," Anon crossed her arms over her chest, "I won't be so easily corrupted by sugar-coated cannonballs!"
"I'll add more money."
"Money is like floating clouds to me..."
"How about another Magical Cookie that maxes out sensitivity?"
"What the, trying to brush me off with just one cookie?"
Hearing the bribe offered by Kitahara, Anon's pretty face flushed faintly, extending her right hand:
"At least three cookies!"
Clearly just a combat-power-of-five weakling, yet you still want that many Magical Cookies—be careful not to break yourself!
While they spoke, cheers and applause like crashing mountain waves and tsunami roars had already erupted across the grand auditorium.
"Whoa, so amazing," Anon clapped along while leaning forward, her eyes sparkling brightly as she gazed toward the stage, "Once everyone stands on stage, the aura feels completely different."
"It really is much more imposing," Kitahara nodded in agreement, clapping along, "People who haven't experienced a live concert in person can hardly appreciate that kind of atmosphere capable of melting someone; in short... this victory is in the bag."
With songs written through wishing with the [Sticky Note], combined with the dream-world cultivation during this period, the four girls' performance on stage was truly flawless.
At this moment, as Kita's singing ignited the atmosphere, the entire grand auditorium never quieted down again.
After who knows how long, the performance finally reached its finale.
"Phew... phew..."
Hitori panted for breath, sweat dripping from her forehead. Watching the cheering sea of people below the stage, she suddenly remembered the band interview she had seen on TV in middle school; a line from that interview had now quietly turned into reality.
"Turns out the interview wasn't lying... even someone with social anxiety can shine brightly in a band..."
"Hitori, our performance was a massive success!"
A girl's crisp, bright shout rang beside her ear.
Hitori turned her head to see Nijika, Ryo, and Kita—all three girls walking over to her side with smiles.
Scum Ryo rarely wore a smile on her pretty face, raising her right hand to comb through her hair with her fingers: "Well, that was indeed a heartily delightful performance."
Kita, on the other hand, reached out her right hand, her eyes sparkling, showing not a single trace of exhaustion, raising her clenched right fist above her head:
"Let's maintain this momentum, and head straight for the Nippon Budokan in one go!"
"..."
Looking at the companions surrounding her, a bright smile finally bloomed across Hitori's small face:
"Everyone... thank you for your hard work!"
The curtain slowly drew shut. The four girls quickly returned backstage, only to find Kitahara already waiting there.
As for why Kitahara, an 'idle bystander', could come backstage... that was naturally the power of the Face-Face Fruit at work again.
The performance was mainly organized and managed by the Student Council; Kitahara had simply shown his face in front of the secretary lady and casually slipped right in.
"Thank you for your hard work, four teachers," Kitahara stepped forward, handing over a notebook, saying solemnly, "Please be sure to give me your autographs. I want to treasure them properly as family heirlooms, sealed away together with the video I just recorded, to be taken out only after the kids grow up in the future..."
"Phooey~"
Nijika spat softly, glaring over with a flushed face:
"There are other people around, Kitahara-kun, stop talking nonsense!"
Scum Ryo, looking completely nonchalant, stretched out her right hand: "That will be ten thousand yen, please."
Kitahara: "Sorry, ten thousand yen is too expensive."
Ryo: "Paying with your body works too, one thousand yen per time..."
"Kyaaaa!" Kita's face flushed crimson rapidly, "Ryo-senpai, stop saying weird things!"
"..."
After chatting for a couple of sentences, Kita was quickly surrounded by her friends, while Nijika and Ryo went to talk with Manager Seika, leaving only Hitori alone in no time.
"Hitori was incredible; you were truly shining on stage just now."
Kitahara looked down at her, not holding back his praise in the slightest.
"Ehehe~"
Hearing the praise she longed for, Hitori couldn't help letting out a smug, proud little expression, tilting her small face up as her peach-blossom eyes peeked through her bangs, gazing over with shimmering eyes:
"Everyone was amazing; if it were just me alone, I definitely wouldn't have been able to do anything."
"Hitori is far too modest," Kitahara smiled and looked at her, "Guitarhero-sensei is super popular online, with over thirty thousand followers—enough to fill two Tokyo Domes."
"D-Don't say that name..."
Hitori hurriedly glanced left and right with a guilty conscience, letting out a sigh of relief only after seeing that no one had overheard.
Being the online creator 'Guitarhero' was something she had kept secret for a super long time, so it felt increasingly embarrassing to talk about; she always felt it would be terribly awkward if everyone found out.
"Um... thank you, Kitahara-kun."
Hitori quickly changed the subject.
Curious, Kitahara asked: "Why are you thanking me all of a sudden, Hitori?"
"When signing up for the school festival live, if it weren't for Kitahara-kun, I definitely wouldn't have registered back then..." Hitori looked up at him, her large, round eyes sparkling, "It was all thanks to Kitahara-kun's encouragement that I mustered the courage to sign up."
Pausing, Hitori's face quietly flushed red, feeling too embarrassed to say the latter half of the sentence out loud after all.
(And... and the fact that I was so weak before, yet finally grew just a tiny bit, was all because I met Kitahara-kun and everyone...)
"Put that way, I truly do deserve some credit," Kitahara naturally wouldn't be falsely humble, merely smiling at Hitori, "Shouldn't Hitori give me a little reward?"
"Ah...?"
Hitori held her breath in nervousness, a bad premonition quickly welling up in her heart.
Lowering his voice, Kitahara said with burning eyes:
"I want to soak in the onsen alone with Hitori."
"..."
Hitori's small face instantly flushed crimson.
Soaking in the onsen alone was a pretense; wanting to take advantage of her was the real goal.
"Since Hitori isn't speaking, I'll take that as a yes," Kitahara smiled. "It's decided then—soaking in the onsen together tonight."
"N-No way...!" Hitori hurriedly shook her head in embarrassment. "L-Let's talk about it later."
With the performance successfully concluded, the heavy weight in her chest had finally been lifted. Everyone would surely celebrate together tonight; sneaking off to soak in the onsen alone would easily get discovered, wouldn't it?
Kitahara lowered his voice:
"Tomorrow then; tomorrow counts as later too."
Hitori: "..."
After chatting for a short while, the four girls left the backstage of the auditorium together, preparing to go out to eat, drink, and celebrate simply before returning to watch the performance by Sakiko and the others.
Kitahara did not follow along; instead, he walked over to the lounge on the other side and saw Soyo and the others who were currently resting and preparing.
Sakiko, Soyo, Tomori, Taki, and Mutsumi—all five girls were in position.
"There are super many guests watching the performance today, estimated to be close to a thousand," Kitahara gave a simple greeting and asked softly, "Are you guys feeling a bit nervous?"
Tomori nodded gently, placing her right hand over her chest:
"A little nervous."
"It can't be helped," Soyo's voice was gentle and pleasant. "Having never performed in front of so many people before, I'm feeling a bit nervous as well."
"A moderate amount of tension is actually a good thing," Sakiko crossed her arms over her chest and said softly, "Appropriate tension can help one focus better."
Standing beside Tomori, Taki seemed like a female bodyguard protecting Tomori:
"I believe the songs written by Tomori-chan will definitely be loved by everyone."
Mutsumi raised her right fist above her head, wearing a sweet smile:
"Let's cheer up, everyone; we can do this."
"..."
The girls exchanged glances, all showing subtle expressions.
The usually silent, emotionless little cucumber was now suddenly comforting others with a bright smile—it felt very off no matter how one looked at it.
"Mutsumi is very cheerful today," Soyo interlaced her fingers to prop up her chin, striking the classic commander pose. "Did you run into something happy?"
"I indeed encountered something very happy," Mutsumi's gaze shifted toward Kitahara, her eyes sparkling brightly. "I ran into Makoto-kun in the academy today."
"Eh?"
"With so many guests at the school festival, only through a special fate could one unexpectedly run into the boy they like, right?"
Mutsumi smiled sweetly, not hiding her affection in the slightest.
"That's true, but..."
Sakiko pursed her lips, looking up toward Kitahara with an inquiring gaze.
Kitahara shook his head gently, replying with his eyes:
Mutsumi is indeed acting strange; I'll ask the Book of Answers tomorrow.
Only the final question remained for today, which had to be saved for emergencies. Even if Mutsumi had developed a second personality, it wouldn't be too late to ask tomorrow.
"Alright then..."
Sakiko nodded slightly, indicating her understanding.
Yet for some reason, an inexplicable sense of unease quietly lingered in her heart.
"Shall we all eat little cucumbers together?"
Mutsumi produced six crisp, tender little cucumbers from who-knows-where, handing one to each person:
"After eating a cucumber, you won't be nervous anymore."
Kitahara took the cucumber and took a crisp bite with a crunch, asking casually as if completely unintended:
"Why does Mutsumi like little cucumbers so much?"
"Um..." Mutsumi tilted her head in thought, a sweet smile surfacing on her pretty face. "Probably because the very first fruit I ever ate was a cucumber, which is why I super like them."
Crunch.
Kitahara took another bite of the cucumber.
He remembered asking Mutsumi in the past why she loved cucumbers so much, and her answer back then had been that she didn't know.
Which meant... was the 'Mutsumi' in front of him truly her second personality?
After finishing the cucumbers, Kitahara continued chatting with the girls, and before they knew it, performance time had arrived.
"Do you need me to apply buffs for you?"
Kitahara asked softly, well aware of the importance of treating everyone equally.
"Um..."
Just as Sakiko was about to speak, Mutsumi cut in ahead of her.
"Completely unnecessary," Mutsumi flatly refused, resting her hands behind her back with a sweet smile. "Sakiko and everyone else are all super amazing; we don't need things like buffs at all, right?"
Sakiko frowned slightly, keenly sensing a fleeting burst of intense possessiveness from Mutsumi, and said softly:
"Having trained in the Dream World for so long, there won't be any problems with the performance."
Soyo said in a gentle voice:
"Shall everyone head to backstage first to prepare for the show?"
"It's about time," Tomori said softly. "We can indeed head over now."
Taki crossed her arms over her chest: "Let's go."
Kitahara nodded slightly:
"Good luck, everyone; I'll cheer for you from the audience."
"..."
After brief farewells, the five girls left the lounge together, each holding their instruments as they headed backstage to enter 'combat-ready' status.
Naturally, Sakiko and Taki were empty-handed; after all, whether it was a piano or a drum kit, none of them could be carried around, and the school would naturally provide dedicated instruments later.
"Makoto-kun, wait for me a moment..."
Mutsumi lingered at the very back, lightly standing on her tiptoes and completely disregarding others' gazes to plant a kiss on Kitahara's cheek.
(Wait a moment...)
(Just wait a little longer...)
(Soon I'll be able to monopolize Kitahara-kun's kisses...)
Kitahara left the lounge, turned around to head to the front audience seats, and returned to Anon's side.
"Boyfriend~"
Anon wrapped both arms around Kitahara's arm, swaying gently, looking over with an expectant face:
"There's something I need to ask of you."
"Speak properly," Kitahara looked toward the stage, unperturbed. "Don't force that cutesy voice."
"What the heck—you used to say you liked it, but now you say I'm forcing a cutesy voice." Anon bit her lower lip, her eyes filled with resentment. "As expected, once a boy gets his hands on a girl, he stops cherishing her, doesn't he?"
Who stopped cherishing who?
It's clearly your forced cutesy voice giving people goosebumps, alright!
The corner of Kitahara's mouth twitched slightly as he grasped Anon's soft hand:
"Come on, let's head to the Onsen Dimension and properly prove with my body how much I cherish Anon-chan."
"No way, the performance is starting right now," Anon hurriedly shook her head. "Boyfriend shouldn't have a head full of lewd thoughts; leave that sort of thing for later tonight."
Kitahara looked over speechlessly:
"What did Anon want to say just now?"
"It's Karin-chan," Anon held her hands together in front of her chest, looking over pitifully. "I was touring the school festival with Karin-chan earlier, and I couldn't resist showing off my record of pulling seven SSRs in a ten-pull, so Karin-chan asked me to help her pull gacha."
"And then... and then all the other friends found out too."
Kitahara understood: "Anon wants the Fox Spirit Mask?"
"And to wear the Pure White Bride too," Anon whispered into his ear. "Boyfriend has to go back to work in a bit, and I still want to keep touring the festival with friends; wearing the mask the whole time is too dangerous."
Kitahara said softly:
"What about changing clothes?"
"No worries, I already talked with Kita-chan," Anon quickly answered. "Kita-chan gave me the key to the club activity room. I can change into the wedding dress inside the room, pull the cards, and change right back, so it won't waste boyfriend's time."
"That works," Kitahara nodded lightly. "After the performance ends, I happen to need to go to the Comprehensive Building as well; we can head over together then."
"Great!" Anon thanked him happily. "Thank you, boyfriend."
"..."
While they were talking, the performance officially began.
Sakiko, Soyo, Tomori, Taki, Mutsumi... after a separation of a whole year, CRYCHIC finally stood upon the stage once more.
As expected, the song meticulously crafted and polished by the girls swiftly won endless cheers; inside the massive auditorium, thunderous applause resounded without ceasing.
Kitahara watched the performance quietly, and rather than going backstage right away, he left the auditorium together with Anon and headed to the Comprehensive Building.
Handing both the Fox Spirit Mask and Pure White Bride over to Anon, Kitahara turned toward the stairwell, climbing the steps, and soon reached the end of the stairs.
The iron door was locked, but that posed no obstacle to Kitahara at all; pushing open the window, he casually vaulted out of the stairwell and arrived on the roof of the Comprehensive Building.
If an ordinary person climbed up, they would only see scattered dust, but after unlocking [Supernatural Vision], Kitahara could clearly see a massive black rhombic crystal hovering in midair right in the middle of the rooftop...