Every day since forming the band had been exhausting.
Soyo had to juggle her studies alongside the core work of keeping the band running — and yet every single busy minute of it made her genuinely happy.
She relished the effort, because she understood clearly that what she stood to gain would far outweigh the sweat she poured in.
"Hmm, hmm, hmm~"
Rehearsals. Taking the stage. Proving herself.
Nagasaki Soyo had always carried a quiet unease. She treasured every second she spent with Chiose, yet was constantly, painfully aware that she had never given Yoshiiro Chiose anything in return.
That was, until she heard Chiose's mama tell her stories about her younger days.
At the Hane-oka Music Festival all those years ago, Chiose's mama had led her group to challenge the best Hane-oka had to offer — and lost, walking away with nothing but regret.
Soyo conjured the image of Yoshiiro Chiose slumped in a chair, sobbing, and the picture burned itself into her memory forever.
In that moment, she thought: if she could ever become a band girl, she would win everything there was to win.
And now, right in front of her, was the chance to take the stage with her bandmates. She had to ask herself — could this be the only chance she'd ever get in her entire life?
To restore the glory of a bassist — Nagasaki Soyo would stop at nothing.
To make the best music she could, to move her mother, to make her proud... Soyo looked forward to earning her mother's praise after she succeeded.
She was rarely encouraged. Encouragement from someone older was rarer still.
Just imagining how Yoshiiro Chiose would praise her sent a little thrill sparkling through her chest.
Nagasaki Soyo squinted contentedly and kept walking toward Ring, where the band usually rehearsed.
"Chiose-mama?"
"Yes, I'm right here, my sweet girl."
Hm? Wait — that voice, it's so familiar... Is that—?
A bad feeling welled up in Soyo's chest. She opened her eyes wide, her deep blue gaze stretching open.
She saw it clearly now.
Not far away, among the people on the street, two figures were holding each other. They were calling each other by the names of mother and daughter.
One of them was Sakiko Togawa. And the other was...
"Mama?"
Huh? That's not right.
There were no words for what she was feeling. Nagasaki Soyo's legs went weak beneath her.
They — what were they doing?
[Was Sakiko trying to steal my mother?]
No, that couldn't be it... Why would that thought even cross my mind? How ridiculous.
[But what if it was?]
Soyo bit down on her lip and kept moving forward, but as she drew closer to the two of them, her feet refused to take another step.
But... what if?
Sakiko had said her own mother hadn't been well lately. Maybe she was looking to find a little maternal warmth somewhere else...
"Ah — that's horrible of me. What am I even thinking?"
A tangle of thoughts, knotted past all reason, began tearing at each other inside her head. Soyo couldn't bear the pressure that came bearing down from her own mind.
She spotted an alleyway not far off. She turned and sprinted straight for it.
Sakiko Togawa. Yoshiiro Chiose. Mama. Mother. Classmate. Best friend. Bandmate.
Why did every one of these words, words that should have felt so warm and right, carry such a strange, sour tint now?
Soyo realised the thoughts swirling inside her head were making even herself feel sick — and yet for the first time... no, she had lost count of how many times this had happened now. The feeling of someone trying to take her mother away from her was genuinely awful every single time.
She pressed her back against the wall of a building. Grey dust smeared across her back, though she didn't notice at all.
"Why are you calling my mama 'mama'? Don't you have a mother of your own?"
I worked so hard to find a mama for myself, and now you want to take her from me too... You seemed like such a good person at first.
Sakiko Togawa... Sakiko Togawa... Wait!
Nagasaki Soyo suddenly thought of something.
A face rose up in her mind — a face that had once been familiar, a face she no longer had any contact with.
"Sakiko Togawa... isn't she just like Haizuka Kyoumoto was? At first she seemed so wonderful, and then she started to..."
Started trying to take what was beautiful and make it her own.
The moment Soyo thought of the trap that Haizuka Kyoumoto and Niiharu had set for her, a cold dread crept over her.
[So... is Sakiko the same kind of person? Maybe she set out from the very beginning to steal my mama away from me? No — wait, no... did she?]
It seemed she couldn't stay in this band too long either. If she could help it:
"Once the performance is over, I'm leaving. I only joined to prove something to my mother."
Soyo clenched her fist, her eyes hardening with absolute resolve.
"If Little Sakiko wants to steal my mama, then I'll just have to prove to mama that I'm the one most worthy of her love!"
Soyo undid her hair, rebraided it into the same style of plait that Chiose wore, and then walked away from Little Sakiko with her head held high.
She was going to Ring. She was going to wring every last drop of value out of Crychic while she still could.
And then, once she had her mother's approval, she would decide whether to throw Crychic in the rubbish bin.
Her resolve was full to the brim once again, and even the outline of her retreating figure radiated something unmistakably, stubbornly Nagasaki Soyo.
After she left, two sets of footsteps sounded from the darkness at the far end of the alley.
"Ha, didn't I tell you my little girl is so easy to manipulate? Though I still want to scold you a little — look what you pulled before. You've given her a bit of a PTSD, haven't you."
"Effective, wasn't it? Go ahead and enjoy yourself. Once the Lifespan Marks tally up, you'll get to rest for a few days. Little Chiose."
"Hehe, true enough — and school starts up again right after, so you know I'll be..."
Chiose and the System walked side by side, not giving a second thought to anything they had done.
After all, none of it was real. Games were meant to be fun.
Twisting the knife? Fine by her. Who on earth would cry over something like this?
There might be sadness — but the moment Yoshiiro Chiose thought of the rest days waiting just around the corner, she couldn't help but feel like saying "hell yes."
As Chiose and the System ambled out of the alley with nothing better to do, she found herself turning her head in the direction of Ring.
"Little Soyo — let's see how much of what I've taught you actually sticks. Though honestly, you're still just too young."
Too young and too pitiable. What kind of mess are you going to make of your own little happiness, Soyo?
Ring. The rehearsal room.
Sakiko had only just arrived, but there were only three people inside.
"Little Mutsumi? Has Soyo shown up?"
Sakiko Togawa looked around the room and couldn't find their bassist, Nagasaki Soyo.
No idea.
Wakaba Mutsumi gave a polite little shake of her head — though the movement was so small it was almost impossible to tell she'd moved at all.
"Strange — normally Soyo's the first one here. Maybe I should call and check..."
"No need. I'm here."
Sakiko's words had barely left her lips when a figure pushed open the door and walked in.
"Oh, Soyo! Good afternoon."
Sakiko Togawa sensed that something was off about the Soyo standing before her, though she couldn't put her finger on exactly what.
She greeted her as she always did — but this time, Nagasaki Soyo didn't respond.
"I say we start rehearsing. We're almost out of time before the show."
Soyo closed the rehearsal room door behind her. Her smile was calm — still as a stagnant pool.
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