It started with being hated by the girl in the band

"Well... I will go. By the way, Xiao Mu... the band is still short of a guitarist. Do you want to..."

"Ah."

Eh?

Seeing Wakaba Mutsu nodded in agreement before she had even finished speaking, Nagasaki Suyo just held the kitten in a daze.

Isn't it a bit too smooth...?

Clearly that day... Xiao Mu was the one who said, "I've never had fun playing in a band"?

"Meow?"

Xiaoju seemed to be confused as well, why Nagasaki Sushi, who was gently stroking the fur, suddenly stopped.

92

Chapter 92: Meet Hachiman Kailing again.

beep...beep...

Taking out his vibrating cell phone, Zhonghe Xin paused and gave an apologetic look to the two people beside him.

"Shiina? You've already arrived at RiNG? So fast!?"

"Yes, we are on our way. Yes, we will be there soon."

After gently pressing the red hang-up button, Nakagawa Nobuyuki sighed softly and looked at the girl who was looking at him curiously.

It is indeed different that Hanasakigawa missed a class. The three of them just came out of school not long ago, but Shiina Riki has already arrived at RiNG... This is too exaggerated.

"...Where were we talking about?"

Nakagawa Nobuyuki put his phone back into his pocket, frowned, and began to recall the topic they had just talked about.

"...I forgot, I think it was about a Babylonian prince or something?"

Chihaya Aine, who was walking side by side, blinked and touched her pink lips, looking a little uncertain.

"...It is the prince of the Acheronites."

As a result, it was Xiaodeng who listened attentively, lowered his head and replied softly, which gave Nakagawa Nobuyuki enough face.

Walking on the road leading to RiNG, the three of them were still chatting about some casual topics that were not very nutritious. This kind of daily routine was quite enough.

-

"So, you don't need to bring a musical instrument today."

In the lobby of RiNG, a cool girl with side bangs was carrying her large musical instrument case and looking at Shiina Tatsuki who was writing a note behind the counter.

"I told you so before..."

Shiina Riki showed a somewhat helpless expression, wrote a note with the recipe and steps on it, and stuck it behind the counter.

Although Nakagawa had worked in other coffee shops before and should be familiar with the making processes of some common drinks, Shiina Riki was worried that Nakagawa had never made some drinks before, so he wrote some notes and posted them behind the counter.

"Come to think of it, I also know a Zhonghe."

Putting the instrument case against the counter, Hachiman Kailing, who was leaning on the counter, seemed to suddenly remember something and spoke.

When Shiina Riki was making a phone call just now, Hachiman Kailing was also listening.

"No, no matter how I think about it, it's unlikely that he's alone, I think..."

Shiina Riki used the menu in his hand to match the contents on the note in front of him, and subconsciously imitated Nakagawa Nobuyuki's tone to complain.

But it is not necessarily true, after all, Nakagawa and Nakagawa are both pronounced [なかがわ].

Hachiman Kailing crossed her arms and raised her eyebrows, as if she had heard this classic tone of complaint somewhere before.

At this moment, the door rang.

"welcome--"

Shiina Riki didn't look up, still busy writing the note, he just replied casually.

Only at this time can I find that RiNG's menu options are really many...

"Good afternoon, I wonder if this is Nobuyuki from Nakagawa."

Suddenly, I heard Hachiman Kailing on the side greet Nakagawa Nobuo calmly, and even had the leisure to make a big joke.

Well, it seems that Zhonghe and the others are moving pretty fast...

and many more?

Shiina Rikki immediately looked up and saw Hachiman Kailing greeting Nakagawa Nobuyuki who was standing at the door with a normal expression on his face.

"No, there are still a few Zhonghes left. I said..."

Nakagawa Nobuyuki complained subconsciously, but he didn't know if it was an illusion or something, but he seemed to see a look of suppressed laughter in Hachiman Kailing's eyes.

"But speaking of which, good afternoon, Hailing-san. Are there any performances at RiNG today?"

Although Nakagawa Nobuyuki felt strange, he did not show it. After all, he was a Bess mercenary, and it was not strange for him to appear in RiNG. So he reacted in time and raised his hand to greet him.

"No, but Lixi dragged me here."

As she spoke, Hachiman Kailing looked at Shiina Tatsuki, who was a little dazed, with a look of inexplicable ridicule.

"..."

After blinking, Shiina Riki immediately turned his head to look at Nakagawa Nobuyuki who was helping Chihaya Aine unload her guitar not far away.

(How did you get to know Hailing?)

Nakagawa Nobuyuki also shrugged and gave an innocent look in return.

(Then I didn’t know that Hailing and you knew each other?)

Looking at Nakagawa Nobuyuki's innocent look, Shiina Riki crossed his arms and snorted coldly.

(I’ll let you go for now and talk about this after we finish practicing today.)

Looking at the two people in front of her who were communicating with their eyes, Hachiman Kailing couldn't help but feel amused.

"...Since you are here, you should first familiarize yourself with the music you are going to practice this time. I have already sent it to the group."

"We can just wait until Sushi and the others arrive and then we can start practicing."

Shiina Riki didn't say much, he just leaned over the counter and looked at Chihaya Aine and Xiao Deng who had just put on their guitars, his expression serious.

"Nakagawa, I'll leave the counter to you... The notes above were left by our predecessors. If you don't know how to do it, just follow the instructions."

He didn't say that the note was written by himself. Shiina Riki just felt that if he said this, it would be a bit weird to talk to Nakagawa later...

It seems like I really care about him working part-time as his replacement, and I always feel like I am inferior to him.

After saying that, Shiina Riki turned his head and looked at Nakagawa Nobuyuki, who was having a fierce staring contest with the wide-eyed Hachiman Kailing, and carefully arranged for Nakagawa Nobuyuki to take over the shift.

"Rinrinko-senpai, I'm counting on you."

“No problem~”

Listening to these arrangements, the little pink-haired girl on the side became more and more confused.

“Well, well—”

Chihaya Aine waved her hand, and when she saw everyone looking at her, she looked curiously at Hachiman Kairin who was wearing the Hanasakigawa school uniform.

"Rikki, so... why did Hailing come here today...?"

Hearing this, Xiao Deng also raised his eyes and looked at Hachiman Kailing, who had just lost the staring contest with Nakagawa Nobuyuki, with the same curious look.

I don’t know if it was to maintain her cool sister persona or if she had simply stopped laughing, but when she saw everyone’s attention shifted to her, the smile on Hachiman Kailing’s face suddenly disappeared.

"For the sake of continuity in practice this time, if there are any questions, Hailing will tell us after the performance."

Shiina Riki crossed his arms and looked at Hachiman Kailing who had become serious as he spoke.

"Good afternoon everyone, Hachiman Hailing, you can just call me Hailing."

Compared to the somewhat informal look when she greeted Nakagawa Nobuyuki, the current Hachiman Kailing was much more formal. She introduced herself to Chihaya Aine and Takamatsu Deng who were present with a serious face.

"My name is Chihaya Aine. Since you're Rikki's friend, just call me Aine~"

The little pink-haired boy showed a bright smile, and his little tiger teeth were still shining.

"Tōng Tōng... just call me Tōng."

Takamatsu Deng looked at Hachiman Kailing, who had an extremely strong band aura, with a bit of timidity, and whispered.

93

Chapter 93 RiNG and the Ending Band?

The door clicked softly.

"Sorry, sorry... I was delayed a little on the way..."

A familiar soft voice came from my ears.

Nagasaki Motoyo clasped her hands together with an apologetic look on her face, and under the surprised gaze of Shiina Riki with a frown on her brow, she bowed slightly and apologized softly to everyone present.

"Well, now that everyone is here, shall we start practicing?"

It seemed that she did not feel the strange look from Shiina Riki. Nagasaki Suyo, with her hands clasped together, still smiled and looked at Takamatsu Deng who also seemed to be hesitant to say something.

What was the reason that caused the originally relaxed atmosphere to suddenly become stagnant and weird?

…It was like a noisy classroom suddenly became quiet for some unknown reason.

Yeah, why?

Nakagawa Nobuyuki and Chihaya Aine, who were sitting together, looked at each other in confusion and could see the confusion in each other's eyes.

"..."

Wakaba Mutsu, who was following behind Nagasaki Suyo, remained silent with her brows lowered, as if she had already sensed such a piercing gaze. Her fair and slender fingers gently pinched the strap of the small bag in her hand, and her fingernails turned a little white.

It's probably like everyone doesn't want the strict head teacher to suddenly appear in the noisy class where everyone is chatting. If he appears, everyone will suddenly shut up and remind each other in silence.

Mutual, perhaps, does not belong to this new and unknown band?

"Mu..."

Gao Songdeng bit his thin lips and rubbed the corner of his school uniform helplessly. He seemed to have remembered something bad and his breathing became a little difficult.

"...Light, let's go practice."

As if he didn't notice Wakaba Mutsu standing aside, Shiina Riki stared coldly at Nagasaki Suyo who had a gentle smile on her face, and immediately turned around and walked out of the counter, pulled up Takamatsu Deng who was a little dazed, and walked towards the practice room without looking back.

“…Huh? Rikki, wait for me——Why are you ignoring me?!”

Chihaya Aine, who was putting a Band-Aid on her finger, looked at Shiina Riki walking away, and immediately stood up from the seat next to Nakagawa Nobuyuki in a hurry and put on the guitar strap.

"Really...see you after practice, Xinxin!"

Chihaya Aion stomped her feet angrily, but seeing that Shiina Tatsuki had no intention of looking back, she turned around and took the cherry pink triangular pick from Nakagawa Nobuyuki's hand, waved her hand, and trotted to catch up with Shiina Tatsuki in front of her.

Now, the only ones left were Nakagawa Nobuyuki, who was looking at this strange atmosphere with a subtle expression, Nagasaki Motoyo, who was slowly changing the bass bag in his hand, and Wakaba Mutsu, who stood in the hall without saying a word, with his head slightly lowered, like a puppet.

"Ah... Good afternoon, Nakagawa-san. Are you used to working part-time at RiNG?"

Nagasaki Suyo crossed her fingers, gently placed them in front of her body, and rubbed them slowly, still with her signature refreshing smile, looking at Nakagawa Nobuyuki who was frowning slightly.

"…It's OK, just like working in a normal cafe."

Although Nakagawa Shinnosuke was somewhat concerned about Wakaba Mutsu who seemed a little disappointed in front of him, he still politely answered Nagasaki Suyo's words casually.

He was particularly sensitive to this kind of awkward atmosphere, and seemed to feel that everyone was vaguely excluding Ruoye Mu... No, it can't be said to be exclusion, it should be said to be the kind of awkward feeling of "not knowing how to face it", right?

"…Mu-san, Mu-san?"

Thinking of this, Nakagawa Nobuyuki, who felt a little serious, decided to start with himself.

"……Yes."

Ruo Ye Mu responded in a low voice, his green hair drooping slightly, and his eyes, which could not be raised, could only fall on the ground. After hearing Zhonghe Xin's voice, he timidly raised his eyes and looked at Zhonghe Xin.

Her pink lips were tightly pursed, and her expression was still as calm as usual, but she made people feel indescribable discomfort and depression.

"…Mr. Mu, what happened—"