I, the mastermind behind the scenes at Soubu High, refuse to be caught in a bloodbath.

"How long have I slept?"

"About ten minutes... I was still talking and you fell asleep, how rude of me." Kazusa's gaze was a little evasive. Himekoji rubbed her temples, stood up, brushed off the grass clinging to her back, and reached out to Kazusa. She took her hand, and in doing so, she also brushed off the grass dust on her clothes, and said goodbye, "Well then, you go ahead with your business, see you tonight."

Himekoji stood on the gentle slope, watching Kazusa's departing figure, and casually ran her fingers through her white hair.

I feel like there's a slight lip glossy texture at the corners of my lips, but it's not very clear. Oh well.

The second day of the cultural festival also ended without much fanfare. Finally, the third day arrived. Before the closing ceremony, there was one last event: performances by various groups. Of course, Himekoji's Light Music Club was one of them, and they were in charge of closing the event. Before them, Hayama Hayato's group took the stage. They were also a band.

However, before that, Himekoji and Kazusa must first mediate the conflict between the two mothers.

"A perpetual dwarf!"

Yoko cursed breathlessly, her chest heaving, clearly very angry.

"Big-mouthed female gorilla!"

Not to be outdone, Ji Xiaolu's mother lowered her eyelids and stuck out her tongue, making a face at Yaozi.

"What did you say?! I'll rip that worthless thing off you!"

Enraged, Yoko nearly pounced on Himeko's mother, while Kazusa desperately tried to stop her. Himeko, meanwhile, was also trying to keep her mother at bay. It was Himeko who first spotted Yoko, then took off her high heels and hurled them at her, hitting Yoko on the back. Yoko then threw her handbag, and a fierce battle erupted within the academy grounds. Fortunately, Himeko's mother had brought enough people with her, and the security personnel surrounded the four of them, leaving the situation to Himeko and Kazusa.

Of course, since it's a school, people in the classrooms could still see everything clearly through the windows. Thanks to this, the school's news department took many photos that were enough to cause a big news story. However, they will probably delete these photos soon under Himekoji's tyranny.

"Long-haired old hag!"

Having dodged another shoe thrown at her face by Himekoji's mother, Yoko continued cursing.

"Short-haired little slut!"

"ha—?"

When her sore spot was pointed out, Yaozi's face became somewhat ferocious.

"ah--??"

Ji Xiaolu's mother stepped barefoot onto the stone pavement, taking a step forward as if she were about to engage in a hand-to-hand fight with her fists and nails.

The two were evenly matched, neither willing to give in. In the end, Ji Xiaolu simply picked up his mother in a princess carry and ran away. As a result, she cried and pounded on Ji Xiaolu's chest, begging him to go back, saying that she hadn't had enough of scolding him and wanted to continue scolding him.

"Ha—, ha—, that damned little bastard."

With Kazusa's help, Yoko, who had been rubbing her temples and pressing her forehead, finally entered the venue. By then, there were almost no seats left. Soon, Himeko's mother also came in, looked around, and sat down next to Yoko.

"Humph!"

Both of them crossed their arms and turned their heads away, playing a game of "ignoring each other" like elementary school students, thus establishing a temporary truce.

Himekoji and Kazusa, who were standing next to him, couldn't help but twitch at the corners of their mouths. In the end, it was Yukinoshita's voice through her earpiece that called Himekoji and Kazusa backstage.

"Ugh... Oh no, I'm starting to get nervous."

Miura had her head down, her face pale; it seemed she had also joined Hayama's performance. The other band members were also warming up. Hayama was strumming an electric guitar without a cord, Tobe was waving drumsticks in the air as if he were playing the drums, Yamato was holding his bass without moving, and Ooka was intently watching the keyboardist on stage.

As their turn to go on stage approached, they were all incredibly nervous, except for Hayama, who appeared completely at ease. Hobu kept shaking his head, the movements even more pronounced than the drumsticks in his hands.

Besides the performers who were about to take the stage, there were other people wandering around.

"Hmm~ The drinks they drink on stage... Ah, it would be easier to drink them if they had straws."

"Yui, at times like this, you can use scissors to poke a hole in the bottle cap, then turn it to make the hole bigger and insert the straw."

"Wow, Himeko, you're amazing!"

Are you the orchestra managers? It's so leisurely to have nothing to do.

"Snow Vegetable, would you like some drinks?"

Kitahara Haruki, who was in charge of playing the mixed accompaniment, handed the drink bottle to Setsuna, who had changed into her performance outfit. At that moment, she looked like Snow White, wearing a snow-white dress, white stockings and white boots, and even her hair accessories were pure white, like a winter fairy.

As for Kazusa, who was standing next to Himekoji, she changed into a performance outfit with black as the main color and blue as the secondary color, which had a punk style. The outfit was mostly made of leather, and she even wore a cute police officer's hat. Although it was a bit revealing, she had worn formal dresses many times before, so she barely accepted it, except for a few complaints.

Himekoji and Iizuka didn't change into any performance outfits; they were just wearing their school uniforms.

"Kogiso, are you alright? Performing in front of so many people dressed like this is so shameful."

Feeling that the shoulder strap on her left shoulder was about to fall off, Kazusa shook herself slightly and frowned as she prepared to pull it up. Himekoji helped her lift it and put it back on her shoulder.

Author's Note:

P.S.: The sensitive word system is driving me crazy.

Chapter 210 Rambling Thoughts, [Hiratsuka Shizuka] Feeling Despair

"When I decided to stand on the stage, I already had a certain level of awareness."

She had just declined Kitahara's suggestion to drink water, and gently pressed her hands to her chest, smiling with her eyes closed.

"Ah, Hayato, it's your turn to get ready. You're next."

A staff member backstage waved the program in their direction. Normally, the boys in Hayama Hayato's group would definitely be mesmerized by Kazusa and Setsuna's outfits, but since they were about to perform on stage, they were all too nervous to appreciate the sight. Kitahara, on the other hand, kept looking around, which annoyed Kazusa, who said, "Kitahara, if you keep glancing around like that, I'm going to kick you."

"Ahem, sorry, sorry, this outfit just suits you so well, I didn't realize it..."

Kitahara scratched his head and quickly waved his hand, but Iizuka immediately grabbed his neck and pulled him to the other side, secretly pointing at Himekoji and whispering something to him.

Hmm, as expected, Takeya Iizuka is quite perceptive.

"Well, that's just how guys are, there's nothing we can do about it, Touma, you'd better not mind."

Mizusawa Iori shook her head, shrugged, and smiled helplessly.

"When I saw this outfit, I already had a certain understanding of what it meant."

Kazusa adjusted the shoulder strap again, feeling that it might suddenly fall off during the performance.

"It's a pity that I didn't get a chance to perform during the first song."

After Iizuka warned Kitahara about something, he turned around and shrugged.

“There’s no way we can replace you as the guitarist for the first song,” Kazusa said, pointing to the saxophone on the shelf. “Besides, you don’t know how to play this, let alone how to play the piano.”

"So it seems like we ordinary people will never have a chance to get ahead, sigh—"

Iizuka clutched his head and groaned softly, his comical antics causing several people backstage to chuckle quietly.

"Kebu, Ooka, Yamato, they're gone. Get ready to stand by."

After laughing, Miura tapped each of them on the head and strode towards the stage. The three behind him complained, "Really?", "Oh my god!", "Stop kidding me!", but still obediently followed.

As soon as the four people took their positions on stage, the personnel coordination team got busy, confirming each other's tasks again.

"Well then, everyone please prepare yourselves well. President, I'm going up now."

Hayama waved to Himekoji, picked up his electric guitar, and stepped onto the stairs.

“You’re quite capable, aren’t you?” At that moment, Hiratsuka Shizuka walked up from the other end of the stage. She went straight to Himekoji, patted him on the shoulder and said, “I thought you weren’t interested in participating in this kind of event.”

"There's nothing I can do. My mother wants to see me perform on stage, so I have to go whether I want to or not."

"Phew—, I'm pretty much the same way."

Kazusa shrugged, looking helpless.

“Your mothers caused quite a commotion in the courtyard just now, and thanks to that, the security department is running around like crazy.” Hiratsuka Shizuka rubbed her temples, muttering to herself, “And I was even called over to do a lot of work, saying, ‘This is a job for young people.’ Ah, I am a young person, that’s right, I am a young person.”

She was muttering to herself as if she were hypnotizing herself, and the others present couldn't help but smirk.

"Touma's mother... isn't she Touma Yoko, who has been shining brightly in France for the past three years?!"

Kitahara's eyes widened; he hadn't expected Kazusa's mother to come to their school at this time.

“Even earlier, this guy’s mother had already made a name for herself in France,” Kazusa said, pointing at Himekoji and making a →_→ face. “That’s probably when she was raising him. That’s why his mother was so amazing. My mother was only good at the piano.”

"..." Hiratsuka Shizuka was speechless for a moment, then suddenly lowered her head as if she had been hit hard on the back of the head with an air hammer. She muttered resentfully, "Thirty years old... and my son will be seventeen... thirty years old... and my son will be seventeen..."

"Hahahaha..."

Himekoji chuckled dryly and helped Hiratsuka Shizuka to sit down. She looked like she was about to cry.

I can't let Hiratsuka Shizuka cry again, at least not in front of me, that's what we agreed on.

About fifteen minutes later, the Hayama Hayato group finished their performance. As he came down, he and Himekoji high-fived each other, and Yumiko also gave blessings to Himekoji, Kazusa, and Yukina. After thanking them in turn, under the cover of darkness, Himekoji, Kazusa, and Yukina stepped onto the stage together.

The musical instruments were quickly moved over, but the drum set was left there as it was not very convenient to set up, unlike the electronic keyboard.

The stage lights up, spotlights illuminate the three figures, and the accompaniment and instrumental music begin simultaneously. Setsuna stands between the two, gently tapping the floor with her boots, keeping track of the rhythm and beat.

The venue was packed with people. The limited seats had long been taken, and the remaining students and visitors had to stand and squeeze together, their heads jostling as they stood on tiptoe to get a better look.

The combination of Ogiso Setsuna, known as a school idol, and Himekoji Haruto, who is also a popular figure, is something that every student at Soubu High School wants to see. Moreover, most people here don't know that Himekoji can play the guitar; they only know him as the powerful student council president.

"すれviolationうeverydayが嗗えてゆくけれど..."

With the drumbeats perfectly timed, Setsuna tilted her head slightly and sang in her sweet voice. Combined with Himekoji and Kazusa's perfect coordination, the audience immediately erupted in cheers to support them.

Although "White Album" is an extremely old song, it doesn't matter now that these three have such great chemistry.

Below the stage, Kasumigaoka, who had already found a good spot to watch, silently observed him, humming along with Setsuna's rhythm to the song "White Album".

My memories gradually drifted back to my third year of junior high school, and I recalled the pianist in the bar called Misteri, with his long, slender fingers, who confidently played this piece.

However, the pianist now plays a guitar instead of a piano, and the person playing this piece with the same deep emotion is his childhood friend, Touma Kazusa.

Seriously, I'm so envious of you, Kazusa.

"The rehearsal effect and the actual effect are indeed very different."

Hikigaya stood beside Yukinoshita behind the scenes. He noticed that Yukinoshita was also staring intently at the performance on stage. Although he couldn't see the whole thing from the side, she was still completely focused.

Chapter 211 is quite interesting; the relationship between the two women is complicated.

Himeko noticed her mother's starry gaze, nodded and smiled back. Beside her, Yoko gave her daughter Kazusa an encouraging look, but she didn't seem to notice. So Yoko gave her a wink.

It seems her mother found out and gave her an elbow, causing Yaozi's expression to immediately turn as if she was about to vomit.

The two then started arguing backstage. Seriously, can you guys grow up a bit more?

"...アルバムの白を全buriedめてしまおう"

When Kazusa switched from the electronic keyboard to the saxophone, the entire audience erupted in cheers once again.

After the song ended, amidst the cheers, Kazusa winked at Himekoji. This subtle gesture was caught by Yoko-nee, who rubbed her forehead and muttered something uncomfortably. Himekoji's mother even asked her about it with concern.