After dropping out of school, I chose to join a girls' band.

A faint blush appeared on Ai Yin's face, and she lowered her head, seemingly trying to hide her shyness.

Her fingers twisted the hem of her clothes slightly as she muttered, "I'm not that important... Didn't Su Shi say she doesn't need me?"

Yue had never felt her brain working so fast before. When Aine said Su Shi's name, she sensed something was wrong. She quickly organized her thoughts, searching for a way to explain Su Shi's behavior.

"No... When Su Shi said she didn't need Aine, she meant that she didn't need Aine in the band Crychic anymore, but in a band like ours now, Aine is absolutely indispensable!"

She finished reciting the entire long passage in one breath, then let out a long breath, using the pause to ease her earlier tension.

"Pfft... No need to be so nervous. Actually, I already figured out what Su Shi said that very night. What's really bothering me is..."

Aine paused for a moment, hesitating whether or not she should reveal her entire past.

"Actually... my former classmates found out about my failure in studying in the UK..." Aine's voice became low, and her gaze returned to the ground.

"Um...actually...we already know." Yue's face showed a hint of embarrassment, her fingers unconsciously rubbing the ends of her hair. Her voice was cautious, worried that she might say something wrong and make Aine feel even worse.

A hint of surprise flashed in Ai-yin's eyes, but she quickly realized who had told them.

Then she gave a wry smile: "So you all knew? Was it Nana-senpai?"

“Hmm…” Yue nodded. “But Aine-chan, don’t blame Nana-senpai. She was just worried about you.”

"Of course I know... To be precise, I know the right thing to do most of the time, including the matter of studying in the UK..."

“Ai-yin…”

Yue looked at Aine without saying much, simply waiting for her to continue. At this moment, all she needed to do was be a quiet listener.

"Nana-senpai should have told you that the reason I left England and returned to Japan was because of language problems, right?"

"Yes." Yue nodded in confirmation.

"But... actually, Nana-senpai's English is even worse than mine..."

Aine remembered that after having dinner with Nana Oba and Hikaru Kagura in England, Nana Oba-senpai seemed to have received a phone call from her classmate and spoke in that English.

If her English level is 75 points, then Nana Ohba's English level is probably only 40 points.

She thought about it for a long time but still couldn't figure out why Nana Ohba's greeting on the phone was "hey guys".

Although Nana Oba later explained that she originally wanted to show off her English skills in front of Aine, she couldn't think of any special words and forgot the way she originally remembered to greet her.

"Since Nana-senpai's English level is good enough to continue her studies in England, I'm sure I can stay in England too if I work hard..."

"Even though I already knew the truth at the time, and I still wanted to make changes, I chose to escape and return to Japan."

"Perhaps it's because I'm vain..." Ai Yin's voice carried a hint of self-mockery, her eyes dimmed as if she were reflecting on her past.

“Even if I could stay in England like Nana-senpai, I wouldn’t be the center of attention like I was in junior high school… So in the end I chose to return to Japan… At least I can relax a lot here.”

Aiyin glanced at Yue apologetically and said somewhat embarrassedly, "Actually, the reason why you and Yue, and Xiaodeng became friends in the first place was also for this purpose... Later, when we wanted to form a band, it was because we wanted to stand out on stage."

Yue waved her hand to indicate that she didn't care about the matter at all. "Xiao Deng may not be able to sense Aine's purpose, but I already knew when Aine came to us. I don't care about this kind of thing at all."

Yue stepped forward, reached out and gently took Aine's hand; the warm touch brought Aine a sense of comfort.

She smiled and said, "And didn't Aine practice guitar very hard later on for the band's performance? Aine is actually very dazzling on stage! She's already the focus of everyone's attention!"

Aine lowered her head, her ears slightly red, looking somewhat lost. Her hand trembled slightly in Yue's grasp as she whispered, "Yue... you don't need to comfort me anymore. Everything I did was just to satisfy my own vanity. I'm not worthy of being called Shining at all..."

When the Performance Begins: Chapter 106 That Band (Part 1)

After school that day, those who weren't participating didn't need to rehearse, and the atmosphere in the classroom was somewhat quiet. Aine picked up her schoolbag, a smile as always on her face, gave a brief greeting to everyone, and then got up and left the classroom.

"Goodbye everyone, see you tomorrow." Her voice remained gentle and calm, as if her conversation with Yue had never happened.

Xiaodeng watched Aiyin's departing figure, a hint of worry flashing in her eyes. She slightly opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but hesitated when the words reached her lips.

Just then, Yue's hand landed on Xiaodeng's shoulder.

"Little Lamp, leave it to me," Yue said softly. "I will definitely make Aine recover."

Takamatsu looked at the moon and nodded. "I'll leave Aine in your care, Moon."

The students in the classroom were all packing their bags to leave, but their eyes kept glancing at Yue and Xiaodeng.

After packing her things, Yue quickly left the classroom and headed towards Aine's house.

The air was filled with the tranquility of school after class. The number of pedestrians on the road gradually decreased, and the afterglow of the setting sun shone on the street, lengthening the shadow of the moon.

However, when Yue finally arrived at Aine's doorstep, Aine was nowhere to be seen. She rang the doorbell, and Aine's mother opened the door with a warm smile on her face.

"Oh...you're that...Tsuki-chan from yesterday?"

"Hello Auntie, is Aiyin home?" Yue asked tentatively.

Aine's mother shook her head. "No, Aine hasn't come back yet."

"Aine-chan didn't go home? Where did she go?"

Light's original plan to block Aine at the door and launch Revue thus ended in failure.

She stood at the door of Aine's house, her mind filled with questions and anxiety. "Aine-chan didn't come home? Where did that other spirit go?"

Aine's mother said gently, "Xiaoyue, would you like to come in and wait for Aine to come back?"

Tsuki shook her head, declining Aunt Chihaya's invitation. "No need, Auntie, thank you. I'll look around elsewhere."

----------

If Yue and Li hope contact each other, they can find out Aine's location.

At this moment, Aine is inside the Ring, and Shiina Tatsuki is looking helplessly at Chihaya Aine, who is drinking black tea and eating bread.

She sat at the bar, surrounded by the lively atmosphere unique to live houses. Band members around her were preparing for the evening's performance, and the sounds of them tuning their instruments rose and fell.

As Aine sipped her black tea elegantly and savored the bread in her hand, her relaxed and contented expression contrasted sharply with the busy environment around her.

Shiina Tatsuki, watching Chihaya Aine's behavior, remarked, "This is a live house, not some dessert shop..."

Aine smiled slightly, looked up at Riki, and said with a hint of playfulness in her eyes, "But the black tea that Riki brewed is really delicious, and the bread that Saya-senpai made is also very tasty."

When Saya, who was passing by, heard Aine's words, she smiled and said to Ritsuki, "Ritsuki-chan, if Aine-chan likes it, let her eat here. We can't turn away a customer."

“…Senior Saya is just too soft-hearted.”

Seeing that even Saya Yamabuki was siding with Aine, Tatsuki Shiina could only sigh helplessly.

She couldn't understand how Aine, who looked so dejected yesterday, had suddenly become so "energetic" today.

"You...you didn't come to Ring today just to eat, did you?"

After Saya-senpai left, Riki finally found an opportunity to approach Aine and ask her a question.

Ai Yin took a bite of bread, chewing gently, a mischievous and satisfied glint in her eyes. "Can't I?"

"...This is infuriating..." Looking at Aine's mischievous eyes, Shiina Ritsuki felt his anger level soaring.

Seeing that Shiina Riki would probably get angry if she teased her any further, Aine stopped teasing her and comforted Shiina Riki.

"Alright, alright, Lixi-chan, I came to Ring to watch the show, of course. There's a really famous band coming to perform here today."

"Huh...? Ah..."

Shiina Tatsuki then remembered that there was indeed a nameless band performing today, and many audience members seemed to have come specifically for that band. However, the band hadn't registered their name, so she didn't have a particularly strong impression of them.

After all, Ling@Mengyi⊙Yiqi4wu!Jiusi*Gjiu is now in the so-called era of big girl bands. There are many bands that are formed every day, and even more that disband. Every day, there are many bands that want to perform in live houses.

However, it is rare to find a band that has already gained some fame but still hasn't decided on a name.

"What's so appealing about this band that you'd make a special trip to see their show...?"

After learning the purpose of Aine's visit to the live house, Shiina Tatsuki gradually calmed down and began to question Aine.

"It's probably because people say they're particularly dazzling and have a strong rock 'n' roll spirit..."

At this point, Ai Yin picked up her teacup and took a sip of black tea.

She still couldn't figure out what the existence called "shining" really was, so Aine decided to go and watch the performances of those bands that were called "shining" to see if she could get some inspiration from them.

"Ah... rock and roll..."

Lixi recalled that when the band came to discuss the performance, the lead singer was arguing with the drummer and even questioning the guitarist on the spot.

To paraphrase something she recently learned on Twitter, the lead singer and guitarist were so close back then that they were either about to kiss or fight.

Although Lixi had seen many bands, this was the first time she had ever seen a band with such a rock style. They were arguing on the spot even though they were about to perform, and they even stuck out their tongues and gave each other the middle finger.

It was completely unlike any band she'd ever seen before; it was as jarring as Sakura from the Cardcaptor Sakura anime accidentally wandering into the Madoka Magica anime.

The thought that Aine called their behavior "rock and roll" made even the usually serious Shiina Ritsuki's face tense up. "Shining what... I'm not really sure, rock and roll..."

Ai Yin looked at Li hope's unusually forced smile with a puzzled expression: "Li hope... your expression is too strange..."

Fortunately, Lixi was good at adjusting and quickly recovered. "It's okay... the performance is about to start."

"Ah, Riki-chan, why don't you come in with Aine-chan and take a look? I'll keep watch outside for you."

Carrying the cups used by the guests, Yamabuki Saya, who had just returned, once again passed by them in an ordinary manner and offered her advice.

When the Performance Begins: Chapter 107 That Band (Part 2)

"what?"

"Why would I go to a show with Aine, especially since Afterglow isn't in it?"

Riki was puzzled by what Yamabuki Saaya said.

She had already taken good care of Aine when she was depressed, and now that Aine has almost recovered, she no longer needs to take care of her.

"Lixi-chan, come here for a second."

Seeing that Li hope was so unyielding, Sha Ling simply pulled Li Xi backstage.

“Saya-senpai…wait a minute…there’s no one at the front desk…”

Although Riki had tried her best to resist, how could Shiina Riki, a fellow drummer and student of Hanajo, possibly withstand the onslaught of Yamabuki Saya, who was a seasoned band player and helped out at her family's bakery?

Shiina Riki's resistance was like trying to shake a tree in the face of Saya's absolute strength; he was dragged all the way backstage.

"Aiyin-chan, could the front desk please check this for us?"

Before closing the backstage door, Saya didn't forget to say something to Aine.