Aspiring to be a girl in a band

It's not surprising that she had such a strange idea.

Who could blame her for making this huge bathroom seem a bit... lonely?

After all, she's a "demon who's afraid of loneliness."

Arakawa Kirika chuckled softly, recalling the title Aine had previously given her.

It seems to fit quite well now.

Just as she was lost in thought, her phone, which she had placed on the shore, vibrated.

Arakawa Kirika first dried her hands with a bath towel before swiping her finger across the phone screen.

The name on the caller ID is... Xiangzi?

Strange, did she forget something? No... if that's the case, she can just come back directly.

So, when exactly is she going to tell me? Arakawa Kirika suddenly became curious.

"What? You already miss me after only a few minutes apart?"

Arakawa Kirika answered the phone and asked in a rather languid tone.

"Who...who missed you? I'm here to tell you something important."

"Oh? Then tell me."

Arakawa Kirika blinked, somewhat curious about what "serious matter" Shoko had to tell her.

"You...would you like to try acting?"

……

At this moment, Xiangzi is walking alone on the road, and she is still some distance away from the tram stop.

As he walked, Xiangzi carefully reflected on all his experiences that day.

She suddenly remembered something from that time.

As they watched the Mygo members on stage from below the stage, a hint of... longing did indeed flash in Arakawa Kirika's eyes?

Hmm... Xiangzi frowned.

It's strange, though, how could a word like "longing" be associated with "Arakawa Kirika"?

But she couldn't find any other more appropriate description at the moment.

Arakawa Kirika's eyes, radiating a hopeful light, can only be described as filled with longing.

Considering that this guy even went to learn the violin...

Xiangzi finally came to an answer.

This guy... might actually be dreaming of being on stage.

……

Arakawa Kirika was stunned when she heard Shoko's words in the bathroom.

She was thinking about how to answer.

If I answered with "Are you kidding me? Why would I ever want to try acting?", wouldn't that seem like I was trying to cover something up?

So, it's probably better to change the subject, right?

So she said.

"Didn't you say I couldn't join Ave Mujika?"

Xiangzi's response was also swift.

"Of course, you're 20,000 years too early to join AVE Mujika, you're just a beginner! Besides, it was announced in the initial promotion that there would only be 5 members in AVE Mujika. Adding people later would disrupt AVE Mujika's worldview."

Well... actually, Arakawa Kirika wasn't paying attention to what Shoko said next; she was just glad that she had successfully changed the subject.

Volume 1: Chapter 235 [Part of Me]

"And what about worldview... Come to think of it, wasn't your initial purpose in forming the Masked Band to cover up your true identity and prevent others from knowing it, especially... Akari? But now you've taken the initiative to confess everything to Akari and the others. Since you've already laid your cards on the table, what's the point of pretending anymore... You might as well just get rid of the mask you designed that's so hard to maintain."

"What did you say!!"

Xiangzi's tone suddenly became much sharper.

Recently, she has been frequently arguing with Arakawa Kirika about aesthetics.

Xiangzi stubbornly believes that the mask he designed is very beautiful and has a lot of character, and he firmly disagrees with Arakawa Kirika's so-called "difficult to wear".

"The mask I designed isn't ugly at all, and it's not hard to wear either!! Besides... I didn't create the mask to... hide my identity from the light."

For some reason, Xiangzi's tone suddenly became less confident as he spoke.

Ah... I knew she'd become less confident when she was lying.

Arakawa Kirika covered her mouth and chuckled, then continued.

"Oh? Since it wasn't to hide your identity from the lamp, then you're just being a chuunibyou by nature?"

"It's not chuunibyou, okay... Ugh... You're really infuriating! How does liking gothic style become chuunibyou?"

puff...

Hearing Xiangzi's hurried rebuttal, Arakawa Kirika finally couldn't help but laugh out loud.

She could almost see Xiangzi blushing with embarrassment.

Of course, even so, she will not stop her offensive.

"Are you angry? If you're angry, you can still come back and beat me up. I'm lying naked in the bath right now, completely unprepared."

Her tone was full of provocation.

Xiangzi, of course, was not going to fall for the trap.

She even had a chilling thought... if she really turned back to settle scores with Arakawa Kirika, she might end up being the naked one...

Ugh... and I was even thinking about this bastard.

I shouldn't have paid attention to her...

Xiangzi bit his lip, his expression showing deep regret.

She thought that ever since that jerk found out she liked her, he had become increasingly unreasonable... always trying to bully her.

However… as Xiangzi thought about it, a blush unconsciously appeared on his face.

Because she felt... this feeling wasn't so bad.

"call……"

Xiangzi took two deep breaths to cool down his thoughts before continuing.

"Alright... stop changing the subject. Tell me honestly... have you ever thought about going on stage?"

...Hmm, so it seems there's no escaping it after all.

Arakawa Kirika remained silent for a moment.

Was I really that obvious? How dare a mere Xiangzi see through my heart?

But... she finally faced Xiangzi's question head-on. This time, she didn't give a perfunctory answer or change the subject.

"Okay... I admit, there was a moment when I did consider that possibility..."

On the other end of the phone, Xiangzi finally got the answer he wanted, and he seemed very happy.

"That's good."

"That's good?"

Arakawa Kirika frowned.

"What's so good about it?"

She pressed for an answer.

"Hmph... Don't worry about that, just wait for me to make arrangements. Since you've already admitted that you want to be on stage... there just happens to be an opportunity recently."

Xiangzi sounded very smug.

Arakawa Kirika shook her head helplessly; she had a rough idea of ​​what Shoko was thinking.

"You...you're not really planning to put me on stage, are you? Let me make this clear: if I really meant that, I would have formed a galactic battleship long ago. In the end...admiration...is just admiration."

Xiangzi was surprisingly calm in response to her rebuttal, as if he had already planned how to answer from the beginning.

"Yeah, yeah, of course I know. Your mindset is probably... you yearn for the stage, but you also understand your limitations, knowing that you're not the kind of person who can shine?"

tsk...

Arakawa Kirika let out a dissatisfied click of her tongue.

This mere Xiangzi actually... guessed her inner thoughts.

Upon hearing that "tsk," Xiangzi's smile widened even further, for she knew that she was destined for a complete victory in this round of confrontation. This guy... had finally met his match.

So she continued happily.

"Well... let's leave it at that for now. Please don't refuse again. Can't you just accept my kindness this once?"

Hey……

Arakawa Kirika sighed again.

"A little annoyed," she thought to herself. But after hesitating for a moment, she finally uttered a single "Mmm" to Xiangzi.

However... if she just lets Shoko hang up the phone like that, Arakawa Kirika guarantees she won't be able to sleep tonight. She'll definitely make Shoko feel embarrassed too.

So she said.

"He just ran away because I made him angry, but now he's starting to think about me? Xiao Xiangzi is really gentle. Does he like me that much?"

"ha???!!"

Just as Arakawa Kirika had expected, a loud exclamation of surprise came from Xiangzi's side.

Then she immediately heard Xiangzi's incoherent explanation.

"What...what are you saying?! I...I didn't mean to think about you! Don't misunderstand!!"