They all have hidden attributes!

Chapter 114 Untamed Wildcats

Thank you everyone!

"Next Wednesday, the 26th, we will be participating in a music festival in Chiba Prefecture. Please give us your support!"

On a bustling summer night, in a LiveHouse located in the basement of a commercial complex in Shimokitazawa, Hanakawa Kaori smiled and took her bow on a stage illuminated by large spotlights.

As soon as the lights dimmed, Makoto Takahashi had already helped Reiko Kashima pack up the drum kit, and then, carrying the instrument case and various equipment, he was the first to leave the stage.

"You've worked hard~"

"The performance was fantastic, keep up the good work!"

"Takahashi-kun, suki~~"

In the quiet backstage area, the next five-member band was preparing for their performance when they saw Makoto Takahashi. Three of the girls, all outgoing and beautiful, walked over.

He nodded politely, put down his violin case, took the poster and pen from one of the pretty girls, and signed his name: "Thank you. Please keep up the good work, everyone."

"Hey, Takahashi-kun, I heard you have a girlfriend?"

“Yes, and we have a very good relationship,” Makoto Takahashi said.

"Wow, which member of the band is it?"

"It might not be any one specific one, right? Actually, it's quite normal for a bassist to have multiple girlfriends, isn't it?"

"I don't mind at all. Takahashi-kun's skin is really good, and his lower eyelashes are very long."

Whether the girls were joking or serious, they teased each other with smiles. Makoto Takahashi, who used to be very bad at dealing with such situations, is now gradually becoming more adept at it.

The second person to step down was Kashima Reiko. Seeing Takahashi Makoto surrounded by unfamiliar women, she felt a little uncomfortable and quickly walked over.

"You've worked hard~"

"The performance was fantastic!"

The unfamiliar girls began exchanging pleasantries, and Kashima Reiko nodded in response, saying in a flat, emotionless voice, "You should go on stage and get ready."

"Ah, I almost forgot."

One of the girls quickly ran back to pull her companion, who was still eating snacks, while the other two also got ready.

Makoto Takahashi managed to escape and walked side by side with Reiko Kashima through the backstage corridor.

Back in the rehearsal room, Nekoya Hina was posting clips of the live performance on her social media account. Takahashi Makoto leaned over to take a look, and as always, the comments section was flooded with positive reviews.

If things continue like this, it's only a matter of time before we get to Tokyo Dome.

As Takahashi Makoto was thinking, he put down his violin case and just sat down on the sofa when a can of cola was handed to him.

"Today's closing part is quite special."

Makoto Takahashi's gaze slid up her slender arm and met Reiko Kashima's calm, turquoise eyes. Up close, her features appeared exceptionally delicate.

"I just played it casually, but your drumbeats won't be wrong and you won't lose your sense of rhythm."

Makoto Takahashi took the Coke, pulled the metal tab, swallowed a mouthful, and continued in a relaxed tone:

"Speaking of which, Senior Lengzi already has professional-level skills, right? Such complex beats and fast rhythms, yet she remains very accurate, almost like a metronome. It would be best if the drumbeats could stay stable."

"Well, I will."

Kashima Reiko nodded slightly, turned around, and her emerald eyes lit up.

Compared to being praised for being "cute," Takahashi Makoto's recognition of professionalism and reliability touched her heart more. He could become the foundation of her rhythm, creating a safe space for her to play freely, which also made Kashima Reiko happy.

Unfortunately, the rehearsal room was not a suitable space for the two to have an in-depth conversation. Shiraishi Junka and Hanakawa Kaori walked in one after the other, and a few minutes later, Uesugi Maya began to summarize the meeting.

After listening to her briefly and confirming the meeting time for tomorrow, the group left the LiveHouse through the emergency exit and strolled and chatted along the streets of Shimokitazawa.

After Shiraishi Junka left by car, Nekoya Hina and Hanakawa Kaori went to the train station together. After Kashima Reiko loaded the drum kit onto the car sent by the Tachimi family, only Takahashi Makoto and Uesugi Maya were left walking side by side under the dim light of the street lamps.

"Aren't we taking the tram home?" Makoto Takahashi asked casually.

"We didn't have any ingredients at home, so we bought some on the way."

Maya Uesugi carried her violin bag, staring at the road ahead, her smooth, black hair falling over her shoulders.

Makoto Takahashi turned his head and stared at her perfect profile, admiring her long, neatly trimmed lower eyelashes: "On the way? Where are we going now?"

"Musical instrument shop".

"You're getting a new guitar?"

"I'm buying replacement strings and maintenance tools in case of an accident at the music festival that could cause a stage accident," said Maya Uesugi.

"Should I also take care of my bass?"

Makoto Takahashi felt the heavy weight of the bass case in his hands and looked thoughtful: "Thinking about it, I've never maintained it. But since it's a bass, no one can tell if the tone is off, and it doesn't matter if a string breaks on stage."

Upon hearing this, Uesugi Maya suddenly stopped and turned to glare at him with a sharp look.

Makoto Takahashi blinked, hesitated for a moment, and said to her, "I was just kidding. There will absolutely be no stage accident. We'll do the maintenance today."

“I have no interest in your boring bass jokes.”

Uesugi Maya frowned slightly, his caramel-colored eyes reflecting a bewildered expression, and asked in a puzzled tone, "You don't know?"

"what?"

"Your bass has always been maintained by Kashima, including the tuning."

"what?"

Makoto Takahashi lifted the guitar case high in his hand, blinked blankly, and said, "This guitar? So the young lady's bass even has after-sales service."

“She also maintains the other two instruments; I thought you asked her to do it.” Uesugi Maya rested her chin on her hand, lost in thought.

The noise of a tram could be heard in the distance, and a refreshing evening breeze blew from the end of the street, brushing past the two of them. Under the night sky, the aroma of coffee, crepes, oden, and alcohol mingled together.

In that brief, quiet moment, Makoto Takahashi clearly perceived Reiko Kashima's gentleness, her clumsy yet pragmatic affection, something he had never noticed before.

"Do you know that Yamaha electric bass needs its batteries replaced?" Maya Uesugi asked.

"Batteries? Modern appliances can all be recharged, right?"

"Ha, bassist."

She gave a cold laugh and strode towards the music store. Takahashi Makoto ignored the sarcastic remarks and quietly savored his own feelings.

This feeling was exactly the same as the morning when the training camp started.

On August 19, Makoto Takahashi began to consciously pay attention to Reiko Kashima.

From the moment he met her, he felt that Kashima Reiko was a bit dull, and now she seems rather wooden and not very talkative, but he never noticed the details gradually surfacing.

Before rehearsals begin, Kashima Reiko will only nod to herself; lunches are mainly egg and beef dishes, with the flavors adjusted daily; during breaks after rehearsals, she carefully wipes the bass neck with a soft cloth...

Kashima Reiko may be clumsy with words and not very romantic, but she takes care of herself in a planned way, calm and steadfast.

Remembering what Tachikami Yuki had said, that on that night, Kashima Reiko chose to resign instead of telling him to find a way to finish his work, Takahashi Makoto couldn't help but feel moved.

However, having a good impression is one thing, but being in a loving relationship is another, especially since Makoto Takahashi already has Sachi Tachi as his official girlfriend.

In the evening, after rehearsal, Maya Uesugi pushed a whiteboard into the rehearsal room and turned around to write the countdown in black marker.

[6 days until the music festival]

She wanted to use this music festival to make the band a huge hit and become a trustworthy leader, so she attached great importance to it.

Makoto Takahashi knew that Maya Uesugi's goal was to get everyone to take things seriously, but he still felt a little worried.

Will it turn into a pressure cooker again like last time?

As it turns out, Maya Uesugi did indeed seriously reflect on her actions.

She stood at the front of the rehearsal room, scanning the group with a serious look, and said in a cold voice, "I have a plan that I need your cooperation with. If you have any objections, you can raise them at any time, and we can discuss them together."

"[Let's discuss it together]," Makoto Takahashi felt like he had heard something incredible.

Before he could even express his thoughts, Uesugi Maya raised her face and glared at him with disdain: "Makoto, to prevent any accidents from happening to you, you're not allowed to take off your mask outside from now on. Is that a problem?"

"Agreed!" Hanakawa Kaori was the first to raise her hand.

"I'll leave the design and production of the new stage costumes to Shiraishi. We're releasing a new song on the second night of the festival, and I want it to fit the theme."

Makoto Takahashi wrote a whole notebook full of songs, and only needed to select the suitable ones to release together. This is also the source of Maya Uesugi's confidence to participate in music festivals; otherwise, just writing songs would take a lot of time.

Seeing Shiraishi Junka nod, Uesugi Maya turned her gaze to Kashima Reiko. Recalling their conversation the previous morning, she calmly arranged her work:

"Kashima, any issues with organizing and archiving the sheet music, equipment maintenance, and contacting a factory to make T-shirts with the band's name?"

"No." Kashima Reiko nodded calmly.

"Cat House, we're going to release our first album right after the music festival, so don't forget to hype it up."

"I practiced the new song for two extra hours every night until I was satisfied with the rehearsal."

Maya Uesugi arranged the work methodically, as serious and strict as ever. Although Makoto Takahashi didn't get any tasks other than [wearing masks when going out], he really liked the atmosphere of everyone working together towards a common goal.

After the meeting, Makoto Takahashi stayed in the rehearsal room to chat with Junka Shiraishi, while Maya Uesugi returned to the club office alone and brewed coffee with a Belgian kettle.

The L-shaped classroom was quiet, with the orange glow of the setting sun streaming in through the windows, and the blue flame of the alcohol lamp flickering gently in the air conditioning.

Maya Uesugi sat by the window, holding a black pen, and wrote down all her plans for the days leading up to the music festival on the pages of her notebook.

The door clicked open, and she quietly closed her notebook. Looking up, she saw Kashima Reiko walk to the makeshift desk and cast a calm glance at her.

"What is it?" Uesugi Maya asked in a cold voice.

"There's a lot of work involved in music festivals; you can't do it all by yourself."

Kashima Reiko, afraid of saying the wrong thing, added, "I want to help as much as I can, and I sincerely hope you can do it, so I will definitely not hold you back."

Music festivals are different from live performances; the work is much more complicated, requiring coordination with various staff members, and it's definitely not as simple as just performing on stage.

Stage lighting, technical equipment, logistical support, contract compensation, and even transportation routes.

NiceFold is an independent band without a management company. Apart from the basic work of organizing live performances, Maya Uesugi handles all the rest of the work.

Wildcats are hard to tame; even compared to her first live performance, she still doesn't trust anyone.

Fortunately, Kashima Reiko and Uesugi Maya had known each other for a long time and knew how troublesome it was to participate in music festivals, so she took the initiative to come to them and offer her help.

“Makoto has always been very considerate of my feelings, and I want to repay him as much as possible,” Kashima Reiko said calmly.