Their restricted abilities are refreshed every week.

The lights on the stage were completely focused on the four of them. In the darkness, Shirakawa Haru couldn't see the bassist's face clearly.

The lead singer stood in the center of the stage, he was the C position. Logically, he was the most shining person on the stage. However, in fact, it was the bassist hidden in the dark who deeply attracted Shirakawa Haru.

Even though Shirakawa Haru couldn't see her face or the way she played the bass, the smell of gunpowder from the battlefield hidden in the bass clearly told him that she was undoubtedly the protagonist on this live stage!

The lights above the stage spun, and as they shifted, Shirakawa Haru gradually made out the "support musician." She was wearing a strikingly unique outfit. A black cropped top, uniquely designed with cutouts and decorative patterns, revealed a portion of her midriff. She paired it with black leather pants, embellished with red straps and metal buckles, adding a touch of fashion and visual impact.

What Shirakawa Haru cares about most is her pair of transparent green eyes, which look like turquoise under the light.

The eyes are the windows to the soul, and what he saw through these windows was unbridled emotions and absolute confidence in his own abilities.

The first impression that this supporting musician gave to Shirakawa Haru was a bit like that of Yamada Ryo. They were both very capable women, but she left a deeper impression on Shirakawa Haru because when he first met Yamada Ryo, Yamada Ryo did not give him such an extreme shock.

In Shirakawa Haru's eyes, the supporting musician is a very, very handsome woman.

"How's that? This supporting musician is pretty amazing, isn't she?" said Manager Matsuo. "Do you want me to tell you her name?"

Manager Matsuo is now very sure that Shirakawa Haru has fallen in love with the band and the members necessary to form a band.

"What's her name?" Shirakawa Haru stared at the bassist on the stage.

The last time Shirakawa Haru showed this kind of look, it was Toyokawa Shoko standing on the live stage.

"Hachiman Kairin" said the store manager Matsuo.

Chapter 96: Bess Mercenaries Are Not Welcomed

The lights were dazzling, and store manager Matsuo sat on the benches under the live stage with his arms folded across his chest. Beside him, Shirakawa Haru looked intently at the live stage in front of him, or to be more precise, he was looking at the "support musician" named Hachiman Kailing.

Tonight, Shirakawa Haru brought several girls from the same band to his music store to buy musical instruments. Manager Matsuo sold a Gibson electric guitar.

Since it was still early, the store manager, Matsuo, brought Shirakawa Haru to the basement to watch a live performance. He told her mysteriously that there was a bassist who hadn't joined any band but had been a support musician. Shirakawa Haru was very interested in this support musician and had been sitting there since she appeared in the darkness.

Manager Matsuo raised his wrist, and his sleeve slid down his tilted arm. His watch showed that it was already past 10:30 pm.

He didn't know why Shirakawa Haru spent so much time watching the live performance in his basement. He thought that Shirakawa Haru would not spend a lot of time to watch the live performance of such a low-level band here.

As a middle-aged man who likes to drink tea in his spare time, his body can no longer bear it and he began to feel sleepy.

But when he looked into Shirakawa Haru's eyes, he found that he was still full of energy.

Back then, Manager Matsuo was also an expert at staying up all night in nightclubs. He was adept at playing all kinds of cool instruments, such as saxophone, electric guitar, electric bass, and drums. But now he is not as good as he used to be. Without the stimulation of alcohol and cigarettes, he just wants to sleep.

The lights in the basement came on, and all the ambient lights and basic lighting on the live stage dimmed. The unique visual effects created by the LED par lights and strobe lights disappeared in the bright lights.

The song ended and people dispersed. Since Shirakawa Haru sat down, people kept leaving from the basement. They all came to see a specific band perform, so every time a band finished playing, someone would leave their seat.

The band on the stage was packing up their instruments, and only the bassist remained on the stage as if nothing had happened. She picked up a chocolate-flavored jelly drink with a panda painted on it that was placed in a corner of the audience, pulled out a plastic straw and took a sip.

"Hachiman, do you still need to perform next?" The lead singer who passed by her looked a little tired.

"Well, there are still three performances to go." Hachiman Hailing looked at the lead singer and said calmly, "Thank you for your hard work."

"I should be the one who's having a hard time," the band's lead singer said. "Yaman, you've already performed several live shows today, but you still have three more to go. I can't see any sign of fatigue on your face."

"I'm used to it." Hachiman Hailing put the boxed drink in her hand on the stage. She looked up at the lead singer's face and then closed her eyes. "Your band members have all left, why don't you leave?"

Because Hachiman Kailing is not very good at expressing her emotions through facial expressions, she always has a cold face.

When others see her expressionless face, they will unconsciously feel hostility.

Faced with the hostility of others, although Hachiman Kailing doesn't want to, she can only show the same hostility to protect herself.

"I'm leaving right now. I just wanted to talk to you for a few more words." The lead singer turned and asked his bandmates to wait for him. "We're going to the KTV in the mall to celebrate today's live performance. Yawata, do you want to come with us?"

"I understand." Hachiman Hailing opened her eyes and said coldly, "Thank you for your invitation. I won't go. I hope you have fun tonight."

The lead singer's expression was a bit awkward, and he thought resentfully, "There's that indifferent, disdainful expression again. If you have such superb bass skills, why don't you join a band? Instead, you're being a "band mercenary" who's on call and off at will? After all, no band wants someone like you, right? You have a sour face all day long, and I don't know who you're showing it to. Is this the only expression you have?"

"Goodbye, Hachiman," the lead singer said with a smile. "Next time we call you, remember to come. I've already given the performance fee to Manager Matsuo for today, so remember to ask him for it."

No one will care about a cheap "consumable" like you. A band mercenary like you is destined to be taken seriously by no one.

"Goodbye." Yawata Kailing thought, perhaps she was being disliked again. She knew the lead singer's invitation to her was just talk, because he knew she would refuse, so he said it out loud. If she agreed to go to KTV with him, she thought he would put on an embarrassed face and say she was joking.

The lead singer turned and left, and Hachiman Kailing saw his band members waving to him, their faces full of excitement because of the success of tonight's live performance.

When the lead singer approached, they whistled and hugged each other, and the ticket checker sitting in the basement of the Live venue asked them to be quiet.

They walked away nonchalantly and smilingly.

"This kind of thing seems to have happened many times tonight." Baichuan Qing asked in a low voice.

"This kind of thing happens often, there's nothing we can do about it."

"Hahata Hailing had any disputes or conflicts with those people?"

Manager Matsuo thought for a moment, his expression resigned. "It's hardly a dispute. To call it a grudge is an exaggeration. It's a conflict, at best. It's between the band's regular members and the casual members. Shirakawa, you know how important a sense of identity is within a group."

"That means the regular members of the band are subconsciously resisting Hachiman Kairin, the temporary member, right?" Shirakawa Haru faced the live stage, and Hachiman Kairin once again played passionate music.

"That can't be helped... Speaking of which, Hailing has it really hard. On the one hand, she has to deal with bands that don't treat her well, and on the other hand, she has to run back and forth between bands. Neither you nor I can resolve this conflict."

“It’s really hard to work under these circumstances.”

"So Shirakawa, don't even think about helping Xiao Hailing. If she wants to get out of this situation, she can just join a random band." Manager Matsuo said.

"But it's precisely because she can't just join any band that she chose to become a support musician."

"Who would know about that kind of thing?" said the store manager Matsuo.

The lights suddenly flickered on, and someone hammered twice on the drums. The drums' deep, hoarse sound resembled the tip of an icebreaker striking an iceberg, the dull reverberation of the iceberg shattering. Hachiman Kairin stood beside the lead singer, her hair disheveled and side-swept with bangs, her turquoise eyes gleaming brightly. In her music, Shirakawa Haru sensed a kind of awkward directness.

Her outfit this time was more unique than when Shirakawa Haru first met her. She wore a large black leather jacket with red underwear lining. She had a belt around her waist that emphasized the metal material, a silver necklace around her neck, and two different earrings on each side of her ears.

Under the modeling lights, her dark outfit seemed to be glowing.

The band's lead singer started singing. Shirakawa Haru had never heard of this song before, so the store manager Matsuo told him it was Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit."

The song sounds quite tough, full of punk and ABBA-style melodies. It is a pure and desperate song. It combines beautiful melodies and violent emotions and points out people's own shortcomings bluntly.

This is the common cry of young people against the alienation of modern society, and also the cry of infinite satisfaction of those who cannot be satisfied spiritually.

By the time the bass started playing, Shirakawa Haru no longer wanted to think about anything; he just wanted to immerse himself in the music. But he didn't listen for long before he frowned and turned to look at Manager Matsuo.

"Manager Matsuo, do you feel..." he said.

Before Shirakawa Haru could finish his words, Manager Matsuo interrupted him: "Shirakawa, you think Xiao Hailing's bass should be just this level, right?"

"Yes," Shirakawa Haru said, "Although I've noticed from the beginning that Hachiman Kairin's bass technique is constantly changing, its level has never dropped to this level... Is she adjusting her playing based on the strength of each band?"

"Shirakawa, you're very perceptive, that's it."

"So, Hachiman Kailing didn't give her all in the first song, 'Du hast'?"

"Little Hailing is incredibly talented. Her talent on the bass is truly unique."

"That's really a pity." Shirakawa Haru's expression was a little regretful, which meant that it would be difficult for him to see Hachiman Kairin playing at her full strength.

"Hai Ling-chan, goodbye! Thank you for your support for our band today!" said the girl from the band next to her. "I know the rules. A bottle of chocolate jelly drink, right?"

"Ah."

"Actually... we feel a little sorry for Hailing-chan. Originally, we wanted to go to the beach with Hailing-chan and the band members this Sunday, but after thinking about it carefully, we still feel that it is not appropriate." The girl in the band looked a little guilty.

"It's okay." Hachiman Kailing has gotten used to it.

It was already twelve o'clock when ECHO Music Store's live performance ended tonight. Looking at the audience getting up and leaving, Hachiman Kailing was finally able to relax and have a good rest. She opened a box of chocolate jelly drink and drank it in small sips.

Yawata Kairin had known the ECHO Music Store's manager, Matsuo, for some time. He sometimes jokingly referred to her as the shop's "top musician." She objected to the term, but Matsuo always joked with her. However, Matsuo treated her well, allowing her to stay late at ECHO and freely use most of the store's instruments.

The various lighting and special effects lights on the live stage were going out one by one, but at this moment there were still two people sitting in the audience seats and had not left. She knew one of them, that was the store manager Matsuo.

"Hailing, you've worked so hard today~" Manager Matsuo waved to Hachiman Hailing, motioning her to come to him from the live stage.

The winding corridor leads to the piano store. Several men and women in staff uniforms are standing there smiling. Their faces are slightly more mature than Shirakawa Haru's, and they probably just started college.

Manager Matsuo said that these were his younger classmates, and because they needed to pay for their own university living expenses, he recruited them to come here to look after the store.

"I didn't realize that Manager Matsuo actually looks so much like a senior." Shirakawa Haru commented, "He's so handsome."

Although ECHO Music Store was becoming increasingly famous, Shirakawa Haru didn't think Manager Matsuo would actually hire so many night shift workers simply because "the store needed someone to guard it at night," especially since they were all university students. If Shirakawa Haru were to run the store, he'd probably hire no more than two night shift workers.

Manager Matsuo asked these younger students to help him run the store. He was using his own method to help these younger generations who had to earn their own living expenses for some reason.

At the end of the corridor is a standard reception room. Manager Matsuo turned on the lights and asked Shirakawa Haru and Yawata Kailing to sit down.

"Xiao Hailing, what would you like to drink?" Manager Matsuo did not follow the complicated etiquette like he did with other women. He lay on the sofa, picked up a can of alcoholic beverage and drank it by himself.

"Won't you introduce me to the boy next to you first?" Hachiman Kailing sat on the sofa and looked at Shirakawa Haru with some curiosity.

"Hmm...how should I put it? His name is Shirakawa Haru." Manager Matsuo was a little worried about how to introduce Shirakawa Haru to Hachiman Kailing. "He's...your biggest fan!"

"My...super fanatic fan?" Hachiman Kailing's eyes never left Shirakawa Haru's face. Although her expression remained calm, Shirakawa Haru could sense a hint of curiosity and shyness in it.

"That's right." Manager Matsuo ignored Shirakawa Haru's murderous look and continued, "He's been sitting in the audience since you played Rammstein's 'Du hast' tonight, and he hasn't left yet. Doesn't this prove that Shirakawa-kun is a huge fan of yours?"

"I'm not, I just particularly like the music played by Ms. Hachiman." Since Manager Matsuo was talking nonsense, Shirakawa Haru wanted to kick him a few times.

"That's why I said Shirakawa-kun is your ardent fan." Manager Matsuo laughed strangely, "You should understand that Shirakawa-kun is at an age where he doesn't dare to admit his favorite idol."

"Thank you, Shirakawa-kun, for your support."

Hachiman Kairin examined Shirakawa Haru's face. The room's light now illuminated his face from the front, and she realized that Shirakawa Haru had a pair of fox-like eyes, shaped like elongated almonds. The corners of his eyes curved upwards, creating a distinctly handsome and charming look. His nose was incredibly high, his features were incredibly deep, and his appearance was impeccable from every angle.

Although Hachiman Kailing doesn't care what her fans look like, she will subconsciously feel happy when she knows that there is such a handsome boy in the world who is her fanatical fan.

As a "support musician" who did not join any band, she never thought that one day she would have her own fans coming to watch her performance.

You have to know that she participated in at least 10 live performances today. If Shirakawa-kun was really her audience member and had been watching her since she played the song "Du hast", then he must have stayed in the basement for at least two hours.

I heard from store manager Matsuo that Shirakawa-kun would close his eyes and relax when watching performances without her. It turns out that even she, the "unwelcome" supporting musician, will be welcomed one day.

Then the corners of her mouth curled up slightly, and the expression on her face became richer than before.

"Hai Ling, actually I called you here specially this time because I have something else to say." Manager Matsuo was so sleepy that he couldn't even open his eyes.

He said, "Shirakawa-kun has a request of yours."

Chapter 97 Hachiman Kailing...Teacher?

"Shirakawa Haru... I can call you Shirakawa-kun, right? What do you want from me?" Hachiman Kailing blinked. She sat on the sofa waiting for her fans to speak. "If it's convenient, I think I should agree to your request."

While watching the live performance in the basement, Shirakawa Haru accidentally discussed the timbre and range of the bass instrument with the store manager Matsuo.

He then expressed his recent desire to learn bass, and Manager Matsuo said that no matter which instrument you want to learn, a good music teacher is essential.

Shirakawa Haru nodded in agreement with Manager Matsuo's remarks.

Originally, Shirakawa Haru thought that Manager Matsuo would directly give him the contact information of a music teacher, but Manager Matsuo did not do so. Instead, he said to him, "Don't worry, I have already found a music teacher for you. She is right in front of you and I guarantee you will be very satisfied."

At that time, Shirakawa Haru had not yet realized who the best bass teacher that Manager Matsuo was talking about was. He really did not expect that the bass teacher that Manager Matsuo found for him was actually Hachiman Kailing.

"Shirakawa-kun, did you hear me?" Hachiman Kailing was a little confused by Shirakawa Haru's silence. Under the light, the pair of pendants on her ears shone with a dazzling black light, like the deep night hidden under the starry sky.

Shirakawa Haru looked at the misty eyes of Manager Matsuo, and at this moment he even wanted to kill Manager Matsuo.

He wanted to tell Hachiman Kailing that Manager Matsuo was joking, but what if Manager Matsuo told Hachiman Kailing that he was just a shy person?

It is polite to refuse temporarily, but to refuse continuously is a bit ungrateful and arrogant. Besides, under the guidance of Manager Matsuo, Hachiman Kailing still thinks that she is her super fan. She is obviously very happy about this. If I say now that Manager Matsuo was talking nonsense just now, Hachiman Kailing will definitely be sad.

"Is it hard to put it into words?" Hachiman Kailing asked, looking at Shirakawa Haru's beautiful fox eyes. Shirakawa Haru felt that her gaze seemed to penetrate his soul through his eyes.

Shirakawa Haru did not answer, but just said to Hachiman Kailing, "Wait a moment", and then he took the store manager Matsuo, who was half asleep and half awake, out of the reception room.

Manager Matsuo stood in front of the glass window in the corridor, and the cold wind blowing in from the window made him shiver.

When Shirakawa Haru saw that Manager Matsuo seemed to have regained consciousness, he asked him, "Manager Matsuo, what exactly do you want to do?"

"What do you mean, Shirakawa?"

"You said I was a huge fan of Ms. Hachiman Kairin."

"Aren't you?" Manager Matsuo looked shocked, but when he saw that Shirakawa Haru's expression didn't change at all, he immediately became serious again. "To be honest, apart from some fanatical fans, no one would go out of their way to watch a live performance of an unknown bassist. Shirakawa, do you really not like Hachiman Kairin? You know what I mean. I'm not talking about anything like that between men and women. To put it bluntly, do you like the way Hachiman Kairin plays bass?"

"I like it." Baichuan Qing lowered his head and thought for a while and said.

"That's all," said Manager Matsuo. "Don't you want to see Hailing perform at her full power? I don't know when she'll do it, so you might as well get closer to her. As long as you become friends, you'll eventually see her unleash her full power on stage."

Manager Matsuo is the owner of a music store who feels sleepy if he doesn't drink coffee. He is also a musician who has dedicated part of his life to music. He can certainly see that Shirakawa Haru has some kind of pursuit in music.

"And didn't you say you wanted to learn bass?" Manager Matsuo added, "Although I don't know if Hailing has any experience teaching others before, I think she would be a good teacher. So, Shirakawa, what do you think? Do you want to ask Hailing for help?"

"I understand." After careful consideration, Shirakawa Haru agreed with Manager Matsuo's words. He would not deny the desire in his heart.