Iruma-san wants to win the Akutagawa Prize

Shoko Toyokawa is definitely not the cute watermelon worm that he caught in the pen tube and could be thrown into the trash can as a matter of course in the face of the danger of being blamed.

She was a perfect, beautiful, and lovely young lady, like a smoothie sprinkled with caramel syrup, the sky blue one in the advertisement. Amid the rumbling sound of the roller, the delicious dish was finally made and handed to the boy. Every piece of ice flakes sparkled with a fragile and beautiful brilliance under the scorching heat.

That was the summer smoothie that the autumn boy couldn't fit in the refrigerator.

50 The heartbroken Nagasaki Suyo is like her usual self

Hibiki Iruma meets Motoyo Nagasaki.

Relieved but not completely relieved.

What kind of feelings does he have towards Nagasaki Suyo now?

like?

The moment this thought came to mind, Hibiki Iruma felt terrified. The fantasy of becoming the protagonist of a harem novel can only be achieved until the age of 15. Anyone who is over this age and still expects such a thing to happen in reality is definitely a terrible virgin. The final result can only be an enlightenment at the age of 30, and then become a super fire magician charging towards the windmill.

Of course, this doesn’t mean that such a life is not perfect.

But now Hibiki Iruma has a lover like Shoko Toyokawa.

He seemed to have lost the opportunity to become a magician at the age of 30, and the monsters that others could not see in his sight had long disappeared without a trace.

In short, Iruma Hibiki cannot like Nagasaki Soyo.

This is a matter of principle to some extent.

The remaining emotions at this moment are probably complicated worries and some other things...

After all, Nagasaki Suyo now looks completely different from when they first met. Although her clothes are still decent, her embarrassment is clearly revealed.

"Su Shi."

Iruma Hibiki gently called Nagasaki Motoyo's name from behind.

"Hiroshi? What's wrong?"

Nagasaki Suyo turned around and looked at Iruma Hibiki and asked.

"nothing……"

After hesitating for a while, Iruma Hibiki said this.

Although on the surface Nagasaki Suyo still looks a little worrying at the moment, no matter what, at least on the surface, Nagasaki Suyo is just a little depressed and a little embarrassed.

There doesn't seem to be anything special.

Hibiki Iruma actually breathed a sigh of relief.

"Hibiki, are you really dating Toyokawa-san?"

But then——

Facing Iruma Hibiki, Nagasaki Motoyo asked some sharp questions.

"Yes, Xiangzi and I are dating."

Iruma Hibiki responded affirmatively, then turned her head away, somewhat unwilling to look directly at Nagasaki Suyo's face.

"Will it cause trouble for Hibiki and Toyokawa-san if I stay in the band?"

"how come--"

When Iruma Hibiki turned around to look at Nagasaki Suyo again, he saw a trace of deep sadness on Nagasaki Suyo's face.

"Well, I understand. After all, I have nowhere else to go except Crychic. It's great that there is still Crychic."

"Su Shi..."

Iruma Hibiki weakly called out Nagasaki Soyo's name, and then watched her slowly walk into the rehearsal room.

After a few minutes of loneliness in the empty corridor, Iruma Hibiki sighed helplessly.

And for Nagasaki Suyo, the result of thinking for a long time in the empty room was this——

She couldn't leave Crychic.

However, she was also saddened by the end of her relationship with Hibiki Iruma.

At this moment, Nagasaki Suyo didn't know how to save her relationship, or rather, in fact, deep down in her heart, she even had an extra tenderness -

[Higashi is probably troubled by my identity as her ex-girlfriend, so she can't get along well with Toyokawa-san.]

Although such tenderness is not pure.

There might also be some thoughts mixed in there about whether the band can continue.

【Su Shi, don’t lose something a second time if you’ve lost it once. 】

What Hibiki Iruma said to her at that time was still echoing in Nagasaki Suyo's ears. She had actually made up her mind to protect Crychic.

If you listen to Hibiki Iruma, you will never lose an important band a second time.

This is the impurity in her gentleness.

Nagasaki Suyo was unable to bless the relationship between Iruma Hibiki and Toyokawa Shoko.

But she thought, maybe, she could pretend not to see it.

It's just a feeling of liking each other, no big deal.

She persuaded herself like this.

then--

Nagasaki Suyo, who is very good at pleasing others, Nagasaki Suyo, who is very good at catering to others, and Nagasaki Suyo who can do anything, has actually been resurrected.

She's been acting a little strange lately.

She realized it too.

Some are selfish and some behaviors are not very good.

When it's time to change...

In just a moment, Nagasaki Suyo slightly regained the feeling of the past.

"Can't the sound come in?"

While Iruma Hibiki was still hesitating, he heard the sweet and gentle voice of Nagasaki Suyo.

"Well, here we come."

Iruma responded and walked towards Nagasaki Suyo.

In fact, when he saw Nagasaki Suyo's smile and gentleness, Iruma Hibiki also breathed a sigh of relief.

After all—

If Nagasaki Suyo can completely cut off from the past, then he can too. Although the embarrassment will not be easily eliminated, as long as they are in a band and in a lifetime, perhaps all the scars will slowly heal.

That's what Hibiki Iruma was thinking at the moment.

In the rehearsal room, Hibiki Iruma was a little surprised by the person who arrived first.

"Isn't Xiangzi here?"

He asked Shiina Riki and Wakaba Mutsu who were present with some curiosity.

"That guy set the time, but he didn't stick to it."

Shiina Riki looked unhappy and threw the drumstick aside in annoyance.

She didn't know what was wrong with her. She had been feeling uneasy lately, especially when she saw Nagasaki Soyo standing behind Iruma Hibiki and not talking much.

"Xiangzi..."

Gao Songdeng lowered her head, holding the microphone. In front of her was an old-fashioned notebook with a flower pattern on it.

"Let me contact Xiangzi. It's strange, I actually thought Xiangzi would be the first to arrive."

Iruma Hibiki took the initiative and took out his cell phone to call Toyokawa Shoko.

The phone was busy for a long time and no one answered.

"Well, do you want to rehearse for a while? Toyokawa-san must have run into something urgent. Maybe she'll come while we're rehearsing."

After the busy tone on Iruma's phone ended, Nagasaki Motoyo stepped forward and took the initiative to ease the atmosphere.

Although the atmosphere was a bit low, the rehearsal still began.

The late arrival of Toyokawa Shoko distracted and worried Iruma Hibiki.

【Is it because I neglected to care about Xiangzi? 】

He was thinking and worrying about this slightly.

With such emotions, everyone is in a bad state today.

As a result, the time for a break came very early. After all, it would not look good if we continued practicing like this.

"Mu."

Just when Hibiki Iruma was trying to find Mutsu Wakaba to chat, suddenly, the door of the rehearsal room was opened.

"Sorry everyone, I'm late because of some personal matters."

In fact, Iruma Hibiki did notice.

When Toyokawa Shoko appeared, Wakaba Mutsu showed a slightly shocked and shaken expression. This is not to say that Iruma Hibiki knows Wakaba Mutsu very well, but Wakaba Mutsu's reaction is really a bit strange.

Too rare.

When Hibiki Iruma turned around and looked at Shoko Toyokawa, he suddenly felt his whole body go cold.

Because in front of him, there were traces of red at the corners of Shoko Toyokawa's eyes.

Nagasaki Suyo also noticed it. She tightened the bass in her hand, looked at Iruma Hibiki and then at Toyokawa Shoko.

Then, deep down in her heart, a very cunning, very inappropriate emotion, even a little disgusting to herself, a trace of joy appeared.

This feeling of joy probably appeared before I discovered that Toyokawa Shoko did not show up, and continued until now when I saw the embarrassed Toyokawa Shoko.

She's not that generous.

It’s not that easy to let go.

There are just more important things.

51 Haruhi Shadow

There was no time to speak out Hibiki Iruma's worries and concerns.

Shoko Toyokawa did not show any sign of vulnerability. As usual, after apologizing, she walked to the keyboard in the rehearsal room and began today's practice.

The slight trace of her fragility in the corner of her eyes gradually disappeared in a short time.

It's unknown when Nagasaki Soyo came to Iruma Hibiki's side. In the beginning, Iruma Hibiki actually subtly felt that he should keep a distance from Nagasaki Soyo.

until--

When he realized that Nagasaki Suyo's attention seemed to be on Toyokawa Shoko, Iruma Hibiki gradually accepted the current situation.

During the intervals between songs, Iruma Hibiki actually tried to talk to Toyokawa Shoko and ask her the reason, but Shiina Riki always stopped him and pointed out the parts he had made mistakes in the previous practice.

until--

"Everyone, it looks like Deng has finished his own lyrics today. Should we take a look?"

After noticing that everyone was looking a little tired, Nagasaki Motoyo walked to Takamatsu Tomo's side, then took Takamatsu Tomo's wrist and gently led her to the center of the crowd. It was also at this time that Iruma Hibiki had the opportunity to get close to Toyokawa Shoko.

He looked at Toyokawa Shoko who came to Takamatsu Deng and hesitated slightly.

Then, a few minutes later, Iruma Hibiki gently touched Toyokawa Shoko's arm. Noticing Iruma Hibiki's small action, Toyokawa Shoko turned her head slightly and looked at Iruma Hibiki.

At this moment, Iruma Hibiki showed a gentle smile to Toyokawa Shoko, and then, with his heart beating fast, he pinched Toyokawa Shoko's little finger as if it was a prank.

And such an action was somewhat surprising and joyful to Toyokawa Shoko at the moment——

After being startled at first, she clasped the hand whose pinky finger had just been pinched and clenched it against her chest. Then, with her usual bright smile on her face, she said to Takamatsu Deng:

"Deng, can you show us the lyrics you wrote?"

Gao Songdeng was surrounded by the crowd.

She held her notebook with her head slightly lowered, completely lacking the confidence and courage she had just had when she sang.

She was a little afraid. Although she knew that the people around her were important companions, she was still shrouded in the shadow of the past.