Iruma-san wants to win the Akutagawa Prize

Because she had said before:

"Don't leave any regrets before everything is over."

Then, in front of Hibiki Iruma, his lover seemed to be resurrected.

Nagasaki Suyo, who was standing by, had a dark face, but then cooperated and tightened her bass.

Because, she has reasons to win this performance at all costs.

Of course, the so-called victory does not mean that they are competing against any band, but for Nagasaki Suyo, she has reasons not to lose.

The reason is very simple:

[Su Shi, no matter what happened before, please at least give your all in this performance. If this performance fails...]

[Sushi, I might... quit the band.]

Iruma Hibiki said this.

Then for Nagasaki Suyo, nothing matters anymore.

Takamatsu was in good condition. Although the strange atmosphere in the team continued to spread and then became a little scary, Takamatsu finally took several deep breaths under the care of Toyokawa Shoko and Iruma Hibiki and made all preparations.

Then came the opening remarks from Toyokawa Shoko——

【Welcome everyone to our Crychic performance today. 】

originally.

According to the plan, Toyokawa Shoko would say that this was her farewell performance, but this proposal was rejected by Iruma Hibiki.

[Whether it's suspending activities or disbanding, let's wait until the performance is over. 】

He said this to Toyokawa Shoko.

【Eh? 】

At that time, Toyokawa Shoko looked surprised at Iruma Hibiki.

[Disband? I never said anything about disbanding.]

She retorted somewhat angrily, and Iruma Hibiki opened his mouth but said nothing else.

[Well, it's not disbanding. Sorry for saying too much.]

Iruma Hibiki said this.

but……

He felt that Toyokawa Shoko had already realized that if she announced that the band would suspend its activities, it would mean that the band would definitely disband.

It's just that Shoko Toyokawa is unwilling to admit it now, so she uses the lie of "suspending activities" to deceive everyone and herself.

But in the end, Iruma Hibiki's proposal was adopted.

"Um……"

Iruma Hibiki hummed softly, then woke up from his dream in a daze. He didn't know when, Goto Ichiri, who had a bad sleeping habit, kicked off the quilt and hugged him like an octopus. It was true that the actions of the two of them were a little hot at this moment, and the places where they touched had sweated and became sticky.

Iruma Hibiki pulled the thin blanket on top and covered himself up again, then carefully hugged Goto Ichiri, who was so soft in his dream that he could manipulate her like a doll, and then continued to fall asleep.

What happened next?

The show begins.

very smooth.

Better than ever.

Shoko Toyokawa's performance exceeded everyone's expectations.

Yes, Shoko Toyokawa is a genius, a genius among geniuses.

Seriously—

At least for Titsuki Shiina in the performance, she was thrown into horrific shock at the very beginning. If it weren't for the muscle memory she had long ago developed, she would have made a mistake at the very beginning.

Toyokawa Shoko is the one who practices the least.

But she produced terrifying results.

Every note, every detail, every detail, everything was flawless.

It seems that the Shoko Toyokawa in front of the piano is not just a simple Shoko Toyokawa. Music is like an instinct to her. She just plays as she pleases, but has reached a height that ordinary people can hardly reach.

……

If she, Hibiki Iruma, Touma Takamatsu, Mutsu Wakaba, and Motoyo Nagasaki practiced, how long would it take for them to catch up?

Shiina Riki didn't know.

Because they, in this kind of music, after all...

Not to mention Gao Songdeng's shouting voice.

She thought that, at least for herself, all her efforts were only "worthy" of Toyokawa Shoko.

……

The performance went smoothly.

At the end, Iruma Hibiki came to Shiina Riki.

He praised Shiina Riki, and then also praised Takamatsu Deng, treating everyone gently with a gentle smile.

(5)(2)(6)(6)(5)(2)(2)(5)(1)

Only Toyokawa Shoko did not go forward to ask.

After the excited celebration, Takamatsu Deng even said that he had lost consciousness.

At that moment, Iruma heard the vibration of Toyokawa Shoko's cell phone.

"Well, everyone, I want to make an announcement."

-

Stopped abruptly.

Hibiki Iruma fell silent.

What he knew would happen, after all, was not a miracle.

In the dream, the scene at this moment lost its sound.

Iruma Hibiki remembered that when he came to his senses, Toyokawa Shoko had already finished speaking, and then she turned her gaze to Iruma Hibiki and Wakaba Mutsu.

Yes, they promised Toyokawa Shoko.

At this moment, I will not embarrass Toyokawa Shoko.

Will stand on the side of Toyokawa Shoko.

For Shoko Toyokawa, a peaceful breakup is the best outcome.

but--

Under Toyokawa Shoko's expectant gaze, Iruma Hibiki couldn't say anything, as if the voice was stuck in his throat, especially when he felt a slight touch behind him.

After he realized that Takamatsu Deng had reacted, he curled up behind her out of fear.

"why."

He heard Gao Songdeng's voice coming from behind him.

"Because something happened on my side."

Toyokawa Shoko said coldly.

"What happened? Xiangzi, tell us. How about we face it together?"

Nagasaki Suyo interrupted the conversation.

"Hey, Fengchuan, what do you mean by saying this at this time?"

In an instant, Shoko Toyokawa became the target of public criticism and began to be besieged.

According to the agreement, at this time, Iruma Hibiki and Wakaba Mutsu should——

Hibiki Iruma remained silent.

He said nothing in response to Toyokawa Shoko's pleading gaze.

He may not know that this is the last bit of hope and softness of Toyokawa Shoko. She has gradually armed herself and become strong and independent.

This was all she had left, and she gave her weakness to someone else.

"I'm very happy to be in a band, and I don't want it to break up."

Wakaba Mutsu, who was next to Iruma Hibiki, was silent for a long time, and then said something completely opposite to what they had agreed upon.

02 Snow and Scars

"Are you okay?"

Hibiki Iruma sat next to Ichiri Goto and gently helped her clean the stains on her body, with a hint of gentle sigh and fatigue in her tone.

He hasn't been able to rest well lately.

It's not that I can't sleep.

But it is very easy to have nightmares.

Some things from the past kept repeating and replaying in his dreams, making him feel deeply sad and tired every time after falling asleep. So over time, Iruma Hibiki became reluctant to sleep recently.

I always stay up late until I get a headache before I fall asleep.

Of course, the exception is when I'm with Goto Ichiri.

Just like now, he woke up from his dream with a little sleepiness, but encountered trouble the first moment he went out with Goto Ichiri.

The culprits were probably the snow at the door and the overheated heater in the apartment. A small patch of melted snow in front of the door was a bit slippery, and Goto Ichiri, who lived near Tokyo and rarely left, was not used to snowy weather at all and slipped the moment he went out.

The moment he slipped, Goto Ichiri subconsciously tried to grab Iruma Hibiki beside him, but the moment he caught him——

She had already steadied herself.

But she finally let go, letting her unbalanced body fall to the tile floor at the door.

Probably at the end, when he fell, what was going through Goto Ichiri's mind was:

[If you do that, Hibiki will fall down with you.]

Then he resolutely let go.

But in fact, for Hibiki Iruma, when he saw Goto Ichiri slipping, he reacted in an instant and stood firmly, ready to support Goto Ichiri. As a result, the idiot still fell to the ground in front of him in a very bad and clumsy way.

"Order takeout."

Iruma Hibiki said.

Then he looked at the rain on Goto Ichiri's body and his wet cotton jacket and sighed helplessly.

It was almost night time, and by dinner time, the two of them had slept quite long today. In Hibiki Iruma's impression, they had been sleeping since morning until now.

After returning to the house, Goto Ichiri went to the bathroom, and soon the sound of water was heard from inside.

Iruma Hibiki turned on her cell phone. Machida Sonoko had called her three or four times since the beginning. Iruma Hibiki sighed helplessly and did not answer.

Maybe I'm a little scared.

I was worried about the rejection message.

I'm also a little nervous.

After all, this work shows his willfulness no matter how you look at it.

Suddenly, Qi Ling Baki Wu Shi ⑥ (" 〝 eight) lifted her skirt and talked about becoming a literary author. In the end, it was a bit too much, although -

"You guys, really, you might end up turning me into a literature editor. You too, Kasumigaoka too, why don't you just go find a proper literature editor? Why are you trying to torment me..."

Anyway, after the joke-like complaint, Machida Sonoko happily took charge of Iruma Hibiki's new book.

and--

She was serious and was planning to change her area of responsibility.