Iruma-san wants to win the Akutagawa Prize

However, the boundary between light novels and literature is still too deep, and this is not an easy task.

However, for an unmarried older woman, looking at the author who has been under her care from his debut to the present, Machida Sonoko took the mentality of "I'm unmarried and alone, so what if I try my luck in the future" and chose to step out of her comfort zone and start a new attempt.

Iruma Hibiki had a slight admiration for such an editor.

Of course there are some concerns.

He was worried that his work would end up being a mess, just like his band's.

He remembered something that Toyokawa Shoko had said to him earlier:

"Xiang is very suitable for writing literary works."

"I can't understand Hibiki's novels at all!"

In this case.

He didn't take it to heart.

The so-called Akutagawa Prize is just a goal for Iruma Hibiki, but he has never been the kind of hero in a passionate drama. Or rather, in his life, at least in the past ten years or so, he always lost more than he won in his charge against fate.

This life is even more miserable, I have never won.

So when the topic of the Akutagawa Prize first started to surface, Hibiki Iruma probably felt that it was out of reach.

So at that time, he chose light novels as his goal, right? Or in that situation——

My idea when I debuted was probably to help Goto Ichiri fulfill his dream.

But he didn't expect that now, because of Goto Ichiri, he was truly moving towards his ideal which he had never taken seriously and didn't think would come true.

So what will be the result?

I responded to the greetings from Ijichi Hongka and Kita as usual.

He also jokingly sent Kita an emoticon package of "Yudai Yudai", which he had made recently and was only circulated between the two of them.

It probably originated from the fact that after the band disbanded, when they were getting along together, Iruma Hibiki learned Kita's full name.

think carefully--

The atmosphere at that time was indeed a bit weird.

[Xiangzi, I also think that disbanding is too serious... If we just suspend activities...]

That’s right, the decision that Hibiki Iruma made at that time was a betrayal of Shoko Toyokawa.

Hibiki Iruma saw Toyokawa Shoko's disbelief, and at that moment, almost instantly, she became cold, miserable, lonely and silent.

She just stood there with her mouth slightly opened, looking at Iruma Hibiki and Wakaba Mutsu in disbelief, then her gaze wandered between the two of them, finally returning to Iruma Hibiki's face.

……

How did that day end?

Whenever Hibiki Iruma recalled the incident, his mind would buzz. He remembered that it was a rainy day and Toyokawa Shoko ran out like that.

And Iruma Hibiki went after him, and Wakaba Mu explained everything to everyone.

finally--

Crychic's ending was to suspend activities and wait until Shoko Toyokawa gets better before continuing.

For Takamatsu Deng, this is one of her few redemptions and hopes.

Perhaps Toyokawa Shoko's choice is the best

But for those who don't know.

It is extremely cruel to those who pour out everything about themselves.

When Nagasaki Suyo went out to the bathroom to take a break, she also saw Shiina Tatsuki quietly wiping her tears in a cubicle of the women's bathroom.

For Tatsuki Shiina.

The feeling of meanness during the performance.

Pride after the show.

Everything was shattered at that moment.

It becomes meaningless.

She didn't know why, but when she saw Hibiki Iruma and Shoko Toyokawa arguing, she wanted to say something, wanted to be angry, but she couldn't say anything.

She was usually the one who rushed to the front, but at that moment she became the most taciturn person.

……

When I realized it, I couldn't stop crying.

what can we do about it?

Shiina Riki didn't know.

I have absolutely no idea what to do.

Will Hibiki Iruma win Shoko Toyokawa back?

-

About a few days later, Shiina Riki learned that Toyokawa Shoko and Iruma Hibiki had broken up.

Probably when they broke up, Toyokawa Shoko said some very harsh words and Iruma Hibiki was also badly hurt. Afterwards, Shiina Tatsuki heard that it was Nagasaki Suyo who comforted Iruma Hibiki at that time.

03 Swapping Positions

But some time passed.

Maybe one day suddenly——

She vaguely learned from Nagasaki Suyo that Iruma Hibiki had taken the initiative to keep his distance from her.

Shiina Riki didn't know what was going on.

This is how she participated in the exercises organized by everyone day after day.

The band has no plans anymore. All they can do is wait for Shoko Toyokawa to come back. What should they practice before then?

It’s definitely not “Kasuga Shadow”.

Without Shoko Toyokawa, new songs would be impossible to write.

Occasionally, when she wanted to stand up and boost everyone's morale by saying that she would arrange the music, Gao Songdeng would say:

"It would be better to wait until Xiangzi comes back before making a decision..."

Whenever she said this, the band would fall silent.

The so-called practice has become everyone sitting there, sitting there quietly, browsing their phones, and occasionally chatting -

Shoko Toyokawa fulfilled her promise.

Even though that wasn't what she expected, even though that wasn't what she wanted.

She came to rehearsals several times.

But she was always in a hurry, and you could see that she was in a hurry for time.

For Toyokawa Shoko, some topics became truly off-limits. Perhaps it was at a certain moment that Shiina Riki realized that Iruma Hibiki had indeed broken up with Toyokawa Shoko...

She didn't understand why such a simple thing ended up like this.

But one day later, she seemed to know the answer.

It was a weekend when Hibiki Iruma was away.

Toyokawa Shoko said she would come after a long absence.

Maybe November.

The end of autumn or the beginning of winter?

The weather this month is actually the worst.

Not too cold but still a bit chilly.

It doesn't feel like autumn, but it's far from being Tokyo's winter either.

Perhaps in the cold rain that seemed to be a pause for the band's activities, Toyokawa Shoko opened the door of the rehearsal room, soaking wet.

Nagasaki Suyo is the same as always, but Shiina Tatsuki has more or less understood a little about Nagasaki Suyo during their time together. She is a person who is very good at hiding her inner thoughts and can put on a smiling face no matter who she is.

Even if it is——

Facing Toyokawa Shoko, who had taken away her most beloved person, Nagasaki Motoyo would never turn against her as long as it did not touch that guy's bottom line.

She would always cater to everyone with gentleness and a smile, until her fragile and sensitive parts were mentioned, then the fangs named Nagasaki Suyo would pop out in an instant and severely injure the other person.

Nagasaki Suyo's outstretched hand was stopped by Toyokawa Shoko, and her handkerchief was rejected. The cold rain kept sliding down the end of Toyokawa Shoko's hair with a hint of sky blue.

Outside the window, the red and yellow lights of the vehicles blurred into crosses passing by the window of the rehearsal room.

"I'm here today to make an announcement."

Toyokawa Shoko said this.

"I'm quitting Crychic."

She glanced at the crowd and said this.

Yes--

She couldn't let the band end.

Then it would be better if she quit.

This is the right decision.

For Toyokawa Shoko, at this moment, she has a bit of an awkward obsession with the right thing, even though——

It's not that she has no hope for that vague possibility.

But this won't be good for anyone.

Nagasaki Suyo seemed to say something, but Toyokawa Shoko didn't listen carefully. Her tinnitus was a bit severe, but she knew what the people in front of her were saying without listening, and she was prepared.

"Even without me, you can still practice, especially Deng. You're obviously the one who's lacking the most."

……

Gao Songdeng stood there in a daze.

Yes.

From a general point of view, she really hasn't spoken for a long time.

Every time I came to the rehearsal room, I would squat in the corner and keep stroking a piece of stone that I found when I first met Iruma Hibiki and Toyokawa Shoko.

She remembered a story that Hibiki Iruma had told her before.

[How can I make the message be transmitted to the near-eternal future? Do you know? ]

Iruma Hibiki asked this, and Takamatsu Touma thought of many answers, but they all had limitations.

The lifespan of a mechanical hard drive is probably less than 10 years.

The life of the tape can be extended to decades.

If a CD is preserved for a thousand years, it can become a powerful advertising slogan that cannot be verified and posted on the screen.

But these will eventually disappear with the passage of time.

【That is to carve words on stone.】

At that time, Iruma Hibiki said this to Takamatsu Touma.

Perhaps he told this story at that time because he hoped that Takamatsu Deng would not forget some important things, and perhaps through this story she could muster up a little courage to face her own life.

but--

For Gao Songdeng, this story has changed its meaning.

She began to catalog her stones.