After Xiangzi died, I inherited her harem.

"Oh no, oh no, I'm going to be late!"

Rushing towards the station, Chihaya Aine's face was filled with regret that she would do it again next time.

The trains from her home to school are in batches, and if she can catch the next one, she might even have time to have breakfast at a dessert shop near the school before arriving.

But if I miss it, I'm afraid I'll be late when the next train arrives.

Logically speaking, for a model student like her, going to bed early and waking up early is the norm, and under normal circumstances, she should never have trouble getting up in the morning.

But unfortunately, she was just too excited last night.

Ave Mujica's first performance after its premiere was a huge success, naturally igniting related online communities.

And as a classmate of Ave Mujica's captain, a strategic ally of Ave Mujica's manager, and a peace ambassador promoting friendly relations between Ave Mujica and MyGO!!!!!

Chihaya Aine believed that she had a deeper understanding of the character designs of the Ave Mujica dolls than most people. Seeing the lively online community churning out all sorts of fake news, from doll designs to stage play plots to music appreciation, she eagerly joined in to share the fun with everyone.

By the time I realized what was happening, it was already past midnight.

You should be more restrained next time. Your listless appearance this morning worried your mother.

However, some people actually said that my analysis was just wild speculation, which is really going too far. How could Oblivionis be a simple tyrant in terms of his character design?

Recalling the scene last night where Toyokawa Shoko was obediently led away by Toyokawa Yuu, head bowed and silent, Chihaya Aine didn't think Shoko could play the role of a tyrant.

Should I find an opportunity to ask Yuu about any scrapped plot points related to Ave Mujica? Then I'll see who dares to say I'm just making things up... Scrapped plot points shouldn't be considered trade secrets, right?

While her mind was wandering, Chihaya Aine finally caught the last train that wouldn't make her late.

Chihaya Aine touched her clothes. She had rushed out this morning and hadn't had time to eat breakfast. She would probably have to eat breakfast outside the school.

Looking around to find a suitable place to sit, I spotted a familiar figure in the carriage.

The not-too-bright sunlight filtered through the car windows, turning them into an amber color, and fell on the girl wearing the Haneoka Academy uniform.

The amber light blended with her short purple hair, giving the girl, who looked somewhat tomboyish but had an exceptionally introverted and gentle temperament, a radiant glow.

"A lamp? I didn't expect to run into you here."

Chihaya Aine looked at Takamatsu Akari, who was both her classmate sitting at the desk in front of and behind her and a good friend from the same band, and leaned over with some surprise.

Although the two were in the same class and even the same school, and their train routes home overlapped considerably, Takamatsu Akari was not only a band member but also a member of the Haneoka Astronomy Club, and she also had a hobby of collecting stones by the flowerbeds.

Generally speaking, Takamatsu Akari is always among the first to arrive at school, and she would never run into Chihaya Aine, who is the type who is fine as long as she is not late, but it is common for them to walk home together.

"Ah...it's Aine, good morning."

The energetic voice slightly roused Takamatsu Akari, who was feeling a bit drowsy. She glanced at Chihaya Aine, whom she had met on the train, and gave her a listless greeting.

However, looking at the weariness that Takamatsu Akari couldn't hide on her face, and her half-closed, somewhat listless eyes, Chihaya Aine knew that the other person must have gotten up late, just like her.

Moreover, Takamatsu probably went to bed later than I did last night.

"Deng, you didn't sleep all night, did you?"

Chihaya Aine waved her hand in front of Takamatsu Akari, and had a premonition that her deskmate might repeat what she did before MyGO's live performance: slumped over her desk and fell asleep immediately.

But surely not.

MyGO!!!!! doesn't have any live performances planned lately, and there's no pressure to create new songs, so what could possibly keep this well-behaved student up all night?

Seeing that Takamatsu Akane was still wearing her earphones on the train, Chihaya Aine glanced at her phone.

A music app was open above, and a playlist called "Ave Mujica" caught Chihaya Aine's eye.

The song playing right now is even a live version from the Homework Concert. Chihaya Aine listened to it several times last night while debating with someone in an online community.

"Xiangzi once said that songs are the cries of the soul. I wanted to hear clearly what she was thinking after leaving CRYCHIC, but... I couldn't hear it, I couldn't hear what Xiangzi was thinking at all. I just felt that she was struggling to stand on the stage."

So he wasn't composing music after all...

Hearing Takamatsu Akari's explanation, Chihaya Aine scratched her head somewhat awkwardly.

Although no one can know the answers to the questions in one's mind, it still makes one feel a little disappointed.

However, this feeling was fleeting.

The pink sun doesn't easily let small things cloud her heart, and she also pays close attention to what Takamatsu Akari said.

“After I got home last night, Soyo messaged me saying that she was planning to go see Xiaomu.”

Some of the gray-haired girls, absorbed in their own emotions, were unaware of Chihaya Aine's fleeting thoughts. They looked down at the lyrics flowing across their phone screen and shared their plans with their friends.

"I want to have another good talk with Xiangzi when I go to school today."

"Huh? Soyorin didn't tell me about this."

Taking out her phone, Chihaya Aine hurriedly checked whether she had been so engrossed in debating with various scholars in the online community last night that she had forgotten the messages her friends had sent.

Unfortunately, the contact list for "soyorin" was empty, with no new messages received.

"Hmm... Why is this? Why don't you tell me what you want to do?"

Chihaya Aine was used to Nagasaki Sosei's behavior of not usually telling her anything. Her cheeks puffed up a little in a huff.

But no matter how used to it you are, you'll still have your little emotional outbursts.

I should be the one who first encountered the band Ave Mujica on MyGO!!!!!

But now, it seems that everyone except Lenney is more concerned about Ave Mujica's situation than she is.

Or rather, caring about certain people in this band.

"Aine, are you going?"

Takamatsu raised her tired face, which was showing signs of lack of rest, and a glimmer of hope appeared in the gray-haired girl's eyes.

She knew her communication skills weren't very strong, and even if she went to talk to Toyokawa Shoko because of her worries, the outcome would most likely be unpleasant.

"Of course I'll go with you. I'm also a little worried about Xiangzi's condition."

Faced with Takamatsu Akari's invitation, Chihaya Aine didn't hesitate much and readily nodded.

As an observer who witnessed the dispute last night, Chihaya Aine could actually see that the way Toyokawa Shoko and Toyokawa Yuu, the adopted siblings, got along was not as close as she had imagined.

Even if it was out of consideration for the band members by the manager or for the sworn brother and sworn sister, they shouldn't have taken all of Soyorin's accusations against Xiangzi upon themselves.

In that situation, anyone could see that the claim that "I did it all" was just a way for Toyokawa Yuu to take responsibility, and the purpose of saying such a thing was to prevent Soyorin from continuing to blame Shoko.

If there is a misunderstanding, the first thing people who truly care about each other should do is clarify the misunderstanding for the other person instead of taking the blame. Clearing up the misunderstanding and preventing the other person from being troubled is better than anything else.

Chihaya Aine's habitually upturned lips drooped without her realizing it. She found that she seemed to be more worried about Toyokawa Yuu than Toyokawa Shoko.

Although it's unclear what Xiangzi is thinking, it seems that Youyu is not only under her own pressure, but also has to bear Xiangzi's burden as well.

Let's take this opportunity to ask them together.

As sworn siblings, these two can't afford not to get along.

I wonder if Yuyu and Xiangzi had a proper talk after Yuyu brought Xiangzi home last night...

As my thoughts raced, the train's speed began to decrease slowly, eventually stopping at the platform.

Holding his phone, turning off the music, and taking off his headphones, Gao Songdeng's expression was somewhat complicated.

In Ave Mujica's songs, she couldn't feel the joy of being in a band; the band, which was at the height of its popularity, sounded completely unattached.

However, even though it was a band whose songs didn't convey any joy, she could still hear Xiangzi's reluctance to part with them.

Therefore, even though just standing on the stage felt like a challenge for himself, Xiangzi still managed to complete the entire concert performance.

She couldn't understand why Xiangzi would give up the once joyful CRYCHIC band to form a band that brought him no joy at all.

And it seems she'd rather spend her whole life with that band.

Wishing you happiness...

The last time he went to see Toyokawa Shoko, her cold, emotionless voice echoed in his mind.

The insecurity of fearing getting hurt resurfaced in the girl's heart after the formation of MyGO!!!!!

"...Aiyin, we'll be in a band for life, right?"

"...Of course, didn't we agree before? Although a lifetime sounds exhausting, as long as we accumulate every moment little by little, we can always achieve it."

Hearing this question from Takamatsu Akari for the first time in a long time, Chihaya Aine was slightly taken aback and gave almost the exact same answer as before.

Upon receiving a positive reply from her friend, Takamatsu's expression relaxed considerably, revealing a sense of security akin to that of a small animal returning to its kennel.

"Thank you, Aine."

......................................................

In a café not far from Haneoka Girls' Academy, Toyokawa Yuu looked at Toyokawa Shoko sitting opposite her with a strange expression.

This morning, just as dawn was breaking, I received a call from Toyokawa Shoko.

Although they are birds of a feather, mutually exploiting each other, and even engaged, in reality, since Toyokawa Shoko and Toyokawa Yuu met, apart from the first time they contacted each other, when he invited Shoko to meet him at this coffee shop, the two have never communicated by phone.

There wasn't even a text message, let alone a phone call.

We usually discuss things face-to-face in the office.

Therefore, when Yuu Toyokawa received Shoko Toyokawa's call this morning, she thought that some unexpected emergency had occurred.

It was his own arrangement that led Toyokawa Kiyoko to enter the Starlight Plaza shopping center in an attempt to make a comeback, which triggered the rest of the Toyokawa family to make some kind of stunt.

Or is it that Toyokawa Kiyoshi's nature is hard to change, and he's already back to his despondent state after just one night?

Various speculations swirled in Toyokawa Yuu's mind, but when he answered the phone, he was momentarily at a loss as to whether to feel relieved or angry.

Come pick me up for school...

Yuu Toyokawa couldn't even remember how she felt when she heard those words on the phone.

He could only be certain that from the moment he picked up Toyokawa Shoko, who was already waiting downstairs at the rented apartment in Akabane Ward, until they sat down in a coffee shop not far from Haneoka Girls' Academy, the two of them hadn't exchanged a single word.

With her gaze fixed on the young lady before her, Toyokawa Yuu finally couldn't help but speak first.

"Hey Miss, why did you call me over so early in the morning? You're not just here to make fun of me, are you?"

"I just felt that since last night's concert was still a success despite that unexpected event, it was definitely worth a small celebration."

Use a knife and fork to cut a small piece of the pastry in front of you and slowly put it into your mouth.

The sweet but not cloying sensation spread across her tongue, causing Toyokawa Shoko, who had been fasting since the end of last night's concert, to squint her eyes slightly.

Her elegant movements and dignified demeanor were impeccable.

Even though she lived in that cramped and dilapidated rented room for a year, it didn't mean that Toyokawa Shoko had forgotten the demeanor she once had as a young lady.

"Aren't you going to eat? Besides coffee and tea, this shop also has very good pastries. I used to bring Mu here often."

What exactly do you want...?

Looking at Toyokawa Shoko, who was forking a small piece of pastry in front of her, Toyokawa Yuu couldn't help but feel a sense of unease.

The young lady in front of me seemed to be in a very good mood. Her dignified demeanor while enjoying the pastries made it hard to believe that she had just stepped out of that dilapidated rented room not long ago.

To those unaware of the situation, this appears to be an perfectly normal high school student, a pampered young lady, enjoying her breakfast before stepping into school.

However, this very "normality" is the biggest anomaly in Toyokawa Yuu's eyes.

He still vividly remembers how Toyokawa Shoko firmly believed in the backstage dressing room last night that the concert was a complete failure.

But now... it's as if Toyokawa Shoko has completely forgotten her attitude from last night, and has even started to endorse her past outcome-oriented thinking.

Did I not provoke her last night? Or did I wake up by scolding Toyokawa Kiyokazu, which also changed Toyokawa Shoko's mood?

Turning her head away from the pastry that Toyokawa Shoko had already forked in front of her, Toyokawa Yuu didn't continue playing riddles with this young lady, but instead asked the question directly.

"What are you thinking? You weren't like this last night."

He had no interest in playing riddles with Toyokawa Shoko; asking directly was a way to get to know each other.

Even if the other party is not telling the truth, you can still get some information from their words and reactions.

As accomplices who exploit each other, the most important thing is to understand and trust each other.

Only by understanding each other well enough can we make the most of each other.

Until they parted ways last night, Toyokawa Yuu was still confident that she could understand the young lady in front of her.

But now... he can't guarantee it.

"I've just figured some things out. Since the outcome has already been achieved, even if I resist in my heart, I can't change the facts. So I might as well make good use of this achievement without feeling guilty."