They are in the music show, but I am a stranger to them

But Aiyin didn't ask a sour question like "Why does Brother Qi seem to know her so well?" Instead, she asked Chen Qi curiously:

"So, how can I comfort Tomorin?"

"It's very simple. You just need to ask her whether she wants to form a band for a few months or a band for a lifetime." Facing Aiyin's question, Chen Qi still calmly raised the question. He thought that the most effective way to deal with Deng was to say softly:

"I think Deng should be able to figure out what is the most important thing and what is secondary. Aine, you should talk to Deng more, I believe there will be a good result."

Of course, if the necessary moment really comes, I will just be the fuse and stand in Xiangzi's position.

Chen Qi had never expected that his identity could be hidden forever, and he knew that he and Deng would meet again sooner or later.

Regardless of the reason why Deng established the band this time, or the repeated contacts between Aine and Deng, as well as Li Xi, Su Shi and others, Aine doesn’t know the truth now, but she will definitely guess it in the future.

But at least, even if he can no longer be in a band with them in the future, Chen Qi hopes that his departure can play a positive role in the relationship between the girls.

Perhaps this was the last thing he could do for them—to become the character that they had to forget and move beyond.

Chen Qi had thought about similar questions more than once.

After Cyrchic disbanded, Chen Qi was faced with Deng who depended on him more than ever. Could he keep Deng by his side without any worries, letting Deng be a sister who depended on him, who didn't feel lonely with his company, and who lived every day like a carefree sister in her childhood?

Chen Qi is certainly willing to do this, but is this really a good result for Deng?

A sister who no longer makes friends and no longer has expectations for the band, a sister who just clings to her brother, occasionally shares some things in her heart with him, wanders around the observatory and aquarium every day, and is keen on collecting small items such as stones and Band-Aids?

So is this still Takamatsu Tou?

Even if Chen Qi could ignore all this because he loved Deng, and say something like "It's enough that Deng is my sister, I will take care of her all her life"... what about others?

Having lost the band, Su Shi may never be able to face his own heart. He wears a hypocritical and sociable mask to hide his inner loneliness. He tries to find out the truth about Xiangzi's withdrawal from the band again and again, but is beaten to a pulp by Xiangzi's sharp self-esteem.

Lixi may never find his own direction again. He cannot let go of Xiangzi, his sister, and even his own triple sense of inferiority. Without everything they experienced in the original work, it would be difficult for Lixi to get out of it alone.

There are also Xiangzi, Mu, Yao Lenai... The fate of many people will be affected by his every move. Can he really not care about anything?

The lamp that wanted to become a "human" would never achieve this goal if it stayed by its side.

He would rather choose a different way to help Deng and every girl in MYGO.

He will personally fix all the things that have become chaotic and complicated because of him, until everything is as perfect as in the original, allowing every girl to find her best destination.

And it seems that everything is going in the right direction as Chen Qi expected.

Deng has successfully taken her first step. Although she has now retreated timidly, at least she has the desire to form a new band and get out of the predicament, which is not easy.

All he needs to do is give Aiyin some guidance, let her promote the establishment of MYGO, and then he can give some support from behind... everything will be fine.

Every girl will find her own home, a band where they no longer need to pretend to be someone else or to agree with others insincerely, but can treat each other sincerely, quarrel when they have a fight, laugh when it’s funny, and become like a big family.

Even if there is no place for him in the band, this kind of future is the ideal ending that Chen Qi wants to see most.

As for being a "savior", he took advantage of Deng's emotional strengths, as well as her fragility and dependence after the band disbanded, and directly "saved" Deng from the lonely world, letting her stay by his side as a dependent, and from then on, he would not care about other people or things...

For Chen Qi, this can only be considered a "selfish" ending.

It was precisely because of this that Chen Qi left Gao Song's house and left his sister's side... He knew that this was cruel to the lamp, but he really couldn't think of a better way.

Could it be that he stayed by Deng's side, but didn't care for her as much as before, and was just lukewarm towards her?

The lamp was a huge torture.

Chen Qi would rather choose a short pain than a long one.

While Chen Qi was racking his brain with thoughts, Ai Yin, who was standing beside him, was observing Chen Qi with a subtle look, taking in all the subtle changes in his facial expressions in these few minutes.

Brother Qi... must be thinking about that kid named Gao Songdeng, right?

He... seems really worried about his sister.

This was the first time Aiyin saw so many emotions flashing in Chen Qi's deep eyes, which were usually gentle as water...

This was also the first time she saw Brother Qi, who had been with her for half a year, being so attentive to a girl.

Aiyin was not jealous, she was very rational. She was just the little girl next door who had been with Chen Qi for half a year. Although Chen Qi treated her as a half-sister, how could she compare to a real sister who had been with him for more than ten years?

Especially, the child named Gao Songdeng, who was so timid and not good at expressing herself verbally...but whenever she mentioned her brother, her eyes shone with brilliance and she couldn't help but speak faster with joy.

If it weren't for the love and dependence from the bottom of my heart, there would definitely not be such joy that is beyond words.

Although she didn't know why Brother Qi left his sister, Aiyin could feel that Chen Qi still wanted to protect his sister from the bottom of his heart - in a place where Gao Songdeng couldn't see, Chen Qi had actually been paying attention to her from beginning to end.

He must have wanted to hear what his sister wanted to say to him... He must have wanted to witness his sister's growth.

...Then let me help you, Brother Qi, realize this wish.

Aiyin made a decision quietly in her heart, and also understood how she should face Takamatsu Deng.

But, when she inadvertently looked away, a lonely look flashed across Aine’s bright eyes.

Just like the sensitive mind of the young girl, which was fleeting as if she was afraid of being discovered by others, Chihaya Aine, when faced with such a "giant" that far exceeded the feelings between herself and Chen Qi, rarely did she have the desire to fight against it.

Brother Qi...

It would be great if you were really my brother...

Chapter 24: Shiina Riki's appearance, Aine and Riki's first encounter

"Bang."

At dusk the next day, the cafe area of ​​the Livehouse called "RiNG", a luxurious commercial building located in Ikebukuro, Tokyo, which is extremely large and can be said to accommodate almost all music-related businesses, also welcomed a guest with a very band-like style.

This is not something worth worrying about. After all, this is one of the few live houses in Tokyo, and there are countless bands performing here every day.

However, this high school girl with a guitar bag on her back and a cold expression, immediately fixed her eyes on the bar counter after entering the coffee shop. She had no intention of greeting any customers, but only looked at the girl who was skillfully making the coffee in her hand.

"Lixi."

At that gentle call, the girl at the bar finally raised her head, revealing her extremely delicate face when she was calm, as well as her iconic teardrop mole. She showed a somewhat helpless expression to the visitor and said lightly:

"Hailing, you're here again. Are you participating in the band activities today?"

"Well, I came to see how you are doing."

After briefly greeting her friend Shiina Riki, Hachiman Kailing took the initiative to sit down near the bar.

And until Li Xi poured her a cup of freshly brewed coffee, he asked Li Xi decisively:

"So, after the band broke up, they still didn't find a new band?"

"..."

Hailing's first words startled Lixi, who had just approached. However, Lixi did not avoid the topic that hurt her heart. Instead, she just frowned and took the initiative to admit it:

"No, but I'll find it."

"If you are willing to be a mercenary like me, I welcome you at any time." Hai Ling knew very well that this was just Li Xi's delaying words, but she still kindly chose a way out for her good friend.

Of course, Hailing has repeated these words many times in the past six months.

When Hai Ling looked at Li Xi's still unmoved cold expression, she knew very well that her idea would never impress Li Xi.

As for the reason... it is the knot in his good friend's heart that no one can help him untie except Li Xi himself.

"Still can't forget? Your old band, and that person?"

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

However, Hai Ling had just spoken in a suggestive tone, without even mentioning anyone by name, but Shiina Riki suddenly became like a cat whose tail was stepped on, and immediately became furious.

Li Xi, who rarely did this, glared at his good friend with an extremely unfriendly look, then turned his gaze away forcefully, and said in a more irritated tone:

"Really? You always bring this up to me. If I had known, I wouldn't have told you."

"But I still say the same thing - I don't believe that without him, I won't be able to find a new band, and I also don't believe that if he leaves, the new band won't be able to find someone to replace him."

"There is nothing that cannot be let go. I can still move forward without him. I will never stand still. I have said it before."

"Don't you regret it?" However, Hailing stared at her friend who was starting to be stubborn again, and asked in a calm tone:

"You used to still have friends to work with, but now not only him, but also the other members of the band, are almost out of touch."

"I've seen you working part-time lately, and you have very little time to practice. This seems to be somewhat different from what you mean by 'moving forward'."

Li Xi: "...I just can't muster the energy for the time being, or I can't find a goal."

Li Xi, whose sore spot was touched, was slightly speechless, but she dared not look directly at Hai Ling's eyes that seemed to have seen through her.

But even so, Li Xi still suppressed his irritation, wiped the coffee cup in his hand as if nothing had happened, and answered with his eyes closed:

"Anyway, you don't have to worry too much about me. I will find a new band and new members sooner or later."

"I just don't believe that there is no one more suitable to be the leader of a band than that guy. What he can do, there must be someone else who can do it."

Hailing: “…I hope so.”

However, Hailing herself didn't know whether she would believe Lixi's answer just now. Anyway, for Hachiman Hailing, she had paid special attention to Crychic for a period of time due to some coincidences in the past. She even learned the whole story from Lixi half a year ago, on the day when Crychic disbanded.

Although Hachiman Hailing felt that Li Xi had not fully told her some details, Li Xi's retelling said a lot, but very little about his own affairs.

But at least according to Hailing's self-judgment, the reason why Lixi had such a complicated and stubborn attitude towards "that person" was definitely not a simple jealousy of "inferiority complex".

After all, if someone was angry because of jealousy and being looked down upon, he would not blame himself so much that he would squat by the fountain and cry secretly on the night after the band disbanded.

Even now, Hailing can still verify this.

"By the way, can I do something for you? Of course, just hypothetically."

"Hmm? Whatever you want to ask?"

Hailing took a sip of the coffee in the cup, savoring the mellow taste between her lips and teeth, and then asked Lixi softly:

"Suppose, one day in the future, Chen Qi formed a new band and wanted to invite you to join again, would you still join?"

"Wha-what kind of a fucking question is that?!"

However, Hailing's words frightened Lixi so much that the cup in his hand almost slipped. After Lixi finally managed to stabilize the cup in his hand, he couldn't help but turn his head and glare at Hailing, who had a calm face. Her pretty face was flushed because of her excitement.

However, before Hailing opened her mouth to repeat her question, Lixi immediately responded, and his response was particularly decisive.

"No! I don't want to be in a band with a guy who's so high and mighty that the band can't function without him!"

"...Even if it was the girl named Deng who invited you?" Hai Ling asked calmly, but Li Xi's cheeks turned red again.

The next moment, Li Xi answered Hai Ling with a response that he almost squeezed out through his teeth:

"Even if it is, even if it is a lamp! No!"

Hailing: “…Wow.”

Li Xi: "Okay! What else do you want to drink? If there is nothing else, please pay the bill, a total of 900 yen!"

In the end, Li Xi realized that his reaction was a bit too intense. Li Xi, who was already showing signs of getting angry and embarrassed, faced with the strange looks from other customers in the cafe and wanted to start chasing Hai Ling away, so he simply turned around and stopped paying attention to Hai Ling.

Hailing's thoughts were confirmed again, so she stopped teasing her friend who was about to get angry. With an expression that was hard to tell whether it was bitter or funny, she planned to drink the coffee quietly and then turned around and left.

But, at this moment, Hai Ling unconsciously glanced and noticed an unexpected scenery outside the transparent windshield...

"…By the way, is that girl outside the window the girl named Deng? It seems that there is another girl with pink hair who has been chasing after her."

"what?"

However, Hailing's casual words made Lixi, who caught the key words, turn around reflexively. And in her eyes, she also clearly saw the figure of Gao Songdeng flashing outside the window.

However, the pink figure chasing behind Gao Songdeng made Li Xi's eyes become sharp almost immediately!

……

"Tomorin! Wait! I want to tell you something!"

"I'm sorry, Aine-chan, but I just want to be alone for a while!"

The next day, after getting the "standard answer" from Chen Qi about how to have a good relationship with Takamatsu Deng, Aiyin came to school half-believing and half-doubting, and once again tried to talk to Takamatsu Deng and ask her about forming a band.

However, perhaps it was because Takamatsu Deng was feeling self-loathing for his selfish thoughts that night, that Aine had just called out to him tentatively and Deng was frightened and ran away while apologizing.

Being suddenly alienated by the friend she just met yesterday, Aine might feel depressed for a while just because of this, but it would not affect her greatly.

However, being alienated by Chen Qi's sister was something Aiyin found hard to accept from the bottom of her heart.

I get along so well with Brother Qi! How could I run into obstacles so often when it comes to his sister?

Moreover, through the conversation last night, Aiyin could clearly know that although Chen Qi did not intend to immediately acknowledge the brother-sister relationship between himself and Takamatsu Deng, nor did he intend to recognize Deng immediately, he still considered Deng's consideration everywhere, and hoped that she could have a good relationship with Deng.

Therefore, with the dual thoughts of hoping that Takamatsu Deng could reunite with his brother and finding out what happened to Chen Qi's former band, Aiyin never gave up the opportunity to talk to Takamatsu Deng.

This persistence lasted until the end of school. Finally, facing Takamatsu Deng who was about to escape again, Aine could no longer sit still.