Who says meal replacements can’t be eaten as meals?

Not interesting.

Yao Lenai is planning to leave.

Chapter 137 Happiness First

"Band, is it over?"

Yao Le Nai's cold and childish voice suddenly broke the silence. Her tone was calm, with not very obvious ups and downs. It didn't sound like a question, but more like a statement of her own opinion.

She could no longer bear it, reached out to pull Songle's scarf, which made her feel uncomfortable, and stood up and stepped on the safety of the trailer carrying the guitar and speakers.

Before leaving, she turned her head to look at the light gray-haired woman one last time, her heterochromatic eyes narrowed slightly.

Not interesting.

This kind of life is not what she wants.

"Boring woman." Yao Lenai's unclear voice echoed quietly. She had just explained to her what a band was not long ago, but now it was the boring woman who began to hesitate first.

"Little Lenae...?" Takamatsu Deng felt uncomfortable being stared at by Lenae's cat-like heterochromatic eyes, and subconsciously hid in Sakuya's reassuring embrace, only sticking out the upper half of his head to look at the cat.

"Stray cat, what do you want to do?" Shiina Riki hammered the drum hard. The loud sound of the drum expressed her frustration and anger.

"Calm down, Li Xi, don't be so excited. There must be some misunderstanding." Nagasaki Motoyo put her hand in front of Ms. Li Xi who stood up angrily, took a deep breath, and then opened her eyes again and said seriously. "The current band is completely different from Crychic."

"And... no one can bear it, the second time..." Miss Su Shi did not finish her words. Some things really do not need to be said.

"Tsk." Li Xi turned her head away and looked at her trembling body in the mirror. She clenched her fists unwillingly, feeling a little sad and a little painful.

Shiina Riki closed his eyes.

What Su Shi said made sense. She didn't want to endure the pain of separation from Deng again. She was like this herself, so Deng, who was much more delicate and sensitive, would definitely not be able to accept it.

Shiina Riki gave up thinking, she didn't want to think about anything anymore.

"Bye." Lenai looked at the people who started arguing indifferently, kicked the small trailer lightly with his Martin boots, and walked towards the door.

She decided to leave.

"Wait a minute!" Gao Songdeng stretched out her hand, but stopped dejectedly. She had chosen to escape and had no reason to stop Le Na from leaving.

"What's the matter?" Yao Lenai turned around when he heard that. The scarf on his chest was crooked, and his tone was as calm as ever.

Everyone in the band looked at Takamatsu Deng, whose skinny figure appeared thin. They were all expecting him to say or do something.

But expectations have weight, and at this moment, Deng felt that she was going to disappoint everyone again.

Just like Crychic's first Live...

"I..." Deng's voice was so small and timid, and his arms fell weakly to the ground.

Sure enough...it's all my fault, again.

"Didn't you leave too early, Ronai-chan?" Ichinose Sakuya reached out and caught Deng's arm that was about to drop, speaking in a natural and confident tone.

Ms. Sakuya smiled softly at Takamatsu Deng, who was about to cry, and walked straight to Chihaya Aine, who had a confused look on her face, leading the little animal that was about to fall into autism.

"Leave it to me." Sakuya-san whispered to Deng in her heart. She believed Deng could understand what she meant.

He carefully handed the gray-haired animal to the only member of the team besides himself, then turned around confidently, leaving only a handsome and reliable back to everyone.

After adjusting the shoulder strap of the bass bag and dragging it to a length that was convenient for carrying with one hand, Ms. Sakuya imitated Hailing's usual practice and strode over to Lena with the bass bag in hand.

"?" Maomao tilted his head with a small question mark on his head, not understanding what the bad woman in front of him was planning.

"Little Lenai, the band is not over yet." She half-knelt down, gently placed her precious GB-4 against the wall, and looked straight into Lenai's lively eyes.

"The band hasn't started yet." Sakuya said softly.

Yao Le Nai didn't quite understand, and before she could figure it out, the girl with long flaxen hair suddenly moved closer to her.

The two of them were very close to each other, and her slightly frizzy long hair tickled Miss Le Nai's cheeks. She could almost feel the warmth coming from the other's forehead through the thin air.

"Don't move. I'm not very good at this either, so be good, little Ryuna." Miss Sakuya gently soothed the white-haired cat, fiddling with the light gray scarf that was pulled to the top by her sister.

She didn't follow Xiao Mu's example and untie it completely. Instead, she fiddled with it for a while and successfully made the crooked tie into a half-crooked one. The only change was probably the length of the tie.

My sister is really something. Although it is in accordance with etiquette to cut the hair as high as possible, it will be very uncomfortable on the neck. No wonder little Lenai has been fiddling with the collar.

"That's fine. Are you feeling a lot more comfortable?" Sakuya took two steps back but didn't move too far away.

"Thank you." Le Nai looked down at the loosened collar and nodded slightly, then tilted her head in confusion. "Why do you say that?"

She asked Sakuya what he said before.

"Clothes always fit better the more you wear them. She's also trying hard to adapt to your body." Ms. Sakuya blinked and chose to answer another question.

"Oh..." Kaname thought for a moment and put down the guitar again, looking at the gray-blue pupils in front of him and asked. "Do you... Sakuya want to play with us? Live, here."

“Well, I want to play with Runa and everyone else.” Ms. Sakuya smoothed her short white hair which had become frizzy again not long after she combed it. She could feel that this free cat had probably compromised.

"Yeah." Le Nai decided to give it another try. Even if it was meaningless, she would show her rare patience. For her own shelter, and for this bad woman who was willing to squat down and talk to her properly.

"But today, obviously that won't work..." Ms. Sakuya stood up again, proudly put her hands on her hips, and announced. "So the two of us will leave them and go out and play together!"

"what!?"

"Eh--?"

Miss Su Shi and Ms. Li Xi, who were originally smiling with relief at a distance because their eldest daughter had finally grown up and knew how to comfort her younger sister, spoke out at the same time, obviously not yet catching up with someone's train of thought, which was like a 180-degree turn.

"How about we go to the cafe to play music together first, eat parfait, and then go buy new clothes?" Miss Sakuya counted on her fingers and quickly arranged the plan for the day. She would probably eat vegetable minestrone soup when she got home in the evening anyway. She was really a little genius!

"Hmm!" Miss Lenai's Martin boots scored twice. The cat nodded its head vigorously and ruffled its just-combed white short hair again.

She liked the plan.

Chapter 138: It's Really Easy to Coax

The evening breeze is pleasant, dispelling the summer heat and also blowing away worries along with the corners of clothes.

The temperature was just right, and her new Yuezhisen leather shoes fit her feet well and were comfortable. Her good mood was fully demonstrated with every step she took.

Ichinose Sakuya was carrying a bass bag on his back, holding the leftover bottle of happy water from dinner in his left hand, and holding the magical costume props that Rina had changed into in his right hand. He walked in an arrogant manner and even turned around when passing by RiNG. He admired his own figure through the bright, reflective floor-to-ceiling glass, and his long flaxen hair swaying gracefully behind his neck. Chihaya Aine, who had been practicing seriously for half an hour under a nearby street light before leaving in embarrassment, almost lost her footing and stepped on the curb.

"Here, the world!"

Humming a relaxing tune, my expressions of awesomeness and wanting to be praised were fully revealed through my body movements without any disguise. I was just like a primary school student who had received praise from the teacher, held up the test paper with full marks high, and skipped home.

The players competed for rhythm but played in harmony in a strange place, they had to pack up the matcha and sweets that they could not finish, and they were very efficient in shopping, as they fell in love with a large solid color T-shirt at first sight without changing their clothes.

Hehe~ I'm sure everyone will praise me today~

The matter of registering her sister for the sports meet might have been lightly touched upon, and apart from the fact that she was almost scratched when undressing the cat and her purse was slightly torn, Miss Sakuya perfectly resolved a small crisis that was not that serious.

If the Relaxed Band, which I have been working hard for for many days, disbands, I will have no excuse to refuse Hailing's request to be a supporting musician. Maybe it would be nice to go to Ruomai's NyaAki often, but it is still a bit stressful to bother Xiao Chuhua every time...

"Sakuya-chan!" Chihaya Aine happily waved to Miss Sakuya who was narcissistically looking at herself in the mirror not far away, changed direction, and trotted over. "Why are you back to RiNG now? You're really cunning to suddenly run out to play with little Rakuna."

Miss Aiyin, who had been practicing guitar for an hour or so with Ms. Lixi holding her shoulders, and finally managed to play half of "Haruhi Shadow" with some difficulty, took the initiative.

"I left in such a hurry that I forgot to bring my schoolbag, and my sister is still in the recording studio anyway." Ms. Sakuya blinked shyly and shook her head a little embarrassedly. "Compared to this, Aine should have something else she wanted to tell me~"

“Ah~ That’s true.” Aine covered her mouth with her hand, and Sakuya’s face full of praise was so adorable.

So, the malicious Miss Aiyin pretended to nod and thought for a while, then as if she suddenly remembered something, she stretched out a finger and said confidently.

"Sakuya-chan, you mean the promise you made to go to KTV with me to sing Sumimi's new song, right? I can sing the part of Hatsuka...Mana, so do you want to go together tomorrow?"

“Ah? It’s not impossible, but isn’t there anything more important? What about what just happened this afternoon, when everyone was in the practice room?” Sakuya-san put her index fingers together and looked at him eagerly. She had made it so obvious, Aine would surely understand.

Miss Sakuya did feel a little strange about the promise Aine made. Her elder sister had never been a fan of Sumimi's songs, and she didn't seem to have a very good impression of Aine either. So why would she agree to such a slightly intimate request as going to karaoke together?

“Oh… Are you talking about the fact that everyone decided to disband early today and go home to have dinner early?” Aine said, playing dumb.

“No!” Miss Sakuya, whose hands were restrained, raised her legs angrily, intending to give Aine a light kick to tease her, but gave up.

Humph! A great man does not bear grudges against a small man!

“Hahaha~” Miss Aine laughed so hard that her body shook with laughter. She felt that Sakuya was much easier to tease at night than during the day at school, so she didn’t keep her head down thinking about anything.

"I'm going to ignore you. I'm going to look for Xiao Deng." Someone who didn't get any praise decided to change his target and cut off all ties with the annoying pink-haired girl before the next meeting.

"As for Xiao Deng, she has already gone back early~" Chihaya Aine added softly as she looked at Sakuya's back as she turned away resolutely.

"Hmph, then I'll go find my sister and Riki." Ms. Sakuya paused, snorted, and continued walking towards RiNG's glass door.

"Moshiro-san and Rikki said they had something to discuss, so it seems they are not in the practice room anymore." Chihaya Aine followed the angry country girl slowly, her tone as relaxed as her pace.

"Eh?" Miss Sakuya stopped and thought quickly. If everyone in the band was busy or not here, wouldn't she get any praise today?

Don't do this kind of thing. I risked being scratched and clawed by the cat and tried my best to resolve the incident. Wouldn't it be a big loss if no one praises me?

“What’s wrong?” Miss Aine, who had avenged the incident in the astronomy department’s tea-making room, was in a good mood. She tilted her upper body and did not try to hide the smile on her face.

Silly Sakuya can be controlled at will.

"Did my sister tell me where you went with Li Xi?" Miss Sakuya, who had just announced in her heart that she had temporarily severed ties with the scumbag pink-haired girl, wanted to try to struggle again.

“I don’t know.” Aine answered immediately.

"Oh..." Miss Sakuya's mood dropped at a speed visible to the naked eye, and her flaxen hair became a lot more wilted.

It would be too childish to ask Aine to praise her performance now. Sakuya-san planned to hold it in. At worst, she could repeat it to Mio via Line when she got home in the evening. Mio would definitely comfort her.

"Sakuya-chan was really great today." With her hands behind her back, Chihaya Aine hopped in front of Sakuya. Her light grey eyes widened a little, revealing her owner's serious mood.

“Hmph, it’s too late. I’ve decided to end my friendship with little Aine before tomorrow.” Miss Sakuya spoke righteously and firmly, but she stared straight at Aine and blinked twice, and she almost shook the dog’s tail that appeared behind her.

It's really a cute and annoying way.

“Sakuya is really amazing. Although it may be a bit boastful, I think I should still have some experience in socializing.” Miss Aine tentatively reached out to touch the angry little village girl’s soft long hair. When she didn’t notice any resistance, she boldly stroked her hair all the way to the ends, and at the same time once again marveled at the magic between the twins.

“So, Sakuya is really great to be able to resolve everyone’s conflict when I haven’t figured out the current situation yet.”

“Hehe, isn’t this only natural?” Miss Sakuya instantly regained her spirits and decided to end the severance of the friendship with Aine ahead of schedule.

"See you tomorrow~"

"Well, see you at school tomorrow."

Looking at Ms. Sakuya running into the RiNG gate, Chihaya Aine turned around again and sighed.

Sakuya is really easy to please.

Chapter 139 Heart-to-heart talk

The setting sun was setting, illuminating the bustling buildings of Ikebukuro. The dim twilight fell on the roofs of small buildings and the huge LCD screens that worked 24 hours a day, and the city was dyed a tired brown-yellow. Shiina Tatsuki leaned on the steel railing of the outdoor staircase built by RiNG, and his light purple eyes silently watched the rails that stretched to the end of his vision through a guardrail. The trains full of off-get off work employees and students returning home were shaking, and it seemed that he could hear the heavy buzzing sound of the wheels rubbing against the tracks.

The light might be in that car.

Shiina Riki thought so. She couldn't tell whether it was the end of the rehearsal or the guitar teaching class today. She rarely took the initiative to send Deng home. Instead, she agreed to Nagasaki Motoyo's request for the first time and discussed the future of the band together.

The evening breeze blew, ruffling the tips of her hair and bangs, but the owner of the black hair remained indifferent, allowing the advertising screen on the rooftop of the opposite building to illuminate her cheeks, which were somewhat pale due to her reversed work and rest schedule, and the not-so-obvious dark circles under her lifeless eyes.

The screen was pure white, and flashed by was a popular duo idol group. Li Xi had heard of the group's name. After all, the big star on the screen was sitting in the last row of his class.

Located near the back door, it is not very noticeable whether you suddenly leave school or return to class.

Li Xi was a little envious of Mikado Hatsuka in the back row, and also of Hailing and Sakuya who was in the same band, and... Toyokawa Shoko, who she never wanted to see again.

Although they are of the same age and status, they can balance the band and their life, and allocate their precious youth time so reasonably and not waste it. She asked herself if she could do it.

Even the arrangement was the same. She couldn't change the tune as she felt like Xiangzi did, and she couldn't take into account the level and feelings of everyone in the band. Just modifying the music for the unknown band that hadn't officially started yet had already exhausted all her strength.

Stray Cat will probably return to the band in the future, so will the guitar part be more difficult to modify? But can the half-baked Chihaya Aine keep up with the chords and perform smoothly...

She asked herself, she was definitely not a genius, so she could only devote more, or even all, of her time to the development of the band. When she was hungry, she would open a bag of energy jelly, and when she was sleepy, she would take a 20-minute nap, and then continue to sleep during the daytime classes.

She has tried her best.

Yet it feels meaningless.

"Lixi, are you okay?"

Nagasaki Suyo's gentle words made Lixi leave the railing. She didn't actually hear the specific meaning clearly, but she just stood up straight subconsciously.

At least now, she can still bear it.

Miss Su Shi also withdrew her gaze, somewhat disgusted by the strong light of the advertising screen. She shrank into the shadow where the light just couldn't reach, and groped her thumb nail bit by bit.

"The disbandment of Crychic was a huge blow to Xiao Deng." Su Shi said the same words as he had many times in the past.