Loneliness and Rock and Roll with Band Observer

"..." She took a sip of the black tea in the cup in silence.

She recalled the trio she had met at the staircase earlier.

The girl with pink hair said that she was forming a band with a "bassist" and a "keyboardist".

And the light followed her.

Lights. "Bass player". And... "Keyboard player"?

A very bad association emerged in her mind.

Although it feels unlikely, and although I know that this is probably just a coincidence...

...But that worst association cannot be simply dismissed.

Su Shi, you wouldn't... come to me on purpose just to let me see "that kind of thing", right?

"call……"

Xiangzi let out a long breath and calmed himself down with a cup of black tea.

Calm down. Although Su Shi has always been doing unnecessary things, he shouldn't go to this extent.

"……well."

Toyokawa Shoko looked at her cell phone and it seemed that there was still time.

It's a rare opportunity to come here, so I'd better finish this cup of tea before leaving...

……

"Sushi, what on earth are you thinking?"

Meanwhile, in RiNG's cafe, Shiina Riki looks at Suyo with suspicion.

"My idea is very simple, isn't it?" Su Shi replied with a smile, "I want to form a band with Xiao Deng and you, Li Xi."

"...What about the other two people?" Lixi asked with a frown.

"They are the support musicians?" Su Shi rubbed her fingers with a smile.

Li Xi seemed dissatisfied with this answer and shook his head vigorously. "They are called support musicians... then what? Do you plan to let them be "support musicians" in the band forever, or do you plan to... find "official members" to come?"

"What do you think is a better approach, Li Xi?" Su Shi did not give a direct answer, but asked back with a smile.

"I?"

Li Xi seemed to want to say something, but in the end he couldn't open his mouth.

"...How do I know what you are thinking?"

She stood up, deciding to end this conversation.

But just as she turned around, she turned back again as if she was still not satisfied: "...If you must ask for my opinion, then I think that pink guy should not be needed."

“Ah? But that won’t work.” Suyo replied with a smile, “After all, I’ve already promised Aine-san. And Aine-san is now ‘Deng-chan’s friend’, Riki, you also admit that, right?”

Li Xi was stunned and after a moment's silence, he turned around reluctantly.

"...So that's what you think. Then do as you please."

"Lixi!" A voice came from the kitchen, "One serving of matcha parfait from station number four!"

"Got it, I'll be right over!"

Li Xi, wearing a RiNG staff uniform, took out the food from the kitchen and came to table number four.

"One serving of your matcha parfait... Hey!"

The guest at table number four snatched the food away without waiting for Lixi to put it down.

"So it's a stray cat. Really..."

After seeing the other person's characteristic white hair and heterochromatic eyes, Li Xi just shook his head helplessly and turned back with the empty tray.

The guest at station number four looked at the parfait in front of him with great interest.

"Little Lena!" A staff member called out from not far away, "Are you going to perform today?"

"No." The "stray cat" called Le Nai responded, "I'm not interested today."

While happily devouring the dessert in the cup, Le Nai looked at Su Shi who was sipping black tea in the distance.

"...Strange woman." She said to herself.

……

Meanwhile, inside the STARRY store.

Now is the break time between exercises.

Qiu Hui, with sweat all over her forehead, took the mineral water handed to her by Hong Xia, unscrewed the lid and took a big gulp.

Goto and Kita were discussing their experiences in playing the guitar, while Niji and Ryo were chatting about something. Akihime, who was alone, took out her phone and planned to check if there was any new information during the break.

"Hey, senpai, are you preparing for your first performance recently?"

As expected, there is new information. Just by looking at the preview, I know it is from Chihaya Aine.

"Yeah, what's wrong?" Qiu Hui replied.

"Can you tell me the scheduled time? I'm worried about it!"

"I haven't decided yet. It depends on how practice goes."

"Oh, then please let me know when the time is set. I'll buy a ticket and come to watch! This will also reduce the pressure on the performance fee quota, right?"

Aine seemed very pleased and sent many emojis.

"I'll definitely tell you when the time comes."

Qiu Hui smiled and put away her phone.

Performance...

After the performance is successfully completed, there will only be more and more work to do.

And in a few days, it will be the time I agreed to meet with Nagasaki.

The arrangements over there might lead to more things that have nothing to do with work...

Qiu Hui smiled bitterly and shook her head.

As I gradually get used to this pace of life, do I have some masochistic tendencies?

Chapter 72 Confession

As the performance day drew closer, Qiu Hui realized that she was facing a new problem.

After the performance, the identity of "Akirako" and the connection with the end of the band will be exposed to the public.

And Takamatsu Deng will definitely realize this...

Qiu Hui felt a headache. She had just said it casually before, but now she needed to spend more and more effort to cover up the lie.

“Although Takamatsu-san knows that I’m in a band, the only one who knows that I’m in the ‘Ending Band’ is Aine.” She thought, “If I can get Aine to keep this a secret for me, and at the same time conceal my identity when I perform on stage as the ‘Ending Band’s keyboardist’…”

...put on a mask, take off your glasses, slightly adjust your hairstyle, put on a hat, and change your clothing style.

When introducing herself on stage, she did not reveal her real name, but continued to use the code name "Akirako".

In this way, the novelist "Akiroko" and the band member "Akiroko" will be combined into one, and at the same time, they will be completely separated from the real "Togawa Akee".

As she thought about it, Qiu Hui suddenly felt that her plan was very reasonable.

So far, I have not shown my face in public, and readers' knowledge of my true identity is limited to some rumors that came from nowhere.

Bunko arranged for me to have a dark, socially phobic, unkempt character... If it's this kind of character, it feels normal for me not to show my face on stage?

What's more, I only intend to cover the lower half of my face. Aren't there many people who wear full-coverage hoods when appearing in public?

Thinking of this, Qiu Hui immediately sent a message to the editor, intending to seek his opinion.

"I think that makes sense." Kasumi Shiko replied, "I didn't expect you to have a talent for role-playing."

...After all, being a light novel author is a job that deals with character design, Akie thought.

After getting the editor's approval, the next step is to tell everyone in the band about it.

Let me tell you that I plan to wear a mask when I go on stage and use a pseudonym...

Thinking of this, Qiu Hui's mood suddenly became heavy.

She realized that this was not just a matter of changing her personality.

If you ask why...

...Should I reveal my background as a library and the real purpose of joining the Ending Band?

Qiu Hui fell into a long silence.

She had no intention of continuing to lie or hide things.

The little lie that I had inadvertently told to Takamatsu had now led to unexpected trouble.

If we deceive everyone who ended the band on such a critical issue... the consequences would be unimaginable.

But, if I really told everyone all this...

...How will everyone view me and "Togawa Akeie"?

"Aki-e-chan?"

Hong Xia's voice rang in my ears.

"..."

Qiu Hui stood up silently and looked back in the direction of Hongxia.

"Break time is almost over. Shall we continue practicing?"

"...Nijiga, and everyone else." Akie spoke with a serious expression.

"Actually, I have two things to tell you."

Feeling her heartbeat suddenly quicken, Qiu Hui secretly clenched her fists.

The scariest thing about socializing is that many times "doing nothing" is also the wrong option.

I feel that if I do nothing, I can avoid making mistakes and being blamed...

...This is an extremely irresponsible idea.

"What, what? What's going on?" Hongxia came closer curiously.

The other members of the ending band were also attracted and surrounded Qiu Hui.

"The first thing is about the first performance that will be coming up soon."

As Qiu Hui spoke, she tried hard to relax her tense nerves.

"I plan to cover the lower half of my face with a mask when I go on stage. Also, I will not use my real name 'Togawa Akeie' in future activities... but will use another 'pseudonym' instead."

……

There was a slightly awkward silence.

"I can't tell." Ryo shook his head, "So you, Qiu Hui, also have this hobby."

"So Akie likes this..." Goto Ichiri thought of something, "I think I can understand..."

"Ahaha, of course you can, just do it the way Akie likes." Hongxia smiled and scratched her head, "But is it necessary to talk about this topic so seriously?"

Trying hard to suppress the embarrassment in her heart, Qiu Hui spoke again: "There is a second thing. This second thing is also one of the reasons why I specifically proposed to perform on stage with a mask on."

The members who were laughing and joking gradually quieted down.

They instinctively realized that this second thing was the key.

"Actually, I..."

After a brief hesitation, Togawa Akie finally plucked up the courage to speak.

"…I joined the band to close it down for commercial purposes."