A guide to survival in a heavy girl's world

"Eh?! Is this really possible?!"

Chihaya Aine suddenly jumped up from the sofa with a look of surprise.

"Brother, you still have your own work here, right? Wouldn't it be troublesome for him to design clothes for us?"

"Well... I just happened to have a lot of free time due to various reasons."

Chihaya Tetsuya said:

"Also, I've been learning a lot about band culture and performance costumes lately. Rather than asking for trouble, I'd rather ask you to give me a chance to try."

"Hey, if it's my brother's design, there will definitely be no problem!"

Chihaya Aine expressed infinite trust and support for her brother.

"Haha~ No thanks, I'm now looking forward to the day when the band is successfully formed!"

After saying that, the restless Chihaya Aine stood up directly from the sofa.

"I'm going back to my room to practice piano! Brother, remember not to eavesdrop!"

"Well refueling."

"Yes!"

Chihaya Aine first saluted her brother with a solemn expression, then picked up her schoolbag and skipped into her room...

"...Well, I should also start drafting the work for May."

After watching his sister return to her room, Chihaya Tetsuya put his phone back into his pocket and then followed her to his room.

However, the moment he closed the door, the phone in his pocket suddenly rang.

"Good evening, Director Hasegawa."

Good evening, Tetsuya-kun.

Hasegawa Shin's voice came from the microphone.

[Sorry to call you so suddenly at this time, but I thought you would also like to know this as soon as possible——]

Watanabe Office has already sent me the theme for the May Live show "Summer Zodiac."

"Eh? Really!?"

As soon as he heard that the topic was about work, Chihaya Tetsuya immediately focused all his attention.

"What's the theme, please?!"

"Well, this time, the theme is a bit abstract, but the more undefined the theme is, the more room it gives the designer to express themselves freely."

Just like that, under Chihaya Tetsuya's nervousness and curiosity, Hasegawa Kokoro clearly said the key words of this Live -

【The theme of this live show is "Lost".】

Prologue: Searching Under the Starry Sky

As expected, the release of Summer Zodiac's new music video immediately took the idol industry by storm, topping the trending search charts on the day of its release. The star performers, Hatsuka Mikado and Ai Hoshino, also saw their popularity skyrocket overnight.

In this heated discussion that gradually spread across the entire Internet, everyone's attention was generally focused on two points.

The first point is naturally the two idols themselves, and the second point... is their outfits.

Chu Hua's black dress needs no introduction. Whether it is the aura, the fit or the visual effect, it has reached an impeccable level. What shocked the majority of Guangda fans the most was, of course, the performance costume worn by Hoshino Ai.

For ordinary idol fans, they rarely combine the idol's image with a specific piece of clothing.

After all, idols often change costumes during performances, especially in special live shows. Almost every idol will prepare multiple sets of costumes to perform different songs.

However, the clothes that Hoshino Ai wore in this MV made everyone think of the same word——

【Exclusive】

Even those who know nothing about clothing and idols can't help but marvel at the perfection of this look.

The costumes, which are made to an exceptional standard, strike a perfect balance with Hoshino Ai's charm, which transcends ordinary people's comprehension.

In this world, only Hoshino Ai can pull off such a gorgeous performance costume. At the same time, this costume is probably the only one in the world that can bring out the full charm of Hoshino Ai.

However, just as the entire idol industry, and even the fashion industry, were paying attention to the origin of this costume, they were shocked to find that they could not find any information about the maker of this costume on the Internet...

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

"Isn't this too weird?!"

In a corner of a coffee shop, Toyokawa Shoko couldn't help but frown and complain to the person in front of her:

"This dress was such a success, but Chihaya-san, the maker, didn't get any attention at all!"

"Regarding this... although I don't know the specific reason, it seems to be the result of a joint consultation between our firm and your studio."

Triangle Chuhua, who was wearing a baseball cap, shook his head slightly:

"According to our agent, it seems that 'it's not time to announce it yet.'"

"What on earth is going on..."

Shoko Toyokawa picked up the teacup in front of her gloomily.

"Not only this costume, but Chihaya-san can't even participate in this summer's daily design... Does that mean Chihaya-san will be in charge of your Summer Zodiac costumes from now on?"

"Ah, I'd welcome that."

After hearing this, Sanjiao Chuhua blinked and said jokingly:

"After all, I also want to have a set of exclusive clothes like Ai~"

"That outfit... well, it's definitely something that makes people envious."

As a girl herself, Shoko Toyokawa naturally would not deny her admiration for that piece of clothing.

But apart from this instinctive yearning, as Chihaya Tetsuya's apprentice and companion, she really doesn't want to see Chihaya Tetsuya's self-burning madness again.

"Come to think of it... When I first approached you, you should have realized that we were the ones responsible for designing your costumes, right? Why didn't you remind me then?"

Toyokawa Shoko silently changed the subject.

After hearing Toyokawa Shoko's question, a hint of hesitation flashed across Sankaku Hatsuka's face.

"Because you mentioned at the time that there seemed to be some kind of relationship between Chihaya-san and Ai. Out of caution about this relationship, and not wanting to disturb your work, I decided to investigate first..."

"So? What's the result?"

Toyokawa Shoko asked:

"I'm also curious about the relationship between Chihaya-san and this Hoshino Ai."

Although she had heard a lot of information about the two from Chihaya Tetsuya's words, out of respect for Chihaya Tetsuya, she never took the initiative to ask for details.

And now, looking at Sanjiao Chuhua's expression, she seemed to have known the whole truth.

"about this……"

A trace of obvious confusion suddenly flashed across Sanjiao Chuhua's face. Then, she looked up at Toyokawa Shoko's expression full of curiosity, and then slowly sighed.

"I can tell you, but Xiaoxiang, you have to promise me that you won't tell anyone about this..."

"I promise."

Toyokawa Shoko was not the talkative type, and simply keeping a secret was not a big deal for her.

However... the relationship between the two people seemed to be indeed unusual, as it could make Sanjiao Chuhua so alert.

And then, in the face of Toyokawa Shoko's increasingly dull expression, Sankaku Hatsuka slowly spoke:

"Ai, once a companion of Chihaya-san, was in the same orphanage... As early as seven years ago, Ai had already fallen in love with Chihaya-san, and this feeling has continued to this day. The reason why she became an idol was to be able to meet Chihaya-san again."

"Now, Ai has finally found her goal. As for what she will do next, I think only she knows..."

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

Ever since learning about the theme of this Live, Chihaya Tetsuya has been thinking about how to express the feeling of being lost.

Like the fairy tale style of "Alice in Wonderland" and "Gretel and Hansel"?

Or should we base it on night and dark tones, and start with the atmosphere to create a feeling of being "lost"?

Or is it simply using a variety of colors and complex patterns to create chaotic visual clothing?

Because the topic was so abstract, Chihaya Tetsuya couldn't find a suitable entry point for a while.

However, this confusion only applies to the theme of "getting lost".

After the last work, he has gained a new understanding of [Summer Zodiac].

That's why he came to this place specifically—

"Planetarium..."

Looking at this brand new place that was so unfamiliar to him, Chihaya Tetsu couldn't help but mutter to himself:

“I don’t know if it’s feasible to find inspiration through the concept of the ‘starry sky’.”

With this tentative idea in mind, Chihaya Tetsu walked towards the entrance of the planetarium.

At the same time, in a corner that he was completely unaware of, a figure wearing a black hat and a mask, with long black hair, was secretly watching his receding figure...

Chapter 1: Difficulty seeing in dim light

In order to create the feeling of a starry night sky, the brightness in the entire planetarium is kept to the minimum level so that you can see clearly what is below and around you.

Guided by the dim light, Chihaya Tetsu also chose a seat relatively close to the back.

Although he is not a stargazer, he has no requirements for the location of stargazing. Moreover, compared with the crowded center, the spaciousness and quietness at the back are more conducive to his search for inspiration.

(By the way, is this really a projection? It feels like a real starry sky...)

Gazing at the deep starry sky above the dome, Chihaya Tetsuya, who had never been to a planetarium before, sighed in his heart.

(Modern technology is really amazing.)

He couldn't help but sigh sadly when he thought about how he and his sister had only recently learned how to use smartphones correctly.

(Compared to that, I feel like a primitive being...)

It seems that he still has a lot to learn next...

Just as Chihaya Tetsuya was still daydreaming, a burst of noise from the side suddenly attracted his attention -

Under the illumination of the starlight in the dome, Chihaya Tetsu could barely see the figure standing beside him.

She was a girl with short hair, wearing a Haneda uniform, and her build was even smaller and slenderer than Aine.

At this moment, the girl was staring blankly at his location, her expression looking a little bewildered...

(…Hmm? Ah, could that be the case…)

After a brief thought, a possibility emerged in Chihaya Tetsuya's mind. Then, instead of talking to the girl, he stood up from his seat very quietly and moved to a new seat some distance away from her.

Sure enough, after he left, the short-haired girl who had been standing there motionless also started to move. She bowed several times towards her seat before finally sitting down...

(...What an interesting kid.)

Although he didn't say a word, his actions and expressions were very easy to understand.

And that timid and cautious look couldn't help but remind Chihaya Tetsu of some small animals...

……

No, no, he didn't come here to look for inspiration for "little animals".

Rather than this girl, he should focus more on the starry sky above his head!

Thinking of this, he immediately withdrew his gaze and looked up at the dome again, waiting for the commentator's "arrival".

In order to concentrate as much as possible, he tried hard to ignore the sounds and figures passing by his seat... However, even so, while waiting, his attention was still attracted by a scent coming from behind him -

(…? The smell of hair dye?)

Although it was just a faint smell, Chihaya Tetsuya was still able to discern the true identity of the smell.

He had smelled this scent in the dressing room when he attended a fashion show with Director Hasegawa.

Because the smell was so bad, he didn't even wait for Director Hasegawa to finish greeting others in the dressing room before fleeing in a panic. After that, Director Hasegawa laughed at him for a long time because of this incident...