A band simulator, but all girl-heavy!

"If you want to dress up nicely for everyone, why don't you show it to everyone?"

“…No.”

Little Pochi's voice was as shredded as fallen leaves carried by the breeze. "Because... Xiaokui said in the group chat that she wanted to see everyone dressed up cutely... But, I'm different from everyone else. I'm a bit rustic, and it would be weird..."

117

Chapter 117 The pressure is on!

Little Pochi proved to be a popular shade.

Putting aside her timid and often outburst-like personality, just looking at her appearance, her facial features are delicate and beautiful, coupled with her gloomy temperament, she appears to be melancholy and indifferent. If her overly long bangs were trimmed and maintained properly, she would probably become the recognized 'ice beauty' in school.

Coupled with her perfect figure and talents that many female high school students can only dream of, it can be said that Xiao Boqi has the best basic elements to be popular. It's a pity that God opened a window for her while locking the door. Her overly inferior and withdrawn personality caused her to fall into the quagmire of social phobia, and she always put herself in an extremely low position.

But with just a little polish, this rough jade will show its due luster and texture. Today she is wearing a white shirt and a high-waisted pleated skirt in the style of a college uniform, with a black bow tie at the neckline. Apart from her evasive gaze and her head lowered as if she had done something wrong, she is now a perfect young high school girl.

"Ichiri, you're so cute! But you're always insecure. That's not right, ok?"

Aoi gave a thumbs up, holding little Pochi in her arms and the pink sportswear she had just taken off to disguise herself.

"Ah, but, cuteness and all that... I'm probably not worthy of someone like me..."

Little Pochi's expression became more and more timid and shrinking, with a hint of shyness in it.

"It's really cute~ And, this dress today... I think it's something Ichiri wore specially for me, right?"

Aoi smiled and said, "Thank you, Ichiri, I'm very touched!"

Little Pochi didn't reply, but the joyful smile on her face, which seemed to be about to melt, completely revealed her mood.

"In that case, would you like to pick out more clothes for Ichiri today?"

Aoi clapped her hands lightly, her expression eager to try.

"Eh."

Little Pochi's face instantly darkened, as if he had heard the end of the world. Even his voice lost its vitality. "No, no, no, no need... If I try it on, it might stain my new clothes..."

"Oh, really! Stop talking like that!"

Aoi gently took Pochi's hand and winked at her playfully, "Just think of it as a way to boost your confidence, Ichiri. We will have more and more performances in the future, and the stages will become more and more grand, so you can't be so unconfident, okay?"

"Yes, but..."

"We can pick out clothes for each other. Just treat it as a little activity between friends. I'll be picking out clothes, so why don't you pick out a few for me?"

"I, I know!"

Little Pochi still has the same personality. Although he needs to be coaxed occasionally, he is still the fool who doesn't know how to refuse others.

Aoi raised the corners of her mouth, silently praised herself for her good plan, and shouted to Kita and others who were still chattering not far away.

"Kita~ Ryo-senpai, Nijika-senpai! Let's pick out clothes for each other~"

This is obviously an opportunity to bring friends closer together. If all the attention is given to Bochi alone, it will cause everyone to lose balance. Therefore, she has to get along well with everyone, otherwise there will be chaos like in the simulator.

As Aoi saw everyone gathering around, Bochi's expression gradually became embarrassed and flustered. He silently apologized in his heart, but still happily continued the purchasing meeting.

……

"No, no... the feeling just now was not right."

Inside RING's recording studio, the air was thick with a heavy, oppressive atmosphere. Despite the clear blue sky outside, the room felt as if invisible dark clouds were drifting, temporarily obscuring the sun in their hearts.

Since the accident in the dream, everyone finally got together again. Aine and Suyo decided to return to the band. Lenai, who had disappeared, suddenly returned to the band one day, as free and easy as before, and didn't think there was anything wrong with her sudden disappearance before.

And now, everyone is working hard to be able to sing this song "Film" to Aoi in future performances.

Since everyone got together and the Golden Week began, they started an almost devilish training, the intensity of which was far higher than the level before they participated in the music festival. They almost started in the morning and didn't finish until RING closed. They worked so hard that they wanted to squeeze all their time into practice.

However, such high-intensity training was not opposed by everyone. Even the free-spirited Lenna was immersed in the long training, and Aine didn't even complain.

However, it was still not enough, and it was still a little short of what Deng had originally intended, which was to "convey his feelings to Aoi."

The lyrics are already perfect, and there will be no problem with Deng's singing, but the arrangement needs to be revised by Li Xi. After all, the violin part is missing, and the original violin part is the important main tone of this song. If it is removed, the entire arrangement needs to be changed.

What kind of effect tone should be used for the guitar? Should the lead guitar part of Lenai be modified to imitate and replace the violin effect? ​​Can the bass, which was originally used purely to graft on the bass of the music, be given some more catchy riffs?

Problems came one after another, making her very anxious. She felt that there were all kinds of problems from her own arrangement to everyone's performance.

The current level is not enough.

"Want to take a break?"

Aine sighed in relief and wiped her sweaty cheeks with a handkerchief. She looked exhausted. "Practicing intensively won't make you more efficient."

"For a band that wants to defeat Aoi, this level of training is a given."

Riki frowned slightly and glared at Aine.

"Hey~ I didn't say there's anything wrong with the current training! It's just that too much intensity will have the opposite effect."

Aine muttered in dissatisfaction, "Have you forgotten what we did in our dream during Golden Week?"

No one would forget it; as one of the most important memories in their dream story, they would probably never forget that training camp. Everyone sang together as they slowly entered the mountains and green forests of Yamanashi Prefecture.

But the reality was huge. Not only did they not have Xiaokui to accompany them, they also did not have a villa for them to stay in, and even the holiday that they could have used to relax on was gone.

"That's two different things... Besides, Aoi is probably the same as us. After what she's been through, she won't be in the mood to go to the training camp. She'll practice just as hard as we do."

Su Shi's usual gentle smile was gone, and he simply said calmly, "If you want to compete with the End Band on the next stage, you really need to work hard without complaint."

"When is the next performance?"

Deng clenched the microphone in his hand and looked at Li Xi, "I think next time, I will try to invite Xiao Kui to watch our performance."

"I guess we'll have to wait until after Golden Week... and judging by our current practice schedule."

Li Xi pinched his chin and muttered with a distressed expression, "The earliest we can wait is late May."

"Then, at that time, sing this song for Aoi..."

The lamp lowered its head, but its eyes were adorned with light.

No one spoke in the recording studio, but everyone's silence represented their agreement. Only the discordant sound of someone stuffing the guitar back into the box broke the tranquility.

Everyone turned to look in confusion, only to find that Lenai was already packing up and loading the boxes onto the small trailer.

"Hey! Wildcat, practice isn't over yet, where are you going?"

Li Xi stood up quickly.

"Let's go have a matcha parfait."

Lenai turned around and blinked as if it was a matter of course, "Aoi promised."

After he finished speaking, the recording studio fell into silence again. Everyone looked at Lenai with different expressions, but Lenai just curled his lips and walked out of the recording studio door dragging the cart.

118

Chapter 118 Definitely!

"Huh? Are you all here to look for Xiao Kui?"

The PA lady sitting at the front ticket counter had a look of surprise on her face. Unlike her gloomy, rock-and-roll exterior, her personality and voice were gentle and soft. She patiently explained to the several girls crowded at the entrance, "That girl's really becoming increasingly popular! Sorry, she's not here."

The PA paused, thought for a moment, and then asked Xingge, who was yawning at the drinks counter not far away, "Manager, where did Aoi and the others go?"

"Shizuoka Prefecture, I think it's in Izu."

Xingge replied casually.

"Yeah~ That's it. After the band is done, all the members are going to a training camp. They'll probably be back on the last day before Golden Week. Maybe you can come after Golden Week~"

The PA turned to look at them with a smile, "But they probably won't be performing anytime soon. It seems those kids are planning to hold an independent live show. You can keep an eye on their activities later~"

silence.

An overwhelming silence gripped the girls, leaving them frozen in place, with no reaction to Ms. PA's words.

"Okay, okay~ Thank you very much..."

Aine quickly forced a smile and bowed slightly to Ms. PA to express her gratitude so that they wouldn’t be too rude.

"Um...excuse me...what's going on with the independent live...?"

Deng clenched his hands hesitantly, but finally plucked up the courage and asked Miss PA.

"It's their own decision. I'm not sure about the details. We'll have a special stage for them in the Livehouse when the time comes."

Ms. PA smiled and said, "You can look forward to it. You are welcome to come and support us!"

"When exactly is that?"

Su Shi asked.

"That hasn't been decided yet. Probably before June, right?"

Miss PA replied.

After hearing that, the girls fell into a brief silence. It was not until Aine took the lead in expressing her gratitude once again that they turned around, walked up the stairs, and left the livehouse called 'Starry'.

According to the normal schedule, they should have continued to practice hard in the recording studio today, but the words that Lenai dropped before leaving were like a depth bomb, causing huge waves on the calm surface of the water, causing everyone's peace of mind to be easily disturbed and they were unable to calm down for a long time.

After all, they are not machines that only know how to follow the schedule, but ordinary female high school students in their youth. There is no way they can concentrate on training under such circumstances, not to mention that the Golden Week is supposed to be a day for good rest.

As a result, Lenai's words caused a domino effect in the band. One after another, they expressed their desire to go to Starry, and in the end, all members went to Shimokitazawa.

But the result was this.

The girls walked confusedly on the streets of Shimokitazawa, looking at the unfamiliar street scenes around them. Finally, they stopped in front of a vending machine next to a small staircase, looking silently in different directions.

Although their feelings at this moment were nothing compared to the shock they felt when they heard "If You Can Shine" appear on the stage, they still couldn't laugh at all.

Whether it was that song or the training camp during Golden Week, they were originally theirs, but now, there was a band called The End that took them all away. To be more precise, they were taking away their original things one by one.

First came the important memories that belonged to them, then came the music, and then what? Was it Xiaokui?

It is wrong to be hostile to a group of strangers for no reason, but they can never get rid of their hostility towards the band they have never met. The frustration of having something important taken away always surrounds them.

Maybe the other party has never cared about them, but unknowingly, the band has become their imaginary enemy, an opponent that must be defeated on the band's road.

Only this is correct, only this is meaningful, otherwise... at this moment, the people who are beside Xiaokui and looking at the beautiful scenery outside Tokyo with her should be them.

It was they who should have spent the Golden Week and training camp with Xiaokui.

"Is this... revenge on us?"

I don't know who suddenly said this in the silent atmosphere, and everyone's expression instantly changed from dull and sad.

"No, no...Xiao Kui, she won't be like this."

Deng lowered his head slightly, his eyes fixed on his hands. Although his words were very certain, his tone was so unconfident that it almost became a question.

"But, Xiao Kui did go to a training camp with another band..."

Su Shi murmured softly.

"There's no point in discussing this now, Deng. There's no need for you to dwell on this."

Li Xi's expression was a little irritated, and he interrupted the conversation in a very unpleasant tone. He handed the drink he had just bought to Deng, then stuffed a can of matcha soda into Lenai's arms and continued to add.

"Don't make yourself feel bad in this situation. That guy is now in another band, and it's perfectly normal for him to go to a training camp with his own band. There's nothing strange about it."

"Li, Li Xi is right!"

Aine clenched her fists and waved them excitedly, "The most important thing now is the upcoming performance, right? If we continue to lose focus, all our efforts so far will be meaningless! Until this performance goes smoothly, no matter what happens, we must not give up!"

"...Xiao Kui is going to hold an independent live."

The sound of the lights was as soft as ever, but it drifted clearly into everyone's ears. She clenched the soda can tightly in both hands, and her amber eyes finally raised slightly, gazing into everyone's eyes. "Could this be an opportunity for us?"

Generally speaking, only bands that have accumulated a certain amount of popularity will hold independent live performances, otherwise the livehouse will not arrange them. And such activities of booking a livehouse cannot have only one band performing, so usually several other bands will be invited to warm up for the independent live performances.

Although they have decided to sing this important song for Aoi, they have no idea when to perform it and on what kind of stage to perform it. At this time, they learned that the band is going to hold an independent live.

It was as if an invisible hand had linked their fate together. Their decision seemed to be tailor-made for this independent live performance, and this independent live performance seemed to be born purely for their performance.

Although they were reluctant to see Aoi end the band's training camp, learning this important information was like suddenly finding the right direction for them, and even their mood became more determined.

"Can we attend? At independent live shows, the host band usually chooses the opening band, right?"

Aine seemed a little uneasy.