“Chi, I just spoke with your grandmother over the phone.”
When Awa Tendou returned, Nina and Momoka were just about to leave. After greeting the two kids, she led her granddaughter and Chihiro outside.
As they walked, she casually said to Tsuzuki Chihiro,
“She seems to know that you’ve been studying acting. Is that right?”
“Eh?”
Wait a second—these two interpretations of ‘acting’ might not even be referring to the same thing.
But there was no way Chihiro could admit to the things she’d actually done, so all she could do was maintain a smile and brush it off with a light laugh.
“Shifune didn’t outright support or oppose it, but she does think your opinion matters. If you’d like, you’re always welcome to come find me and Subaru.”
“Later, I’m taking Subaru to dinner with the Wakaba family. You wouldn’t be a stranger there, so why don’t you come along?”
“Say yes, say yes!”
Maybe because Chihiro was the only “ally” Subaru had right now, she discreetly elbowed Chihiro and whispered a plea.
“Of course, I don’t mind. Thank you, Grandma Awa.”
Subaru let out a small sigh of relief, though she wasn’t entirely sure why she was so eager for Chihiro’s help. Maybe… it was because the girl’s performance during their impromptu scene earlier had completely rattled her.
The dinner was set at a well-known Japanese restaurant. After arriving by car, the three of them found that the Wakaba family members hadn’t arrived yet.
Perhaps wanting to give the two kids some space to talk, Awa Tendou left as soon as they were settled in the private dining room, leaving just Chihiro and Subaru behind.
“Phew…”
As soon as the door shut, the polite, elegant “Yamato Nadeshiko” version of Tsuzuki Chihiro vanished. The practiced smile disappeared from her face, and she casually crossed one leg over the other, swinging her long, black-stockinged legs in the air.
Wait, was this even the same person from a moment ago?
“You… something about you really ticks me off.”
“Subaru-chan, mind your posture!”
“Yes!—Wait, no—why the hell am I listening to you?!”
Having been conditioned to react to the word “posture,” Subaru instinctively straightened her back—only to realize, a second later, that it wasn’t her grandmother who had said it.
Still, the tension in the air eased a little. Just moments ago, Subaru had been unsure how to talk to Chihiro, but now she felt surprisingly relaxed.
And come to think of it, Chihiro’s two-faced nature was kind of similar to her own.
“So, why did Momoka and the others come to you?”
“They were actually looking for Soyo, but she wasn’t available today, so I came instead.”
“You’re friends with Soyo?”
“Mm… I guess you could say that.”
Chihiro nodded. She wasn’t entirely sure how to define her relationship with Soyo, but she did enjoy living at her place.
“That’s some real bad luck for you,” Subaru teased, tilting her head playfully. “Getting caught in my grandma’s sights. But I have to admit—your acting is seriously impressive.”
Then, as if remembering something, Subaru added, “And you play guitar and bass?”
“Yeah. But I only started learning bass recently.”
“Then why don’t you join us? We’re short a bassist.”
“Subaru,” Chihiro chuckled. “Did you forget your own situation?”
“…Yeah.”
Subaru glanced at the closed door across from her. She didn’t know when it would swing open again, signaling that it was time for her to stand up, put on a humble smile, and act her part alongside Chihiro—another liar—in front of the entertainment industry crowd.
But at this moment, she felt at ease.
“Sorry.”
“Sorry?”
“I thought you were a new drummer who stole my spot. I was kind of annoyed about that… so, I’m sorry.”
Subaru lowered her head in a wry smile. Then, after a brief pause, she continued,
“Chihiro, do you want to be an actress?”
“Of course not.”
“…I see. I don’t really like acting either,” Subaru admitted, opening up to this girl she had just met. “I can tell that people only see me as my grandma’s granddaughter. But that’s not why I dislike acting—I just don’t enjoy it, plain and simple.”
“That explains why you were so bad at it earlier.”
“That was because Nina and Momoka were making it awkward!”
Trying to cover for her subpar performance, Subaru hesitated for a moment before finally confessing,
“Honestly… it’s because, whenever I say I want to act, my grandma gets this look on her face—this smile that she never has otherwise.”
“Only then… does she truly look happy.”
Realizing that she’d said a little too much, Subaru shook her head and patted her face. “Sorry. That was probably too—”
“You got money?”
“…Huh?”
Subaru blinked, not immediately processing Chihiro’s abrupt question.
“If you’ve got money, give me some. I might be able to help you.”
Chihiro’s eyes narrowed slightly, her gaze sharpening as if she were staring down prey.
“You want to form a band, right? That’s what you actually want to do.”
“But…”
“Just tell me—do you want to or not? If you do, I can help you.”
“I don’t get it,” Subaru admitted, confused. “How could you possibly help me? Don’t tell me… you’re gonna steal my job?”
“The hell are you thinking?”
Chihiro rolled her eyes. She wasn’t about to throw herself into Subaru’s mess. She just had a feeling that perhaps the solution to Mutsumi’s situation lay somewhere in Awa Tendou and Subaru.
And besides, Nina’s band did need a drummer. Subaru seemed like she’d make a decent teammate. Maybe, with her, the band could go even further.
The thought made Chihiro chuckle to herself.
A failed band member like me, running around solving band problems for other people—how did it come to this?
But the thing was…
Bringing Subaru in had been Iseri Nina’s wish.
Just then, Chihiro’s phone rang, interrupting their conversation. Though mildly irritated at the untimely call, she still answered it out of professional courtesy.
“Hello? What is it now?”
“Have you already gotten tired of talking to me…?”
“Huh? What?”
The voice on the other end was so quiet that Chihiro hadn’t quite caught what she said.
“Ah, nothing…”
Soyo quickly changed the subject, her voice suddenly anxious.
“Chihiro, what do I do? The drummer ran away!”
“I know. Wait—how do you know that?”
Chihiro glanced at Subaru, who looked just as bewildered.
Did Nagasaki Soyo actually have some kind of terrifying intel network?
“Uh… shouldn’t I be asking you that? How do you know that Taki ran off?”
“…Huh? Taki?”
Since when did drummers have such a tendency to run away?
Chihiro hadn’t expected Soyo to be dealing with a similar issue today.
But the problem was—she was already too busy to handle another one.
Thinking quickly, she brushed it off.
“Why don’t you figure it out yourself, Soyo? I’ve got my hands full dealing with Mutsumi. Talk later.”
“Hey? Hey!”
Click.
—
“…Did she just hang up on me?!”
Outside Hanagasakigawa Girls’ School, Nagasaki Soyo stomped her foot in frustration, watching as Anon and Tomori headed into the school to search.
“Just you wait, Tsuzuki Chihiro. After today, I will make you pay for this.
“How dare you treat your employer like this!”
Wait… what did Chihiro just say?
She mentioned her drummer running away, too. And she suddenly brought up Mutsumi…
Soyo’s eyes widened as a horrifying thought struck her.
A keyboardist—Sakiko. A guitarist—Mutsumi. A bassist—Chihiro herself. And now, a missing drummer, plus an unknown vocalist…
No way—this girl is secretly founding a new band behind my back?!
—
This is a fan translation of 素世同学，恭喜你被我优化了 by 杰克喵. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!
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