I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

Yukino asked cautiously.

"Well, I guess so, since it's related to the brass band..."

The beautiful senior forced an awkward smile; her lips were upturned, but her brows were furrowed, and her rouge-red eyes held a suffocating heaviness and sorrow.

Yukinoshita was silent for a moment, then finally nodded. "Alright, Senior Medieval, where would you like to go to say this?"

Nakazeko's brows relaxed slightly. "Where does Yukinoshita live? Would it be alright to go to a nearby cafe?"

It was already late, and it was not reassuring to see two pretty young girls walking alone on the street.

Yukino gave her apartment address, and Nakaseko immediately followed with a smile and gave her home address.

"It seems our homes are quite close together, let's go to the nearby Starbucks, it's on me."

……………………………………………………………

"What would you like to drink, Yukinoshita?"

Zhongshigu stood at the end of the line, took out his wallet from his schoolbag, and asked Xuexia gently.

"Senior, I can buy it myself."

“Consider it a reward for Yukinoshita-san, after all, you’ve been helping the brass band, and besides,” Nakazeko’s expression suddenly became complicated, her lips pursed and trembling slightly, she zipped up her wallet and took out her membership card, “I do have a membership card!”

She swallowed back what she was about to say and forced a smile.

Yukino sighed helplessly, "Then I'll trouble you, senpai. Please give me a medium mocha."

“Okay,” Nakazeko said happily to Yukinoshita, “then I’ll trouble you to find me a seat, Yukinoshita.”

Yukinoshita nodded, guessing that what Nakajiko-senpai was about to say was probably difficult to say. She chose a corner seat by the window; the line was still long, so she figured senpai wouldn't be quick. She took out the notebook with Kiyoyori's messages from her bag and wrote down the results of today's investigation.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Yukinoshita-kun."

After waiting for a while, Nakaseko finally came over with two cups of coffee. She even put a paper sleeve on Yukinoshita's iced mocha to prevent her hands from getting cold.

After Nakashiko sat down, the two of them silently took a sip of their coffee before Yukinoshita finally spoke:

"May I ask what Senior Zhongshigu wanted to talk to me about?"

Zhong Shigu pinched the paper sleeve on the outside of the cup with her index finger, her nail bed turning white. The plastic coffee cup was slightly deformed. After a moment of silence, she finally spoke:

"What happened in the flute classroom just now? I heard something hit the floor."

Yukino briefly recounted the scene of Kasaki being bullied by several upperclassmen, including both verbal and physical abuse.

"So that's how it is..."

Zhong Shigu lowered her head, her slightly long bangs covering her eyes. Water droplets on the plastic cup slid down the cup wall and fell into the cardboard, staining the cardboard.

"really?"

Nakashiko took out his phone, tapped the screen a few times, and then showed the image that popped up to Yukinoshita. "This is an email that was anonymously sent to all members of the brass band this morning."

The most prominent thing on the screen was a photo, which showed a boy with dyed yellow hair standing with several other people dressed like thugs, forcing a girl into a dark corner. Except for the most obvious boy with yellow hair, the others were blurred to varying degrees, and most of the girl's body was in the dark and was also blurred.

The boy didn't look familiar, but he and the bullied girl were both wearing the school uniform of Soubu High School.

Below the photo is a caption:

“The person in the photo has been reported to the school and will be disciplined and expelled from the brass band. If you continue to bully younger students with impunity, you will be the next one.”

The clumsy approach not only failed to quell the disaster but exacerbated it, and Yukinoshita guessed Medieval Ko's intentions.

“This is the former principal trumpet player—Miyamoto Taku. His playing skills are pretty good, but his character…” Nakazeko paused, “He often bullies younger students. As you know, many members of the brass band are girls…”

"Shortly after receiving this email this morning, the school issued a notice criticizing us. I think Yukinoshita has probably heard about it."

After being reminded by the other party, Yukino suddenly remembered the public reprimand broadcast at noon, which only mentioned his name, class, and the punishment he had received.

"That's true."

"So this matter spread throughout the brass band club. Perhaps the letter writer's original intention was to stop the seniors from bullying the first-years, but it actually had the opposite effect. Several third-years in the trumpet club became even more irritable. They used to just ignore it, but now they've started to insult it. Several first-years couldn't take it anymore today," Nakazeko covered her face with her hands, trying to compose herself. But Yukinoshita noticed red marks peeking out from Yukinoshita's sleeve, marks that looked like they had been tightly bound. "Then I heard some noise from the flute club, and I rushed out in a panic, only to stumble upon Yukinoshita and Nozomi's conversation."

"Now, let alone persuading students who originally wanted to quit the club, even some second-year students are almost unable to hold on."

This letter was the final straw that broke the delicate balance between the third-year students and the first-year students. It acted like a fuse, igniting the long-suppressed conflicts between them, like a tiny spark that set the whole grassland ablaze.

"So, your request is for me to find the person who sent the letter?"

Zhong Shigu shook his head. "I don't want you to find her. Finding her will definitely cause chaos within the brass band, and members will become suspicious of each other. Putting aside the upcoming competition, looking at the bigger picture, this will definitely have an irreversible impact on the Soubu High School brass band. I also don't want this matter to be reported to the teachers or even the school. If the whole school knows about such a terrible brass band, not only will this year's competition be affected, but even their eligibility to participate in future competitions will be in question."

Nakajiko's concerns were indeed reasonable. If this matter escalated, the reputation of the Soubu High School Brass Band would be completely ruined. They would not be able to recruit new members, and naturally, they would not be able to carry out club activities. Moreover, if such a reputation spread outside the school, it would be no different from being engraved on the pillar of shame.

“I understand what you mean,” Yukinoshita nodded, “but there’s something about what you just said that’s bothering me.”

Zhong Shigu took a sip of his caramel macchiato. "You tell me."

"'Her'? Senior seems to have some clue about the sender's identity."

Stared at by the sharp, piercing gaze of his junior, Nakajiko suddenly felt that even the caramel macchiato in his mouth couldn't taste sweet anymore.

"Just in case, please allow me to ask one question," Yukinoshita leaned forward slightly, resting her chin on the back of her interlaced hands, "Was it you who sent the letter, Nakajiko-senpai?"

Zhong Shigu breathed a slight sigh of relief. "No."

“Then let me ask you another way,” Yukinoshita pressed, “You know who the sender is, or rather, you have someone you suspect and are quite confident in.”

Nakashiko's expression stiffened. She subconsciously reached for her coffee, but Yukinoshita snatched it away. "Is that so, senpai?"

Nakajiko moved her throat helplessly, withdrew her hands, and clenched them tightly together. "Yes, Yukinoshita-san," her voice was slightly hoarse, lacking its usual gentleness, "but I can't tell you."

“I understand.” Yukino handed the coffee back, the liquefied water droplets wetting her fingertips. “One last question: if the original junior leader leaves, who is most likely to inherit his position, that is, the person who benefits the most from bringing him down?”

Nakazeko remained silent for a long time. She couldn't answer this sharp question that could pierce her heart, but it was precisely her silence that told Yukinoshita her answer.

"My request is for Yukino-san to resolve this emergency without identifying the sender. Are you willing to accept the task?"

After a moment of silence, Zhong Shigu regained her usual composure, her gentle tone concealing a hint of firmness.

Yukinoshita picked up the mocha in front of her, which was no longer cold, and took a sip. The taste had become bland. "I accept it."

Although we have absolutely no clue at the moment.

Nakashiko finally breathed a sigh of relief and put on a relaxed expression. "Then I'll leave it to you, Yukinoshita-san. It's getting late, so I'll take my leave now."

"Wait a moment, senior, could you please leave your email address? Could you please send me another copy of that email?"

Although he didn't know what Yukinoshita was up to, Nakazeko still exchanged email addresses with her and sent the email to her.

Have a wonderful weekend, Yukinoshita-kun. See you next week.

"See you next week, Senior Medieval Ko."

Yukino watched Nakaseko's departing figure and remained seated for a long time without moving.

This weekend is destined to be anything but pleasant.

……………………………………………………………

After returning home, Yukinoshita organized the relevant information about the request and wrote it down in her notebook, in case the two of them were caught off guard by a body swap next time.

The reason why Senior Zhongshigu is so concerned about this matter is inextricably linked to her own actions. It's certain that she wasn't the instigator, so it can only be—

Beneficiaries.

However, she herself did not think so, and instead attributed all the mistakes to herself. Perhaps it was this sense of self-blame that forced her to come to the Service Department.

She's such a gentle senior that it's almost unbearable.

Chapter 11 You won't be getting any sleep tonight.

In the practice room, Kiyoshi sat upright in front of the phone camera, demonstrating how to play the oboe with the most standard posture.

“Before you start playing, you need to take the reed out and soak it in warm water for about ten minutes. If the reed is too dry, no matter what kind of player you are, you will not be able to make a sound from it,” Kiyotaka said as he put a reed from the reed box into a small transparent glass of water. “While we are doing this, we can assemble the oboe. The oboe is divided into three parts, and you must make sure to align the keys.”

“Reeds are consumables, and their lifespan is only about a week from when they are made to when they are worn out. So we must learn how to make reeds that suit us,” Qinglai said, picking up a reed and bringing it close to the camera to show it from all angles. “I will make a video about the specific production steps later, or you can search for it online. There are plenty of raw materials and tools at home.”

Ten minutes later.

"Alright, the reed is soaked. Now, attach it to the oboe like this, and you can play," Kiyotaka said, securing the reed to his lips and giving it a habitual lick with his tongue. "Wrap your lips around your teeth, press the reed between your lips, and then—"

"Ring ring~!"

The phone rang, forcing Kiyora to stop recording his instructional video and take the phone off its stand. The caller ID read: Eriri.

Kiyoshi immediately looked conflicted; to answer or not to answer, that was the question.

Calling at this hour definitely couldn't be good news, but thinking about the other person's furious expression later, Kiyoshi still chose to answer the phone from the bottom of his heart, "Hello?"

"Why did it take you so long to answer?!"

What came through the phone was my older sister's furious roar, on the verge of exploding.

"I was practicing just now..."

"Oh, oh... sorry," Eriri's initial fervor immediately subsided, knowing her cousin was a practice fanatic. "But I have something much more urgent to attend to!"

Kiyoshi frowned, her face showing a "trouble is coming" expression. She wished she hadn't answered the phone.

"I'm very busy too..."

"But the deadline is next Monday! Help me! Kiyora~."

Kiyoshi couldn't stand Eriri's coquettish way of acting cute towards her. Even though she was a year older than her, sometimes she acted like her younger sister.

"Again?"

"I'll scan the original image and send it to you. Can you color it for me? You're pretty good at drawing anyway."

Thanks to you!

This isn't the first time I've been asked to rush a project. Whenever the deadline approaches and I can't finish the task, Qinglai is always the first candidate to volunteer.

"I've sent it to your LINE, remember to help me right away!"

She hung up the phone without saying a word, seemingly afraid that Kiyoshi would change his mind. In fact, Kiyoshi had already changed his mind the moment she uttered her first sentence.

Kiyoyori impatiently opened her LINE chat with Eriri, clicked to view the original image, and was presented with a picture so clear that Kiyoyori wanted to gouge her eyes out immediately:

The girl in the painting is kneeling on the ground with her back turned, supporting her upper body with her elbows. Her miniskirt is rolled up at her waist, her shirt is wide open, and her face, as she turns her head, has an expression that is both unbearable and makes one blush. Kiyoshi can even see the glistening on the girl's lips.

"Ugh! Who wants to draw this kind of picture for you?!"

Eri Kashiwagi, whose real name is Eriri Sawamura Spencer, is a well-known ecchi doujinshi artist online. She is also Kiyoshi's nominal cousin. Unlike Kiyoshi's family, who live in Kansai, Eriri's family lives in Chiba in Kanto. Since they can't meet easily, whenever Eriri needs Kiyoshi's help, she scans the original artwork and sends it to Kiyoshi, who then colors it using a graphics tablet.