I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

Kasaki jogged a few steps to catch up with Kiyoyori. "Long time no see. I haven't congratulated the brass band on making it into the national competition yet."

"Thank you," Kiyoyori slowed his pace to match that of Kasaki beside him. "Why is Kasaki-senpai at school at a time like this?"

The other person was wearing a school uniform and stood at the school gate, seemingly unfazed by the ultraviolet rays, clearly waiting for someone.

Kiyoshi glanced at the other members of the brass band who were leaving the school gate one after another, but no one looked in their direction.

"Um, I have some business to attend to at school."

Umbrella stammered in response, a hint of disappointment flashing across its face.

"Nakagawa-senpai's words should not have come out yet."

Qinglai said tentatively.

"It's okay, I wasn't waiting for Xia Ji."

Nodding in understanding, Kiyotaka didn't ask any more questions, and the two walked quietly forward, keeping a distance between them.

"Senior Kasaki, I have to go to Green Forest (the name of the café), so I'll take my leave now."

Kiyoshi could sense Kasaki's hesitation and vaguely guessed that he might be the person Kasaki was waiting for. Out of his instinct not to meddle, Kiyoshi subconsciously tried to shake Kasaki off. Fortunately, Kasaki had remained silent the whole way, allowing Kiyoshi to pretend that he knew nothing.

"The Green Forest? What a coincidence, I'm going there too."

The surprise on the other person's face seemed genuine, so Kiyoshi had no choice but to continue walking with her, silently praying that Kasaki wouldn't say anything that would definitely upset her.

“Speaking of which,” Kasaki suddenly said, making Kiyori's heart skip a beat, “Did Tachibana-san make plans with someone else?”

Upon hearing the question, Kiyoshi breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes, with several seniors."

"Senpai..." Kasaki muttered to himself, "Is it Asuka-senpai?"

“Asuka…?” Kiyoyori frowned, not understanding why Asuka’s name would appear at this time. “No, it’s not.”

"Yeah……"

Umbrella seemed a little disappointed, but also relieved.

Kiyoshi suddenly remembered the rumors circulating in the brass band a few days ago. She had no interest in these things, but now that someone who matched all the rumors was standing in front of her, it was hard not to assume that it was true.

But what does this have to do with Asuka?

As Kiyotomi entered the elegant café, she spotted Hikigaya, who had been watching the entrance and waved to her immediately. Sitting opposite him was Yukinoshita, whom she hadn't seen since the tournament.

Wait a minute, after the competition...?

Kiyoshi suddenly remembered that after that day, although she had a brief conversation with Yuihama and the Hikigaya siblings, she did not run into Yukinoshita. She only spoke to them when she was about to leave the venue, and it seemed that the person standing far away under the eaves of the venue at that time was Kasaki.

Judging from the fact that Yuihama, Hikigaya, and the other two appeared at the same time, it is not difficult to deduce that one of the three tickets Kiyoyori gave to the brass band was given to Komachi.

So……

Did Yukino buy her ticket in advance?

Kiyoshi frowned and walked toward the three members of the Service Department.

"Hey there, little Qinglai!"

"Long time no see, my three seniors."

As if trying to shake off Usaki behind her, Kiyoyori strode to the booth and placed her bag on the empty seat next to Yukinoshita.

"Long time no see, Tachibana-san, and—"

Yukinoshita's gaze swept over Kiyori and then landed behind her.

Kiyoshi turned her head stiffly and saw Kasaki staring blankly in their direction with a surprised expression.

Could it be—?

"Long time no see, Kasaki-kun."

"Please sit down."

P.S.: The long-awaited main story! This volume mainly tells the story of summer vacation, so you should understand what it's about, right? Let's persecute each other together! The third volume will probably be a bit shorter? Maybe.

Chapter 163, Section 02: The Scenery Through Your Eyes

Umbrella Wood sat down between two booths, on a newly added chair, her back straight, with a large gap between her and the backrest. Several drinks were laid out on the table, and droplets of water condensed on the glass slowly slid down, leaving a small puddle on the wooden tabletop.

“Let’s begin, Kasaki-san,” Yukinoshita placed her delicate teacup on the saucer with a crisp sound, “and tell me your intentions in inviting the Service Club out.”

She used the term "service department," which Kiyoyori heard very clearly.

Based on the rumors circulating in the brass band, she might have gotten a little bit of it, but strangely, Kiyoshi still couldn't understand Nozomi Kasaki's thoughts.

“Yes,” Kasaki nodded, her expression no longer as sunny as usual, like a sky shrouded in dark clouds, devoid of any light. “I want to go back to the brass band.”

Yukino's expression remained unmoved.

"'Back'," Hikigaya quickly grasped the key point, even before Yuihama understood what it meant. "So, you used to be a member of the brass band, but you left for some reason, right?"

"Yes."

Umbrella's answer was somber, tinged with an overwhelming sadness.

Hikigaya glanced at Yukinoshita, who was still leisurely drinking her tea. After a moment's pause, he didn't receive any questions from her. Puzzled, he decided to ask her himself, "If I'm not mistaken, you came to the Service Club because you've run into problems trying to return to the Brass Band, or because you're afraid of the problems you'll face? This issue might be related to why you left the Brass Band. So, could you please tell us why you left?"

Kasaki glanced at Hikigaya in surprise, then at the silent Kiyoyori. She held her coffee cup in both hands. "The brass band from last year is worlds apart from the brass band now. Forget about winning the gold medal in the Tokyo Metropolitan Competition and making it to the national competition, even their performances in front of a large audience were a mess. I wanted to win the gold medal, but that was impossible in a brass band like that. Plus, there was a conflict between the first-year and third-year students at the time, so I left the brass band."

Hikigaya frowned immediately. This answer, which seemed to directly address his question, summarized what happened in the brass band last year, but deliberately obscured all the details, such as the conflict between the first-year and third-year students, and Kasaki's contempt for the members who participated in the previous brass band competition. She omitted the most important reasons.

Hikigaya didn't believe that Yukinoshita and Tachibana couldn't tell that the other was hiding something, but they remained silent.

"But if Kasaki-kun wants to win the gold medal so badly, why did she quit the brass band? Last year, Kasaki-kun was only a first-year student; she still has two years to go..."

Yuihama doesn't think as much as Hikigaya; sometimes, the simplest language is the most poignant.

“Yes,” Kasaki gave an awkward smile, “but I couldn’t stay there any longer. Now it seems like I was an idiot, performing a one-man show.”

"I'm sorry, that's not what I meant!"

Yuihama is always sensitive to other people's emotions. She can clearly perceive the self-deprecation and sadness emanating from Kasaki, which is not her true intention.

She turned her gaze to the other three people, hoping that one of them could salvage the increasingly somber atmosphere.

“There’s something that’s been bothering me,” Kiyoyori said, having remained silent since sitting down. “When we came in together, Kasaki-senpai mentioned ‘Asuka.’ If I’m not mistaken, it must be that Nakagawa-senpai told you that Asuka and I are quite close, right? Did Kasaki-senpai want to see Asuka? You seem to really want the senior I’m meeting today to be Asuka.”

“That’s because… Asuka-senpai always refuses to see me,” Kasaki said, fiddling with his fingers, his voice heavy with worry. “I want Asuka-senpai’s approval.”

"Kasaki-san's goal should be to return to the brass band, right?" Yukino finally spoke up after a long silence. "Tanaka-senpai is the vice-captain and doesn't have the authority to decide whether a member stays or leaves. Only advisors have that power. With Kasaki-san's abilities, wouldn't it be easy for her to gain Taki-sensei's approval and return to the brass band?"

Yukinoshita wasn't surprised that Kasaki came to her; in fact, she was waiting for him to come to her. The general direction of the request wasn't too different from what she had guessed, except that the reason for joining the club seemed to be quite different from what she had imagined.

Why be so fixated on Tanaka-senpai?

“But I want Asuka-senpai’s approval!” Kasaki’s fingers, gripping the coffee cup, turned deathly white. “Back then, Asuka-senpai tried to persuade me to stay, but I refused without hesitation. I thought there was absolutely no future in a brass band like this! But—”

Kasaki took a deep breath. "Who would have thought that Taki-sensei, who came this year, would lead the brass band to a gold medal and even make it into the national competition! I just wanted to... wanted to see if I could become Asuka-senpai's source of strength this time. This is the last year for third-year students. I don't aspire to make it into Group A, I just—"

She knew she was acting like an idiot, a shameless idiot, but even so, she still…

"Asuka-senpai, Asuka-senpai!" Kiyoyori impatiently downed his coffee in one gulp, the ice cubes clinking against each other in the dry cup. "Can Kasaki-senpai only see Asuka?"

Kiyoshi, rather irritated, used her hands to unbutton the collar that was tightly fastened around her neck, which made her feel a little breathless.

"Didn't Kasaki-senpai consider anyone else before making these moves?" Kiyoyori's tone became somewhat sharp. "Or is it that Kasaki-senpai can only see the immediate goal and thinks everything else is insignificant?"

What about that quiet, thin girl? What kind of existence is she in Umbrella Wood's eyes? What place does she hold in Umbrella Wood's heart?

"Tachibana-san...?"

Umaki looked at Kiyoshi without saying a word.

“And—” Kiyoyori took a deep breath.

"Tachibana-san."

"Don't take it upon yourself to—"

"Tachibana-san!"

The rising voice beneath the snow silenced Kiyoyori's anger.

Kiyoyori, snapping out of her daze, suddenly smiled. What was she angry about? It wasn't because of Kasaki.

"I'm sorry, I was rude."

Quickly regaining his composure, Kiyotaka resumed his calm expression.

As expected of a young lady from a prominent family, her ability to conceal her emotions is so skillful it's almost instinctive.

Hachiman picked up his cup and took a sip of coffee, blocking his own gaze as he tried to observe the other person.

“We have indeed received your request,” Yukinoshita said, ignoring Kiyori. “In short, it’s to help you gain Tanaka-senpai’s approval and return to the brass band, is that right?”

Umbrella opened her mouth, hesitated for a moment, and then nodded, "Yes..."

"Then please leave for today, Kasaki-kun. Our Service Club needs to communicate further. We will finalize a plan as soon as possible and communicate it to you."

Umbrella pushed back his chair and bowed deeply to the group.

Thank you.

P.S.: I had something to do today, so I'm a little late.

Chapter 164, Section 03: Standoff

A brief silence fell over the booth after Umbrella left, a suffocating silence, like a stranded fish desperately trying to expand its gills but unable to draw a single drop of oxygen from the air-filled land.

"Um..." Yui started awkwardly, trying to ease the tension, she stiffly picked up the small spoon from the glass in front of her, "The parfait is delicious..."

Seeing the three of them silently turn their gazes toward her, Yuihama blushed and buried her head in the parfait.

"Speaking of which, is Senpai really going to take on this request?" Kiyoyori tapped the table lightly with his index finger. "In my opinion, it would be faster to get Senpai Kasaki to change his mind than to try to persuade Asuka."