After dropping out of school, I chose to join a girls' band.

BangDream: Chapter Seventeen - Night Tour (Part 1)

As the BangDream competition progressed to the elimination rounds, many of the temporary bands that didn't make it to the elimination rounds had already disbanded or gone off to enjoy the last moments of their vacation.

Therefore, the corridor outside the training room became unusually quiet, with only white lights shining along the walls, creating a halo as if creating a small, isolated island for them.

Hinasaki and Shiina Ritsuki stood in the corner, keeping a few steps apart from each other.

"Is something the matter? If it's not anything particularly important, let's go back to practice as soon as possible." Li hope gently raised her chin and crossed her arms over her chest.

Hinasaki sighed. Riki's defensive stance clearly showed that he had no intention of listening to her.

She took a step forward, closing the distance between them: "Xiao hope, relax a little. If you're too tense, you won't be able to take it sooner or later."

Li Xi paused for a moment, then shook her head again, her tone somewhat stubborn: "It's okay. Xiao Yue, look, no one said anything, right? We've already lost so much, the only way to catch up is to practice hard."

Hinasaki gazed at her, her eyes filled with a barely perceptible tenderness. She took a deep breath and said slowly, "But practice also needs adjustment. Nozomi, we're already very tense."

Lixi's lips were pressed tightly together, and her fists clenched involuntarily, her knuckles turning white. She lowered her head, her stray hairs obscuring her eyes, as if she didn't want Hinasaki to see the complex emotions in them.

"I... lost to her again..." His voice was low and muffled, revealing a deep sense of resentment.

When Hinasaki heard this, she was taken aback at first, but then she instantly understood who Riki was referring to.

She breathed softly, trying to soften her tone, and asked gently, "Shoko?"

Li hope nodded slightly, but still avoided her gaze, as if afraid of revealing more of her vulnerable emotions.

Her voice was as low as a whisper: "I really thought... this time we had a chance... at least to stand beside her, or... at least to stand side by side."

Hinasaki gazed at her face, which usually held a resolute expression, but now betrayed a slight sadness.

Hinasaki slightly raised her hand, wanting to gently touch Riki's shoulder to offer comfort.

However, Xiaoyue's hand stopped halfway through its flight, hovering there for a long time before finally slowly lowering it.

"So... you feel resentful, right?"

Lixi was at a loss for words to answer Xiaoyue's question.

Are you willing to accept this?

She coldly questioned herself, "How is this possible? They've all practiced so many times, and Xiaodeng's singing has improved time and time again, all for this competition."

However, the final result was like an invisible wall, coldly blocking their way, making it impossible for her to cross.

Everyone has clearly given their all, so why isn't it enough? Isn't the weight of that "effort" enough to support them in reaching the top?

No matter what, she couldn't possibly accept this.

Are you unwilling to accept this?

She asked herself this question, yet a faint ache throbbed in her chest. She knew that the feeling of resentment had always been there.

The objective facts in front of us cannot be changed just because she thinks everyone has tried their best; the gap in skill level between band members cannot be bridged by mere words.

This is something she has already accepted and acknowledged... but why does she feel so bad now?

Hinasaki gazed at Ritsuki quietly, her eyes gentle yet without any coercion. She neither pressed for answers nor broke the silence.

The moon simply stood quietly beside her, as if reserving a space and time exclusively for her.

She tightened her arms slightly, but still didn't urge him, instead waiting silently.

We await Lixi to sort out those tangled emotions deep within her heart, bit by bit.

Lixi lowered her head, her gaze fixed on her toes, but her thoughts sank deeper into the distance.

"Moon? Rikki? What are you doing here?" Aine walked over from the end of the corridor, waving a borrowed guitar pick in her hand, smiling broadly, completely unaware of the tense atmosphere.

The two turned around almost simultaneously, as if startled awake. Li Xi quickly concealed the struggle between her brows and regained her calm expression.

Hinasaki sighed softly, as if some important moment had been interrupted, her helplessness mixed with a hint of relief. She then smiled and turned back to say, "I was talking to Nozomi about some things related to the band."

"What? It's related to the band?" Ai Yin's eyes lit up instantly, and she leaned closer to ask curiously.

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Inside the training room, the Mygo members did not immediately begin the drills, but instead formed a small circle.

“I think…we need a new song,” Hinasaki said.

As soon as he finished speaking, the others frowned, clearly having doubts about the suggestion.

"A new song? Can we catch it?" Nagasaki Motoyo was the first to question, her brows furrowed.

"Only one day left... lyrics... I'm a little nervous..." Xiao Deng also looked worried.

“Indeed… just composing and rehearsing takes a lot of time, so writing a new song on the fly is really unlikely.” Li hope also didn’t think highly of Xiao Yue’s idea.

Faced with everyone's doubts, Hinasaki smiled slightly and said firmly, "It's not for the revival match, but for the finals."

Ai Yin looked up, her eyes flashing with doubt and hesitation: "But, Xiao Yue... we haven't even passed the revival round yet."

Hinasaki nodded gently, her gaze lingering on each of her teammates' faces, her tone gentle yet undeniable: "I know. But since we're the Mygo band, if we get lost again, we'll explore in different directions and try to find a way out. Who knows? Maybe we'll find some inspiration on this unknown path."

Li hope frowned slightly, staring intently at her, "Xiao Yue, do you really think... we can do it?"

Hinasaki's eyes were firm yet warm as she smiled and said, "Let's go out for a walk together tonight, get 'lost' for a bit, and relax briefly. Perhaps in this casual moment, a new melody will quietly emerge."

"Yay!" Ai-yin's eyes lit up instantly, and she raised her hand in agreement without hesitation. "We've never gone out together at night before!"

Su Shi crossed her arms and pondered for a moment, her brows furrowing slightly, her tone tinged with worry: "The revival match is the day after tomorrow... Is it really okay for us to be so relaxed?"

“Since it’s Xiaoyue… okay.” Lixi originally wanted to say the same thing as Su Shi, but after seeing Xiaoyue’s expression, she gave up.

“I want to go!” Lena said.

"Are we all...lost together?" Takamatsu Akari's eyes were thoughtful as she heard Xiaoyue's words.

BangDream: Chapter Eighteen - Night Tour (Part 2)

As night falls, Tokyo's streets remain bustling. Towering buildings and neon lights create a tapestry that seems to depict a city that never sleeps.

The colorful billboards flashed bright lights, turning the street into a dazzling sea of ​​light.

Office workers, exhausted after work, walk with their colleagues to the izakayas at the alley entrance, gathering in twos and threes, wandering through the streets and alleys, as if trying to leave the day's fatigue behind with a drink.

Outside the nearby trendy shops and arcades, young people were laughing and chatting. Several girls walked out of the shops, arm in arm, looking relaxed, as if they were still discussing where to meet next.

Meanwhile, couples on the street corner held hands and whispered, their faces beaming with smiles, their reflections soft and warm under the streetlights.

In the vibrant night, the six members of Mygo stood out as they walked together through the crowd.

The lights reflected on their faces, sometimes brightened by the neon lights, sometimes obscured by the figures of pedestrians, seemingly out of place in this bustling city, yet in a sense blending in with it.

Su Shi couldn't help but ask the question that had been bothering her: "Xiao Yue...where are we going?"

Xiaoyue turned around and said, "We're almost there, let's wait a little longer!"

Su Shi frowned slightly, looking at the bustling street around her—the neon lights as bright as day, the pedestrians coming and going, the goods displayed in the shop windows. She sighed softly, feeling that this was a waste of time.

Aine, standing beside her, skipped lightly, her arms outstretched as if to embrace the entire night, and exclaimed excitedly, "Walking like this, the nights in Tokyo feel completely different from usual!"

"That's incredibly optimistic..." Shiina Tatsuki said helplessly, looking at Aine beside her.

Xiao Deng felt that the route in front of him seemed somewhat familiar.

After walking for a long time, Hinasaki looked at the place in front of her, a slight smile appearing on her lips, and pointed ahead: "We've arrived."

Following her gaze, everyone saw an old bridge silently spanning the railway tracks. A night breeze blew by, carrying a slightly cool air, and the empty railway tracks stretched out beneath the bridge, dappled and silent under the dim light of the streetlights.

"Where is this...?" Aine looked around curiously, her face full of doubt. "There are no shops, and no special scenery at all. What does Xiaoyue want to do with us here?"

At this moment, Gao Songdeng stepped forward, her eyes slightly red, and said in a low voice, "This is... the place where Xiao Xiang and I met."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone fell silent, and the atmosphere softened instantly.

Lixi glanced at the lamp and saw that her eyes were already a little wet.

Hinasaki walked to the bridge, gently placed her hands on the railing, and looked through the silent railway tracks below, gazing at the swaying shadows of the trees in the night.

She spoke softly, her voice tinged with reminiscence, "This is also where Crychic started, isn't it?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Su Shi's gaze involuntarily followed Xiao Yue's to the railway tracks below the bridge. A complex emotion welled up in her heart, and she slowly uttered that familiar yet long-unspoken name again: "Crychic..."

At this moment, it felt as if I had traveled through time and returned to that spring day when the petals were falling.

Petals danced in the spring breeze, flitting among the shadows of the trees on both sides. It was here that two girls met, beginning the story that followed.

"Alright! Stop being so sad." Xiaoyue smiled, clapped her hands, and said in a lighthearted tone, "We still have another place to go!"

Her words were like a gentle breeze, softly pulling everyone out of the abyss of memories.

Watching Xiaoyue take a step forward, everyone exchanged glances, and no one said anything more; the silence from before was enough.

At least everyone understands that Xiaoyue has planned the route and is not just leading them to wander aimlessly around Tokyo.

--------------

"Where is this? The direction of Xiaodeng's house?" Lixi recognized the road and frowned slightly.

She originally thought Xiaoyue was going to take them back to Xiaodeng's house, but Xiaoyue stopped on a pedestrian overpass.

Beneath the overpass, traffic flowed like a river, and the night lights reflected on the asphalt road, creating a shimmering glow.

Hinasaki stood in front of the railing, gripping the cold metal handrails tightly with both hands. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and seemed to be gathering some kind of courage.

Hinasaki took a deep breath, suddenly opened her eyes, and as if gathering all her strength in that instant, shouted loudly at the traffic below: "I want to... be in a band for the rest of my life!!"

Her voice echoed in the night, penetrating the cold wind on the bridge and resonating in the ears of her friends behind her.

The traffic below continued to flow silently, and the busy DJ drivers were unaware of the girl's thoughts on the bridge. Even those who happened to hear it would probably soon forget about it.

But for Hinasaki, this moment was incredibly real.

After shouting, she paused slightly, a blush rising to her face, whether from the force of her shout or from a shy satisfaction, it was hard to tell. (The remaining text appears to be unrelated and possibly machine-generated gibberish.)

"Xiaoyue?" Before Lixi could fully react, she saw Xiaodeng slowly walk forward and stand beside Hinasaki.

A determined glint flashed in Gao Songdeng's eyes. He took a slight breath, then released all restraint and shouted loudly towards the endless stream of cars flowing through the night below:

"I really want to! No... I want to be in a band for the rest of my life!!"

"Come on, everyone! It's so much fun!" Hinasaki looked at the four people watching her and Kodama from behind and extended her hand to invite them.