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

"Why? Wouldn't it be better to use Yue's original fame to make our band more famous?" Her voice was filled with doubt, and her eyes sparkled with questions.

Yue sighed softly, her eyes revealing a hint of helplessness and worry.

“Aine, doing this will put too much pressure on Tokita and the others.”

The lamp's eyes sparkled with gratitude, and her slightly lowered eyebrows revealed her inner emotions.

"Moon, are you thinking so much about the band?" Her slightly trembling voice revealed her inner excitement.

Yue smiled slightly and said, "After all, we've already made a promise with Deng to form a band for life, so we should be careful in all aspects."

--------

After temporarily entrusting the small lamp to Aine, Yue left the Astronomy Club.

The already slightly hot May sunshine filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting warm and bright light on the ground. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves, and the sounds of the band training filled the air.

"I should have brought an umbrella today."

Yue stood at the building entrance, looking up at the azure sky. The bright sunlight made her squint slightly. She felt the intense heat; the sun's rays caused a faint layer of heat to rise from the ground.

Following the map navigation, Yue arrived at the Edogawa Musical Instrument Store, which was closest to Haneoka.

Looking at the girl with long, straight black hair standing behind the counter, Yue felt as if she had seen her somewhere before. However, this sense of déjà vu was too common for Yue, so she didn't pay much attention to it.

Looking at the range of co-branded electronic keyboards in front of her, from the cheapest for beginners to the most expensive, Yue couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

For a rich heiress and former idol like her, even if she spent the most expensive one, the only impact would be that she might have to cut back on her diet for a few weeks.

But even though she has money, she doesn't want to be taken advantage of by these evil capitalist companies.

All collaboration items will be eliminated first.

Yue's gaze swept straight past the collaborative instruments. As someone who had once sold collaborative instruments, she knew perfectly well that a collaborative instrument was simply an instrument worth 600,000 yen with a signature added, and then sold to you for an extra amount of money out of thin air, with zero impact on the instrument's sound quality and performance.

She intently observed each keyboard, gently plucking the keys with her fingers, testing the sound quality and feel of each electronic keyboard. Her gaze penetrated the keyboard, attempting to discern the craftsmanship and design within. However, after a period of comparison and trial playing, she began to feel dizzy.

These pianos look similar, but they have subtle differences. The touch of the keys, the quality of the tone, and the volume are all unique characteristics of each piano. These subtle differences make her feel a little dazzled and make it difficult for her to make a choice.

The keyboard she used before was completely arranged for her by the project manager, so she had absolutely no understanding of the keyboard's parameters or configuration.

Yue's gaze wandered over the piano shelf. The dazzling array of pianos made her feel somewhat overwhelmed. Although she tried to concentrate and carefully compare the parameters and features of each piano, there were simply too many types and brands, making her feel dizzy.

Just as Yue was about to ask the shop assistant for recommendations because she couldn't take it anymore, her eyes fell on a familiar style.

"Huh? What's this?"

Yue looked at the expensive electronic keyboard placed on the lower shelf. This was the model she had used before, but she had only seen her own co-branded version and had not seen the original version below.

'Placing it at the bottom is probably to minimize its impact on the sales of the collaboration products,' she thought to herself.

After finally making up her mind, Yue chose the piano she was most familiar with and also found the music workstation she used before. She simply paid at the front desk, put the piano into the complimentary piano bag, and left the music store with a slight pang of regret.

When the performance begins: Chapter Eight: Giraffe Brand Popsicles

The already hot summer, coupled with the slightly heavy instrument on her back, meant that even though Hinasaki was in relatively good physical condition, she was already sweating profusely by the time she reached the train station.

"Let's go buy a glass of water first." Yue took out a tissue to wipe the sweat from her forehead, intending to go to a nearby convenience store to replenish her fluids.

Stepping into the convenience store, a cool breeze greeted her, and the perfectly temperatured air conditioning heightened her desire to buy things.

"Let's buy another popsicle."

Considering that the convenience store was very considerate in turning on the air conditioning, Yue, who originally only wanted to buy a bottle of water, also bought an ice pop.

After easily finishing her popsicle, Yue unexpectedly saw a familiar symbol on the wooden stick of the popsicle.

That was the giraffe symbol she hadn't seen for almost a week.

Did I win the lottery?

Then a familiar ringtone sounded, and Yue looked at her phone; it showed an unknown number.

"Are people now doing Sadako's work part-time?" Yue asked helplessly as she pressed the answer button.

"Congratulations, Hinasaki-kun, you've won the prize!" The giraffe's deep, resonant male voice came through the phone.

For some reason, whenever Yue hears the sound of a giraffe, she is always afraid that the other party will suddenly pull out a dragon-type monster with 3000 attack power and 2500 defense power.

"So what's my prize? A new popsicle?" Yue asked, looking at the popsicle stick with the giraffe tag in her hand.

“A new stage,” the giraffe said.

Yue sighed, somewhat dejectedly, and said, "It doesn't even feel as good as an ice pop; at least that would make me cooler."

"Hinasaki, to celebrate your new stage, I'm going to give you a special ability—this is the prize you've won," the giraffe said over the phone.

"So, what is this ability?" Yue sighed. It's always better to have something than nothing.

"Activate Revue's ability." The giraffe calmly uttered words that were somewhat chilling to Yue.

“Revue? It can’t be what I’m thinking, can it?” Yue asked.

“That’s right. This ability was originally obtained by the stage girl after she matured and ate the Shining Fruit to go to a new stage. It’s perfect as a gift for Hinasaki-san to step onto the new stage now,” the giraffe said.

"Thank you so much. So, where is this gift? You probably can't give it to me right now." Yue looked around. There were still some customers in the convenience store, and it didn't seem like a place where a giraffe could appear.

"Hinasaki-kun, you've already eaten it, you've gained the power! Now, please use it to bring the audience an unpredictable new stage, mabushii!" the giraffe said excitedly.

"When am I supposed to eat..." Yuehua started to say, but then suddenly looked at the popsicle stick in her hand. "Didn't I pay for this? How did it become a gift from you? And wasn't it supposed to be a Shining Fruit? What's with this popsicle?! What kind of tree grows popsicles?!"

“In previous years, we did use fruits, but now, to keep up with the times, the shining fruits have been changed to more forms of existence,” the giraffe said.

"I look forward to Hinasaki Tsuki's performance on stage. Finally, let me give you some advice: Rveue is the ability to connect with others, so please use it wisely." After saying that, the giraffe hung up the phone, leaving Tsuki listening to the busy tone with a blank expression.

Faced with the still enigmatic giraffe, Yue decides to buy a serving of oden, hoping to use the food to ease her resentment.

--------

Toyokawa Shoko is continuing her part-time job as a customer service representative today, since she can't really expect her alcoholic father to work and earn money.

Moreover, their family's current financial situation is not optimistic, or rather, it has never been optimistic since her father started drinking heavily.

To put it simply, if Xiangzi didn't go out to work for a day, they would go hungry; if he didn't go out to work for two days, they would have to consider starving; and if he didn't go out to work for three days, he would have to consider asking Mu for help.

As the clock on his electric umbrella ticked down to the end of the workday, Xiangzi decisively pressed the leave button, picked up his personal belongings, and prepared to go home.

"Let's check if the nearby convenience store still has any discounted bento boxes left."

As Xiangzi went downstairs, she pondered where she would go next. During her school days, in order to ensure she could earn enough money by working part-time, she didn't get off work early. As a result, she often missed many discount and promotional activities in convenience stores and often had to try her luck.

However, our classmate Xiangzi was quite lucky today and successfully bought a discounted bento box at a convenience store near his workplace.

Just as she was about to leave with joy, the figure carrying a musical instrument bag by the door caught her attention.

"Yue?" she called tentatively.

"Hmm?" Yue turned around and saw Xiangzi carrying a shopping bag. She subconsciously handed him the oden she was holding. "Want some?"

"No need," Xiangzi declined Yue's offer. She looked Yue up and down at the instrument bag she was carrying and asked curiously, "Yue, are you forming a band?"

"Well, I guess so. We only finalized the personnel yesterday, and there are still many things that haven't been finalized. Even my musical instrument was just bought." Yue pointed to the bag behind her and explained to Xiangzi.

"What is this? A keyboard?" Xiangzi guessed, looking at the rectangular bag Yue was carrying.

“That’s right, I studied piano for a while before, so I took on the keyboard position in the band,” Yue said.

"May I ask who's in the band?" Xiangzi continued, following up on the topic.

Yue frowned slightly, remained silent for a moment, and pondered how to answer Xiangzi's question.

Slowly, she said softly, "Xiangzi, are you sure you want to know?"

Her tone carried a hint of worry and hesitation, suggesting that the answer might evoke some negative emotions.

"Huh?" Xiangzi paused for a moment when he heard Yue's tone, but quickly realized the possibility that could make Yue hesitate like this. "Are you with the Light Band?"

Yue nodded and said seriously, "The matter is far more complicated than that. Let's find another place to discuss this in detail."

Her gaze was firm and earnest, revealing the importance and determination she placed on this matter. "I think Xiangzi should know about this."

Looking into Yue's determined gaze, Xiangzi realized that what Yue was about to say was probably not simple.

"I understand. There's a nice coffee shop nearby, let's go there."

As the performance begins: Chapter Nine - Our side promises not to use Hachiman Kairin first.

Xiangzi took Yue to a nearby coffee shop, and the two had just found a seat and sat down.

The waiter came over to take their order. Xiangzi frowned slightly as she looked at the prices on the menu, a hint of difficulty in her expression. Her gaze lingered on the menu, as if she were weighing her options.

This coffee shop next to the shopping street doesn't seem to be very friendly to Miss Xiangzi. Shops in this bustling area are generally more expensive than those in normal shopping streets.

The drinks on the menu were mostly marked with four-figure prices. For a normal female high school student, this was probably just a part of her allowance. Although it was a bit expensive, it was not unacceptable.

However, for Miss Toyokawa Shoko, a fallen noblewoman who needs to be thrifty, this price is enough for her to buy two discounted bento boxes to meet her daily physiological needs.

"Just a glass of lemonade, please," Yue said to the waiter after glancing at the menu.

"Then I'll have a lemonade too." Xiangzi picked up the menu and started looking through it. Finally, he found a lemonade in a corner. It cost 1,000 yen. Although it was a four-figure price, it was still within Xiangzi's budget.

Xiangzi roughly knew that Yue was taking care of her, so he ordered the cheapest drink first, so that it wouldn't seem strange if she ordered the same one.

The waiter quickly brought over two glasses of lemonade. The glasses contained only a few slices of lemon, sparkling water, and a small amount of syrup. This drink, which cost less than half the price, was sold for a thousand yuan in the luxurious commercial street.

"Thank you," Xiangzi said, expressing his gratitude.

"Did I do anything? Why is Xiangzi thanking me?" Yue smiled back at Xiangzi, pretending not to understand.

"It's nothing, let's talk about the lamps instead?" Xiangzi understood and changed the subject.

"Yue just said this matter is related to me, what exactly is the situation?" Xiangzi asked directly.

Yue took a sip of lemonade, the sourness of the lemon mingling with the sweetness of the glucose syrup in her mouth, and her brows furrowed slightly.

Although I had some idea of ​​what it would taste like, the sweetness that could only be tasted upon closer inspection amidst the lemony acidity was still a bit hard for Yue, who prefers a sweeter flavor, to accept.

Yue put down her cup, composed herself, and said, "Xiangzi, you told me last time that Nagasaki Motoyo wanted to reorganize Crychic, right?"

When Xiangzi hears the name Su Shi, he pictured a smiling chestnut-haired girl. Every time he hears her name, he is reminded of his own innocent, romantic, and cowardly self.

She frowned, a hint of displeasure in her voice.

"Nagasaki Motoyo has indeed always wanted me to go back and reform the Crychic band. Is she also involved in the Light Group band this time?"