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

However, when Yue touched it, she found nothing.

"Ok?"

Yue rubbed her eyes and discovered that the chocolate snail bread that had been there had vanished into thin air. After looking around, she found it in Ushigome Rimi's mouth.

"Such speed...when exactly was it taken?"

"Ah, these chocolate snails are mostly for Rimi. Xiaoyue, why don't you try our Yamabuki Bakery's latest product—poppin' bread!"

As Yamabuki Saya spoke, she took a square box out of a bag.

When Yue opened the box, she looked completely bewildered.

"Yamabuki-senpai... can this... really be called bread?"

Yue raised her head and looked down at the expectant and serious expression on Yamabuki Saya's face. She took a deep breath and then looked down at the box of "bread" in front of her.

An awkward smile appeared on her face, her brows furrowed slightly, and the corners of her mouth forced upwards, carrying a hint of embarrassment and helplessness.

"Of course, this is a bread with Popipa characteristics that everyone thought about for a whole afternoon. Isn't it shiny and tempting? Xiaoyue, hurry up and try it."

Masumi Toyama looked at the moon with anticipation in her eyes, waiting for her to taste the bread and express her gratitude.

"Haha... I'm really tempted..."

In her heart, Yue silently scoffed, "It's just a different kind of attraction."

Yue looked down at the "bread" in the box again. The bottom of the box was a tray made of a large piece of bread, and the chocolate snail was shaped like a bowl containing rice. The combination alone made her feel that it was very abstract and even a little bizarre.

But this "bread" doesn't stop there. Next to the chocolate conch bowl is a "wooden tray" made of bread, on which a hamburger patty and a large piece of pasta are placed together, with a sliced ​​hard-boiled egg on top of the patty, adding a unique atmosphere. And under the tray, two thin pieces of bread are placed like chopsticks.

From any perspective, this looks like a hamburger patty meal, except it's made of bread.

For Yue, this combination was so peculiar that it left her bewildered. Her expression grew even more unpleasant; her brows furrowed and her lips twitched slightly, as if she were pondering how to deal with this "special" bread.

"This...is really bread?"

Yue asked again, still unsure.

"Although it doesn't look very appealing, it's actually a bread that everyone put together to create by combining their favorite foods... But the taste is great, everyone in the band has already tried it."

Arisa Ichigaya, who plays the "mother" in popipa, explained as she looked at the complicated expression on Tsuki's face.

"Okay... Aine, why don't you try this... poppin' bread?"

Based on the principle of sharing both good times and bad, Yue felt that since she had accompanied Aine all the way here, Aine should also accompany her through the difficulties.

"What? Poppin' bread? I want some!"

Since the bread in the box wasn't fully opened, all five members of Popipa present knew what the bread looked like, and Light had also seen the bread inside the box, leaving only Aine completely unaware of what the bread was.

In Ai Yin's imagination, since this bread is called Popipa bread, it must be like the name of the Popipa band, with a sparkling shape, or it might even be a colorful bread.

However, when Aine saw the poppin bread covered by the box, a look of horror appeared on her face, and she finally understood why Tsuki and Arisa-senpai had such strange expressions when talking about this bread.

"Haha...it looks delicious...I'll give it a try..."

Ai Yin picked up the bread chopsticks first and tried to pick up a piece of hamburger patty and put it in her mouth. To her surprise, the hamburger patty was actually a real hamburger patty! At first, she thought it was a chocolate bread shaped like a hamburger patty.

"Then... could the rice really be rice?" With this thought in mind, Aine picked up another clump of rice and put it in her mouth, and sure enough, it tasted like rice!

"Now it really is a hamburger patty meal!!!"

When the Stage Opens: Chapter 45 Guidance from the Seniors

After tasting it, Aine and Tsuki finished the indescribable hamburger patty combo (crossed out) and bread.

Although the shape is rather unique, the taste is quite good, almost exactly like a hamburger patty set meal. I don't know why Yamabuki Bakery, which makes bread, makes such delicious hamburger patty set meals.

You can't assume that because it's bread, it will taste good, right?

"Um... senior, when do we start practicing?"

Seeing that the atmosphere had been set just right, Aine finally asked why she had come here.

"Oh right, Xiao Aiyin came to learn guitar from us."

Kasumi Toyama and Tae Hanazono said as if they had just realized something.

"Otherwise, what else do you think they came here for? To eat bread?"

As usual, Ichigaya Arisa, the tsukkomi (straight man) of popipa, was having some issues, saying something to Kasumi and Tae.

"Why don't you demonstrate your guitar skills first, Aiyin, and let us see how good you are?"

Tae Hanazono, who has extensive teaching experience, said to Aine.

Yue gave Aine an encouraging look. If this were on the set of a domineering novel next door, Aine would definitely be able to understand the complex emotions in Yue's eyes. But this was on the set of a girl band, and Aine could only see the encouragement in Yue's eyes.

"Relax, Aiyin, you can do it."

Ai Yin connected her guitar to the amplifier and effects pedal, silently cheering herself on.

"Then please listen to the spring shadow."

Because the new piece, Riki, hasn't decided which version to use yet, Aine has no choice but to play Kasuga Kage, which she had previously used as a practice piece.

As the song ended, the members of Popipa and Yue all gave Aine a round of applause.

"It sparkles when Ai-on plays!" Kasumi Toyama's comment was very characteristic of her personality.

"Although there are still many minor mistakes, it's already quite good in terms of emotional expression." Although Ichigaya Arisa noticed some minor problems in Aine's performance, she also realized that Aine, like them before, had almost given her all in the performance.

"Aine played very well," Satomi Ushigome praised Aine.

"Aine's basic skills are still a bit lacking, but she plays the music very well." This was Tae Hanazono's final comment on Aine.

Do you have sheet music?

Tae Hanazono picked up her guitar and asked Aine.

"Ah, yes, yes." Aine quickly took out her tablet, pulled up the sheet music for Haruhi Kage, and handed it to Tae.

"Mmm...that's how it feels."

After glancing at the score briefly, Tae roughly understood the original way Haruhi Kage played the piece.

"I'll play it for you, Xiao Aiyin. You can record it as a reference."

Upon hearing this, Ai Yin quickly took out her phone and turned on the recording mode.

“Okay, Tae-senpai, I’m all ready.”

So Tae Hanazono began playing a piece that wasn't part of Crychic: Spring Shadow.

Right after Tae finished her performance, while Aine was exchanging playing techniques with Tae, Tsuki took the initiative to approach Ichigaya Arisa.

"I'm also troubling you, Arisaki-senpai. Please take care of me."

Originally, Yue thought her skills were enough to handle the performance of this non-professional band, but after hearing what Ai-on said not long ago, Yue felt that she still needed to practice more so as not to end up being the one who dragged the band down.

"Ah, no... that wasn't originally mentioned..." Arisa was a little confused by Tsuki's sudden request.

"Arisaki, please help out with Tsukishiro."

Kasumi Toyama noticed the conversation between Tsuki and Arisa and came over to plead for Tsuki.

Seeing that Kasumi had said so, Ichigaya Arisa, who had no intention of refusing in the first place, followed the lead Kasumi gave her and agreed to Tsuki's request.

"Since Kasumi says so...then please take care of me."

————Two flowers bloom, each telling a story————

While Aine and Tsuki were giving special training to the seniors of poppin'party, the band's composer, Shiina Tatsuki, was sitting blankly in front of the computer.

Shiina Riki sat quietly in front of the computer, her eyes fixed on the screen, her thoughts seemingly drifting. Her fingers tapped lightly on the keyboard, but her movements were somewhat slow. Then she deleted everything she had just written.

Several crumpled draft papers were scattered on the table in front of Lixi, revealing her current agitation and unease.

The draft paper in front of him was covered with scattered fragments of musical symbols, some of which had been scribbled over and erased, clearly the result of numerous revisions and deliberations.

There were some pens and erasers scattered on the table, as well as a cup of coffee that had gone cold, indicating that it had been neglected for some time.

Finally, completely devoid of inspiration, Lixi slumped heavily in her chair, rubbing her cheeks with her hands. Even with her young body, the two consecutive nights of composing had finally taken their toll.

The musical notes and lyrics on the draft paper seemed to become the torment deep in her heart, appearing particularly glaring. In the end, she still couldn't do everything as well as Toyokawa Shoko.

Shiina Riki chose to get away from the computer that was giving her a headache, lay down on the bed, and covered her eyes with her arm. Even though she had chosen to relax, all sorts of things about the band kept popping into her mind.

"They haven't done any proper practice at all..."

Lixi's voice was hoarse and tired. Her tone revealed frustration and disappointment, as if she was very disappointed and helpless with her performance.

"Should we...get rid of the stray cats?"

Lixi turned over and lay on her side on the bed, her purple eyes filled with anxiety.

"Or... should we keep the stray cat... but no one can guarantee she'll come back for the concert..."

"If we keep changing the score... that guy won't be able to handle it..."

Once again, Li Xi heard Toyokawa Shoko's words from Crychic: "I will write a song with lyrics worthy of the light."

And what she said when she received the lyrics: "If there are any problems, you can tell me anytime. It is my responsibility as the author of this song."

Lixi rolled over again, burying her face in the soft pillow, her voice tinged with frustration and confusion.

"How come I can still think of Toyokawa Shoko now...? Am I really capable of writing lyrics worthy of the lamp? Am I really comparable to Toyokawa Shoko?"

Her voice trembled slightly, as if she were questioning her own abilities and worth. The difficulties and problems facing the band had plunged her into deep self-doubt, leaving her unsure of how to move forward.

When the Stage Opens: Chapter Forty-Six - The Free Astronomy Club and Rakuna

Although Lixi had a good plan, when she arrived at the recording studio, she found that only Su Shi was there; none of the Yuqiu trio had come.

"Didn't they come?"

To prevent the three from arriving and then leaving, Lixi cautiously asked Su Shi a question.

"No, I came right after the previous band, and I didn't see Xiaodeng and the others at all."

Su Shi stood in the center of the room, unconsciously curling her hair with her fingers, and shook her head to indicate that she did not see them.

"Seriously... I can understand Aine, but what are Akari and Tsuki doing?"