In crossover anime, who isn't a childhood friend?

Eriri stroked her chin: "That's right. The script describes the male and female leads falling in love the moment they meet for the first time, so Kazusa, you can definitely portray this aspect more deeply and more fully."

"That's what the two judges said," Gen Chiya said, glancing at Kazusa with a teasing look. "Do you need me to help you practice some more? Like that moment when we first met and looked at each other."

"No need! I can manage on my own."

After saying that, Kazusa, like Yukino, took the script and sat on the other side of the sofa, looking at the text descriptions, trying to suppress her inexplicably fast heartbeat and readjust herself to immerse herself in the role.

…………

Chapter 038: Good music is enjoyable

"...Would you like me to go inside and have a look around with you?"

"No need, I can manage on my own, thank you."

The young man politely declined and strode off with light steps.

"..."

The boy was slightly flustered upon encountering the girl, but quickly composed himself and asked, "...Excuse me, were you playing the piano just now?"

"No." The girl had a faint smile on her face.

"But I don't see anyone else here."

"Yes."

The boy praised shyly, "I don't mean anything by it, I just think it sounds nice."

The girl's smile widened even more: "Yes, thank you."

"..."

"Hey, why are you following me?" The girl raised an eyebrow, her expression mischievous and teasing.

The boy instinctively denied it: "No."

Seeing this, the girl turned to leave: "No, goodbye then."

The boy called out to her again, "Wait, I do have something to ask you. What's the name of the piece you played today?"

The girl stopped, a sly glint in her eyes. She smiled slightly and tiptoed close to his ear: "This is a... secret that can't be told."

The living room of the Touma family was brightly lit.

The phone screen on the coffee table was lit up, playing the latest rehearsal results.

The speakers played lines spoken by the young boys and girls, their voices slightly naive yet full of emotion.

Eriri and Rikka sat side by side on the sofa, watching with great interest, occasionally exchanging an excited glance.

Yukino sat on a single sofa a little further away, her gaze fixed on the smiling self on the screen, her cheeks flushing slightly.

Despite feeling somewhat ashamed, she forced herself to look at the performance with a scrutinizing gaze, her slender fingers lightly tapping her chin as she pondered every detail in the performance that could be improved.

Yuan Qianye leaned back on the sofa armrest, feeling quite gratified. After several rounds of practice, Kazusa and Yukino's performance had finally reached the minimum acceptable level he had been hoping for.

Although it's not the best yet, if we can maintain that state, there shouldn't be any major problems with the subsequent filming.

But I'm afraid that something unexpected might happen later, causing their performance to become unstable again.

Thinking about all this, he turned his gaze toward the floor-to-ceiling window.

By the window, Kazusa gazed at the deep night outside. Her profile was outlined with soft lines under the lamplight, and her fair earlobes were tinged with a suspicious blush, clearly an attempt to appear calm.

"Kazusa, you performed exceptionally well in that scene just now. It felt like your gaze towards my brother was practically sparkling with stars. It was exactly as described in the script, that you were captivated by the male lead from the very first meeting."

Rikka gave the highest praise she'd received from all the rehearsals tonight, and waved her little hand excitedly.

"Come over here and watch! Your acting was absolutely phenomenal! You used to say you weren't good at acting, but now it seems you were just being too modest. You're incredibly talented! At this rate, you might not only be able to play the piano, but also develop a career in the entertainment industry!"

"Phew... Rikka, stop teasing me." Kazusa tried her best to act nonchalant, but her slightly trembling eyelashes betrayed that her inner emotions were not as natural as they appeared.

After four rounds of practice, an hour had passed in the blink of an eye, and everyone's drinks were already empty.

So she took the opportunity to go to the kitchen, took out the orange juice that Aunt Shibata had squeezed before leaving from the refrigerator, and refilled everyone's glasses.

Having something to do can at least mask the turmoil in my heart.

“Rikka is telling the truth.” Gen Chiya chuckled. “I often deal with people in the entertainment industry because of my work, including various famous female artists and idol girls. Putting everything else aside, in terms of appearance alone, Kazusa, you can completely outshine all of them in an instant.”

"Oh, really?" Although she was inwardly overjoyed at the praise, the girl still tried her best to maintain a calm expression.

"Of course, Yukino, Eriri, and even Rikka are the same in this regard." Minamoto Chiyo changed the subject, not forgetting the other girls present.

Yukino's reaction was similar to Kazusa's; she merely glanced at Minamoto Chiya indifferently and showed no particular reaction.

Eriri seemed to enjoy it quite a bit, as for Rikka...

"What do you mean 'even'?! It feels like I was just forced into this situation!" Rikka immediately questioned after realizing what was happening.

Gen Chiya tried to reassure her: "It's alright, Rikka. Just look at Touka and you'll understand. You have great potential for the future."

"You understand... No! Is this saying I have no charm right now? Don't underestimate me, you idiot Chiyo, I still get love letters all the time at school!"

For some reason, the atmosphere suddenly became lively, centered around the brother and sister.

Rikka lunged forward menacingly, but Chiyo dodged with a smile. Eventually, Rikka nimbly jumped up, wrapped her arms around his neck from behind, and hung on him.

Kazusa enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere of the small gathering, and unconsciously, the corners of her mouth curved slightly upwards.

While the brother and sister were chasing each other around the living room, she secretly asked Eriri to send her the video that had just been taken on her phone.

"Alright, stop fooling around, get down! We still have important things to do today." Yuan Qianye patted the soft, white thighs on both sides of her shoulders, gesturing for Rikka to get down from her shoulders first.

This little girl is not to be underestimated. It's not that she moves as nimbly as a monkey, but rather that her physical development... has unknowingly reached an astonishing level.

To maintain her balance, the soft flesh of her inner thighs pressed tightly against the sides of Yuan Qianye's face. Therefore, not only could one feel the delicate and smooth touch, but even the top and back of her head could feel a unique warmth due to her overly unguarded and intimate posture...

"I won't go down unless you admit my charm!" Rikka tightened her arms in a spoiled manner and breathed into his ear.

"Alright, alright! My Rikka is the prettiest, the most beautiful in the world!" Gen Chiya pleaded helplessly.

"That's more like it..." Rikka was finally satisfied. She let go of her hands and feet, landed lightly on the ground, and gave the others a V sign.

The three girls watching all wore teasing smiles that showed no jealousy whatsoever at the scene.

It seems that they found it quite rare and interesting to see someone like Gen Chiya being ridden on their neck and getting the short end of the stick.

"Sorry, my family called."

Just then, Yukino's phone rang with a pleasant ringtone.

She walked to the corner of the living room to answer the phone, whispered a few words, and glanced back at everyone during the conversation.

She quickly ended the call and came back.

"Are your family urging you to go back?" Yuan Qianye asked.

Yukino shook her head: "No, she just told me that the security situation has been a bit bad lately, so I shouldn't take the train home by myself. She told me to call her when it's almost over and have the driver pick me up."

As she spoke, she turned to her friend and said, "I'll give Eriri a ride on my way later."

"okay."

"what about me?"

"Rikka, you're with such a powerful older brother. If someone with ill intentions were to approach you, it would be the other person who should be worried."

"That's true."

Gen Chiya clapped his hands: "It's getting late, let's quickly listen to the song that Kazusa helped improve."

Everyone nodded and followed Kazusa into the underground practice room.

Chiya had been to this sacred place, which belonged exclusively to Kazusa, before, so she seemed quite used to it at this moment.

Yukino and Eriri, who were entering for the first time, widened their eyes slightly and looked around the room with great surprise.

The room is a spacious rectangle with professionally designed walls and ceilings. They are not simply flat surfaces, but are inlaid with sound-absorbing modules and diffusers in a staggered manner. The surfaces are covered with light beige high-grade suede, which not only ensures the purity of the sound but also exudes a low-key and warm texture.

In the very center of the room stands a Steinway D-series grand piano, its lacquer surface so glossy it reflects light, luxurious yet understated—the absolute centerpiece.

In the walnut wood storage cabinet to the side, the various musical instruments neatly arranged are like pilgrims, each with its own characteristics, silently expressing their respect and devotion to the central monarch.

profession.

The moment Yukino and Eriri entered the practice room and saw the layout of the room, these words came to mind.

Eriri had some experience with the piano when she was very young, while Yukino has been playing the piano since kindergarten and continues to do so now. Whenever she has free time, she sits down at the piano and plays quietly.

Their reason for taking up the piano was more about cultivating their own temperament, simply out of personal interest.

Compared to someone like Kazusa, who has long aspired to make classical music her career, the gap is enormous.

The time, effort, and energy invested by both sides are incomparable.

Yukino suddenly remembered that her older sister had once participated in a piano competition with Kazusa a long time ago and lost. Looking back now, her sister's loss was indeed justified.

Kazusa brought the Service Club here today not specifically to show off her musical instrument arsenal, so she skipped the most conspicuous piano in the center of the room and led them to the music playback equipment placed at the far end.

The equipment was carefully placed on a custom-made wooden frame with an embedded shock-absorbing platform. It was quite large and divided into layers, separating the speakers and controllers. The equipment had numerous buttons and was equipped with English instructions, which looked impressive but were immediately recognizable as a high-end product, just like the grand piano in the room.

"This is the completed score. I have marked the parts that are different from the original version of Thousand Nights. You can listen to it and compare them."

Kazusa had prepared in advance, distributing photocopied and compiled sheet music to everyone.

"For some pieces, I tried to add instruments such as violin, double bass, and classical guitar to the original solo piano performance. This is just an attempt based on my personal feelings. If you feel there is anything inappropriate, please be sure to point it out."

Chiya and Yukino took the sheet music and nodded.

They were alright, because they had a musical background and could basically understand the sheet music in their hands.

However, since Rikka and Eriri had not made any special efforts in the field of music, and had only learned some basic music theory in school music classes, they were quite confused when faced with the sheet music that Kazusa handed them.

However, both of them had a good attitude. They understood that their main role in this segment was to experience the atmosphere, and that the professional judgment should be left to the professionals. So they sat obediently to the side, ready to listen attentively.

"So, the first one is number one, the first piece."

As Kazusa spoke, she pressed the play button.

The next moment, clear and pure violin music filled the practice room. After the gentle intro, the silky and melodious violin tone joined in at the right time.

The piano and violin complement each other, making the music more complete and three-dimensional, and highlighting the necessity of expensive playback equipment.

The music recorded by Kazusa is reproduced with every detail clearly. The low frequencies are deep and elastic, the mid frequencies are full, realistic and full of charm, and the high frequencies are as bright and clear as diamonds without being harsh.

This was undoubtedly a top-notch auditory feast, and Rikka Eriri gradually became immersed in the beautiful music.