Aunt Xiangzi, how did you manage to live?

If it's just a brief meeting, as Su Shi said, it probably doesn't mean anything.

That's what the lamp was thinking.

But before they even reached the door of the agreed-upon recording studio, they could already faintly hear music coming from Dian Dian's room in the corridor, as if someone was playing an ensemble.

A deafening electric guitar, powerful drumbeats...

There is also the keyboard of Huayi Zero 3T (One) Qisi Wu IX Si Jiu ⑧ Li.

Gao Songdeng felt his heart almost skip a beat again.

If it's just Su Shi and Li Xi practicing inside, why are there three different musical instruments playing together...?

"Hmm? Who's playing? It sounds so good... I can even faintly hear some melodies through the soundproof walls!"

It wasn't until Chihaya Aine, with a look of longing on her face, excitedly jumped up and opened the recording studio door that Takamatsu Akari was able to glimpse the members inside.

Su Shi sat gracefully in the audience; a blue-haired girl she had never seen before; a short-haired girl with silver hair squatting next to the snack shelf, stuffing dessert into her mouth; and Li Xi, sitting in front of the drum set, her breathing slightly uneven after finishing her performance...

And the handsome young man standing next to her, looking towards the door.

There is no doubt that the boy has a handsome face, so it is normal for him to appear on television as an idol or actor.

But why... does she feel a sense of familiarity with this boy she has never met before?

Perhaps it's because his amber eyes resemble those of a flamboyant keyboardist.

In an instant, bittersweet memories flooded my mind.

“Hmm… 2ling2er13lingba2 […]”

Takamatsu Akari remained silent, but subconsciously avoided his gaze and shrank behind Chihaya Aine.

"Lamp, you've arrived... And who is this?"

Su Shi's face lit up with a hint of joy when she saw the lamp appear, but she quickly regained her composure when Ai Yin stood in front of her.

"Wait... for the light? Why are you here too? Why didn't you tell me beforehand?"

Lixi stood up from the drum set in a hurry, wanting to walk straight to the lamp, but was blocked by Aine, who was still unaware of what had happened.

"Ah... there are so many people. Hello everyone, my name is Chihaya Aine, you can just call me Aine... Ah! It's you! Kazama-kun!!"

Ai Yin was still subconsciously fulfilling the social etiquette expected of Yang Jiao, smiling and greeting everyone present, but her eyes widened instantly when she saw someone she had never expected to meet again among this group of people.

"...Hello, Ai-yin. And this...the student named Deng."

Xiao politely raised his hand and waved to the two of them with a smile. He wasn't surprised that Aine and Akari appeared together, since they were almost on good terms according to the timeline. But why did they have to appear here at this particular time?

However, getting the answer is quite simple.

"Lixi, I messaged Deng hoping she could come... Just treat it as a long-awaited after-school get-together, no one needs to feel pressured."

Nagasaki Suze calmly explained the situation, not only clearing up the confusion of Riki, but also enlightening Xiao, who was already somewhat suspicious of her.

It was you who did it, Aunt Su Shi.

If anyone were to secretly pull some tricks to reunite the fragmented remnants of C-group, it would only be Nagasaki Motoyo, who seems to have a gentle smile but always harbors some ulterior motives.

Speaking of which, Aunt Su Shi had mentioned this past event indirectly before.

“At that time, CRYCHIC had just fallen apart not long ago, and I originally wanted to get everyone back to normal... but then Xiangzi had an accident.”

Xiao still remembers the complex expression on Aunt Su Shi's face when she recounted this story.

“CRYCHIC has never been able to reunite since then.”

When she recalls the past, there is always a hint of resentment in her tone.

After that, the remaining members supported each other through those difficult years, and it was thanks to Aine's arrival that everyone was able to pull themselves together again...

But right now, Nagasaki Motoyo must be thinking about restoring CRYCHIC.

Xiao didn't even need to observe Su Shi's expression; based on her long-standing understanding of her, she guessed Su Shi's intention in inviting Deng.

Invite her out under the pretense of a party, let her see Lixi playing music with others, and at that moment all you need to do is...

"It brings back some memories of the days when we performed together, Light."

Yes, yes, that's it.

Nagasaki Motoyo smiled and walked to the light's side, completely ignoring Aine standing in front of her, and played the nostalgia card that she had been planning for a long time.

"Huh? You guys were in a band together before? Uh... I see..."

Oh dear, it seems Aine has realized that her current situation is a little awkward, and the smile on her face is about to fade.

"If you're going to call the lights over, please let me know in advance."

"Hehe, sorry Taki-chan."

Ai-yin, who had only just realized what was going on, scratched her head and could only force a smile as she made way for Su-shi and Ri-xi to be near the light.

They look rather pitiful.

"We meet again, Aine."

Unable to bear the scene any longer, Xiao quickly stepped forward to the pink-haired girl and helped her out of her awkward situation. It was better than leaving her alone to watch her three former bandmates reminisce.

"Kazama-kun...! I never expected to run into you here!"

Aine, whose head had been hanging low, immediately raised her head upon hearing this, her eyes shining, her face full of gratitude like a parched land receiving rain.

As expected, what social cows can't stand the most is being ignored in a crowd. Moreover, Xiao also knows that Ai Yin is actually much more delicate and sensitive than the average social cow.

"I just saw it, right outside the window. Kazama-kun playing music as a keyboardist was so cool!"

Like a little sun, Aine swept away the low spirits and didn't hold back her praise for Xiao. Her big, starry eyes made Xiao a little embarrassed.

"Oh, not at all, this is actually an instrument that I'm not very good at."

"Eh? So what's Kazama-kun's best skill?"

"Hmm... I'm alright with the guitar and drums, but that just means I'm pretty good at playing them."

"Is that so? Is that so? Then—"

Hearing this, Ai Yin became completely interested, and her tone rose a little.

"I also want to see Kazama-kun play a guitar solo! It'll definitely be even better than before, right?"

"........."

Before Xiao could respond, Li Xi, who had been standing around the lamp, turned her head sharply and narrowed her eyes.

Indeed, she was also a little curious about what kind of performance Kazama would have if he were in a different position, playing the instrument he was least proficient at and clearly holding back.

Su Shi, who was standing nearby, noticed Li Xi's unusual behavior. She was a little surprised, as she had been thinking of catching up with Deng.

The bright light was right there, but Li Xi wasn't paying attention to her at all. Instead, she was focused on someone else—this was the first time she had ever seen this.

Still sitting in the audience, Banami yawned. Today she had witnessed firsthand just how awkward it could be for former band members who had fallen apart to reminisce.

The system's task completion notification tone still hadn't sounded.

Are we going to let Kazama put on another big act?

Kazama glanced at Aine, whose eyes were full of longing, then at Ritsuki, who was watching him out of the corner of his eye, and then at Banami, who was sitting in the audience giving him a playful smile that said, "Oh dear, you're completely surrounded by band girls."

In the end, he shook his head.

"I do not want."

He refused Aine's request.

Chapter Twenty-Seven: The Ambition of a Long-Term Vegetarian

As the old saying goes, since we're already here, it's not a bad idea to make a big purchase before leaving.

The girls in the band only need to play their best instruments and express themselves freely through music, while Xiao, as a time traveler, has many more things to consider.

Every decision and action he makes may affect the development of subsequent events. What he may consider a trivial matter could have an irreversible butterfly effect, leading to a situation that she least wants to see.

This is not a game. He may be able to hesitate for a while, but taking back a move is definitely not allowed.

Therefore, he did not intend to show off his strength in front of these young aunties until he was absolutely certain of everything.

"Ugh...why...!"

...Even if Aunt Aine looked at him with a pitiful, pleading expression like a puppy, it wouldn't work.

"You were already amazing when you played the keyboard, so playing the guitar a bit more wouldn't be a problem! I just wanted to see it for myself, Kazama-kun~"

Well, Aunt Aine's coquettishness is much more lethal than before, perhaps because she now completely embodies the adorable image of a charming, bright, and energetic high school girl.

"What does it matter? It's rare for you to come all this way, Kazama. I also want to see what other tricks you have up your sleeve. If you're shy, we can just find a place to practice in private later."

Hanami Anzu, with an enigmatic smile, started stirring things up. How come she had never noticed before that this girl was so interested in bands?

"In private too!"

Aine glanced at Banami and then at Akatsuki, whose face was full of helplessness, and nodded in agreement like a chick pecking at rice.

"Okay...we'll discuss it again later."

Xiao helplessly shrugged, indicating her compromise. Only Shiina Riki, who was standing to the side, frowned upon hearing this answer, and only snapped out of her daze when Suze called her name.

"When you were playing the drums just now, you were also reminiscing about how we used to be together, right, Lixi?"

“Ah… yeah.”

She quickly suppressed her strange expression and looked at the lamp that was looking down at the ground.

"In that case, let's go out and catch up... Kazama-kun, we won't bother you any longer."

Su Shi smiled and led Li Xi and Deng away from the room. It was obvious that she had heard Aine's curious request to Xiao and was very "kind" in giving them room to perform.

However, Aunt Su Shi probably doesn't want unrelated people to interfere in C Group's internal affairs.

Xiao astutely guessed what Su Shi's true purpose was beneath her gentle, polite, and restrained exterior. In fact, he had already realized when the lamp appeared that this ensemble was merely a pretext she used to lure out the lamp.

However, since this level of petty scheming didn't harm anyone, Xiao decided to turn a blind eye.

"Um, the friend who came with you, Ai-yin... could it be that they were former bandmates of those two?"

Until Banami expressed some concern to Aine.

Although Anna Hanami was trying to minimize her presence when she was in the band's territory, it was clear that she was still observing the situation and would act when necessary.

"Ah, um... I guess so."

Ai Yin's smile was somewhat forced, because Deng hadn't actually had a chance to tell her this before leaving the recording studio surrounded by Su Shi and Li Xi.

She looked towards the doorway, and through the window in the door, Shiina Ritsuki happened to turn around and glance at her.

"...Okay, so you wanted to see me play a guitar solo, didn't you?"

Noticing a hint of disappointment flash in Aine's beautiful gray eyes, Akira calmly walked up to her—

He used his body to block her view of the three girls outside the door.

He picked up the guitar that Miss Wildcat Lena had left behind and gave Ai Yin a confident and composed smile.

"Take a break, then get ready to study hard."

"..."

Chihaya Aine didn't speak, but her pupils widened slightly as she stared at the boy's figure.

Banami shook her head and smiled helplessly. She wanted to complain in her heart, but she found that her eyes could not help but follow the boy's figure.

Kazama Akatsuki looked even more dashing when he picked up the guitar than usual.

……

……

After leaving the recording studio, Riki and Suze quickly learned from Akari why Chihaya Aine was there.

"...What? She came to see you wanting to form a band?"

The guard, Shiina Tatsuki, sensed a slight sense of crisis, and her tone became somewhat...

"...I see, forming a band..."