I play wind instruments in Kansai.

Souta Hasebe let out a sigh of relief, a regretful expression on his face, and said...

"It was just tough on Okamoto; he resigned from the club along with me."

Really? What a tragic couple.

Seeing that Miyamine Nozomi made no response, Hasebe Sōta continued helplessly:

"Then I won't bother you anymore, good luck."

"Yeah, you too, senior. Cook the bread properly."

"The baking department doesn't boil bread..."

"What is that for?"

"Roasting refers to the process of roasting tea leaves." Hasebe Souta regained some of his confidence, even though he had only just learned this himself.

"Really? I've learned something."

Gong Lingwang nodded, walked into the club building, and went upstairs.

"Junior Brother Gongling, you've finally arrived! Quickly! Sit down properly!"

Upon entering the practice room, I saw Erika Toda holding a flute, sitting in a chair in a ready position, with the sheet music on the music stand turned to the section of the theme song "Guardian".

This senior student is extremely beautiful and looks like the type who is easy to bully.

Hitomi Shiraishi sat to her left, watching Erika Toda's eager expression as she prepared to explain.

"We've finally collected them all!" Erika Toda said with a smile.

"Speaking of which, I ran into Hasebe-senpai on the road," Miyamine Nozomi said casually while piecing together the flute.

Erika Toda's cheerful smile vanished without a trace, and she asked seriously:

"Huh? He bullied you?"

No, not at all.

Gongling Wang assembled the pipe and played a B-flat.

"He said he was going to join the baking club, and then said that he had put Okamoto-senpai in a difficult position, so he left the club with him."

"do not want!"

Erika Tota said, letting out a soft breath. Her arms, beneath her short-sleeved uniform, appeared soft and supple.

"He said that because he hoped Okamoto would come back."

"Doesn't Toda-senpai want that?" Miyamine asked.

"Of course not! We have enough people now, and his boasting was pretty mediocre." Erika Toda felt a tightness in her chest.

Her words were clearly driven by ulterior motives; she no longer wanted to go back to the old days, and felt uncomfortable every time she saw Okamoto and the others' faces.

These things have nothing to do with who is in charge of the group or with the way the instrument is played; Erika Toda simply doesn't like it.

"Gong Ling, you mustn't agree to him. The vocal section has finally settled down, and I don't want any more accidents to happen."

"I didn't say I agreed."

"That's good."

Erika Toda took her phone out of her skirt pocket and said...

"Ahem, this year's theme song, 'Guardian,' is a rhapsody. Although the brass instruments sound fierce, our woodwinds are just as strong."

Miyamine Nozomi pulled up a chair and sat down next to Shiraishi Hitomi, saying:

"Senior, what you said makes no difference whether it was said or not."

"Gongling!"

Erika Toda frowned slightly, raised a finger, and pointed sharply at her side.

Her meaning was very clear—

"Sit here!"

Miyamine Nozomi had no choice. Since it was practice, the flutes naturally needed to sit together and listen to each other's voices. She could only improve her relationship with Shiraishi Hitomi after school.

Seeing Miyamine Nozomi sitting beside her, Erika Toda let out a soft "Mmm~~!" in acknowledgment. Just how old was she? She was already getting cocky with a little bit of power.

"Listen to it once first, then I'll explain it slowly~~"

Erika Toda played the theme song with great enthusiasm, but the phone's speaker can't compare to a CD, and most people can't hear it very clearly.

Gongling Wang had heard it long ago and marked the difficult points of each measure on his own score.

“Gong Ling, I’ve made up my mind. You will be the first flute player, and I will provide harmony and counterpoint.”

Erika Toda had no intention of putting on a show; in her eyes, if she became the first flute player, she would only be ridiculed.

“Okay.” Gong Lingwang readily accepted.

Erika Toda looked at Hitomi Shiraishi; beneath the bangs that fell across her forehead were a pair of clear, bright eyes.

"Although you are the only piccolo player in our club, just in case, I hope you can practice the flute in your spare time and serve as the third flutist."

"Hmm...that's a bit difficult," Miyamune said in a low voice.

Typically, within the piccolo section, the piccolo is played by the flute player as well. If a member can play the flute, then she is unlikely to play the piccolo poorly.

But if she can only play the piccolo, then her flute skills might not be so good.

When you pick up the flute, you may find that you can't play the middle and low frequencies, and you will feel dizzy after playing for a few minutes because you don't have enough breath.

Hitomi Shiraishi held the piccolo in both hands, nodded, and said:

“I can practice.”

"Thank you. Shiraishi-senpai might be the one working the hardest in the group. Thank you for your hard work." Erika Toda said with a gentle expression, "You can use the public flute. There should be a few left."

Shiraishi Hitomi shook her head and said softly:

"No need, my family owns a musical instrument store."

"Well......."

Erika Toda made an unnatural sound, her eyelashes trembling slightly.

"Open...open a musical instrument store?"

She looked at Gong Lingwang in astonishment.

"Shiraishi's family's music store is near Wakayama Station. They have a lot of instruments and several soundproof rooms."

Gongling Wang raised the silver flute in his hand and said,

"I got this flute from over there."

"I see..."

Erika Toda looked at Hitomi Shiraishi with complicated emotions. In her eyes, any family with musical instruments must be a wealthy family.

Because she understands that musical instruments are very expensive, and it's difficult to open a musical instrument store without tens of millions of yuan.

"If you don't want to play the flute, and only want to play the piccolo, that's fine too... Gongling and I will try our best."

Her tone changed abruptly.

Miyamine Nozomi could tell that Toda-senpai was a girl who was very afraid of power and did not want to get into trouble.

Hitomi Shiraishi smiled as she looked at Nozomi Miyamine's exquisite face, though her expression was slightly stiff. The way she flicked her hair with her fingers made Erika Toda open her mouth slightly in awe.

"It's okay, I can do anything."

"No, no, no, you don't have to do it," Erika Toda quickly said.

Shiraishi Hitomi raised her eyebrows curiously, her words and gaze both unfathomable:

Why do you say that?

"Um...because..."

Erika Toda was momentarily speechless. As if to ease the awkwardness, she slid her index finger aimlessly in the air.

"Because I'm worried you'll get tired..."

"Well."

Hitomi Shiraishi averted her gaze; the piccolo's body was like solidified obsidian, so smooth that almost no seams were visible.

"It has nothing to do with Toda-senpai."

"......"

Erika Toda paused for a moment, then looked at Nozomi Miyamine with a pitiful expression, as if she were complaining.

"She probably doesn't dislike you. Everyone can voice their opinions."

Gongling Wang could only offer words of comfort.

"In short, let's practice and listen to the effect first. If the tone of the two flutes can't be brought up, then we can only ask Shiraishi to appoint the third one."

Erika Toda lowered her head sadly, only then noticing a few tiny scratches on the tube, so faint they were almost invisible unless you looked closely.

I don't know when I bumped into it, which makes me even more upset.

Both flutes inhaled simultaneously. Miyamine Nozomi started first, bursting forth with a melody accompanied by dotted rhythms, while Toda Erika followed on the second beat.

He lowered the pitch by eight octaves, which should have steadily supported Gong Lingwang, but as soon as the sound came out, he felt something was wrong.

In the past, he might have thought it was insignificant, but now that he has received the system's blessing, he can no longer stand idly by regarding these sounds that can only be described as trivial.

"No," said Gongling Wang, letting go of her mouth.

"Huh?" Erika Toda was stunned. "They've only played a few notes?"

Gongling Wang frowned, looking rather uncomfortable, and said:

"The main problem is that the sound is too thin, your breath speed is too fast, and the airflow is too narrow. It's not ideal for you to be the second flute player."

"Hmm..."

Erika Toda blushed at his words, a sudden wave of shame washing over her. As if trying to save face, she said...

"It's just the first time practicing, everyone improves..."

"Senior Toda, don't be embarrassed. It's a good thing you have a problem. I will definitely help you."

Gongling Wang said in a gentle tone,

"The root cause of a thin tone is often that you squeeze your throat and tighten your chest. This kind of breath is forced out and has no support at all."

"is it?"

He spoke with such seriousness that Erika Toda couldn't help but straighten her back, press her legs tightly together, and adopt the posture of a well-behaved girl listening attentively.

"Listen to me play first, and then I'll teach you slowly."

Gongling Wang raised his flute, and a tingling resonance emanated from the flute, round and elastic, arching towards the ceiling.

Compared to Erika Toda's tone, the strained, weak breathing sensation has disappeared, replaced by a gentle and mellow tone.

“Like this,” said Miyamine Nozomi, lowering the flute in her hand.

Erika Toda didn't know what to say. People like Nozomi Miyamine were just there to fry fish in the Haruki Brass Band.

"Don't feel like you can't do it, it's not difficult at all," Gong Lingwang said bluntly.

"...Thank you for believing me."

Erika Toda's words carried a hint of frustration. Initially, she hoped that everyone could practice together, but now that they were actually together, her confidence suffered another blow.

The two of them played it again.

"No."

Miyamine Nozomi picked up a black pen and drew a short horizontal line on a small section of Toda Erika's score, signifying "keep".

Erika Toda didn't say anything, but felt her whole body burning up, and a thin layer of hot sweat seeped out from the inside of her thighs under her skirt.

He was determined to play well this time, but he failed to meet the standard set by Miyamori no Nakamoto on the third, fourth, and fifth attempts.

"...Why don't you practice this part at home first?" Miyamine Nozomi turned the page to the next section of the score.

His words were still relatively mild, but they carried a hint of helplessness compared to before.