I play wind instruments in Kansai.

Because Tatsuno Sawamura is the clarinet section leader, Miyamine Nozomi and Mizuno Souji can easily come over for a meal.

"Don't worry, I didn't eat with any other girls."

Willowwood Lamp raised its eyebrows, glared at him, and said:

"Who cares about you?"

"Really?" Gong Lingwang stared at her with a smile.

Liu Mujie Deng suddenly fell silent, then raised his foot and kicked his shin, saying:

"You did it on purpose, didn't you?"

Gong Lingwang winced in pain, but still smiled and said, "Come to my house another day, and I'll cook for you."

Willow Wood Lantern's heart suddenly raced, but then, as if remembering something, she slumped her shoulders and pouted, saying:

"No."

"My cooking skills are pretty good too, believe me."

"No."

"Why wouldn't I want to? I'm not going to poison you into bed," Gong Lingwang said with a grin.

Liu Mujie, already immune to his nonchalant remarks, lightly tapped a small clump of rice with her chopsticks and said:

"I just don't want it."

Gongling Wang blinked. Liu Mu Yu Deng had always been a girl who was soft-hearted but stubborn. She wouldn't say anything if she was too shy.

However, he already had experience.

"I'll find a time when my parents aren't around, and you can come over and I'll cook for you."

Gongling Wang spread his arms wide, saying smugly,

"A super feast! It'll make your stomach bulge!"

Seeing his expression, Liu Mujie squinted at him disdainfully and said:

"You say that, but you still came back last time."

Embarrassed by her retort, Gong Lingwang could only apologize and say, "That was an accident, and they didn't send me any messages."

"......"

"......"

The conversation inexplicably veered towards this topic, reminding them of the ambiguous moment that day, and both of them blushed simultaneously.

Even after so long, what I did back then is still vivid in my mind, and I can almost feel the heat in my palm as I hold the willow wood lamp.

"Would you like to come to my house again?" Gongling Wang smiled.

He didn't actually intend to continue what happened that day; he simply wanted to invite Yuki Yuki to his house.

Willow Knot Lamp's toes curled slightly inside her indoor shoes, but she said without changing her expression:

"Never."

As expected, just as Miyamune Nozomi had anticipated, she seemed somewhat frightened after her parents' "surprise attack" last time.

"Then after your alternate account wins first place, I'll take you out to play?" Gong Lingwang said.

“That’s fine,” she replied with a slightly nasal tone.

Gong Lingwang smiled slightly; what a drama queen.

Willow Knot Lantern raised the small bowl, sipping the soup slowly. The warm broth flowed into her throat, and you could see her neck twitching slightly.

"How about we go to Osaka?" he asked.

“No, it takes too long to go back and forth,” she said.

It takes three to four hours to go to and from Osaka, so if you only have one day, there really isn't much time to do anything.

Just then, the sound of a trumpet came from outside the window.

It was loud and mellow, with a leisurely and distant quality, as if it came from somewhere overhead.

Willow Knot Lantern's gaze unconsciously drifted towards the window. Having spent so much time with them, she already knew each of their techniques inside and out.

"Kirishima-san's alternate account," Miyamine said as she finished eating the remaining rice.

"......"

Liu Mujie glanced at him, her tone even more resolute than hers.

Perhaps he's just very smart and sensitive to this kind of thing.

"How are you feeling?" she asked, deliberately using an indifferent tone.

A wisp of hair on Miyamine Nozomi's forehead was ruffled by the wind as she spoke in a relaxed tone:

"Not bad, there's nothing that really needs to be corrected."

It has fast-paced musical phrases, and every note is handled so well that you can't hear any flaws.

Miyamine Nozomi didn't actually want to comment on Kirishima Ruka's trumpet skills in front of Yanagi Yuuto.

It's because this girl is already very strong, and he doesn't really want to give pointers to the talent monster in front of the Scroll King.

“That’s good,” Willow Wood Lamp said.

Gong Lingwang raised an eyebrow and glanced at her, tentatively asking:

Are you unhappy?

“No, of course I’m happy to hear the truth. Besides, no one smiles at a lie,” Liu Mujie said.

"Not necessarily."

These words were stuck deep in Gongling Wang's throat, but he chose not to say them aloud.

Gongling Wang raised his hand to touch the bridge of his nose, took a deep breath, and was about to say—

"If you want me to take your side, I will definitely stand by you."

But then he immediately thought that perhaps deep down he looked down on Willow Wood Lamp's trumpet, which was why he said such a thing.

Gongling Wang's two consecutive pauses in speech caused Liu Mu Jie Deng to frown slightly, her left hand, resting on her lap, tightly gripping the hem of her skirt.

"What's wrong? You look like you want to say something but aren't!"

Gongling Wang shrugged and said, "I still want you to come to my house to play."

"nerve."

Liu Mujie cursed at him once and then didn't say anything more.

The food in the lunchbox gradually dwindled, and the sunlight had unknowingly crawled a short distance across the floor.

The two didn't say anything more, but it seemed like they had already said a lot.

◇

After school in the afternoon, there was an audition for the Chiki Wind Ensemble.

I was worried that the first music classroom would be stuffy, but it suddenly turned cloudy and windy in the afternoon. There wasn't much sun, and the corridor was full of cross breezes, which was incredibly comfortable.

The first music classroom was packed with more than seventy members. According to the number of people in Group A, only fifty-five people could participate in the Wakayama Prefecture Conference.

"It feels like it's about to rain."

Nakajiko Hitsuru looked out the window with a worried expression. The dark clouds drifting in from the Seto Inland Sea were so large that she feared a torrential downpour was coming.

“Rain is great! I love rainy days the most,” Chiyo Akamatsu said with a smile. “Girls’ shoes are best when they get wet.”

"Let's talk about something normal."

"What? I've been speaking normally the whole time."

At that moment, Tani Hanane held the list of members for each vocal section in her hand, her loquat-colored uniform contrasting beautifully with her fair skin.

She raised her voice and shouted:

"Quiet down! The auditions for Wakayama Prefecture will begin soon! Woodwind section members, please go first. No talking during the auditions!"

"Yes!"

The members responded one after another, and the atmosphere seemed pretty good. There was no particular tension, and everyone was relaxed.

Hayami Tenma Sei stood at the front with a tense face. Today's selection was also a kind of homework check for her. She had to show Miyamine Nozomi a good look, because her excellence was not just empty talk.

She took a deep breath, raised her hands and clapped them, saying:

"Alright, the rest of you can leave now. The clarinet section, get ready. Ryūno-kun, you'll go first."

As soon as Hayami Tenma finished speaking, the other voices began to pour out of the first music classroom.

Erika Toda looked back and found that Nozomi Miyamine was still standing in the same spot, motionless.

"Gong Ling~! Junior Gong Ling!" she called out.

"Hmm?" Gongling Wang turned his head to look at her.

"Come out here."

Erika Toda had just finished greeting him when Seiko Daidouji turned his gaze over and said in front of everyone else:

"He stayed here to listen."

The other members looked at her in surprise, but judging from Daidouji Seiko's expression, she was not joking at all.

No one dared to offer any opinions, except for one person.

"Hey~, even first-year students can stay and listen? Does Miyamine-kun have voting rights?"

Sumire Amamiya looked puzzled through her eyes beneath her delicate eyelashes. Unlike her sister's alluring lower body, she appeared extremely conservative, with only her calves visible.

Kato Ai had just put on her shoes at the door, and leaned in, holding onto the door frame. Sure enough, it was her.

“No, he was just offering his opinion,” Daidouji Seiko replied calmly.

Sumire Amamiya raised her hand and waved it from side to side across her face, saying:

"No, no, no, saying it's giving opinions is actually more like giving choices, right? In that case, why not give the power to the group leader? Hmm? It seems like... Akamatsu-senpai? Nakazeko-senpai? Anwa-senpai? Toda-senpai?"

“Hmm~~” Chiyo Akamatsu shook her head and said, “I’m fine with anything, I don’t have any objection to giving it to Miyamine.”

Medieval Rinshō scratched his cheek somewhat embarrassedly, and said with an awkward smile:

"Me too."

She had received guidance from Miyamine Nozomi once, and although it was only once, she benefited greatly from it.

"I have no objection."

An Hechun has never paid much attention to these things, let alone the fact that she hopes to build a good relationship with Doraemon, just in case there are some fun things to do in the future.

Erika Toda, having already taken away one of his victories by becoming the group leader, dared not ask for more.

Not to mention, this was proposed by the Holy Son of Daidouji.

"Excellent! Excellent arrangement!" Erika Toda said, giving a thumbs up.

This scene was truly unexpected for Sumire Amamiya. She froze, her toes, hidden in her socks, trembling slightly in discomfort.

Daidouji Seiko asked with his arms crossed, his response very mature:

"Amamiya-senpai, do you have any further comments?"

Sumire Amamiya's usually cute face instantly turned into one of discomfiture.

But she quickly turned her face away, letting out a soft, coquettish hum from deep within her throat, and left the first music classroom.

88. Woodworking and Sound Testing for Selection

The sky was overcast, and all colors seemed to be shrouded in a thin layer of gray. The leaves in the courtyard were no longer a clear green.

The originally cramped first music classroom now only has five people left.

In the center of the space, there were music stands and chairs for the audition team members, as well as two tables and chairs put together; there was nothing else there.

Hayami Tenma Sei sat in the middle, with Daidouji Seiko on his left and Tani Kanon and Shida Nana on his right.