*AKIHIKO'S ROOM - SUZUKI RESIDENCE - KOTA CITY APARTMENT BUILDING - ODAIBA - TOKYO*
*P.O.V SWITCH - AKIHIKO SUZUKI*
AKI: "......"
*KNOCK* *KNOCK*
AKI: "..."
What now...? A knocking, a tapping on my balcony door...
*KNOCK* *KNOCK*
AYUMU: "Aki, it's me."
AKI: "..."
AYUMU: "I know you're in there, you can't fool me... I can see you."
AKI: "..."
AYUMU: "Aki, please. It's been three days. You can't lock yourself in there forever."
AKI: "......"
AYUMU: "Everyone's worried about you, you know? You haven't returned any of their calls or messages."
AKI: "..."
AYUMU: "I know what happened with Oda really got to you, and then that whole thing with Katsuo... But please, you know we're here for you. You don't have to suffer from this alone.
Please, allow us to take some of that weight off of your shoulders."
AKI: "..."
*Sigh* Damnit, Ayu...
She opened the door to let herself in. She opened the curtains, blinding me.
AKI: "Leave me alone."
AYUMU: "You know I can't do that. Now while you're suffering.
Have you been eating properly?
What about bathing?
Please tell me you're okay. Isolating yourself like this isn't healthy."
AKI: "Why can't you just leave me to die in peace? I just want to lay here for all eternity..."
AYUMU: "Don't say things like that."
AKI: "Why shouldn't I? It's the truth, after all. Suddenly, I've realized the crushing weight of my situation... And the gravity of it has pulled me to the ground. I can't move, I can't breathe."
AYUMU: "Aki..."
AKI: "A triple threat of shit has come to break me. My motivation has shattered. There's no enjoyment anymore...
I've always asked myself if I'm doing all of this for fun, what would happen if I stopped having fun.
Well, this isn't fun, Ayu. This is hell."
AYUMU: "But..."
AKI: "FIRST PROBLEM: I've put the entire School Idol Club's futures as well as Honoka and Chika's on the line at the School Idol Festival. If we lose to the new Liella! then we're screwed. We all work for Golden Calf under ironclad contracts. They will be free to do whatever they want with us.
SECOND PROBLEM: The man who I once saw as a father figure, an adult male who stuck by me and didn't abandon me... Someone I put my absolute trust in, someone I confided in...
Well, turns out he's a giant paedophile who was using me to try and get close to you girls.
If we work for Golden Calf, what's going to stop him from getting what he wants?
He knows my secrets...
He's been in my home... He knows where I live... He knows where you live... He has all the tools he needs to completely and utterly destroy me...
THIRD PROBLEM: I said that I never wanted to be an idol. Because I don't have what it takes, I'm not talented like you girls. Plus, it's something my parents would never approve of, and I bet my father would kill me if he found out the truth.
And now, I've put my whole future in this industry on the line against the greatest male school idol this country has ever seen... I've never performed as an idol before, the School Idol Festival will be my debut, and I'm up against the best. Not only was he powerful before joining Golden Calf, but now he has access to all of their training facilities and advice from the greatest producer, Kamijou, and the greatest idol, Shiro Okuda...
What the fuck am I supposed to do when there are three utterly cripplingly hopeless situations placed in front of me all at once?"
AYUMU: "..."
AKI: "I'd rather lock myself away in here, so that the world can stop kicking my teeth in.
It can't touch me in here, I'm safe."
AYUMU: "So, you want to lock yourself away forever? Is that it?"
AKI: "Yes. That's right."
AYUMU: "But in doing so, you know you're locking yourself away from us. You know, the ones who love you and care about you."
AKI: "All I've done is hurt you. Thanks to my bullshit, you're all set up for execution. I never would have known that trying to take this industry higher would cause this much pain..."
AYUMU: "What are you saying?"
AKI: "I'm saying that the day we went to Akihabara caused all of this."
AYUMU: "..."
AKI: "Ever heard of the butterfly effect? Chaos theory? Because all of this is a prime example of that."
AYUMU: "Explain how."
AKI: "Okay...
1. We visited Akihabara.
2. Thanks to that, we watched the Aqours and μ's Joint Live Show on the UTX big screen.
3. I felt inspired by them and wanted to learn more about school idols.
4. I actively searched for the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club. I met Kasumi and helped her reassemble the Club, restoring it to active status. Becoming the Club President, and winged it to help you qualify for the School Idol Festival.
5. As Club President, I wanted to see you girls at your very best, and to do that, I needed to improve as a leader. So I went to Numazu to seek Aqours.
6. I found Aqours and became friends with them. Because of that, I helped them save the Numazu Summer Festival and improved by learning from them about event organizational skills.
7. At the Numazu Summer Festival I bumped into Shiro Kosaka. A boy who I had recently talked to and convinced him that I wasn't dangerous, despite my past affiliation with Ryu Kuroda's crew. We bonded over our shared love for school idols.
8. Because of this, I found out that Shiro was the one who runs μ's' main fansite called μ'sic S.T.A.R.T. And he needed a representative to interview them. Considering that I had gotten along so well with Aqours, Shiro thought I was the right man for the job and he sent me to Otonokizaka.
9. At Otonokizaka, I met μ's and befriended them. The interviews were a success and I learned a lot from those girls. However, when they discovered that I was the leader of the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, they quickly challenged us.
10. The challenges of μ's VS Nijigasaki brought our two groups together and we became friends. But in the process, I let the pressure of facing Maki get to me. Because of that, we lost and had to watch μ's perform at an event instead of us. That loss hurt... Standing in the audience and looking up at them hurt, knowing that we were so close to giving them their first defeat... It sent me into depression and I locked myself away.
11. In my despair, all three groups were there to help me by sending me messages of support. Because of that, my motivation was sent through the roof.
12. At that moment, Kaoruko had canceled the School Idol Festival due to the original planning Committee disbanding.
13. Thanks to the previous effort to save the Numazu Summer Festival, the loss to μ's, and the fact that the School Idol Festival was our dream. I didn't want to give up. So we pushed forward and recorded our first P.V, 'TOKIMEKI Runners' which gave us a huge boost in popularity. This led to the creation of the individual fan clubs.
14. Everybody agreed with me and nobody wanted to give up on the School Idol Festival. So, we got together to throw a party at Honoka's place, bringing our three groups together to officially become friends.
15. Honoka, Chika, and I contacted Kaoruko and she gave us her blessing to revive the School Idol Festival Planning Committee. And as a result, I was appointed Chairman.
16. We all made an effort to push forward to revive the festival. However, we attracted some unwanted attention in Shioriko Mifune. As a result of this, Setsuna lost her presidency and quit the Club.
17. We brought Setsuna back but as a result, she revealed her school idol, anime, and manga interests to her parents. So, she ran away from home.
18. I housed her for a few days. And that helped her to put on a performance to convince her parents to allow her to keep being a school idol. It changed their hearts.
19. With a new Setsuna and the School Idol Club growing more popular, we decided that we wanted to hold the School Idol Festival at Nijigasaki High School. Because of this, Shioriko became more adamant to disband us. Throwing obstacles in our path, but as a result, she ended up steering us in the right direction to run the event correctly and safely. Grounding us within reality.
20. Thanks to our increase in popularity, we were able to hold a Joint Solo Live Show with μ's and Aqours. But, thanks to our P.V we caught the attention of A-RISE, Saint Snow, and the original Liella!...
21. We were challenged to a battle on the UTX rooftop with the position at the School Idol Festival being our wager. That led us to form our Sub-units to take on three groups at once without burning out.
22. We lost all three battles. But as a result, we earned the respect of A-RISE and Saint Snow, with Liella! earning ours. So they each agreed to hold their own Sub-stage at the School Idol Festival instead of taking our spot on the Main Stage.
23. Our defeats gave Shioriko a sense of validation behind her claims, so she became even more ruthless. Not only with us, but with the rest of the Clubs in Nijigasaki too. Because of this, the student body began to turn against her. In fact, in the final meeting, Ryu Kuroda attempted to attack her and was expelled. The important Club Introductions event was destined to fail unless someone could bring both sides together.
24. I swallowed my pride, put the family feud behind me and formed a truce with Shioriko. While I would volunteer for the Student Council, Shioriko would volunteer as a temporary member of the School Idol Club. Helping both of our sides understand each other.
25. Due to our newfound understanding of one another, Shioriko and I agreed to bury the hatchet between us. Ending our personal rivalry. Because of that, for the first time ever, I got to see her smile. However, there was still the pressure of Yu showing up and challenging me.
26. Because of the Club Introductions event going ahead, Shioriko was able to see you perform, Ayu. Because of that she began to feel inspired to become a school idol herself. Even so, she denied those emotions. Shioriko quickly became friends with you.
Thanks to your performance, Yu also came around to love school idols.
27. I wanted to recruit Shioriko to become a member of the School Idol Club, but she turned me down. In what I believe was a way to put those conflicting feelings to rest, Shioriko put an impossible final challenge in front of us. Gather 1000 volunteers.
28. We quickly assembled the numbers, but only a small fraction of them showed up to the meeting. Meaning that the rest dropped out. This sent me berserk. I became careless, and it even exposed my secret to my mother, telling her that I had been involving myself in school idol activities...
29. Becoming friends with Shioriko allowed you to go to the mall with her to pick out a gift for me.
Meanwhile, in a fit of rage, I made it a mission to confront and convince each of the volunteers who didn't show up. But I lost sight of things, and it hurt everyone around me. Including you...
...
Mostly you...
30. I became obsessed with calling the volunteers. You tried to confront me and give me your give. But I threw it to the ground, yelled at you, and made you cry. And I blamed Shioriko for it."
AYUMU: "Aki..."
AKI: "It doesn't stop there.
31. I doubled my desperation. I pushed everyone away. Honoka, Chika, Shiro, Yu, yourself, everyone who has tried to calm me had been rejected by me. In fact, you locked yourself away because of me.
And I still haven't forgiven myself for that...
32. At my lowest, I turned back to the School Idol Club and admitted that I needed their help. So, together we gathered volunteers but it was a failed effort. Alone in the Clubroom, I unwrapped my gift from you. It touched me more than anything else I'd ever been given.
My trusty notebook, the first pages were filled with support from all of you. That's when I broke down and fell into despair. I left my presidential badge and my matching pen on the Clubroom table.
33. Wallowing in self-pity I read all of the forum posts of people talking about me and how much of a failure I was. How bad Nijigasaki were compared to μ's and Aqours. And that I knew nothing because I was a boy trying to run a female event.
34. You saw those forum posts, you kicked yourself into action and sent out a plea to the school idol fans, telling them what kind of person I truly was. Watching the broadcast I ran over there and hugged you. That display of friendship is what convinced 1000 volunteers to stick with the School Idol Festival.
35. With our volunteers gathered, we were able to hold the Main Stage Trial Event in which we constructed the Main Stage within Nijigasaki's main auditorium. μ's, Aqours, and Nijigasaki each performing.
36. Kaoruko attended the event. It was revealed that her last name was Mifune, and she was actually Shioriko's sister. Turns out Shioriko was against school idols due to how the original School Idol Festival Planning Committee disbanded. That failure leading to Kaoruko losing her position as the heiress to the Mifune family leadership. But Kaoruko was able to convince Shioriko to embrace those feelings and to do what she wanted to do.
37. Thanks to how great your performances were, the crowd wanted an encore. So, all three groups decided to perform 'TOKIMEKI Runners', the song I wrote. However, you didn't perform it alone, you welcomed Shioriko to perform with you.
38. Shioriko became a member of the School Idol Club. We worked hard with her to prepare her for her debut. Like a natural, she hit it out of the park.
39. I travelled with Yu to New York City on a Music Exchange Program. Over there, I was told about how great a prodigy called Mia Taylor was and how she was a member of the famous Taylor family of musicians. However, she left New York for unknown reasons, and as a result the scout who had been looking for her, Trevor Chase, had to turn his focus away from her. He allowed me to show him what I was capable of for a month, and I impressed him.
40. Meanwhile back in Japan, you held a Joint Training Camp with μ's. After the Main Stage Trial Event, you both decided to improbe yourselves by coming together. However, you were apparently invaded by zombies."
AYUMU: "Please don't remind me..."
AKI: "Okay, okay...
41. Those zombies turned out to be Aqours. The three groups trained hard together and improved. Thanks to the new skills you all obtained, and the success of the Main Stage Event, it caused a second boom in school idol popularity.
42. Welcoming Shioriko onto the stage with us inspired her childhood friend in the audience, Lanzhu Zhong to fall in love with school idols. Thanks to the boom in popularity, she quickly discovered more and more about them. Because of that, she was the one who dragged Mia Taylor away from New York.
43. Lanzhu tried to enforce her methods upon the School Idol Club, but you girls were having none of it. So, as a result, Lanzhu formed the School Idol Clique in my absence. As Shioriko's childhood friend, she had a stranglehold over her and dragged her away to join her and Mia.
44. Thanks to the Clique being an association, not a Club, it was permitted to exist. Using Shioriko's power as Student Council President, Lanzhu formed the Monitoring Committee, constructed of the Sato twins and the former members of the Boxing Club. They enforced a ban on School Idol Club activities and barred any Club member from entering the Clubroom.
45. The pressure got to Ai and Karin. So they tried to build a bridge between the Club and Clique by joining them. But even they were no match for Lanzhu's manipulation.
46. I returned from New York to find the Club in ruins, and a new school idol called Lanzhu Zhong had taken advantage of the school idol boom to boost her popularity. However, she reduced Ai, Karin, and Shioriko to background dancers, and used Mia to write her songs for her.
47. Reunited with most of you, I was told about the situation. I felt angry at Lanzhu for taking advantage while I was gone. But most of all, I felt betrayed by Ai and Karin for leaving the Club without even consulting me about it. Shioriko's situation was hopeless, I could understand why she would choose her childhood friend over a group of girls who were previously her enemies. That would be like me choosing Liella! over you, Ayu.
48. Confronting Lanzhu, I was rendered powerless. She had everything to validate her cause. There was nothing we could do, and I began to hate myself for leaving you all behind to fight without me.
49. Hating myself made Kasumi very angry with me. But I soon made up with her, and we all decided to fight back by holding Guerilla Gigs.
50. We held a live show, but it wasn't very successful thanks to the influence of the School Idol Clique and their production value. But Kasumi kept our fans there. As a result, Shizuku decided that it was hopeless. She left the School Idol Club and joined the Clique.
51. I began to resent her too, another traitor. She said how at the School Idol Clique she was free from limitations. I took that to heart as a shot at me... I believed I was the one holding the School Idol Club back. We held more Guerilla Gigs, and Shizuku attended one.
52. Kasumi's performance convinced Shizuku to leave the Clique after using them for their facilities. Lanzhu was pissed off and began working Mia to her limit because of it.
53. Mia collapsed because of the added workload, and she was found by Rina. They became close friends thanks to their love of burgers and video games. This is what built the first bridge between Club and Clique. Using Rina's Rinasphere streaming technology, we were able to hold a Guerilla Gig in eight different places at once, running the Monitoring Committee ragged and making them look like total fools. However, Rina also convinced Mia to perform in the live show, reigniting her love for singing that was lost when she was a child.
54. Lanzhu approved of Mia's singing, but was annoyed with the Monitoring Committee and blamed them for the Guerrilla Gig's success. The former Boxing Club members tried to attack her, but were expelled. The Monitoring Committee was disbanded. And, turns out the Sato twins were actually fans of ours who had been delaying their approach to stop us and instead watched us in awe from the sidelines, making themselves look innocent in the process.
55. Thanks to Rina building a bridge between the Club and Clique, Ai decided that it was her time to shine. Another reason why she had left the School Idol Club was because she wanted to become strong enough to surpass Setsuna. Their gap in the Joint Solo Live Event rankings showed this. Ai got the Clique and Club to collaborate on the Rainbow Hearts Tourney, a tournament which would pitch both groups against each other as individuals.
56. The tournament went ahead and provided some interesting results. For instance, Lanzhu clean sweeped the whole thing. Ai lost to Setsuna and as a result found her true passion for being a school idol. Karin didn't get a single vote against Kasumi.
57. Thanks to our efforts, Lanzhu agreed to give us back our Clubroom and for us to resume activities as usual. However, Karin took the result badly, became depressed, and lashed out at Emma.
58. Kanata helped both Emma and Karin to reconcile, deepening the bond between the three of them and building another bridge. It also set Karin's passion for being a school idol into overdrive, and she embraced the fact that she wanted to become number one. The bridge helped Ai and Karin to both re-enter themselves into the friendship circles of the Club. Even I was happy for them. But... I wasn't going to forget the fact that they betrayed me, so I told them to their faces that I wasn't going to let them use me while they were still members of the Clique.
59. With new bridges built between the Club and Clique, someone needed to bring both sides together for a joint training camp. Enter Nijigasaki's new teacher, Kaoruko Mifune. She unveiled her plans for both Club and Clique to collaborate.
60. Meanwhile, I had other concerns. I had been contacted by Liella! of Yuigaoka. Kanon was impressed by how I had helped out μ's, Aqours, and my own Nijigasaki High School Idol Club. They were in a desperate situation, not enough people were showing up to their events. So, they turned to me for help as a last ditch effort.
61. I got to spend time with them and developed an advertisement article for them. However, Sumire took me to her friend's live show. That's where I was introduced to that bastard Katsuo Togo. He told me that he wanted a live show spot and I told him 'No'.
Even so, I helped Liella! out from the brink of extinction, and of course they would prove why that was a mistake later.
62. Kaoruko brought the Club and Clique together to reveal her plans for a new event, the School Idol Showcase. In which each school around the country with school idol representatives could choose who they wanted to vote for. The winners would create a P.V to compete with all the other winners from accross the nation.
63. We went to the island you girls held your first training camp on. That's where Ai and Karin revealed they had decided to reassemble DiverDiva for the School Idol Showcase and to push for it to be a success.
That inspired you to reform A-ZU-NA with Shizuku and Setsuna. As well as QU4RTZ to reform with Kasumi, Kanata, Rina, and Emma.
64. In the late of night, I found Lanzhu practicing alone. For the first time, I actually had a reasonable conversation with her.
65. I found Mia trying to make hot chocolate by burning powder in a pan. Combined with her inability to take care of herself, I realized just how few living skills she actually had. So, I made the hot chocolate for her and as thanks she gave me some advice about myself as a composer. I was grateful.
66. While I was enjoying school a lot more with Kaoruko as my new teacher, I noticed how it was having a bad effect on Shioriko. Kaoruko was too clingy and forceful on her. It's like, she wanted Shioriko to be a school idol so she could train her. But it wasn't reasonable, combined with Lanzhu's already ridiculous methods.
67. Because I couldn't hang out with Shioriko for things we had originally planned in advance, it gave me some time to help Liella! out again. I helped them find their confidence, thanks to how I had been inspired by all your efforts as of late.
68. Shioriko couldn't take it anymore. She had been pushing herself to become a better school idol, trying to impress her sister. But unfortunately, Kaoruko was too forceful. So, building a bridge between Club and Clique once again, we all agreed to help Shioriko.
Because I am a lot like Kaoruko, Shioriko gave me the responsibility of writing the song for her. 'Aoi Canaria'. The song moved Kaoruko to tears and she was finally happy to let Shiroko fly solo.
69. During Shioriko's push for improvement, she had yelled at Lanzhu, telling her to leave her alone. Honestly, I couldn't blame her, not after Lanzhu had attempted to make Shioriko literally fly like a bird. But the whole situation felt like when we had our argument, Ayu..."
AYUMU: "It wasn't pretty..."
AKI: "Right... Because of that...
70. Lanzhu had already been pushing herself beyond her breaking point to improve. But because of Shioriko's words, she pushed herself to collapsing. Mia found her during Shioriko's live show, practicing alone, unconscious.
71. We realized that something didn't seem right about the whole Lanzhu situation. It didn't seem right that one girl had enough power to enforce the changes and facilities that the School Idil Clique had. So, surely the Chairwoman, Lanzhu's own mother was okay with it all. With the recent firing of the principal, and how much attention school idols were bringing to Nijigasaki, it didn't seem right for Lanzhu to be capable of doing it alone. Plus to work herself to the bone like that?
Who was she doing it for?
Surely not her fans, they already loved her unconditionally.
So, I theorized that perhaps the Chairwoman had something to do with it.
We decided to lay off for the meantime whilst Lanzhu recovered.
72. Our own idea of forming our sub-units inspired μ's and Aqours to do the same for the School Idol Showcase. So I helped CYaRon!, Guilty Kiss, AZALEA, Printemps, BiBi, and lily white prepare for the event. Meanwhile, Lanzhu was healing up in hospital.
73. When I had the opportunity, I visited Lanzhu and attempted to put my theory into place. Seeing how she would respond to her mother being accused.
I was right.
Lanzhu's reaction was abnormal. She wanted me to hate her, trying to convince me that it was all her who did it.
But I couldn't bring myself to hate her, not when there was the possibility that she was a school idol being used.
74. After Lanzhu recovered, she tried to enforce 'her' way on the rest of her Clique members. But they had grown up from being pushed to the side as backup dancers. They didn't want her to force them to give up their spots in the School Idol Showcase.
Alongside what Shioriko had said previously, she took it as the entire School Idol Clique turning their backs on her. But, as a puppet, she could do nothing about it.
75. Lanzhu stopped attending the Clique, and put everything she had into one last live show to prove that she belonged. I believe her mother gave her that ultimatum... 'Don't disappoint me, I'm giving you one last chance to prove yourself'. But at that live show, Lanzhu slipped and fell. I found her backstage, and her reaction confirmed everything I had assumed about her mother.
76. Shioriko told me about the awful expectations Lanzhu had to live up to growing up as a woman in the Zhong family. She had to be perfect to continue the matriarchy.
Because of this, Shioriko and I decided to collaborate to enact a plan to reveal the Chairwoman's true colors. She would meet with Tao Zhong, and I would eavesdrop and record their conversation from a nearby locker. Like a fly to the trap, she fell for it and tried to replace Lanzhu as a puppet with Shioriko.
Backing her into a corner, she gave up instantly. She revealed that her own mother had done the same to her, and she felt hopeless doing it to Lanzhu. Because it is what was expected of their family's tradition.
The Zhong matriarchy had to outwork everyone.
Shioriko and I sympathized with the Chairwoman and convinced her that it wasn't too late to make amends.
However, she revealed that Lanzhu was planning to return to Hong Kong.
77. Mia and I had prepared a song for Lanzhu to challenge her to stay at Nijigasaki, and to show that everyone does appreciate her. Because... Mia and Shioriko wanted to sing that song with her as a sub-unit for the School Idol Showcase.
78. Impulsively, I raced to the airport, catching a ride in a taxi. Funny, the guy driving it was a former therapist. Which is exactly what I needed... Therapy. But I reached the airport and tried my best to convince Lanzhu to stay, but she was adamant on leaving. She felt like she didn't have a choice.
79. Thankfully, since Mia had sent the song to Lanzhu, the delay in the plane's takeoff schedule allowed Lanzhu to listen to it. The song convinced her to stay.
80. Lanzhu, Shioriko, and Mia formed R3BIRTH. A fitting name considering the vast changes all three of them had been through. They performed the song 'Monster Girls' and were focused on winning at the School Auditions.
81. With Lanzhu's mother turning a new leaf, Lanzhu was free to finally be herself...kinda. She apologized to me for everything she had done. But the biggest shock came at the School Idol Clique's next live show in which Lanzhu announced they were disbanding.
82. Alongside Ai, Karin, and Shioriko rejoining the School Idol Club, we welcomed Lanzhu and Mia as new members, becoming one big happy family.
83. The School Auditions for Otonokizaka, Nijigasaki, Uranohoshi, and Yuigaoka were successful. But with the results of the vote lurking in the darkness, none of us were happy with what was set to come.
We had been through enough division thanks to our civil war. We couldn't risk the results causing another divide within our Club. So we banded together to sing our first song as a 12.
84. We couldn't do it alone. I knew how important school idol fans were to the performance. So in celebration of our Club finally being together, I wanted to break the fourth wall that divided the fans from the idols. To do this, I wanted the fans to dress the same and cheer from the stage, rather than the audience.
Unfortunately, that was misinterpreted as wanting them to all become school idols themselves... But nevertheless, we convinced Kaoruko to allow the School Idol Club to enter the School Idol Showcase united.
But to only be fair, she made exceptions for μ's and Aqours too.
85. Because of the help I had given Liella! in the past, Ren Hazuki contacted me. She had been reading her mother's old journal that she kept of her school idol activities at Jinguu Music Academy. It was revealed to me that it was my mother who gave Hana Hazuki the idea to form the first ever school idol group, KiSeKi.
Suddenly, I was left with the knowledge that I'm technically the brother of this entire industry. And with my mother previously telling me about PRISMATIC and its members... And how my mom and dad had previously treated my past singing attempts... I didn't know what to believe in... Could my mother have truly created something like this?
86. Because of the attention we had been drawing to ourselves, Katsuo Togo decided to crash into our Clubroom and challenge me personally at the School Idol Festival, I declined. Because we had other things to be concerned about. As a club with thirteen members, we had to embrace the new normal, especially since the end of the year was fast approaching with the School Idol Showcase in the new year. To remove any risk of separation, we welcomed Lanzhu and Mia into the Club, we all went out to celebrate it.
87. Unfortunately, we all couldn't stick around for Christmas. With Mia flying back to New York, Lanzhu flying to Hong Kong, and myself flying to my mom's birthtown of Hakodate in Hokkaido.
88. Even if it was the holiday season, I wasn't free from school idol activities. During my time in Hokkaido I bumped into Saint Snow, who needed help filming their P.V for the School Idol Showcase.
So, I accepted. We even had You's cousin Tsuki help us with the camerawork.
In Hakodate, I became closer with Saint Snow, which is reasonable considering my mom and their own were childhood friends growing up.
89. When the new year came around, I flew back to Tokyo. That's where I bumped into Hanamaru and Yoshiko who had missed their train and were stranded. So, they spent the night at my place. They told me about what Katsuo Togo had done to Emma, knocking a plate out of her hand at the New Year's Eve party they were attending. I was angry, but Emma never told me. Could I not be trusted?
90. After the pressure from my parents the weeks prior, I wasn't going to let my dad become suspicious of me.
So, I agreed to become Vice-President of the Student Council. A position Tao Zhong and Shioriko had offered me.
With Lanzhu and Mia still out of the country, the rest of us turned our attention to the Nijigasaki Film Festival.
But rather than entering a movie ourselves, Shioriko told us about the requests other Clubs had sent out. Because of that, you were suddenly divided and distributed amongst the other Clubs. The male presidents became very close to you all pretty quickly. Even so, I still helped you all with your preparations for starring in the movies.
91. One instance in particular was when you wanted to spend time with me. We had a nice day out to VenusFort in Odaiba."
AYUMU: *Giggle* "I remember that day well!"
AKI: "Yes, we had a nice dinner, our photo was taken and we even got to check out the chapel there.
But, that's not all that happened that day...
92. For the first time, we encountered a representative from Golden Calf Productions. Nishiyama, he was told by his superior to scout you. The recent school idol boom had caused a big problem for the professional idol industry. Numbers were down, people were more comfortable with supporting the genuineness of school idols, rather than the manufactured reality the professionals give.
Obviously, we turned Nishiyama down, but he gave me his card and told me to meet him alone sometime.
93. That night, I met Nishiyama at a rundown bar in Shinjuku. He was smoking and drinking. Turns out he was a tortured soul who had been chewed up and spat out by the professional idol industry. People like his boss, Seichi Kamijou, had caused him hell. He was formerly the producer of a popular then-upcoming idol group called Starnova. But unfortunately, they each met a terrible fate. Just like Nishiyama did when he was an idol himself.
I learned a lot about how brutal the industry can be... And how the leading cause of this is how fans can become volatile.
This began a stage of paranoia within me, and I started to become extra cautious when you girls were around fans.
94. Case in point, the other Club Presidents. After the success of the Nijigasaki Film Festival, they each recruited you into their respective clubs. But because of the freedom of choice we encouraged in the School Idol Club, I would have been a hypocrite for stopping you.
95. When Mia and Lanzhu returned, we decided to give them the true initiation for joining the Club by giving them their own solo debut performances. Leading up to this, I helped Lanzhu move into the Nijigasaki dorms joining Mia, Karin, and Emma. Lanzhu slowly but surely opened up to me and was grateful for the help I gave her.
For Mia, I started to share her interests in baseball, and created common ground between us both being composers.
Both of their performances were magnificent. While Tao awarded Lanzhu with her family's star accessory, I awarded Mia with tickets to the next ball game at the Tokyo Dome.
96. It was the first time I had been in a venue so big. Because of that, I dreamed about holding an event there one day, just like μ's and Aqours had performed there in the past. Mia and I loved the game.
But outside the venue, we were still in Akihabara. And not very far from the Tokyo Dome resided Golden Calf Headquarters.
While I was buying a souvenir to commemorate the day, I could never have predicted that Golden Calf's CEO Seichi Kamijou had approached Mia.
In fact, I didn't know who he was at first. I was paranoid that he was some creep and after watching the ball game, I was very excited to try my new bat 'Niji' out. So, I held it against Kamijou and threatened him to leave Mia alone.
But he wasn't scared, he dared me to do it.
What was even more shocking than that is the fact that he wasn't even there to scout THE Mia Taylor...
He was there for me. I was one of the only producers to ever say 'No' to Golden Calf.
97. Kamijou took me back to Golden Calf Headquarters. He revealed what had happened to Nishiyama's Starnova members. He also explained to me about how he had created the greatest idol unit in history, QUASAR.
Also... He laughed at me for helping rivals like μ's and Aqours. He expressed a lot of knowledge about me and the accomplishments Nijigasaki had made so far... But he told me that we were doomed to fail if I continued to help others rather than crush them.
He said that I must be willing to become the devil himself to succeed.
98. Our meeting was interrupted by Aki Kashiwagi of all people, the number one idol in the nation, Center of QUASAR, and former member of Starnova. Kamijou revealed that he wanted to take me on as an apprentice, to train me into becoming the Producer QUASAR needed to replace Oda.
Speak of the devil... That dirty old fucker stepped out of the elevator. I felt something was off with Kashiwagi back then but I didn't pay it much attention. She froze at the sound of his voice...
Kamijou informed Oda of his plans to replace him with me. Which...introduced him to me...
Oda called for Kashiwagi to return back to training, but who knows what he was really trying to do to her...?
I noticed Kamijou's mistreatment of Nishiyama in person. And because of that, I was convinced that the guy was bad news.
I turned his offer down, but he said he wasn't going to take that laying down and that I would be a fool to make an enemy out of them.
Well... Turns out he was right...
99. Shiro Kosaka and Kaoruko Mifune unveiled a new project to me. The School Idol Fansite. They wanted me to take on the role of conducting several campaigns to help promote schools in the buildup to the School Idol Showcase. My first task was to interview SunnyPassion, a duo I had never met before, and at the time were the reigning Love Live! champions. The school had agreed to send me and you girls over to the island of Kōzushima.
100. The other Club Presidents were becoming even closer with you girls. During that time, I met Kenjiro Oda alone at a café. He was completely different from Kamijou. He was kinder, more gentle and understanding... He knew my father and promised to keep my secret from him. In fact, Oda explained to me the corrupted side of Kamijou and how after all of his years of service as their longest serving employee, his boss wanted to get rid of him.
Oda told me that the industry's problems all stem from Kamijou and that it would be great to get rid of him. So, we began to conspire against him.
It was Oda's advice that would help me to act more like a professional, he told me to get a haircut and a suit.
So, I did...
101. Before departing for Kōzushima, it was revealed that the other Club Presidents would be attending, thanks to Shiro.
I grew even more paranoid.
Especially after Kamijou's words of doubt, telling me that it was wrong to help out my rivals. So I grew cautious, and while I had originally planned to play some baseball on the beach with Mia, I kept the bat close, just in case.
102. Arriving at the island, it turned out Yu had been reckless again and snuck aboard the ship as a stowaway. Yikes...
103. On the beach, the other boys became uncomfortably close with the rest of you. Meanwhile, I was fulfilling Lanzhu's beach list. She wanted to crack a watermelon, so I gave her my bat. She was blindfolded and missed, crashing it onto my shoulder with force.
Because of that, I probably shouldn't have played baseball with Mia afterwards. Because of my bad shoulder I hit the ball and it hit Shiro.
That could have been dangerous, and suddenly, the other Presidents turned their backs on me, saying that I did it on purpose because Shiro was talking to you."
AYUMU: "Did you do it on purpose...?"
AKI: "You're seriously going to ask me that?"
AYUMU: "I... I don't know... You were becoming increasingly scary at the time."
AKI: "The truth is, I don't know. My plan was to hit the ball as hard as possible out of frustration, because I thought Shiro had ulterior motives.
Damn... What an idiot I was..."
AYUMU: "Don't worry, you know Shiro forgave you for that."
AKI: "...Well.
104. After that, even you girls doubted me. I was pissed off and my shoulder hurt, so I walked away. However, that's when I bumped into *Sigh*
...Kanon Shibuya on another beach nearby. Turns out Liella! were staying at Kōzushima too, training for the upcoming School Idol Showcase. They were very welcoming towards me... They listened to my problems and even invited me to hang out with them.
Since they were friends with SunnyPa, they even introduced me to them. The next day we did all sorts of activities around the island, such as cliff diving.
*Sigh* Wow, I tell ya, Kanon and I were terrified when Yuna pushed us. I got a true taste of Kōzushima that day and it helped me conduct the interview a lot better.
105. At the end of the interview, Ai and Karin found me. They told me about how you were all worried about me. But they got more than what they bargained for when SunnyPa challenged them, saying how DiverDiva were impersonating their Sexy and Energetic combination.
106. Liella! helped me to build up the courage to return to the hotel and apologize to you all for abandoning you. But doing that also led to introducing you all to Liella! and well, look how that dynamic turned out...
107. I apologized to the other Club Presidents and they forgave me thanks to Shiro vouching for me.
108. The next night, it was the showdown between SunnyPassion and DiverDiva. Best two out of three rounds. A modelling contest, a rap battle, and a live show battle.
Little did SunnyPassion know that Karin is actually from Kōzushima, and thrives in that environment. So, DiverDiva were victorious and because of that, SunnyPa relinquished their Love Live! Winners trophy to our School Idol Club.
I wanted to refuse it, but they insisted.
109. After the successful interview with SunnyPa, Kaoruko gave me the next task of helping μ's with a new campaign called 'Ask μ's', which would be an advice column in which fans would write to μ's for advice and they would give it.
Being the number one school idol group in the nation means a lot of students look up to them.
110. During my time at Otonokizaka, I also helped μ's with their School Idol Showcase P.V.
But, because I helped μ's with their advice column, one of the students who wrote to them was actually Mei Yoneme of Yuigaoka. Because of that, she and her friends gained the confidence to join Liella!, increasing the group's numbers to nine. I had no idea that would come back to bite me on the ass. Just like my meetings with Oda would come back to haunt me...
111. When the campaign with μ's was finished, it wasn't long before Kaoruko sent me over to Uranohoshi to supervise their campaign on the School Idol Fansite. It was called 'Challenge Aqours' which involved the members of Aqours taking on challenges. Such as Yoshiko participating in the Numazu Walk Rally, and...dragging me along. But hey, she has a rivalry with Sumire Heanna and I have one with Katsuo Togo. My legs were heavier than lead the next day.
Then there was Ruby taking on the challenge of being an ambassador at the Mito Sea Paradise aquarium.
Oh! And who could ever forget the original trio who made the first Aqours; Mari, Dia, and Kanan, correcting their past mistake, going to Tokyo and winning at an event.
To put their past demons behind them was a tremendous task and I'm proud of them for that.
112. Soon would come a very damaging campaign... I was sent to Yuigaoka for Liella!'s campaign, 'Liella! Superstars' in which I interviewed each of the Liella! members...all nine of them...to find out what makes each of them superstars.
I made some huge mistakes with my words... I told Kanon that I disliked the Love Live! tournament, despite the fact that it's what she put everything into.
Then I told Keke that even though SunnyPa lost, it's finally time for her to rise up and surpass them.
I told Chisato that I prefer arches (rainbows) over circles.
The whole situation with Ren felt weirdly familiar...
Sumire had always hated me because I didn't acknowledge her friend Katsuo.
Then the new members of Liella! were okay, but strange in their own way. Kinako and Shiki seemed cute, Mei was insufferable, and Natsumi was a gremlin.
113. Because of Liella!'s expansion, I wanted to help intergrate them into our friendship circle with μ's and Aqours. That's why I organized the whole teams day in which a group would be made of members from each group and they would hang out for the day."
AYUMU: "I wish I could have said something to Kanon that day..."
AKI: "There's really no use in regrets. Because there is nothing we can do about it now, other than freeing them from their contracts at the School Idol Festival."
AYUMU: "Right."
AKI: "114. 'Nijigasaki Passions' finally, our own campaign was on the table. It was nice for Kaoruko to let me decide on what the campaign would be after busting my ass for the School Idol Fansite.
In this campaign, you girls had to visit your roots to discover WHY you're school idols, rather than WHAT you're doing as school idols.
It produced some interesting results such as the first years' beauty vids.
115. But during it all, I was still helping you all with individual stuff. In particular, I helped Shizuku prepare for her role in Roman Holiday. But along the lines, it all went wrong...
The other students started to cling onto our popularity... Rather than cheering for us, they wanted to replace us.
So that's why you all started training them to dance as if they would perform in the video as school idols, which was NOT the point I was trying to make...
Then there was that whole second year camping incident in which the Basketball Captain, Rio, said I couldn't share a tent with you guys. Even though I had no ulterior motives whatsoever, so I slept under the stars that night.
116. Then the third years wanted to become more cultured so they befriended Midori, the Theater Club President.
Then there was that whole thing of Mia trying to justify everyone who said they were school idols. And eventually, the deadline day for the promotional video came along and it was a complete disaster.
117. You'd think that after the P.V was finished the other clubs would stop taking advantage of us. But no, we were supposed to be training for a live event to help boost our momentum going into the School Idol Showcase. Instead, Ai had to fill in for the Basketball team, and everyone skipped training to cheer her on.
The live event was a total disaster, and it pains me to say that it was the first time I was ever embarrassed to be Club President."
AYUMU: "..."
AKI: "Sorry, that was harsh..."
AYUMU: "No, no, it's true. None of us took it seriously, we were too focused on helping others accomplish their dreams, but...unfortunately doing so we damaged our own."
AKI: "118. Midori and Shizuku wanted me to write some music for the production of Roman Holiday.
Considering it was Shizuku asking me for the favor, I couldn't say no. I worked hard all night to compose that soundtrack and my reward was the best seat in the house.
But that meant I had to watch Valentin Okada lock lips with Shizuku with MY MUSIC playing in the background.
119. I was angry and confused that as a producer, I wasn't consulted beforehand about one of my idols performing a kiss scene. After all, I'm the one who is supposed to moderate the image you girls present. Anything scandalous and it's me who is going to hell with you.
In my moment of weakness I consulted Oda, and I bought into his bullshit about how Shizuku was a tainted idol...and how she had completely breeched the rules and betrayed me.
That poor girl... I ignored her for so long, like she didn't exist. And it's because of that rat Oda poisoning me...
120. Kaoruko announced that the School Idol Showcase Results Reveal event would be taking place in Numazu. So, she took us there in a bus she borrowed from the school, for a road trip.
It was during that time that I became increasingly depressed that our school idol activities were becoming less and less frequent thanks to other clubs taking up all of your time.
I felt like the Club was falling apart again and I was powerless to stop it.
Eating became a chore, I couldn't taste anything... That oden you gave me, I couldn't taste any of it. I was breaking down.
121. The School Idol Showcase event. What more can be said about it that hasn't already been? We at least got to see those two fans of yours who had flown all the way from London. Aira and Penelope... Lucky for them, I could translate English and Japanese for them.
But then the true event came along and we didn't even place in the top 10...or 20...
The whole thing was a self-fulfilling prophecy. Trying to pass everyone off as school idols, letting them take our spotlight because we were too generous...
It's exactly what Kamijou of all people warned me about.
122. After that loss, I descended further and further. At the after party at Chika's place, I wandered outside into the night, collapsing to my knees, thinking that I had allowed the Club to fail. Then poor Chika came to help me, but I lashed out at her and tried to cut ties completely... I didn't want to help our rivals anymore. I was becoming ruthless, blaming everyone else for our failure when I'm the one who couldn't put my foot down...
123. On the way back home, Shioriko collapsed from exhaustion. Similar to what Lanzhu and I had done in the past.
It was because I was too busy with the School Idol Fansite campaigns that I couldn't help complete an increasingly large workload for the Student Council.
I was a Vice-president who had neglected his duties, leaving it all to his president. I blamed myself.
124. Something didn't seem right. Liella! finished above Aqours who were the favorites to win the event. While μ's won again, Liella! exceeded all expectations.
So, we investigated their video to be horrified at the fact that they were performing in front of Golden Calf Headquarters and their production value was through the roof.
125. I confronted Liella! and they revealed they were working with Kamijou under the banner of the Golden Calf Productions School Idol Division. The venom they spat at me burned. They weren't real school idols, they were fake sellouts. It all reminded me of how Ai and Karin left to join the School Idol Clique because of their facilities, throwing away their identity as school idols and trying to act like professionals.
Then three girls from Shion Girls' Academy transferred, The Disciplinary Committee had been reformed into 'DISCIPLINE' and they kicked my ass.
Kamijou stood tall over me and told me about how he reached his true potential when he became a villain.
126. Valentine's Day. I at least thought that the School Idol Club who I had broke my back for almost a year had something for me. But no, I had to sit there and listen to how the other Club Presidents gave you all gifts. And then the biggest slap in the face of all, I didn't get any chocolate.
But the last straw was when Shizuku confessed her feelings for Valentin, a fake actor who only acted in a role as her boyfriend. It wasn't real. Just like how I thought the feelings of the other Club Presidents weren't real, especially after they said at the Film Festival after party that recruiting you all would boost their numbers.
127. Taking my bat, I destroyed Shizuku's chocolate box... Not only that, but I yelled at her. When she tried to slap me, I laid hands on her in self-defense. But what surprised me most was Emma slapping me.
Someone so gentle, so loving, so kind... I had been that much of a monster that I had pushed her to hitting me...
Then to each of you I spat my own venom, telling you exactly what I had been allowing to build up inside of me for a long time...
It was cruel of me...
I can't forgive myself for that.
128. During Shioriko's absence, I took advantage and started to practice what Kamijou preached. I wanted to become the villain that you would all unite as a Club to stop. Because the greatest moments of our Club's successes have been thanks to adversity.
Shioriko, the School Idol Clique, it's all there... That's why I took her position as Student Council President, abused my power to cripple the other Clubs' influence, and even punished all of you.
Because I wanted you to fight me. In my absence, Liella! striked and defeated A-RISE in a landslide victory, showing the might of Golden Calf. They started to advance on other territories too, defeating school idol groups and taking their fanbases.
129. I wanted you to fight me. Or so I thought... I didn't want to fight you. I wanted to fight my enemies who made me feel this way. Namely Seichi Kamijou, Liella!, and the other Club Presidents. That's when I found solace in meeting Margarete Wien and Sekiro Okami. With them at my side and Oda giving us advice, we formed the short-lived 'Das Dreieck', or 'The Triangle'. We declared war on Golden Calf and sent an open challenge to them.
Wien was going to take down Liella!
Wolf was going to take down Katsuo Togo.
I was going to take down Kamijou.
In a world of black and white, I was the color red.
130. The other Club Presidents, namely Charlie lost control and confronted me. I didn't care what they did to me, I had diplomatic immunity and I could abolish their clubs with a simple command. Unlike Shioriko, I wasn't willing to hesitate, not anymore.
131. Honoka tried to break through to me by singing a solo piece to me at Akihabara station. But I turned my back on her, just like I did to Chika and the rest of you.
132. Kaoruko even confronted me, but I wasn't going to listen to her. She was disappointed in me for taking Shioriko's position. But I told her that I was doing it all for Shioriko's safety, because clearly she couldn't run the Student Council anymore. I wasn't going to let her collapse again.
133. Because of our previous efforts in the School Idol Club, Yu became a huge fan of school idols. Because of that, she was there to help guide you all, and help organize a strategy to allow me to come back to my senses. Mostly because there was still part of me that wanted to be a part of the Club, and that's why I left the song 'Eien no Isshun' behind in my notebook. In the hopes that if you all sang that song, it would bring me back.
134. Yu and Mia's combined efforts composed the song, but the damage to the student body had already been done. Shioriko returned and chewed me out. My tyranny caused an uprising, a deranged interview in the school newspaper... Piles of them were burned and the Main Auditorium was occupied in protest.
Cleanup is still happening, and that's why we can't hold the Main Stage at Nijigasaki anymore.
135. With some help from Honoka, Chika, and Shiro, on my birthday you all sang 'Eien no Isshun' causing me to look deep within myself to discover that it is because of others that we are able to accomplish our goals. If only the School Idol Club existed, we would be nothing.
136. I resigned as Student Council President and was prepared to be expelled from Nijigasaki High School, I wanted the student body to punish me.
But of all people... The other Club Presidents are who came to my defense. I hugged Shiro and apologized for everything I had done.
137. Returning to the Club, most of you welcomed me back with open arms. I had a lot of words to say about what makes each of you special. And thanks to Yu, I wanted us to recruit her, expanding the School Idol Club to 14 members. I returned Shioriko's armband to her, and she welcomed me back to my position as Vice-President of the Student Council. The Council was reformed and welcomed Shiro as the Club Minister who would be in charge of monitoring each club in Nijigasaki High School.
138. You girls decided to help me, Wien, and Wolf execute our plan. Wien was scheduled to compete against Liella! and Wolf was going against Katsuo Togo. If Wien lost she had to rejoin Golden Calf, the agency she had previously left the QUASAR training program of.
If Wolf lost, he had to retire from the idol industry.
It was a very...convoluted plan, and it even got Setsuna hurt. Plus, I had to kiss Katsuo to stay in character disguised... Thanks to Oda...we were able to rig the draw for the fan who would be presenting the trophies to the winners.
139. Despite our plan, both Wolf and Wien lost. But I still made it to the stage and representing Nijigasaki, I challenged Liella! to join us on the Main Stage. Kamijou and Kanon accepted.
140. Coming back from that, I had to work extra hard to make amends with you all and regain your trust. Shizuku and Emma especially... That was tough.
141. During this period of time, because of A-RISE's embarrassment, Leah from Saint Snow flew over to Tokyo and stormed into Golden Calf Headquarters. She challenged Liella! personally.
That idiot...
142. After regaining your trust, we shifted our focus back to the upcoming School Idol Festival. Two producers of 765 and 346 met with me and explained their current predicament. They had originally planned to stage an event called the 'Million Live', a crossover event featuring their own talent as well as idols from other companies.
The event had to be canceled, but they didn't want the Tokyo Dome to go to waste. So they offered me the opportunity to hold the School Idol Festival's Main Stage contest at the venue.
I accepted. And I dropped the bombshell of an announcement.
143. Our Planning Committee put the final touches into organizing the School Idol Festival. But during the meeting with most of the other school idol groups who would be attending the Festival, Saint Snow were engaged in battle with Liella!
It ended in embarrassment, what might just be their final performance. Saint Snow have lost all belief in themselves.
144. Upon defeating Saint Snow, Kanon revealed just how much she had changed under Golden Calf's guidance. Shedding her orange-haired similarities with Honoka and Chika, revealing shorter, dark hair.
She tried to manipulate the other school idol groups by telling them that if anyone could defeat the Nijigasaki High School Idol Club, they would grant them their territory back.
It was about to get very messy, but unexpectedly, popular upcoming professional idol group, the new B-Komachi had secretly attended the meeting and revealed themselves. That's when they pitched the idea for an invitational contest where every school idol group who do not have Sub-Stages or Main Stage qualification can compete in.
145. I thanked B-Komachi for helping me out of that jam. But the idol fanboy within me couldn't hold back from asking them for their autographs.
Mem-Cho and Kana Arima obliged, but Ruby Hoshino instead wrote a message to me. Asking me to meet her at a local karaoke bar that night.
146. I wasn't going to keep her waiting. But it didn't make sense for someone like her to meet someone like me in private like that. So, I asked for Oda's advice, foolishly inviting him into my apartment.
He gave me advice on how professionals deceive others. 'It's all in the eyes' he told me. And that when dealing with professionals, it was important to look professional. So, I made some adjustments to my hair, and changed my demeanor to appear more confident.
147. As much of a scumbag Oda is, his advice saved me that night. Ruby Hoshino was trying to manipulate me into swaying the contest in her favor. Her voice was loving, but her eyes were full of lies.
She calmed down and we found common ground between us. No hard feelings.
She even gave me her autograph to complete the trio set. And she left her phone number in case I needed help from a professional like her.
148. After the preparations for the School Idol Festival were made, Mia asked me, you, and a few others she had recently grown close to if we would help her. Her sister was getting married on a wedding cruise in Odaiba, and Mia was invited to perform. It would be the first time she would sing in front of her family since her past failure to impress them as a child.
149. At the wedding, I bumped into Kamijou. He told me that he had no interest in arguing with me at an event like that. Even he had some moral standards... But we had a chat, and he told me exactly what his intentions were. Not just that, but he ominously told me about how the world was not black and white, but shades of grey. However, he had seen true evil at work.
I didn't know what he meant by that back then, but I do now...
150. After meeting with Kamijou, I was spotted by Mia's parents, who had a complicated history with mine. Mia was adamant to prove herself to them, and defended me. She found the confidence to stand on the stage and sing, correcting her past mistakes, making her family proud of her and making them acknowledge the entertainer she had become. However, I also bumped into Trevor Chase from New York again, and he told me all about how impressed he was with me and the potential I have.
151. When I earned the respect of everyone back, I didn't want to ever lose it again. So at any opportunity I got, I helped you all. For example, when Setsuna was recovering from her injuries, I helped her write an award winning manga. I also helped Karin win the Miss Venus contest at VenusFort, which as a result gave her more job opportunities.
152. This caused Nico to want to emulate her and challenge her to a battle of spice. That's when we discovered that Karin was overworking herself with her new job opportunities. Nico cooked her a nice meal which energized her and removed fatigue.
153. On the way to Nico's house, Kanon Shibuya's younger sister Aria had slipped a note into my pocket. That night I had an anonymous meeting to attend, and surprisingly, the coordinates were Café Manmaru, the Shibuya family's café.
That's when Tomari Onitsuka (Natsumi's sister) appeared from the shadows and asked me to meet with her inside the café.
154. At that meeting, Kanon's mother and sister, as well as Tomari told me all about how they disapproved of Liella!'s change in attitude. They had been informed by former QUASAR center, Kana Kihara about the kind of environment they were walking into.
I met the woman and she told me about just how cruel Kamijou could be and the kind of monsters he created, namely Shiro Okuda.
And that same monster was now guiding Liella! and turning them into bigger monsters than she was.
155. I was shocked by this, yet I continued to help others as planned. When I helped Eli write the School Idol Newspaper, her sister Arisa came into the room wearing a Yuigaoka uniform.
Turns out Golden Calf had been manipulating her and Yukiho Kosaka into joining Liella! when the new school year begins.
156. This was the last straw, I called Oda to get the tip off as to where their contract signing was talking place. That's when I called the rest of you to meet up with me, and we confronted Liella! at their school. Honoka, Chika, Eli, and Dia also turned up.
That's where we put everything on the line. The 16 names of the School Idol Division
-Kanon Shibuya
-Keke Tang
-Sumire Heanna
-Chisato Arashi
-Ren Hazuki
-Kinako Sakurakoji
-Mei Yoneme
-Shiki Wakana
-Natsumi Onitsuka
-Margarete Wien
-Katsuo Togo
-Hitomi Shiga
-Mikoto Fukuhara
-Chizuko Sakamaki
-Yukiho Kosaka
-Arisa Ayase
VS
-Akihiko Suzuki
-Yu Takasaki
-Ayumu Uehara
-Lanzhu Zhong
-Setsuna Yuki
-Ai Miyashita
-Rina Tennoji
-Kasumi Nakasu
-Shizuku Osaka
-Shioriko Mifune
-Kanata Konoe
-Mia Taylor
-Emma Verde
-Karin Asaka
-Honoka Kosaka
-Chika Takami
The stage was set. If Liella! wins at the School Idol Festival then our 16 names join Golden Calf.
If Liella! lose, then the School Idol Division disbands.
157. After that we made the final preparations for our next live show. I wanted to thank Oda for all of the assistance he gave me. Big mistake.
158. When I greeted Oda in our Clubroom, he revealed his true colors. He was a paedophilic parasite who had abused his power as QUASAR's Producer to put his hands on his idols... He wanted to do the same to you, thinking that I would sell you all out for him to keep my secrets hidden.
I wanted to hurt him, so I tore 'Niji' my bat right off of the wall and was prepared to swing at him. But he emotionally debased me... I had a panic attack...
159. Shiro Kosaka found me, he helped guide me to the second auditorium where your live show was taking place. He's...a true friend. And I feel so guilty for ever doubting him...
160. Katsuo Togo crashed the live show, and I confronted him. For the last time, I told him that I refuse his challenge. But he didn't take that laying down, he grabbed you and...he kissed you.
Something inside me snapped and I wanted to hurt him by embarrassing him at the School Idol Festival.
Accepting his challenge, putting myself, a complete amateur against the number one male school idol in the nation, at the biggest venue our country has to offer...
161. The sudden weight of the realization of what had happened caused me to collapse.
162. I've locked myself away for three days and here you are. And I've told you an entire recollection of how our day in Akihabara all led to this moment. This is the chain of events so far...
And..."
AYUMU: "And...?"
AKI: "I don't know what happens next. This is the chain of events we have forged. The flap of the butterfly's wings that day in Akihabara have created a typhoon that threatens to kill us all.
I feel like... It's all my fault."
AYUMU: "So you regret all of the precious memories that we've shared, is that it?"
AKI: "No. Just the bad stuff..."
AYUMU: "But without the bad stuff, then can there really be any good to contrast it?"
AKI: *Sigh* "You always know what to say."
AYUMU: "Not really. I guess I'm just trying to emulate someone else that I know."
AKI: "Then please tell me... Ayu, what do I do?
I'm...
I'm afraid..."
Ayu grabbed my hands to stop them from shaking.
AYUMU: "Just like always, we're going to get through this together."
AKI: "When you say things like that, I feel like I can accomplish anything..."
AYUMU: "You made a promise to Rina, remember? You said you would help her with the High School Game Creator Contest. You can't let her down, right?"
AKI: "Right. I'll come back to school tomorrow."
AYUMU: "Wait, wait, wait! But it would be no use if you're feeling sick. I don't want you to push yourself beyond your breaking point anymore."
AKI: "Ayu, I'm already broken."
AYUMU: "If you keep saying things like that, then you'll only hurt yourself... And I don't want that. I want you to be happy, Aki.
So rest up. I bet it's just the sickness talking, we all feel pretty helpless when we're sick, right?"
AKI: "I guess so..."
AYUMU: "Should I stay with you a bit longer?"
AKI: "I'll be fine. You can go home."
AYUMU: "Are you sure? Your drink cup is empty, do you want me to refill it for you."
AKI: "No thanks."
AYUMU: "Akiii... You need to keep drinking fluids to stay hydrated. Especially when you're sweating so much in bed."
AKI: "Maybe you're right... If you're offering to fill my glass for me, there's some powdered drink mix on the shelf by the fridge. I'd appreciate it if you could mix a little of that in it for me."
AYUMU: "The shelf right next to the fridge, got it! Wait, isn't that where..."
AKI: "Oh? You remember?"
AYUMU: *Giggle* That's where your parents used to hide the snacks back when we were little!"
AKI: "Yeah. Snacks always got hidden back there where I couldn't reach. Otherwise I'd eat them all right away."
AYUMU: "We could reach them just fine if we worked together, though."
AKI: "You helped me out so many times back then."
AYUMU: *Giggle* "Those were the days."
AKI: "And you still help me out now..."
AYUMU: "See? Back then and even today, if we work together as a team, there's nothing we can't accomplish."
AKI: "Yeah... Yeah, you're right! If the two of us are together, with everyone else's help too, there's nothing that can stop us!
...Oh! That's perfect!"
AYUMU: "What?"
AKI: "A new song! I thought up an amazing melody just now! I need to write it down."
AYUMU: "What?! Hold on!"
As I began to get out of bed, Ayu pinned me back down and threw the covers over me.
AKI: "Wh-Whoa!"
AYUMU: "I swear, you're always rushing to push yourself! You really need to rest now! Come on, lie down."
AKI: "S-Sorry... It was because I thought up a perfect melody for you to sing. Please, at least let me at least make a note of it."
AYUMU: "You would never forget a melody you thought up."
AKI: "But I really will forget it!"
AYUMU: "You, of all people, are not even capable of forgetting something like that. I guarantee it."
AKI: "..."
AYUMU: "If you're so worried about it, why don't you hum the tune for me? Then I can remember it, too."
AKI: "Hum it?! I mean, now that you've suggested it like that, that's kind of embarrassing..."
AYUMU: "It's too late to worry about that now! I've seen you embarrassed more times than I can count."
AKI: "But I can't sing."
AYUMU: "Of course you can!"
AKI: "..."
AYUMU: "You used to sing back when we were kids. But one disapproval from your father stopped that... If you're going to beat Katsuo, then you need to find your voice!"
AKI: "...True."
AYUMU: "Let me hear the song, and then have a nice sleep. I'll be right by your side the whole time, thinking over the song you hummed for me."
...
*ONE HUMMING LATER*
Reluctantly, I hummed the song.
AYUMU: "That was wonderful. *Giggle* See? You can do it!"
AKI: "I'm so embarrassed."
AYUMU: "Aww, come on, it's just me."
AKI: "That's the thing! I don't want you to see me embarrassed."
AYUMU: "And I don't want to see you ill either. So get some rest mister, I'll swing by later with something nutritious for you to eat."
AKI: "You really don't have to."
AYUMU: "Nope, I insist! So sleep tight!"
AKI: "Fine..."
...
*LATER THAT DAY*
Shortly after waking up again, I heard another knock on my door.
*KNOCK* *KNOCK*
But I didn't answer it... I felt...scared.
I had to make sure for certain that it was Ayu, and not someone who wanted to hurt me.
AKI: "Wh-Who is it?"
AYUMU: "It's me, open up silly."
Oh, phew...
I opened the door, and Ayu came into my bedroom carrying a ceramic pot of food. It smelled incredible.
AYUMU: "Hello! I brought something to share with you! It turned out really well."
AKI: "Whoa! It's a stew with chicken wings, radishes, and even eggs!"
AYUMU: "Yup, it's an improved version of the one I used to make! I hard boiled the eggs and steeped them in soy sauce overnight to make them flavorful.
Even though they got a little more brown than I hoped, I promise they're good."
AKI: "I'm sure they are. All the food you make is really good, so I'm excited to try this."
AYUMU: *Giggle* "Then help yourself."
I hadn't eaten properly in three days, I was ravenous. I helped myself to a plentiful heaping of stew and devoured it. Hoping that my taste buds would respond.
Thankfully, they did this time around. So maybe there was hope for me to recover after all.
AKI: *Munch* "It's so good! The ginger really comes through, so I bet this will help ward off colds."
AYUMU: "Good! We have a lot of practice to do, so we can't let a cold stop us!"
AKI: "You're right about that. With the School Idol Festival just around the corner next month, and with everything on the line, we cannot afford to play games anymore. We need to get serious, we need to focus!"
AYUMU: "Right!"
AKI: *Sigh* "Of all people, I'm the one who needs to focus the most... The past three days all I've done is dwell on the past and wallow in my own self-pity.
Yet, all it took to snap me back to my senses was a visit from my best friend...
You're amazing...
Do you know how amazing you are, Ayu? On top of club practice you still find the time to practice cooking. I wonder how great you'll become in the future."
AYUMU: "That's just me trying to emulate a person close to me... And that person is you, Aki."
AKI: "Huh?"
AYUMU: "Well, you see, you don't just watch us practice. You also compose our songs and produce our live performances. Not to forget that you juggle helping three groups at once, and are always paying attention to our individual problems. There are so many things you balance at the same time.
I just wanted to be more like you.
I really enjoy cooking, and my food makes you happy, so I thought I should keep at it." *Giggle*
AKI: "You can't pin everything you're successful for on me. I mean it, Ayu, you're truly incredible. Without you, I wouldn't be here. You're...the anchor that has kept me grounded within reality for so long.
When I say that I wonder how great you'll become in the future, I mean that I want to see it. But that future is currently under threat. And I'll fight for our future.
Plus... I will never forgive that bastard Katsuo for disgracing you like that."
AYUMU: "It...was scary..."
AKI: "He stole your first kiss, something that should have been a precious moment for you. He sullied you in front of the whole industry. I'll make him pay.
Nobody else is going to stand up to him, it has to be me.
He's mine."
AYUMU: "Are you ready to train to become a school idol?"
AKI: "First, I'll fulfil my promise to Rina. We'll take care of the High School Game Creator Contest first. Then, I'll jump straight into it all. My first step as a school idol will come.
...Anyway, thank you so much for this meal, I appreciate the hell out of it."
AYUMU: "Oh yeah, next I'll make a new and improved version of the rolled eggs you love! I hope you'll look forward to it."
AKI: "I love you.
AYUMU: "......Huh?"
AKI: "...?!"
Wait, WHAT?! Wh-Where the hell did that come from?!
AYUMU: "Did...you just say something?"
AKI: "I'm in love..."
AYUMU: "...?!"
AKI: "I'm in love with your cooking."
AYUMU: "Oh... Thank you."
Did I really say what I think I said?
Why?
Why did I?
Something within me...said it. I wasn't thinking straight.
Was it just my impulsive nature playing up again? Or is it the sickness?
I...can't say things like that. I'm someone who could never live up to such a promise... After all, I'm the one who got everyone into this mess to begin with.
Dragging someone into a life of misfortune is not what I want at all.
Especially...not someone as wonderful as Ayu.
Katsuo stole her first kiss because of me. Because of what I did to him. He targeted her because he knows what she means to me.
If...I was together with someone. Who knows what my enemies would do to them?
That's why someone like me cannot show those kinds of feelings.
I won't put anyone in greater danger.
That's why...
That's why I've always kept these kinds of things to myself. And pretended not to hear.
Because I'm not worthy of love.
Sad but true.