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V2 Chapter 26: This Woman Is Not Easy to Mess With
🕑 Added 2025-05-09 13:17:37 +0000 UTC(TL Note: We're going back to 2.5k per chap since Anon, the author's favorite waifu has her character development arc.)
Current Schedule: 2chaps/Day
...
Shiina Taki's sharp light-purple eyes glared at Kazami Haru like an eagle targeting its prey. Being sensitive to gazes, Haru immediately noticed and could even guess what she was thinking.
"Why is Taki looking at me like a disapproving father? As if I'd steal Tomori away? If anything, it's the little penguin who followed me on her own!"
"My name is Nagasaki Soyo. I'll be the bassist from now on. Please take care of me, Kazami-kun~"
Compared to Taki's cold and direct self-introduction, Nagasaki Soyo appeared elegant and gentle.
Having mistaken Haru for Sakiko earlier, Soyo felt a bit embarrassed but maintained a polite smile.
"Pleased to meet you, Mr. MacArthur."
(TL: Not a TL Mistake, sometimes bilibili shows a random english documentary.)
"Eh??"
Haru wanted to laugh at Soyo's surprised expression but held back.
"This woman is not easy to mess with."
Nagasaki Soyo, true to her name, was the type who could explode at any moment. She was extremely sensitive about topics she cared about, and a slight misstep could ignite her anger.
Now, General MacArthur could truly comment.
Haru turned to the pink-haired girl beside him, who seemed oblivious to his questioning gaze. Instead, she appeared more confident with his arrival.
She confidently spoke up: "Since everyone is here, let's discuss the band name!"
"We also need matching band outfits. I have a lot of experience in this area!"
As Chihaya Anon began steering the conversation towards herself, Haru glanced at the smiling Soyo and the about-to-speak Shiina Taki.
Without hesitation, he interrupted: "Anon, we can discuss the band name anytime."
"Right now, we should understand each other's musical skills."
Kazami's words aligned with Taki's thoughts, surprising her.
She had assumed that, given his closeness to the pink-haired girl, he would be unreliable and treat band activities lightly.
Unexpectedly, he was serious?
Taki's opinion of him improved slightly.
But only slightly.
Haru, unaware of Taki's thoughts, had other plans.
Unlike in simulations where he focused entirely on MYGO and Tomori, here he joined the band as a support member and couldn't be as carefree.
Having agreed to form a band with Tomori, he had to fulfill his responsibilities.
To be prepared, he needed a strong guitarist to regularly replace him on the keyboard.
He already had someone in mind: the wandering guitarist Neko Raana.
Bringing her in would complete MYGO.
She was the perfect guitarist for the uncertain MYGO band.
"No choice, I have to lure Raana in."
Haru muttered to himself.
"Would two bowls of matcha parfait be enough to entice her?"
"Since we've decided to start ensemble practice, I've already booked a rehearsal studio. Let's begin immediately."
Shiina Taki, arms crossed, stared intently at Kazami's calm face, as if trying to see through his 'mask'.
She wanted to see if he truly intended to take the band seriously.
"Now? But I didn't bring my bass today..."
"You can use mine."
Just as Nagasaki Soyo felt troubled, Yahata Umiri, who had been watching silently, raised her hand like a student answering a teacher, offering her bass.
She had come to help at Taki's request, and if she could just watch without participating, all the better.
"Eh? But the band name..."
Chihaya Anon looked at the others in confusion, then glared at Haru with a resentful gaze.
"What the heck!"
She had thought Haru would side with her, but he immediately synced with Shiina Taki, leaving her out.
"We were the first to meet!"
"Stupid Kazami!"
...
Rehearsal Room
Shiina Taki had already placed her usual drum set there in preparation. She sat down and warmed up with a 4-beat rhythm. Yahata Umiri leaned against the wall, watching her with a smile.
Despite appearing the coldest, Taki had made the most preparations for the band.
Her desire to reform the band was no less than Tomori's.
"So, what's everyone's skill level?"
Taki first looked at Kazami. Due to certain reasons, she had high expectations for keyboardists, especially since he boldly claimed to handle 'arrangements'.
"Does he even understand how hard composing is?"
Composing music truly requires 'talent'!
To begin with, what you need is solid music theory knowledge, a decent sense of musicality, and most importantly, even if an composer can't play every instrument, they must still have a deep understanding of how each one functions in a performance.
Creating a quality track isn't something just anyone can do!
When it came to composing, the only person Kazami Haru genuinely admired was Togawa Sakiko.
"..."
Kazami Haru's expression twitched a little as he noticed Taki's eyes still fixed intently on him.
Back when he was in Takamatsu Tomori's simulation, he'd often feel pressure from Taki because his keyboard skills couldn't quite keep up. Now in reality, even with his Lv2 piano level, difficult pieces were still tough to handle.
And it wasn't like just grinding practice would instantly improve his technique.
Still, compared to his own subpar keyboarding, what really worried him was that pink-haired disaster and her half-baked guitar skills.
No doubt about it, if things went as expected, she was in for a serious wake-up call. After all, this was someone who could barely strum chords.
"Why're you looking at me like that, huh?"
Chihaya Anon was already a bit ticked off, and the way Haru looked at her made her flash a tiny fang in irritation, sharp and gleaming.
Like she was ready to pounce and take a bite out of him at any moment.
"No reason. I was just thinking… you're cute from every angle."
"Eh?"
Anon blinked, slightly stunned, then quickly turned her head to the side as her cheeks flushed pink.
Don't think a little sweet-talking will get you off the hook!
You're still buying me a strawberry parfait and a matcha milkshake with a side of chocolate-cherry macarons before we're even!
Zzz…
Kazami Haru slowly unzipped his instrument bag and pulled out a black-and-white Roland keyboard. Everyone paused at the familiar color scheme.
Nagasaki Soyo's eyes widened completely.
The Roland V-Combo VR-730—
The same model Togawa Sakiko used.
"W-Why…?"
Soyo's voice trembled.
This couldn't be a coincidence. It wasn't just that he resembled someone else in other ways—he was even using that keyboard.
It was hard not to wonder if he was doing it on purpose.
All three girls here had once been members of CRYCHIC. They knew that keyboard too well. None of them expected to ever see it again—especially not now.
Takamatsu Tomori stared blankly in Haru's direction, unable to find the words.
Her mind wandered back to old CRYCHIC memories. A shadow passed over her face.
Haru felt… too much like Sakiko.
His hands were so warm, like the moment someone pulled her from behind a wall, back into the light of spring. Just like that blue butterfly from long ago, fluttering through a sunlit April sky, illuminating her path and warming her heart.
But that smiling butterfly had flown away, because she was too useless.
Tomori clenched her fists, tense and anxious, staring at Haru.
Would he leave her too?
She couldn't be sure. Haru wasn't the same as the boy in her dreams.
He still held thoughts of ending the band, still carried the weight of other girls in his heart. If she was too useless, he might one day look at her the same way Sakiko once had.
She couldn't bear that.
"Eh? Why's everyone making those faces?"
Only Chihaya Anon blinked in clueless confusion.
She knew the three girls used to be in the same band, but never really looked into their past. So she had no idea why everyone seemed so shaken.
She just stood there, completely lost.
"So… which song are we playing?"
Kazami Haru looked at them, a bit confused by all the stares.
What's going on now?
It's just a keyboard. Why's everyone acting like he just dropped a bomb?
He'd specifically followed Wakaba Mutsumi's recommendation when choosing this model. Mutsumi had said it was reliable and cost-effective, so he bought it.
"I already shared the sheet music in the Line group. We just need one performance to get a feel for everyone's level."
Though a bit surprised by the keyboard, Shiina Taki quickly recovered.
She sent the outline to the group and sat down in a flash, grabbing her drumsticks. Her eyes, however, still flickered with a dark shadow, no telling what she was really thinking.
Chihaya Anon pulled out her tablet and curiously opened the file. One glance and she froze.
"Eh?! I don't get any of this!"
She frowned at the numbered notation Taki had sent, no clue where to even begin.
Guitarists usually read either tab or numeric notation. While tab is easier to understand, numeric notation requires some music theory. And Anon, a pure chord-strummer, clearly had none.
Naturally, she was completely lost.
"Hah?"
Taki frowned, looking at the pink-haired mess in disbelief.
Don't tell me… she really can't read sheet music?
Soyo seemed reluctant too, her mood shaken after Haru's reveal, but she forced a smile and asked, "Um… Taki-chan?"
"Is 'Haruhikage' really the song we're going with? It might be a little hard."
"You…"
Taki narrowed her eyes slightly, sensing something off.
What did Soyo mean by that? Was she still hesitating… because of someone?
Before she could press further, a mellow, melancholic melody echoed from the right side of the studio.
(Music: Search Haruhikage only keyboard)
Kazami Haru's pale fingers danced fluidly across the keyboard, weaving warm, delicate tones into the air.
Everyone fell silent, caught in the spell of the Haruhikage solo. Even Taki, feeling tense moments before, slowly calmed down and began to listen.
Each note, as it leapt from his fingertips, made her instinctively want to strike her drums.
After a short while, the solo ended.
Taki was the first to nod at Haru. Tomori clapped gently, her gaze full of quiet reverence. Only Soyo stood frozen, still lost in the sound.
She hadn't come back yet, not fully.
"Have you played 'Haruhikage' before?"
"There were some mistakes in the middle, but your sense of rhythm was solid. No way this was your first time reading the sheet."
"As a keyboardist, you're… barely passable."
Taki's tone softened. Her gaze wasn't quite as sharp now.
His technique wasn't exceptional, little flaws popped up here and there.
But his rhythm was razor-sharp. As the drummer, Taki had the strongest feel for timing, and she hated to admit it, but Haru's rhythm was flawless.
And there was one more thing: emotion.
Unlike a guitar, a keyboard's touch doesn't greatly affect tone but somehow, Haru imbued his playing with feeling. A technique not of skill, but of spirit.
For a second, she'd really believed it was Sakiko playing.
"No. That was my first time."
Haru let out a slow breath, fingers brushing softly across the keys.
This had been his first proper attempt at Haruhikage. Its slower tempo made it manageable at his skill level, anything harder and he'd be exposed.
Lv2 still wasn't quite enough. He figured Lv3 would be safer.
Before Taki could reply, Chihaya Anon suddenly muttered in a low voice, "Hey, uh, I just remembered something—I gotta go!"
She was panicking.
Haru noticed the subtle tremble in her fingers—a sign of anxiety, maybe even fear.
All eyes turned to her. She grabbed her guitar case, zipper still undone, and bowed slightly in apology.
Then, without another word, that pink-haired blur bolted out of the studio like the wind.
Yep. The guitarist ran off. Again.
Watching her flee, Haru began to piece things together.
"Anon-chan?"
Tomori called out in surprise, but there was no stopping her.
She felt something was wrong, but didn't know if she should chase after her.
That's when a large, warm hand gently rested on her shoulder.
Haru met her eyes with a calming smile and somehow, it worked. Her panic settled.
"Taki, I'll leave my keyboard with you. I'm going after her."
"Huh??"
Kazami Haru didn't wait for Shiina Taki to respond—he turned and dashed off, chasing after Anon without a second thought.
His electronic keyboard sat safely to the side, leaving only Tomori and Taki behind, staring at each other in silence.
"What's with that guy? Why'd he just leave his keyboard here?"
"No, wait. Why did he call me by name just now?"
Taki's head was spinning. Her temples throbbed as she stared at the Roland keyboard next to her, unsure what to do.
Pfft—
From the side, Yahata Umiri couldn't hold in a soft laugh as she watched Taki flustered and fuming. Taki turned and shot her a glare, cheeks tinged red, but Umiri just gave a light cough and looked down at her phone like nothing had happened.
"You're done with practice, right? I've got a session with another band to get to."
Umiri slipped her phone into her pocket, though it hadn't even been on, took her bass back from the still-dazed Nagasaki Soyo, and waved a casual goodbye as she breezed out of the room like the wind.
That keyboard guy was kind of interesting.
As she walked out, a noticeable curve lingered at the edge of Umiri's lips. She was clearly in a good mood.
She made a mental note of Kazami Haru's name, slinging her bass over her back as she exited RiNG with her usual flair.
"What's up with everyone today?" Taki exhaled sharply, lowering her drumsticks onto the stand.
Now what? This Roland keyboard, Sakiko's keyboard… no, this Roland was still sitting here.
"Soyo-chan?"
"Huh? Sorry, Tomori-chan… I spaced out for a bit."
Tomori gently tapped Soyo's shoulder, her expression a mix of concern and warmth. Only then did Soyo slowly return to herself.
She was still staring at Haru's keyboard, face clouded and unreadable, lost in thought. That subtle look in her eyes didn't escape Tomori, but she didn't say a word.
Haru… has he caught up to Anon yet?
