Dual System in Daily World

After finalizing the Saturday plans with Kazusa, Chisato, as usual, arrived at Starry.

The moment the band members saw him, they rushed toward him eagerly, like baby chicks spotting their mother.

Surrounded at the table by four girls with different hair colors and styles, Chisato was momentarily bewildered. 

He glanced toward the store manager, who was quietly sipping beer beside him, seeking some sort of explanation.

For some reason, the manager was acting strangely today, tilting her head back and chugging down beer on her own without giving any hints.

Still, based on the current situation, Chisato could roughly guess what was happening.

Judging by their reactions, they probably had good news to share with him.

However, being the cautious and methodical type, he decided to confirm one thing first.

"You guys didn't get into trouble or do something behind my back, did you?"

Following his playful tone, Ryou shook her head solemnly.

"No, no, Chisato-mama! We actually have good news for you, and we hope you can perform with us."

"Perform? Also, what the heck is 'Chisato-mama'…"

"Well, since you've always taken such good care of us—like a mom who looks after everything so thoroughly—we all decided to start calling you 'Mama' from now on."

"…This is the good news you were talking about?"

"Mhm!"

The troublemaker Ryou held back her laughter and nodded enthusiastically.

But she was quickly dragged away by Nijika, who pinched her ear while wearing a cat-like glare.

The seat in front of Chisato was then taken by Hitori.

She stared at Chisato, who was looking at her with a faint smile. 

Encouraged by the whispering voice of Ikuyo in her ear—"Go on, tell him! He'll definitely be happy!"—she gathered her courage and spoke up.

"Suzumiya-san, actually… We got an official invitation from the Shibuya Music Festival! They want us to perform live at their event."

"Ta-da~!"

The moment Hitori finished speaking, before Chisato could even react, Ikuyo suddenly pulled out a poster from who-knows-where and stretched it out in front of him.

It was the promotional poster for the Shibuya Music Festival.

At the same time, Nijika and Ryou both produced small party poppers from nowhere, twisting them open simultaneously.

With a loud pop, confetti and shimmering fragments burst into the air, scattering over Chisato.

"Hey! You guys better clean this up later."

"Got it~"

Nijika replied with a helpless glance toward the store manager.

Only then did Chisato start processing what was happening. He brushed the thin streamers off his head and took the festival poster from Ikuyo.

Right in the center of the poster was a promotional image of a popular band, with bold letters next to it reading:

[Japan's most passionate and exciting music festival—Shibuya Music Festival, shining bright!]

Below that, smaller text detailed the event's date, location, ticket prices, and surrounding transportation information.

A classic tactic. Whether it's a century-old restaurant or an event, they love using words like "best," "top-tier," or "unparalleled" in their promotional materials.

It's all about grabbing attention and hyping things up—Chisato could understand that.

To be recognized by professionals… they had finally reached this point.

While he was genuinely happy, there was still one issue.

Chisato looked at the grinning Hitori and pinched her soft cheeks lightly, chuckling as he asked,

"When did this happen?"

"Yesh… yeshterdaysh…"

Hitori mumbled unclearly.

"And why didn't you tell me yesterday? You're really something, huh? Keeping secrets from me."

"Uuh…"

Hitori shifted her gaze uneasily, fidgeting with her fingers. She wanted to whistle, but with her cheeks being pinched, she couldn't.

"Suzumiya-kun, I was the one who told Bocchi-chan to keep it a secret for now. We wanted to surprise you."

Nijika quickly came to the rescue.

"Mhm mhm!"

Ikuyo nodded furiously in agreement.

Chisato let go of Hitori. He hadn't actually been mad—just teasing her for fun to see her adorable reaction.

Now that his goal was achieved, he naturally relaxed his expression and smiled.

"This is indeed a surprise. You've finally taken a big step forward. Congratulations."

"Not 'you'—it's 'we'!"

Nijika corrected him sternly.

Chisato glanced at the others. They all shared Nijika's serious expression, clearly agreeing with their captain.

He chuckled softly and offered a sincere apology.

"Sorry, my mistake."

Hearing this, everyone finally smiled again.

"But seriously, whose idea was all those little surprises? I have to say, I didn't expect that."

"Suzumiya-kun, you should've guessed by now—it was Bocchi-chan's idea."

Nijika raised a finger as she answered, her little ahoge swaying slightly.

"She originally wanted us to buy one of those huge decorative balls and hang it from the ceiling."

"Then, the moment she made the announcement, we'd pull the string, and tons of colorful confetti, balloons, and little plush toys would rain down. It would've been even more spectacular."

"But the store manager strongly vetoed the idea, saying that cleaning up afterward would be a nightmare and would interfere with business. So we had to settle for this."

…That suffocatingly extravagant surprise… Thank goodness the manager rejected it.

Chisato felt deeply relieved.

Afterward, the band members started discussing the details of the festival, while Chisato quietly listened while glancing at the poster.

"…In short, it's not just about performing and calling it a day." 

"After the event, the organizers will evaluate all the participating musicians from both a professional and audience perspective." 

"The best individual or group will be awarded a prize and a substantial cash reward."

Chisato looked at the list of awards on the flyer.

The grand prize had a staggering cash reward of 10 million yen, written in bold red text and surrounded by an explosive graphic. It was impossible to ignore.

"That's right."

Nijika nodded slightly nervously. 

Unlike the ambitious Chisato, she was more straightforward and didn't focus on the prize money. She also didn't think a newly formed band like theirs could win anything.

Her main reason for wanting to participate was simple: since they got invited, it would be fun, and more people would hear their music.

"Suzumiya-kun… what do you think? Should we go?"

After saying that, she clenched her fists nervously.

Chisato looked up from the flyer and met her gaze. He was amused by her reaction.

"You don't need to ask me. Nijika, you're the band leader."

"Even so, I still want your opinion. After all, we've gone from being completely unknown to having tens of thousands of followers, and your contribution to that is undeniable." 

"It's safe to say that 90% of our success is thanks to you."

As she said this, the other three girls nodded in agreement.

"I only told the organizers that we needed time to consider their invitation, so it's not too late to decline. If you genuinely believe we're not ready for a formal music festival at our current level, we can reject it."

"After all, we're still young. This is just the beginning. High school girls have the luxury of being fearless—we have endless opportunities and possibilities."

Ryou wrapped an arm around Nijika's shoulder and flashed a peace sign.

Finally, it was Hitori who shyly reached out and held onto Chisato's fingertips.

Her words were the simplest but also conveyed their collective thoughts most directly.

"We… trust Suzumiya's decision."

"…"

The smile on Chisato's face gradually faded as he pressed his lips together slightly.

They were giving him the final say while also shifting the responsibility onto him.

He looked at the band members, all of whom were gazing at him with complete trust.

It wasn't surprising for a timid kitten like Hitori… but everyone was like this?

…He was honestly flattered.

[Ding! Temporary mission activated.]

[Guidance on the Path to Growth: Gotoh Hitori, who has joined the Kesshoku Band, is now at a crossroads in her journey. Different choices will lead her to different futures.]

[Mission objective: Make a decision for Gotoh Hitori. Different choices will trigger different follow-up missions, so please consider carefully.]

[Mission rewards: 1 freely allocatable attribute point, 1 random mystical item gift box.]

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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta

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