At least one of them knew how to do something.
Sato let out a small sigh of relief. If all three of them had absolutely no skills, things would really be difficult.
He then turned his gaze toward the other two.
Sonoda Umi was a girl who embodied the elegance of a traditional Yamato Nadeshiko. She had a graceful, dignified appearance with just a hint of seriousness. Even she was blushing now, looking rather embarrassed.
With her face flushed, she lowered her head, her long blue hair cascading down like a waterfall. Noticing Sato's gaze, she timidly looked up a little and asked cautiously,
"Does kyudo count?" (Kyudo is the traditional Japanese martial art of archery)
Sato fell silent.
Did kyudo count?
Of course it did!
If anyone in the audience refused to applaud during a performance, she'd just shoot them with an arrow!
Of course, that was only a joke.
A cute idol really didn't need kyudo.
"The situation is a bit more difficult than I imagined," Sato said slowly as he rubbed his forehead.
The girls all blushed, feeling increasingly awkward.
Forcing himself to calm down, Sato analyzed the situation.
"As for singing, as long as you're not completely tone-deaf, it's something you can learn."
"So what you need most right now is someone who can teach you dance. I can't really help with that, but since your school is all girls, there should definitely be someone who's good at it. You can try asking around."
"Then there are the songs. If you can't manage that yourselves, I can probably help."
Sato suddenly thought of Mio's unbearably sweet songs.
Those kinds of songs were practically made for school idols!
Unfortunately, he couldn't really help much with the other areas.
"Thank you, Nohara-senpai!"
Sonoda Umi suddenly bit her lip, stood up, and bowed deeply to Sato.
Looking serious and earnest, she said,
"You've already helped us so much, and we're truly grateful. Please let us try to figure these things out ourselves first."
Oh?
Sato looked at Umi in surprise.
At that moment, Kousaka Honoka and Minami Kotori also stood up.
Honoka clenched her right fist against her chest to encourage herself and said firmly,
"Umi's right. We'll try to solve these ourselves first. You've already helped us more than enough, Nohara-senpai."
They certainly had strong determination.
Their plans might have been a little naive, but their resolve was unmistakable.
"All right then. Try handling these yourselves for now."
"If you run into any problems, you can ask me anytime. Also, don't neglect your physical training. Being an idol is physically demanding too."
"Yes!"
Not long afterward, the trio said their goodbyes and left.
Kanna also emerged from the room and looked around the now-empty living room.
"Did they leave?"
"Yeah."
Sato smiled and gently patted Kanna's head.
"Yukihira Restaurant over there is open again. How about we eat there tonight?"
Kanna's eyes immediately sparkled, and she nodded eagerly at him.
"Mhm!"
...
After enjoying a hearty meal at Yukihira Restaurant, the two of them, one big and one small, walked hand in hand along the quiet streets.
The lights along the roadside flickered on and off.
Every so often, a car would roar past with the low rumble of its engine.
Sato and Kanna chatted idly as they walked. Most of the time, Sato asked questions while Kanna answered, mainly about how things were going at school.
"Besides Saikawa, does anyone else play with you at school?"
"Yes."
"What about friends?"
"Only Saikawa."
"Why?"
"I don't know."
Kanna answered honestly.
As they passed a brightly lit convenience store, she suddenly looked up at Sato.
"We're out of snacks at home."
"Hm? When did you finish them?"
Sato looked at her in surprise. As far as he remembered, there had still been quite a lot left.
"Last night, while you weren't home."
Kanna looked up at him calmly.
Sato: "..."
He coughed awkwardly.
"Ahem... in that case, let's go buy some."
The two of them entered the convenience store, and bright lights immediately greeted them.
"Welcome."
Standing behind the register, Aoyama Nanami instinctively gave a slight bow. Only after seeing who had come in did she realize it was them.
"Nohara-senpai."
"Yo, Nanami. I heard you didn't get the role?"
Sato smiled teasingly.
Nanami froze for a moment before glaring at him with a mixture of embarrassment and annoyance.
"Kanna, go pick out what you want. I'll wait here."
Sato handed Kanna a shopping basket before chatting with Nanami beside the register.
With a grin, he knowingly asked,
"So, how did you end up not getting the part?"
And you're asking me?
Nanami pursed her lips and looked at him resentfully.
Do you really not know, or are you pretending not to?
Seeing the accusing look in her eyes, Sato quickly dropped the smile from his face and waved his hand.
"All right, all right. I won't bring it up anymore. Don't look at me like that. I can't handle that expression."
Nanami gave a light snort.
After glancing at Kanna, who was wandering around the convenience store, she couldn't help saying,
"Don't let her eat too many snacks at night."
"You mean Kanna? Ah... right."
Sato had originally intended to say it wasn't a problem, but then remembered that Nanami had no idea Kanna was actually a dragon, so he simply agreed.
Looking at the girl in front of him, Sato suddenly asked curiously,
"Come to think of it, Nanami, you can already support yourself with your voice acting income now, right? Why are you still working part-time?"
She had already begun her career as a voice actress and no longer needed to attend training classes. Her financial situation should have improved considerably by now.
"I've gotten used to working part-time. Besides, this is the only part-time job I have now."
Nanami answered calmly.
"As expected of Aoyama-san, the part-time work maniac. You've actually gotten used to working part-time."
"Don't give me such weird nicknames!"
A faint blush appeared on Nanami's face as she looked at Sato with equal parts annoyance and helplessness.
"Sato, I'm done."
Kanna walked over carrying a basket filled to the brim with snacks and stood on tiptoe to place it on the counter.
"Nanami, ring us up."
After paying, Sato said goodbye to Aoyama Nanami and headed back toward the apartment with Kanna.
But as soon as they reached the entrance, they saw someone suddenly rush out of the building.