"Guitar— you're carrying a guitar, right!"
Outside the park, a yellow-haired girl ran over while shouting.
"Guitar... you play the guitar, don't you?!"
The yellow-haired girl quickly arrived by their side, her eyes shining like stars as she looked at Gotou Hitori.
"I'm sorry to bother you so suddenly. I'm Ijichi Nijika, a second-year student at Toyogasaki High School. Wow~ I know you! You're the exchange student from Shuchiin, right? I remember your name is... Uchiha Ryo. Uchiha-kun, right?"
Uchiha Ryo nodded. He had only officially started classes today as an exchange student. Had his fame already spread so far? Was it because he had tried too hard on the exam a few days ago and stunned the entire Toyogasaki first year?
"By the way, Uchiha-kun, I have some business with this friend of yours carrying the guitar."
Gotou Hitori didn't dare to look at the sunshine-like girl, Ijichi Nijika, and just turned her head.
"My name is Gotou Hitori, a first-year student at Toyogasaki..."
Ijichi Nijika: "Oh, oh, Hitori-san. It's rude to ask, but what's your guitar skill level?"
Calling her by her first name right off the bat, this woman's level is high! At least several times higher than Gotou Hitori's negative level!
Gotou Hitori: "Well... I'm okay, I guess."
A visible smile spread across Ijichi Nijika's face. As if she had seen a savior, she took a step forward to stand in front of Gotou Hitori.
"Please! Please be a temporary guitarist for my band for one day!"
"Eh?!!"
Ijichi Nijika turned to look at Uchiha Ryo. "Excuse me, Uchiha-kun, are you Hitori-san's friend?"
Uchiha Ryo shook his head. "No, she's my maid."
"Oh, so she's a maid... What? What did you just say... a maid?"
Uchiha Ryo's expression was serious. "Mhm, this is my private maid. So I'll agree on her behalf. Let's go."
Ijichi Nijika excitedly pulled the dazed Gotou Hitori. "That's great! Then let's head to the live house."
Uchiha Ryo grabbed Gotou Hitori's other side. "This is truly an honor. Let's go quickly."
Gotou Hitori—(6д9)!!!
At a live house that looked like a bar, located on the first basement level, Ijichi Nijika proudly pointed at the "STARRY" sign on the door.
"This is my family's live house. Please, come in, you two."
Walking into STARRY, the entire interior was rather dim, and the atmosphere was a bit heavy. It was probably because it was still daytime, so the lights on the ceiling weren't on.
But Gotou Hitori, surprisingly, showed a smile. This atmosphere... ah, it felt like home. She loved this kind of dim and slightly oppressive place!
In a dark corner, a girl with short blue hair saw them and put down her bass.
"You're finally back."
Ijichi Nijika: "Ryo! Let me introduce you. This is the first-year exchange student from Shuchiin, Uchiha Ryo. And this is the new guitarist I found in the park! Gotou Hitori."
"And then, this is our band's bassist, Yamada Ryo~"
Gotou Hitori looked at the expressionless, androgynous face and couldn't help but lean behind Uchiha Ryo.
She's a little scary. Is she glaring at me...
Yamada Ryo sized up the two of them. "Are you two... a couple?"
Uchiha Ryo pulled Gotou Hitori out from behind him with one hand. "Nope. She's my private maid."
Yamada Ryo nodded. "I see. You're into role-play."
Uchiha Ryo frowned. "I'm being very serious. Although this maid is still a bit unqualified."
Yamada Ryo: "Oh. Then I'll help you..... You over there, maid, go pour me a cup of tea."
Uchiha Ryo: "I want a cola."
Ijichi Nijika quickly jumped out and stood between the three. "No! That's not right! Hitori-san isn't a maid I found, she's a guitarist! Anyway, let's go to the practice room first!"
→
"Um, Uchiha-kun can come too, as our first audience member!"
The four of them went to a practice room behind the live house. The current band only consisted of Gotou Hitori as the guitarist, Ijichi Nijika as the drummer, and Yamada Ryo as the bassist.
And the only audience member below the stage was Uchiha Ryo.
.....
After the first practice session ended, Uchiha Ryo helplessly cleaned his ears. Yamada Ryo and Ijichi Nijika also focused their gazes on Gotou Hitori.
In a band performance, coordination is very important. But Gotou Hitori, with her social anxiety, didn't dare to look up at all, only focusing on her own playing.
Ijichi Nijika: "As expected, it's too much to ask for perfect coordination on the first try."
Gotou Hitori: "...I'm sorry."
Yamada Ryo: "Well, we still have to go on stage no matter what, right?"
Gotou Hitori's head sank even lower. Perform on stage? How many people will be down there! She, who didn't even dare to make eye contact with one person, if she had to face so many people at once... she would break, wouldn't she! She would definitely lose consciousness right away.
Uchiha Ryo shook his head and walked onto the stage, placing his hands on Gotou Hitori's shoulders.
"As my maid, how could I let you be embarrassed on stage due to poor coordination? I'll help you!"
The yellow ahoge on Ijichi Nijika's head suddenly perked up. "Uchiha-kun, you play guitar too?!"
"Of course not. But I can use psychological suggestion to make Gotou less nervous."
Yamada Ryo tilted his head. "But... she's already about to faint."
Realizing the problem was her, Gotou Hitori, who had wanted to find a place to hide, was suddenly grabbed by her male classmate, and at such a close distance! She felt like she was about to suffocate....
"Well.... Gotou! Now look into my eyes... relax—"
[Warning: After using genjutsu on a capturable female target, you will be unable to obtain G-Points from her for a short period.]
What does a mere system know? You have to cast a long line to catch a big fish. You plant a seed in the spring to reap the harvest in the autumn. He was planting a seed in Gotou Hitori now, so that he could have a greater harvest in the future.
"Gotou... everyone you see today, besides us, are all scarecrows—"
Gotou Hitori muttered to herself, "All... scarecrows."
Meanwhile, Ijichi Nijika and Yamada Ryo were discussing how to introduce Gotou Hitori during the performance.
"Given Hitori-san's state, she probably won't use her real name."
Yamada Ryo nodded. "Then I'll give her one... Gotou Hitori... Gotou 'Hitori'... how about 'Bocchi' (Loner)?"
Uchiha Ryo, having completed the psychological suggestion (Sharingan hypnosis), also let Gotou Hitori go.
"I'll be out here looking forward to your performance. Good luck, Gotou-san... no, Bocchi-chan."
Walking out of the practice room, there were already some customers in STARRY, waiting for the evening's band performance.
Behind the bar stood a woman who looked quite similar to Ijichi Nijika, just more mature.
And the two people sitting in front of the bar... looked quite familiar to Uchiha Ryo.
Hiratsuka Shizuka: "Man! You're really working hard, Seika. You're almost thirty, and you have to take care of your high school sister and run this little music bar."
"Shut up and drink your booze. You're the same age as me!"
Shirosaki Haruka: "Now, now, you two, don't fight. Aren't we here to relax? You can both still go and do your own things. Unlike me... I already have a ten-year-old daughter."
The single Ijichi Seika, and the single Hiratsuka Shizuka: "...."
Hehehe~