The girls who were celebrating were all startled when they suddenly heard Soyo scream hoarsely.
Her face was twisted, she gritted her teeth, and veins bulged on her tightly clenched fists.
"Nagasaki, what are you shouting about?"
Shiina disliked Soyo and Sakiko the most.
Although Anon was somewhat vain, in Shiina's eyes she was much better than those two unstable elements.
Sakiko was no longer in the band. Now the only unstable element left was Soyo.
"What am I shouting about? Didn't you see Sakiko in the audience earlier? After hearing you play Haruhikage, she left in anger!"
Soyo trembled all over. She had finally gotten a chance to reconnect with Sakiko, the white moonlight in her heart, but this single song, Haruhikage, had completely ruined it.
"What we play is not something Sakiko can control, right?"
Shiina was quite indifferent toward Sakiko. After hesitating for a moment, she added,
"...I remember this song was composed by Sakiko, right? Then it really wasn't very good for us to play it directly without asking her."
Shiina did not care about Sakiko's feelings. What she cared about more was the usage rights of the song.
It could be said that Shiina's words were quite rational.
But Soyo did not care about any of that. She shouted angrily,
"But you made Sakiko angry!"
"Huh? If she's angry because we used the song she composed, then I can go apologize. If it's for other reasons, then I won't bother."
Shiina already had a bad temper, and she did not like Sakiko. Moreover, she had long seen through Soyo's little secret, so she began arguing with her directly.
Soyo and Shiina exchanged insults. Seeing that she could not win the argument, Soyo angrily raised the bass in her hand.
However, after thinking for a moment, she still did not smash the bass on the ground. She slung the instrument over her shoulder, ignored everyone, and turned to leave.
"Soyo!"
Tomori raised her hand, wanting to stop her, but Soyo completely ignored her.
"Takamatsu, don't mind her. She gets angry out of nowhere and wants to reform her Crychic or whatever. Her heart isn't with us at all."
Shiina snorted.
Tomori lowered her head in disappointment and murmured,
"Rikki, did I do something wrong? Maybe we shouldn't have formed a band at all."
"Takamatsu, don't think nonsense, this isn't your fault."
Shiina panicked.
Why was she putting pressure on her again? She was about to collapse too, okay!
Anon looked at everyone and ran out.
"I'll go after Soyo!"
Anon ran out of the live hall and quickly spotted Soyo walking through the crowd.
She hurried over and grabbed her.
"Soyo!"
"What do you want? Let go!"
"Soyo, wasn't the live we completed together this time pretty good? So many people were calling out and cheering for us, and everyone was very happy. Why are you angry?"
Although Anon knew that Soyo and the others had another band in the past, she did not know exactly what had happened.
"I told you to let go!"
"No! Soyo, if you don't come back with me, I won't let go."
Soyo was furious and shouted loudly,
"...Anon, do you really want me to spell it out clearly?"
"Don't you understand? The reason I agreed to form a band with you, the reason I participated in the live with you, is not because I like you so much."
"I wanted to reform Crychic, that's all. That was my only goal."
"I was just using you. When Sakiko and the others come back, I'll kick you out of the band. I hate you!"
"Do you really not understand, or are you pretending not to understand? Actually, you should have noticed it long ago, right? You were just pretending not to know!"
Soyo panted heavily.
"...Anon, you're just a substitute, you're just a replacement."
"No, you don't even have the right to be a replacement!"
Soyo flung her arm away.
This time, Anon did not chase after her anymore.
The pink haired girl's lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to say something but stopped. Finally she lowered her head silently and no longer blocked Soyo's departure.
When she reached the pedestrian overpass, Soyo could not help but turn back and look at Anon, who was standing silently among the crowd while being pointed at by a group of people. She felt a little guilty.
She had just spoken all her inner thoughts, all her dark intentions.
Seeing Anon look as if she had been dumped, and also being pointed at by passersby, made her feel very uncomfortable.
At that moment, Soyo thought of many things.
The joy of forming a new band with Anon and the others, and the hard work they had put in together for the live.
During that time, she had even forgotten Sakiko.
Soyo was startled.
No, how could I forget Sakiko? I'm not that kind of woman who likes the new and dislikes the old. Sakiko is everything to me!
Thinking of this, she made up her mind and resolutely walked across the overpass.
On the other side of the overpass, the girl who looked like a doll was standing there quietly.
Soyo was overjoyed.
"Wakaba, are you waiting for me?"
"Soyo."
Mutsumi could not help but glance at the silent Anon in the distance.
"Wakaba, you must be waiting for me, right? We shouldn't have performed Haruhikage in the live just now. I'm sorry to Sakiko."
"I want to find Sakiko and apologize in person. Wakaba, only you can contact her now. You will definitely help me, right?"
"You can't refuse this time. I have a serious reason. We are friends, aren't we? Why can't friends help each other? Could it be that Wakaba, you've never considered me a friend?"
Mutsumi looked up.
"Soyo, I..."
Under Soyo's pressure, Mutsumi wavered.
She was originally a girl who was easily influenced and could even be described as weak willed.
Mutsumi did not have many friends. Sakiko was one, and Soyo was another.
Now she was caught between two friends, unable to please either side, which made her very distressed.
She knew in her heart that Soyo was going to use her.
But Mutsumi's personality made her unable to refuse, especially since she did not want to lose her rare friends.
"I... I'll send a message to Sakiko and ask."
Soyo was overjoyed.
"...Okay, then go ask quickly. I'll wait here."
Mutsumi took out her phone and sent a message to Sakiko.
...
In the mansion, Sakiko said apologetically,
"Fujiwara-kun, I will move out when I find a new place to live."
She did not plan to go back to that dilapidated house.
Besides the fact that the Yakuza group knew about it, which made her afraid, it was also because she had very bad memories there, memories of being betrayed by her father.
Now that she no longer had that useless father, the pressure on her was much less.
With her current income, renting a cheap house was not a problem.
"Sakiko, you can live here. You've lived here for more than ten years. For you, this mansion is your home, isn't it?"
Sakiko hesitated.
"That's not good. Haibara might not agree."
"What's wrong with it? In fact, this suggestion was actively brought up by Haibara. Don't look at her cold exterior, she is actually kind hearted and very gentle inside."
"Haibara..."
Sakiko was moved.
She felt that although she had lost everything more than a year ago, leaving her in such a state of destitution and being toyed with by fate and life,
in this pain she had also met good people who were willing to help her.
For example, Toru. For example, Haibara.
Haibara, who was eavesdropping upstairs on the conversation below, folded her arms and unconsciously curved her lips.
This was indeed her suggestion. Although she did not like having someone else live in the mansion, she also felt pity for Sakiko's tragic life.
As for the things she was researching, she did not mind Sakiko seeing them.
Anyway, Sakiko would not understand.
Sakiko agreed to live here, and she also said that she would voluntarily take over the household chores as rent.
Fujiwara readily accepted.
At this moment, Mutsumi sent her a text message.
Sakiko glanced at the content and frowned.
"What's wrong, Sakiko?"
"No, just some personal matters of mine, about Soyo. Ah, you know Soyo, right?"
Seeing Fujiwara nod, she continued,
"...She is very obsessed with the past and insists on reforming the band."
"Although I'm not very familiar with her, I understand her very well. She actually has no interest in music. She just wants to return to the comfort zone of the past."
"What she cares about is not the band. She only wants to use the band as a reliance. She selfishly wants everyone to comply with her."
Sakiko did not understand why Soyo missed the past so much.
Even she, who had become such a poor young lady, had never missed the past. In her heart, there was only the future.
"This is my personal matter. I will handle it properly. Everything in the past, everything from that childish playtime, I have completely cut it off!"
At the overpass, Mutsumi said to Soyo,
"Sakiko agreed to meet you tomorrow night."
Soyo was ecstatic.
Great. She would definitely make Sakiko change her mind!
...
The next evening.
Sakiko finished the household chores, said goodbye to Toru and Haibara, changed her clothes, and walked out of the house.
Standing outside the iron gate of the mansion, she waited quietly.
Not long after, two beautiful girls arrived together.
"Sakiko!"
Seeing Sakiko, Soyo was extremely excited.
Sakiko remained very calm and said,
"This is not a suitable place to talk. Let's go to the park nearby and chat."
How could Soyo refuse? She nodded repeatedly.
The three walked toward Asukayama Park not far away.
At the window of the Sunlight Building, Toru sat by the window holding a telescope, watching the three girls walk into the deserted park and stop under a street lamp.
Then Soyo suddenly knelt down!
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)