Gotou Hitori made her grand entrance—inside a cardboard box.
Outside, the stage lights flickered. Inside the box, it was pitch black.
But for Hitori, that darkness was comforting.
(I'm still not playing well… but I'm happy. Is today my lucky day? I made my first friend, joined my first band… I'm shining so brightly today…)
Thoughts swirled in her mind as she played from inside the box.
She didn't see the calm, unresponsive audience.
Griseo sat among them, her expression serene.
She almost wanted to laugh at the muffled sound coming from the box.
It was, objectively, a failed performance.
The audience remained cold. A rock band and a silent crowd—those two things didn't mix.
Backstage Lounge.
Hitori listened to Nijika and Ryo discuss the night's performance.
After a moment, she walked over to Griseo.
"Um… what did you think of my playing?"
Griseo tilted her head. "Well… it's a new band. There's a lot of room for improvement."
"Alright, I get it." Hitori sighed, waving her hand. Her eyes drifted to Griseo's canvas. "Can I see what you painted?"
She leaned in, curious.
Surely Griseo hadn't painted… a cardboard box?
But there was no box.
No person.
Just a dilapidated performance hall—empty stage, scattered wires, vacant seats.
As Hitori stared, a wave of emotion crashed over her.
Loneliness seeped from the painting like a deep ocean, threatening to drown her.
She couldn't breathe.
Then a small hand reached out and pulled her back.
"Are you okay?" Griseo asked gently.
"I'm fine… Your painting…"
Hitori struggled to find the words.
"Why are there no people in it?"
"Because even while performing, there was no one else in Hitori-neechan's heart."
"That's not true! I had…"
She wanted to say she had Griseo in her heart.
But the words wouldn't come.
"I know."
Griseo pointed to a faint sky-blue dot in the audience.
"That's me."
"…That's way too abstract."
Hitori couldn't grasp Griseo's art.
But she couldn't say it was wrong either.
Even Fire Moth's Fusion Warriors found Griseo's paintings too abstract...too melancholic.
"This painting is a failure." Griseo said, rolling up the canvas and tossing it into the trash.
"Tonight's concert was a failure. So the painting is too."
"I'll try harder next time!" Hitori said, guilt weighing on her.
She felt it was all her fault.
Just then, Nijika gasped.
"I figured it out! The reason our Kessuko Band didn't perform well tonight…"
(It's me! It's all because of me!)
Hitori braced herself.
But Nijika didn't mention her.
"Our band setup is incomplete!"
"A drummer, bassist, guitarist… and a keyboardist!" Nijika declared.
"That's going to be tough." Ryo said bluntly. "Finding Bocchi-chan was already a miracle."
"No, no! Isn't there one right here?"
Nijika's eyes sparkled as she looked at Griseo.
"Hitori plays guitar, so it's totally reasonable her sister can play keyboard!"
"How is that reasonable?!"
"Keyboardist?" Griseo blinked.
"I've only played piano…"
"Even better!" Nijika beamed.
"Keyboardists might not know piano, but pianists can definitely play keyboard. Piano is the foundation! You'll be fine!"
Before Griseo could respond, Nijika had already set up the keyboard.
Then she gently lifted Griseo and placed her on the bench.
"…Then… I'll start?"
Griseo had never been in this situation before.
"Go ahead! We won't laugh. You've got this!" Nijika encouraged her.
Griseo closed her eyes.
She didn't truly know how to play piano.
But she had once painted for Sister Eden of Fire Moth.
She had recorded Eden's colors.
Eden...world-class musician, superstar, icon of an era.
As Griseo's fingers touched the keys, her demeanor shifted.
Eden's color flowed through her.
Notes poured out like poetry and paint.
It was as if a master pianist had taken the stage.
Captivating. Enchanting.
The final note rang out.
Then Eden's color faded.
Griseo returned to her blank canvas self.
She looked up-startled.
A crowd had gathered.
The manager of Starry. Kessuko Band. Support staff.
All stared wide-eyed, as if they'd seen a ghost.
"Griseo! I declare you our keyboardist!" Nijika shouted, her smile stretching ear to ear.
She hugged Hitori, who was still frozen.
"Bocchi-chan! Your sister is amazing! I don't know her exact level, but she's better than any keyboardist I've met! Our band has an professional player now!"
Even the top bands in the city didn't have that.
(Griseo… is that incredible?!)
Hitori's brain short-circuited.
Her face flushed red.
If Griseo was that good… then her own performance must've been painfully embarrassing.
Social death.
She collapsed instantly.
"Bocchi-chan! Are you okay?" Nijika panicked, holding the limp girl.
"I'm fine… I just want to be alone for a bit… don't mind me… boo hoo hoo…"