Chapter 113: Soyo is Truly Deeply Sinful
Seeing her grandmother's gaze fixate on her, Awa Subaru broke into a cold sweat. The acting career path her grandmother had meticulously laid out for her didn't include "rock band drummer."
If the secret got out, it would be a disaster.
"Grandma, it's a music live! A music live!"
As panic set in, Subaru's mind raced at high speed, and she instantly found a plausible explanation.
"A classmate from the acting school gave me a ticket. We only met because I went to the live house to see the show."
While speaking, she frantically winked and signaled to Hachiman. If her grandmother hadn't been standing right there, she probably would have been waving her arms in desperation. Finally, deciphering the expressive hints, Hachiman realized he had accidentally stepped on a landmine.
"Band" was a forbidden topic.
"Yes, it's just as Miss Subaru said," Hachiman picked up the thread immediately. "I know one of her classmates from the acting school. We met while watching the show at the live house."
Hearing Hachiman cooperate so smoothly and even proactively fill the logic gap in her story, Subaru let out a massive sigh of relief.
She lived to see another day!
'As expected of a Shuchiin elite, I acknowledge your intellect!'
"I see. I don't quite understand the hobbies of you young people," Awa Tendo replied. She accepted Hachiman's explanation and didn't press further.
"Since you two already know each other, I won't bother introducing Subaru further. If she was rude to you before, Mr. Hikigaya, I hope you can be patient with her."
"Not at all. Your granddaughter is excellent. I'm sure she'll achieve great things in the acting world," Hachiman offered a polite compliment.
Awa Tendo smiled, responding humbly, "I appreciate the kind words, but Subaru is still quite immature."
Wait? Subaru, watching from the side, finally noticed something strange.
'Grandma... why...?'
Subaru felt that her grandmother was being unusually cautious—almost delicate—in her treatment of Hachiman. Her tone remained formal and careful, not shifting at all even after learning he was an acquaintance of her granddaughter.
Her grandmother was a Kyoto native; usually, if you took her words literally, you'd regret it later. But Subaru had never seen her like this. Was Hachiman some sort of high-ranking figure one rarely meets?
She remembered Shuchiin was an elite school, but the surname "Hikigaya" didn't ring any bells regarding famous families.
Regardless, Hachiman was proving to be much more impressive than she had imagined. She had never met anyone who could communicate so seamlessly with her grandmother.
The two-hour train ride, which Subaru feared would be agonizing, passed quickly thanks to the conversation between the two.
"Thank you, Mr. Hikigaya," Awa Tendo said with a smile as they reached the platform. "It's been a long time since I've enjoyed myself this much. My agency has some matters to attend to, so I shall take my leave first."
"Grandma?" Subaru was confused. Her grandmother had originally said she wanted to see Subaru's apartment, but now she was changing plans at the last minute.
Awa Tendo simply smiled and departed toward a different subway line. Since Hachiman and Subaru lived in the same neighborhood—something Hachiman had known since they first met—they walked home together.
"I'm exhausted..."
The moment her grandmother vanished from sight, Subaru's "bone structure" seemed to dissolve. The girl who had been standing military-straight slumped over, losing all traces of her "lady-like" persona.
This was the real Subaru—the unfiltered, lively drummer of the band.
"Good work, Subaru-san," Hachiman said. To him, she was back to being the "gag character" girl who, along with Nina Iseri, had once used Momoka Kawaragi as a human battering ram.
"It's fine, it's fine. I'm used to it," Subaru waved it off. "Also, just call me Subaru." Hearing him call her grandmother "Mrs. Awa" and her "Awa-san" felt weird. "Thanks to you, Hachiman-kun! If Grandma found out about the band, I'd be dead meat."
She patted her chest, her heart still racing from the close call.
"Ugh, so stressful."
Looking at the expressive girl, Hachiman didn't think forcing her into a mold of "elegant dignity" was a good thing. Letting her nature out seemed much healthier; look how repressed the kid was.
"Oh, right! Hachiman-kun, do you want a hamburger? I'm starving, I'll treat you!"
Subaru pointed toward a fast-food joint. It was nearly 7:00 PM—dinner time. She figured taking Hachiman to a high-end place alone might be awkward considering Soyo, but a quick fast-food meal was fine.
"No thanks. Besides, it wasn't a big deal," Hachiman declined, remembering Yukino's dinner.
"Oh, then wait for me a sec, I'll grab one to go." Subaru didn't push. She ran into the shop and quickly emerged with a burger and two iced colas.
"Here, cola."
Hachiman took the drink. Subaru didn't bother with a straw; she popped the lid and chugged it like an old man drinking beer after a long shift.
"I'm back to life! Back to life!"
She suddenly realized a boy was standing right next to her and blushed slightly, realizing how un-ladylike she was being.
"Think of it as a toast," Hachiman said, unfazed. He tapped his cup against hers and said, "Cheers," before taking a hearty swallow himself. After talking so much on the train, the cold drink was a relief.
He had always thought this girl group was more of a "drinking band" than a music band anyway, considering how they got Soyo drunk on night one.
Subaru grinned, realizing Hachiman had already seen her at her worst, so there was no point in pretending now. She clinked her cup against his harder.
"Hahaha! Cheers!"
The simple gesture bridged the gap between them. Subaru, clearly famished, finished her burger in about five or six bites. As she tossed the wrapper in the trash, she spoke as if making casual conversation.
"Hachiman-kun, aren't you curious why I'm hiding the band from Grandma?"
"Everyone has things they aren't ready to talk about," Hachiman replied. "And there's no law saying people can't have a hobby to relax."
He already guessed the reason.
Awa Tendo wanted her granddaughter to inherit her legacy in the film industry, which is why Subaru was in an acting school that didn't even grant a high school diploma.
In Japan, that was a huge risk. To someone like her grandmother, a rock band was probably seen as "delinquency." It was the same as Mutsumi's parents likely wanting her to be a star; forcing someone like Mutsumi to perform in public was just cruel.
"Grandma probably told you... she wants me to be a real actress," Subaru said, walking ahead with her hands behind her back. She looked back at Hachiman.
"But I'm shy, so I don't actually want to be an actress."
"Huh?" Hachiman's jaw dropped. Hearing the boisterous Subaru call herself "shy" was a shock.
"What? I really find performing in front of a crowd embarrassing, okay?" Subaru huffed. Then her expression turned helpless.
"I thought if I went to acting school, Grandma would see I have no talent and give up on me. But it seems she's more determined than I thought. I'm sorry... I felt like she was about to ask you if you had any 'projects' for me."
Hachiman told her not to worry.
Even if she had asked, he wasn't ready to turn Warhammer into a movie yet. Releasing a wargame was one thing; a movie was a different beast. Besides, he couldn't imagine Subaru in Cadian flak armor with a chainsword and bolter charging through a warzone. It would be a bit too "hardcore" for her career.
"It must be exhausting, suppressing yourself like that," Hachiman noted.
"Yeah," Subaru replied. "Only when I said I wanted to be an actress as a kid did Grandma show a smile that wasn't 'acting.' But kids say things they don't mean."
Now that she was older, she knew how hard the path was.
She had started "slacking off," and the band was her small rebellion.
"By the way, don't tell Nina or Momoka about the acting thing. I don't want them to worry."
"I won't say anything." Hachiman knew that "acting" would be a volatile variable for the band. One day she might just have to say, "I'm here to end the band."
Bands were fragile things—something Soyo knew all too well.
"How is practice going, anyway?"
Subaru's face lit up again. "Since Soyo-chan joined as our bassist, Nina says we sound amazing!" Before Soyo, they only had three members. Now the sound was complete.
"We were supposed to practice tonight, but since I went to Kyoto, we had to cancel."
Subaru started chattering away, her eyes sparkling. Then, her expression dimmed slightly. "Soyo-chan works really hard too. She's at Tsukinomori, so she doesn't have as much free time as me."
"But...?" Hachiman prompted.
"It's nothing, it's nothing." Subaru hesitated. Soyo had told her it was best not to tell Hachiman about that. But Subaru felt bad keeping secrets from him after he just promised to keep hers.
"It's about her old band members, isn't it?" Hachiman guessed. He wasn't directly involved with their drama, so there was no reason to hide it from him.
It had to be Soyo.
Hachiman knew Soyo couldn't cut ties cleanly like Sakiko had. Soyo was too sentimental, still clinging to "CRYCHIC" while everyone else had moved on. Her kindness made her vulnerable to being cornered by her old teammates.
Seeing Subaru jump back in shock, Hachiman knew he was right.
"Haha..." Subaru wiped sweat from her brow. She had actually been part of the reason the conflict escalated the other morning.
She had seen Soyo arguing with a short-haired girl. Subaru had tried to play peacemaker, but the other side saw her as the "victor" (the one who stole Soyo away).
It had turned into a formal challenge: two bands, one live show. Whoever gets the most crowd support "wins" Soyo back.
"I'm sorry," Subaru lowered her head.
Hachiman shook his head. He knew exactly what was coming.
"So it's going to be a showdown between Haruhikage and Void Box?"
Soyo really was deeply, deeply sinful.
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