At this point, Togawa Sakiko had no choice but to accept the fact that her second personality was an absurdly gifted piano prodigy.
With that kind of talent—on top of the sheer amount of practice—surpassing her own level was probably just a matter of weeks.
"You've made pretty big progress these past few days," Sakiko said, putting on a stubborn front. "But you're still far from my level, so don't slack off."
Despite the words, she was genuinely happy for Asai Yu.
Asai Yu didn't respond to that directly and instead reminded her, "For the next two weeks, unless something unexpected comes up, I'll be here around 10:30 p.m. every night. Just be ready."
"I understand," Sakiko replied.
By then, it was exactly midnight, and Asai Yu was forcibly pushed out of the body.
When Sakiko regained control, she felt a strange sense of discomfort.
Does he fall asleep at exactly twelve every night? He doesn't even stay for a full twelve hours?
The feeling of wrongness lingered, but after thinking about it for a while and finding no clear answer, she let it go.
—
Over the next two days, Asai Yu stayed home almost the entire time, working on arrangements and writing.
There was no need to say much about the novel side of things—it was still going strong, and he was about to receive his manuscript payment.
As for the arrangement and lyrics of "Gunjō," he had already finished preparing them. The remaining composition work would be left to Togawa Sakiko.
That said, he planned to wait until Sakiko finished her two songs before handing it over. That way, it would look like he had been working just as hard during this period.
Come to think of it, the school hadn't contacted him at all—as if they'd completely forgotten he existed. Honestly, that suited him just fine. He had zero interest in attending classes anyway.
Any spare time he had went straight into studying arrangement and composition.
—
Near noon, Asai Yu tidied up his appearance a bit and headed out to a live house near Universal Studios Japan in Osaka.
After arriving, he took out his phone and had the staff scan the digital ticket Misumi Uika had given him, successfully entering the venue.
This live house was probably the largest in the area, capable of holding over two thousand people.
He had arrived early, yet the place was already packed to the brim—clear proof of just how popular the idol duo sumimi had become lately.
Fortunately, his ticket was for a seated spot on the second floor.
After some time, Sumita Mana and Misumi Uika appeared on stage.
It might have been his imagination, but Asai Yu felt like Mana glanced in his direction a few times.
Soon, sumimi's performance began. Most of the songs were heavily steeped in classic "2D idol" vibes—and they were genuinely enjoyable to listen to.
Watching the two girls sing and dance on stage, Asai Yu couldn't help but think:
They really are overflowing with energy.
The performance went on for nearly three hours straight, the two of them never leaving the stage. Their professional skill was beyond question.
—
After the show ended, Asai Yu followed the instructions on his phone to the backstage area, where Uika led him into a dressing room.
"Is it really okay for me to be in here?" Asai Yu asked the two inside.
"It's fine, Asai-kun. Hurry and sit down," Mana said, still catching her breath between short gasps.
Uika, however, didn't give him a chance to sit.
She suddenly bent forward into a perfect ninety-degree bow.
"I'm truly sorry, Asai-kun. That day, I spoke without fully understanding the situation. I'm really, truly sorry!"
Her tone was sincere. Then she hesitated slightly before continuing, "Um… are you free this afternoon? There's a really good yakiniku place nearby—I'll treat you."
"Oh, and from now on, I'll always reserve a complimentary ticket for you at sumimi's shows."
Asai Yu immediately waved his hands. "No need. It was just a misunderstanding. I wasn't angry."
Then he added with a teasing edge, "As long as Misumi-san doesn't keep staring at me all the time."
At that, Uika's face instantly flushed red with embarrassment.
"Well, then maybe I should still—" she tried to insist, but Mana cut her off.
"Alright, alright. Let's all have some donuts first. I've got three flavors—what do you want?"
The brown-haired girl pulled out a bag of donuts and asked.
Asai Yu didn't hold back and took one. "Thanks."
After a few bites, Mana looked at the boy sitting across from her and asked,
"So, Asai-kun, what did you think of sumimi's performance today?"
"It was great," Asai Yu answered.
"Does that mean Asai-kun is already a sumimi fan?" Mana asked curiously.
…When you put it like that, can I even say no?
Asai Yu was just about to reply when sudden footsteps sounded outside the door.
A middle-aged woman in formal work attire pushed the door open.
The moment she saw Asai Yu, she frowned.
At the same time, both Mana and Uika stood up.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Masaki Saori, the manager in charge of sumimi," the woman said, adjusting her glasses as she greeted him politely.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Asai Yu," he replied.
After the brief introductions, the manager immediately asked,
"This is the backstage area. Why are you here?"
Then she turned to Mana and Uika.
"Did you invite him in?"
Her sharp tone made it obvious that the two idols were in trouble.
Which was only natural. With idols this popular, the agency would never allow even the hint of a scandal.
At that point, Uika's mind had practically stopped working, and even Mana couldn't think of a good explanation.
Seeing this, Asai Yu sighed inwardly and spoke up,
"Actually, I came to ask Sumita-san for help. I'm looking for a job related to piano."
"Help? Piano?" The manager looked confused.
Mana immediately seized the opening.
"Yes! Asai—um, Asai-san is a friend I've known for a long time. He came this time to ask me to help him find piano-related work."
…Wow. Using her own idol as a personal connection, huh.
The manager turned back to Asai Yu.
"Do you have a piano certificate? What level?"
"Not yet," Asai Yu shook his head.
Hearing that, the manager instantly lost interest and was about to have him escorted out.
But at that moment, Mana spoke up again,
"Um, Saori-san, Asai-san is really good at piano! Both Uika-chan and I have heard him play!"
Uika nodded vigorously. "Yeah!"
Seeing their reactions, the manager hesitated. Out of consideration for the two idols, she decided to at least let him try.
A few minutes later, Asai Yu sat down in front of the piano.