My daily life is getting weird because I am caught between being in a band and being an idol.

Then, Taoxiang and I sat down to watch Qinyin and Chaoyang, wondering what they were going to say.

"Manager... Mo, this is really going too far... bringing them back without permission."

"Who told you to listen? You never listen to reason. Even when I told you to rest, you wouldn't listen at all. Special times call for special measures. Are you feeling better now?"

"Even so... well, you're only being forgiven this time because of the manager~~ Next time, it won't be so easy to let you off the hook~~~"

Qin Yin winked after speaking. Although Chao Yang's heart melted when he saw it, he remained calm and composed, picking up his teacup and drinking tea.

"Haha, I got it."

"Could you please stop doing this in my house..."

At this moment, Nina spoke up at an inopportune time. She was very displeased with and even disgusted by Fujita Kotone's act of pretending to be cute.

Fujita Kotone, who is quite adept at interpersonal relationships, immediately noticed Nina's displeasure and promptly stopped trying to maintain a professional demeanor.

"Uh... haha, sorry... Now that I've rested enough, it's about time I went back."

"Rencai, excuse me, could I borrow your place for a few more minutes?"

"..."

At this moment, Nina felt as if she were seeing the same romantic drama that the school beauty who used to bully her usually acted out, and she entered a state where she was about to explode at any moment.

Only Kotone noticed that something was wrong with her; even Momoka hadn't realized it yet.

"That store manager... I... let's go outside and talk."

"Hehehe, don't worry about me, just say it here. You can be as cute as before."

Rencai spoke with a forced smile.

"Well……"

What's wrong with this child? The atmosphere suddenly changed, it's scary. Could it be that she likes the manager, and that's why she's unhappy with what I did earlier?

Qin Yin could only gesture with her eyes, urging Chaoyang to speak quickly.

He noticed that Nina was acting strangely, but Asahi knew that Nina could have these manic-like episodes, though it hadn't fully manifested yet. Leaving now might actually upset Nina.

"Kotone-chan, something must have happened to you at school? You looked unusually tired and spoke haltingly when we met today."

"...Huh? Nothing happened. Honestly, store manager, you're overthinking it."

Although Chaoyang knew the truth, if Qinyin didn't reveal it and he had to do it himself, it would be a bit horrifying, and he might even be thought to be either a stalker or had planted a listening device on her.

After thinking for a moment, Chaoyang began to probe further indirectly.

"That day, when I was taking you home, I felt like someone was taking pictures in the distance, but I didn't pay attention at the time. Now that I think about it, could someone be using those photos to blackmail you?"

"...Manager, you didn't plant a listening device on me, did you? Your speculation is way too specific..."

Qin Yin's brain is usually sharp enough. She doesn't think Chao Yang can deduce the correct answer based on this information alone. It's more like he already knows the correct answer and is just hinting at it indirectly.

"Huh? Bullying?"

Rencai seemed to wake up as if she had heard the key words.

He crawled from the floor to Qinyin's side.

"Were you bullied?!"

"Wow, Miss Jingqin, you're standing way too close!"

"You absolutely cannot back down! If you keep giving in like this, they'll only get more and more unreasonable! Don't worry, I'll help you, Ms. Fujita!"

Nina became increasingly excited and placed her hands directly on Kotone's shoulders.

“Nina, calm down. You don’t even know what’s going on, and you’re here saying you want to help others.”

Taoxiang stepped forward to try to pull Rencai back, but Rencai ignored her and refused to let go.

And so, the three beautiful girls got mixed up together again.

"I understand! I'll tell you everything!"

Finally, Kotone, feeling somewhat uncomfortable from Nina's actions, seemed to give up and surrender, shouting out loud.

Chaoyang did see some nice scenery.

"...That's how it is."

Feeling a bit hungry in the middle of the night, the group drank tea and ate the grilled skewers that Chaoyang had brought back from the shop, while Qin Yin recounted what had happened at school that day.

"...Well, this level...it doesn't even qualify as bullying. ...By the way, were you from Chuxing Academy? Anyway, you are really cute, it's a shame you're not an idol."

Momoka immediately shared her thoughts. After all, although there was a threatening element to it, the three girls seemed rather silly based on Kotone's description.

"...Indeed...but bullying is bullying, and you can't assume it's okay just because of the degree of bullying. ...The other person might have had reservations at first, which is why they weren't too extreme, but it will only get worse later on..."

Just then, Asahi finally noticed what Nina's key words were. Recalling that she had said she dropped out of high school to attend a preparatory school here, he roughly guessed why she came to Tokyo.

"Nina, if I made a mistake, I apologize in advance... But did you come here because you were bullied and dropped out of school?"

Although the original intention was to deal with Kotone's problem, it was discovered that Nina also seemed to have a knot in her heart. Asahi considered that her tendency to explode at the drop of a hat would have a great impact on her future. Since they had met, Asahi wanted to help her if possible.

Chapter 22 A Two-Pronged Approach

"She was the most popular person in school...and quite beautiful..."

Chaoyang glanced at the photos on Rencai's phone.

Hmm... not even as good as a single hair of Pikachu.

Renna, whose voice was already somewhat subdued, continued speaking.

"She took turns messing with the handsome guys at the boys' school. It felt like she didn't like me. Even if I wanted to fight back, she would team up with others to bully me, making it impossible for me to retaliate. She used a combination of passive-aggressive tactics, and at the worst point, I was even hospitalized. But my family advised me not to make too much of a scene..."

"STOP!"

Tao Xiang stopped them at this moment. She picked up a meat skewer, ate it, and said...

"Um, um, is this a church? Why does it feel like a venting session? Even the delicious skewers don't taste good anymore. Um, um, since you have so many things on your mind, why don't you form a band with me and sing them out? I feel like the emotions in your story could make a lot of songs, and I also want to try a band where the lead singer isn't you, to see what it's like to focus on the guitar."

When Rencai heard Momoka's words, she felt a flutter in her heart.

"Dropping out of high school means limited future choices. It's too late to regret it once you have your dreams!"

After hearing that Rennai had decided to drop out of school, Rennai's father turned his back to her and smoked one cigarette after another. When the ashtray was almost full of cigarette butts, he finally let out a long sigh and said his words of advice.

Upon hearing this, Nina's anger intensified.

"In that case, I'll just go and get into a good university!"

A conversation I had with my father a few days before leaving my hometown in Kumamoto instantly flashed into my mind.

...If I join a band, I probably won't have time to study, and then I won't be able to fulfill my promises. In the end, I'll just be a loser.

"No, if I drop out of high school now and can't go to college, I'm doomed."

"Are we doomed?"

Tao Xiang repeated the word meaningfully.

Nina, who was looking at a picture of her enemy on her phone, immediately looked up and replied, thinking that Momoka had misinterpreted her words as meaning that she was doomed if she didn't go to university.

"Ah, no, that's not what I meant. It's just that if I continue like this, won't it feel like I've lost? Lost to the people who bully me, lost to my parents, lost to my teachers..."

"Ah~~~ I understand, I won't invite you again."

"sorry."

"There's no need to apologize..."

Qin Yin and Chao Yang had somehow ended up sitting together.

The sound of the zither whispered softly in the morning sun's ear.

"Manager, has the topic of discussion changed? It feels like it has nothing to do with me anymore?"

"Shh, it's better not to say anything in this atmosphere."

"Ah! I'm sorry, we were originally talking about Ms. Fujita! It suddenly sounds like we're discussing me, I'm so sorry!"

When Rencai remembered the source of the gathering, she immediately stood up and bowed her head again to apologize.

Qin Yin just smiled awkwardly. To be honest, she really felt that she was okay and that she wasn't being bullied.

"Actually, I'm fine. Compared to Miss Jingqin, this is nothing. After all, it's true that she said she's a bottom-of-the-class student with bad grades and no hope of becoming an idol. She's been at Chuxing Academy for four years, starting from middle school, but her idol-like abilities are even inferior to those students who just entered high school. And she even gave me a tip for running errands... Maybe... she thought that if she became a famous idol, she could really help me out."

My family, already struggling financially, is burdened with exorbitant tuition fees, which is why I've been working tirelessly to support them. Perhaps this is an opportunity; it's time to give it up. My father has run away from home due to debts. I originally wanted to become an idol to make a lot of money… but I haven't even achieved that… If I focus all my efforts on working for the shop manager…

The morning sun heard every word of Qin Yin's heartfelt words.

"This kind of person is just trying to humiliate you. The other person isn't exactly a great idol either. They feel inferior to their idols and then try to gain a sense of superiority from you."

Chaoyang said this, and to be honest, it would obviously be more advantageous for Qinyin to drop out of school and work in his shop. If she became an idol, she would definitely drift further and further away from Chaoyang. But if she stayed, given the current trend of increasing favorability, Pikachu would become his possession. With the bonus from the system, it's not hard to imagine that his married life with Qinyin would be very happy.

But this was the first time Chaoyang had seen Qinyin, with whom he had spent so much time, display such a forlorn expression in front of him.

He knew that if Qinyin really gave up, this expression would stay with her for the rest of her life. She would probably imagine what it would have been like if she had persisted when she was alone.

He wants to stop this now, even though he likes Qin Yin so much that he wants to build a basement, lock her up inside, and chain her up tightly.

"Just like Nina said, it might have started out as a simple prank, but when people have the ability to control others, they gradually lose their rationality. Do you know about the Stanford Prison Experiment? Even ordinary people, when placed in a position of absolute power, can quickly degenerate and become the embodiment of violence and cruelty. So we must take countermeasures, and I don't think your idol career will fail... Anyway, let's go back today, Kotone. Leave the rest to me, I already have a plan."

"Huh? Seriously, you're suddenly telling me to go back now... Ah, it's already too late."

Kotone glanced at the time on her phone and realized something was wrong. She quickly said goodbye and hurriedly left Nina's room.

Seeing this, Renna hugged her knees and became sad.

Ah... Ms. Fujita is so kind; in situations like this, someone will stand firmly behind her... while I... even my family didn't stand by me back then...

As Chaoyang watched Qinyin leave in a hurry, his gaze involuntarily shifted to the other protagonist of today's story, Jingqin Rencai. Rencai was currently hugging her knees, head bowed, eyes reddening.

They were clearly in a state of frustration.

Chaoyang glanced at Taoxiang, seemingly not intending to interfere.

So he moved closer.

He gently placed his hand on her head, stroking her hair as if comforting a child. Nina was startled at first, then slowly raised her head to look at the rising sun.

"Ok?"

"...You too, you must have had a tough time all this time. Although I don't know the reasons behind your situation... I believe you are right, based on my understanding of Nina over the past few days."

"Was I really right?...Then why did it seem like no one was on my side back then?"

"You suffered unfair or unreasonable treatment not because you were wrong, but simply because that's how the world has always been. So don't doubt yourself. It's a pity I didn't know you back then and couldn't help you. But I'd be happy to help you if you need anything in the future."

"…Thanks"

Name: Jing Qinrencai

Charisma: 75

Monthly earnings growth: ¥0

Favorability: 45/100

Not yet under your command, no rating available.

Seeing that Nina had returned to her original state, Asahi was able to focus on handling Kotone's matter without any distractions.

After a brief farewell, he left Rencai's house and took two steps before opening the door to return to his own home.

"...You're pretty good at charming girls, are you really just treating them as friends?"

Tao Xiang came out at this moment, leaned against the door, and asked questions in a teasing tone.

"Who knows? Maybe one of them will be my future wife."

"You're really shameless... But I'll still give you some advice: don't make promises you can't keep, or you'll not only hurt others, but sooner or later it'll come back to haunt you. Goodnight, thanks for the skewers and beer. It's nice to run into someone like you once in a while."

Chapter 23 So you're easy to handle after all, little dragon!

The next day

First Star Academy

Last time I came, it was evening and I didn't notice anything, but today I realized that this school definitely looks much more upscale and sophisticated than other schools. It has tall red brick pillars on both sides, topped with an arched structure bearing the school's English name, "GAKUEN".

In the middle of the school gate stands a large black wrought iron gate, adorned with intricate carvings. Outside the gate, a wide path paved with red bricks leads to the other end of the gate.