Am I being simulated by their love affair?

The smiling white head watched the two people walk towards the tower in the distance, and Natsumi Imokawa followed behind them with a camera.

The tower's name is "Symphony Sculpture that Summon Happiness." While it might seem ordinary from the outside, once you enter via the spiral staircase, you'll feel like you've entered another world.

Colored glass surrounds the entire interior of the tower, breaking down the transparent sunlight outside into a bizarre world. The two climbed up the spiral staircase, giving people the illusion of stepping into heaven, or as if they were traveling through psychedelic colors, with a faint sound of gospel in their ears.

"Is this what happiness feels like, Jun-kun? Dazzling colors, climbing step by step, spiraling upwards, feeling as if you're walking on air, unsteady. Is this what happiness feels like?"

The girl stopped at the highest point and asked Matsueda Jun who was standing below her.

"I think you should ask the designer." Jun Matsueda thought the experience was pretty good.

Tomatsu Tomoka pouted in dissatisfaction and pressed her hands to her chest. "I think the happiness in my heart is much more solid and reliable than this."

When leaving, Natsumi Imokawa took a picture of the relief on the outer wall of the tower. It showed a creature with black wings blowing a horn in its hand, looking a bit like a little devil.

After a long day of training and playing, the girls were exhausted by the evening. Tomatsu Tomoka soaked in the warm hot spring, stretched out her fair arms and leaned over the edge, letting out a sigh of comfort.

After putting on her yukata, the girl intended to go to Matsueda Jun's room. She had no intention of sneaking in, but simply wanted to try her luck and see if she could see him going out or coming back. However, as she passed the upperclassmen's room, she stopped in her tracks when she heard an argument inside.

"The problem now is that our clarinet and saxophone don't coordinate well enough. No matter what, we have to find a way to improve it, right? Teacher Hirouchi has pointed out the problem, and we must definitely solve it." She could tell that it was the gentle yet firm voice of Yamami Maki.

"Then we can also let Saxophone cooperate with us. Teacher Guangnei also said that Saxophone is too outstanding. Wouldn't it be better if they don't steal the show so much?"

Tomatsu Tomoka, the owner of this voice, remembers that her senior's boyfriend confessed his love to her after they broke up, but she was rejected. Since then, Tomatsu Tomoka has often felt malicious gazes.

"How could we ask the section that performs better to reduce its presence and cooperate with other sections? You are not new members anymore, how can you say such things?" There was a hint of anger in Yamami Maki's helpless question.

After a moment of silence, someone laughed.

"Why does it have to be a saxophone? A traditional arrangement would be fine. If Tomatsu is so talented, why not have the saxophone imitate the oboe? She's already tuning the oboe, so it wouldn't be a problem if she just joined the oboe? The soprano saxophone can fill in for the oboe, and we work well with the oboe. Wouldn't that be the best of both worlds?"

She had no impression of this voice. The girl leaned against the wall and smiled. The seniors no longer concealed their feelings. They were originally talking about "they" and "them", but now they were directly talking about Hu Song.

Yamami Matsukio was speechless. This was the truth, but how could she explain it to the saxophone part?

"And!" the voices in the room grew louder. "It's true that Tomatsu's level is high, but is her heart really in the wind band? She suddenly gave up the summer training a while ago. I don't know how you, the captain, persuaded her to come back, but it must have taken a lot of effort anyway. Can you guarantee that she won't do something like that again?"

"Everyone knows that in her heart, Jun Matsueda comes first. She loves him to death. Who knows if she'll have another love affair and just quit?"

"Minister, can you promise?"

This is the truth, Tomatsu Yuka thought.

There was a chorus of agreement in the room.

"Enough!" Yamami Maki's voice silenced the room. "Don't say things like that! At least right now, her attitude is more respectable than yours, that's undeniable!"

"I'll talk to Youhua about it. Don't mention changing the vocal part anymore. After tomorrow's break, I don't want to see you guys targeting her like this again."

Tomatsu Tomoka hid in a corner on the other side and watched Yamami Maki walk out of the room. Her steps were faster than usual, and her back was filled with a rare anger. Ever since she joined the wind band, Yamami Maki, as the band leader, had always taken good care of her, and now she was even more angry because she was angry with the seniors.

Although the wind band has changed a bit since Tomatsu Tomoka first came in, it is still a place she likes very much.

The girl slowed down her pace, walked through the corridor while thinking, and stood on the terrace again.

Jun Matsueda was watching Kaneji chasing flying insects on the lawn. When he felt Tomatsu Tomoka's gaze, he looked up.

Tomatsu Tomoka smiled and waved at him. She suddenly remembered the four statues she saw in the Sculpture Forest during the day and understood the creator's intention.

Strength, freedom, eloquence, and victory—all four are indispensable.

Chapter 56: The girl's white dress only appears at important moments

When the holiday began the next day, the seniors' faces when they saw Tomatsu Tomoka were even colder than Yamami Maki had expected. It seemed that the conflict was not resolved but intensified.

The melancholic director sighed. She wasn't good at using a strong attitude to solve problems. She was appointed director because the previous director believed that the girl's tolerant and gentle attitude could bring a more harmonious and friendly atmosphere to the wind band.

However, a problem that the previous director did not anticipate was that when only girls were left in the wind band, there was bound to be no harmony.

"What would she do if it was Xin-chan?" Although she and Kuroba Xin have disliked each other since childhood, when faced with such a problem, Yamami Moki would still think of the genius girl who was addicted to games.

Kuroba Shin, who has already become the president of Ochanomizu, will definitely not be stumped by this situation.

"Senpai Yamamiya seems to smile less recently." Jun Matsueda looked at the profile of Matsukori Yamamiya. The girl was sitting next to him, with lush green swaying outside the car window behind her.

The old-fashioned red mountain cable car shuttles along the track between the mountains, surrounded by a sea of ​​forests undulating in the wind, with the outline of the ground completely invisible.

The band's itinerary today is Owakudani, the "Hell Valley" that you must visit when you come to Hakone. You must first take the mountain cable car and then take the aerial cable car for sightseeing.

Yamami Maki's mood was not as bright as the scenery outside the car. She forced a smile at Matsueda Jun, and the helplessness in her expression made the young man sitting opposite her feel pity.

It's a pity that he was just a passerby sitting opposite.

"The atmosphere in the club may not be very good recently." The girl said worriedly.

According to Yamami Maki's personality, in order to avoid suspicion in front of Tomatsu Tomoka, she would not sit so close to Matsueda Jun, but the cable car full of tourists would not allow her to do so.

The director only had time to shout, "Get off at the final stop, Sounzan!" before the crowd shoved her into an unknown corner. This spot had been found for her by Jun Matsueda. If she had been standing, the girl's mood would have been even worse than it was now.

"Is it the seniors who have objections?" Matsueda Jun was not surprised.

"If Matsueda-san knew, you could have told me earlier." Yamami Maki looked at him with a reproachful look. For some reason, she felt more natural in front of the boy than in front of others.

The girl's outfit today was what's known as the "Mori Girl" style. It was a dark green, strappy long dress with a slender grass blade pattern printed on the skirt. The waistline was high, and two large green satin bows tied the straps to the dress, minimizing the amount of exposed skin.

There is still a hazy tulle jacket over the skirt. Matsueda Jun and Yamami Maki don’t have much contact, but every time she wears sleeveless clothes, she will have such a short jacket. She must have a conservative upbringing.

"Actually, senior sister has already known this." Matsueda Jun didn't believe that the captain who could make Tomatsu Tomoka stay in the wind band peacefully would not notice this.

Yamami Maki lowered her head and was silent for a while. "Matsueda-san is right. I'm actually afraid to face the problem and don't want to confront it."

She watched the trees outside the window cast their shadows on the ground in front of her, their fluctuations more dramatic than an electrocardiogram.

A brother and sister left their seats unused, standing up and leaning against the window, curiously peering out. Perhaps tired from standing on tiptoe, they turned around and stared blankly at Jun Matsueda.

"Don't worry about what I say, Yamami-senpai. Everyone has different ways of solving problems. Besides, it's not your fault that the conflict arose, right?"

Jun Matsueda made a face at the two children, and the elder sister blushed.

The younger brother turned his head to look at his sister, then looked at Matsueda Jun, and suddenly said loudly: "Sister, I want to grow up to be like that big brother!"

The elder sister's face turned into a ripe persimmon. She whispered to her brother, "Okay, then I will strive to be the elder sister in the green dress."

Then Yamami Moki's face also turned a little red.

"Actually, there's no need to worry too much. Senior isn't the only one in the wind band. There will be others who will step forward to help you solve the problem."

Yamami Maki didn't understand why Matsueda Jun's tone was so confident. Just as she was about to ask him, a reminder sounded in the carriage.

"Next stop is Soun Mountain."

The girls in the wind band reunited, and Yamami Maki no longer had any reason to stay with Matsueda Jun, so she walked towards the other members.

Jun Matsueda looked at Tomatsu Touka who looked calm in the crowd. She was wearing a white dress today, the simplest and most classic outfit.

She would only wear this dress on important occasions, such as at the opening ceremony and when she appeared at the door of Jun Matsueda's house.

The girl did not approach him today, so who was she dressed up for?

Sounzan is not only the starting point for visiting Owakudani, but also has many scenic spots worth stopping by.

Jun Matsueda followed Yumi Seshita and Natsumi Imokawa to a pastry shop and bought the local specialty honey cheese tarts. Yumi-chan drew a mountain cable car version of Kuromi and Hello Kitty from a gashapon machine on the roadside.

The popularity of Japanese local tourism culture is inseparable from this kind of "characteristic" and "regionally limited" things.

Before entering the cable car station of Sounzan, the three of them rested for a while in a drink shop in front of the second-floor platform. There was a semi-open open-air balcony and free foot baths.

Jun Matsueda felt the comfortable touch of the warm current on his feet and looked at the drinks the two girls placed on the table. It was a drink similar to milk tea, but there was no lid on it. Instead, there was a large ball of white marshmallow, as if the clouds were torn off the sky.

"No wonder they all say Hakone is the best place for retirement." Yumi-chan sighed. Imokawa Natsumi took the camera, pointed it at the mountains under the sky, and nodded in agreement.

"When I think about how Mochizuki-san can live out her retirement here without doing anything, while I will have to commute on the Tokyo subway every day, saving up money with great difficulty and then taking time out on weekends to come here and enjoy myself, I feel so uncomfortable. What should I do?" Seshita Yumi suddenly lost her fighting spirit.

"Don't forget that you can only be here because of Mochizuki Haruka." Matsueda Jun added ruthlessly.

"Let's go." The petite girl expressionlessly picked up a towel and wiped the water droplets off her feet. She stood up and walked towards the cable car station. "Let's change places quickly, otherwise I'm going to lose the mood to play."

Tomatsu Tomoka watched Jun Matsueda and the two people from the news department walk into the cable car. There were three other tourists next to them, all girls. They gathered together and chatted for a while, then also got into his cable car.

The girl watched as the cable car started up, rising higher before sliding through the treetops and over the ridge.

In front of Tomatsu Tomoka, the five girls who had quarreled with Yamami Maki in the room last night entered the back row of the cable car, chatting and laughing.

"Hey, what should we do about the Tomatsu issue that the minister mentioned yesterday?" someone asked a little uneasily.

"What can we do? He won't do anything to us. Anyway, I can't stand that guy being so prominent. Can you tolerate it?"

"There are plenty of ways to deal with her. Don't you know some delinquents outside the school? Just have them do something to Tomatsu's face."

"Eh? Too much! Isn't that a bit too much? Doesn't she care about Matsueda the most? Why not try to ruin Matsueda's reputation? Someone has done that before, right?"

"We can let her come and beg us then. If she's willing to apologize, we'll let them go. They're a pair of star-crossed lovers. Just thinking about it is touching."

The girls in the cable car laughed.

"Alright, alright, let's not talk about that guy anymore. I've lost all interest in going out to play!"

"Hell Valley, I'm kind of looking forward to it." said the senior who was betrayed by her boyfriend.

"When you get off the bus, remember to buy some black jellyfish to eat. They can extend your life by seven years!"

"I looked up the guide, and they usually sell them five at a time, which is perfect for the five of us."

Just before the cable car door was about to close, a girl in a white dress walked in.

"Seniors, do you mind fighting with me?"

As soon as Tomatsu Tomoka finished speaking, the cable car door closed.

With a slightly shaky start, the cable car, which was in dead silence, headed towards the valley where thick white smoke was billowing.

Chapter 57: The Dark Consequences of Owakudani

The car was so quiet that it seemed as if no one was there. Tomatsu Tomoka sat there calmly, watching the trees swaying beneath her feet.

"Finally, I have a chance to have a good talk with my seniors."

After hearing her words, the calm expressions that the girls had managed to maintain turned gloomy again.

"Tomatsu, what do you want to say? We didn't provoke you."

Their courage was only enough to plot malicious acts behind the scenes, but now facing the real culprit, in this suspended environment, they naturally lacked a sense of security.

The most troublesome thing is when these people who are good at doing petty evil get together, the girl thought absentmindedly. She stretched her neck, hoping to see the scene inside the cable car in front.

"I just wanted to talk to you seniors about the conversation the Minister had with you last night."

To the girl's disappointment, she couldn't see Matsueda Jun at all, but she could see the girl named Imokawa Natsumi moving around with a camera.

"Did you hear that?" The girls' faces changed. It is not a glorious thing to say bad things about someone behind their back, let alone being heard by the person concerned.

Tomatsu Tomoka nodded in confusion.

"So what? You want us to apologize?" The senior who had been broken up with sneered, "We didn't insult you or anything. We just expressed some opinions about the club. Maybe our thoughts were a little extreme, but we weren't wrong about your problem, were we?"

"Or are you recording something now, trying to provoke and frame us?"

No matter what kind of woman comes into the field of fighting, her IQ will always rise suddenly.

Tomatsu Tomoka calmly opened her phone and showed it to them. There were no apps running in the background. She traced the contours of her body through her white dress again, confirming that she didn't have a recorder or anything like that.

It was clearly a moment filled with hostility, yet they were shamefully attracted to the girl as she touched her body through her spotless white gauze skirt, on the green ridge and under the clear blue sky.

In the distance is the hell valley with boiling white smoke. The ups and downs of the girl in front of him and her calm expression have a forbidden and weird beauty that even people of the same sex cannot resist.

"I don't mean to threaten you." They came to their senses only when Tomatsu Tomoka spoke.

"Then what do you want to do?"

Another girl spoke up. She was the most prestigious third-year student in the club. She was very elegant when playing the trumpet, but she was not very good-looking. It was she who suggested doing something to Tomatsu Touka's face.

"I would like to ask all the seniors to stop targeting me." Tomatsu Tomoka kept a low profile, as if she was really an annual like a white lotus.

"Don't talk nonsense first. We don't mean anything against you. I don't know what made you misunderstand?" Seeing the object of their jealousy begging humbly in front of them, their hearts gradually became arrogant.

Someone started to get weird.

"Tomatsu, if you feel like you're being targeted, isn't that your fault? People wouldn't be malicious towards you for no reason. You'd better reflect on yourself, okay?"

"Come to think of it, everyone is a little worried about you. You almost didn't show up for the training camp we agreed on. You're the most restless person in the club, right?"

Looking at the silent girl, the pleasure of being proud made them feel much better after being depressed all night.

The elders wanted to continue talking, but the cable car passed over the ridge and shook a bit. Everyone finally saw the valley spewing smoke. The ground was the color of sulfur and there was a pungent smell in the air. It really felt like they had left the ordinary world.

"Then let me put it another way. I hope everyone can face the upcoming training with 100% seriousness and not hold everyone back."

She was not surprised that her tentative surrender had no effect.