"Soyo, where are you going?"
"Ah… I-uh, my stomach hurts a little. I'm gonna run to the bathroom real quick."
Nagasaki Soyo forced a sheepish smile.
She had gotten smarter now—she knew she couldn't just act on her own without Chihiro knowing.
So… she decided to call for backup.
Slipping away to the restroom under the guise of a stomachache, she didn't even hesitate before dialing Tsuzuki Chihiro's number.
"What do you want? I'm almost at RiNG. You seriously can't wait to push me into work?"
"What?!"
"The hell—" On the other end, Tsuzuki Chihiro clearly got startled by Soyo's outburst. Annoyed, she snapped, "What's your problem? I'm out here running your damn mission, and you're yelling at me why?"
"Uh… we have a huge problem—Taki is waiting for me outside the school gate!"
Pressing a hand over her mouth, Soyo carefully cracked open the restroom door and peeked outside.
Sure enough, Taki was still standing there in the hallway, making absolutely no move to leave.
"What are you so scared of? I'll just come back. Anon hasn't spotted me yet, anyway."
Soyo froze for a moment. Then, hesitantly, she asked, "Wait… you mean I should go out there as Soyo—uh, wait, what am I saying?! I am Soyo!"
Tsuzuki Chihiro burst into laughter at Soyo's slip-up, her voice ringing like a wind chime.
But once she had her fun, she quickly composed herself. She was, after all, a professional who took her job seriously—especially since she was getting paid for it. Before Soyo could start panicking again, Chihiro spoke first.
"I can guess why she's here. She probably wants to ask about the future of the band."
"You mean… Tomori and Raana?"
At the current stage, Raana was still missing, and Tomori was too afraid to get on stage.
For Soyo, that situation was actually ideal.
As long as things stayed this way…
"If Taki asks you whether everyone's ready—if she starts having second thoughts—you have to tell her she's wrong."
"Wait… shouldn't I be telling her the opposite?"
Soyo frowned in confusion.
Wasn't their plan to make the current band as unpresentable as possible? To keep it from ever getting off the ground?
Before she could think too much, though, Chihiro was already launching into her usual nonsense at full speed.
"Tell me, do you think Taki has a good temper?"
"Compared to you? I'd say… probably, yeah?"
"…"
"Okay, what's your point?" Soyo chuckled, but quickly reined herself in—Taki was still waiting outside, after all.
"My point is that a band's first live is crucial. Whether it starts off perfectly or with some minor flaws, either way, it helps the band grow."
"But what if that live is a complete disaster?"
"…"
Soyo's eyes lit up as an idea clicked into place.
"Think about it—what even is this band right now? No keyboardist. Two guitarists—one MIA, the other useless. A bassist who's given up—"
"Wait, what do you mean the bassist's given up?"
"The bassist is you. Just screw around on purpose, and boom—problem solved."
"…Ah. My bad, I got ahead of myself."
Soyo stuck out her tongue, realizing that she had been relying so much on her "external brain" (a.k.a. Chihiro) that she was starting to lose her own legendary intelligence.
But when she really thought about it… Chihiro actually had a point.
She still wasn't entirely sure why Raana had left, but it was probably out of sheer disappointment in the band.
As for the others… Anon? She trusted her completely. She was certain Taki would obliterate her in rehearsals. And Tomori? A walking time bomb.
Right when everyone thought things were going fine, it was Tomori who completely froze up on stage.
If it hadn't been for Soyo bringing in Sakiko—reminding Tomori of how she had once found her voice thanks to her—then that first live would have been an absolute trainwreck.
Forget band names, forget stage outfits—just avoiding becoming the next laughingstock of RiNG would've been an accomplishment.
Unfortunately… there were only so many ways a bassist could sabotage a performance.
She'd just have to make do by deliberately screwing up in practice later.
It was a small price to pay… if it meant making sure everyone remembered that CRYCHIC was the real band.
Seriously… Chihiro was something else.
Soyo had thought that yesterday, when she cleaned up her mess, was already a standout moment.
But in just one night, this terrifying girl had already come up with even more shameless schemes.
Chihiro and morality? Completely unrelated concepts.
—All she ever thinks about is how to manipulate people.
Still, at the very least, Chihiro had always been honest with her. Never once had she lied.
And that… made Soyo feel a little touched.
"Thanks…"
"Huh? For what?"
For once, the usually quick-witted Chihiro sounded caught off guard. But she shamelessly accepted Soyo's gratitude anyway.
"It's nothing. I get what I need to do now. By the way… why don't we swap places for the next few days?"
"Meaning?"
"I'll handle the band. I guarantee you an absolute disaster of a garage band."
"And you—go to Tsukinomori for me. You haven't been back at school in forever, right? Besides, you can talk to Mutsumi for me."
"I have a feeling… she still has no intention of getting back together with everyone."
"Soyo?! What's taking you so long? You're not sick, are you?!"
Hearing Taki calling for her outside, Soyo didn't wait to hear Chihiro's response—she just hung up, flushed the toilet for effect, and stepped out.
After splashing some water on her face, the ash-haired girl looked into the mirror, eyes shining with confidence.
Yeah… nothing beats logging into my own account.
She, Nagasaki Soyo—Tsukinomori's legendary schemer—was back.
"Soyo, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, Taki. You had something you wanted to talk about, right? What is it?"
"You…"
Shiina Taki suddenly had a strange feeling.
It was like… in the time it took Soyo to use the restroom, she had somehow turned into a completely different person.
Not to mention—she wasn't actually in the restroom at all, was she?
Her voice had been loud. Too loud.
Like she'd been on the phone with someone.
She hadn't caught much, but she had definitely heard a few key phrases:
"I am Soyo!"
"Why don't we swap places?"
"The bassist's given up."
Forget the first two—the bassist?! Wasn't that YOU?!
This… this sounded like some split personality horror movie nonsense.
…Wait.
What if she hadn't been on the phone?
"Soyo," Taki cautiously asked, eyeing her. "Were you just… talking on the phone?"
"Phone? No, why? Who would I even call?"
"…"
Oh hell no.
Soyo had officially lost her mind.
---
T/N: LMAOOO