Sakiko felt no particular negative emotions about Kamijo Mutsumi suddenly messaging her to come to work.
Setting aside his status as her creditor, as "Customer Service Saki," her ability to handle pressure was far beyond that of her peers.
Moreover, the offer included a private car service, which saved her another expense.
After all, the "Great God Saki" of today couldn't afford a taxi. The only thing that concerned her was the "surprise" he had mentioned.
Although her attitude towards him had shifted for certain reasons, the memory of him threatening her was still fresh in her mind.
Therefore, his mention of a surprise filled her with a sense of inexplicable malice.
Then, after arriving at Houbun Animation, she realized her feeling had not been wrong.
"Saki-chan..."
The moment she stepped into the recording studio, she saw a certain wealthy high school girl with a look of pleasant surprise.
Behind Soyo, Tomori and Taki were staring straight at her, while Mutsumi Wakaba had a worried expression.
What the hell do you call a surprise!
The heart that was in her throat finally dropped dead.
"We finally meet again..."
If Tomori and Taki were merely surprised to see CRYCHIC's former "unattainable dream" again, Soyo was already moving closer to her, barely able to control herself.
"...Saki-chan, are you also a voice actress for this anime? What a coincidence."
"And I'm really sorry about last time. I was too anxious..."
Even though she was the one who had been yelled at last time, Soyo was now taking the initiative to apologize to Sakiko.
"But... I really want to have a proper talk with you, Saki-chan."
Soyo had originally planned to test the waters a bit, but she had overestimated her own self-control. After just a few sentences, her true form was revealed.
"Why did you transfer schools? Was it because of CRYCHIC?"
"Where are you now, Saki-chan? Can you tell me?"
"Even if CRYCHIC disbanded... we're still friends, aren't we?"
"I really have so much I want to say to you. After we finish recording, can we go to your place and talk...?"
Soyo's behavior startled all the band members, except for Raana. Even Mutsumi Wakaba was taken aback.
They never expected Soyo, who was usually as gentle as a mother, to show such a side. Anon's expression was particularly stiff, her mouth twitching.
After all, among the current band members, she had the best impression of Soyo, aside from Tomori.
Who could resist a high-class young lady from Tsukinomori with such a gentle face?
But looking at her now, she seemed even more emotionally "heavy" than Tomori. Don't tell me everyone in this band is like this?
Ano-chan instantly felt that her future was bleak.
Meanwhile, the members of the animation department, who were avidly watching from the side, felt like they were watching a live-action version of MyGO!!!!!, their faces flushed with excitement.
Sakiko: "..."
Just seeing Soyo was already enough to irritate her. She had long grown tired of the girl's clichés from when she used to bombard her with messages on LINE.
Furthermore, Soyo's opening move of basically doxxing her had completely crossed her bottom line. Her gaze involuntarily turned ice-cold.
She couldn't even be bothered to reply. After giving Tomori a complicated look, she pulled Kamijo Mutsumi aside.
"What are Soyo and Tomori doing here? Why are they here?!" the girl asked, looking up at him, her eyes suppressing a burning rage.
"As we all know, MyGO!!!!! is a girl band anime produced by Houbun Animation, based on the story of CRYCHIC. The audience will follow the story of CRYCHIC through the main perspective of Chihaya Anon, on the stage of BanG Dream... Therefore, it's very reasonable for me to ask Tomori and the others to do the voice acting, isn't it?"
"Or could it be... that Miss Toyokawa doesn't like my surprise?"
You call this fucking thing a surprise?!
Looking at his "innocent" expression, Sakiko felt like she was about to grind her teeth to dust.
She refused to believe that he didn't understand her current situation and feelings.
This despicable guy... he was deliberately trying to get a kick out of her misery.
"I don't need... this kind of surprise!"
Thank goodness for the resilience her customer service career had given her. Otherwise, she would have definitely exploded on him.
"In the future, wait until they've left, then call me over."
Mutsumi Wakaba was one thing, but she really did not want to see Soyo or Tomori. The former annoyed her, and the latter made her feel guilty.
"So... are you planning to keep running away forever, Saki-chan?"
His unexpected words made the girl freeze.
"Toyokawa Sakiko," he said, looking down at the blue-haired girl before him.
"Did you think that just by transferring schools, becoming Customer Service Saki, and cutting off your old friends... everything that happened could just be written off?"
Faced with his piercing gaze, Sakiko felt a pang of guilt and self-reproach.
But she quickly recovered.
What does the CRYCHIC affair have to do with an outsider like you? What right do you have to say such things?
"...This has nothing to do with you, does it?"
"You're right. But, Miss Toyokawa..."
The girl suddenly found that the expression on his face was becoming familiar.
Since a simple conversation wasn't working, he skillfully switched tactics.
"You wouldn't want your old friends to be bullied by me while you're not around, would you?"
"You..."
Hearing this all-too-familiar threat, Sakiko's cheeks flushed with anger.
"...Despicable!"
However, with her weak spot targeted, Sakiko ultimately chose to surrender, as if reliving that day all over again.
But even though she was being coerced into staying, Sakiko still had no intention of interacting with Tomori and the others. She simply focused on completing her own tasks.
This caused Tomori, who had wanted to go over and say hello, to lower her head, her eyes instantly dimming.
Seeing Tomori being hurt, Taki was on the verge of losing it. It was a good thing Tomori herself stopped her.
Sakiko, however, continued her voice work with an unchanging expression, as if completely indifferent to their reactions.
No one noticed the girl's fist, which she had clenched tightly at some point, her nails nearly digging into her flesh.
Although Sakiko's arrival made the atmosphere in the recording studio a bit strange and awkward, the girls still managed to complete their tasks well.
After all, acting as themselves wasn't too difficult for them.
However, Kamijo Mutsumi hadn't brought them here today just to have them voice the first few episodes. More importantly...
"What? You want us to perform the anime's opening and ending themes?"
Hearing his words, Anon was the first to speak up.
Although she tried her best to hide it, a hint of nervousness and apprehension was still visible in her eyes.