Cards — They Huddled Shoulder to Shoulder 1

[gyaxa]

(Several Hours Later)

Aira: We will now commence ALKALOID’s emergency meeting!

… Well, I say that, but I’m still a little drained from Tattsun-senpai driving us back.

Mayoi: We were in such a panicked state that it’s like we weren’t taking a breather at all.

Aira: Well, at least the Highway to Hell we took let us get back super fast.

I seriously need to take a mental break after going to see Tenshouin-senpai as soon as we got back…

Tatsumi: Then why don’t I take the reins of the conversation for now? There are quite a few things that I want to go over.

Hiiro: Thank you, Tatsumi-senpai. I’ll make sure to relay everything I know.

Tatsumi: There’s no need for you to get so worked up. I’ll admit I was rather shocked when I heard your remark in the rose garden…

But after listening to Eichi-san, I think I’ve gotten a pretty solid grasp on what’s going on.

He was rather vague with his wording, but essentially, he just wants ALKALOID to produce some results for the time being.

We’re going to participate in SS—the countrywide idol festival—as rookie idols.

It seems that until then, he wants us to make a name for ourselves among the other units and gain prestige.

Aira: It’s the SS, after all.

From the fans’ point of view, it’d be natural for them to see inexperienced idols they’ve never heard of before and go, “what are they doing here?”

It might even go like that for preliminaries too.

… Well, I saw some rumors online that ES is being super extra with this year’s SS, so I have no idea what it’s actually gonna be like.

Mayoi: But if this is a request for ALKALOID, why didn’t he discuss it with all of us present?

If he wished to give us an order, wouldn’t it be more appropriate to gather all four of us for the discussion instead of passing the message through Hiiro-san…?

Hiiro: … I mentioned this in the car, but I’m pretty sure this whole issue started because of my remark.

Aira: You mean the thing you brought up to us when we were at the canteen?

That the agency staff had asked you about work you wanna try in the future.

Hiiro: That’s right. I don’t think I told you what my response to the question was at that point, though.

I ended up saying that I had no hopes in particular… And it seems the agency’s so-called “bigwigs” caught wind of what I said.

Tatsumi: So the higher-ups were unsatisfied with how Hiiro-san’s response didn’t have the enthusiasm expected from a rookie idol and a member of Starpro.

Since those in power probably exert a lot of influence over the agency, they might hold it against the rest of us at some point too…

Hiiro: Right, I’m the one that they have a bad impression of, so it’d obviously be my job to dispel those feelings.

And besides, I’m ALKALOID’s leader.

Any impression a unit’s leader¹ gives is sure to spread to the unit they lead as well.

That’s probably why Tenshouin-senpai specifically reached out to me to try and solve the issue.

Tatsumi: Well, this is all just conjecture, but I think you’re right for the most part.
 

Mayoi: H-However! When the staff members were questioning Hiiro-san, I was also present.

I didn’t think Hiiro-san’s response was inadequate at all, and besides, I answered the same thing.

I’m just as guilty… so I don’t think we should make Hiiro-san bear all the responsibility for this.

Hiiro: Mayoi-senpai…

Aira: Don’t worry about it, Mayo-san. When me and Tattsun-senpai heard about your responses in the canteen, it’s not like we thought anything of it either.

Besides, we totally get why Hiro-kun answered that way, yeah?

So when I heard what he said, I was just like, “I guess that’s one way to look at it”... or something like that.

Hiiro: Tenshouin-senpai told me that people tend to cherry-pick parts from entertainers’ words and miss what they actually meant.

Tatsumi: It’s always upsetting to have people misconstrue your words, but for now, let’s think about what we can do—what we must do.

This may be the last time Eichi-san is so clear with his warnings, after all…

Growth comes hand-in-hand with pain, so we must overcome that pain and use it to grow even more.

Hiiro: You’re right. I want to grow and become stronger, strong enough to ourselves should we really find ourselves in a tight spot.

Aira: We might be able to get help from someone like Anzu-san if that happens, but we shouldn’t depend on others too much.

Mayoi: We’ll have to work harder as idols to be able to sense imminent crises and protect ourselves against them by ourselves…

Aira: TBH, I do want the agency to protect us, though. Like, isn’t that what they’re there for, y’know?

But considering what’s happened to other groups, there’s no way to tell what the agency might do to us…

Ah, this isn’t me badmouthing the higher-ups, okay! I’m just talking about how strict corporations can be!

Tatsumi: It’s quite alright. There’s no one but us here, so you don’t have to worry about anyone hearing what you say.

 

Hiiro: … Our unit exists thanks to ES.

However, we can’t let ES and Starpro keep hold of ALKALOID’s fate and leadership forever.

We have no way of telling what will happen from now on.

But we’ll choose our path from now on. We’ll become capable of deciding that for ourselves.

 
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1. Hiiro says the word "leader" out loud, but the word used in the text is "lord". ↑

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