บท 295: Enrolling at Otonokizaka?

"Hello, everyone~! We are Otonokizaka's school idols, Muse!"

At this moment, Muse finally took the stage.

Meanwhile, as Homura confirmed his camera was live, Haru ran over from the stage toward him.

"How's it going?" Homura asked with a smile.

"Meow~! (With me here, there's no problem!)" Haru's expression appeared somewhat proud.

"Well, as expected of my Haru."

With that, Haru returned to Sagiri's side.

"We all love this school very much!"

Honoka went on representing Muse, expressing her and her friends' feelings toward Otonokizaka.

"It's because in this school that we all met! It's also because of this school that we were able to gather these nine members!"

"Our next performance is the most important for us! This song, we hope it will mark a new beginning for our school!"

In the next moment, all nine members of Muse spoke in unison—

""Please enjoy it! 'Our LIVE, Our LIFE with you (Bokura no LIVE Kimi to no LIFE)'!""

===

While the others watched Muse's performance, Homura continued to draw his manga.

As he watched the live performance of Muse, Homura felt that their movements were somewhat different from what he remembered.

Perhaps it was because Eli had joined earlier this time, and everyone's dancing skills had improved rapidly.

If that was the case, that explained why their choreography was more refined than the original.

"Our energetic temperatures won't go down~"

"We feverishly flap our wings~"

"When you talk about your aspirations~"

"I love the unyielding expression in your eyes… I love it!~"

*Clap!* *Clap!* *Clap!* *Clap!*

As the performance concluded, applause followed.

At the same time, Homura's finished drawing captured Eli's heartfelt smile on the stage perfectly.

Honoka and the others were only slightly out of breath, indicating just how much they had improved.

In the past, they would be panting heavily by now.

"Thank you very much for coming to watch our performance!"

With a bright smile, Honoka addressed the audience and bowed her body with the other eight.

"Now, please continue to explore the school! We hope that everyone, especially the third-year students, will be satisfied with their visit!"

With that, Muse's performance officially ended, and they left the stage to change.

Homura stood up from the ground, patting his rear, and spoke to Yukiho and Alisa.

"Let's go for a walk, shall we? Honoka and the others will come to find us later. It's a good time to discuss your voice acting lessons."

Yukiho and Alisa exchanged glances and nodded.

"Sure thing, Minamiya-senpai."

As Homura and the girls began to explore the school, he suddenly asked, "Yukiho, Honoka mentioned earlier that you were considering applying to UTX, right?"

Yukiho, a bit embarrassed, scratched her head.

"...Yes, that's what I was thinking. But ever since my sister joined Muse, I really want to apply to Otonokizaka... assuming it doesn't close."

Homura nodded.

Yukiho's choice made sense.

If not for the risk of Otonokizaka closing down, Yukiho would have chosen it, following the tradition of the Kosaka family, which had attended Otonokizaka since her grandmother's time.

Although A-RISE had its allure, Muse had successfully made a comeback, right?

"Whether the school closes or not depends on the students who are here today." Homura glanced around at the crowd. "As long as Otonokizaka got enough students who showed interest in applying on the survey, the school won't shut down."

"Of course!" Alisa said earnestly. "Because Muse is here, I'm definitely going to Otonokizaka!"

Muramasa shook her head quietly.

She didn't quite understand Alisa's way of thinking—choosing her school based on idols.

However, if there were people who could write interesting stories every day at a particular school, would she end up like Alisa and choose it too?

Possibly.

"Speaking of which, is UTX High School popular mainly because of A-RISE?" Elf asked curiously. "Are there any other advantages?"

"Hmm..." Yukiho pondered for a moment and replied, "It has a very modern feel, I guess?"

"I still prefer schools with more uniqueness and somewhat distinct, like Otonokizaka." Elf shook her head.

"So, are you thinking of enrolling at Otonokizaka next year?" Homura chuckled.

Upon hearing his question, Elf unexpectedly began to consider it seriously. After a moment of pondering, she finally answered.

"Well, it's not impossible. After all, a genius like me can learn anything easily, no matter which school I attend."

'You're not fooling anyone with that false modesty. I bet you secretly study hard, just like that 'Summon Darkness' skill you claim to summon a manuscript from the netherworld' Homura thought with a wry smile. 'I'm pretty sure you wrote it all by yourself when nobody was looking.'

Not responding to Elf's statement, Homura turned to Nayuta.

"What about you, Nayu? Do you want to attend this school in the future?"

"Senpai... I'm not sure..." Nayuta seemed uncertain and shook her head.

Seeing this, Homura ruffled her hair, causing Sagiri to watch with envy.

"Do you have any aversion to Otonokizaka?" Homura asked again.

Nayuta shook her head again.

"Well, give it some serious thought." Homura continued. "A student's life is an essential part of everyone's journey, and at this school, you already have many acquaintances. That's why, you don't need to worry about a thing."

As Nayuta was pondering seriously, Homura remained patient and did not rush her.

There was plenty of time, after all.

Meanwhile, Elf pursed her lips, not showing any reaction to Homura's words.

Everyone had their own views and thoughts, so whether or not to attend school ultimately depended on personal choices.

Upon seeing Elf's expression, Homura rolled his eyes and thought, 'She didn't want to go to school, probably because she had no friends... Maybe it was her haughty personality that made people not want to approach her.'

Homura and his close group of friends understood Elf well enough not to be bothered by her occasional haughty behavior. In fact, this haughtiness served as a protective shield, much like Eli's cold aloofness—a facade.

After spending enough time with Elf, they knew she had mellowed out somewhat. But what about others? Those who had just met her—wouldn't Elf's haughty behavior push them away?

From this, it was truly inevitable that Muramasa, who was similarly uninterested in others, would become friends with Elf.

However, everyone had their own way of dealing with things, and Homura had no intention of imposing his opinion on Elf or anyone else, as it would only breed annoyance.

Listening to Homura and the others, Yukiho and Alisa felt that there was something more to this conversation that was best left unasked.

"Hey, look at all the smiles on the students' faces..." Homura suddenly remarked.

Upon hearing his words, the girls looked in the direction he indicated and realized he was right.

At this moment, the middle school girls arrived with friends and some with their parents, all chatting and laughing, their faces filled with genuine joy.

"Everyone's dreams... they can totally come true here..."

Alisa spoke softly, gazing at the crowd with a dreamy look in her eyes.