143: Producer

—And so! I still don’t fully understand what’s happening, but the producer, Anzu-san, will be supervising our rehearsal!

Everyone, let’s give her a round of applause! That’s the correct thing to do when you welcome someone!

Huh—Umm? I’m supposed to clap? Clap clap clap… ☆

~ ♪ (clapping with a smile on his face)

Cut it out, she looks like she’s pretty shy… She’s shrinking back in fear like, “don’t mind me” and all, y’know?

Sorry, Producer-san… These guys couldn’t read the room to save their lives.

Huh? You like people like that? You think we really are like Trickstar? Huhhh? Are you seriously comparing us to the elite champions of SS?

I think it’s nice of her to say. Even though I still don’t know much about these people, I do think they’re wonderful idols.

…? Anzu-san, why are you giving me candy? I don’t think I need to consume any sugar at the moment?

OMG, that’s konpeito! The producer’s famous for giving it to her favorite idols ♪

Hm. If this is a gesture of good will, then I am grateful for it.

Yeah I’m like, so happy about this! The producer’s been keeping us at arm’s length for so long…

I sorta started thinking she just didn’t want anything to do with underachievers like us.

I know it was probably the same for all the other guys who quit after Bon Festival, too.

But an attitude of like, total disinterest in us—It can deal huge damage to an idol, and it can even be fatal if you’re not careful.

Wawah—? Anzu-san wait, you shouldn’t be lowering your head to us! You’re like, way too important for that!

Fufu. It seems as though the producer had her own circumstances to grapple with. That said, is it really all right for you to be keeping us company now?

I assume that you were given instruction from Eichi-san not to have any contact with us. Are you not afraid of what will happen if you go against his orders?

Hm? While he’s certainly scary, you think he’ll turn a blind eye to this?

So what you mean to say, then, is that Eichi-san was dropping hints that you could secretly make contact with us?

Well, he does seem willing to roll with the punches.

Because he is known as the revolutionary of Yumenosaki Academy, I thought he would be as narrow-minded as I once was.

But even if we were both revolutionaries, the circumstances and atmospheres would change between different schools, wouldn’t they?

No, I suppose it’s the times that have changed. It’s a difficult situation, but I’ll do my best not to let the pressure get to me.

Fufu. Anzu-san, you keep nodding in time as you listen along…

I’ve been thinking this since I first laid eyes on you, but you’re kind of adorable, almost like a baby ♪

Aaaahhh—I’m so sorry for saying something so rude! I didn’t mean to insult you! “Baby” was supposed to be a compliment!

Yes, retaining your innocence is a wonderful thing.

But you have to keep your wits about you to survive in ES, so I’m sure there’s more to you than meets the eye.

Fufu. You want so badly for us to carry on with our rehearsal without paying you any mind.

But I’ve never had an encounter with you before, so I’ve been very eager to talk to you.

Now that I’m thinking about it, how did we manage to hold out this long without any kind of producer or manager whatsoever…?

Well, that was just because we didn’t have enough L$ to hire one.

Yes, I’ve learned well that everything in the city costs money.

I believe ES—or rather, L$, are a special case. But of course, that’s just partial truth; this is still a capitalist society, after all.

On a global level, this is a period where the flaws of capitalism are being brought to light by the widening wealth gap between the rich and the poor.

Humanity has yet to obtain truth and create the perfect society, so we must struggle with the circumstances we’ve been given.

Yes, we must play the hand we’ve been dealt. That’s something I learned when I was researching playing cards, since that’s one of our motifs.

So let’s keep struggling to survive climb out of this hole together.

Fortunately, we’ve been given the opportunity to do just that.

If we can prove our usefulness during the upcoming Eve of the MDM today and tomorrow and during the main battle—It will give us a better chance at survival in the future.

At the very least, let’s prove that we can be used as soldiers, or as an effectve antidote against poison. If we’re useful, then they won’t have any reason to reject us.