Chapter 3

Nito. You’re losing focus—Your steps are two-fifths of a second slow.

……

This isn’t like you. The song is pre-recorded, so all you have to do is dance perfectly.

This much should be easy; after all, you are my greatest masterpiece… ♪

(That’s right. I can’t sing on stage. I’m not great at speaking anyway, so I’m careful to keep quiet on a normal basis.)

(Oshi-san doesn’t like when I raise my voice, after all.)

(I tend to stumble over my words, and my voice has started to change on top of that… I can no longer sing the way Oshi-san wants me to.)

(Which is why I’ve been banned from speaking—banned from making any sound.)

(It’s my part in our song… But they’re playing a recording of me from a while ago, from before my voice changed.)

(My singing voice used to be my greatest weapon, one I polished to perfection in choir.)

(And now I can’t even use that weapon anymore. But a choir is different from the stage an idol performs on.)

(It’s really hard to sing while trying to dance and perform.)

(And my current singing abilities just aren’t at the level Oshi-san demands.)

(The rough, raspy thing my voice became will only disgrace the beautiful, idyllic performance Valkyrie strives for.)

(My voice was an unnecessary impurity for the perfect stage Oshi-san had created… so he threw it away.)

(And so now, I can’t sing on stage. I’m just a doll who dances the way Oshi-san wants me to.)

(But even then, I’m still doing better compared to him.)

……

(Mika-chin… Even today, you’re still just a backup dancer, huh.)

……

(You hate when people stare at you, so if you’re not behind us, you get all nervous and freeze up.)

(You even laughed and said you’d be more comfortable this way, but—)

(Are you really okay with how things are? Always nothing more than a backdrop, always nothing more than an accessory on Oshi-san’s costume?)

(Oshi-san might be satisfied with just dressing himself up, but…)

(What about your happiness, Mika-chin? You’re such a good kid—No, you’re an idol too.)

(Right now we’re seeing so much success and making so much headway… So this must be the right way to do things.)

(Even today we’ve got a full house. The audience is happy, and our reputation is soaring above the rest.)

(But—is this the right way? Is this really all there is for me, for us…?)

(I’m sure to have a full-on growth spurt at some point. My voice is already changing, and I’ll get taller, I’ll pull on some muscle…)

(I might even grow a beard. And what would happen then?)

(When I’m no longer that cute doll Oshi-san loves so much… what will happen to me then?)

(Will I just be thrown away, tossed in a trashcan because I’m no longer needed?)

(Or will I remain as Oshi-san’s favorite doll for the rest of my life? Would I be okay with either of those outcomes?)

(Am I really okay with this? Sure, it’s fine for now, but what about in the future…?)

(Why did I come to Yumenosaki in the first place? Why did I become an idol? No, why was I even born?)

(Somebody, please…! Please, tell me why!)

(If I don’t know… then I’d be no different from everyone else.)

(I’d just be an idiot who got caught up in the flow of things, who got showered in hollow praise, who got complacent and stopped thinking for himself.)

(I’d be ruined, nothing more than some wannabe playing make-believe at being an idol.)

(But I don’t know what I’m supposed to do about it… Even though this is my life.)

(Is the only choice I have to leave everything in Oshi-san’s hands? To let him pull my strings and dance however he wants me to?)

(If that’s the case… It’s like I’m not even alive.)

(I’m just a soulless marionette that keeps dancing until it breaks.)