"N-no problem,"
Yui Hirasawa said with a sheepish smile, scratching her head.
"Yui, would you like a cookie?"
Mugi Tsumugi appeared at just the right moment, holding a tray of cookies and blinking playfully.
It smelled so good.
Like a cat catching the scent of fish, Yui's eyes locked onto the cookies, her attention completely stolen. She didn't even realize what she was saying.
"Yes, please!"
Inside the Light Music Club's room, Ritsu Tainaka and the others had successfully calmed her down using the oldest trick in the book—food.
"So, Yui, what kind of instrument are you good at?"
Ritsu suddenly asked curiously while Yui was still munching on a cookie.
"Um… actually…"
Yui snapped back to reality, looking around at the curious faces staring at her. She scratched her head nervously, clearly embarrassed.
"Actually? You mean… you can play all of them?!"
Ritsu's eyes widened in shock. Could this airheaded girl actually be some kind of musical genius?!
"N-no! That's not it at all!"
Yui waved her hands frantically, on the verge of tears.
No way.
She knew perfectly well she couldn't play any instrument. Joining the Light Music Club had been a spur-of-the-moment decision, and after she calmed down, she realized she couldn't do anything besides clap her hands to the beat.
"So you're only good at a few of them?"
Ritsu leaned across the table toward her, her face barely twenty centimeters away.
"N-no, not that either…"
Ah! This girl's imagination is way too strong!
Yui could barely keep up, while Ritsu only seemed more and more excited.
Cornered by Ritsu's enthusiasm, Yui froze, unable to speak.
Suddenly, a hand appeared, grabbing Ritsu by the back of her collar and pulling her back into her seat.
"President, that's not okay! Can't you see you're scaring the new girl?"
"Eh? Really?"
Ritsu pouted in disbelief.
How could that be? She was cute and friendly—how could anyone be scared of her?
Yui sighed in relief, though she couldn't help wanting to defend Ritsu.
But when she met Lin Zhi's calm, unreadable eyes, her courage instantly vanished.
Yikes! Such a scary look!
Yui started trembling again and immediately abandoned the idea of speaking up.
Why does everyone in this club seem so intimidating?!
"Yui Hirasawa, right?"
"Yes!"
Yui straightened up, answering quickly and respectfully.
"Looks like you don't really have any experience with instruments, do you?"
Yui froze. Before she could answer, Ritsu cut in.
"No way! Yui totally looks like she'd be amazing! I bet she's super talented!"
Across the room, Yukino Yukinoshita put down her book to watch the scene unfold.
Lin Zhi rubbed his temples, giving Ritsu a tired look.
"Ritsu, don't you think you're being a bit too confident?"
"Eh? Am I?"
At that moment, Yui suddenly stood up and bowed deeply to everyone.
"I'm sorry, everyone! The truth is, I don't know how to play any instrument!"
"What?!"
Ritsu, Mugi, and Mio Akiyama were all stunned. Lin Zhi had been right all along?!
No way!
Sure, Yui looked a little ditzy, but with a name like that, she had to be amazing, right?
Ritsu pouted, refusing to believe it.
"I'm really sorry for wasting everyone's time," Yui said quietly, looking dejected. She turned to leave.
"Wait!"
Lin Zhi called out, stopping her. He sighed and said gently, "If I remember correctly, the Light Music Club never said we only accept people who already know how to play, right?"
Ritsu's eyes lit up. She quickly grabbed Yui's arm before she could take another step.
"Yeah, yeah! There's no such rule in the Light Music Club!"
Phew! That was close. Almost lost another member!
Ritsu silently thanked her luck. Their club was already short on people—they couldn't afford to let this one slip away.
"Huh?"
Yui blinked in confusion.
Taking advantage of the moment, Ritsu pressed her back into her chair and eagerly offered her more tea and snacks.
"Th-thanks…"
"The club's a place to learn," Lin Zhi said calmly. "If there's something you don't know, we'll all help you. So there's no need to feel pressured."
"Exactly!" Ritsu nodded furiously, throwing Lin Zhi an approving look before launching into a full-blown sales pitch.
"It's totally fine if you don't know anything yet! We'll teach you everything! Everyone here plays a different instrument—you can just pick whichever one you like best!"
"And once you've mastered it, we'll all perform together at a live concert!"
She cleared her throat dramatically, grabbed a rolled-up textbook as a makeshift microphone, and began her "announcer" act.
"Ladies and gentlemen! The moment you've all been waiting for!"
"Introducing the one and only Light Music Club from our private high school!"
"First up, our star guitarist—Yui Hirasawa!!!"
"Yui Hirasawa!"
"Yui Hirasawa!!"
Mugi happily played along, pretending to cheer from the crowd and shouting Yui's name with a smile.
"Uh…"
Apparently, Yui's imagination was just as vivid.
Following Ritsu's words, she pictured herself on stage, surrounded by a roaring crowd waving glowsticks, all shouting her name.
"Yui Hirasawa!"
"Yui Hirasawa!!"
It felt… incredible.
"Well, what do you think, Yui? Our ultimate goal is to perform at the Tokyo Dome!"
"Th—the Tokyo Dome?! We're actually aiming for that?!"
Even Lin Zhi couldn't help twitching at that. Ritsu was laying it on way too thick.
Given the club's current state—they hadn't even practiced with actual instruments yet—talking about the Tokyo Dome was practically delusional.
"Alright! I've decided!"
Yui suddenly clenched her fists and took a deep breath.
"Everyone! I've decided to stay! Please take care of me from now on!"
"Yes!"
Ritsu grinned from ear to ear and shook Yui's hand. Finally, the airheaded girl was convinced.
"So, Yui, what instrument do you want to learn?"
"Hmm…"
Yui thought for a moment, then remembered what Ritsu had said earlier—
"Introducing the star guitarist, Yui Hirasawa!"
"Then… I'll learn guitar!"
"Good choice," Lin Zhi said, though his expression turned a little awkward. "Guess that makes me your teacher, since I'm the only guitarist here."
"Perfect!" Ritsu clapped her hands. "Then let's get started!"
"For example…" she said with a grin, "let's go buy you a guitar!"
(End of today's update — to be continued…)
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