The call ended with Kita's voice sounding a little flustered.
Hikigaya who is away didn't return for quite a while, he'd gone down to the convenience store and brought back a can of cola for Aoki Kei.
Kei didn't drink it though, he'd already brushed his teeth before Hikigaya came back.
After thanking him, and now done with his chat with Kita, Kei returned to reading his light novel.
Hikigaya didn't ask anything. After watching videos for a bit longer, he quietly left around 9:30 p.m. and went back to his own room.
At ten, Aoki Kei turned in for the night.
———————————————————————
The night passed without incident.
The next day—October 27th, Wednesday—was the third day of the school trip.
Still no visit to Uji.
Instead, they went to Fushimi Inari Taisha in the morning and walked through the famous thousand torii gates on Mount Inari.
While eating lunch, Kei held out hope—maybe they'd go to Uji in the afternoon?
But right after lunch, just past noon, his phone lit up with an incoming call from Yuusuke Niijima.
Over the past few days in Kyoto, Kei hadn't touched any instruments and hadn't been obsessively monitoring the music world like he normally would.
In short, he'd been taking a break from his "job."
But with Niijima suddenly calling, he was pulled right back into it.
It was right in the middle of the lunch break. Kei looked at the caller ID, blinked, then answered without hesitation.
He had asked Niijima to keep an eye out for when Takashi Imai would be participating in the KL company's upcoming submission event.
A call now probably meant there was news.
As he picked up, Kei greeted him.
"Good afternoon, Niijima-san."
"Good afternoon, Aoki-san. Hope I'm not disturbing you?"
It was right after lunch—many people used this time to nap, so it was a fair concern.
But Kei didn't have the habit of napping.
"Not at all. I was just reading," he replied, then paused for a beat before getting to the point. "Did something come up?"
"Yes. Remember how you asked me to keep tabs on when Takashi Imai would be submitting for the KL event?
Well, this morning I finally got some info from one of the event producers."
Just as Kei had expected, Niijima gave him the news.
"According to the producer, Takashi Imai is scheduled to perform his submission about four weeks from now.
Based on the event schedule, the next performance is likely set for a Sunday. Which means—"
He delivered the final detail.
"—the confirmed date for Imai-san's submission is December 3rd."
After a short pause, Niijima continued, now with a question.
"Now that we know the exact date... Aoki-san, are you planning to avoid competing in that particular round?"
Kei paused to think.
To be honest, he hadn't fully decided whether to avoid it.
Takashi Imai—dubbed "the number one middle-aged singer of the 21st century" was not someone Kei could confidently beat, even with his best work.
Avoiding that round could give them a slight edge in the competition—lesser-known artists tend to stand out more without a heavyweight in the mix.
But that advantage would be minimal at best.
And here was the catch:
If they were going to dodge Imai's round, it meant submitting earlier—within three weeks.
That was tight.
It would mean finishing rehearsals, polishing the performance, and finalizing everything in a compressed timeline.
Kei felt that choosing a date based on submission readiness made more sense than simply trying to avoid Imai.
It all depended on when Kessoku Band would be ready—and what song they would perform.
But the real issue was... he still didn't know which song to choose.
So, for now, he gave a vague answer.
"Let's hold off on deciding. I haven't made up my mind yet."
After that, there was an uncharacteristic pause from Niijima.
Then, with a slightly hesitant tone, he said:
"I see... Well, there's something else. Since Imai-san had already hinted at participating, his fans have been pretty hyped for it—and honestly, a lot of people are already betting on him to win."
"And now... someone claiming to be an 'insider' has leaked online that Kessoku Band will also be participating."
Kei raised an eyebrow.
"That alone wouldn't be a big deal," Niijima continued. "Your fans naturally have high hopes for you. But of course, with that kind of leak, you also get... the other kind of reaction."
"You know, stuff like 'not experienced enough' or 'they can't compete at Imai's level.'"
"It's not exactly slander—just doubt. But even that kind of talk could end up influencing the judges."
Kei didn't say anything, but the implications were clear.
The judges were supposed to rate based on musical quality, not popularity or public sentiment.
So Kei wasn't particularly worried about the judging being unfair.
What did catch his attention, though, was that "insider" leak.
He thought for a moment.
Could it have been when Director Masami Nagano called him that afternoon? Maybe someone on set overheard?
Possible... but pointless to speculate. There was no way to know for sure.
He let it go with a quiet "Mm," then replied:
"Rather than worrying about Imai-san, I think the bigger issue is whether Kessoku Band can be fully prepared in time.
Right now, I haven't figured out how to create a song that fits the theme... so I can't say anything for certain."
"I get it," Niijima said understandingly, then shifted gears. "By the way—did you know KL allows artists to apply for a confidentiality agreement to preview the script early? I could ask for you, if you want."
"They do that? Wouldn't it be a hassle for you though, Niijima-san?"
"Not at all. It's no trouble—happy to help. We're friends, right?"
Of course, Niijima did have his own motives.
Sure, he was helping—but he also wanted to strengthen his relationship with Kei, hoping to cast him in a future film project.
Kei knew that.
But after everything Niijima had done for him, even if there were some ulterior motives, what could he really say?
"I appreciate it, Niijima-san. Thank you."
———————————————————————
After lunch break ended, and the afternoon began.
Around 2 p.m., they boarded the tour bus.
And with that... Kei's last hope was crushed.
They were heading to Nijo Castle.
Still no trip to Uji.