[TSSIM] Chapter 501: A Sudden Kiss

"So, you really wanna finish the game before the tournament?" Homura asked with a serious expression.

Honoka glanced at the other eight, then nodded seriously at Homura.

"Seriously... you're really pushing yourselves too hard..." Homura sighed helplessly. "Honestly, it's not that exhausting for your minds, but your throats are taking a hit. Believe me, singing and voice acting at the same time isn't easy."

"If we gotta balance both without wrecking your throats..." Homura nodded firmly. "Looks like there's only one solution—our good old friend, the nasty vegetable juice, gotta make a comeback!"

Girls: "?!"

A cold sweat slid down Honoka's forehead as her right eyebrow twitched nonstop.

"Homura-kun... why did the words 'nasty vegetable juice' pop up just now?"

"Hmm?" Homura thought for a moment before replying. "Because it protects your throats?"

""Why does that sound like a question?!""

Exclaiming in unison, every member of Muse was pretty much on the verge of freaking out.

Meanwhile, Eriri and the others, who were more familiar with Homura's way of talking, instinctively took a few steps back.

"I put a lot of effort into making that vegetable juice, y'know?" Homura spread his hands. "If you're gonna push yourselves, I gotta make sure your bodies are in top condition! It not only protects your throats but also boosts your energy! And this time, it's an upgraded version!"

"If you can chug something that nasty, then what else is impossible?" Homura continued while shrugging. "I'm making y'all think that way on purpose. I mean, with that mindset, you'll succeed and can overcome any challenge. So, what do you say? Still wanna take this path?"

Silence.

Even though Homura's reasoning sounded a bit forced, it really did motivate them and made them buy into the idea.

Regardless, the upgraded version's effect was probably even stronger since it had already tasted so bad before that it made one's whole body resist it.

However, this time, Homura gave them a choice.

Before, he had forced it down their throats, but now they had to drink it by their own choice, so they didn't have to drink it if they didn't want to since they could always choose the simpler path.

At this point, Honoka and the others who needed to make a decision understood what Homura meant.

What should they do?

Should they insist on following Honoka’s idea but, in turn, have to drink Homura's vegetable juice?

Or should they just follow Homura's idea so they wouldn’t have to drink his vegetable juice?

In all honesty, it didn't take a genius to figure this out.

"...Homura-kun, please make the vegetable juice. We have to do better!" Honoka said seriously.

Even though Honoka was the only one to speak, Nozomi and Eli's relieved expressions, as well as Umi's 'I can't with you' look, clearly showed one thing—what Honoka said was exactly what they all wanted to do.

Muse had already overcome so many challenges, so of course, they wouldn't back down at this point. Furthermore, making such a decision here would definitely help them in the Love Live tournament.

Homura gave a thumbs up.

"Okay, since this is my specialty, just leave it to me. I'll make sure to take care of your bodies!"

Yukiho, Alisa, Megumi, and Nanami exchanged helpless looks, feeling like they were caught in the crossfire.

It was only natural.

They were, after all, voice actors as well, and Homura's vegetable juice would undoubtedly end up being their problem too.

However, after seeing Honoka and the others collapse after drinking it before, they couldn't deny that it would be kind of fun to watch everyone's reactions.

Nonetheless, they couldn't just watch Muse go down, right?

Looked like they had to drink it together.

"You know, Homura-kun probably has it harder than any of us..."

Nozomi spoke up and sighed helplessly.

"It looks like we're the ones struggling the most, but after all that intense practice, we end up completely exhausted, and Homura-kun has to massage each one of us. It's not just about our bodies since he has to take care of our mental well-being too."

"Homura-kun proactively clears all the paths that lead to bad outcomes for us, which makes the rest, though still tough, much easier to handle than if we had to do it on our own."

"Because of Homura-kun, the challenges we face become easier."

Nozomi's sudden words shocked Honoka and the others.

In truth, they hadn't thought about things that way before.

They had been pushing themselves, determined to persevere no matter what, but when they compared their small struggles to Homura's sacrifices for them, what were their challenges really worth?

Realizing this, they couldn't help but feel deeply moved, making their feelings for Homura grow stronger.

Homura, on the other hand, smiled warmly when he saw their expressions before patting Honoka's head.

"Well, that's why I gave you the nasty-tasting vegetable juice instead of the tasty one. Even though the effects are the same on your bodies, when it comes to strengthening your minds, the tasty one is useless."

"If you wanna grow, you always gotta overcome something, but some things, once you've conquered them, the cost can be huge, sometimes even irreversible. Compared to that, my nasty vegetable juice really is no big deal..."

To put it another way, Homura's vegetable juice could almost be called an upgraded potion. Sure, it tasted awful, but once one drank it, their spirit would improve a bit, and just deciding to drink it would give one a double experience boost.

Nozomi amazingly truly saw through it all—no wonder she was the mastermind behind the formation of Muse in the original work.

After talking everything out, Honoka and the others were all fired up, and their mindsets subtly changed.

Homura continued gently patting Honoka's head, then looked around at every member of Muse.

"Since it's decided, let's do our best, everyone!"

"Mm!"

Honoka nodded heavily, stood up, and in front of everyone, suddenly kissed Homura on the lips.

"Woah!" Elf exclaimed in surprise, her eyes going wide.

It was understandable since this was the first time she had seen something like this with her own eyes.

In the next second, she took out her phone and started snapping pictures like crazy without hesitation.

Meanwhile, Yukiho's face turned bright red, and she wasn't sure if she should cover her eyes or not upon seeing her big sister doing an indecent act, but even while debating, she couldn't tear her gaze away.

Aside from Yukiho, the one who blushed even harder was none other than Umi, who also saw something like this for the first time.

Before long, Umi involuntarily started imagining what it would be like if, every time Homura sent them home, he did something like this with her and the others, making her head heat up.

Kotori, on the other hand, looked on with envy.

She had to admit that the timing to kiss Homura was just too perfect, but only Honoka had taken the chance.

'After Honoka-chan's done, it'd be kinda embarrassing for me to try the same thing, right? Maybe I should wait until Homura-kun sends us home?'

Kotori nodded with a slightly flushed face, quietly making up her mind.

'Eh? Wait, aren't we supposed to be staying over today? And since it's a holiday, we can stay over anytime...'

'In other words... if we're going home, we could do it during the day, so there's no need for Homura-kun to send us home?'

Kotori's eyes widened, and she started tearing up as the realization hit her.

'No! How can this happen?! Ugh... Mom... I wanna go home...'

"Kotori-chan? Why are you crying?" Hanayo asked, looking at Kotori with confusion.

"I-I'm... just so moved..." Kotori looked at Homura and Honoka, speaking in a somewhat flustered way.

Nozomi glanced at Kotori, her lips curling into a knowing smile.