Soyo-chan, Version 2.0—Courtesy of Me! [129]

"What’s going on here?"

Hearing the commotion, Kujo Azuki immediately rushed over. If there was a conflict in her store and she, as the manager, couldn’t react immediately, she might as well resign.

She was especially surprised to see Sakiko at the center of the dispute. In Azuki’s eyes, Sakiko was soft-spoken and polite—far from the type to cause trouble. At work, she didn’t act like a spoiled rich girl at all. Instead, she was responsible and respectful. Seeing her argue with a customer felt completely out of character.

"Taki, I don’t understand what you’re talking about. If you’re referring to me leaving the band… that was my decision. I’ve never denied that."

"That’s all you have to say?"

Taki had originally come to check out the store’s latest MIDI controllers, but instead, she ran into Togawa Sakiko.

Was this fate? Or was Sakiko just haunting her like a lingering ghost?

"Do you have any idea how much damage you caused? Do you know what’s happened to Soyo because of you?!"

"Soyo?"

Togawa Sakiko froze for a moment. She hadn’t expected that name to come out of Taki’s mouth.

She had assumed… Taki would bring up Tomori instead.

But Sakiko had been in touch with Soyo. Not that there was much to talk about—their conversations mostly revolved around checking in on Chihiro.

From what she had gathered through Chihiro herself and from Mutsumi, Soyo had already moved on. She wasn’t even part of the new band.

"So… are you saying that because Soyo wasn’t there for your live show, it’s all my fault?"

"……"

Shiina Taki didn’t respond. She simply stared at Sakiko with cold eyes.

As the tension between them thickened, Kujo Azuki—who had been watching the scene unfold under the excuse of "gathering intel for Tsuzuki-senpai"—finally stepped in.

"Miss Customer, if there’s been some misunderstanding between you and our Sakiko, I’d appreciate it if you could calm down first."

"From here on, I can assist you instead. Would that be alright?"

"…No need."

Shiina Taki was still fuming. She had no interest in staying in the same place as Togawa Sakiko any longer.

As for Soyo?

She wouldn’t tell Sakiko the truth. Because Taki wasn’t sure if someone like her would just shift the blame again—put on that same high-and-mighty attitude and say something like, ‘That’s not my concern.’

But before leaving, Taki spoke in a tone that, for her, was already restrained:

"If you want to know what happened to Soyo, ask her yourself."

"And… I won’t lose."

"I admit, I don’t have your talent. You can do things I never could. But at the very least, I won’t run away from my responsibilities as a band member like you did."

"You shouldn’t play music with others anymore—after all, you’ll just quit again."

"…Goodbye, Togawa Sakiko."

With that, Shiina Taki turned and left Sunkei Music Store, leaving behind a dumbfounded Togawa Sakiko.

So… what the hell was that black-haired girl’s problem?

Did she really come all this way just to yell at her?

Some of the things she said weren’t entirely wrong. Sakiko knew full well that, back then, she simply didn’t have the energy to handle anything related to CRYCHIC.

But no matter what, she had been the one who started CRYCHIC. Her departure wasn’t just a simple case of five minus one—the band’s breakup had always been an inevitable outcome.

She should have seen it coming from the moment she decided to leave.

And yes, she bore a significant part of the responsibility for the pain everyone went through.

That said… something about today’s encounter made Sakiko realize just how much Taki had changed.

The drummer, who had initially joined CRYCHIC because of her sister’s talent, was now completely different.

Tomori seemed to have moved forward.

As for the other two on stage—she had seen Anon a couple of times at school but didn’t know her well.

And the other guitarist… she knew even less about her.

Then there was Soyo, the missing bassist.

Taki’s words had made Sakiko curious. Logically speaking, if Soyo had truly moved on, she wouldn’t have had a reason to refuse their invitation.

Thinking back to the rumors about her "studying abroad," maybe Taki had a point.

But if this was just the result of some adult’s decision, how exactly was she supposed to fix it?

If Taki expected her to solve this, then she was definitely overestimating her.

Togawa Sakiko was no longer the pampered rich girl who had everything handed to her on a silver platter.

She could barely take care of herself.

How could she possibly guide someone else’s life?

She didn’t have the confidence to take responsibility for someone else’s problems.

She couldn’t bear the weight of another person’s choices.

"Sakiko, you should head home early today. You worked hard."

As Sakiko changed out of her uniform and back into her school clothes, Kujo Azuki watched her with a helpless look.

"Mm… Sorry you had to see that, Kujo-nee."

"It’s normal. I went through similar things too. But keeping everything bottled up isn’t good. Maybe you should talk to someone you trust?"

There was no mistaking it—Kujo Azuki was talking about Chihiro.

"Ah… I will."

As she left the store, Togawa Sakiko found herself thinking about something she hadn’t considered before.

She was just a normal person, after all. And over the past few months, her emotions had been all over the place.

So when Taki had stormed into her workplace just to blame her for everything…

The more she thought about it, the more pissed off she got.

Especially that part where Taki said she’d never stick with music.

Did she want to quit back then?! When she left CRYCHIC, she had cried all the way home!

Thinking back on it now was embarrassing—she must’ve looked like a total weirdo, sobbing in the rain for everyone to see.

But that wasn’t the point.

Right now, she had an opportunity in front of her—an invitation from Chihiro, given to her with genuine sincerity.

She hadn’t accepted right away because she wasn’t sure if she was ready.

But now… she didn’t want to hesitate anymore.

"Hey… Chihiro?"

"Yeah, I’ve thought it over. I want to join you guys. But I have one condition… huh?"

"Oh, so we don’t have to use our real names anyway? That’s perfect."

This Benishouga group wasn’t hers.

But at the very least, it was a fresh start.

Between dreams and reality, she needed to find a middle ground.

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This is a fan translation of 素世同学，恭喜你被我优化了 by 杰克喵. All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!