After [Summer Zodiac] left the stage, the entire venue remained immersed in their perfect performance.
Before long, following a shout of "Encore!" from a fan in the front row, the entire venue erupted in a uniform chant—
"Encore! Encore! Encore!" (T/N: Encore means they want an additional performance btw)
"...This is bad."
Hearing the overwhelming roar, Sakiko frowned.
"[Summer Zodiac]'s performance was too good. The audience will probably find it hard to accept any other band's performance now."
"..."
Tetsuya, who had been lost in thought over the look Ai gave him as she left, was finally snapped back to reality by the noise.
"Normally... don't people only shout for an encore after the very last act is finished?"
"That's right, but as you said, that's only normally..."
Sakiko shook her head.
"[Summer Zodiac]'s performance just now was just too stunning. Compared to the amateur bands before and the ones to come, the audience is now completely captivated by their performance. At a time like this, if just one person starts, the others, still riding the high of that emotion, can easily be swept into this wrong rhythm."
"Emotion..."
Tetsuya instantly understood what Sakiko meant.
If anyone in the venue could best understand the emotions expressed in that performance, it would be Tetsuya. That intense emotion, almost enough to make one lose their judgment and reason, had briefly resided in his heart as well. However, he was quickly brought back to rational thought by the more complex reality of the situation.
But for the rest of the audience, they hadn't experienced this awakening.
Even now, they were still immersed in the performance, unable to extricate themselves.
"What's going to happen now?"
Tetsuya couldn't help but ask.
"With such a strong call for an encore, can Anon's band even go on stage?"
"...It's difficult."
Mutsumi suddenly spoke up.
"For Soyo's band... it's a contradiction."
"A contradiction? What do you mean?"
"If they go on now, they'll inevitably disappoint everyone. But if they wait for the calls to die down before going on, the audience will have already spent their emotional energy and entered a 'cool-down' state."
Sakiko explained.
"Either way, the worst possible performance environment awaits them."
With that, she couldn't help but cast a worried glance towards the backstage area.
"I wonder how Soyo's band is going to break this dilemma..."
...
"You overdid it a little."
Listening to the chants from the venue, Uika couldn't help but shake her head.
"Didn't you say your usual level would be fine? You were going at full power just now, weren't you?"
"...I didn't want to."
Even having returned backstage, Ai's face was still flushed, and her breathing hadn't returned to normal.
Like the audience, she hadn't recovered from the afterglow of the performance.
"But... just knowing that Tetsu was watching me, I couldn't control myself at all..."
"...I see."
Uika sighed softly.
"Thanks to you, our performance couldn't have been more successful, but... Chihaya's little sister's band is in for it now."
It had been nearly three minutes since they left the stage, but the enthusiastic "Encore" chants from outside hadn't weakened in the slightest.
"...What should we do? Should we do some 'damage control'?"
Uika asked.
"If we don't let them have their fill, they might end up disappointed in us, don't you think?"
"..."
Ai's eyes flickered with a moment of hesitation before she immediately shook her head.
"No need. As a surprise performance, what we just did was already a bit much. If we do any more, it will just stir up resentment from the fans who missed this show. That would be even more trouble."
"Heh..."
Hearing this answer, Uika looked at Ai with great interest.
Although she had expected Ai to refuse, she never thought it would be for such a fan-conscious reason.
"I thought you would refuse an encore on purpose just to make things difficult for Chihaya's little sister... You're about to 'graduate', so why do you still care so much about what the fans think?"
"Just having them perform after us is enough pressure. Doing any more would just make Tetsu unhappy..."
Ai replied.
"I'm already in a position where I'm 'going to be rejected'. If I go too far, I might end up being 'hated' even more. That's something I absolutely cannot accept."
Hearing this, Uika couldn't help but ask with a laugh:
"If you knew that, then why did you say all those bad things about Chihaya's little sister earlier?"
"Because those weren't bad things at all. They were facts that she absolutely has to accept."
Ai snorted lightly.
"Tetsu isn't the type of doting older brother who covers up for mistakes, so it doesn't matter if Chihaya Anon repeats what I said to him... Besides, you didn't interrupt me until we were almost out of time, did you?"
"Well, I was also curious to see what kind of person Chihaya's little sister is."
Uika said, averting her gaze.
"..."
Instead of pressing the issue of Uika's intriguing reaction, Ai returned to the previous topic.
"As for why I care about the fans' opinions... it's because today, I have fully witnessed their power."
Amidst the still-lingering chants, she spoke as she untied the ribbons on her cuffs.
"If a single surprise live can cause this much of a stir, then how much attention and how many eyes can I gather at the live a month from now? In that situation, if I were to suddenly and publicly announce my pursuit of Tetsu, what do you think would happen next?"
"...I see."
Having completely understood her companion's thoughts, Uika nodded in understanding.
"It may seem like reckless madness, but in reality, you've thought everything through."
"After all, I've been thinking about this ever since I became an idol. Even the dullest person could come up with a similar plan given enough time..."
With that, the now-composed Ai looked up and said to Uika:
"Well then, thank you for your hard work today. Whether you go 'assist' them now or go home to compose is up to you."
"...Are you going to see Tetsuya-san now?"
"Of course not. I have to at least change my clothes, right?"
As Uika's brow gradually furrowed, Ai said with a smile:
"For example, something that's easier to put on... and take off?"