One day, I will fill this place to every last seat!

As Eli Ayase’s words fell, the three girls—Honoka Kousaka and the others—whose faces had briefly brightened, now grew complicated once more. The other girls around them watched the three on stage with worried expressions.

Jiang Yu, observing Eli Ayase suddenly douse the trio’s hope with cold water, struggled to suppress the dizziness swirling in his mind. Just as he was about to speak in rebuttal, Honoka Kousaka, who had been silent for a long moment, finally spoke:

“We will keep going!”

The girl bit her lip, her gaze resolute—half defiant, half stubborn—and one could not help but be taken aback by her determination.

Minami Kotori and Umi Sonoda looked at the girl who had always seemed to lead them forward since childhood. Seeing her stand unyielding against the formidable student council president, whom they somewhat feared, they silently made a decision.

In the end, they would always support her, just as countless times before they had followed Honoka’s reckless antics.

Eli Ayase, staring into the girl’s unwavering eyes, felt an indescribable mix of emotions. She tightened her left hand on the strap of her school bag, glanced around the empty auditorium, and spoke as if both consoling and debating:

“Why? Even if you keep going, I don’t see any meaning in it.”

Honoka stepped forward, raising her voice:

“Because I want to!”

“Right now, I want to sing more songs, I want to dance more, I want the three of us to keep working hard together!”

As her words fell, Honoka looked at the two girls beside her and continued:

“This is the first time I’ve felt this way. I truly believe being an idol is wonderful, that working hard is wonderful, that the three of us striving with all our might toward one goal is absolutely wonderful!”

Those in the auditorium stared at Honoka, who passionately voiced her heartfelt feelings, their expressions stunned.

Hanayo Koizumi glanced at the girls on stage, recalling their efforts distributing flyers at school. She then instinctively looked at the sparsely filled auditorium and felt a wave of helplessness.

Putting herself in their shoes, she thought that if she were in their situation, she might have given up long ago. Not everyone possesses the steadfast spirit to face failure head-on or grow stronger through setbacks.

Rin Hoshizora looked at Honoka’s determined expression and thought she seemed to be glowing.

Maki Nishikino twisted a strand of her hair, and for the first time, she found herself respecting this persistent senior, who had come to ask for help with such unwavering resolve.

No one could truly look coldly upon those who work hard and persist, could they? Even if there was occasional sarcasm or cold words, deep down, who wouldn’t secretly envy such stubborn determination?

Especially for those who had once given up on chasing their dreams.

Jiang Yu looked at this seemingly always lively girl, who spoke such stirring words, and a bitter smile appeared on his face.

Is it really so wonderful to be able to give your all toward one goal together...?

“I want to believe in this feeling right now! Maybe they’ll keep ignoring us like this; maybe we won’t even get a single cheer; maybe in the end, we will choose to give up…”

“But as long as we give it our all, what matters is that we want to convey—right now, we are here! This is what we believe…”

“One day…”

“One day, I will fill this place to standing room only!”

Honoka stared unflinchingly into Eli’s somewhat oppressive gaze, biting her lip and clenching her fists, as if shouting from the depths of her soul.

Nico Yazawa curled up in a corner, her gaze complicated as she looked at the empty chairs and murmured unconsciously, “One day… it will be full, won’t it?”

Outside the auditorium, Nozomi Tojo leaned against the wall, hearing these words from inside. She shook her head with a smile and prepared to leave.

After all, she had previously told her close friend to make up her mind to come and see Muse perform but had said, “I’ll leave first,” and walked out of the student council.

Judging by the conversation inside, it seemed to be nearing its end, and Nozomi’s faith in the card reading she had done only deepened.

If a team had a leader who never gave up and pressed forward with determination, how far could they ultimately go?

Fail completely and start over? That didn’t seem like such a bad outcome.

Inside the auditorium, Eli Ayase looked at Honoka’s steadfast figure, realizing that her attempts at persuasion would likely fail once again.

“Let’s hope so,” she said, shaking her head, her tone cold and curt as before.

Watching the girls on stage, stubborn to the point of evoking a tender sympathy, Jiang Yu exhaled a hot breath through his nose and spoke:

“I’m glad this place is empty today.”

The moment his words fell, all eyes turned toward him. Minami Kotori was momentarily stunned but then looked at Jiang Yu with a peculiar expression.

“Hey, Kotori, who’s that guy?” Honoka’s voice whispered in her ear.

Kotori responded just as quietly, “He’s the guy I told you about the other day—the one who suggested I talk to Maki Nishikino…”

“Ah? But I’m still curious—Kotori, how do you know him? And why did you ask him these questions… How did you know he understands music?”

Faced with Honoka’s probing, Kotori panicked slightly. She had kept her part-time job at the maid café a secret from everyone…

Fortunately, Jiang Yu spoke up again, rescuing her from embarrassment.

“Falling into a slump from the start and realizing whether you truly want to keep going is better than suddenly falling from the clouds later and falling apart, right?”

“People often mistake the impulse to create for talent. If you’ve never been through a low point, you might never really know if you truly love what you’re doing.”

“If I had doubts about forming a school idol group before, now I can say for sure, ‘As long as you persist, you will succeed!’ After all, the world doesn’t disappoint those who work hard, does it?”

Hmm… Though their singing and dancing might still need improvement. But in a world where looks count as justice, at least you’re fully qualified in appearance, he thought quietly, of course never saying such a spoiler at a moment meant to inspire.

“So, how about giving these girls a little more patience?” Jiang Yu said seriously, looking at Eli Ayase.

Maki Nishikino tugged Jiang Yu’s sleeve from behind, whispering a reminder:

“She’s the student council president at our school… and a senior in third year, too.”