Everyone Has Talent. If Only We Could Realize It - Volume 1 Chapter 3.3

Collaboration

Three days have passed since then.

Today is Saturday.

Commonly known as a day off.

Even after enrolling in Ryouran High School, my perception has changed, but I still feel a sense of dissonance when I hear that Saturday is a holiday.

Every day feels like a weekday, every day feels like a holiday. Having lived by the shut-in calendar, this new rhythm doesn’t quite sit right with me.

One might think I’d notice whether it’s a weekday or a holiday since I have friends who work, but unfortunately, living a nocturnal life makes even that impossible. My working friends log in after returning home, and they never really talk about their jobs, so I truly don’t notice.

However, now is the best day, a day when not going to school is permitted! …Such a sensation can be savored every week. In a sense, I’ve come to think of it as an addictively good environment.

“Plus, to have a maid who takes care of my every need. Is this heaven?”

“Who are you calling a maid? I’ll **** you up.”

My female friend—Akiha—dressed in rubber gloves and a mask, stares menacingly while stuffing our trash into a garbage bag.

“An angel is fine too. Choose whichever you like!”

“I reject both! I’m not doing this because I want to…”

She sighs in exasperation.

“Rakuto, why don’t you clean up when you’re inviting people over?”

“Eh, because it’s troublesome.”

“Then don’t invite people over! Don’t invite them to a dirty place!”

“It can’t be helped, today’s the day Komae’s song arrives. We need to listen to the song and plan how to showcase it.”

“Why am I naturally included in this?”

“Because we’re friends, helping each other complete missions is normal, right?”

“Well, that’s in games, but this is reality…”

“Let’s play it like game then. Ryouran High School’s system is pretty much like a game anyway.”

“Now that you mention it… no, no! That logic is flawed!”

Akiha shakes her head, refusing to be swayed. Tough nut to crack, this one.

“Actually, I really need your help, Akiha.”

“Why? With Shiika’s abilities, judging whether it’s a good song should be easy, right?”

“It’s not that simple.”

In reality, just judging the song could be done by Shiika and me alone.

Akiha might not know, but Shiika is a VSINGER with considerable popularity on WAYTUBE. Having supported the “Seeker” activities, I’ve listened to many songs and fully understand Shiika’s preferred genres.

However, the knowledge gained from “Seeker” activities doesn’t necessarily apply to One-Eight Live.

The many hardships after enrollment have taught me that.

“Whether the song will be a hit or how to make a One-Eight Live stream exciting, Akiha, who does information streaming, knows best. Definitely, the success rate is much higher than just us thinking alone.”

“Well, that’s true.”

“Leave the mochi to the mochi maker. I’m counting on you, partner!”

“Damn, you’re so cunning.”

Sighing, Akiha tightly ties the filled garbage bag and tosses it towards the wall, sporting a cynical smile.

“But well, that might just be Rakuto’s talent.”

“Mine?”

“Yeah. The talent to rely on others.”

“That sounds cool. I’ve never been told that before.”

“Or in other words, the ability to be carried.”

“That sounds terrible!”

“Predicting you’ll become a rich woman’s gigolo in the future.”

“Really? That sounds like the best future.”

“That’s what you consider the best proves you’re hopeless.”

While saying this, Akiha, who apparently brought her own sticky roller cleaner, starts rolling it around the kotatsu carpet…

…Currently, Akiha is the top woman who spoils and takes care of me the most, but let’s not say that out loud.

Yet, her coming when called and cleaning because she dislikes dirt shows she has the right qualities. Whatever those qualities might be.

“Can’t exactly talk bad about others, huh? Technically, I’m helping out for my own reasons.”

“Ah, I like that. Less guilt for me, and that’s even better.”

“You have a conscience…? Well, aside from Rakuto, getting cozy with Shiika, thinking about the future, seems promising.”

“You’ve realized Shiika’s talent too.”

“After seeing her go head-to-head with Shibuya, something clicked. It was like a god descended. I knew she was no ordinary person.”

“Is it okay to invoke a god other than for composing?”

The god that he claimed was necessary for composition.

While we were talking…

Buzz, buzz—the sound of a vibrating smartphone echoed from atop the kotatsu.

“It’s here!”

Immediately, I cut off our conversation and grabbed my smartphone.

The message was from Komae.

“How about this?” followed by a demo song attached.

“It’s here, here, here, here〜! Shiika! The song’s arrived!”

“Phewww!”

Excitedly, I banged on the kotatsu tabletop, making Shiika pop out from inside like a hermit crab.

One might wonder why she’s there, but that’s just the nature of someone who likes dark, cramped spaces. Please forgive her.

“A new song… Koma’s?”

“Yes, that’s right, Komae’s!”

“Let’s listen.”

Saying so, she turned her head towards me.

I put the headphones I had prepared on Shiika’s head and connected it to my smartphone. I also sent the data to Shiika and Akiha’s phones. Then, I played it.

First and foremost, it’s about whether the song resonates with Shiika’s senses.

Only after it passes that first checkpoint do I and Akiha get to judge.

All of us closed our eyes and began listening to the song.

“Study Party Candy,” the named audio file. Its content was…

“Huh?”

I inadvertently let out a voice.

Glancing at Akiha, she seemed to share a similar sentiment, looking somewhat surprised.

In a word, the song was upbeat.

As the title suggested, it had a fun, pop melody that would surely liven up any karaoke session with friends—setting aside the urban legend-level existence of friends to go to karaoke with, it’s roughly that kind of vibe.

It was a good song. A fun tune that makes you want to dance instinctively.

But that’s exactly why I couldn’t shake off a sense of incongruity.

Thinking of Ikebukuro Shiika in the classroom, she’s known to be languid, self-paced, detached, a habitual napper… well, those tags suit her.

Indeed, if talking about being sunny or shady, Shiika falls on the shady side, and her “Seeker” activities often involved singing songs with a cool worldview.

“Writing specifically for her, it turned out like this? What’s he thinking?”

“Hey, but it’s nice.”

Akiha quickly retorted to my puzzled comment.