90: Summit

The next morning. One hour before the ES Summit Meeting—called the Summit for short

Yuzuru: (Fufu. The tea is prepared ♪)

(There’s still time before the Summit begins, but many like to oblige others, such as by arriving early. If it’s perceived that they were kept waiting, that puts the others in their debt.)

(Among other clever tactics. It’s a butler’s duty to keep these in mind and make sure everything is prepared in advance.)

(...And even now, I hear footsteps approaching. Now, who will be the first to show up?)

(I just hope it’s not Ibara. Spending time alone with him would be unbearable.)

Tsumugi: Pardon me... ♪

Yuzuru: Ah. Welcome, Aoba-sama. You’re the first to arrive—though that only seems fitting.

Tsumugi: Ahaha. I’m a bit of a neurotic, so I’d rather show up one or two hours early than risk being late.

Anyway, good morning, Fushimi-kun. Thanks for always getting the tea ready for us.

Yuzuru: It is my utmost pleasure to do so. Since I’m attending the Summit as a representative of StarPro, I thought there would be no harm in arriving early.

(And being in charge of the drinks means that I could slip anything I want into them...)

(Of course, if I did poison the drinks, it would be obvious who did it. I would never actually do it, but it does give me a certain feeling of superiority.)

Tsumugi: A–are you thinking about something scary?

Yuzuru: Not at all. My, you look exhausted... why don’t you sit down and rest? ♪

Tsumugi: Ah, that’s a relief. You probably already know this, but Switch was out late last night hosting that live, Bon Festival.

It’s been a while since we’ve done anything large-scale, so I’m mentally drained and physically exhausted...

It seems like lately I just can’t shake this fatigue no matter how much rest I get. Maybe I really am getting old.

Yuzuru: Fufu. Yes, I’m aware of it. I heard that the Bon Festival was quite the success.

Tsumugi: It was. Everyone put their best foot forward, so I think it turned out even better than we were hoping for.

...But unfortunately, it does look like most of the idols will be retiring as planned.

I guess it can’t be helped. Everything was already finalized, and some of them had already started looking for their next jobs because of that.

Besides, once an agency says they don’t need you anymore, it must be incredibly difficult to stay there.

Their very existence has been denied; like an abused child, the only solution they have may be to just get out.

But I can’t help but wonder if we ended up doing more harm than good...

Fortunately, everyone seemed satisfied that they got to perform on stage one more time, so that, at least, is good.

It felt like they were all performing with the intention of creating one final memory.

In that sense, maybe we were able to give them that small comfort.

Fufu. We couldn’t save their idol careers, but even saying that may be too presumptuous of me. Well, I still can’t help but feel a little down about it.

Yuzuru: Oh, my... you don’t mean to tell me that ALKALOID has also resigned, do you?

Tsumugi: ALKALOID? Oh, that’s right, you’re in fine. It probably feels closer to you, since they’re also a StarPro unit.

Yuzuru: Yes. I was somewhat acquainted with them, and it seemed as though Eichi-sama was conspiring with them in some way. I’m a bit worried, so I’ve been keeping an eye on things.

Tsumugi: Ahaha, so Eichi-kun is up to his old tricks again. Well, that’s one of his greatest joys in life, so don’t be too hard on him, okay?

Or rather, no matter how awful he can be, please never come to dislike him.

Yuzuru: You have my word. I don’t regard people in terms of liking or disliking them, anyway; I am a butler, after all.

Tsumugi: Ah... maybe it’s because you’re like that that Eichi-kun gets along with you so easily.

He’s probably able to actually relax around you.

Yuzuru: Yes. Recently, he’s become quite over-familiar with me. I’m not quite sure how to respond to that.

Tsumugi: Fufu. In any case, I doubt you need to worry about ALKALOID.

They really stood out at the Bon Festival yesterday, and now it sounds like they’re really fired up.

And on top of that, all of the idol-hopefuls who resigned last night wanted to thank the units who performed with them.

They gave all of their L$ to whoever was left after the festival.

Tsumugi: I’m sure that’s taken a lot of pressure off them, financially speaking... Now, this is just my personal opinion, but I feel like ALKALOID is going to keep this ball rolling.

Those kids have a certain spark about them. Ah, it must be nice to be young.

Yuzuru: Fufu. Why do you look so worn down, Aoba-sama?

Tsumugi: Oh, you know... having the Summit right after a live is pretty exhausting.

It’s a regular and planned event, so really I’m at fault for messing up my schedule.

But the Summit lasts a good, long while every time it happens... The physical and mental fatigue is just as bad as performing, or maybe even more than that.

And I can’t help but worry about our representative, Suou-kun, unless I’m watching him from up close, so I don’t dare skip.

Yuzuru: Ah, young master Suou? I’ve found that he’s grown so much since I first met him that I hardly recognize him anymore.

Tsumugi: Oh, I mean, obviously he’s grown up.

But he can still get a little... extreme. If I leave him to his own devices, he’ll go around picking fights with the other agencies. That’s what worries me.

Our agency, NewDi, is the smallest of the Big Four participating in the Summit...

We don’t have the resources to go to war, so it would be bad if we got into a fight.

Yuzuru: Well, master Suou descends from a military family. It’s only natural his blood runs hot.

Though, I thought they were supposed to leave that sort of thing to their branch family.

But I suppose it’s impossible to deny one’s blood.