Arc-2 Ep-32

 The released CD sold far beyond expectations. It was a huge hit both in physical sales and streaming, taking first place on various charts. It was also a big deal that we managed to outsell the album CD released on the same day by a rival idol group. 

Both the production’s top brass and the Sistema Solare management seemed extremely satisfied. And then, school entered spring break. On the last Sunday night of March, we sixth-generation members all gathered at Fortissimo’s dormitory for rookie idols and trainees.

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“Heee~ So this is what the inside of the dorm looks like~”

“There are almost ten people living here, right?”

“Yeah. But we have to move out in the summer.”

“It’ll have been a year since our debut, after all.”

Mami-san and Saki-san, the two sixth-generation members who live in the dorm, will be leaving at the upcoming Reitaisai. Before that happens, someone suggested we all get together, and that’s how today’s sleepover party was decided. We’d stay overnight after Sunday’s mini-live and head straight to Monday lessons from there.

Lately we no longer exhaust ourselves completely at mini-lives, so after finishing dinner together we all moved to the dorm.

“But it doesn’t feel like there are many people around.”

“Ah, that’s because of spring break and the new school/fiscal year starting.”

“Is that so, Shion-san?”

For some reason the sixth-generation leader answered Nozomi-chan’s question.

We had asked the two who actually live here, but as expected, she’s the one most knowledgeable about internal production matters.

“Basically this place is for people who came from the countryside, right? So even during short long holidays, a lot of them go home to visit family.”

“That makes sense.”

“They normally can’t go home, after all.”

I’ve heard that most people who use this dorm to attend the training school are high school students. Someone like Saki-san coming here alone while still in middle school is apparently quite rare. Either way, with the daily pressure of not knowing whether they’ll debut as idols, they probably need occasional time to go home and be spoiled by their parents.

“And then… some people who quit the training school have already moved out.”

“Ah…”

“…It is the end of the fiscal year, after all. It’s a bit odd to say, but the timing works out perfectly.”

For giving up on being an idol and starting a new path, the change of the school year right now is ideal. Whether that choice was the right one is up to each individual.

“So the people scheduled to move in newly haven’t arrived yet.”

“I see~”

“Got it. So there are naturally fewer people around this time of year.”

“That’s how it is. That’s why we got permission to use the common room exclusively tonight.”

“Common room?”

“It’s kind of like a lobby. It’s where we dorm residents hang out and talk about various things.”

It really feels like a setting straight out of a youth story. Well, since they’re idol candidates, there’s probably some muddy drama too.

“We’ll split into groups of four for the bedrooms. Each room has a shower, so take turns using it, okay?”

“There’s a large public bath too, but because of the current number of residents, it can’t be used until new people arrive.”

I had heard there was a large bath, so I thought several of us could go in together, but this is the situation. Is this another trial from God?

Just when exactly will I get to bathe together with beautiful girls?

“Then let’s put our luggage in the rooms and bring what we need to the common room.”

“Got it.”

“Roger~”

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“This is the common room… Since it’s right by the entrance, it really is like a lobby.”

The place we were led to was in the opposite direction from the bedrooms, past the entrance. Nearby were the cafeteria, the large bath, and other water-related facilities.

“There’s a live-in lady who cooks and does laundry for us except on Sundays, so it’s pretty comfortable.”

“That’s why only trainees with stable meal times and first-year debuted idols can live here.”

“From the second year onward, busy people’s schedules become too irregular for that.”

If meals are prepared but they can’t eat them, it just goes to waste. That’s probably why they decided to have people move out. Considering the number of rooms, there still seems to be plenty of space.

“Well then, shall we sit down?”

“Yuuna’s over here~”

“Mikuri-chan, sit here with me.”

“Sure, okay.”

“Chie, come sit with us too.”

Invited by Nozomi-chan, the three of us took a sofa that seats three. Naturally, I’m in the middle, with her on my left and Chie-chan on my right—the usual formation.

“I’ll prepare some drinks, and snacks too…”

“It’s getting late, so let’s keep it moderate, okay? Otherwise we’ll gain weight.”

“Sayaka-san, our calorie expenditure is so high that it’s actually hard to maintain my current weight.”

“That’s the kind of line that would make girls struggling with diets angry.”

We lined up what we brought on the big central table while continuing the conversation. Lessons are still as intense as ever, and none of us show any sign of gaining weight.

“Right now it’s fine, but after Reitaisai it’ll be different. We’ll have more jobs and less lesson time.”

“That would be nice.”

“I kind of want to graduate from mini-lives being the majority of our work.”

Nozomi-chan and I will probably start getting all sorts of jobs. Which means lesson intensity and frequency will decrease, so we might actually have to watch what we eat.

“By the way, what are lessons like at the training school?”

“The training school ones? Hmm, it really depends on the person, so it’s hard to say.”

“Heee~ …Well, it would be weird if the leader and Chie had the same lesson volume~”

“True. It differs by age and physical strength too—”

The party has only just begun. We’ll probably keep making noise as sixth-generation comrades for another two hours or so.