Arc-3 Ep-35
Episode
105
2026
The announcement of a mini-live during the apology press conference quickly became a hot topic online.
Among the fans, there'd already been speculation that the group might hold off on mini-lives for a while.
The announcement explained that, rather than having the 4th Generation team, the one to which the member at the center of the scandal belonged, perform, the vacant time slot would instead be filled by the other teams.
Taken at face value, it sounded like nothing more than an extension of the other three teams' performance time. Fans who looked a little deeper, however, began predicting that members who didn't normally appear at these events would be brought in instead.
It seemed the organizers had reached much the same conclusion, and the names that surfaced as the most likely candidates were mine and Nozomi-chan's.
Although we ranked near the top in the popularity poll, we were also known for having comparatively few appearances, which gave fans the impression that our schedules were being intentionally kept lighter. At the same time, there was a growing sentiment that featuring popular members would serve as a fitting gesture of apology.
There were other reasons as well. I had a solo song, and if Nozomi-chan appeared too, the entire 6th Generation lineup would be together. Those expectations were probably what fueled all the online speculation.
As it turned out, that's exactly what happened, so the fans who'd predicted it had been remarkably perceptive.
Perhaps because of that, the advance tickets, which had been selling sluggishly until then, suddenly sold out despite the relationship scandal. It was a rather unexpected turn of events.
The next problem was deciding how to handle the same-day ticket sales.
Lately, the venue had rarely sold out, so there were almost always same-day tickets available. This time, however, a huge crowd of fans gathered hoping to buy them, raising concerns that things could easily descend into chaos.
Concerned about the situation, the organizers announced at noon on Friday that same-day ticket sales would be canceled. Instead, those tickets were distributed to valued clients, companies sponsoring commercials featuring Sistema Solare members, television program sponsors, and various other organizations and groups as part of the effort to make amends for the scandal. It didn't matter whether they attended themselves. The tickets could just as easily be passed on to company presidents' or executives' children, or to employees.
With those concerns hanging over the event, we welcomed the first day of the mini-live on Saturday.
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"...It feels strange coming here at this time of day."
"Now that you mention it, Suzuka-san, you never performed at mini-lives here, did you?"
"My generation was still performing at the agency's annex venue. Come to think of it, among the current Sistema Solare members, aren't Mikuri and Rina the only ones who've actually performed mini-lives here?"
It wasn't until the 5th Generation, in other words after Rina-san's debut, that mini-live tickets became virtually impossible to get, prompting the move to a much larger live house. Even with the venue's capacity increasing by nearly sevenfold, it continued to sell out every single week.
Those weekly sell-outs continued even after Rina-san graduated from the mini-live group and I took her place.
However, after I graduated from the mini-live group, it gradually became normal for some performances not to sell out. That was also one of the biggest reasons everyone was looking forward to Sana-chan from the 8th Generation making her debut at this year's Reitaisai.
"It hasn't even been two years since we started holding events here."
"I never imagined I'd be performing a solo song in a live house like this."
"Me neither."
For Saturday's schedule, the revised lineup consisted of two solo songs from Suzuka-san and me, two songs by the 6th Generation, and one song from each of the three mini-live teams, making seven songs altogether. That exceeded the time originally allotted to a single team, so the organizers shortened the MC segments for the other teams and reassigned that time to additional performances. Under the circumstances, the MCs would've been little more than apologies anyway, so cutting them short made perfect sense.
As for tomorrow, Sunday, Suzuka-san wouldn't be able to participate because of other work commitments. In her place, Junko-san and Rio-san had become available and would join the performance instead. As a result, the setlist would change, though the final decision still hadn't been made. I'd heard there was a strong possibility that one of the 6th Generation songs would be replaced with a solo performance.
"Tomorrow's going to be rough on you, Mikuri, since you'll be performing both days. Do your best to keep the fans engaged."
"...I've also got a handshake event tomorrow."
"Everyone's looking forward to that. You've built quite a reputation for your fan service at handshake events, Mikuri."
"Well, I'll just do what I always do."
For now, all I had to do was perform the way I always had. For the fans who'd come to the mini-live, that alone would be more than enough.
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"──Thank you all very much!! That was 'Mineralva' by the 6th Generation!"
"Mikuri~~~!!!"
"Nozomi~~~!!!"
"Yuuna~~~!!!"
"Mami-chan~~~!!!"
"Shion~~~!!!"
Because it was a mini-live, the audience was made up of fans who'd secured tickets early, and each of them had their own oshi. Unlike at the Reitaisai or full-scale concerts, plenty of voices were calling out the names of the other 6th Generation members as well, not just mine and Nozomi-chan's.
"Thank you♪ ...Next up is 'Love's Kármán Line,' performed by Terra's very own Kayanuma Mikuri-chan."
"This'll be its first performance in this live house, won't it?"
"It's a rare opportunity, so everyone who's here today is incredibly lucky♪"
"Uwoooooh!!!"
"Mikurin~~~!!!"
"Mikuri-chan~~~!!!"
"Wow, those cheers are incredible♪ Well then, Mikuri-san, the stage is yours."
"Yes♪ ...This is my very first solo song, 'Love's Kármán Line.' I hope you enjoy it♪"
As soon as Chie-chan finished speaking, the 6th Generation members, beginning with Nozomi-chan, left the stage one after another, leaving me standing there alone.
Beneath the solitary spotlight, I raised the microphone to my lips without delay, timing it to the song's brief intro.