"Alright, on to the next fan letter... Oh my, the question in this one might be a little tricky. Are you sure you're okay with this, Miss Hoshino Ai?"
"I'm perfectly fine!"
Ai flashed a brilliant smile at the cara.
"Bring it on!!"
"Okay, then! A letter from XXXXX asks, what are Ai's standards for a partner? What kind of person do you want to marry in the future?"
Dun-dun!
A dramatic sound effect played, and then the entire recording studio fell silent. Everyone present waited for Ai to answer.
However, without a shred of hesitation, Ai replied imdiately:
"Soone who can give true love!"
"Ooh! A very girlish answer, just as expected from Miss Hoshino Ai!"
This picture-perfect, standard idol answer earned a flash of approval from the host.
"But that's quite a broad category! The number of people in this world who could satisfy that condition could probably fill our entire television station!"
"Hee hee~ Who knows~"
Ai winked playfully at the cara.
"That condition might be far, far stricter than everyone imagines~"
"Hahaha, did you all hear that, fans? To et that condition, everyone must continue to support our 'First-Magnitude Star' in the future! Alright, we'll take a short break now. We'll be right back after the comrcial—"
...
"Thank you for your hard work, Miss Hoshino Ai."
After the recording paused, the host gave Ai a slight nod.
"A truly beautiful response. You really are a top idol."
"Not at all."
Ai shook her head with a smile.
"I was just telling the truth, after all."
"Hahaha, I'll take your word for it. You can take a short break now. We'll resu recording in fifteen minutes."
"Okay!"
Then, Ai took the bottle of water handed to her by the staff and walked with a light step towards the dressing room.
When she walked through the door, her partner, who had finished recording earlier, spoke directly.
"You've beco much more settled down since you got back in touch with Mr. Tetsuya."
Uika said to Ai, having watched the entire recording process on a screen in the dressing room.
"You've finally cald down because you got his guarantee, right?"
"...What do you an?"
"I thought your answer would have been a bit more targeted."
Uika said.
"Sothing like 'a mature and gentle person,' 'a thoughtful person,' or 'a person with nimble fingers.' That way, when the May live cos, all of this could have served as groundwork to give the dia an even bigger bombshell."
"Because it's not necessary."
Ai shook her head, her expression cool.
"The exposure from the live itself is more than enough. On top of that, the fewer people who know his good points, the better."
"...Well, I guess I can understand that."
Uika shrugged, then took out her phone, preparing to look at the day's entertainnt news. Just then, however, a knock on the door interrupted her.
"...?"
She turned and t Ai's eyes, and seeing that Ai was just as surprised, she stood up and slowly walked to the door.
When she opened it, a strange young man was standing there with a smile.
"Good afternoon to the two of you from [Sumr Zodiac]. I am Diye Qing from the clothing brand [NozAK!]."
Upon hearing the na [NozAK!], Uika imdiately knew his purpose, and at the sa ti, completely lost the patience to listen any further.
"I'm very sorry, but please direct all business-related inquiries to our manager."
Uika's response was decisive, and her reasoning was impeccable.
After quickly expressing her refusal to talk, Uika didn't even wait for a response before shutting the dressing room door.
On the other side, Ai, who had also heard the exchange, silently furrowed her brow.
"That na, if I rember correctly, is..."
"Mhm, it's the brand that plagiarized Mr. Tetsuya's designs."
Uika answered softly.
"It's also the biggest obstacle to him starting his own business right now."
"..."
The expression on Ai's face quickly soured.
"So, what does he want with us?"
"What else could it be? They must want us for modeling or an endorsent deal."
Uika replied in a matter-of-fact tone.
"Their promotional efforts recently have been insane. From advertisent space in Ginza to social dia campaigns, you can see the na [NozAK!] everywhere. As the most talked-about new idols of the mont, it's not strange that they'd co looking for us."
"...Tch."
Ai made a very un-idol-like clicking sound with her tongue.
"Bullying Tetsu and then wanting us to endorse them... Not a chance!"
"That's what I think, too."
Uika said, looking down to send a ssage to their manager on her phone.
"But putting our personal feelings aside, this is a rather dangerous sign."
"What do you an?"
"As a fashion brand, they're no longer content with using only fashion models for promotion and have started seeking out various popular celebrities for endorsents."
Uika explained.
"Although we turned them down, they can still go find other idols to endorse them. When that happens, there will be even less space for Mr. Tetsuya to operate..."
Halfway through, she paused for a mont, then slowly shook her head.
"But you probably don't care much about this, do you? After all, your goal is to announce everything at the May live and elope with Mr. Tetsuya. Compared to [NozAK!]'s little squabbles, your destructive power is definitely stronger."
"..."
This ti, Ai didn't readily admit to it or snap back as she usually would. Instead, she lowered her head slightly and fell silent. And in those purple eyes that sparkled like stars, a trace of unprecedented hesitation appeared.
Uika, who had expected Ai to be as unshakeable as before, was slightly taken aback.
Her feeling was right. Ever since eting with Chihaya Tetsuya, this volcano that had been on the verge of erupting at any mont had now cooled down.
Although her obsession and love for him had not diminished, that reckless, all-consuming fervor had been effectively suppressed.
If only there was a reason, sothing like [NozAK!], that was related to Chihaya Tetsuya and could also keep her on the stage...
Ding—
Just as Uika was sighing inwardly, her phone chid with a new ssage.
And when she saw the content of the ssage from Togawa Sakiko, her eyes instantly lit up—
[Uika, have you ever heard of 'Tokyo Girls Collection'?]
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