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“Hello, welcome to our side of the school!”
“Th-Thank you…”

Haru gave Kou a quick hug to welcome her and then guided her around, with Kou following timidly.

“Don’t be so nervous, there’s only me and my classmates here right now, and they’re all good girls.”
“O-Okay…”

Seeing how nervous Kou was, Haru attempted to reassure her, but Kou could not help feeling out of place in that building.

Everything there looked considerably new, probably because only a handful of students ever used it.

There were also various facilities not common in schools, like soundproof recording booths, and Kou’s curiosity won over her nervousness as she looked around to take it all in. Eventually they stopped at one of the classrooms there.

Haru explained that the girls selected to appear on stage had been given permission to use that classroom to practice.

“I’m back! And I brought us a cute little helper!”
“H-Hello, sorry to-”

In contrast to Haru’s bombastic entry, Kou slowly stepped in, and a moment later…

“Awwww, she’s adorable!!”
“Hyawaha?!”

Someone who had been standing unnoticed by the door suddenly lunged out and hugged Kou, making her let out a startled sound of surprise.

“They were right, there really was a princess living on the other side of school! She’s so cute I can’t… And her skin is so soft too!!”
“Umm…ah…sorry..?!”

The person hugging Kou was a beautiful girl with a friendly face and fluffy brown hair that reached her shoulders.

The soft squishy feeling on Kou’s back also told her that the girl had an impressive form almost on the same level as Hijiri, the thoughts of which made Kou’s face go red.

Having such a beautiful girl a year older than her hugging her, rubbing her cheeks, and patting her head began to overwhelm Kou, and she glanced around in panic.

“Cut it out, Ranka. You’re troubling our guest.”
“Owie?! That hurt, Kuro!!”

There was a loud slapping sound as someone used a paper fan to strike the girl hugging Kou. That girl who had been called Kuro had short hair, arranged in a more sporty way, and she seemed like the type of girl who would be popular amongst other girls as a sort of prince. She was also the one who had rescued Kou from Ranka’s embrace.

“Are you okay?”
“Yesh…thank you…”
“That’s good then. I’m Himezaki Kurono, and the girl who was attached to you earlier is Sonomiya Ranka, nice to meet you.”
“Nice…nice to meet you too…”

She held out her hand as she introduced herself, and Kou nervously shook it.

Kou had heard those two names before. Kurono was an actress, and Ranka a voice actress. They were still pretty new to the scene, but they already had professional success.

*Am I really supposed to be here?*

Once again, Kou began to second guess her decision.

◇◇◇

…Ten minutes passed after they began practicing.

Haru and Ranka went to get drinks for everyone, while Kurono continued coaching Kou. And as far as that went…

“Don’t slouch like that, maintain eye contact with your audience.”
“Ah, okay!”

As soon as Kou’s gaze wavered and she looked down, Kurono quickly interjected to fix that.

Kurono seemed to be rather hardcore when it came to practicing, and while she kept her tone in check to not sound upset or yell, she was still quick to point out any flaws as soon as they showed up.

“Keep your gaze steady. It’s fine to read off the AR teleprompter, but it’s too obvious if your eyes move left and right like that.”
“I-I’ll keep that in mind!”
“Put some more energy in your voice. At this rate only half your audience will hear you, you need to be audible all the way back to the last rows.”
“Okay…okay!”
“Stop, never yell like that either, you’ll just end up breaking your throat and ruining your pretty voice. Breathe with your belly, and use that to gain more energy-”
“Kuro, stop, time out!!”
“Don’t be so harsh on her, she’s just a regular student that’s helping us out, remember?”
“Huh…? Ah!!”

When Haru and Ranka returned with the drinks, they witnessed Kurono’s method of teaching and quickly intervened.

Kurono only realized how hard she had been grilling Kou when those two arrived, and quickly tried to mend things.

“I’m sorry, really! I just wasn’t thinking, so I went on autopilot mode and…!”
“It’s fine…don’t worry. It really helped me see what I need to work on after all…”

Seeing how Kurono got pale as she bowed repeatedly while apologizing showed that she did not have any ill intentions. So Kou had no reason to be mad at her either, and even felt bad for putting her in a situation where she had to apologize like that.

“Kuro has always been a perfectionist after all.”
“Please don’t think badly of her. She just tries to give it her all and hopes others do too.”
“I’m sorry… I know it’s a bad habit and I should relax a bit more… I’m really really sorry…”

Kou was at a loss seeing how dejected Kurono looked…but then Ranka came and whispered something into Kou’s ear.

“Wanna know a secret? She might not look like it, but she loves everything cute, and she’s a big fan of Crim.”
“Wha… Ranka!!”
“Ahahah, I mean, you’re always watching those streams and saying you wish you were there to give her some advice to perform better.”
“Not you too Haru!!”

Kurono’s face turned red all the way to her ears as the two other girls exposed all her secrets.

*Ah…she’s actually a pretty cute person.*

Meanwhile Kou just watched them with a placid smile.

“Ughh… I don’t care anymore!”

Saying that, she snatched one of the drinks and went a distance away to be alone.

Seeing her leave like that, her face beet red and tears forming in her eyes, made Kou somewhat concerned, but Haru and Ranka did not seem to think much of it.

What they had said was true, and Kurono was a hard worker. When she sat down in her own corner, she brought out a script booklet with a lot of text on it, which she studied avidly while hydrating herself.

Her lips also were moving slightly, so she would physically memorize her lines as well. It was clear she would not let any moment go to waste.

Haru and Ranka were not as extreme, but they still discussed various things amidst their friendly chat.

*Oh wow… Everyone here is a pro in the making…*

Kou was once again surprised by the new things she learned about them in unexpected situations.

“So how are we feeling, Mitsuki, do you think you can keep up?”
“Ah, yes… With the help of everyone here I think it’ll work out.”
“Mhm mhm, that’s the spirit. If you see us do anything you can use as well, feel free to steal it, my dear pupil.”

Haru nodded to herself satisfied with that answer.

Kou had winged everything when acting as Crim Lua Cheia so far, so there were a lot of kinks to iron out now that she was around more experienced people. She had her work cut out for her, but it was also a fun experience.

“Wait, could it be that you invited me to come here because of that too…?”

Finally making that connection in her mind, Kou blurted out that question…and Haru just shushed her and gave a quick wink.

“Don’t forget that Kurono is an up and coming actress. I’m sure she’ll be a great influence on the future of Crim Lua Cheia’s streams.”
“Thank you…I didn’t think you had planned all this…”
“Ahahah, I mean I’m already demanding a lot from you, so giving something back is the least I can do, right?”

Haru simply laughed about it, but Kou was really impressed with her.

*She’s right… This is my best chance to receive proper feedback.*

This was a very rare opportunity for Kou.

Having noticed that reinvigorated her motivation, so with those thoughts in mind, she walked over to Kurono…