I Just Want A Single Ending!

"To be honest, I pretty much expected this when I asked her to teach me," Saku muttered.

For someone who wasn't here to seriously learn bass, it didn't really matter whether Kikuri showed up—as long as he had a reasonable excuse to spend time around Yahata Umiri.

"Did you text her to remind her?" Umiri asked, slightly concerned.

"I did, but no response yet."

To keep up appearances, Saku had naturally sent Kikuri a reminder message, though he didn't expect a reply.

After glancing at the time, Umiri shrugged and said, "Well, since she's not here yet, I'll fill in and teach you some bass for now."

[Accept]

[Decline]

As soon as she spoke, system options appeared before him.

"Huh?"

Saku was momentarily stunned. He hadn't expected her to offer.

"What's with that look? You don't want me to?" Umiri's face remained as calm as ever.

"Of course I do!"

An invitation like this from his idol was an opportunity he'd never refuse.

And with Kikuri still missing in action, having Umiri step in was perfect.

Even if Kikuri showed up later, he'd still rather learn from Umiri.

After all, she was his idol. Kikuri… not so much.

[Stamina +3]

"By the way, don't you have to soundcheck with the band you're playing with today?" he asked, surprised she'd spare the time.

"I do, but apart from that, I can teach you during my free time."

Umiri's professionalism showed, though outside of necessary rehearsals, the rest of her time was her own.

"I see." Saku grinned. "Didn't realize you and Kikuri-senpai were so close."

Their friendship was clearly tighter than he'd imagined if Umiri was willing to stand in for her without hesitation.

"It's decent enough. Besides, I'm free today anyway."

She only had one show scheduled here, so she was taking it easy.

Plus, Saku was the manager of Taki's band, a friend of Kikuri, and—by his own insistence—her "fan."

For all these reasons, she didn't mind playing the role of bass instructor for a bit.

"Thanks a lot."

No matter what, having extra time with her thrilled Saku.

"Let's head to your practice room," Umiri said, already walking toward it.

"Sure thing."

Saku followed beside her.

---

"So, you actually bought the exact same bass as me, huh?"

Noticing the instrument in his hands, Umiri seemed a bit taken aback.

"You're my idol. As your fan, I had to go with the same model," Saku replied.

Once again, Umiri ignored the fan talk, focusing instead on the bass itself. "You're really set on starting with a five-string? Are you sure you're ready for that?"

"Well, I'm not exactly a beginner. I've already been learning bass for a while," he explained.

"Oh, so you're switching from four-string to five-string?"

"No, my last bass was a six-string."

Umiri went silent for a moment before asking, curious, "…Just wondering, did you ever play a standard four-string?"

"Nope."

Most basses were, of course, four-strings.

But he owned only two basses: one with six strings and one with five. No four-string bass in sight.

"Interesting," Umiri said, intrigued. "Play me something then, just to see where you're at."

"Anything in particular?"

"Whatever you want."

"Okay, then…"

After a quick thought, Saku decided to play a bit of Spring Shadow's bassline.

With his current skill level, he could easily handle bass solos from plenty of classic songs.

But since his "character" was supposed to be a beginner, he had no reason to overdo it.

Having heard Spring Shadow in practice so often, he could play it effortlessly. But to keep up the act, he intentionally made himself appear a bit clumsy.

"…"

When the short solo ended, Umiri raised an eyebrow. "How long have you been learning bass?"

"About two months, I guess?"

If he didn't count the three-hour learning boost he'd gotten, his bass journey had started back in April.

Now that it was June, two months was a fair answer.

"Impressive. You've got talent," she said with a steady voice.

"Do you think so?"

Saku acted a little embarrassed.

After using his study card to reach a professional level in bass, he'd been pretending to be a novice to avoid shocking anyone. Now, he was getting praised as a "natural" by a pro-level bassist.

Still, even before he'd used the card, Ryo had remarked on his potential for bass, so being called a "genius" wasn't entirely off-base.

"Yes, I'm certain of it," Umiri said. "But it seems like you're a little unfamiliar with this bass, or maybe just uncoordinated, which is making your play somewhat inconsistent."

"That… might be true."

Saku averted his gaze slightly, feeling a bit guilty.

The real reason he sounded shaky was that he was trying too hard to act like a beginner, while his professional-level muscle memory kept trying to take over.

"Well, let's get started then."

Now that she had a sense of his skill level, Umiri opened her bass case and pulled out her own instrument.

"All right."

Saku smiled and agreed.

Time passed. In between, Umiri had briefly left to rehearse with the band she was supporting and then returned to continue teaching him.

---

After a while, the practice room door suddenly swung open, drawing their attention.

Stumbling through the doorway, a clearly tipsy Hiroi Kikuri arrived.

"Hey, Saku, sorry about this—I kinda… had a bit too much and fell asleep. Completely forgot I was supposed to teach you bass today…"

Before she could finish, Kikuri noticed they weren't alone. Yahata Umiri was there too.

Saku and Umiri were sitting face-to-face, each holding identical five-string basses, looking almost uncomfortably close.

---

T/N: I feel like day by day I'm slowly becoming like Kikuri

Reader, your presence signifies commitment.

To walk this path is to contribute to the pursuit of eternity.

Should you wish to further fortify our resolve, step forward: [patreon.com/WiseTL].

Each action contributes to the unyielding foundation of our creation. Together, we etch a mark that transcends the fleeting nature of time.

— Raiden Shogun