Funeral Lilies Conjured With a Sleight of Hand - Track 5

For God’s sake, what was Domeki-san thinking!? Storming off right in front of our collaboration partner…!

W-Well, it’s fine… He didn’t seem mad or anything.

And… even if Kitami-san didn’t mean it, he still played a part in souring Kuguri-san’s mood….

(Even though it started to seem like Kuguri-san didn’t want to talk about the piano anymore, I couldn’t change the subject in time…)

(I can’t blame Nayuki-kun for being mad though. I should watch what I say…)

Chii had no idea Kugurin used to play the piano…

Wait a sec, when we were on Matama beach… Didn’t he mention a piano piece when we were watching the sunset?

Feux follets. From Franz Liszt’s transcendental etudes.

……

……

Did you know, Raito-san? About Kuguri-san playing the piano, I mean…

…Yes. Well, sort of, that is.

Kuguri was known as “the reincarnation of Franz Liszt” as a kid. I did see him once at that time.

Really? Then, why isn’t he playing nowadays⁠—

Oh, right. Kugurin… has prosthetic arms…

……

……

(In the end, we couldn’t do the mock magic show because Kuguri-san left all of a sudden.)

…I bet I’m getting rusty. Guess I’ll try some card tricks after so long.

(Skewering magic is kinda scary, so I’d rather I do some card magic instead…)

……

(Ah… There’s Kuguri-san. What should I do? Should I leave–)

…I don’t know him.

(I’ve never seen Kuguri-san react like that before…)

Um… Hello, Kuguri-san. Uhhh, mind if I join you…?

…Hey there.

Maci, want some wine?

Uh, maybe just a glass.

So? What brings you here at this hour? Do you finally want to spend the night with me?

No, I don’t.

Really? Usually you run off at the sight of me. Since you approached me, I figured you were in the mood to play.

No, no. Look, Chihiro wanted us to do a magic show, right?

So, uh… I thought I’d polish my card-guessing trick in the meantime.

Card tricks? Something that dull won’t look good on camera.

(I guess that’s true…)

What kinda magic do you think would work then, Kuguri-san?

Let’s see. There’s the box sawing trick, the arm guillotine… Oh, getting locked in a water tank doesn’t sound too bad either.

I still think the best option is the skewering trick, though.

(So we’re back to that, huh… Scary.)

Since I’ll be the one in the box, I’ll leave the skewering to you. Just make sure to pierce me nice and deep… okay?

No, no, no. Come on, let’s do something a little more peaceful.

How boring. Circus tricks are meant to be a twisted spectacle. Isn’t that what makes them entertaining?

But…

Ladies and gentlemen! Come one, come all!

I will hit my hat twice with this cane…

I went to the circus once as a kid…

The magician there made a white dove appear from his hat, y’know?

How dull… It’s overused and boring.

…Did you also see the circus when you were little, Kuguri-san?

……

Ah, I mean, you were obviously a kid too once.

But we talked a bit about this on set today, y’know, that it’s hard to imagine you as a kid–

Maci.

We’re done talking tonight. Our one glass of time is up.

Wait, I’m still drinking…

Let me finish it, at least…

(I think… No, I definitely just stuck my nose somewhere I shouldn’t have.)

Damn, I went too far. I didn’t mean to upset him…

(…It was for a totally different reason, but I was also called a prodigy as a kid, so I just…)

(I was a little curious about Kuguri-san’s past… But that turned out to be a mistake.)

Woah, this wine’s strong… Feels like it’s burning my throat…