Rapszódia of Divine Ruin - Track 2

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(Oh man… The mood is getting worse by the second… B-But someone has to keep the conversation going…)

R-Raito-san! Let’s set aside whether or not we’ll accept the collaboration for now. Could you give us more details?

Of course. I’ll send the proposal to you all. Please look through it on your devices.

I believe HAMA Tours was also sent this proposal, but they also directed their inquiry to me personally since I have connections with the manufacturer from buying one of their pianos in the past. I figured I’d take this chance to explain it to you.

Why… Why don’t you ever ask first…

First, as I’d mentioned before, the requester is 88Keys, a world-renowned piano manufacturer based in Hamamatsu.

It matches the name of a JPN piano manufacturer renowned for being chosen in international competitions.

They’re one and the same. They’ll be unveiling a new grand piano that’s been in the making for five years, created by a famous piano maker under their company. And it seems they will be holding a commemorative competition at the same time.

A… piano competition?

Yes. The competition will have one bracket for amateurs and another for experts, and the winners of both brackets will get the chance to perform in a concert using their new grand piano.

They’ve proposed that if one of our members wins either bracket, they’ll lend a piano to HAMA Tours as well. What do you think?

U-Umm…

(Hamamatsu is the “city of musical instruments”, known for being home to several renowned piano manufacturers. The Hamamatsu International Piano Competition is considered a stepping stone for pianists that are active on a worldwide level nowadays…)

(This is a great collaboration offer, obviously! But I’m not so sure about the proposal…)

The proposal requests “Domeki Kuguri’s participation in the competition”. However–

Quiet, plüss.

(No matter how good this may sound… It’s too hard on Kuguri-san, isn’t it?)

(Now I see what Nayuki-kun meant when he said it’d be harmful for Kuguri-san… It’s a great offer, but we really can’t accept… Not when Kuguri-san’s arms are…)

Back in the day, your piano playing truly captivated me… It was perfect, flawless even. Yet, the way you played Liszt felt like it could break the second anyone touched it.

The monochrome memory I lost… was you.

…How annoying.

(Kuguri-san felt hurt back then, didn’t he…?)

Raito. Are you encouraging Kuguri to compete in the competition?

No. I’d be happy if he did participate, but I can’t exactly force him, can I?

Oh, good. That’s good.

Tao, this isn’t something to be happy about. Think about how Kugurin feels.

O-Oh. Yeah. Sorry.

I’ll be the one to enter the competition. As Kuguri’s apprentice, I want to become his arms. What do you think, Kuguri?

Oh…?

My… arms…?

Yes. I’m sure you remember my promise to you. I want to take a good look at your soul, and come to understand it.

I haven’t made any progress as of late, however.

I want to face you properly, and get to know you. And once I’ve looked at your soul, I want to come to love—

……

WAAAH! Kugurin is choking Raitin ouuut!

Hey!! K-Kuguri-san, stop it!

Now hold on! We can’t have a murder occurring within this office! We have to separate them—!

Shut up. I’m ending this man’s life right now.

(Uh, ummm… What do we do…?)

Sigh… You went too far this time, Raito-san.

I had to operate at 100% output power to forcibly separate Kuguri from you.

Haha. Sorry about that. I couldn’t exactly give in.

Um… Raito-san… I think it’ll be difficult to accept this collaboration so long as we don’t know how Kuguri-san feels about the piano.

…I’m aware of that, of course. But even then, I had to bring this up, even if it meant Kuguri would try to kill me.

Uhhh… Why, exactly?

Because I want to properly love Kuguri.

Pfff… (Cough, Cough)!

Are you alright, Tao?

(I-I’m so glad Kuguri-san isn’t here to hear this. Someone would’ve died, seriously.)

What connection is there between loving Kuguri and entering the piano competition?

…Back when we were kids, I played a duet with Kuguri.

We made a promise we would play a certain song together again one day.

…! Seriously?

Yes. And when we met again, I made one more promise to him.

I want to face Kuguri, and understand why he wishes to break me. However, I haven’t been able to do that yet.

(…So they made a promise like that? It must have been around the time Nayuki-kun was stabbed and Kuguri-san disappeared for a while, right?)

Well, it was a one-sided promise on my part… But it was also the reason Kuguri returned to Ev3ns, so I don’t want to lie about it.

However… As I am sure you’re all aware, Kuguri constantly avoids me, so we haven’t been able to have a proper conversation. If I were to die—

Raito.

…Raito-san!

……

Haha, don’t look at me like that. I plan to live properly, you know. …Actually, I am pretty happy you’re angry.

…Please don’t be.

I’m sorry. But while I have yet to find a solution to this, I must keep my lifespan in mind. And when I think about it that way…

I’ve spent far too long hesitating in an attempt to not hurt Kuguri. At some point, I will have to take a step towards him, even if it means hurting him in the process.

In order to understand Kuguri, I will surely have to play the piano. Now that I’m his sub-host, I can find more chances to speak with him. I… I would like to get to face him even a little before I die.

That must be all I can do for Kuguri. I don’t want to have any regrets.

(I wish he wouldn’t make it sound as though his death is guaranteed to happen…)

(But this must be how Raito-san truly feels.)

(If Nayuki-kun were to hear him talk like this, he’d get mad and call him arrogant… But it’s not as though I don’t understand how Raito-san feels. No one has the right to deny anyone the desire to understand another person.)

……

(As always… Raito-san’s incredible. He’s got no brakes… Rather, he’s been holding himself back when it comes to Kuguri-san all this time?)

Kugurin! Waaait! Wait, wait, wait, wait, waaaaait~!

Step aside, nyuszi. I’m not in the mood to listen to you today, even if you sing a cute song.

Domeki-san… I apologize on behalf of my absurdly foolish, idiotic, and thoughtless older brother.

……

I was planning to turn this offer down. But because that idiot heard about it from one of his acquaintances, the situation has gotten out of my control… I will convince him myself.

Sigh… Going on about competitions and becoming my arms…

He thinks he can make anything his as long as he wishes for it. Whether it’s awards… or me.

Is he looking down on me?

Yes. He is a born-arrogant fool who is completely underestimating you.

But… Nayuuki. I-I think Raitin… means well, y’know.

Just like I said. A malignant piece of trash.

…Haha. Let’s let him participate. He can suffer the consequences, and we can pin all the blame on him…

Nayuuki is going all dark! Stop it!

……

…No. That would actually be a good approach, wouldn’t it?

Huh?

Hey, Naked King. I came for a bit of a chat with you.

(Huh? Is Kuguri-san… in a good mood?)

……

Kuguri…! Have you come to talk to me?

(Woah, is everything alright here? There’s no way Kuguri-san’s about to just go along with Raito-san’s proposal…)

Kuguri’s mood is rapidly increasing.

You wanted to enter that competition as my disciple, didn’t you?

…! Yes, exactly,

And if you’re calling yourself my disciple, then you’ll do anything I say, right?

Of course.

I see. I’ll let you work with me, then.

(Is Kuguri-san seriously offering Raito-san a handshake!?)

Yeah…!

(Poor Raitin… He totally got played. Now he kinda looks like a puppy abandoned by his owner…)

Agree to these conditions. One: my word is absolute. As my servant, you’ll be handling all the host work. Oh, and you’ll be staying as the subhost.

(Huh?! Is he planning to make Raito-san do all the work?!)

Two: as my disciple, you must win the competition. And if I want it to, this servant contract will last for life.

Well? If you’re still fine with all of that, then I’ll cooperate with you.

Is that it? Consider it done if that’s what it’ll take to get you to team up with me.

What is his problem…

It seems like they have settled their discussion.

Kinyariii~ Chii’s kinda worried… Kugurin and Raitin might end up getting hurt.

Is that so…?

But no one can stop them anymore, right? They’re like speeding trains that are about to go off the rails… It’s kinda like a battle of wills.

I’m happy you accepted, Kuguri. What would you have me do first?

……

(You’re just an amateur. There isn’t even a one in ten thousand chance that you could win. For now, keep dreaming.)

(I’ll have you running in circles the entire time, without accomplishing anything… In the end, I’ll make you realize you’ve wasted your precious time… and leave you in despair.)

(Your “time” is the thing most precious to you. And when you see that it was hollow and meaningless, you’ll fall into despair.)

N-Nayuki-kun, aren’t you going to stop this? Winning the competition and becoming Kuguri-san’s servant are both a bit much…!

Chief…

……

…I wonder who will break.

What?

Don’t mind me. I say we watch how this unfolds for now.