Aqours Chapter 35

Time for Aqours to Advertise

We want people to get to know us better!

Story 1

You: S-So, Chika... How's it looking? Chika: Ooh… Whoa! It’s up! Way, way up! There are, like, a hundred more than yesterday! Hanamaru: I can’t believe there are so many other school idols out there, zura! Ruby: School idols are performing more and doing more events all over the country, so there are new groups forming all the time! Dia: True. And that means that in order to be at the top of the school idol world, you can’t approach things with a half-baked attitude. Kanan: If we’re going to get our name out there, we’ll need to do more consistent activities. Mari: What about a live show here in the school gym? Our cherry blossom viewing show was a huge hit, and lots of people seemed to want an encore performance. Yoshiko: Lili, my mom… Err, temporary human world roommate, said the spring and cherry-blossom-themed song you wrote warmed her heart. Riko: I’ve heard that from a lot of people, and it makes me so happy! I really tried to capture the warmth and excitement that spring brings. Chika: It’s such a special song! I was humming it while I hung the laundry out the other day, and I swear the clothes dried faster than ever! You: That’s probably because the weather’s warmer now, Chika. Ruby: It’s such a lovely song. I wish more people could hear it! Isn’t there any way we can get it out there? Dia: It makes me feel a little sad, too. We’ve uploaded the song, but there must be some way to… Mari: Stop the press! I’ve got a great idea! Kanan: *Chuckle* that look on your face speaks volumes. You came up with something fun, didn’t you? Riko: What’s your idea, Mari? Mari: A video! We’ll use the song as background music and make a video to promote Aqours! Hanamaru: A promotional video! That makes it sound so futuristic, zura! Yoshiko: Heh, heh, heh. A promotional video set to an Aqours song. That’s sure to spread to all the little demon candidates out there! Ruby: There are lots of people out there looking forward to your next livestream, right, Yoshiko? Yoshiko: Urk! H-How’d you know?! Riko: *Giggle* This sounds like fun. I saw lots of our classmates recording the cherry blossom live show. It’d be great if we could edit in some of that video. You: Heh, heh, heh. Leave the video editing to yours truly! I’d like it if we could show off the highlights of Numazu and Uchiura, too! Chika: Yeah! We gotta jam-pack this video full of what makes Aqours special, so that people can get to know us better! Dia: Excellent! I’d also like to spread the word about how wonderful Aqours, Uranohoshi, Uchiura, and Numazu are! Kanan: If we’re talking about what makes Uchiura great, we can’t forget the sea! We’ve gotta add in some footage of us dancing on the beach. Mari: Why not go all the way and include some scenes of you diving, Kanan? You: Great idea! Oh, how about we throw in some scenes of everyone on our boat? Wouldn’t it be neat if we could show off our dance formations on deck? Hanamaru: Aqours on a boat. That has a nice ring to it, zura! Ruby: And since we are school idols, we should add clips of our favorite spots at school, too. Yoshiko: The time has come to spread my ebony wings and take flight. Yohane’s magic power is at its peak. I could easily unleash my darkest, most forbidden spells. Chika: So… So cool. Yoshiko, you’re the epitome of a fallen angel school idol. You’re like a pioneer in the field of fallen angel school idolhood! Yoshiko: Th-Thanks. But it’s not Yoshiko, remember? It’s Yohane. Hanamaru: Yoshiko’s fallen angel shtick always adds something fresh to the mix. Yoshiko: Don’t call it a shtick! And it’s not Yoshiko, it’s YOHANE! Riko: We should definitely add a scene to show off Yoshiko’s unique charms. It’ll add some real punch to the video! Kanan: All nine of us are pretty unique. We should try to capture everyone’s individual traits! Dia: Great idea! It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten to show off my traditional Japanese dancing. This seems like the perfect opportunity. Ruby: Your dancing’s so beautiful. I’d like to have lots of people see it, too. You: Looks like we’re full of ideas! My boat, Kanan’s shop, Yoshiko’s fallen angel forbidden… Uhh, thingy? Riko: She said she was going to unleash her darkest, most forbidden spells. Chika: Nice, Riko! I can’t believe you wrote down everyone’s ideas that fast. Oh, we need to show off your piano playing, too! And I’ll show off some mikan oranges! Hanamaru: Chika, I bet your love of mikan oranges would resonate with people, zura. And since they’re local, it’d promote where we live, too, zura! Mari: Maybe I should show off my language skills? And of course, we need to show off our school, as proper school idols should. I think that’ll do it! Ruby: Okay! If we’re going to show off the school, we should all introduce our favorite spots to the viewers. Hanamaru: Ruby, ours would be the library, right, zura? I’mma line up all my favorite books along the most visible shelf in the shot, zura! Dia: That’s a wonderful idea! It’s the perfect way to show off our library’s collection. Hanamaru, Ruby, I’ll leave that part to you two. Ruby: *Giggle* It’s nice and quiet in the library. Maybe we could shoot a scene with everyone curled up with a good book? Kanan: If we include everything we’ve talked about, it’s gonna end up being pretty long. Maybe we should make a second video featuring another song? Dia: In that case, we could use the opportunity to debut a brand-new song with the other video. That might get us even more views. Ruby: Wow, a video set to a new song? That’s so exciting! My heart’s beating faster just thinking about it. I can’t wait to start! Riko: I’ll try to compose something that evokes each of our personalities. Chika, can you handle the lyrics? Chika: Can do! I’m already thinking about how to put all the stuff I want people to know, about us and about the school and the town, into lyrics. You: Well, now I’m starting to want to make new outfits to go along with this new song and video! I’ll come up with something that’s uniquely Aqours! Ruby: Me, too! I wanna make outfits that match the new song and video perfectly! Yoshiko: Mu, ha, ha. I expect an outfit that evokes Yohane’s dark aura, little demon Ruby. Hanamaru: I sense incredible motivation from Yoshiko, zura. She might try to start a real fallen angel ritual during the shooting, zura! Chika: *Giggle* I can’t wait to start recording our videos. We had so much fun throwing out ideas that we ended up with a lot on our plates! We’re gonna be real busy! Riko: You say that, but you look at how you’re already bouncing around, Chika! I’m sure you’ll enjoy yourself. You: She loves school idols with all her heart. I’m just as excited, Chika! Ruby: Oh! Dia: What’s wrong, Ruby? That shout from out of nowhere surprised me. Ruby: I just thought that if we’re making a promotional video for ourselves, maybe there’s a way to show what we’re doing to the rest of the school? Kanan: As school idols, the school’s like our base of operations. It’d be nice if the other students could learn a little more about what we do. Mari: Nice idea! We’ll make our shootings open to the public, so they can come and see us as they like! Chika: Awesome! Hee, hee! It feels like we’re preparing for a live show. If we’re singing and dancing in front of everyone, does that technically make it a live show? You: If the shooting’s going to be open for people to see, it’d be cool if we could do a live show to celebrate unveiling the finished product. Dia: That would make for an excellent opportunity to debut the video. With a live show opening for the premiere, we’d be sure to get lots of people! Hanamaru: Is there any way to make it so we’re not just doing a live show and showing a video? Some way to bring it all to life? Ruby: What if we all synchronized our singing and dancing to what was playing in the video? It’d be really hard, but something tells me we can do it! Kanan: So we’d do the same choreography to the song that’s playing in the video? I kinda like it! Mari: We’ll set up a big screen on the stage and do a live show with our video as the background! What a shiny idea! Yoshiko: Shooting videos, and preparing a live shoe for their premiere? This will be my greatest fallen live show yet! I’m raring to go! Chika: Let’s do it! Let’s do it all! C’mon, everyone, we’ve got work to do! Together: Yeah!

Story 2

Hanamaru: Wowie! We're really on the deck of a ship, zura! It's shiny and clean, the sky's blue, and the water's sparkling. It's a perfect spot to enjoy the sea, zura! Mari: We really get to borrow such a magnificent ship? Unbelievable! Chika: We owe it all to You’s dad! I can’t believe Aqours is really getting to go out on a boat. This is a dream come true! Riko: You was talking about Aqours getting on a ship and sailing out to sea. I’m so happy we get to make her idea a reality! You: *Laugh* Me, too! I just felt like we needed a boat since we got to introduce the underwater part of the Uchiura Sea with Kanan’s diving! Dia: It was so lovely how all those schools of little, tiny fish gathered around when we were filming underwater! Kanan: If we’re talking about lovely, we’ve gotta mention your dancing, Dia! You make it look so effortless, but I know it’s really difficult. Ruby: Dia’s been a great dancer for as long as I can remember, but today she looked especially beautiful. Yoshiko: I just wish we’d had the time to get Dia into a kimono. Grrr, I should have unsealed the limit on my magic so as to use even more powerful spells. Mari: Given that his video is to promote our school idol group, I think it’s better that she danced in her uniform. You were so cute, Dia! Hanamaru: Yeah, you were so graceful I forgot to breathe for a minute, zura. Ruby, I’m so jealous you get to watch Dia dance all the time at home, zura! Dia: D-Did you all really enjoy it that much? I’ll be sure to invite all of you over next time. Chika: Whoo-hoo! Yay! What about next… Oops! It’s so late! If we don’t start recording now, we’re gonna run out of time! You: Yeah, the ship’s only going to be docked for a little bit, so we should hurry. Let’s start by going over our positions. Everyone ready? Ruby: I’m a little nervous about being on this big on-deck stage, but there’s no time to be scared. I’ll do my Rubesty! Yoshiko: That’s the spirit, Ruby! Have no fear, for thou art protected by Yohane’s dark blessing. Dia: It’s not exactly the most potent form of divine protection, but there’s no denying that it’s reassuring! Kanan: Let’s give it 110%, so we can nail this in one shot! Mari: Perfect! Great job, everyone! That was totally shiny! Dia: I was worried about how much we’d be able to get done in such a short time, but it looks like being in a time crunch helped us focus better. Hanamaru: Ruby, your performance was a lot bolder than usual. Great job, zura! Yoshiko: Heh. Clearly, she owes it to my dark blessing. But good for you, little demon Ruby. Ruby: Thank you, everyone! Umm… Eeek! Now I’m getting nervous again, even though the filming’s over! Riko: That happens to me sometimes. I’ve had piano recitals where I felt fine the whole time, but as soon as it ended, my hands started trembling. You: I know, right? During diving meets, I’m calm and cool while I’m working on form or simulating the dive in my mind, but I realized I was freaked out once it’s over! Kanan: Your diving is always so solid, I’ve never once thought you seemed nervous out there! Personally, I feel dizzy just looking up at that diving tower. Chika: *Gasp* Speaking of diving, we should get a shot of You jumping off the high dive! Maybe it could be a combo with Kanan’s diving shop? Kanan: The water temp’s still pretty low, so I don’t think we can do it this time. I agree that putting You diving in our promo video is a good idea, though! Riko: This will be the perfect video for the summer season. *Giggle* I’m starting to think it really would be fun to shoot a new video for every season! Hanamaru: The videos from our cherry blossom live show were very spring-like. All we need now are fall and winter videos, zura! Dia: Come on, everyone! Next up is the school! I expect there’ll be lots of people there to watch us. We should hurry! Yoshiko: Understood! Activating teleportation! Chika: I’m changed! Now we’re all ready. *Giggle* It’s so rare for us to sing and dance in our school uniforms. It’s a nice feeling! You: I thought about making costume styled after our uniforms, but I figured if we’re trying to show off the school, our actual uniforms are the better choice. Ruby: Uranohoshi’s uniform are really cute. Plus, I’ve always wanted to wear the same uniform as Dia. The first day we came here together, I was so happy. Dia: You really worked yourself to the bone preparing for the entrance exam. I remember us studying feverishly together to get you ready. Kanan: You’re such a wonderful big sister, Dia! I’m so jealous. I wish I had a sister! Mari: *Chuckle* Remember how we used to play house and be mommies when we were little? Maybe we could play sisters now. I’ll be the big sister! Hanamaru: Playing house and pretending to be sisters sounds fun, zura! Yoshiko: Zuramaru, we used to play house, right? Although instead of being sisters, we were fallen angel and underling. Riko: Speaking of sisters, Chika, aren’t your sisters both Uranohoshi graduates? Chika: Yup! Mito and Shima both went here. I remember wanting to follow in their footsteps and go to Uranohoshi ever since I was little! You: I bet they’ll love watching the videos we’re about to shoot. It’ll be a nice trip down memory lane for them. Actually, I hope all kinds of people get to watch! Chika: They’ve got lots of memories in the music room, and all of the classrooms! Just thinking about what it must all mean to them makes my heart ache. Kanan: You’re really empathizing with your sisters, aren’t you, Chika? Is listening to Riko play the piano going to make you start bawling? Hanamaru: I guess the school is a special place for everyone. I wanna make even more wonderful memories here, zura! Ruby: Yeah! Let’s make lots and lots of great memories together! I’m as happy as can be now that I’m one of my beloved school idols, and with my sister, no less! Dia: I feel the same way, Ruby. Now come on! Schoolmates and staff are here to watch. Let’s start recording! Ruby: Eeek! I-I was so focused on our conversation that I didn’t notice all these people arrive. Hanamaru: Since it’s overlapping with the debut of our new song, we’re getting a lot of attention, zura. You don’t have to be nervous, zura. They’re all here to support us! Yoshiko: Exactly. Yohane has personally summoned these little demons from the netherworld. There’s nothing to worry about. Kanan: Ready to start? We don’t want to keep everyone waiting! Mari: The camera settings are all dialed in! Riko, you can start whenever you’re ready! Riko: Oh, umm… I’m not sure my head’s in the right place just yet. Can I play a little first? Yoshiko: Lili, do you need my dark blessing as well? I’m prepared to imbue you with my powers at any time. You: It’s pretty normal to be nervous in front of crowds. Why don’t you just play a song you like? It’ll make for a good warm-up for your hands. Chika: Good idea! To be honest, I’m freaking out a bit, too. I think listening to Riko play the piano will help me relax. Riko: Thank you, everyone! I’ll go ahead and play a song, then. Chika: Th-This is one of my favorite µ's songs. Ruby: It’s not just µ's. It’s got parts of our new Aqours song mixed in, too. Riko has arranged them perfectly. It’s just… Wow. You: *Applause* This is such a wonderful tune. It’s got me really motivated. I’m ready to give it my all! Chika: All right, let’s go! Time to give everyone out there the performance of a lifetime!

Story 3

Chika: La, la, la. *Giggle* Ahhh! Being a school idol is so much fun! Riko: You seem to be in a great mood lately, Chika. You: Is it because of all the attention Aqours has been getting since we uploaded our music video and footage from the music video debut live show? Chika: Ding, ding, ding! I love seeing the number of views on our music video go up every day! Hanamaru: It’s great to see that more and more people are watching us day by day, zura! Ruby: Ever since we unveiled our music video at the live show, my classmates have been watching it and sharing their impressions with me. Yoshiko: Yohane’s little demons have been diligently raising the view count as well. Kanan: As a school idol, there’s nothing more encouraging than knowing everyone at school’s cheering us on! We had tons of support for the video shoot and live show! Dia: I’m also glad that everyone at school has better understanding of what we do now that they’ve had a chance to see us. Mari: Having everyone at school support us as school idols sure is reassuring. Ruby: I had the butterflies during the music video shoot and live show, but I’m happy I was able to see it through till the end. Hanamaru: Ruby, my classmates were saying how cute your smile was during the live show, zura. You’ve improved a lot, even from the music video shoot, zura! Yoshiko: Divvying up my powers of darkness seems to have paid off. Mu, ha, ha. I hear legions of little demons have been captivated by the fallen angel Yohane’s charms. Riko: That’s right, Yoshiko. The fallen angel idol was a huge hit in our class, too! They even asked me to let them know when your next livestream is. Yoshiko: Th-That’s, ahem, fine. Let them know I will notify them telepathically, little demon Lili. Only those deemed worthy should receive it. You: I was happy so many people asked us about the costumes, too. I can’t get enough of creating lately. There are so many new costumes I wanna make! Kanan: I used to feel like cutesy outfits were way out of my comfort zone, but your costume designs are so amazing that I can’t help but want to wear them. Mari: It’s wonderful that we get to discover Kanan’s beauty all over again through Aqours’ costumes. Dia: We’ve certainly discovered new charms we didn’t have back when the three of us first formed Aqours. It has felt quite refreshing. Ruby: There are so many outfits I wanna dress you up in, Dia. I’m gonna make them all! Dia: I’ll be looking forward to them, Ruby. Mari: *Chuckle* I guess Dia’s dream of becoming an idol with her sister really has come true. Riko: Oh! I’ve been wanting to write a song about friendship and family. Think I could pick both of you brains for that? Dia: I don’t know if we’d be of any help, but I’m always happy to talk. Oh, goodness! I got too caught up in our conversation. Look at the time, Mari. Mari: Oh! NOT good. We need to hurry, Dia! Kanan: Hurry? Is something going on today? Mari: Actually, after preparing for the music video and live show, we’re kinda behind on our student council and chairwoman duties. We might have to skip practice. Chika: That’s a bummer, but your duties as student council president and chairwoman are important too! Dia: But don’t worry, we’ll make sure to finish everything up today. We’ll be back tomorrow for practice like always. All right then, see you later! Together: Later! Ruby: They’re already off. Even though Dia is so busy, it’s amazing how she never misses a beat and gets everything done. Hanamaru: We’ve gotta practice extra hard so that Dia and Mari won’t have to worry about us on top of everything else, zura. Right, Ruby? Ruby: You said it! I’ll do my Rubesty! Kanan: Okay then, let’s change into our practice clothes and head up to the rooftop! Uhh, Earth to Chika! Are you listening? Chika: *Giggle* All this talk about the music video piqued my curiosity for how many views it’s racked up today. Riko: You’ve been having a lot of fun checking on the view count before practice lately, haven’t you, Chika? Chika: Totally! Let’s see here, how many views did we get today? Hmm? Huh? Whoa! You: What’re you screaming about, Chika? Wait, whaaaat?! Hanamaru: Is something wrong with the music video views, zura? Umm, five, fifty, five hundred… Zuraaaa?! Riko: H-How many?! Let me see. Aqours’ music video has… Fifty… 50,000 views?! And look! It’s going up in real time. Chika: Look at all those comments, too. Is this a dream? It feels like a dream that this many people would be watching us. *Gasp* But it’s not a dream, right?! Yoshiko: This is reality. Reality is justice! Feel it with thine own body! Fallen Angel Secret Technique: Fallen Dragon Phoenix Hold! Ruby: Eeek! Hanamaru: Yoshiko! No using fallen angel techniques on Ruby, zura! You’re right about this not being a dream though, zura. Kanan: The comments are really thorough, too! This one says the diving scenes made them feel like they were also in the Aqours ocean. That makes me so happy! Riko: There’s a comment from someone from Numazu! It says seeing the Numazu shopping district in our video really took them back. You: This one says the highlight of the video was our performance on the boat. I’m getting so hyped! Ruby: This comment says seeing our performance at school took them back to their own school days there. Someone who went to our school watched this, too! Yoshiko: Mu, ha, ha. This commenter is pledging their loyalty to the fallen angel Yohane, I see. I shall welcome them into my army of little demons with open arms. Hanamaru: I can’t believe how many comments we’ve received. The internet truly does connect us all. It’s the future, zura! Chika: It makes me happy to have all of our hard work recognized! Oh, there’s a comment here from another school idol. Kanan: She wrote a well thought-out comment about our performance and singing abilities. You can really tell she’s a school idol, too! You: I love how everyone is coming together to cheer on school idols. O ho[e we get to interact with lots of other school idols and be able to lift each other up. Riko: Yeah, it’d be great if we could share how much fun it is to be a school idol with lots of people. Chika: we all love school idols, so imagine if a bunch of us got together. I bet we could put on the most exciting performance ever! Ruby: Just thinking about it makes me anxious, but I hope we can become the type of school idols that get invited to events like that one day. I’ll work really hard! Hanamaru: That’s the spirit, zura! Keep putting your wishes into words and they’ll be sure to come true, zura! Yoshiko: The end is nigh! The fallen angel Yohane’s Final Ragnarok shall soon transpire upon the promised land. You: Isn’t this crazy, though?! The view count’s been steadily rising this whole time we’ve been talking. Kanan: People who watched our music video might be sharing it by word of mouth! Plus, it attracts more attention as it rises up in the charts. Chika: Wow! This is unreal! I can’t wait to tell Mari and Dia. Oh, wait. We can just bring the laptop to the school board and student council rooms. Riko: Chika! I get how you feel, but hold your horses for a moment. Yoshiko: Oh! Speak of the devil, both their auras tell me that they’ve returned. Hanamaru: You’re right. I can hear the sound of their voices and someone sprinting down the hallway coming this way, zura. Mari: Oh my gosh! This is amazing! Amazing! Dia: Everyone! Big news! Kanan: I never thought I’d see Mari, let alone Dia, running down the hallway! What in the world happened? Mari: We’ve been invited to the School Idol Festival! Together: Whaaaaaaaaat?!

Story 4

Chika: Riko, one more time, please! As hard as you can! Riko: Your cheeks are turning red. Are you sure you’re okay? Chika, I think we should… You: I’ll do it then! Prepare yourself, Chika! Chika: Aaaah! I can feel my cheeks getting pinched! Which means… this isn’t a dream after all! Kanan: Try to calm down, Chika! How many times do I have to tell you that you’re not dreaming? Here, read the invitation for yourself. Chika: Ooooh! So this is the invitation to the School Idol Festival. I can’t believe this! This is crazy! Dia: It’s such an incredible honor for Aqours to receive an invitation as a popular school idol. Mari: This is an invitation to the dream stage that every school idol aspires to perform on. It doesn’t get much shinier than that! Ruby: We’re invited to the legendary School Idol Festival. The same one where µ's has performed. My legs feel so light. It’s like I’m standing on a cloud. Hanamaru: Hang in there ruby, zura! I’ve got your back, zura. Yoshiko: You’re shaking too, Zuramaru. It looks like the fallen angel Yohane will need to divvy up her powers of darkness again. Mari: *Giggle* The three of you look like newborn lambs trying to stand for the first time. Kanan: I totally get how they feel after being invited to such an esteemed event. You seem pretty calm and composed though, Mari. Mari: Dia and I already had our freak-out sesh in my office. When Dia burst in looking like she was about to cry, I had no idea what to do. Dia: I’ll admit the shock made me lose my head for a moment. I couldn’t help myself. You: So the School Idol Festival is next month, huh? We’re probably gonna get real busy, so we need to start planning everything. Chika: Good point. Where do we start? Riko: The participating school idol groups must perform two songs, including one new song. So, put writing a new song on our to-do list. Ruby: I’d like to make new costumes to go along with the new song, too. I’ll use cute fabric and lots of ribbons to make the best costumes ever! Yoshiko: This is Yohane the Fallen Angel’s opportunity to show off her ebony wings to all her little demons on the grandest stage of them all. Hanamaru: It’s quite enough if your most elite little demons can see your jet-black wings with their magic eyes, zura. Yoshiko: Heh, you’re right. Since we’re meeting in the magic metropolis of Tokyo, our promised land where my little demons run rampant, that should suffice. Chika: what?! Yoshiko, what’d you just say?! Yoshiko: That it’ll suffice because we’re meeting in the magic metropolis Tokyo, where my little demons run rampant? Chika: Tokyo?! The School Idol Festival is in Tokyo?! Dia: Yes, it says that the venue is in Tokyo. Chika: Woo-hoo! It’s in Tokyo! Tokyo! We get to go to Tokyo! Riko: We’ll all be going to Tokyo and standing on the School Idol Festival stage together. You: Let’s wear our new costumes, sing our new song, and give an all-out performance, Chika! Mari: We should try to come up with new dance formations, too. Right, Kanan? Kanan: I’ve actually been jotting down ideas in case something like this ever happened! They’re in my notebook, so let’s all got through them later. Riko: I’m just wrapping up ideas for the new song, too. I’ll record it, so you can all listen to it tomorrow. Ruby: I have tons of ideas for costumes and accessories I wanna use, too! You: Sweet! We can match up your ideas with my designs, then. I’m really getting fired up now! Hanamaru: New song, costumes, choreography, formations… We’re gonna be super busy, zura! But it’s all so exciting, I feel like I’m gonna burst, zura! Chika: Totally! I’m already having a blast. I can’t wait to meet lots of other school idols, too. Okay, everyone. Let’s work hard! Riko: And so that’s the song. What do you guys think? Chika: Wh-Whooooa! That was amazing, Riko! From the second the overture started, I got goosebumps! This song is incredible! Kanan: I like the tempo, and the looping melody is really easy on the ears, too. Mari: The high notes sound really satisfying to sing. I’ll have to work extra hard during vocal training. Dia: The song has a mellow impression overall, but the way the melody changes as if it’s flowing is beautiful. I’ll have to incorporate that into the dance, too! Ruby: There aren’t any lyrics yet, but it sounds like the kind of song we’d wanna sing to our loved ones. Hanamaru: I feel like I can already see a story in this melody, zura. If we can find a way to express it with our dance formations, it’ll be amazing, zura. Yoshiko: The part where the tempo picks up seems like it’ll require a lot of stamina. Zuramaru, Ruby, we need to step up our individual practice! You: You freshman have been keeping up with your morning practices, huh? I’ll make sure to swim some laps during diving practice to build up my stamina. Riko: Thanks, everyone. I composed this song thinking about family, friends, and everyone who supports us. I’m happy those feelings came across. Chika: I need to come up with the perfect lyrics for this song. *Gasp* The pressure is definitely on! You: Chika, I think you should put whatever you felt while listening to the music straight into your own words. Kanan: That’s right. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel or anything. Just write down your honest feelings, and they’ll certainly come through to everyone. Dia: Bowl them over with the same passion that moved all of our hearts! Mari: I think you should just pour your love for school idols into the lyrics! Yoshiko: Yohane, the fallen angel, can grant you special access to her ark if you’d like. Mu, ha, ha. Behold Yohane’s creation and drown in her limitless sea of wisdom. Hanamaru: Speaking of which, you left your lyrics of darkness notebook on the desk over there, zura. Chika: Let’s see here. W-Wow. Yup, this definitely sounds like something a fallen angel idol might write. Umm… Let’s save this as a last resort. Yoshiko: As, so we Weill save this for the Final Ragnarok. Understood! You: Now that we’re done with our new song, I’d like to start on the costumes. Can everyone take a look at this design? Mari: Whoa! You’ve come prepared! How did you design that so quickly? Ruby: Riko actually let us listen to the main melody the other day, and we were able to come up with an outline. Dia: That costume gives off such a soft and gentle vibe. It’ll go perfectly with the mellow concept of our new song. Kanan: So the bottom half looks like a skirt, but it’s actually pants? We’ll be able to add some intense dance formations with these. Riko: That bright color is like the perfect complement to a clear blue sky. Just looking at it puts me in a good mood. Chika: I can’t believe we’ll be dancing on the School Idol Festival stage in such beautiful costumes. Suddenly, I feel a wave of joy crashing over me. You: Oh, Chika, are you… Are you tearing up? Chika: Yeah! Right now, my heart is just brimming with love for school idols and for Aqours! Hanamaru: If you can out those feelings into lyrics, I’m sure the message will come across loud and clear, zura. Mari: It’s not hard to be straightforward with feelings of love, after all! Dia: Oh, dear. It’ll be hard to write down anything at all if you’re crying that hard. There, there. Let’s wipe away your tears. Chika: Thank you, everyone! *Giggle* I can’t believe I’m crying tears of joy. I guess that goes to show how much I love school idols! I really feel it. Chika: Let’s always stay true to ourselves! We’ll give everything we’ve got and have fun doing it! Together: Yeah!