Momoi Taro wants to form a "don" brother duo, but it's a music anime.

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"Yes, yes, I'll practice hard. Momo, don't worry too much, you'll scare Akari." Aine naturally leaned against Akari, gently patting her back. Although she didn't know why, the child reacted very strongly to Taro's words.

"Yes, you only need to answer once," Taro replied casually. "Will it be alright if you go home alone today? Where's the lamp?"

"It's okay, I can take Kodama back first," Aine winked and smiled in response to Taro's words.

"Well, I have something to do. Call me if you have any questions," Taro said, and quickly left the practice room.

Tonight, Li Xi is on night shift. Taro quickly walked over and said, "Shiina, I saw the shift schedule that Kasumi sent me. It seems like you've been working the afternoon shift lately. Can you do me a favor?"

"Is that possible?" Shiina asked in a weak voice, "What do you want me to do?"

"?" Taro looked Li Xi up and down and asked, "What's wrong? You don't look well?"

“Nothing…” Li Xi forced himself to ask, “What do you need me to do?”

“If Rakuna comes recently,” Taro handed her the sheet music, “give this to her and tell her to come for rehearsal at 1 p.m. on Sunday afternoon.”

"This is...? Sheet music?" Li Xi looked at the sheet music in her hand with some curiosity.

"Yes, I just wrote the lyrics and music yesterday." Taro waved his hand casually: "It's yours, Shiina."

"Huh?...Wait, the lyrics and music were written yesterday?" Li Xi stared wide-eyed at the sheet music in her hand. Although it wasn't a complete score, the level of completion made it hard to believe that it was finished just yesterday.

"Hmm, what's wrong?" Taro asked calmly. "I heard Nekomushi and Aine sing yesterday. So I wrote this song and music. It's the perfect song for their progress."

"Did you start writing lyrics and music after hearing their performance...?" Li Xi straightened up, looking at the other person in disbelief, wanting to say something, but in the end, she didn't say anything.

"...?" Taro looked at her conflicted expression, patted her shoulder and said, "We're already bound together. If you encounter any difficulties, feel free to tell me."

"...You're the only one who absolutely cannot say it."

Li Xi wailed inwardly, feeling more ordinary than ordinary people among true geniuses. How could he possibly express this feeling, let alone face the genius himself?

Taro stared at Riki for a while before looking away: "Then I'll be going now, goodbye."

"Um... goodbye." Li Xi's voice sounded somewhat dejected.

"Eh...? Little Lixi?" A familiar voice rang in Lixi's ears.

Lixi's body stiffened instantly, and she looked up towards the source of the sound:

"Hey? A light? Why is it here!?"

Chapter Eleven, Farewell

Let's go back a little bit to the beginning.

Inside the Yuzawa Cafe. Ruoye Mutsu and Xiangzi sat in the cafe. Xiangzi silently gazed out the window, while Mutsu silently watched her.

The waiter brought over Yuzawa's specialty coffee and mango juice. (For two people)

"Mu, what brings you here today?" Xiangzi smiled at the green-haired girl sitting opposite him. "It's been quite a while since we last saw each other. How have you been lately?"

"Because you don't reply to my messages."

"Huh? Is that so?" Xiangzi quickly took out his phone and checked the screen. It was black. "Oh no, it seems it's not charging. Sorry, Mu. I didn't mean to not reply. But you'd better not wait for me at school, it's really conspicuous."

Ruoye Mu stared blankly at Xiangzi, who was chuckling softly. Had Xiangzi really changed like this after not seeing him for a while? It felt like it had been ages since she had seen Xiangzi like this.

"Xiang, it's fixed."

She whispered these words, and Xiangzi heard them. His previously gentle face darkened again. Mu knew she had said the wrong thing again, though she didn't know exactly what she had said wrong. She could only lower her head and remain silent. She knew that speaking would hurt Xiangzi, so it was better to say nothing…

"It's really high and mighty." Xiangzi picked up Yuze's special coffee, took a sip, examined the ripples on the surface, and revealed a happy smile: "It's so delicious..."

She seemed to have thought of something again, and her eyes dimmed slightly. She slowly placed the coffee cup back on the saucer, making a "PA" sound.

"So, what brings you here?" Xiangzi suppressed her negative emotions and asked Mu as gently as possible, but her condescending tone still made her voice involuntarily turn cold.

Why can't I be as frank as my seniors...? If I could, I wouldn't have hurt anyone.

Even now, she is hurting Mu, and she is well aware of this. But her pride is like a spear piercing her chest, both piercing her heart and supporting her spirit... making it impossible for her to fall down even if she wanted to.

I'm so useless...

I... hate myself.

"Xiang... is going to break again."

Mu accurately sensed Xiang's emotions. Sure enough, it was his fault. He didn't know who had fixed Xiang, but as soon as he opened his mouth, Xiang seemed to break down again.

So I shouldn't have spoken up... Mu quietly lowered her head.

"...If you have something important to say, then say it." Xiangzi didn't want to comment much on Mu's words, but there was a hint of coldness in his tone.

“…Su Shi is worried about you.” Mu finally spoke up, even though she didn’t want to. But Su Shi had asked her to, and Xiang had also told her to speak, so she said, “She said she wants to go to your house to find you.”

Hearing the word "home," Xiangzi's stern face softened slightly. She thought of her father, who worked hard at the ramen shop, and her senior colleague who always exuded confidence. For Xiangzi now, one was her father, her blood relative, and the other was like...an older brother, supporting her in every way.

During those days, Taro-senpai would drag his father out every day. Each time, he would leave drunk and return like a dead dog.

However, my father's spirits improved day by day, and he gradually stopped drinking. His physique also became stronger. He could even make delicious ramen, although he only received a 50-point rating from Taro-senpai.

However, for Xiangzi, it was the best ramen he had ever eaten.

However, it seems my senior is forming a band... I don't really know much about what his band is like, I'll ask him next time we meet.

Mu stared blankly at Xiangzi. She could tell he was lost in thought. Xiangzi, who had been hurt by her words, had actually recovered on his own...? Who had changed Xiangzi? It wasn't herself, because she couldn't do it.

Mu knew this all too well.

"Ah, sorry, Mu. I was just spacing out." Xiangzi snapped out of her reverie. Coming back to her senses, she smiled apologetically at Mu and said, "Su Shi... I'm sorry, Mu. I'm not ready to face her yet. Can I say I moved?"

"Hmm..." Xiao Mu remained silent, only sucking on the mango juice.

"Ah... I'm sorry, I'm just talking to myself again." Xiangzi covered her surprised mouth with her hand and soothed her in a gentle voice, "Mumi doesn't lie either, just like Taro-senpai in that respect. But Taro-senpai is a bit more honest than Mumi, hehe..."

As she spoke, her own words stirred up her memories, and she involuntarily blurted out the following remarks. However, she quickly realized her mistake: "Ah, Mu, just pretend you didn't hear that... Let me think about what to do."

Mutsumi put down her cup and looked at Shoko, who was lost in thought. Taro-senpai…? Is he the one who fixed Shoko? Someone who can't lie… Doesn't that hurt others? Even though she doesn't lie, every word she says hurts others. Why is it that Taro, whom Shoko says can't lie, can actually save others…? Mutsumi was very curious.

"I'm sorry, Mu, I can't think of a good solution. I'll just have to trouble you to let it cool down." Xiangzi thought for a long time but couldn't come up with a good enough solution. She picked up her cup and drank the rest of her coffee in one gulp.

He then stood up, picked up the bill, and said, "However, I hope that next time Mu comes to see me, it's because of your own reasons. Mu, don't become someone else's messenger pigeon. Best regards."

Mu stared blankly as Xiangzi left the coffee shop. She murmured, "That's nice, Xiang."

Xiang slowly walked out. Although it wasn't him who pulled her out, it didn't matter, as long as Xiang was alright... After all, how could a puppet like himself possibly save Xiang?

If it were me accompanying Xiang, it would probably mean the two of us sinking into the abyss together.

So, she became curious about that person... Taro-senpai. Let's investigate.

Time returns to the present.

Xiangzi went home, but not to that cramped old house. Instead, she went to her new home—Qinggao Ramen Restaurant.

“I’m back, Father.” Xiangzi walked through the curtain of the ramen shop and went inside, only to see an unexpected person: “Ah? Taro-senpai.”

"Xiangzi. Good evening." Taro finished his ramen broth in one gulp, put it down, and turned to Qinggao, saying, "Not bad, you've improved. Very delicious. 54 points!"

"Hmm, if Taro says so, he must be right." Qinggao smiled and asked Xiangzi to entertain Taro while he returned to the kitchen to prepare the dishes.

Xiangzi sat down in the chair next to Taro and asked with some curiosity, "Did you come here for dinner, senior?"

"Well, there's something else I need to do." Taro picked up a cardboard box next to him and said, "I think I've found the owner of this package, and I'm going to deliver it now."

"Is it the courier service the seniors mentioned before?" Xiangzi asked curiously, but she didn't delve into it further. "Didn't Senior Taro form a band? How's the band doing?"

"It's alright. Two of them are practically complete newbies." Taro picked up his cup and took a sip of tea. "The drummer is working really hard, but the guitarist is a bit distracted."

"How was your playing?" Xiangzi asked, a little curious.

"Drummer 28 points, guitar 17 points," Taro gave his evaluation. Shoko, with a slight sheen of sweat on his forehead, asked, "You're really strict, aren't you? What about the rest of the instruments?"

"The bassist and the other guitarist are both professional-level, 54 points and 60 points respectively!" Taro gave his evaluation.

Xiangzi then realized the significance of Taro's rating; a professional-level rating was actually around 50 to 60 points? So why did his father's ramen seem to have such a high rating?

"Well then, I'll be going now." Taro picked up the delivery box. "Thank you for your hospitality."

"Welcome back next time." Xiao Xiang smiled brightly and waved to Taro's retreating figure.

Taro headed towards his destination; it was quite a distance, but it wasn't too bad for him.

"Wow, that's an amazing house!" Taro exclaimed upon arriving at his destination. "It's almost as good as Chuchu's house."

However, Taro wasn't too concerned about any of that. He stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for the top floor.

Meanwhile, in the room, Ms. Nagasaki Motoyo had just finished showering and changed her clothes. She was looking at her chat history with Shoko on her phone.

The group hadn't disbanded, but no one came anymore. She kept telling herself that, but now... how different was it from disbanding?

It seemed like all his efforts were in vain. Deng wouldn't talk to him, Lixi was avoiding him, and he couldn't contact Xiaoxiang at all. And Mu—he really couldn't understand what she was thinking.

"Ding dong, ding dong."

The doorbell rang. Was it Mom? Had she forgotten her keys again?

"Coming right now, just a moment," Su Shi said gently. She walked to the door and opened it: "Mom forgot her keys again...? Who are you?"

"Special delivery, Ms. Nagasaki Motoyo... no, I should probably call her Ichinose Motoyo." The first words spoken by the handsome man in front of her made Motoyo's breath catch in her throat.

"Who are you...?" Su Shi looked at the other person with some unease.

"It's just a regular deliveryman, delivering an off-duty package." Taro handed over the package: "Please sign or stamp it, thank you."

Although, procedurally speaking, these things weren't necessary, Taro felt they were essential as a tangible symbol of fate. He handed over his pen.

Su Shi blankly accepted the pen and package from Taro, staring at her father's name on the delivery slip without saying a word.

"This is……?"

“Although I don’t quite understand either,” Taro said, raising his head and speaking in a calm tone, “It seems that Mr. Ichinose asked someone to deliver this package a long time ago.”

“His daughter’s birthday present, or something like that,” Taro said with a smile, trying to lighten the somber mood as much as possible.

"Hmm..." Su Shi responded with a muffled sound and signed her name on the delivery slip.

"So, we're connected now." Taro smiled slightly, accepting the delivery slip. "Want to chat?"

"Let's chat...?" She looked at the handsome man. He was dressed in plain red and exuded confidence.

"Come in." Su Shi stepped aside, making way for him, and took out guest slippers from the shoe cabinet and put them down. Her room had an alarm system; if this man wanted to do something, she wouldn't just stand there and give in.