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Once the day of their scheduled meeting with Kaburagi arrived, the two Hoshino siblings met him at a sushi place downtown.

Kaburagi took a sip from his cup before addressing the two of them.

"What I'm about to tell you is like digging up the grave of the deceased, so to speak," he told them. "Why exactly is it you two want to know about Ai-kun so badly?"

Luna and Aqua glanced at each other. "We're just fans of hers, hopelessly so," Aqua said blankly as Luna took a sip from her own cup. "Is that not reason enough?"

"The illusions held by fans are shattered once they come to know the real person," Kaburagi continued to caution them. "There is not a single exception to this.

"The entertainment industry is a competition in bluffing, as it were. When appealing subject matter tells appealing lies, it produces a charisma that doesn't exist in reality."

Kaburagi took another sip from his cup. "Basically, we're in the business of doing the kind of stuff people will do when they're trying to land a job at a good company," he said.

"Even so, we want to know," Luna said unmovingly. "Our views on her won't change, even after you tell us what you're going to tell us."

"If you're her fans, that's all the more reason it's better not to know..." Kaburagi tried one last time. "But, things don't always go as we wish.

"As I said before, I had a close connection to Ai-kun, and I sent a lot of jobs her way. At the time, she was a country bumpkin fresh out of the sticks. She lacked professionalism, didn't try to become friendly with those around her, and would show up for work wearing clothes she got on the cheap that didn't suit her. She was that kind of child.

"So, I thought about what might help her, and I introduced her to a workshop hosted by a certain theater company."

"A workshop?" Aqua questioned.

"It's a place I was a member of myself back in college," Kaburagi informed them. "It's called Lala Lai, the same theater company that Akane-kun belongs to. Though, it wasn't all that famous in those days.

"They say that love changes people.

"It must've been there... that Ai fell in love.

"After she started attending the workshop, she began taking more care with her appearance, and she started asking me about nice places to eat.

"As you might expect, I didn't know exactly who the guy was, but I do remember how she suddenly had the face of a grown woman.

"As you might expect, I didn't know exactly who the guy was, but I do remember how she suddenly had the face of a grown woman

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"If you two are interested, I'll introduce you to the leader of Lala Lai. There, I suspect you'd come closer to the answers you seek."

"Why would you do all that for us, for me, more or less?" Aqua asked the producer. "I'm a failed actor without any accomplishments. Luna would have a better chance at this than me."

𝖲𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍'𝗌 𝖬𝗈𝗈𝗇 / 𝖮𝗌𝗁𝗂 𝗇𝗈 𝖪𝗈 𝗑 𝖮𝖢Where stories live. Discover now