Love Under The Spotlight | Oshi no Ko [Hoshino Aqua x OC]

Chapter 49

On the stairs leading to the Tokyo Dome, Himeka and Ron leaned against the railing. The idol felt a feeling of pride she had never sensed before upon seeing the billboard with her face on it, advertising her upcoming world tour, the Opalescent Tour. After months of keeping it a secret, after months of preparing for it, the news was already out in the world. The excitement was unparalleled and the wait palpable.

The last idol act to ever perform at the Dome was Sirius. Sixteen years after Natsuhiko, she, too, would perform on this prestigious stage. She, too, would perform in front of 55,000 people. Finally, her dream was at arm's reach, just barely three months away. Everything she had gone through, every hardship and moment in her life led to this very moment. The Dome would be hers. The greatest achievement a Japanese idol could accomplish.

"So that's your big distraction," Ron said, staring at the billboard. His eyes softened and his lips curled up. "I remember driving by the Dome years ago and seeing this very billboard with Sirius on it, Natsuhiko in the center. I was never into idols, but I still think it was cool. Then here you are."

Himeka could remember it too. She was too young to attend, but it was the biggest event of the year. Such an event that Diamond Entertainment officially livestreamed it live. Himeka, with Mikaru, stayed home, seated in front of the TV not able to tear her eyes off the stream. Even though she was mailed away from the venue, she could feel the fervor of the fans, their love, their excitement, their pride, their joy, and every beat and vibration of the instruments. That very concert, that very show was the reason she decided to become an idol. It was on that day that she decided she wanted to try her hardest to stand on that very same stage.

However, nothing was definite yet. All knew what happened to the last idol act that was set to perform at the Dome.

"Kamiki will definitely not let you perform at the Dome, that's for sure," Ron said.

Himeka was believed to have already surpassed Ai. But this, Kamiki would never allow it. Nino will never allow it. If Opal performed at the Dome, it would cement her as the new queen. Ai's reign would come to an end and Opal's would begin. And they would never let that happen.

"I know," Himeka replied. "That's why it'd be best to get him before that."

"Yeah. I couldn't find any footage of Kamiki driving to the hiking site. So if we want to move forth with official searches and warrants, we need a confession first from him or one of his accomplices. It would be the final nail in the coffin."

Indeed, Ron's boss and the prosecutor both believed in the case, but a confession was needed before greenlighting any further operations. They needed to ensure that Kamiki would not be able to talk his way out of a sentence and any head-on confrontation would give him that to do just that. If he knew the police were onto him, it gave him momentum to plan his escape. After all, it was the very reason he got people to murder the targets and never did so himself.

But getting a confession out of any of them will not be easy. They had been so careful with their every move, especially Kamiki. It was the reason they had been able to get away with murder so easily. They would sense it immediately if someone was prying for information. They had to be master, smoother, and perhaps more daring.

"I do have an idea to catch Nino red-handed but you won't like it," Himeka said.

Ron's eyebrow shot up, both curious and wary. "Go on, still try."

"Use me as a decoy." Himeka looked dead in the eye, in utmost seriousness. "If we can't arrest her before January 1st, she will try to kill me like Sugano Ryonosuke killed Ai. She'd do that on the day of the show. Caught in the act, she won't be able to deny anything or escape a sentence."