In the blink of an eye, the next weekend arrived. Nijika and Ryo rushed to STARRY early. Today was the day they had been looking forward to for a long time: recording their album at the record label.
"Jhin, Bocchi-chan, Kita, you guys got here so fast," Nijika greeted the three people chatting excitedly.
Jhin quipped, "After all, we're going to record an album. Kita called me up ages ago, ran to Bocchi-chan's house, and dragged her over here. It's a good thing Bocchi-chan's stamina has improved recently, or she'd probably be lying on the ground by now."
"I'm sorry, Bocchi-chan... I was just too excited and didn't consider that you're not good at exercising." Kita Ikuyo apologized profusely to Hitori Gotoh.
"N-No, it's okay... I understand."
Ryo walked behind Jhin and poked him with her finger. "Are we leaving now?"
"Yeah. It's a pity the Manager has to stay at the club, otherwise she could have come along too."
"Don't worry about my sister for now, let's go!"
The group set off for the record company. They took the subway to the bustling city center and saw a standalone three-story building emblazoned with the Kessoku Band LOGO.
"Jhin... Jhin... this is the record company you established??"
"Just a standalone building in this location must be worth more than two million alone, right?"
"Don't mind these small details. You just need to know that this is a record company exclusively for Kessoku Band." Jhin waved his hand nonchalantly. He was wealthy enough to rival nations now; earning money wasn't something he had to worry about, let alone spending it.
Walking through the company gates, they found Nymph and Kazami Kazuki sitting in the lobby waiting for them.
Jhin stepped forward quickly and introduced them to the girls. "I believe you've met these two before. My older sister, Kazami Kazuki, and my younger sister, Nymph."
"Nice to meet you, members of Kessoku Band. Oh, it's not the first time for Hitori, since we've met privately before."
Kazami Kazuki's deep, mysterious crimson eyes swept over the members of Kessoku Band. In reality, both Hitori Gotoh and Kita Ikuyo had met her privately, but Kita Ikuyo's situation was more special and naturally couldn't be revealed to the other members.
"Hello everyone, I am Nymph. Kazuki and I will be responsible for the upcoming recording work."
"Eh? Just the two of you?" Nijika looked astonished. It wasn't that she didn't trust Nymph and Kazami Kazuki, but in her common sense, recording an album required the collaboration of many people, especially considering how exceptionally young these two looked.
"You can rest assured about that. Nymph is very capable." Jhin gently rubbed the top of Nymph's head and assured them, "The entire company is operated by the two of them."
"I... I see."
To convince them, Nymph pulled out a large pile of certificates from who-knows-where. The image of a genius younger sister who had returned from overseas, possessed an IQ of 200, and had different parents from Jhin was imprinted in everyone's minds.
"That's roughly the situation..." Jhin scratched his head. He had only just learned that Nymph had secretly given herself so many backstory settings. "Let's end the small talk here. Let's go get the album recorded first."
There was no receptionist and no other staff in the massive company. Fortunately, the decor revealed a comfortable and warm atmosphere, so it didn't feel cold or oppressive.
"Jhin, where are the rest of the staff?"
"Apart from Nymph and Kazuki, there's no one else here."
"Huh? Such a huge place, how are they going to manage it?"
"Nymph designed an intelligent management system. The entire company building is run by this system."
"That's amazing. Is this what a genius with an IQ of 200 is like?"
I'd prefer to call it Synapse technology.
Jhin had also only recently learned that, aside from the two managers, there were no other personnel in the record company; everything else was left to the developed intelligent system.
Nymph led the group to the second floor. The space, approximately eight hundred square meters, was divided into a recording workspace and a daily training area. Since the record company was founded specifically for Kessoku Band, musical instruments had long since been purchased and placed in the recording studio.
As soon as Ryo arrived on the second floor, her ears turned deaf to Nymph's introductions. Her eyes were completely captured by the black lacquered bass placed in the recording studio.
"Aaaaaah! Isn't that a Sadowsky bass? Doesn't that cost like over two hundred thousand?"
Thanks, that's the first time I've heard a bass scream.
Jhin had never seen such an exaggerated expression on Ryo's face.
It was no wonder Ryo lost her composure. For a severe bass enthusiast like her, who usually had to treat photos of expensive basses in magazines as a side dish while chewing on leaves, being able to personally use such an expensive bass to record an album was something she wouldn't even dare to dream of!
"Kazuki is in charge of instrument procurement."
Kazami Kazuki spoke breezily, "I don't know much about musical instruments, so I just chose the top-tier equipment based on popularity and price. It cost maybe one or two million? I don't remember clearly."
One or two million. Don't remember clearly.
These words struck the members of Kessoku Band like a heavy hammer, leaving their heads buzzing. Ryo looked ready to hug Kazami Kazuki's glowing calves and shout, "Sugar mommy, keep me!"
As if seeing through her intentions, Kazuki added, "All this money belongs to my younger brother."
Ryo's body, already mid-pounce in the air, forced a turn that violated the laws of physics and charged straight at Jhin. "Jhin! Please let me play this bass! I'll do anything!"
"You... your brain is filled with nothing but basses."
Ryo had now completely transformed into a leg ornament. No matter how Jhin struggled, he couldn't shake her off, so he just let her hold on. Before the official recording began, he still had some things to say to them.
"The moment your album is recorded and ready for sale, Kessoku Band will have officially debuted."
"There's an old saying in my hometown: 'One minute on stage takes ten years of work off stage.' You all have been practicing diligently, so you must understand what this means. I don't want you to start slacking off just because you have this record company as a safety net, thinking that with the company's operations and promotion, you'll become famous sooner or later."
Jhin's expression was serious. In this regard, he, Nymph, and Kazami Kazuki shared the same attitude. Kessoku Band were not viral internet celebrities; they didn't need to rely on excessive hype and blanket advertising to package themselves. Admittedly, that was a quick and rapid way to get famous.
But the consequence of doing that is that once the heat and topics fade, the band itself will be like a flyer discarded in a small alley—no one cares about it, and no one pays attention to it.
As a rock band, the only path that will truly allow them to keep going is to constantly improve their own skills.
"That's all I have to say. Go into the studio, get familiar with the instruments, and then let's start recording."
____
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