yo Yamada and Nijika Ijichi struggled their way up the final step of the current flight of stairs.
The two of them finally stopped.
Completely exhausted, they collapsed onto the ground, sweat glistening on their faces as they panted heavily.
Ryo muttered,
"I'm so tired... and it's so hot..."
Nijika nodded weakly.
"Me too."
"Let's... take a break..."
Noticing their condition, Bai Qiu called out to Kita, who was already far ahead.
"Kita, wait a second. We've been moving too fast."
The energetic Kita finally came to a stop.
Walking back over to Nijika and Ryo, she practically radiated enthusiasm as she encouraged them.
"Senpai, hang in there! Please don't give up!"
Nijika looked at Bai Qiu.
"How much farther is it?"
He answered honestly,
"We've covered less than half the climb."
The moment those words landed, both Nijika and Ryo turned pale.
Just then, Bocchi finally caught up.
Rather than walking, she had practically crawled up the stairs on all fours.
The instant she reached them, she collapsed onto the floor, drenched in sweat.
Her eyes wandered in one direction, and suddenly they lit up.
"An... an escalator!"
Nijika and Ryo immediately followed the direction she was pointing.
Ryo spoke without hesitation.
"Let's take the escalator."
Nijika nodded repeatedly.
"Yeah."
"W-Wait!"
Seeing this, Kita hurriedly tried to persuade them.
"Don't you think the view is most rewarding when you reach the top through your own effort?"
Ryo answered expressionlessly,
"At this point, I don't really care about the view."
Kita turned hopefully toward Nijika.
"Nijika-senpai wouldn't think that, right?"
For once, she didn't automatically side with Ryo.
Everyone's attention shifted to Nijika.
The final decision—stairs or escalator—was now in her hands.
"Well..."
Feeling everyone's expectations, Nijika hesitated.
Then suddenly—
"I've got it!"
She lightly tapped her fist into her palm.
"At times like this... we should just vote."
Everyone agreed.
Nijika first looked at Ryo.
As expected, she voted for the escalator.
Then she turned toward Bai Qiu.
"What about you, Aki-kun?"
"I'll side with Kita."
"Two to two."
"Yeah..."
Which meant...
Everyone's hopeful, pleading eyes landed on Hitori Gotou.
"N-Now then..."
Nijika smiled gently.
"Bocchi-chan, what do you want? The escalator, or the stairs?"
"I... I..."
Hitori's lips trembled.
She was so nervous she couldn't get the words out.
No matter which choice she made, she'd offend the other side.
She didn't want to become the villain!
At that moment, she deeply regretted ever spotting the escalator.
As if reading her thoughts, Bai Qiu encouraged her.
"Don't overthink it, Bocchi-chan. Just say what you really want. No one's going to blame you."
Seeing how exhausted Bocchi looked, both Ryo and Nijika secretly prayed she'd support them.
Meanwhile, a bad feeling rose in Kita's heart.
As expected...
Unable to meet Bai Qiu's or Kita's eyes, Bocchi timidly whispered,
"...The escalator."
Ryo immediately announced,
"Three to two."
Victory.
Bai Qiu and Kita lost the vote.
Nijika and Ryo smiled in satisfaction.
Kita pouted, shaking her head dramatically.
"Ugh... Curse you, indoor people!"
Everyone headed toward the escalator.
Even so, Kita kept looking back at the staircase with obvious reluctance.
Then she suddenly said,
"The escalator costs money... Maybe we should just go back and take the stairs after all."
After thinking for a moment, Bai Qiu suggested,
"How about we split up? You three can take the escalator, while Kita and I continue climbing the stairs."
Kita's eyes immediately sparkled.
"I approve!"
Nijika nodded as well.
"That's actually a great idea."
It satisfied both sides.
Before they separated, Nijika reminded them,
"Then we'll wait for you two at the observation deck."
Bai Qiu and Kita continued along the mountain trail.
As proud members of the "outdoor camp," neither of them walked slowly.
Kita snapped photos as they climbed, occasionally asking Bai Qiu to help take a few.
After finishing another picture, she suddenly asked,
"Bai Qiu-kun... did you choose the stairs because of me?"
Though slightly embarrassed, asking such a direct question wasn't difficult for someone as outgoing as Kita.
"Half and half."
Bai Qiu answered honestly.
"I'm genuinely interested in the scenery along the way too."
Kita visibly relaxed.
"That's good."
"If you'd only chosen the stairs because of me, I'd feel really guilty."
Bai Qiu simply smiled.
After walking in silence for a while, Kita asked again,
"Do you think we'll pass the manager's rehearsal?"
Bai Qiu laughed.
"Didn't Nijika say we weren't supposed to talk about that today?"
Of course, he already knew the answer.
They definitely would.
Kita smiled sheepishly.
"I just wanted something to chat about."
"Really?"
Just as she was about to nod, Bai Qiu asked,
"Kita... are you worried you'll hold everyone back?"
Her footsteps faltered.
A look of surprise appeared on her face.
After a brief pause, she stopped walking altogether.
Letting out a soft sigh, she admitted awkwardly,
"I knew I couldn't hide it from you, Bai Qiu-kun..."
Yet strangely enough, there was also a hint of happiness that he had understood her so well.
She lowered her gaze.
"It just feels like... I'm the only one who hasn't improved much."
"Gotou-san has been working really hard lately too."
"She doesn't even need to hide inside the mango box when she plays anymore."
"So... if anything goes wrong during the performance..."
"...I'll probably be the one who causes it."
By the time she finished speaking, her mood had visibly sunk.
Even her vibrant crimson hair seemed to lose a little of its brilliance.
Bai Qiu smiled reassuringly.
"Don't worry, Kita."
"You won't drag anyone down."
She looked at him in confusion.
"Why are you so sure?"
"Hmm..."
After thinking for a moment, Bai Qiu said,
"Aren't you the karaoke queen?"
"You're the kind of person who can almost score a perfect hundred."
Kita hurriedly waved her hands.
"Th-That's just my classmates teasing me!"
"Besides, I've never actually scored one hundred."
"But it still proves you're an excellent singer, doesn't it?"
She hesitated before giving a small nod.
Then she said worriedly,
"But what if I mess up my guitar?"
Bai Qiu thought for a moment before replying,
"Then let's make a deal."
"If you make a mistake, I'll use my keyboard to cover for you."
Her eyes widened.
"Really?"
"Is that actually possible?"
He answered without hesitation.
"It is."
"So all you need to do..."
"...is sing with everything you've got."
"...Just focus on singing?"
Kita looked thoughtfully into his eyes.
A moment later, her usual sunshine-like smile returned.
"Got it!"
Seeing that she'd finally stopped dwelling on her worries, Bai Qiu suggested,
"Then let's pick up the pace."
"We don't want Nijika and the others waiting too long."
"Okay!"
Kita agreed immediately before energetically shouting,
"Then let's race to the summit!"
With that, she burst forward at full speed.
"Huh?"
Bai Qiu blinked in surprise before grinning.
"Then don't expect me to go easy on you."
Kita smiled confidently.
"Don't underestimate me!"
The two of them accelerated toward the mountaintop.
Just then, a commotion came from behind them, followed by a woman's exhausted voice.
"The people... up ahead..."
"Please... give me a hand..."
"I... can't go on anymore."
Bai Qiu and Kita stopped and turned around to look.