Eternal Melody

Back at the festival grounds, one of the first things he noticed was the increase of people. By now, members of the public should have arrived, so this isn't a surprise for him. However, there seemed to be a commotion.

"Ah, now this is interesting." Sumire picked up a flyer that landed at her feet. "They truly plan on ruining me, don't they? But I guess this is why Sano seemed nervous on the phone."

It took him a moment to understand what she was talking about. Yuhi glanced at the details of the flyer in her hand. There were details regarding her relationship with Sano and some photos from the past.

His gaze darkened seeing the photos. Did Nagawa personally hand these over? No, based on what they know already. Nagawa has a difficult time refusing Lucifer. If Lucifer is the one who requested these photos, then it makes sense why Nagawa couldn't refuse. But even so, some of these pictures are explicit.

"Look, look, isn't that Ibuki?"

"I can't believe she can still shamelessly walk in here."

He hears giggling and snickering as people make rude remarks regarding Sumire. Now he understood why Hino told him to control his temper; he was seething with rage.

"But isn't she dating Terashima now?"

"There are bad rumors about Terashima too."

"Do you think she seduced him, and he just accepted her advances? They say he sleeps with anybody."

He doesn't care what others say about him, but this is too much. Yuhi was about to step forward when they heard somebody crunching up the posters.

"How ridiculous and an invasion of privacy."

It was Jun; that cold voice could only belong to one person. He had pulled a mini desk and his laptop out of his bag.

"It's Kira Jun."

"J-Jun-sama, don't tell me you have been charmed by her too? Everybody is saying it; you all dedicated your solo songs to her!"

Yuhi sighed, hearing those words. Indeed, it was so noticeable this time that the public couldn't ignore it. However, that is exactly why they can take advantage of this.

"Whether or not I have personal feelings for her should not matter right now. After all, we are discussing another topic."

"I-isn't that basically admitting-"

Jun, however, dismissed that fan easily with a single glare. "The topic we are discussing now are the absurd fliers going around. Previously Narasaki-san already obtained a restraining order for members of the media. So, I do not think they will be stupid enough to pull this off. In other words, it must be somebody present today."

Certainly, with the restraining order, the media wouldn't do anything drastic now. Moreover, Hino's harsh reminder a few days ago. It isn't the media. This just proves that Lucifer is the one that made a move.

"I don't think I need to remind you all, but even idols have their private lives. Moreover, this happened before she became a member of the entertainment industry. In simpler terms, this is about a time frame where she was just a normal girl, a normal citizen. As far as I am aware, this violates certain laws. Should I explain what they are?"

He watches as the crowd immediately turns silent before they start murmuring.

"I don't like Ibuki, but he is right, isn't he?"

"Yeah- we got carried away with the flow just now. But that is before she debuted-"

"Who would do such a thing?"

"You think it's those in D entertainment? There is a lot of them here today."

A troubled look appeared on Yuhi's face. While he is happy that they are no longer criticizing Sumire. They are only doing so because there is another person to blame. This is the disgusting side of the entertainment industry.

His thoughts break off when Sumire loudly clapped her hands, earning everybody's attention.

"Alright, I think this is quite enough. Although a formal conference would be better, that would take longer. To address these recent disturbing rumors, yes, I dated Nagawa Sano and Mashima Toh."

Yuhi blinked while hearing Sumire's words. The crowd seemed stunned too. It seemed like nobody was expecting her to say it. He didn't either. He glanced over at Hino, who was sighing, but other than that, he wasn't making a move.

"However, like Jun stated, it was during the time before I debuted, and while it's normal for artists' private lives to come up. You have to remember the news your hearing is something that happened in the past. It does not define the current situation." Sumire glanced over at him and smiled brightly. "After all, in the present, I only have Yuhi. In the present and future, until I become old and wrinkly until I am in a grave. I will only have Yuhi."

At those words, Yuhi felt heat creep onto his cheeks, and his heartbeat increased. H-huh? W-why does she keep-today? She is very weird. There is no doubt that she was shaken seeing so many people hostile to her. But she can still say something like this.

Sumire can still smile brightly despite all this hostility.

Hino stepped forward then. "Okay, any more questions will have to go through me. Scatter now before I call the police."

After hearing the words police, the crowd scattered away quickly. However, there was a group of girls that remained. One of them stepped forward.

"Ibuki-san, can I ask one question?"

Hino frowned. "You can but through me-"

Sumire shakes her head and moves past Hino until she stands directly in front of the girl.

"Yes, what is it?"

"I-I-I just want to ask. Ibuki-san, are you happy right now?"

It took Yuhi a moment to understand. This girl must be a fan of Sumire's, or at least was. She probably ended up being one of the ones that were swayed by the bad rumors and stopped liking Sumire as a result. But, even former fans have a hard time completely letting go of their attachment to their idol. It seems like this girl speaking with Sumire is one of those. Asking Sumire if she was happy was a question that only a fan concerned about her wellbeing would ask. Ever since Sumire returned to the industry, nobody has asked her this question, even though it should have been one of the most obvious questions to ask.

After everything Sumire has experienced, why has nobody asked her of her present status and emotions? It's because everybody believed the rumors about her indirectly killing Mamoru. They chose to believe in something they couldn't prove. They chose to dismiss what happened when she tried to sing again and how she locked herself in Mamoru's home.

"Yes, very much." Sumire smiled brighter than ever before, and the girl looked like she would burst into tears.

"Ah? Don't cry." Sumire pulled out her handkerchief.

"S-sorry, but you're just exactly like she said-I-I am sure she would have liked to see you and speak to you. M-my sister, my little sister, and I were huge fans of you. But she had a congenital heart disease. She passed away last year."

At those words, Sumire's expression changed. "Was your sister's name Kotone?"

"Huh? Yes, but how do you-"

Sumire bit her lip but kept smiling. "I see, I understand. Thank you for reaching out to me. I will make sure to perform a stage that surpasses even my debut concert."