Unlike our previous concerts, most of the venues in the tour had the option to sell VIP tickets, which allowed people to be present for the soundcheck. We chose to enable them.

Although it was going to be announced throughout the entire venue, I told Tomokazu that a small wave of fans was about to come inside since I was already talking to him.

Both the photographer and I rushed to the green room. While walking, I told the venue assistant to let the VIP buyers in through the Talkie channel.

The announcement was made just as we arrived at the green room. Everyone had just eaten lunch and seemed in a great mood.

"Girls, they just let the VIP buyers in, meaning the soundcheck should start shortly," I informed them. "Still, there's no rush, so make sure you're ready."

"Yes," the five of them replied in unison.

They stood up from where they were sitting but, before they walked out of the room, Butcher asked the bodyguard sitting outside to escort them.

The girls wore casual clothes and makeup since it only was a soundcheck. It was also going to make the experience feel more intimate to the VIP buyers.

About to walk behind them, Aki placed her hand on my chest to stop me.

"You stay."

"What? But I need to—"

"When was the last time you ate?"

"…At the party."

"And what did you eat?"

"…A tiny slice of cake."

"So you…"

"…I'll stay."

"Good. I've already dished up a plate for you." She kissed me on the lips and then ran to catch up with the rest.

I turned to see the assistant and said, "Please stay with them in case they need anything."

"Understood," she smiled and walked out of the room.

Even Satō had left the room to observe the girls’ rehearsing for a third time, although this time in a proper venue—the concert had been rehearsed only two times before due to the high costs of renting a warehouse.

And like that, I had been left alone in the green room. I approached the large table in the room and saw the plate Aki had put together for me. I sat down and started eating.

So little noise came from outside that my thoughts were able to mute it. I had planned to eat as quickly as possible to return with the girls, but I kept dozing off. Only distant cheers were able to wake me up. I finished the plate and headed back to the hall.

According to the number of VIP tickets sold, there were around two hundred people watching the soundcheck, ten percent of the total venue capacity. A few of them glanced at me when I stepped out of the tunnel, but they quickly returned their attention to the girls on stage.

Even though the girls chatted and laughed with the audience from time to time, they became more serious than usual when they rehearsed. However, instead of worrying, I was proud of them.

This time, Miki's and the lighting technician's operations took place on the side of the hall opposite the stage. A small zone was fenced for them to work from behind the crowd, but with a wide view of the stage. We took advantage of it and installed a camera for the live stream there as well.

I asked them how they were doing. Fortunately, there were no problems so far.

Out of curiosity, I asked Miki to let me hear what the girls were hearing through their in-ear monitors. He handed me a pair of professional headphones and I put them on, perfectly muting all noise.

A sound beeped several times per second and, every now and then, a robotic voice would give cues to specific parts of the song, like naming the next section of the song and counting down to it, or reminders of things the girls had to do.

I still couldn't understand how they could focus on dancing and singing while hearing this all the time.

I could also hear the voice of the girls clearly, and I couldn't stop. In the blink of an eye, the concert was already halfway through. I stood in the same spot behind Miki and the lighting technician to watch the girls as a spectator.

The interlude was getting close, so I stepped through the door behind me and walked all the way around the venue to the tunnel that led to the stage.

A few minutes later, the girls finished performing Celestial Rebirth, the perfect song to end the first half of the concert on a high note due to its epicness. They waved at the audience after they struck the final pose and walked off stage, where Butcher, another bodyguard, and I were waiting for them.

Despite the many spotlights in the venue, it was incredibly dark behind the stage, so one of the venue staff members used her glasses to light the stairs and the path toward the tunnel.

"How do you feel?" Satō asked the girls as we entered the tunnel and handed them towels while they were still walking.

"We can continue," panted Umi.

"Do you need anything?" I asked.

Sanae responded, "Oxygen."

Even though she was joking, I understood that as a no.

We eventually arrived at the green room. Astra and Risa ran into the bathroom, while Aki, Umi, and Sanae stood in the middle of the room to catch their breath.

The rest of us remained silent not to bother them. They never sat down because that would've made it worse to have to warm up again. Instead, they kept moving around while singing the next songs exaggeratedly to practice and keep their vocal cords warm. They also joked around a little and talked about some of the things they saw in the crowd when the spotlights weren't blinding them.

Although the interlude was supposed to last five minutes, we could take more time if needed. Fortunately, Astra and Risa came out of the bathroom on time.

Exactly five minutes after the interlude had started, I asked Miki and the lighting technician to start the return sequence, which consisted of the instrumental intro of Sunbeam Supernova and dim spotlights moving around the crowd.

The screens hanging at the back of the stage were being used to show animations. If the songs were from the first album, the animations were made by Jun for the tour. Sometimes, they were short animations in a loop, and other times, they were more complex.

If the songs were from AURAS, we used the animations originally made for the songs combined with new ones made for the tour. This was the case for Sunbeam Supernova.

Unfortunately, the budget for the tour was getting tight, and we couldn't hire someone to focus on controlling the screens. Instead, they were programmed to run the animations on specific audio cues, and Miki was making sure they worked properly.

I walked in front of the girls as the return sequence was being played. We had just reached the end of the tunnel when Miki started counting down from ten on the Talkie channel.

"Let's roll!" he shouted when the count reached zero.

The crowd went crazy as soon as the girls walked out of the tunnel. They rushed to get on stage so they did not miss the cue to start performing. The original version of Sunbeam Supernova started playing seamlessly after the instrumental one.

There were no problems during the rest of the concert, only small mistakes made by the girls, but nothing serious. Still, Satō didn't seem pleased. I could already imagine her questioning the girls about their mistakes. In a good way, of course.

In another blink of an eye, the last song of the set had ended. The girls thanked the crowd and asked the live stream viewers to expect the next concert with enthusiasm. They wished everyone a good night and waved as they walked off stage.

Once again, the path was illuminated in front of us as I guided them into the tunnel. However, as much as they wanted to rest, there was an interview planned with Ceruty.

The photographer followed us toward the green room, sharing the video feed from his camera with Ceruty.

I asked the girls to stand next to an empty wall in the room and the photographer stood in front of them to record them. They swiftly swept their sweat away with towels just before Ceruty's voice sounded in their in-ear monitors and on a Talkie channel on my glasses.

"Congratulations, girls!" boasted Ceruty. "You were wonderful. My Watchers and I are delighted."

"Thank you!" the girls beamed and panted.

"I know you're exhausted, so I'll be quick. How long have you been preparing for this day?"

The girls glanced at each other, not knowing who should answer. A couple of seconds later, Sanae was chosen.

"If you count everything related to the tour, then it's been months," she answered. "But if you're talking about the tour specifically, then around a month. Though it's been in the works for more than that."

Ceruty continued, "And you still had a few slip-ups. Why do you think that is? Is it lack of practice?"

"Not at all. It was our first concert, so it was a combination of excitement and nervousness."

Umi added, "We'll work hard to prevent them from happening again, but we're not machines. Mistakes will keep happening."

"I think that's part of the show and it makes each of them unique," said Astra.

"Interesting view," replied Ceruty. "Last question. Is it true that you threw a party last night?"

What?!

The girls were petrified. They glanced at each other and then at me. There was no real reason to hide it, so I nodded at them to let them answer.

"Yes, it is," Sanae laughed nervously. "Aside from celebrating the start of the tour, we wanted to surprise our manager for his birthday."

Risa added, "He has done a lot for us, so we wanted to give something back."

"Aww," uttered Ceruty, "that's very sweet of you. Alright, we'll let you rest and celebrate a successful opening to the tour."

"Our celebration will be to go to bed as soon as possible," joked Astra.

Ceruty laughed, "That's a smart idea. Have a good night, girls!"

"Bye!" they all smiled and waved.

The red light of the photographer's camera turned off, then Miki reassured us we were no longer live.

All of GIMA's staff in the room clapped, while the girls dropped dead on the couches or even the floor.

"It isn't nice to give an interview while exhausted," said Astra.

"There's only going to be a couple of them, thankfully," replied Risa.

Umi wondered, "How did Ceruty even know about the party?"

"I have no idea," I answered. "She works with us now, so it isn't entirely surprising."

The girls fell silent for a while until Astra suddenly threw her hands up and burst, "We did it!"

They all cheered together.

"Are you ready to do it forty more times?" I smiled.

Their excitement vanished, then they laughed.

"Let's do it!" Sanae shouted, and they all cheered again.