NABC Chapter 27 Oh, Negai
Chapter 27 Oh, Negai
"Have you taken her for an intelligence test? Is there really nothing wrong with her mind?"
Not far from the studio, Rito and Konno, along with the president, were also present. At this distance, they could barely hear what Sayuri was saying. Upon hearing this, Rito flew into a rage and turned to Konno, coldly asking him a question.
"Kubo-kun!"
Upon hearing this, the president immediately sensed something was amiss and gestured with his eyes.
Since the chairman had spoken, Rito had to give him face no matter what. He glared at Konno and told Inoue to come to his office when he returned to the company, before storming off.
"Tsk, Guan-san, what do you think?" As one of the few people in the company who knew the young lady's identity, the old thief smiled awkwardly, looked at her, and asked for her opinion.
Yumiko's beautiful eyes sparkled. She had spent so much time with the members and had some understanding of their personalities. Yuri-chan wasn't inherently bad; it was just that the nerves controlling her tongue seemed to have been set to the highest priority at the factory, always making decisions before her brain could even process them. No wonder Rito decided to demote her to the third row for training. But she hadn't expected that at this crucial moment, her old problem would resurface.
"Just do as the person says. I'll try to persuade them."
After a moment's thought, Yumiko made a decision. The old thief, of course, was eager for someone to help him share the firepower, and agreed without hesitation.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere in the studio became somewhat subtle. Inoue Sayuri's voice, though not loud, was like a nail, piercing deep into the hearts of everyone present. Sitting in front of her, Uemura Rina subconsciously shrank back, secretly glancing at Takayama Kazumi beside her. The latter's smile froze for a moment, then returned to its gentle expression, lightly tugging at Sayuri's sleeve.
"Sayuri, it's your turn." Takayama said to her in her rare, deep voice.
At this moment, Sayuri was in a mental blank, realizing that she had said the wrong thing again. When she heard someone talking to her, she was startled and quickly nodded gratefully to her before walking briskly towards the host.
Just as she stepped down from the altar and was about to leave the members, a clear, cold voice suddenly came from behind her.
"Congratulations." Nagahama Naru crossed her arms, tilted her head slightly to look at her, her beautiful eyes devoid of warmth.
"You!" Xiaobaihe could tell that she was being mocked. She was indignant, but having just angered everyone, she didn't dare to cause any more trouble. Her eyes reddened, and she quickened her pace.
Sensing the turbulent atmosphere in the room, Osamu Shitara coughed lightly, temporarily breaking the awkward silence: "It seems the members are all very motivated, which is a good thing. But let's continue announcing the positions for now; the remaining positions are becoming increasingly important."
Yuki Himura laughed it off, which eased the atmosphere in the studio a little, but it never returned to the original cheerful mood.
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Two hours later, in the president's office in the far corner of the Nogizaka46 building, Rito coldly watched the sobbing Sayuri, unmoved as he fiddled with the pen in his hand.
Inoue Sayuri lowered her head, her fingers tightly gripping the hem of her clothes, not daring to say a word.
"Say something! You were so talkative in front of the camera just now, why are you silent now? Do you feel there aren't enough viewers to satisfy you? Should I have the PR department hold a press conference for you, so you can tell the entire nation how our management has been mistreating you, suppressing you, and not giving you the position you want?"
After a long while, Rito put down his pen, and his warm lips uttered cold words without any mercy.
"I'm sorry, President, I..."
Lily cried even harder. Her mind had been blank ever since the show, and she didn't know where to begin when she tried to explain. Salty tears kept flowing from her eyes like a reservoir, making her already delicate face look pitiful and endearing.
Seeing her so dejected, Rito's well-prepared barrage of harsh words caught in his throat. He frowned, thinking of his past life, of Yuri's perpetually unsuccessful idol career, and of her tireless hard work on stage despite her knees being swollen with fluid. In the end, he couldn't be too demanding of her anymore.
"Sigh, what a beautiful woman, how come she can't control her mouth?"
He scolded her with a look of disappointment and frustration, then pulled up a stool next to her, gesturing for her to sit down first.
"Private Marseille." Lily thanked him with a bitter face, not daring to sit too deep, only using a third of her buttocks to touch the edge of the stool, as if trying to express her urgent desire to apologize in this way.
Rito glanced at her, ignored her, rubbed his temples, and said with great distress:
"Inoue, do you know what? I was planning to demote you to the third rank for this order to toughen you up, and then promote you for the next order. But you, of all people, had to cause trouble at a time like this."
"Huh?"
Upon hearing this, Lily looked at him with surprise, a hint of regret flashing in her eyes.
She didn't suspect that Rito was using this method to manipulate her. After spending time together, she and the other first-generation members could see that although their president wasn't exactly approachable, he was honest and straightforward, never lied, and his favoritism towards certain members was written all over his face. He treated everyone else equally, unlike Konno-san, who was in charge of specific tasks and knew how to use social maneuvering.
"Hey, what are you talking about? You're not a kid anymore. Even if you're really disappointed with the result, I've said before that if you have any questions about the positioning, you can come to me privately. Why do you have to show it in public? Do you really think you're indispensable to Nogizaka46?"
Rito scoffed lightly. Although his words were still sharp, his tone had softened considerably. Yuri-niang could hear the change, and felt a little relieved. Her tears stopped without her noticing. She secretly glanced at Rito and mustered her courage to ask:
"President, do you think I still have a chance?"
"Heh, not bad, you recovered so quickly. Were those tears just now fake?"
Li Ren glanced at her sideways with a disdainful look, revealing a lukewarm smile.
"How could that be~ President, I know I was wrong. I'm willing to accept any punishment. I'll apologize to Banana Man and the other members too. Please don't give up on me. I'll do anything I can!"
Although Lily's mother often speaks without thinking, as long as she calms down and thinks carefully, her IQ and EQ are still higher than most normal people. She immediately realized what she should do, stood up abruptly from the stool, bowed at a ninety-degree angle, grabbed the black-haired boy's hand, and loudly confessed to him.