...The battle that was supposed to have just begun ended in an instant.
The capricious "Miss Distraction" living inside Ichikawa was, after all, a part of her, and she was sincere when it came to music.
Her cheeks had been flushed just moments ago, but once she started playing the instrument, her focus shifted entirely to the music, and everything else suddenly seemed to stop mattering to her.
"Heh, the sound sustains much longer than an acoustic guitar, doesn't it?"
"That's right..."
"So, this gritty sound is what you call a distortion effector? What should I do if I want to make this grittiness a bit thinner?"
"You can adjust it right here."
"I see, I see..."
Moreover, as expected of a top-tier student, she was an incredibly fast learner.
"Hey, is this reverb applied to the guitar? Or is it on the master track?"
"Ah, right now it's only on the guitar... Wait, where did you learn words like that!?"
"Eh? Konuma-kun, you were mumbling them earlier.‐
"Did I...?"
...And this was the state of things.
For context, reverb is an effect that adds echoes to the sound. Ichikawa was asking whether only the guitar was echoing or if the other sounds like the drums and bass were echoing too.
Regardless, this was not the kind of question someone who had just learned about home recording software while watching from the side should be asking.
This person really is a monster... I thought in admiration, when Ichikawa suddenly started fidgeting. What was wrong...?
"...Hey, Konuma-kun. 'Reverb'... is it possible that it's something, well..."
Then, she leaned her lips close to my ear.
"...Is it a dirty word?"
"Why would you think that...!?"
...I mean, her behavior right now was way more inappropriate. It was like live ASMR; it was dangerous.
"Because, Konuma-kun, you said 'Where did you learn a word like that?'..."
"Ah, I see..."
Setting aside that pointless misunderstanding, Ichikawa began playing the electric guitar again.
At first, she was strumming the same phrases as the acoustic guitar, but then—
"Hey Konuma-kun, since the sound is different from the acoustic, don't you think it would be better if the phrases weren't the same? The sounds are clashing."
"That's true..."
I had only been watching her with the kind of smile one gives a child touching an instrument for the first time for a few minutes, but Ichikawa had already started developing playing techniques unique to the electric guitar on her own.
No, even I knew it would be better if the phrases weren't identical to the acoustic ones. I had intended to have her play a different phrase eventually. I just didn't think she'd be able to do it immediately.
Seriously, amane-sama was amane-sama through and through...
"Alright then, please try playing however you like..."
"Eh, are you mad?"
"I'm not mad."
"Really?"
It wasn't that I was mad; I was probably just sulking.
"...It's true. Just try recording once."
"Yeah, I'll give it a try."
When I pressed the record button—
"Are you kidding me..."
Ichikawa was playing a new phrase I had never heard before.
Given the situation, it seemed like she had just come up with it while playing and was doing it on the fly, but it was far too polished for an ad-lib, and the quality of the phrase was incredibly high.
You're insane, Ichikawa Amane...
"Phew... Can I listen to it?"
"Ah, yeah..."
I played it back as requested, and as expected, it was significantly better.
"Alright, with this..."
"Konuma-kun, I have one more phrase I want to layer on top, is that okay?"
My voice was cut off as a new request was added.
"Wait a second, wasn't arranging the one thing I was slightly better at...!?"
"Eh? I wouldn't know..."
...A total shutdown.
Well, of course. There's no reason a high-level person has to match a low-level one. It's just a matter of me needing to work harder.
amane-sama really never lets me take the easy way out...
...And so, I turned into a robot that simply pressed the record button as Ichikawa instructed. After several takes, she seemed satisfied with the result.
I felt somewhat exhausted.
"Well then, the vocals next..."
"Right!"
I stood up with a heavy grunt. Recording Engineer Konuma set up the mic stand and connected the vocal microphone.
"Think you can do it? Ichikawa."
"Yeah, I'll give it a shot. ...Singing in someone else's house is a bit embarrassing after all, isn't it?"
"I bet..."
If it were me, I couldn't do it in someone else's house, let alone my own.
"But there's no point in saying that. I'll sing!"
"Okay, then. Starting recording now."
I played the backing track, which was now in a karaoke-like state, and began recording the vocals.
I closed my eyes and listened intently to Ichikawa's voice.
I thought once again that Ichikawa is truly a person of emotion.
No matter the song, when she sings, a landscape unfolds, and a whole world expands.
The song reached its end.
"How was it?"
"...Let's give it a listen for now."
As I said that, I happened to look toward the entrance of the room. The door, which should have been closed, was open.
"Hmm?"
Outside, Yuzu was standing there with a stunned look on her face.
"C-C-C-C-Could it be that Ichikawa Amane-san is..."
Just as Ichikawa tilted her head with a confused "Hmm?", Yuzu shouted at the top of her lungs.
"...Are you amane!?"