ALKALOID VS Switch – Epilogue
Chapter Index
Chapter 1
“—Oh, what a fierce battle that was! Even despite the intense clash between both units, their mutual respect could be truly felt!"
“While I would love nothing more than to see how much more they can bring to the table… this is, after all, a competition, meaning there has to be a winner in the end.”
“… And it looks like they’ve been tallied up.”
“Now, the time has come to announce the results of the Megasphere Match - ALKALOID VS Switch!”
“The winner is—”
“The all-ace unit led by Hiiro Amagi—ALKALOID!”
“…”
“What? Did NiceP—just—say that we won?”
“I-I think I heard the same thing…?”
“Hehe, it looks like we managed to overcome our trial. ♪”
“Mhm! Victory is ours at last!”
“No way… What do you mean, we actually won against Switch…?”
“We did it…! We have your strategy to thank for this victory!”
“Yeah! It’s all thanks to you that we were able to win, Aira.”
“No, no, it wasn’t just my strategy! Everyone worked really hard!”
“Indeed. We could only earn this victory thanks to each person providing their utmost effort.”
“Oh… looks like we lost.”
“Congratulations, ALKALOID.”
“Aoba-senpai…”
“You shouldn’t be frowning like that, Shiratori-kun. You won, so you should make a happy face for the audience.”
“It’s just that I didn’t think we were going to win, so it’s kinda like my heart hasn’t caught up yet!”
“… TheN, hurry up and accept reality as soon as possiblE.”
“We should be the ones struggling to accept these resultS, not yoU.”
“But the results are what they are.”
“I know thaT. I have no complaintS, so you have nothing to worry abouT.”
“Hiiro-chan and ALKALOID, congratulations!”
“It’s sad that we lost, but performing together with you was a lot of fun~♪”
“… It really is the best when everyone smiles!”
“…!”
“Yes, Sora-kun is right.”
“I feel like I gave my best on stage just now, so I have no regrets.”
“… What about you, Natsume-kun?”
“… Senpai, don’t look at me like thaT.”
“I feel the same waY. We lost to ALKALOID only after making our utmost efforT.”
“To be completely franK, it does stinG, but we have to accept the outcome as it IS.”
“… And to think that when we had just meT, you were all nestlings that couldn’t even flY.”
“You’ve grown spectacularly, ALKALOID.”
“The reason we stand here today is that the three of you extended a helping hand to us back then.”
“… Is that sO?”
“Besides that, even though we won, the gap in votes was almost non-existant…”
“It was such a close match that either of us could have feasibly won.”
“HaHa~♪ We’ll get you back next time, for sure! Right, Shisho~? ♪”
“Hehe, NaturallY… ThougH, as we stanD, these are only the grumblings of a loseR.”
“RegardlesS, you’ve won this oncE. Time to celebrate your victorY, ALKALOID.”
“Thank you. We’re glad we got to compete with Switch.”
Backstage after the final round’s performance.
We actually won…
Good work, Aira.
Hiro-kun… where are the others?
They’ve already changed, and now they’re getting ready to head back.
Oh, then I should also get going…
… Aira. You’re still overthinking, aren’t you?
… No, I’m not.
I was just thinking about Aoba-senpai.
After the second round, I opened up to him about my troubles, and that was when he told me something.
That if there’s a way to make everyone happy, that’s the best way of going about things…
And that would be a mistake to become hung up on victory to the point of losing sight of what is important.
… I see. So that’s why he changed the effects for our assigned song.
You noticed that?
I did. They were clearly different compared to the ones we had in our rehearsal.
I felt like I was able to move more easily since the assigned song started, and I got the impression that ALKALOID started drawing the audience’s gaze more than before.
This is only a hunch, but I presume that the effects for the final round were originally meant to highlight Switch alone.
To highlight them… but being able to do that is part of Switch’s strength, isn’t it?
The stage effects are generally designed by management to match the songs, and if a unit makes a request, they adjust based on that.
But even then, not a lot of units put that much attention into their stage effects. I mean, what’s already prepared tends to be perfectly fine, so that’s why.
And even still, the final stage effects made both ALKALOID and Switch stand out clearly.
That’s got to have been thanks to Aoba-senpai thinking it would be the way to make everyone happy.
It wasn’t a show only meant to make Switch’s fans happy and ensure their victory.
He also took us into consideration, and wanted to make this a show that our own fans could proudly say they had loved.
On this… world-class stage.
He could’ve won if he actually tried to outstage us… but he stayed firm on taking the road that would make everyone watching the show the happiest. He’s really something else…
… So Switch had higher priorities than winning.
That might’ve been why we were able to beat them.
It’s like Mayo-san said: if Switch actually wanted to win, we…
Maybe. But as it stands, we didn’t lose.
… Hiro-kun, you’re saying baseless stuff again.
Well, it’s good that you’re like that. If our leader looked anxious, we would’ve gotten nowhere.
… I really am happy that we won.
I know I tried to get out of it, and went on and on about how I didn’t want us to get compared. But now, I’m thinking about the show we came up with, and how it resonated with so many people…
For all I know, some of Switch’s fans might be upset right now, so this might be pretty awful of me.
… So, at the very least, I’ll stop hesitating now. I know that I want to move forward with you guys as a member of ALKALOID.
For ALKALOID’s sake, I’ll believe in you, Tattsun-senpai and Mayo-san, and keep fighting.
… Well, I’m not saying anything new.
I’ll also devote myself to becoming an even better leader that you all can safely place your trust on.
Let’s witness many more wonderful views up on stage together, Hiro-kun… ♪
—Hehe. A smile suits you like nothing else, Aira.
Just from looking at your smile, we naturally start smiling with you.
There’s nothing complicated to it. That simple fact makes you an idol through and through.
Huh? Why’re you bringing this up now?
You are right, though. We are idols… but that doesn’t mean we should be satisfied now.
—We’re gonna be top idols, right?
All so that one day, we can create a world that welcomes all idols with a smile… a world full of love ♪
Chapter 2
Senpai, Sora is so sorry!
Um…? What happened, Sora-kun?
About the assigned song~ your changes to the stage effects were great!
If it hadn’t been for you, Sora and Shisho~ would’ve only focused on beating ALKALOID.
We would’ve forgotten what’s important to us as Switch, because we wanted to win that badly…
It’s alright, Sora-kun. There is nothing wrong with aiming for victory.
I wanted to win, too. In that sense, I felt the same way as you two.
No, that’s completely different~ While we were only thinking about winning, you still remembered that there was something more important.
It’s thanks to you that Switch’s show ended up being Switch-like at all.
Sora… gave too much priority to his desire to beat ALKALOID.
MM is a serious competition, but if we lost track of everything else, we wouldn’t be Switch anymore.
Sora realized that thanks to you, Senpai.
… There really is no need to apologize.
Even if we were only aiming to beat ALKALOID at first, we were able to put on a proper show as Switch in the end.
Even then, Sora is still grateful~
If we had won like that, Sora wouldn’t have been happy from the bottom of his heart… and even though we lost, Sora feels refreshed now ♪
Haha, that’s because performing with ALKALOID was so fun.
Speaking of which, where is Natsume-kun?
(Where could he be?)
(Sora-kun said he was called over by the staff once he finished changing…)
(But he doesn’t seem to be anywhere around here.)
(It doesn’t seem like he’s seen my texts, either.)
(… Hm? Could that be him in the distance?)
(How strange… I thought he was heading this way.)
(I was following him closely, so he can’t be too far from here…)
—First a saboteuR, and now a stalkeR? I truly can’t believe yoU.
Woah!? N-Natsume-kun! How are you behind me all of a sudden?
You could use a little more awareness of your surroundingS. I could have approached you with a weapon and stabbed you before you’d had any time to reacT.
Please don’t say that, that’s scary…
But, speaking of “stalking”, do you mean that you noticed I was following you?
ObviouslY. Please don’t presume that I’m as clueless as yoU.
You should’ve said something sooner, then… Keeping me on your tail wasn’t very nice of you.
Hm. After you acted so selfishlY, now you have reproaches to make of mE?
… You’re mad, aren’t you?
What do you thinK?
Um… I’m sorry.
I don’t want a hasty apology from yoU.
Unless by apologizinG, you mean to acknowledge that you were in the wronG?
… No, I don’t feel that way.
I do feel guilty for changing the effects for the assigned song without telling anyone, but I don’t regret making that choice.
If I could redo the show, I believe I would make the same choice any number of times.
And now you’re defying mE? Don’t you think you could at least have run this by mE?
I… I’m sorry.
You just blurt out apologies like it’s nothinG, all the while you haven’t reflected on your actions one biT.
… It’s exactly as you’re thinkinG.
If you had tried to have that conversation with me in the days leading up to the final rounD, I wouldn’t have listened to yoU.
What’s worsE, it could have resulted in a heated argument that would have worsened the rifT, to the point that we might have gone into the final round in that statE.
Some part of me did always know that you weren’t happy with my approacH.
But I didn’t ask you agaiN, because I was convinced that if I haD, I might’ve ended up saying something even worse to yoU.
I didn’t think I could’ve put it into words, no matter how I expressed myself.
That was why I tried to convey it on stage, believing that you two would certainly understand me then.
That’s awfully audacious of yoU, necessary as it might have beeN.
… It was a little unexpecteD. NormallY, I would expect you to find any excuse to give iN.
I thought this situation would likely pan out like thaT.
I don’t blame you for thinking that.
I’ve been acting based on other people’s wishes for a long time now.
When I was in school, and even as a member of Switch, I’ve been working hard for “someone else’s sake”.
But, Natsume-kun… There are some things that I can’t give up.
Switch, our way of doing things as a unit, is the one thing I don’t want to see changed.
Extending a hand to those that have been beaten down and leading them towards happinesS… that is our duty as Switch.
On the final rounD, you were the only one that set out to embody that dutY.
We’ve always approached every activity with that mentalitY, but I lost sight of my own pride in the midst of this matcH.
… And I even dragged my precious Sora into iT. I’m disgusted with myself for thaT.
Don’t blame yourself, Natsume-kun. No one can say they’ve never strayed from the straight and narrow.
That doesn’t change the fact that I lost sight of what was importanT.
It was because of that journalist that you started fixating on winning, wasn’t it?
You were looking to create a strong international impression for our abilities as Switch while demonstrating your own strengths.
And you said you wanted to disprove people’s belief that the Eccentrics weren’t anything impressive.
… It’s truE. I couldn’t let them think that way of Switch, the unit that Natsume Sakasaki of the Five Eccentrics belongs to.
I won’t let anyone underestimate me so long as there is anything I can do about iT. That was my intention in winninG, as Switch… and as one of the Eccentrics.
… I’m just repeating myself now, but there’s no need for you to do that.
There are plenty of people that appreciate you as the member of Switch you are today. There is nothing you need to prove to them by…
I knoW. I know that alreadY.
But I still wanted to wiN. I had tO.
I knew that if I losT, people would get the idea that the Five Eccentrics are nothing speciaL.
Just because of my own ineptitudE, people are going to doubt everything that my Nii-sans whom I love so much worked so hard to build uP! I can’t just let theM…!
Chapter 3
I don’t care if I get ridiculed. I can endure iT.
But I couldn’t even stand to think of the people I care about being made fun oF.
… Natsume-kun.
(You really are kind.)
(You weren’t fighting just for your own sake, but with the people you hold dear at the forefront of your mind.)
Ah, I really hate what’s become of mE…
I let those insults get to mE, and clung to the idea of victory so hard that I cast aside our pridE!
It should have been fine if I had done the same as yoU, and strived to put on a show that conveyed our essencE, as usuaL.
If we had approached the show as Switch, everything would have been greaT. We would have beat ALKALOID!
Why did I have to ruin everythinG…
I told you not to blame yourself, didn’t I?
You did get hung up on the idea of winning, but you also ended up realizing what actually mattered most, right?
When I realized that you and Sora-kun had understood me in the end, I was really happy.
You’re wronG, Senpai. That should’ve happened sooneR.
Switch fell apart because of mE.
(No, Natsume-kun…)
(Don’t make that face, please. I don’t want to see you like that.)
(All my efforts were just to make everyone smile. I only wanted to be that kind of magician…)
It’s all my faulT. All of iT.
(I can’t even put a smile on the face of the person I care for more than anyone else…)
(Is there anything I can say to make you smile?)
(What feelings can I express to make your tears stop falling?)
(… I don’t know. All I want is to make you happy. I got this far only because I wanted to see you happy.)
(—Did I make the wrong call?)
…
That’s… right…
Considering the situation, I’ll have to say this bluntly.
Natsume-kun, you were wrong.
I keep telling you not to—
Natsume-kun, you’ve got to stop sulking over the past. To be quite honest, it makes you sound the most pitiful you ever have.
… Tsumugi…nii-san?
How many more times do I have to tell you that we have a lot of supporters that root for us because they see us for what we are now?
In fact, MM must have introduced many more people to what Switch is like as a unit.
There is nothing for us to lament! We did what we had to do!
So please, pull it together already! What good is a “magician of happiness” that won’t stop crying!?
…!
Can you not make things uP? I’m not cryinG.
I know you are! Could you not lie to my face about something so evident? What are you, a child!?
I said I’m not crying! I’m going to kill you!
As if I’d let myself get killed by you!
Hah!?
I’ll say it one more time, Natsume-kun!
I know how important the Five Eccentrics are to you! I know that better than anyone else!
I’m always by your side, always looking after you, so of course I would know!
But the Five Eccentrics are in the past! So, could you act like a man and stop dragging them out!?
“Act like a maN”!? What makes you think you can say thaT…!?
Look at me, Natsume-kun! Don’t look back! Look at the person right in front of you!
And look at yourself, right here with me!
You’re not Natsume Sakasaki of the Five Eccentrics—you are Natsume Sakasaki from Switch!
…!
I won’t give you up to anyone else! I don’t care what might happen from now on…!
If you get caught up in the past, or lament the present, or stress over the future…
I’ll do everything I can to make you happy—to make Switch happy. No one else will get in our way!
Was I clear, Natsume-kun!?
…
What the hell was thaT…
Could you please let go of my hanD…!?
Ow! Natsume-kun, that hurts!
It’s almost like you have a talent for pissing me ofF!
Is this something you should be saying after you went off on your own and did something so reckless without explaining anything to uS?
… Well, I’ll still say it.
If it’s to protect you and Sora-kun, to protect Switch… I won’t back down to anyone.
What a bothersome magician you arE…
… It takes a lot of nerve to say you “won’t give me up to anyonE”. I never took you for someone so haughtY.
I only realized this recently, but…
It seems I’m a much more selfish, childish person than I had thought.
Hmm…
TheN, go on and show me what you’re capable oF.
Lead us towards the “happily ever after” you’re always talking abouT. I’ll be waiting to see iT.
ThougH, I will admit that I’m an even more greedy, troublesome person than you arE.
… Yes, I’m well aware of that.
Hah? So you think I’m troublesomE?
No, I didn’t mean it so literally…!
… But it’s okay. No matter how greedy you are, or how much trouble you cause…
No matter what you’re like, my course of action will stay the same.
I’m not a fairytale genie summoned from a lamp; I won’t go anywhere once I’ve granted your third wish.
I’ll make your wishes come true time and time again.
After all, since the day we christened this unit with the name of Switch, both you and Sora-kun have been under my spell ♪