Track 7

"The amateur category competition will begin shortly. The waiting room will open in 15 minutes. Participants are to proceed to....."

There's so many people here. It's finally time for the real thing.....! The expert category rounds will be held in the afternoon..... That's when the professional players will be competing, right?

Yes. Unlike the amateur category, it seems that they will be having preliminaries. After all, they're the main stars of the competition.....

(And yet, there are quite a lot of audience members for the amateur category. It's probably due to the rumors of "Domeki Kuguri's apprentice" competing.....)

Raitin, we'll be cheering you on with all the hype in our hearts! So keep fightin'!

As long as you stay calm, I'm sure you'll show your true potential. Do your best out there.

Raito's heart rate is... unusually high. I recommend taking some deep breaths before the performance.

Y-Yeah. Thank you, everyone.

(I practiced until late again last night, but... I'm still not consistent at the climax of the piece.)

There's still some time left before the waiting room opens. I'll stay here and tap my fingers for a bit longer.

(This is the first time I've seen Raito-san so nervous. He's never looked so anxious about a performance before, not even during Ev3ns' shows.....)

(I need to check my fingerings..... If I do it too forcefully, it sounds harsh. But when I reel it in, the notes sound shallow and might cut out.)

(This arpeggio too... my left hand tends to get a bit tangled up.)

(He's working himself to the bone. .....It's not often I see him like that.)

.....Has he actually changed.....?

.....

Kuguri.

Go on and show the whole world. That you were chosen by God himself, a true genius.

(Back then, that person touched my fingers—)

"Thank you for waiting. The amateur category will now begin. The first performer is....."

When is Raito-san's turn.....?

After the next two contestants.

Chiefy, Nayuuki. Kugurinu still hasn't come back..... Do you think he's okay?

It has been 8 minutes and 18 seconds since Kuguri left his seat.

That's pretty long for a bathroom break..... Isn't Raito-san going up soon?

Uhm.....

.....

(So he's Domeki Kuguri-sama's apprentice..... His posture is just as beautiful as Kuguri-sama's. But he's so nervous, I'm not sure what to do...)

(If I mess up and Kuguri were to get slandered again.....)

(No, I need to clear my head and focus on my performance..... It's a bit hard to do that, though.....)

(Am I... afraid that I'm going to fail? Me....?)

Just look at how restless you are. What are you, a monkey?

.....Kuguri. You came to see me?

I thought I'd come witness your pathetic state in person. You look just as ridiculous as I thought you would. No amount of struggling will change the fact that you'll fail, you might as well give up now.

.....

(What intense pressure right before the performance.....! Is this his secret strategy to encourage his apprentice.....?!)

Didn't I already tell you? I chose a piece that you could never hope to understand. Winning an award was out of the question from the very start. So, just focus on making a spectacle of your failure. Entertaining me is the least you could do.

There's no world in which you play the piece properly. After all, you're someone who has never known love in the first place.

.....Haha, whether I succeed or not, it really makes no difference to you, does it?

You're only realizing that now? I have not a smidgen of interest in your future. Took you long enough to notice.

I see. In that case, I think I can finally let loose.

It's true that I cannot understand love songs. But, Kuguri, I'm the type to thrive under pressure.

Whatever. Be sure to put on a good show, monkey.

Yeah.

(Huh, looks like his apprentice calmed down.)

Kuguri. If I said that I wanted to engrave my sound into your memory... Wouldn't that be 'yearning'?

......

(He ignored me, huh.....)

What do we do, Nayuki-kun? Raito-san's up next. Kuguri-san still hasn't come back.....

I'll go look for him!

What are you all fussing about? Suddenly standing up and sitting back down in a hall like this is bad manners.

We were troubled by the fact that you left your seat and never returned. Were you intending to miss your apprentice's performance?

Plüss. Spare me the lecture. The performance is about to start, remember?

I'm glad you made it on time, Kugurinu~ Let's all watch Raitin's brave performance together!

(I got worried for a bit there, but he actually came back..... He taught Raito-san for 2 days straight, so surely he'll pay attention to the performance, right?)

.....

.....? Ah, are you looking for someone?

You could say that.....

There's someone I'd like to completely ignore.

"Our next performer is... Kitakata Raito."

......

.....He's regained his composure. Tch.

(Looks like Raito-san's feeling relaxed now! I'm so glad.....)

(The first part expresses the excitement in your heart... the thrill of finding love..... That much, even I can understand.)

(The three measures added by Liszt, that weren't in the original song.....)

(From here on, let the lyrics resonate..... Be gentle with the keys, pay attention to the changes in tempo, and focus on the articulation.....!)

(This is the first song from Myrthen Op. 25. He dedicated these words to Clara, expressing the love he found after enduring great hardship.....)

("You my soul, you my heart." "Du meine Seele, du mein Herz.".....)

("You my rapture, O you my pain" .....)

("You my world in which I live".....!)

(Incredible..... I was drawn in from the first note..... Raito-san's emotions are really showing in the music.....!)

And now we're entering the instrumental break.....

(A flamboyant and melodic passage, quite typical of Liszt.)

(This part is an instrumental... it was meant for the piano, that's what Kuguri taught me. Legato means to—)

(That's right. Legato means it should flow beautifully. And the left hand part should feel like a low string instrument.....)

(He's gotten so much better since yesterday's rehearsal.....!)

(The arpeggio in the left hand..... Don't rush, let it flow, emphasize the beauty of love.....!)

.......

(If it were me, I'd play it more.....)

(No, what am I thinking?)

.....The notes are connecting, and flowing through.

The pain felt through love..... Play it just like a cello and clarinet.....

(With a single instrument, you must replicate the sound of an entire ensemble. Waves of sounds, sparkling like jewels. Dynamism and silence—)

(Ah, what am I....)

(It's time for the climax.)

(The part he failed at countless times.)

(Now, the passage of destiny.....!)

(I can do this.... I will do this—I'll show you I can do this!)

.....!

!

(My finger slipped..... but the sound still came out.....?!)

—

I feel like I could hear a bit of Kuguri-san's sound in his playing.

(This is the last part..... If he can get through this, then..... Wait, huh? Kuguri-san suddenly stood up..... What's wrong?)

—

(Ah! The song's over.....!)

.....Chiefy.

.....Yeah, Kuguri-san left.

(.....I wonder what happened. When he stood up, Kuguri-san looked like he was about to cry.....)