Dual System in Daily World

At first, the four members of Kesshoku Band weren't used to the sudden surge in popularity and the resulting flood of work—interviews with reporters, appearances on television, live streams, and interactions with fans online.

However, over time, they gradually transitioned from being awkward and inexperienced to becoming more adept.

As the leader of the band, Nijika, and the lead vocalist, Ikuyo, naturally became the public faces of Kesshoku Band. 

With their cheerful and outgoing personalities, they not only gained more fans themselves but also took thoughtful care of the socially anxious Hitori, and frequently stepped in to cover for the aloof and unpredictable Ryo.

Because of this, as the group made more public appearances and their fans gained deeper insight into each of the four members, more and more people began adding the suffix "Mama" to Nijika and Ikuyo's names as a sign of affection when cheering them on.

During an open-air concert shortly after New Year's, the band performed on stage while fans—many clearly a decade older than the girls—screamed "Mama!" hoarsely in the cold weather. 

The visibly flustered and red-faced reactions from Nijika and Ikuyo, not knowing how to respond, were adorably awkward. 

A sharp-eyed company president recorded and edited the scene, uploaded it online, and the related topic once again trended on social media.

Chisato believed he truly had a talent for PR and marketing.

Seika, who had witnessed all this firsthand, had mixed feelings.

Still, she admitted that the expressions her younger sister made whenever fans called her "Mama" were pretty amusing.

Since the fans clearly meant no harm, they decided to just go with the flow.

The explosive popularity of their songs boosted Kesshoku Band's name recognition, drawing many companies to actively seek collaborations.

Beyond revenue from song copyrights and CD sales, other income streams began rolling in.

They received magazine interviews and variety show appearances, though those payments were relatively small and not worth mentioning.

The bulk of their income came from advertisements and endorsements.

Well-known entertainers in the industry could earn impressive sums from endorsement deals.

For example, top-tier celebrities like Ms. Nagasawa and Ms. Matsushima had long-term contracts with major companies in Japan. 

As brand ambassadors, they only needed to appear on schedule to shoot new commercials, and they'd earn nearly a hundred million yen annually.

Making that kind of money from just maintaining public appearances was almost absurd in its simplicity.

While Kesshoku Band wasn't on the level of veteran celebrities yet, their recent boom meant the offers they received weren't low either.

Chisato and Seika screened the companies that came knocking.

In the end, they selected three companies to work with:

Yoshiwa Apparel, specializing in youthful, trendy fashion for girls.A-Earphone, a high-end headphone manufacturer.Snow Peak Company, focused on outdoor camping gear.

The first two aligned perfectly with the image Kesshoku Band presented—fashionable girls and music-related accessories.

The third one had no connection whatsoever, but Chisato chose to go with them for one simple reason: they offered a ridiculous amount of money.

Thirty million yen for a one-year endorsement—more than the other two companies combined.

Now that Chisato was responsible for running a company and feeding many people under him, he had to prioritize profits.

Their hectic but fulfilling life continued.

Despite being exhausted from non-stop work, the four members of Kesshoku Band didn't complain. They knew this was a step toward a better future.

As for the fact that they hadn't returned home for several nights in a row, Chisato had already visited each of their families during New Year's with gifts and explanations. 

As a result, the parents all expressed their understanding and support.

Hitori's parents were especially enthusiastic and insisted on having Chisato stay for a meal.

During dinner, Gotoh Futari insisted on sitting on his lap to eat, and Hitori's mother overly warmly kept putting food in Chisato's bowl. 

His eating pace couldn't keep up, and soon his bowl looked like a mini mountain.

Hitori's father, upon seeing his daughter on TV, once again retreated to his room in tears—just like last time.

All in all, they were quite the lively family.

In contrast, Ikuyo's parents were much more reserved. They just asked Chisato to take care of their daughter and apologized for any trouble.

As for Ryo… Chisato only met her mother. 

A mysterious lady just like Ryo herself, she surprisingly forced a small gift box into Chisato's hands when he was about to leave.

Unable to refuse, Chisato accepted it.

After he left and opened the box, he found a standard 100-gram gold bar.

What was that supposed to mean?

He was completely baffled.

When he asked Ryo, she only replied, "Mom gave it to you, so just keep it."

Judging by the luxurious decor and size of Ryo's house, her family was clearly far wealthier than Hitori or Ikuyo's. 

And since Ryo herself said that, Chisato decided to take it as a kind gesture from Mrs. Yamada and accepted it.

Then came January 9th.

With their popularity still rising thanks to a new song release—and Chisato paving the way with cash—Kesshoku Band finally welcomed their long-awaited break after nearly half a month of work.

There was still plenty of work left, but if they didn't rest now, winter break would be over.

So Chisato, after discussing with Seika, pushed their schedule back a little and carved out five days before school resumed for a company-paid training trip to Sapporo.

They would enjoy skiing, outdoor hot springs, and open-air barbecues—a perfect way to relax both body and mind.

They would set off the next morning. Alongside the four band members, Seika would also be joining them.

She hadn't planned to, but her little sister's persistent begging finally wore her down.

Though she acted reluctant on the surface, only Seika knew how much of that was just a façade.

Because they were leaving tomorrow, today's work ended early.

After overseeing the four girls as they shot promotional posters for their upcoming concert in Ueno Park, Chisato announced they were free to go pack and rest.

He himself returned home two hours later.

The house was cold and quiet.

Lately, because of work, he had been staying in hotels near his workplaces for days at a time, so Utaha hadn't been staying over either. 

She had taken Dark Wings with her to care for it.

Honestly, given Dark Wings' intelligence, it would probably be fine even without supervision—but Chisato was still grateful for her thoughtfulness.

Exhausted from the past few days, he fell straight into bed for a nap.

He had intended to sleep for just an hour, but when he opened his eyes, it was already past 7 p.m.

A bit of a miscalculation…

After packing clothes and daily necessities into his travel bag, Chisato called Eriri while soaking in the bath.

To his surprise, Utaha was with her.

"Are you two getting along better and better these days?"

After some small talk and telling them his plans for the next few days, Chisato teased casually.

Utaha corrected him sternly.

"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm only here because of work."

After that, she asked:

"You're home now?"

"Yeah."

"Clean yourself up and wait. I'm coming over."

"..."

That sounded bold… Honestly, kind of cool.

But…

Chisato rose from the tub and opened the small bathroom window to look outside.

The sky began to snow again. The cold wind blowing in made Chisato shiver all over his naked body. 

He quickly shut the window and slipped back into the bathtub.

"It's getting late, and it's snowing outside. How about we drop it for now? We can talk when I get back."

"No. I'm coming over now. There's something I need to say to you."

Utaha's tone was calm, but Chisato, who knew her well, could detect a faint sense of unease.

Before he could respond, the voice on the phone switched to Eriri.

"Chisato, I'll be heading over soon too. Have you had dinner yet? Do you want us to bring anything for you?"

"No need. I ordered delivery for myself. Just be careful on the way—temperatures are dropping at night, and any melted snow on the road has likely refrozen. It'll be slippery."

"Mm, got it."

After hanging up, Chisato didn't return to his bath.

He went to the living room and ordered from McD's.

An hour later, the delivery arrived.

He ate dinner while watching TV.

Another hour passed, and it was already past ten o'clock at night. Eriri and Utaha still hadn't shown up.

That made Chisato a bit worried.

Just as he was about to call them, he heard the door opening at the entrance.

Chisato let out a breath of relief and got up to check.

And there he saw Eriri and Utaha each standing at the entrance, dragging a suitcase.

He froze for a second, then instantly understood why it had taken them so long to get there.

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Real Cohabitation??

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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta

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