“I think music should be more free,” said Tiffy.
“O-Of course competitions are free too! See, even if you’re told to play the sheet music as-is, different people will interpret that sheet music differently, right? Just playing a single forte can change the feel completely depending on whether you play deeply and heavily sinking into it or bounce and play strongly, right? You read the composer’s intent from the sheet music and produce an atmosphere with your own interpretation. See, it’s really free, isn’t it? Competitions judge those kinds of things, don’t they?”
“But competitions don’t seek originality. They’re fixed.”
“We-Well…competitions do have to have some standardized judging criteria, so it can’t be helped…”
“And in the first place, since there are no right answers in music, you can’t assume the sheet music is entirely right either, I think. It’s not wrong, but there’s no need to blindly believe it from the start either. If I think I should play like this, even if it’s marked fortissimo I think I should play pianissimo if that’s what I feel. I think that’s expression.”
“…………”
Tiffy-chan suddenly started saying things like a troubled musician agonizing over the meaning of music, and while forcing a wry smile thinking this girl’s gone and done it now, the teacher tried persuading her to work up motivation for the competition.
“Th-That’s true. But since there are no right answers in music, trying to play while exploring what the composer intended in making this part fortissimo, for example, can also be very, very interesting, don’t you think Tiffy-chan?”
“I see…”
“Freedom is part of the appeal of music, but carefully examining the sheet music and peeking into its depths is also one appeal of music, you know?”
“Mm-hmm…”
“And arrangements are definitely not allowed for the competition, okay?”
“Hrm…”
In response to the teacher’s words, Tiffy folded her arms, troubled. She nodded up and down, pondering with a complicated expression, and the teacher watched her anxiously.
Then suddenly Tiffy’s face brightened and she shouted,
“I’ve got it!”
“Wha-what is it?”
“I’ll become a composer too!”
“Ohhh this girl is so free~~~~!”
The teacher’s scream of please just focus on the competition for now! vanished fruitlessly into the air. The special training was swallowed up by philosophy and did not proceed smoothly.
The stars were shining brightly in the sky. It was a beautiful night with the moon out.
It was the night before the competition, and the breeze was warm but the air felt somewhat stifling too. The air was humid, and the slight heat was making people sweat.
Costas was about to go outside to the yard to smoke. That was when he noticed his daughter Tiffy sitting in the garden chair. Tiffy had her back to the window as she gazed up at the stars.
“Can’t sleep?”
“…………”
There was no reply, but Costas sat next to his daughter and similarly looked up at the stars.
“It’s finally tomorrow, the competition.”
“…………”
“Are you nervous?”
“…………”
Costas put away his cigarette for now.
“…Don’t worry about what Grandma said, okay? I haven’t been able to persuade her yet, but Grandpa is also trying to persuade her. Just don’t get overly nervous and do your best like you practiced, that’s good enough, got it?”
“…………”
“….Tiffy?”
“Zzz…”
─She was asleep.
When Costas peeked at his daughter’s face, she had her face tilted up, sleeping pleasantly and soundly. Tiffy hadn’t been watching the stars – Costas blinked in slight surprise.
“….Tiffy. Tiffy. Wake up. You’ll catch a cold sleeping in a place like this.”
“Mm…?”
Tiffy slowly opened her eyes. She saw her father’s face shaking her shoulder.
“…I was sleeping.”
“That’s right.”
“Mmm…”
Tiffy let out a big yawn. Costas spoke to his daughter.
“It’s finally tomorrow, the competition.”
“Yeah.”
“Are you nervous?”
“Not really?”
“…I see.”
He was exasperated at his daughter’s nonchalance.
“Don’t worry about what Grandma said, okay? I haven’t been able to persuade her yet, but Grandpa is also trying to persuade her…”
“Dad.”
In the middle of Costas explaining, Tiffy spoke up, cutting him off. Tiffy looked her father in the eye.
“It’ll be okay.”
“…Will it?”
“Yeah.”
“…But won’t tomorrow be tough? Are you confident?”
Tiffy shook her head slightly.
“That’s not it. Not that…
“…………”
“I just…don’t think tomorrow is that special of a day.”
Tiffy turned her innocent eyes to her father.
“…Is that so?”
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“Yeah.”
“I see…”
Costas didn’t fully understand what his daughter was trying to say. But seeing his daughter look him in the eye, he reached out his hand and slowly stroked her head.
“Do your best.”
“Yeah.”
She smiled. As she did so, Tiffy’s mother Sophie appeared from the door leading to the yard.
“Oh! Tiffy, what are you doing here! No good. We have to get up early tomorrow, so you need to go to bed.”
“I was just sleeping here.”
“On the veranda again. You have to sleep properly in your futon.”
Saying that, Sophie lifted her daughter up as if cradling her and made her stand.
“Were you talking with your dad?”
“He woke me up.”
Costas spoke jokingly.
“Tiffy says she’s not nervous.”
“Oh come on, there’s no way. I played piano when I was little too, and competitions are soooo nerve-wracking!”
“It was awful for you, huh?” said Tiffy.
“That’s right! I was so nervous I thought I might throw up…Oh, that was just a story…Anyway!”
Realizing she shouldn’t have said that, Sophie waved her hand.
“Okay Tiffy, you need to sleep now. Sleep early, get up early, and don’t mess up your physical condition.”
“That’s right. We have to get up early tomorrow.”
“Waking up early is harder than getting first place…” muttered Tiffy.
“Hey now, come on.”
And so the three returned inside, and the night grew later. Tiffy slept soundly, while on the other hand, Sophie’s sleep was light from nerves.
The day of the competition arrived.
Many people were coming and going under the blazing sun.
A hot summer day with a clear sky. The asphalt ground reflected the heat of the sun, filled with oppressive heat. People were sweating and wiping themselves with handkerchiefs as they walked under the intensely burning sun. There were many parent-child pairs using North Mezeritt Station today, and they were all walking in the same direction. Most of those pairs had tense expressions, their faces stiff. They were the faces of those challenging this match.
They seemed drawn in as many people entered the large music hall. The inside of that building was air-conditioned, freeing them from the hot sunlight, and they let out big sighs of relief.
The children were dressed formally in unusual attire. They wore tidy formalwear with neckties, or fluttering dresses, having changed in this venue.
Many children were doing final checks in the waiting room. Some were going over their sheet music, some were checking advice over and over, some were carefully exercising their fingers. Everyone was fidgeting, uniformly showing tense expressions as they prepared to head to the real stage.
It was still before the performance began.
Among them, there was one girl showing an attitude slightly different from the surrounding tension. It was a different kind of tension from tension about performing, and she was fidgeting restlessly as if waiting for something.
The girl with long red hair in a white dress was Touri.
“…She’s not coming!”
Touri said in a voice that contained irritation but wasn’t too loud. The person who should be at this venue right now was absent.
Tiffy. Touri hadn’t seen Tiffy at all since arriving here. The girl she was worried about hadn’t shown up at all.
“Don’t tell me…she really overslept…”
Touri paced back and forth in the same area thinking. She knew Tiffy was weak in the mornings and often overslept. But that was a little odd. Her family would desperately try to wake her up, so there was no way Tiffy could just keep sleeping in bed.
And Yuki and Kasumi, who were always with her, weren’t here either. In other words, Yuki and Kasumi had met up with Tiffy, and the troublemaking trio were moving together, Touri figured.
Just what was going on? Depending on today’s results, Tiffy might be made to quit piano. At such a crucial, decisive moment, being late and unable to perform would be no laughing matter. She checked the time. There was still some time until the performance began. Certainly there was a little leeway, but…Touri couldn’t help but feel antsy wondering if something had happened.
While she was so worried about their whereabouts that she couldn’t concentrate on her own sheet music, Touri’s smartphone vibrated.
“…!”
The screen displayed ‘Incoming call – Tiffy.’ She hurriedly tapped the Answer button.
“Hello! Tiffy! Where are you right now…!?”
‘Oh, Touri, g’morning.’
“Ah, yeah, good morning…No, where are you and what are you doing right now!? You’re late!”
Tiffy’s carefree voice echoed from the other end of the call.
‘I got lost.’
“…Huh?”
‘Where is this place? Who am I?’
Hearing that indifferent voice, Touri froze. Her mind went blank. After a brief pause, Kasumi’s voice could be heard from the same phone.
‘Um, um, Touri-han. Y’see, we seem to have gotten on the wrong train, and now we’re at some place called Mezeritt Station.’
“…………”
The nearest station to this music hall was ‘North Mezeritt Station.’ They said they were at ‘Mezeritt Station.’ Stunned, Touri shook her muddled head and strung words together.
“You idiots! What are you doing…No, wait, hold on, hold on? Your parents. Where are your parents? Did your parents make the mistake?”
‘No, it’s just us three.’
“Hahhh!?”
Touri’s eyes widened.
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The thing that makes this novel interesting is this idea of geniuses vs. reincarnators; or actually, it’s how to deal with genuises in general. Think of Sakurasou no Pet no Kanojo I guess. Someone who works hard but gets outdone dirty by someone who kind of doesn’t care but is still far superior than you in every possible way. Since there isn’t really a right answer, it makes stories about these genuises quite interesting to read.
Though, I can kind of guess why no one really cares about this story anymore, since Volume 1 is already somewhat of a completed package (excluding his daughter’s arc).