I wonder why Ai called us here.

It could be some kind of secret she's keeping from Lanzhu Zhong.

A secret?

Maybe she wants to return to the Club?

That'd be awesome! If that's what she wants to talk about, then I'm all for it.

Yes, let's give her a warm welcome back if she does bring that up!

Shizuku's returned to us, so I don't think it's out of the question, right?

I'm sure she has her own reasons and thoughts, so I'm not sure.

Oh? All of you were summoned here by Ai as well?

Lanzhu Zhong! Speak of the devil!

Kasumi! If you were talking about me, that means you're ready to come join the Association now, right?!

I-I-I would never!

You're even adorable when you're embarrassed, Kasumi.

Adorable?! Grr, can't you see how obviously irked I am by you?!

That's what you call being “hot-and-cold,” right? It's okay, I totally understand. No problems there!

You're nothing but problems!

Oh-ho! I see everyone's gathered here!

Ai!

Hey, Ai? What did you want to talk to us about?

Is it that you're coming back to the Club?

Actually, I've got a suggestion to run by everyone today.

So it's not about you coming back…

Don't pull such a glum face, Ayumu!

You look better when you smile. Why don't you come for a tea party at the Association? We've got some yummy sweets that'll put a smile on your face!

Come on, Lanzhu! I told you, no recruiting today. Lend me your ears for my suggestion today, everyone!

What's the big idea? I don't appreciate you bossing me around.

In any case, why don't we all just sit down since this conversation is going nowhere.

Indeed.

[Fade in/out.]

First off, thanks for gathering around, everyone. There's something I want to present to you all today.

And it's about…

A joint event at school between the School Idol Association and the School Idol Club!

A joint event at school?!

I want the Association and Club members to have live show competitions in the form of a tournament.

We'll duke it out one-on-one, and then have the audience vote on which live show captured their hearts more.

I call it “Ai Miyashita Presents: The Hunt for the Hearts of Fans! Who'll Have the Most Hyped-up Live Show? Tournament!” Or something like that.

A tournament? To decide on who's number one?

I want to have a contest to see who's the most capable of capturing the feelings of our fans through their live show performances right now.

The most capable of capturing the feelings of our fans…

Why not? I was just thinking about wanting to have a way to test our abilities so far.

I think that sounds interesting, too.

Yeah, it does seem like something Nijigasaki might organize.

We can't just perform normal live shows, Ai?

Hmm. Well, why I want to hold this event is actually related to why I joined the Association to begin with.

I love everyone in the Club, and I really respect all of you as well. You're just all overflowing with so much charm and appeal.

But that led me to feel a lot of things.

I felt like I had to stand my own ground. I couldn't let myself get left behind, and I wanted to win.

I'm not usually the type who focuses on winning or losing, but it's different for me when it comes to being a school idol. I actually do want to win.

I wanna win against everyone in the Club…and Setsu in particular. Don't you all feel the same way?

I definitely do! I really respect everyone and think you're all amazing! You all make such wonderful school idols, which is precisely why I also don't want to lose!

Right? I want this event to be one where we can harness those feelings and battle it out in a fair contest. It'll get us totally hyped, don't you think?

[Fade in/out.]

That was an excellent presentation, Ai. An event like that would make it plain to see who has the most fans, and it's also the perfect chance to watch everyone perform.

*Chuckle* I'm glad to hear it! I figured this was the only way to go, from the moment I came up with the idea!

It's also a great opportunity to show everyone in the Club what we're capable of now.

Right?! I want everyone in the Club to see what we've been working on at the Association.

Ai, I'll give you my full support. It'll be great to compete against the Club members who enchanted me that fateful day. I'm really looking forward to the joint event!

The rest depends on the Club members. Would they all be willing to participate?