This is Chika's house.

Is this a…ryokan inn?

Chika Takami lives in a ryokan? That's incredible!

Riko!

[Fade in/out.]

Whoa!

Chika!

Riko, perfect timing. I was just about to go find you.

Me? For what?

Yeah! I came up with a new idea for the summer festival song and…

Huh? You're…

Oh, um… I'm…

Oh my gosh, are you a customer? Please forgive me! Umm, do you have a reservation?

No, I don't. Actually, I didn't come here to stay in the ryokan.

Chika, this is a fan of ours that came all the way from Tokyo to meet us.

To meet Aqours?

Yes! I was hoping I might be able to talk with all of you.

Really? Wow, that makes me so happy. Sure thing! Come on in and let's talk.

Th-Thank you.

[Fade in/out.]

This is my room. I'm baaack!

[Fade in/out.]

Welcome back. Oh, I see you met up with Riko.

Hello. So you're here too, You.

Riko was right out front when I went outside!

Great. After you went out, I realized it'd probably be easier to call her.

But you left your phone, so I couldn't tell you. Wait, who's that?

Ah, this is a fan of ours who came all the way from Tokyo to meet us! We're here to chat.

Nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you, too. Hey, relax a little.

Yeah, relax! You're probably the same age as us, right? Are you in high school?

Yes, I'm a second-year student.

That makes us the same age! That means no formalities. Welcome to Uchiura. Have a cracker or two.

[Fade in/out.]

Huh, so you came all the way to Uchiura. It must have been tough getting here.

Not really. It was a breeze knowing I'd be able to meet Aqours when I got here.

That's so flattering, I'm actually a little embarrassed.

Hey, isn't your school, Nijigasaki, the one with the group that won that Tokyo school idol contest recently?

Wait, you've heard of my school?

Sure have! All the members in that group are so unique and charming. I couldn't avert my eyes for a second!

Yeah, they were all great. The singing and dancing were at a high level, too.

I don't mean anything bad by this, but I'd never heard of your school before. You appeared like a shooting star.

Really? I don't blame you. We only just started performing very recently.

It's crazy to think Aqours would say that though. Everyone at Nijigasaki would be happy to hear it.

*Giggle*

After I saw your performance with μ's, I took the leap into the world of school idols.

The passion I felt watching that performance still lingers in my heart.

I'm pretty sure everyone else watching felt the same way.

I need to know what it takes to do that to people.

[Fade in/out.]

Can you tell me how you can put on such a charming performance?

Our charm? Well…

What is it?

I dunno, what IS it?

What?

You mean like Aqours' strengths?

Not like that, more like how we get to our fans' hearts, right?

Now that I think about it, I don't really know.

Y-You don't?

I think we're looking for that answer as well.

I became an idol after seeing μ's perform. I wanted to shine like a sparkling jewel–just like they did on stage.

But I realized that doesn't mean I should imitate them. So, I'm always thinking of how we can shine in our own way.

That's one of the reasons we're participating in the Summer Festival.

Yep. It's fun getting the local people excited, but we thought it might be a hint to finding our own way to shine.

Your own way to shine?

(I don't think they're talking about individuality. So that's what Aqours has been holding in their hearts.)

(“Shine”… I'm not sure I get it, but I think it's pretty important.)

(Maybe that's really important for our group, too. Searching for “our own way to shine.”)