Chapter 320: Karuizawa in August (15)

This is the first time that Karuizawa's concert hall has hosted students for training.

I learned that Kamikawa won the gold medal in the national competition last year, and that Watanabe Toru didn't care about the rent, so everything was fine.

The only requirement is that tourists are allowed to be spectators for free.

This was a good thing for the wind orchestra, and Toru Watanabe agreed without any communication - as a deputy minister of a superior department, he should have some decision-making power over subordinate departments.

On the way back to the villa, I received a call from Koizumi Aonai.

"Watanabe!" After the excitement, the voice still contained a hint of excitement.

"Teacher Koizumi." Toru Watanabe was riding a bicycle in the woods. There was no one around except birds and squirrels, and a smile appeared on his face.

The call fell silent, but there was no awkwardness at all, only silent warmth, which was passed from Tokyo to Karuizawa - across these 126 kilometers, to each other.

"I miss you." After a long while, Koizumi Aona said the second sentence.

"I like you." said Toru Watanabe.

From the other side came Koizumi Aona's happy laughter, followed by the sound of a body falling on the bed.

"Shouldn't you say 'I missed you too'?" Koizumi Aona took the pillow and held it in her arms.

"I like you."

Another burst of laughter.

"Yeah, I like you too." She said happily.

"I like you."

He laughed again and heard feet hitting the blanket.

"Is it a recording?"

"Yeah, I like you."

"Hate!"

Watanabe Toru followed suit and laughed: "Teacher Aona, please enjoy yourself during your visit to Karuizawa. Teacher Akiko and Teacher Miyuki are coming, so let them come too. I will rent a villa for you."

"They are already packing their bags."

"Aren't you going to clean up?"

"I—" Koizumi Aina said in a long tone, like a girl, "later!"

"Don't clean it up." Watanabe Toru urged, "It's very convenient to buy clothes in Karuizawa. There's Karuizawa Ginza and the outlet mall."

"If I don't clean up...what should I do during this time?"

"Talk to me, of course."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well - let me tell you what fun things there are in Karuizawa?"

"Okay~" Koizumi Aona sat up, hugged the pillow, and leaned against the head of the bed, "You say."

"A few days ago, it was foggy in the morning. In order to avoid getting my trouser legs wet, I rode my horse to get Dorayaki. From a distance, I saw a person squatting there, waiting for me to ride over, but the person ran away. I looked over and found that he was looking at lilies. I tied my horse there and went to get the Dorayaki. When I came back, my horse had eaten someone else's lilies. I was so scared that I galloped away and almost ran all the way back to Tokyo."

"Didn't I cause you any trouble later?" Koizumi Aona tried not to laugh.

"The fog was thick, so we couldn't see each other clearly. We just knew that the other person was probably a human."

"Puchi! Haha!" After laughing for a long time, Koizumi Aona panted and said, "This doesn't seem to be fun in Karuizawa?"

"Without me, Karuizawa is still having fun with Aona-sensei?"

“It’s fun.”

"Hang up, the phone is out of battery."

"You're kidding. How could a cell phone run out of battery?"

"That means there is no signal in the mountains."

"Karuizawa is in the mountains, but as a resort for rich people, how could there be no signal? Watanabe-san, if you lie to the teacher again, the teacher will be angry."

"Oh no, my phone was stolen!"

"Who snatched it away?" Koizumi Aona asked in the tone of a teacher who sees through all the little actions of his students.

"squirrel."

"There are squirrels in Karuizawa?"

"Of course. Let's switch videos and I'll film it for you."

"Okay~"

After watching the squirrels running around on the treetops and chatting for a while, the two hung up the phone.

"Aina," Akiko walked into Koizumi Aina's bedroom, holding a hat in each hand, "Help me see which one to take?"

"Try it on and see." said Koizumi Aona.

Akiko tried them on separately, and Koizumi Aona asked her to wear the baseball cap style one.

"Aren't you packed yet?" Miyazaki Miyuki walked in with her arms crossed, carrying a heavy burden.

"The only option left is the sun hat, and that's fine now," Akiko replied.

"Aona, what about you?" Miyazaki Miyuki glanced at the already opened but empty suitcase, "It's almost time to leave, what have you been doing?"

"Ah!" Koizumi Aona quickly threw away the pillow, slid off the bed, and threw clothes from the closet onto the bed, "Miyuki, Akiko, help me!"

"I can't stand you." Akiko, wearing a sun hat, sat by the bed and helped her fold clothes.

"Did you talk to the boy on the phone?" Miyuki Miyazaki was responsible for putting the folded clothes into the suitcase.

"……Um."

"Ah~~" Akiko looked unbearable, "One person is in love, and the three of us suffer as a result."

"Don't be angry, Watanabe said he would rent a villa for the three of us." Koizumi Aona took a long dress with a white background and blue butterflies and gestured in front of her, "Does this one look good?"

"It's beautiful, our Qingnai is the most beautiful." said Akiko.

Koizumi Aona threw her long skirt on the bed and continued looking for clothes she liked.

"Sometimes, I envy Qingna." Miyazaki Miyuki said, "Not only do they like each other, but the boy is also rich, young, romantic, good-looking, and has a good figure."

"I haven't seen you for half a month, what's there to be envious of?" Akiko folded her skirt at her knees.

"How many times a year can you not see each other for half a month? Even if you are an ordinary couple, what's wrong with seeing each other every day? Will you send you flowers every day? Be nice to you? Qingnai likes Watanabe. When the two of them are together, they don't have to cook for him or do housework. They just need to enjoy life."

"I'm not with Watanabe because of those things, but because I like him very much!" Koizumi Aona emphasized.

"You don't like the way he looks?" asked Miyuki Miyazaki.

“…”

"Don't you like him sending you roses every day?"

"……hey-hey."

Twenty-six-year-old Miyuki Miyazaki looked at the embarrassed Aona Koizumi with an expression that showed that she had seen through you young people.

"Look at how proud you are of yourself. It's disgusting!" Akiko handed the folded skirt to Miyuki Miyazaki, and angrily picked up a summer shirt.

"There's another advantage to being with Watanabe," said Miyuki Miyazaki.

"I've already said it, I'm not with him for any benefit!" Koizumi Aona felt very wronged.

"What benefits?" Akiko ignored Koizumi Aona and asked directly.

"He is the son-in-law of the Kujo family. Kujo Miki agreed to Aonai's request, which means that if you encounter any trouble in your life in the future, you only need to say a word and it can be easily solved. For example, if you make mistakes in school or your family members are sick and need a good doctor."

Akiko nodded in approval.

"This is just the basics." Miyazaki Miyuki continued, "If Qingna was not gentle and had a more eccentric personality, she could have bullied people by now, for example, asking the principal to expel Fujiki Akiko."

"Hey! I'm a very capable teacher! Why are you firing me? If anyone is going to fire you, it should be you, the school doctor who has nothing to offer except breasts!"

"Just having breasts is enough."

"ah--"

"It must have absorbed my nutrients. I was definitely the biggest one!"

“… …Woo woo.”

"Hurry up and help me tidy up my clothes! It's running out of time!" Koizumi Aona said to the two people who were fighting.

"Okay, Mrs. Watanabe, please don't fire me." Akiko said pitifully.

"Oh, really!" Koizumi Aona didn't know for a moment whether to refute 'Mrs. Watanabe' or 'fire' her.

The three of them laughed and joked as they hurried to school.

The wind band had already moved their instruments and were chatting in the car with excitement and anticipation.

"Sorry, teacher, you're late. Is everyone here?" asked Koizumi Aona.

"Everyone is here." The head of the wind band, Kaoru Hayami, replied.

"Then let's go."

"Very good!"

"Karuizawa, here I come—"

"We're going to the training camp, Horikita Mai-scholar."

"I'm sorry, Hayami-senpai."

The bus with the Kamikawa school emblem printed on it slowly drove out of the campus and headed towards the Karuizawa Plateau at an altitude of 1,000 meters.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, they arrived at the Yuturuiruo Hotel.

The luxurious accommodation, cool weather and beautiful natural scenery made this group of high school students chatter non-stop.

"It's actually a tatami suite with a TV!"

"It's not a big bunk bed! I'm so touched!"

"Come and see, open the window and you can see the mountains!"

"Is it Mount Asama? It's said to be an active volcano, and sometimes you can see flames erupting!"

“It’s amazing!”

"Everyone!" Hayami Kaoru clapped his hands together to quiet everyone down, "Did everyone see the failure of the baseball club?"

"We had to go all the way to Hyogo Prefecture to cheer in such hot weather, but we still lost."

"that is!"

"I really can't leave Watanabe-kun."

"We don't have Watanabe-kun this year either." Hayami Kaoru's words made everyone quiet down again.

She continued, "We are not here for tourism, but for training. If we don't make it to the national competition, what will others say? 'Training in a tourist destination, you didn't train well at all'?"

"The wind band can't be like the baseball club. We are the best! Come on!"

"Come on!" everyone responded in unison.

"Great! Then start packing now and gather downstairs at 3:30. We'll go straight to the concert hall to practice!"

"yes!"

Koizumi Aona and the other two did not live in the villa.

As a teacher, she must stay with her students - Koizumi Aona used this reason to reject Watanabe Toru's proposal to rent a villa.

The wind orchestra still has no conductor this year because of the principal's wishful thinking - not hiring a dedicated music teacher for fear of disturbing Kiyono Rin.

As a consultant, Koizumi Aona had no idea about wind music.

This year's wind orchestra relies entirely on the occasional guidance of Qingno Rin and the strict training schedule.

"Teacher, you and Teacher Akiko go and have fun. I will take good care of them." Hayami Fumio said to Koizumi Aona who followed her to the concert hall.

"I'm a counselor. The school has entrusted you to me. How can I go out and play by myself? Hayami-san, you also said that we are here for training, not for travel."

"Thank you, teacher! We will definitely advance to nationals!"

"Well, the teacher believes in you."

Aona Koizumi sat in the audience of the concert hall, chatting with her girlfriends who had already started playing while paying attention to the training of the wind orchestra.

She also wants to travel around Karuizawa .

In that case, perhaps I could meet Watanabe by chance at a street corner, in a cafe, or on a path under the shade of trees.

But as the advisor of the wind band, I have to stay even if I just sit here stupidly.

I'm at the concert hall, are you coming? — Koizumi Aina clicked on Watanabe Toru's line several times, wanting to ask him this question.

The wind band practiced until ten o'clock in the evening.

Their originally tired bodies suddenly became active after the end of the game, and when they were about to go for a walk, they found that Karuizawa was dark everywhere.

"What the hell?! Ten o'clock is just the beginning of the day in Tokyo!"

"It appears. The whispers of the lonely ghosts wandering around Shinjuku in the middle of the night!"

"I'm not a ghost! And I just heard that you never go shopping so late!"

"I'm so envious of Hanada-senpai, Ikki, and Tamamo for being able to come and play early!"

"Ichiki-kun... eh? What happened? Was there a problem with the training?"

"I want to go back to Tokyo."

"Don't say discouraging words. The training camp hasn't officially started yet! Cheer up!"

Everyone returned to the dormitory with tired bodies but in a happy mood.

Take a shower, turn off the lights, whisper, go to sleep, and prepare for tomorrow's training.

August 17th, 7 a.m.

In the restaurant in Karuizawa, the wind band wearing school sportswear is very eye-catching.

Tourists were wondering which school had the money to allow its students to come to Karuizawa for training in August.

"I heard that the money for our accommodation this time was all paid by Watanabe-kun."

"How much does that cost?"

"Not only that, we also rent a concert hall."

"Why did you do this, Watanabe-kun? It's so beautiful, you know?"

"That guy thinks our wind band is a subordinate department of the human observation department!"

"Not bad."

"Yes, those are the three from the Human Observation Department."

Aona Koizumi, Akiko and Miyuki Miyazaki, who had gotten up early to accompany her, sat at a table alone to eat.

"Where did that Watanabe get so much money? From the Kujo family?" Akiko asked while eating salad.

"Miki Kujo doesn't seem like the type who would allow the boy to do this, but Kiyono Rin is a possibility," said Miyazaki Miyuki.

"Yeah, it does." Akiko agreed.

The three were chatting and enjoying their breakfast happily when a man walked over to the group of students.

Koizumi Aona looked over quickly.

The band was mostly made up of girls, and she was worried that someone would tease them.

The girl at the table being questioned pointed over here, and the man walked towards the three people.

The girls started talking to each other in whispers, the news spread quickly, and everyone looked over with giggles.

"Excuse me, are you Ms. Koizumi Aona?" the man asked.

"Yes, who are you?" Koizumi Aona stood up politely and asked puzzledly.

"Here are your flowers and letter. Please sign for them."

Koizumi Aina was stunned for a moment, then came to her senses and quickly said, "Okay!"

"Was it that boy who sent it again?" Akiko asked Miyazaki Miyuki in a low voice.

"No matter whether the money belongs to the boy or not, he was able to think of this...what do you think of him now?" Miyazaki Miyuki asked back.

"I've always thought he was good, and I have no objection, as long as Qingnai likes him."

After Koizumi Aona signed for it, she said thank you and sat down with a large bunch of flowers in her hands.

Some bold girls from the wind band gathered around.

"Teacher, who sent this?"

"I've only been in Karuizawa for one day, no, only half a day, and someone has already sent me flowers! I wish I could be as popular as Ms. Koizumi!"

"Don't gather here, go back and eat, and make good use of your time to train!" Koizumi Aonai put on her pretty oval face and showed the authority of a teacher.

“Yes—” The girls didn’t get an answer and responded weakly.

After they left, Akiko asked, "Is it that boy Watanabe?"

Koizumi Aona frowned. The flower was not a rose.

"Do you know what flower this is?" she asked.

"It looks like a kind of lily." Miyuki Miyazaki said uncertainly.

"Lily?" Koizumi Aona was stunned, then thought of something and quickly opened the letter.

Akiko and Miyuki Miyazaki were the first to stick their heads over.

Akiko read:

"Written to my beloved Ms. Aona from Tokyo:"

"It was a mistake, a time and space disorder"

"It's fate, it's destiny"

"It was another foggy day. I rode my white horse and picked mountain lilies for the one I loved."