| Juza | .... |
| Banri | .... |
| Student A | That was close~, I was almost late because I got the time wrong. |
| Student B | A workshop first thing in the morning is rough. |
| Student A | I don’t know if my voice is in shape. |
| Instructor | Is everyone here? |
| I’m your instructor, Makino. A bunch of you have already been to this workshop, so you must know me. |
| This time, we have one guy visiting from outside the school—. |
| Juza | Yeah. |
| Makino | So it’s you. |
| Juza | Please take care of me. |
| Makino | You’re from Settsu’s troupe, right—huh, where’s Settsu? |
| Banri | He~re. |
| Makino | —Why are you guys standing so far apart? |
| Banri | What’s the point in two huge guys sticking close together? Gross. |
| Makino | Well, whatever. Let’s begin. |
| Juza | Yes! |
| |
| Makino | That’s all for today. Our next meeting is in one week. |
| —Oh, hey, you. |
| Juza | ? |
| Makino | Stay back for a bit. |
| Juza | Yeah. |
| Makino | I’m not giving him detention or anything, so don’t worry. |
| Banri | ...What are you plotting? |
| Makino | You guys aren’t going to walk home together holding hands, right? Now you leave. |
| Banri | Tch... I’m heading back first. |
| Juza | Yeah. |
| Makino | Now, what was your name—Hyodo Juza? |
| Juza | Yeah. |
| Makino | So I hear you’re from Settsu’s troupe, but.... You guys are miraculously complete opposites as actors. |
| How was the workshop today? |
| Juza | ...I feel like it reminded me how unskilled I am. |
| Makino | Guys with skill are better at playing a range of different roles, after all—like Settsu. |
| Juza | ...I felt really frustrated. |
| Makino | Settsu has the potential of what we call a chameleon-type actor, after all. You don’t see many first years with that many clever tricks. |
| No matter what role you give him, he’ll grasp a hint of how to express that character; he knows how to differentiate his roles. |
| But the warmth of his heart doesn’t come along with that change—that’s his weakness. He prepares the exterior without the feelings behind it. |
| Juza | The warmth of the heart.... |
| Makino | Why did you start acting? |
| Juza | .... |
| Ever since I was young, people avoided me because of my looks. I always wanted to become someone else. |
| I can become another person when I’m acting on the stage—for me, that was my last hope. |
| Makino | ...That’s running away from yourself. |
| Not saying that that’s a bad thing, but let me make one thing clear. |
| You’ll probably never overtake Settsu when it comes to acting techniques. That’s just how different you are in terms of natural talent. |
| Juza | ——. |
| Makino | But that doesn’t mean you can’t become a “better actor” than him. |
| Spend some time thinking about what I mean. See you next time. |
| Juza | ...Yeah. |
| .... |
