| Izumi | (Is this set made of cardboard...? It reminds me of a school play, but I wonder if it’s a directional choice.) |
| New Troupe Member | Um, my starting position is... |
| Izumi | (Ah, here he is.) |
| New Troupe Member | .... |
| Izumi | (He said it was his first performance—I wonder if he’s nervous. His movements are stiff.) |
| New Troupe Member | Hey, I’m Kadota Romeo! First year in high school! I have a one-sided crush on my classmate! |
| Ah, I wonder, why won’t she love me back—. |
| Even though I love her so much! |
| Izumi | (Uhhh... Well, his acting is no good, but he must be new. What are the other members like—.) |
| New Troupe Member | Oh no! It’s so late! I need to hurry to school! |
| Izumi | (Wait, don’t tell me this boy’s going to keep acting all alone!?) |
| ??? | Oi, wait up, Romeo. |
| Izumi | (Finally, another actor...) |
| Parrot | You’re going to school, right? Take me with you. |
| Izumi | (A parrot!?) |
| (What to do... It’s revolutionary in one sense, but I have no idea how this is supposed to be entertaining.) |
| Furuichi | Sigh... |
| Izumi | (Not to be like him, but I feel like sighing too.) |
| New Troupe Member | All right! I’m going to meet her! |
| Izumi | (He only has two audience members, but he’s not giving up at all. Seems like he’s getting less nervous as time goes by, too.) |
| (He’s enthusiastic and seems to have so much fun standing on stage.) |
| |
| New Troupe Member | Thank you very much! |
| Izumi | (Ah, so that was the end.) |
| |
| Furuichi | What an awful script. |
| Izumi | Uh, umm.... |
| (But that boy looks happy.) |
| (I felt the same way the first time I stood on stage.) |
| (I was so caught up in having fun that before I knew it the performance would be over.) |
| (He has so much enthusiasm—it’s a waste. I want to give him the chance to put on a better performance on a better stage.) |
| Furuichi | All right, time to crush this place. |
| Izumi | Eh!? After watching that earnest performance!? What are you, a demon!? |
| Furuichi | Earnest? |
| Izumi | Yes. He still needs lots of work, but his feelings came across. |
| Furuichi | If you want to see an earnest performance, go watch some school play. |
| What is this, a kid’s recital? A place to show off how hard you’ve worked? |
| It’s a place where professionals entertain their guests for money. |
| Izumi | That’s true, but if he works hard enough, I’m sure—... |
| Furuichi | Nothing in this world can be solved just through hard work. |
| Izumi | ——. |
| |
| Producer | Hard work isn’t going to help you. Just give up. You have no talent for acting. |
| |
| Furuichi | There’s no chance that this troupe will survive on Veludo Way. You know that. |
| Izumi | Veludo Way’s theaters are on a high level, and this troupe’s level is hopelessly low, but—. |
| Furuichi | Then that’s the end of this conversation. I’m crushing this troupe. |
| New Troupe Member | Eh? Is this troupe going to disappear...? |
| Izumi | Ah... |
| New Troupe Member | I’m sorry. I just overheard your conversation.... I only joined this troupe yesterday! |
| My acting still sucks, but I love the stage, so, please, don’t destroy this place! |
| Furuichi | I refuse. |
| New Troupe Member | Please! |
| Izumi | Even though he’s begging so hard!? |
| Furuichi | I’ve already decided to crush this troupe. |
| Curly-haired Man | I won’t let you—! |
| New Troupe Member | Manager... |
| Izumi | (Eh, this curly haired man is the manager!?) |
| Manager | I have to protect this troupe no matter what! |
| Furuichi | Matsukawa. I gave you so many chances. But you were the one who ruined all of them. There’s no room for negotiation anymore. |
| Manager | But, but, just maybe we’ll become as lively as we were before—. |
| Furuichi | Impossible. |
| Izumi | Was this place lively once? |
| Manager | It was! Back when Yukio-san was around, we always had a full audience, and there were lines for day-of tickets sales—. |
| Izumi | Yukio? By Yukio do you mean... Tachibana Yukio!? |
| Manager | Do you know him? |
| Izumi | H-he’s my father... |
| Manager | So you’re Yukio-san’s... daughter!? |
| Izumi | Actually, I came here today to meet the person who wrote this letter. |
| Manager | I wrote that letter! |
| Izumi | So you’re Matsukawa Isuke-san....? |
| Manager | Yes. Could Yukio-san not make it today? |
| Izumi | My father has been missing and out of contact for eight years. He hasn’t even come home... |
| Manager | Missing... I see. |
| Izumi | Do you know anything about my father? |
| Manager | He suddenly disappeared one day, and never showed his face around here again; we haven’t been able to contact him since. |
| Izumi | Oh no... |
| Manager | I thought, maybe if I contact his home... |
| Furuichi | So you tried to lean on him again. Looks like you ran out of luck. This is the end. |
| Izumi | Hey, there’s no need to be so cruel! There might be another solution. |
| Manager | Th-that’s right! Even if Yukio-san isn’t around, someone else might just help us out! |
| Izumi | (Why is he glancing at me as he speaks?) |
| Furuichi | You say that so easily because you don’t know a thing about this troupe. |
| Izumi | What do you mean? |
| Furuichi | This theater is—as impertinent as it sounds—owned by and reserved for this troupe exclusively. |
| Most troupes don’t own their own theaters—they borrow small theaters for plays and put on performances there—but this troupe is different. |
| It costs a huge sum of money just to maintain this troupe because it owns its own theater and dorm. |
| Eight years ago, when this troupe was at its peak, four theater units—Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter—one per season, put on a performance every month in rotation. That was how they made a profit. |
| This troupe can’t sustain itself unless it has four units that continuously put on performances every month. |
| Izumi | (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter—four theater units? Now that he mentions it, I think I heard something like that from father when I was little...) |
| Furuichi | But now, the only troupe member aside from this useless manager is this brat who joined just yesterday. |
| It’s literally impossible with only one actor. |
| Manager | Ah... I see. |
| Furuichi | Don’t “I see” me. You’re the manager. You’re supposed to know this better than anyone else. |
| Izumi | You certainly know a lot about this troupe. |
| Furuichi | —Of course I’d research the conditions surrounding my debtor. |
| Manager | Oh, that’s right! We’ve got one more troupe member—. |
| Kamekichi | Leave it to Kamekichi! |
| Furuichi | Avian life doesn’t count. |
| Manager | Aw man, I guess that’s no surprise... |
| Furuichi | I can’t give you any more time. Sakoda! |
| Sakoda | You called, aniki!? |
| Furuichi | Do it. |
| Sakoda | Aye aye, sir! |
| Manager | Please, don’t be so heartless—! |
| New Troupe Member | Please don’t destroy this place! Please! |
| Izumi | (At this rate, this troupe is going to be destroyed. Father’s troupe....) |
| Ah, ahh! That’s right! I remember now! |
| Furuichi | The hell? |
| Izumi | M-my father actually told me to take care of this troupe in the event that something happened. |
| Manager | Eh!? Really!? |
| Izumi | (It’s a lie, but. Now that I’ve said it I need to see it through.) |
| S-see! Matsukawa-san, you’re the manager, you must’ve heard something!? |
| Manager | Eh!? Nope, nothing at all. |
| Izumi | You did hear something, right!? |
| (Work with me here!) |
| Manager | N-now that you mention it, I might’ve heard something... maybe not...? |
| Izumi | Basically, we need enough troupe members to form four units. Right, yakuza-san? |
| Furuichi | Well, yeah. |
| Izumi | Then it’s no problem—! Because I’ll bring in new troupe members—! |
| Manager | Really!? |
| Furuichi | So. How many members are you going to bring in, and when will they be here? Don’t tell me they’re all going to be amateurs like that one over there. |
| Izumi | Um... one, no, two! It’ll be fine. My father left me with connections and the bible of theater, after all! |
| Manager | Yay! Now the troupe will be saved! |
| Izumi | (I don’t know if he’ll believe a bluff like this, but...) |
| Furuichi | ...By sunset. |
| Izumi | Eh? |
| Furuichi | I’ll wait till sunset today. Bring me those new troupe members by then. |
| Izumi | You’re really going to wait...? |
| Furuichi | I won’t accept amateurs who are just here to make up the numbers. |
| Manager | No worries! Now that Yukio-san’s daughter is here, we have the strength of a hundred people! |
| Izumi | (It’s incredible how this person believes in me despite having no reason whatsoever....) |
| Furuichi | If you can’t, the sign will come down immediately. |
| Izumi | I-I understand! You two, let’s go. |
| Manager | Aye aye, sir! |
| New Troupe Member | Yes! |
| Furuichi | ...Her acting sure sucked. What a huge difference from Yukio-san. |
| Sakoda | Aniki, what should I do about the sign? |
| Furuichi | You heard me. Wait till sunset. |
| Sakoda | Aye aye, sir! |
