B's-LOG/Outside Work the way back!

Outside Work the way back! was a character Q&A series that ran in B's-LOG magazine, based on Outside Work pairings.

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[1] Kasajizou refers to a Japanese folktale where a poor old man gives straw hats to some snow-covered jizou roadside statues, and is later repaid with a bag of unlimited rice works. In this context, it means that Tsuzuru's initial act of kindness was unexpectedly repaid manyfold.

[2] t. senpai-kouhai relations, meaning the hierarchy of upperclassmen over their underclassmen

[3] t. the school idol, but not in an Enstars way.

[4] t. ria-juu, someone who's satisfied with their IRL life.

[5] someone who spends a lot of money on games

[6] 純喫茶 - the original text reads “coffee shops which don’t serve alcohol”, but I rephrased the translation to make the text less awkward.

[7] Throwback to A3 Official Fanbook Party!!!! A3ders interview

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Q. When designing flyers for the MANKAI plays, do you ever consult with the playwright himself?
Kazunari	'Course I do! Whenever I put together a rough draft of the flyers, I like to start off by hearing out the writer's own image of the color scheme, the world scenery, and stuff like that.
Tsuzuru	Usually, I just try to convey my rough vision of things off the top of my head, and Miyoshi-san takes notes or comes up with a basic sketch from that. Honestly though, I'm fine with just leaving it all to him... I trust Miyoshi-san's design sense after all.
Kazunari	Hmm... I'm glad to hear that but, y'see. Stageplays don't get trailers like movies do, so ad flyers are kinda like the substitute for that, yeah?
Tsuzuru	Well, yeah.
Kazunari	So the whole purpose of the flyer is to convey the worlds of Tsuzurun's stories as faithfully and enticingly as possible on a single piece of paper, and it's my job to make sure that they do just that. It'd be a total shame if people got turned off from the play or whatever just because of my flyer design. And if someone watched the play and was like "that flyer was completely false advertising", that'd totally suck, right? So Tsuzurun's input is super super suuuper important, okay! Got it?
Tsuzuru	... Miyoshi-san, I never knew that you thought that you had such deep thoughts about the flyer design...
Kazunari	Ohoho, now you see me in a new light, don'tcha? Isn't your senpai such a ultra dope hella fly designer dude? It's okay, you can praise me if you want ♪
Tsuzuru	... You sounded kinda cool for a second, and then you just had to go and ruin it in the same breath.
Kazunari	Hey! Isn't it a bit mean to say I went and ruined it?
Tsuzuru	Okay, okay. You're hella fly, you're hella fly. Happy?
Kazunari	Tsuzurun, you don't sound like you mean it at all!

Q. The scene of your first meeting, when Tsuzuru-kun first helped out Kazunari-kun, leaves quite an impression. Did Kazunari-kun return the favor in any way afterwards?
Tsuzuru	Well, he did give me this huge pile of fancy band-aids and candy.
Kazunari	Yep yep! I secretly left them on Tsuzurun's desk for him to find ♪ Kasajizou style! ^[1]
Tsuzuru	Kasajizou style, huh... Your band-aid selection was so girly that I got teased for it! Geez, wouldn't it have been so much easier if you'd just handed them to me in person?
Kazunari	Eeh~ But where's the fun in that! If I'm giving you a gift anyways, then why not make it a surprise ♪ Oho, could it be that you got your hopes up, thinking maybe it's from the girl I like or something?
Tsuzuru	I, I did not!
Kazunari	Aww, I'm sorry~ I didn't mean to play with your pure romantic heart, Tsuzurun ♪
Tsuzuru	Don't wink at me with that fake-ass apology.
Kazunari	Those band-aids that I gave you in return, did you ever end up using them?
Tsuzuru	They were so overtly fancy that there's no way I ever could've used them. I don't remember how many you gave me, but I ended up stuffing them in my student handbook...
Kazunari	Really? But those were pretty pricey, you know~ They were designer band-aids and all.
Tsuzuru	What!? Designer band-aids are a thing...? Maybe I shouldn't have just left them in my desk drawer back home then...
Kazunari	Wait, you still have them, even after all this time? Why didn't you just give them to your little brothers?
Tsuzuru	Well, they were a gift after all. It didn't seem right to just give them away.
Kazunari	Woah, Tsuzurun, you're taking this way too seriously! But thank you for the thought ♪
Tsuzuru	... Whatever, it's nothing.

Q. So it seems that Tsuzuru-kun was popular as a little brother in Miyoshi-san's grade, but what did Tsuzuru-kun's grade think of Miyoshi-san? Any interesting stories about you two from graduation day?
Kazunari	I'm super duper curious about that! Tell me, what was my reputation like?
Tsuzuru	... I don't remember.
Kazunari	Whaat? Don't you even remember a little bit?
Tsuzuru	Well... Miyoshi-san never cared much about school status^[2] and he was easy to talk to, so there were lots of people who wanted to be his friend..
Kazunari	Go on, go on.
Tsuzuru	Girls would say that he was stylish and a nice guy, so I guess he was pretty popular too.
Kazunari	Ooh, I'm flattered~ Come on, anything else?
Tsuzuru	Well, uh.... Ah, when Miyoshi-san was about to graduate, I feel like there were lots of people who said things like, "It'll be lonely at school without Miyoshi-senpai".
Kazunari	Eh, could it be that I was actually... The school star?^[3]
Tsuzuru	Not at all.
Kazunari	Shot down so quickly!
Tsuzuru	He wasn't the school star or anything, but there was quite a crowd surrounding him after the graduation ceremony.
Kazunari	We were taking commemorative photos, exchanging contacts, giving gifts, things like that.
Tsuzuru	Come to think of it, the girls in my class made me write messages on the cards and scrapbooks and stuff that they were giving Miyoshi-san.
Kazunari	I remember, "Congratulations on graduating. Thanks for everything," right? It was such a super cliched graduation message~ It was actually so cliched that I laughed.
Tsuzuru	I tried to think of something to write, but in the end, I couldn't really come up with anything good.
Kazunari	Oh well, it captures your personality pretty well, so it's fine, yeah? But you gotta sign your name when writing messages to people, y'know.
Tsuzuru	Wait, I didn't sign? But you were still able to tell that the message was from me, even without the signature.
Tsuzuru	Well~ It's because Tsuzuru's handwriting is really plain, y'see~
Tsuzuru	I'm used to being called plain, but even my handwriting!?
Kazunari	Ahaha, I'm kidding. I couldn't tell who it was, so I asked the girl who gave the yearbook to me.
Tsuzuru	But really, looking back on our high school days like this, it's pretty amazing to think that I'm still chatting with Miyoshi-san even now.
Kazunari	Isn't it? I'm so glad that you remembered me even after graduation, Tsuzurun~ If not, then I never would have met the Director, or everyone at the company!
Tsuzuru	There's no way I'd forget someone with an impact like yours... Well, I'm glad to be working with you from here on out.
Kazunari	Mmhm, me too.

Q. Please tell us one thing that's different about each other at the dorms to at your company.
Chikage	With Chigasaki, it's everything. He's a different person from start to finish - no, beyond that, even.
Itaru	I won't deny that, but you're different too, senpai.
Chikage	I don't hide my love of spicy food at the company, though.
Itaru	That's your focus, huh. You're a normal person^[1] at the company, but a netizen at the dorms, right?
Chikage	I don't recall acting that fulfilled, and I'm not as openly hooked on the internet as you, either.
Itaru	You could stand to be more open at the theatre. You're quite the shrinking violet, aren't you.
Chikage	Shut up. You could stand to know a bit more shame.
Itaru	It's too late for me. Like, by the time I realised it, I'd already exposed a whole bunch of things.
Chikage	A "who cares" attitude, huh.
Itaru	Right. So as someone who's secretly socially awkward, why don't you actively show more of yourself, too?
Chikage	Who are you calling secretly socially awkward. Then, let's reply to say I'll be attending the dinner engagement with that manufacturer next month. I'll answer for you too.
Itaru	We were talking about within the troupe, though? That day there'll be information released about a new title, so if you could please excuse me......
Chikage	Just joking. That dinner didn't fit with the other party's schedule so it's been postponed.
Itaru	......I see. Sigh, I kind of understand how Tsuzuru feels. It's tough dealing with a troublesome adult.
Chikage	So be kinder to Tsuzuru from now on, okay?
Itaru	Coming from you? Tsuzuru aside, you could be kinder to me, too?
Chikage	You mean like helping you with the documents that are still blank even though your meeting is the day after tomorrow?
Itaru	Right, like that. ......Say, why do you know. That really is scary.
Chikage	You were saying, "I haven't finished the documents but well, I'll make do somehow", while gaming. Could it be you didn't realise you were talking to yourself?
Itaru	Yeah yeah, nice lie. Unlike Sakuya, I won't be fooled.
Chikage	............
Itaru	......Seriously.
Chikage	Unfortunately, yes.
Itaru	Here they are, the cons of having a twin room.
Chikage	GG.
Itaru	Were you just imitating me?
Chikage	It was close, right?
Itaru	......It was not...is what I'd like to say, and I'm even more pissed that I can't.
Chikage	Well, if you really are in trouble it's not like I won't help. Between the two of us, we'd easily finish in a day, right?
Itaru	You're bound to say something like, "Well, I'll be taking the appropriate compensation, though?".
Chikage	Were you just imitating me?
Itaru	It was close, right? I even got your mannerisms.
Chikage	I think you're a more charming junior at the company, though.
Itaru	I think you're a kinder senior at the company too.
Chikage	This is exactly the kind of way we're different at the company.
Itaru	That's right.

Q. I'm sure you're busy with work, but what sort of pace do you do your laundry at? Are you the type to send your collared shirts to the cleaners? Or do you wash and iron them yourself?
Itaru	I'm the type to send my collared shirts to the cleaners. You too, right, senpai?
Chikage	Hold on a minute. Are you intending to ignore the question about how often you do your laundry?
Itaru	If you'd like to answer, you go head. I'm not particularly ー.
Chikage	Basically every day, for me. Incidentally, Chigasaki usually leaves it to build up for a week.
Itaru	You didn't have to answer for me too.
Chikage	My tongue slipped.
Itaru	Shameless......
Chikage	If I didn't get fed up and take your share too, how long would you leave it?
Itaru	In terms of the Spring Troupe, you're in the position of my father, right? I figure you might want to look after your son, so I give in and let it build up until you take it.
Chikage	I see. In that case, I've been overprotective as a parent, and from now on I'll wait until you take your laundry out of your own accord.
Itaru	......It develops like this, huh. I dug my own grave. Got it. I too shall become independent.
Chikage	As Chigasaki said, the two of us both send our collared shirts to the cleaners. It's troublesome to iron them.
Itaru	Buy time and service with money.
Chikage	Right. ......Is that something to be said by a gamer?
Itaru	It is. There are lots of things to gain from the time and effort you spend on a game. It's different again from washing and ironing shirts. Though I suppose you wouldn't understand.
Chikage	Time is finite. Every moment counts.
Itaru	That way of thinking might make you slightly suited to being a big whale^[2]. Shall I introduce you to games that'd fit you?
Chikage	I'll pass. I don't want to turn into you.

Q. If you could use magic for a day, what would you do?
Itaru	I would, as expected, ー
Chikage	We'll omit the rest.
Itaru	Hold on. I still haven't even said anything.
Chikage	You're just going to say you want to go into a game world or something.
Itaru	How simplistic. Your understanding of me is too shallow. The correct answer was, "I'd want to become Lancelot and go on a journey with Gwen".
Chikage	It's the same thing.
Itaru	You can't just go into a game world. There's no point being a mob character. Becoming Lancelot and going on a journey with Gwen is important.
Chikage	Nerd......In the first place, we're already bringing that to life in the play this time.
Itaru	That's that; this is this. Ah, incidentally 'KniRoun' is an abbreviation for the RPG series "Knights of Round".
Chikage	I think there are a lot of people who know, but the original source for the Spring Troupe's fifth play is this game. It was a lot of work meeting this genuine KniRoun enthusiast's orders.
Itaru	Thanks to them, your Gawain became the ideal Gawain. I appreciate your efforts in preparing for the role.
Chikage	As long as I met our supreme leader's expectations.
Itaru	Well. Let's work hard until the final performance.
Chikage	Yes. You take care to save some strength for the final performance too. No staying up late, and do moderate exercise.
Itaru	Yeah, yeah. Way to be overprotective. ......Ahh, that's right. We hadn't heard your answer, Chikage-san. If you could use magic for a day, what would you want to do?
Chikage	Of course, the legendary spice ー.
Itaru	We'll omit the rest.
Chikage	I thought you'd say so.

Q. What made the two of you start going to cafés together?
Tsumugi	Banri-kun and I started getting into café’s together when we happened to run into each other. We would occasionally see each other in the same shop, but we never had anything to really talk about other than what we could as troupe leaders.
Banri	We used to be conscious of each other but we wouldn’t really make a conversation despite that. Unexpectedly, there were times when I was being guided to my seat, Tsumugi-san’s would be just next to mine.
Tsumugi	I had thought that it was to be expected that even though we were sitting right next to each other, the pretense was almost as if we didn’t know each other… So I started up a conversation: “This café is nice, isn’t it?”
Banri	It was like that, yeah. From then on, we would start talking to each other whenever we met in the same café, and before we realized it, we had started going to the shops together. Pretty nostalgic.
Tsumugi	Fufu, ever since we started talking in that first shop at that time, the awkwardness between us became much less. Even though we could’ve been talking within the dorms instead.
Banri	Yeah, that might’ve become the case. When you’re around other people outside the dorms, there’s this sense of acquaintanceship that forms, I’d say.
Tsumugi	If I hadn’t joined the same troupe, we might’ve not even met. Banri-kun always had this image as someone who would go to arcades or karaokes, so I never would’ve figured you’d be someone that one could meet in a classic coffeeshop^[1].
Banri	The coffee in that shop has no faults, you know. The snack menu is delicious too.
Tsumugi	I do like their egg sandwiches from there.
Banri	No way, if it’s that shop, it should be their croquette sandwich.
Tsumugi	I figured egg sandwiches would be a good pair to the coffee, though...
Banri	A hot blend with a spoonful of sugar paired with croquette sandwiches is a sure winner. I haven’t been there recently, so how about we drop by today?
Tsumugi	Now that you mention it, they had to take a break from business because they were remodeling, so we couldn’t go then. If that’s the case, why don’t we go and try out each other’s snack recommendations? We might have to exchange a piece each though.
Banri	Just talking about it makes me hungry...
Tsumugi	… Fufu, you sort of sound like Juza-kun.
Banri	Did you say something unnecessary just now?
Tsumugi	I was just saying it’s nice to be young, that’s all.
Q. During your café trips, what do you talk about? Probably about plays right? Or do you perhaps talk about other things?
Banri	We do talk about each other’s likes, don’t we. The fact that our hobbies don’t line up at all hasn’t changed, but on the contrary, that’s what makes it interesting.
Tsumugi	But for my case, it’s thanks to Banri-kun that I had started to want to check out secondhand shops.
Banri	Rather than gaining interest in secondhand shops, aren’t you just interested in the shop’s attraction dog?
Tsumugi	Banri-kun is a regular to this one secondhand shop where they have a dog that attracts customers, you see. When he showed me a photo from before, it was almost a look-alike to our own family dog.
Banri	Your dog’s name is Zabi, right? If you wanna go then I wouldn’t mind tagging you along, but… I can’t imagine that American Comic themed apparel would be something Tsumugi-san would wear.
Tsumugi	Eh, does it really not suit me?
Banri	That’s not what I mean, but…That’s what’s bothering you?
Tsumugi	We can’t really know unless can’t try.
Banri	It’s rare for you to have such self-confidence over this… Sure, though, we can head over and check it out next time. Except for the American Comic section.
Tsumugi	Alright.
Banri	And what else… As expected, we talk a lot about acting too.
Tsumugi	But, recently I feel that I’ve been asking Banri-kun about his college life lately.
Banri	Ahh, that’s true. Since Tsumugi-san was also into theatre back in college, we talk about each other’s stories, and you had lots to tell from your prime days, right?
Tsumugi	It’s made me sort of nostalgic, so I often end up asking “How was school today?”, and our talks sometimes have me giving advice as well.
Banri	Rather than a good listener, Tsumugi-san’s good at letting people talk. When you start talking to him, it just naturally comes out of you.
Tsumugi	Since we have similar experiences of becoming enthusiastic about theatre in your college days, I want to at least give you a hand. You didn’t ask for much advice when you were moving up to university.
Banri	Ahh… Speaking of. About moving up and all, other than my own family, Director-chan, and Kazunari, I never brought the topic up to anyone else. Except for you. You already realized it before I said anything.
Tsumugi	You looked like you were troubled over something, and I guessed it based on the timing that it’d be confronting about your future plans. You had asked me just once, “How do you feel about me getting into a university with an acting course”, right?
Banri	Yeah, right, I was the most troubled about my course of action at that time… When I think about it, this too fits into your “good at letting people talk” ability of yours— like my feelings practically outed itself with just a few words from you.
Tsumugi	And do you remember what I answered to you then?
Banri	… “I'm happy to hear that.”
Tsumugi	That’s right. That’s why, whenever Banri-kun tells me about your college, and seeing you learn about theatre frantically, it makes me feel glad.
Banri	Talking about one’s favorite plays in one’s favorite café’s… It’s like Tsumugi-san’s the one who dragged me into this.
Tsumugi	Fufu, isn’t that fine? You also love those things, don’t you?
Banri	Well… You’re right about that.
Tsumugi	In the end, a lot of our chats really are about acting, aren’t they?
Banri	Sure are.
Q. Lastly, during a photoshoot, we had heard about the time when Tsumugi-kun had gotten anxious, so Banri-kun had brewed some coffee for you.^[2] But how have you been faring in the recent filming?
Tsumugi	I’ve gotten considerably less nervous than before, but...
Banri	Brewing coffee for two people has become a routine, now.
Tsumugi	Ahaha. Perhaps it’s thanks to Banri-kun always giving me coffee and drinking it together with me that my heart is able to calm down.
Banri	That’s just a cafe bud’s skill, after all.
Tsumugi	Ah, but how about I pour coffee for us some time instead? I’m always the one who’s just on the receiving end.
Banri	Coffee poured by Tsumugi-san, huh….
Tsumugi	Eh, what’s with that complex look on your face? I may not be able to do latte art like Banri-kun does, but, even if it’s just making something like instant coffee then I can do it, too.
Banri	Even just brewing instant coffee makes it different already. You’d make it surprisingly crude, too, Tsumugi-san. You’re definitely the type to pour in too much powder that it’ll come out too strong.
Tsumugi	...I, I guess you have a point.
Banri	It’s a cafe bud’s skill.
Tsumugi	Huh, that too?
Banri	Based on your mannerisms whether in the dorm or at the shops, one can understand that. Anyway, just keep leaving the coffee brewing to me.
Tsumugi	In that case, I’ll gladly depend on you on that, then. Can’t pass up being able to drink something delicious, after all.
Banri	Anyway, I’m seriously becoming starved now… Because of all that, I want to drink some coffee now.
Tsumugi	You said it. I’ll go request for egg sandwiches and croquette sandwiches—
Banri	And a cupful of the usual blend. Ah, and just one spoonful of sugar. Any more is strictly prohibited.
Tsumugi	Alright, alright.

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