I really hate when I can't get ideas out of my head.

"Alright everyone, let's go out on a high note tonight!"

The air is tense with anxiousness and excitement from the booth. Sound engineers are double checking that all of the speakers are good and that the microphones are all adjusted. Lighting staff are seeing to all of the spotlights and effects for the concert. The camera crew explodes into a frenzy, trying to decide what shots to use as this broadcast goes out to the world of Gameindustri.

I'm handed my usual grey headset that I slip on as I walk up to the glass pane that separates us from the concert venue. Down below, hundreds of thousands of fans are screaming, chanting Noire's name as they wave their glowsticks around. An endless sea of silver and blue, all pulsating, moving, shaking to the looping piano arrangement of Noire's first single, a fitting ode to the end of this journey.

Her fans' united voices cause the room to feel like it's shaking just a bit. This'll be the last time they see this, after all, a once in a lifetime exclusive event.

"Sound team is all set!"

"Camera team is reporting ready!"

"Lights are ready, sir!"

"Effects team, standing by!"

"Thanks." I say before pushing on the unmute button. "You're all set from up here, Noire."

"Got it."

"Nervous?" I ask, digging around the pockets of my navy blue sports jacket, looking for a piece of gum.

"Do you want to be the one down here?"

"Count me out. Few minutes until eight o'clock."

"I know, I'm counting down every second."

"You'll do well. This isn't anything major for you, after all. Just a walk in the park. Hey, I'll put you on speaker as well, so everyone in the booth can hear you." I then gesture to someone on the sound staff, who pushes a few buttons. "Alright, you're on air with everyone in the booth."

"Okay. Hey everyone, thanks for making it!"

"No problem, our little Spring Sunrise!" They call back with her "idol title" of sorts, getting a few laughs. "Oh, hey boss!"

I turn to face some of the sound crew, who have been with us since the start of all this. "What is it?"

"Can you do the whole pose and speech thing that you did at the first concert again?"

"You gotta be kidding me." I say, facepalming. "You guys still remember that?"

"Wait, he gave a pose and speech? When was this?!" Noire's voice calls over the intercom. I feel like this was a mistake, now.

"Oh, it was during the first concert!"

"Look, there were what, four hundred people there, and not everyone was convinced you were going to make it big, Noire! I had to give a speech to inspire people to try their best!" I grumble, shaking my head. "I can't believe you guys would bring it up now!"

"I mean, it's her last concert, right? Let's end it the way we started."

"No. Absolutely not."

"Hmmm, I don't think I can get on stage if I don't hear it. And I won't be able to get up on stage if someone isn't recording it with their phone…"

"Noiiiire!"

A hearty and healthy laugh is had at my expense, loosening up the very tense atmosphere up here in the booth.

"Don't worry, Lady Noire, we got it handled! Phones out, everyone! Come on, boss!"

"I hate you people sometimes, you know that?" I say, putting my left hand on my hip.

"Come on, the speech, the pose!"

I sigh, stepping into the center of the booth. With that, despite how silly I look, I throw my right fist into the air and hold my left fist just above my chest.

"Alright everyone, listen up! I don't know how it's going to turn out today, but I know it's riding on all of your shoulders! They might give us the cold shoulder, but if we really put our minds to it, our little Spring Sunrise's going to herald a nice daybreak to warm up their hearts! But I need you all doing your part. Miracles don't come around just by wishing, they come around because everyone's putting their best foot forward! I'm not asking you to change your lives, but what I am asking is for your best, just for all of ten minutes, so we can make a difference in someone's life today. Who's with me?!"

I pause, after that, before going back to my usual relaxed pose with my hands in the pockets of my tan khakis as cheers-or-jeers erupt alongside applause and fake tearing up reactions. It wasn't a particularly moving speech, but back then it was what they needed to hear.

"I hate you people. You're all fired after this."

Though, I can't get rid of the smile on my face despite all the hoop-and-hollering around the booth.

"You seriously said that during my first concert?"

"That wasn't all of it, but that's all I can remember. Besides, I was trying to be inspirational, okay?" I pause, hearing Noire giggling over the mic. "Alright, everyone shut up, we got a concert to put on in five. Thank you, good night, no one talk to me until we're done, and someone get me a cold beer."

The tension all fades away after that, as we're now all relaxed. The first and last concert, huh? It's been a long road.

The seconds go by, each one more thunderous than the last. All of it, building up to the first notes of Noire's retirement concert.

"Alright everyone, look alive! Here we go!"

The music, the lights, the cameras all swell up, preparing for one final spectacle. The chants of "NO-IRE! NO-IRE! NO-IRE!" intensify with every passing moment as everyone realizes that the lights moving means the shows is about to start. The piano fades away, becoming replaced with the electric guitar and drums everyone's familiar with. On the stage, the lights turn cold with snowflake patterns, with the effects team raining down an artificial snow for Noire to melt away with her presence.

I glance down at my left hand, which fizzles and sparkles for just a second, turning translucent every now and then before solidifying. Just a little longer, please. Goddesses, ancient CPUs, God himself, whoever is listening—for a little while, please don't take this away from me, let me see it through to the end. After all...

"Don't worry, I will get there soon enough—"

...I'll be going back, soon enough. With nothing more than my memories of you...

Memory 1: A Chance Encounter

"You work fast."

"Well, under your sister's watchful eye, I don't have much of a choice." I say, neatly putting another packet of papers on top of the stack on my left. "There's a lot for you to sign off on."

"...it's been a day. You were just summoned here."

"This is my fastest ticket home, so I thought I'd put in a bit of effort."

"Geez, do you not like it here or something? I get that you're new to Lastation, but I've never seen someone so eager to get out. You were the one who picked me, you know?"

"Well, it's as you said. You summoned me from another world, to which I am taking it surprisingly well. Regardless, I have no idea what the passage of time is in relation to here. In fact, I could wake up tomorrow here and be unknowingly marked as legally dead back home if say, three weeks passed. I'd like to minimize the chances of that."

"That's… true. But you should have a little more faith. I, Noire, the goddess of Lastation, guarantee that to you, Takeo."

"If your sister, Uni, could have a little more faith in me, that'd be appreciated as well." I say, still not looking up from the next form, which is a draft of a marketing budget.

"It didn't help you told her you aren't actually an idol producer."

"It would be less harmful than being outed as a liar later." I say, circling several numbers and underlying others. "But like I said to her as well, I might not be an idol producer by trade, but I was studying marketing before I was yanked off. Besides, for you most of this is going to just be scheduling." I pause, lifting my right hand that's holding a black pen and spinning it around. "Since you're the goddess of this land, it's not like it's hard for you to make a splash."

"I'd be a lot more confident if you'd at least say that to my face."

"I'm busy."

"Just don't forget what your job is." She says with a bit of a pointed tone.

"I know, it's to make you a star. Don't worry, if that's my ticket back home, I'll give it everything I have."

They, the four goddesses which includes Noire, apparently pooled all of their "Shares", a measure of people's belief in them, and summoned me to help produce them into idols, or at least one of them into an idol, as all of their shares are currently being sucked away by some idol group called MOB48. It's possible to send me back, but the best way to do that safely and surely is to get them their shares back so they can perform the same thing but in reverse. What a time to be alive.

I originally chose her since I felt she was the most easily marketable of the bunch, being able to appeal to a wide variety of people. Although, she is somewhat prickly and doubly so for her sister. I get the feeling they're "tolerating" me for now, but one misstep and I'll be out the door.

"Although, can you clarify something with your sister?"

"She has a name." Noire says back rather pointedly.

"Then, can you clarify something with Uni?" I say, not missing a beat as I continue to read over some forms.

I hear some ruffling cloth, likely her crossing her arms. "I don't know what you'd like to clarify, but sure?"

"Can you take back when you told her you felt a special bond with me?"

"Why…?"

"Well, you know how it is. Guy summoned to a new world, girl feels a special bond with him, have you read that kind of genre before? You know how it turns out."

"How it tur…" I hear her trail off, likely putting the pieces together in her mind. I brace myself for the inevitable screech. "It won't be like that, it absolutely won't!"

"Then, I think the best idea is for you to clarify that with your sister." I say, clicking my pen twice. "She seems very protective of you and while I think we can all work together, I'd rather not be under her watchful eye. Or at least, in the context of 'this guy might be trying to hit on my sister'. I pity your boyfriend, by the way, and so it serves a double purpose since I'd rather not deal with the fallout of him getting the wrong idea."

"I…!" Her voice starts off strong, but sputters after getting the first word in. "Y-yeah, well, you don't need to pity or worry about um… anyone."

...oh.

I quietly put down my pen and get out of my chair, facing Noire. She clearly hears the creaking of the floorboards, looking up at me. I give a small, respectful bow.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to bring up such a heavy topic like that. I'll try to tread a little more carefully, but I assume that someone like you would no doubt have a significant other. It's a hollow apology, but you sounded legitimately hurt after such a remark. If there is anything I can do if that apology isn't enough, please inform me straight away."

"You… got out of your chair."

I sit back down, adjusting the navy blue sports jacket I have on. "Well, when apologizing like that, I think it wouldn't be as right if I stayed seated. That, and when apologizing, I think it's important to say it to a person's face. Besides, I plan to sleep on the bed, of course I was going to get out of my chair."

"You know what I meant!"

"Anyways, it would be appreciated if you could clear the air with Uni. I doubt she'll believe it coming from me, but if you're the one who tells her you didn't mean anything by it, I'm sure she'll believe you." I say, getting back to work, deciding to not mention anything about why I thought she already had someone.

"Right… well, make sure you get to sleep tomorrow. Oh, and I'm planning on announcing that I'm becoming an idol tomorrow as well on my weekly Noirestation appearance."

Noirestation…? Sounds like some kind of TV program, I assume.

"What? Hold on a second." I say, turning around in my chair to face her. "Do you even have a song ready? A recording studio and set up? The background music to go with it?"

"We have to get the word out there, right?" She asks, putting her right hand on her hip.

"There's no point if you're not ready! We'd have a better time if we can say something like, 'My first single will be released in two weeks', as we can begin something like a debut countdown. We can then time and schedule interviews to build hype for your song's drop. If we just announce 'Hello, I'm becoming an idol, too', it'll go nowhere and it'll be yesterday's news the next day without anything to look forward to."

"But the others—"

"May get the edge in, sure. It's highly likely that they're going to announce something similar to get ahead of the curve, as based on your conversation with them when I was brought here, while you're working together, you're also not."

"You're taking this well for someone who was summoned to another world."

"Frankly, with how many books there are in that kind of genre, eventually one was going to turn out to be true. That, and either I really have been summoned to another world, or this is all a fever dream of which I will have no recollection of when I wake up." I say with a shrug. "Therefore, if you would like to announce your idolship tomorrow, I'd recommend putting a definite date of release. Two weeks at a maximum, as if we wait a month people will put it off and won't care as much, but two weeks also gives enough time for the word to spread."

She narrows her eyes at me. "Are you sure?"

"Have I lied yet?"

"Not yet." She says, though the air of suspicion has yet to clear. "You have a lot of nerve, pushing around like this."

"You said to make you a star, not treat you like a goddess." I say, looking her right in the eyes. "I'm certain enough of my capabilities that I can do both, but if you insist on making me your producer, it will help if you listen to me. Of course, I'll listen to your input, but we both have our own specialties. When it comes to marketing, branding, and publicity, it would be great if you'd let me have the upper hand. I'm willing to give you full control otherwise, and besides, nothing I do will be done without you signing off on it."

"That's… ha… fine." She says, nodding. "I have some lyrics ready. Do you think we can secure a recording and release?"

"Do you have the score you'd like? Or are you going to be relying mostly on synthetic instruments?"

"I'll… have to think about that."

"That would be a 'no'." I put the clicker on the pen on my chin, an idea coming to mind. "Noire, I think I have an idea."

"What is it?"

"If you'd like to talk about being an idol, I'd like for you to frame it in a hypothetical. Talk about how idols have been gaining a lot of traction lately, and how it's made even you think about becoming one. Of course, you know it's hard work, but you think you're capable of handling your work as the leader of this nation while also singing and holding concerts. It'll be useful to gauge interest in your idol debut. There'd be no point to actually talking about you releasing a single if no one's going to care. That should drum up some hype, but buy us some time to secure a score, get our musicians, a recording done, and so forth. Is that an acceptable compromise?"

"Huh? Well… I guess it works."

"I know you'd like to get ahead of everyone, but this is us losing a battle to win the war. As you mentioned that these appearances are weekly, it means we can save the big reveal for next week, and drop news of your upcoming single if we've laid enough groundwork."

"I'm trusting you on this one."

"Please do."

She nods as she leaves, stopping at the doorway. "You're just a bit frightening, you know? Most people wouldn't be so ready to go like this."

"Well, like I said, I'd like to go home."

"Right… and um… sorry if I took you away from anyone. I didn't think about that."

"It's fine. It's not like there's anyone waiting for me, anyways." I say bluntly, trying to give off the image that I'm not hurt. I'm not actually… hurt, anyways. That, and it's a true statement, what I said to her.

"O-oh, I see."

"You opened up about it earlier, so I thought I'd do you the same courtesy. Besides, open communication is best for cooperation. I won't go behind your back, don't worry."

I see her only nod back. "I trust you can figure out everything in the room, right?"

"Yes. What time is your appearance, by the way? I'd like to watch it myself, if I can. If it's going to be regular, that plays right into our hands, so I'd like to see the format of the show so we can maximize its potential once we get your idol career rolling."

"Right. Well, I'll be on at ten in the morning, so make sure you're up by then."

"Not a problem. I'll prepare some notes for you to look over tomorrow morning as well."

"So, Noire, Noire, tell us. With MOB48's wave of influence, what are you planning on doing about it? Are you planning on becoming an idol yourself?"

All she has to do is not mess this one up.

"Hmmm… well, it is a lot of work already keeping everything up and running, but I've thought about it."

"Only thought about it? My, my, I thought you'd have already gotten a headstart."

"Oh, but I have."

Goddammit.

I put down the mug of coffee as I continue watching. It seems to be a regular talking host show program where Noire just sits on the hot seat and talks about things for an hour. The first ten minutes was reserved for actual news she'd like to talk to people directly about, but everything afterwards feels more like a 'let's just chat' session.

"Ooooooh! Can you share any exclusive details?"

"Does anyone really want to know, Helen?"

Good, good. That's good, Noire. It seems that some of the stuff I mentioned to her yesterday is sticking.

"Well? Does anyone want to know?"

The studio crowd is pretty pumped up about it, but that's not a good measure. Therefore…

"Hmm… why don't we put a poll up, Helen? There's no point talking about a potential idol career if no one really wants to see me get up on stage, right?"

"Ohoho, maybe we should. Let's pause for a quick commercial break, and we'll see how everyone's feeling when we come back."

I immediately turn my attention to the laptop on the counter, which I was also given last night to borrow just before I went to sleep, delivered by one of the midnight staff at the Basilicom. I've kept multiple tabs open, all monitoring the hashtags for idols, Noire, Noirestation, and the like. I would've preferred to have a program that aggregated all of this data, but until I can get that up and running, I'm going to have to do this manually. Overall, there does seem to be a positive reception to Noire becoming an idol.

Good, this means that we can really start hammering things out. We'll build the hype up from here and carry ourselves to the debut of the first single.

However, I'm worried, despite it going well. At the rate this is going, there's a certain question that's about to be asked. One that I should've seen coming, but foolishly forgot to think about. My laser focus on keeping Noire from blurting out she was going to become an idol right away must have kept me from thinking on it.

Of course, the question soon becomes…

"So when do you plan on having your first song out? If you were to, of course, become an idol?"

I pray, harder than I ever have in my life. She can't put a time on it. If she does, the media will twist it and we'll have a lot more expectations on our shoulders. Even if she says a month, it means everyone's going to expect it in a month. We can't afford delays, not with how high profile she is.

"I'd have to see if I could juggle all of my responsibilities, so I don't want to put down anything definite."

"Then what's this about a head start you said earlier?"

"Oh, that? I just recruited a producer, is all. I need someone who can help me keep track of things while I also keep on top of all of my duties. While becoming an idol sounds like fun, it is also a lot of work. I don't want to shirk on the duties that I have towards the citizens of Lastation."

Her reply is as smooth as butter. No doubt she expected that kind of question. I forgot for a moment I was dealing with someone who heads a nation. In terms of mind games and quick thinking, she outclasses me by several leagues. I didn't need to be so worried.

"I see, I see… then, who is this mystery producer? Surely it's someone famous."

"I won't say much other than that I have a lot of faith in them."

I breathe out a sigh of relief, knowing that we dodged a bullet there. I did add a big note on the notes I gave to Noire to avoid talking about who I was at all costs. That meant obscuring any detail about me whatsoever. The focus needs to be entirely on her. She probably already figured that out even without my help, though.

"Can we get any details? What are they like?"

"They're a real go getter. Can you believe the day I asked them to work for me, by the time the sun went down they had already started putting together some plans for me?"

"Wow, talk about a workaholic! That means we can expect to see something soon, if they're going full steam ahead, right?"

"We'll see."

"That's not a no!"

It's better than the alternative, which is a hard yes. Bullets dodged all around.

"I don't want to get too ahead of myself. Even if I'd like to become an idol, keeping Lastation up and running is my top priority."

"Mhm, mhm!"

For the most part, I don't have anything else to complain about, so I end up zoning out and mostly just watching the closed captioning go by. My mind is already churning with ideas along with all of the work that'll need to be done. Vocal training, dancing training, not to mention even getting some sound engineers and lighting staff. Actually, we'll need a choreographer who can conceptualize what each concert is going to look like, too.

I manage to find a pen, but as I couldn't find a spare sheet of paper I start taking notes on the napkins. It's really fortunate that money isn't an object for us, it means we the only real investment we have to make is time. Time that was spent finding a good vocal training is time that could have been spent recruiting sound engineers. However, once we have everything together, it should be fine, as we'll be at the maintaining state.

"I see you're ready to go."

The sole voice of reason in the cast of Lastation's Basilicom, Kei, calls out as she enters the lounge I was sitting in. Dressed professionally, black suit and what is either shorts or a skirt as the creases make it hard to tell, all topped off with a blue tie to match her silver hair. It matches quite well with my own clothing, which is similar in nature except that my tie is red, my jacket is a navy blue, and instead of a skirt-or-shorts it's tan khakis for me. That I wore yesterday, too. Ugh.

I push the black hair strands out of my sight, wondering if I should get a haircut soon, and nod towards her. "This is a lot of work, after all."

She sets down several stacks of paper on the table. "I've compiled all the data you requested in that late night email. Additionally, I've used our network to find some trainers that Noire will need for the foreseeable future. I've given them your contact information, such as the email account I set up for you. Ah, and of course."

Kei procures a phone from her jacket pockets and hands it to me. It's a sleek, almost shiny, black smartphone with grey highlights, befitting of Lastation's aesthetic. "Your phone, as well. As you're summoned from another world, or so Noire says, I doubt anything you brought here is going to be usable."

I take the phone and nod. "Thank you. I'll be sure to set it up later."

"Good. There's some documents I've left in a safe in your room as well, those are all legal documents so no one gets any suspicious ideas of who you are. I recommend reading over them to make sure everything is fine. There's also a driver's license included, but try not to go too wild, it's mostly there for your identity."

"Thank you. I'll be sure to take the responsibility of being her producer off of your shoulders."

Kei nods again. "That would be appreciated. I have a lot of my own duties to attend to, so if you're able to fully take over the role it would free me up. However, if you encounter any roadblocks you and Noire can't get around, feel free to let me know. I can't promise to always lend a hand, but I can try."

"I suppose my only roadblock at the moment is the hostility from Uni."

I see Kei chuckle as she shakes her head. "It's probably because you've come in out of nowhere, quite literally."

"She's very protective of her sister."

"That's a nice way of putting it. Well, I don't think you'll find yourself too bogged down by her. Once you show that you're dedicated to making sure Noire takes off, I'm sure you'll earn her trust. Ah, and one last thing before I go. In the documents that were provided, you'll also find an ATM card. I believe it's only fair that you be compensated for your time, as you were dragged here against your will. I've taken into account that you're staying here, so your lodgings and food are taken care of, but you should at least have something you can use to enjoy yourself with and of course, get yourself a new wardrobe for while you're here. You seem to be a very logical man, so I've also included the findings for what the average music producer makes so you can be sure that you're being properly compensated. Feel free to fact check the data, though."

"They say 'trust, but verify', however with how open you're being I feel as if I don't have to. Of course, I will, but I admire your preemptive thinking. Thank you, I'll be sure to inform you if there's any issues."

She pours herself a cup of coffee from the pot and nods. "Of course and good luck producing Noire. If you'll excuse me, I have a meeting."

"Have fun."

I hear a small snort coming from her as she leaves. Well then, there's certainly a lot to do, and a lot of phone numbers to start calling. It's not like I can really put my skills to use unless we can even produce a decent sounding song to begin with…

Goddammit here we go again.

Either way, yeah, I couldn't get this idea out of my head. I also wanted to experiment with kind of the framing device sort of story, exploring the "how we got to the final concert" path. I mean, it's a Producing Perfection sort of story, it's not exactly hard to imagine where this is all going to go, so I figured I'd try to do something a little differently.

And so, this story was born. It seems like it might be fun, with a bit different of a protagonist than Elliot in And How Was Your Day? Takeo is much more headstrong, willing to put up a fight, and more confident in his actions, which I think makes for something interesting in terms of a future dynamic with Noire. It's also kind of fun, when you see the start, and Takeo is far more open and he and Noire have a friendlier vibe, so this'll be more about the journey to get there rather than the destination.

Overall, not a lot to say for this chapter. I struggled with what to name the MC for a bit, but eventually decided on "Takeo" as it once again, sounded generic enough but still kind of exotic. I was trying to steer clear of Japanese names, but I ended up liking the sound of it and decided to stick with it. I guess I play Neptunia with the Japanese voices anyways, so it does make it slightly easier for me to imagine Noire's dialogue.

I did kind of enjoy having them both quickly open up by stumbling over each other, though, in how Takeo brazenly just assumes Noire has someone and Noire's stumbling back that she really doesn't, and him opening up back as she did as well. I thought it was a good characterizing moment for him. Noire being headstrong in what she wanted to do, but listening to Takeo who's just as stubborn felt like something she'd do as well, especially when it's evident he's in his element.

I think this one was mostly just me setting up the premise, but I'd like to delve a little more into Noire and Takeo's growth with each other, especially with some of the stuff I laid out here. Let me know what you think! Also don't expect frequent updates like And How Was Your Day? (relatively speaking, anyways); this one was mostly to scratch out an itch in my head, haha. Let me know what you all think!