Although he tried his best to catch up along the way, it wasn't until he got out of the haunted house that Toru Shimizu saw Nanami Nanami again.

She sat in the chair that belonged to the staff, holding a cup of tea, her arms against her body, her whole body curled up, as if she had not yet shaken off her fear.

Hearing Qing Shui Toru's voice, she just glanced at it, then ignored it, and put all her attention on the tea in her hand.

Looking at her actions, Qing Shui Toru secretly regretted it and had a headache at the same time: it seemed that it really made her angry.

Stiffly stepped forward and apologized again and again for his previous attempts.

She didn't seem to hear it, and it took a long time before she came up with a sentence: "In addition to this, where else are you going to take me to 'get materials' today?" ”

While his tone was stiff, the eyes cast at him were also full of coldness, which made Qing Shui Toru experience the feeling of facing the cold winter alone in the summer.

Awkwardly looking away, Qing Shui Toru thought in his heart. The previously planned roller coaster and other exciting content are all scrapped, and then the children's projects that are not suitable for the two of them are excluded, considering her current state, the only thing left is ...

"Or... Let's go to the Ferris wheel, right? ”

-----

Although the speed is slow, the feeling of weightlessness when leaving the ground still makes people feel a little palpitating for a moment.

In the small pod, the two sat opposite each other. However, Toru Shimizu never dared to meet Nanami's eyes, but just pretended to be attracted by the Ferris wheel not far away.

In the silence, the Ferris wheel slowly turned, and the boundaries of vision continued to spread from under foot to the distance. Gradually, Mt. Fuji and Tokyo Tower each appeared. The unfinished Tokyo Skytree also appears on the horizon. Toru Shimizu couldn't bear it a little and turned his eyes slightly to confirm Nanami's expression.

She looked out the window with a side face, the clear blue sky and bright summer light made her look like she had gotten rid of the remaining shadows, and her expression was no longer as cold as before.

Qing Shui Toru secretly breathed a sigh of relief. As she was thinking about how to start the conversation, she seemed to feel something, turned her head, looked at the pod for a while, and muttered something to herself, as if talking to herself.

"Speaking of which, who invented the Ferris wheel?"

didn't let go of this opportunity, Toru Shimizu immediately took over the topic.

"It's called... Hmm..."

Memory dragged down at this point. After stumbling in her puzzled gaze for a few seconds, Toru Shimizu finally smiled wryly.

"Sorry, I'll look it up."

As he spoke, he took out the notepad he had brought with him, flipped a few pages from the front, and gave an answer.

"It's an American named Pharis."

"Oh..."

Nanami Nanami nodded slowly and expressionlessly, as if she didn't care about this answer, and was silent for a few seconds, and then asked another question.

"Shimizu... Is this also your range? ”

"Well, as a writer, you should know something about everything."

"That's right."

She replied faintly and looked out the window, but before the box fell silent, she suddenly turned around and asked, "That... Do you know anything about idols? ”

In the dictionary, the word "idol" originally meant an object of imitation. However, after experiencing Momoe Yamaguchi, Seiko Matsuda, Akina Nakamori and others, the word has become another meaning in the eyes of the public: a young female artist whose image is the main selling point.

Since then, the once smash hit Good Morning Girl Group and AKB48, which are now gaining momentum, are different from the original idols in terms of form, but the meaning of the word "idol" has been passed down.

"Idols?" I didn't know exactly what Nanami Nanami was referring to, so Toru Shimizu asked again, "Which idol?" ”

"Hmm... It should be similar to AKB, right? ”

"AKB... Sorry, I don't know. ”

As someone who understands show business entirely through the TV screen, Toru Shimizu can only remember the obvious ones who often show their faces on TV.

For an idol group like AKB, which has been unknown and has only recently become popular, Toru Shimizu only has some vague concepts in his mind. For example, the producer is Yasu Akimoto, who wrote "The River Continues", and there seem to be a lot of people in the group.

Other than that, Shimizu didn't know any details about who they were and what characteristics each person had.

However, this did not prevent him from questioning: "How could Nanami think of asking this?" ”

"Hmm... Have you ever heard of Nogizaka? ”

"Well, it seems like the name of a station, right?"

"It's not a station," Nanami Nanami shook her head slightly, "It's an idol group launched by Sony and Yasusu Akimoto, saying that it wants to become the official opponent of AKB, and some time ago it was recruiting members from all over the country." ”

"So?" Toru Shimizu still didn't understand why she brought it up.

"So... I signed up. ”

Looking at Toru Shimizu's stunned expression, Nanami Nanami showed a shallow smile before continuing to explain to him after a while.

"At that time, I saw the news in school and was pulled by my classmates to fill out the registration form. But two days ago, someone claiming to be a staff member called me and invited me to the next interview... But I don't know exactly what an idol is, so I thought maybe you would know better..."

"I see..."Qing Shui Toru nodded stiffly and looked at her again, "Then Nanami, are you going to go?" ”

"Hmm... It's still undecided... However, I heard that thousands of people passed the primary election this time, and in the end, only about 30 people will remain... Even if I go, I won't be chosen... So, maybe check it out? Just think of it as a visit. ”

At the end, she looked at Qing Shui Toru again, and there was an indescribable meaning in her eyes.

"What do you think of Shimizu?"

Before she could recover from the news of her registration, Toru Shimizu instinctively wanted to stop it, but he couldn't find a suitable excuse for a while.

And she had a good reason: she didn't expect anything to be selected, just to see it.

After a moment of silence, Qing Shui Toru was just about to give his answer when he heard a sound of water outside.

A huge fountain rises from the ground, almost at the level of the Ferris wheel, attracting Nanami's attention while interrupting his words.

Looking at Nanami's side face, Toru Shimizu remembered the characteristics of an idol again: the prohibition of love.

In order to maintain the image, it is forbidden to associate with any person of the opposite sex.

From the perspective of fans, this can be regarded as a kind of protection for the idol's "personality". But from Toru Shimizu's position, it was undoubtedly a solid barrier that suddenly appeared in front of him.

As one of the "unspoken rules" on the surface, this rule is almost as well-known as the word "idol". And Nanami, who signed up, should be even clearer.

So... Did she really just go and see?

The Ferris wheel passed its apex, and Toru Shimizu's mood also fell.