Side-Chapter 6: The Idol Way

Ursula Mei, a newcomer idol, was paired with Kazanari Tsubasa, the legendary number one idol of Japan, despite debuting less than a year prior. Even now, she retains a dedicated fanbase.

The revelation that

she was a Symphogear user didn't diminish her popularity; in fact, her fanbase grew, largely due to the numerous songs Mei released independently.

Many of these songs resonated deeply with fans, and the otaku community in Japan embraced her. Comiket now features a plethora of Mei-themed doujinshi, ranging from adult to wholesome content. Initially, it was assumed they would be removed, as with Tsubasa-related doujinshi. However, Mei publicly acknowledged them, stating she was okay with it as long as they didn't harm anyone.

This surprised many, as idols typically don't publicly acknowledge or permit such content, even if they secretly sell it. It was especially shocking coming from Mei, given Tsubasa's strong disapproval; no one dared create lewd content of her, as even the yakuza feared her—one of the largest yakuza groups was dismantled after attempting to create lewd Tsubasa material.

Mei's stance offered the otaku community a form of "salvation." She not only tolerated the doujinshi but occasionally shared those that caught her eye on social media, further exciting her Japanese fans. Her boldness also attracted attention from international audiences.

The announcement of a global live concert featuring Tsubasa and Maria, two of the world's top idols, was met with surprise. Maria's controversial past as a member of a terrorist organization and rumors of

her being a government spy were still prevalent, but due to government backing, few publicly commented. Even more surprising was the announcement of Kanade's return, an idol previously presumed dead.

News outlets reported that she had recently emerged, having just awakened. Some survivors of the accident that occurred approximately two years ago still maintained that she was dead, and there was even a broadcast of her grave.

This led many to speculate about her return. Due to the presence of the three biggest idols, some began to pity Mei's situation. Compared to others with extensive experience, she was a newcomer in the idol world. While Kanade had not been an idol for two years, she still had a dedicated fanbase, much larger than Mei's.

Many thought that Mei would be overshadowed by the three, but the concert proved them wrong.

Mei shone the brightest on stage, appearing as an equal to her three partners. Some even became her fans. When she began to sing her song, it was clear that Mei was giving her best, captivating the audience.

In the end, all of Mei's albums sold out that day, as people began to notice her song, which was distinctly different from the typical idol songs they were accustomed to hearing.

Mei lay on the ground. The release of her new song had sparked talk dubbing her the most hardworking idol, as she consistently released songs in rapid succession since the start of her career. Some even speculated she was a music creator before becoming an idol.

"Even though all my songs are from my previous life..."

Mei murmured, gazing at the sky. She was now in the second grade, which still surprised her due to how different this world had become compared to the original. If Mei remembered correctly, Hibiki was in first grade in the first season, second grade in the second season until near the end of the fourth, and then third grade from the last episode of the fourth season until the end of the last season.

Now, with Tsubasa already graduated, Mei was the sole idol in the school, which brought her a lot of spotlight. This was especially true on her birthday, which the whole school celebrated, almost like a festival. To be fair, Mei had thought the same of Tsubasa's birthday, assuming it was because she was the daughter of someone important and wouldn't have to worry about experiencing the same thing. However, she was wrong.

Luckily, now that she could use her relic with her normal body, she often hid. And because she could now create a clone with real substance, she often had him attend school with her, in case anyone started to connect the two of them.

Still, because of this, her classmates often asked about her relationship with him. Mei simply said he was her twin. Most of them doubted this, since Mei had blond hair and blue eyes, while Mamoru had black hair and orange eyes.

But since they shared the same family name, no one asked Mei that question anymore. Now, she sometimes noticed some of the girls becoming interested in her male form, which surprised her, though she also received some gazes from the boys as well.

Most often, she even received love letters, which she always declined, but her offer of friendship held true. Sometimes, people saw Mei talking to some of the boys who had once confessed their love to her, which surprised some of the Symphogear users, who asked her why she kept hanging out with the boys.

"Well, because we play the same game. In fact, they're members of the same guild I'm in."

Since the girls rarely played games, let alone online games, Mei began to explain what a guild was. Because of this, Kirika admired Mei even more, because even though Mei was often busy with idol work, she still managed to have good grades and play games as well. In fact, they had once tried gaming together.

Kirika confidently chose a game she excelled at, expecting to defeat everyone, including Shirabe. However, Mei defeated her by simply tilting her head and remarking on Kirika's slow response time.

This stung Kirika so much that Shirabe often saw her watching online videos of the game. Shirabe, jealous of Kirika's focus, began to bother her more, a sight that only brought a warm smile to Mei's face.

Mei, despite her busy schedule, released two songs she had originally planned to perform as duets with Kanade. This surprised Maria and especially Tsubasa, who had assumed that any duet Mei released would be with her. Devastated, Tsubasa suffered a mental breakdown and canceled her concert, giving Shinji a headache. He questioned Mei about her choice of Kanade for the songs.

"Shinji, while Tsubasa is indeed talented, she is quite busy as a top idol," Mei explained. "Besides, these songs are a better fit for Kanade. That's why I chose her, not Tsubasa."

When Shinji relayed Mei's reasons to Tsubasa, she became even more envious of Mei's popularity. Maria calmed her down, though she herself felt a twinge of jealousy towards Kanade, which she hid better than Tsubasa. Eventually, Tsubasa stopped sulking and resumed her concert preparations.

The songs Mei released were duets of T.M. Revolution feat Nana Mizuki's "Preserved Roses" and "Kakumei Dualism." These releases sent fans wild, especially Kanade's, as it marked her return to the music scene after two years of inactivity due to her "coma." Not only was it her first song release in years, but it was also a duet, and surprisingly, her partner was not Tsubasa, but the new idol, Mei.

This sparked considerable controversy, with Mei frequently asked why she chose Kanade for her first duet instead of Tsubasa, who had been with her since her debut. Mei explained that Tsubasa was busy and that the songs were better suited for Kanade. She then added that she planned to release duet songs with Maria and, finally, Tsubasa.

She explained that she had left Tsubasa for last because Tsubasa was the reason she became an idol in the first place, and she needed more experience to create a truly great duet with her.

Tsubasa, watching the interview, wore a proud expression, which made Shinji offer an awkward smile. Maria, feeling slightly jealous as she was in the middle of their group dynamic, remembered that Serena had become a fan of Mei as well. The last time Maria had been in Serena's room, she had noticed Mei merchandise, even some Mei doujinshi. Knowing Serena, she had probably already bought the new album. Maria then decided that she should be happy for her little sister and she got over it.

Mei stood in her room, transformed into her Symphogear form, and gazed at her reflection in the mirror.

"This really gives me an Amazonian tribe vibe," she mused.

Somehow, she wasn't truly surprised. She had noticed the expressions of the other girls when they saw her after she released the final seal on the Ignite module. Still, the fact that it persisted even in her normal form was unexpected. She hadn't thought it would appear in her basic form, assuming it only manifested when she used the Ignite module. That was why she had asked Fine and Elfnein about it earlier, though their inspection revealed nothing wrong with her relic.

However, Mei couldn't shake the feeling that this would come back to bite her later. She had watched enough anime to recognize foreshadowing when she saw it, so it was no surprise she might get some as well. The question was, how severe would it be?

Ultimately without an answer, Mei slowly deactivated her transformation and headed toward the training room. Recently, she had been alternating between combat training and idol practice. Thinking about it, her life in this world was quite busy, which was normal, considering she was now a Symphogear user and an idol. While she wasn't as busy as Tsubasa or Maria, she still had a steady stream of job offers.

At first, she thought that revealing herself as a Symphogear user would lead to fewer offers, but it only seemed to increase them. This just showed how naive she had been, especially considering Maria, who remained an idol even after her Symphogear status was revealed.

Now, however, she barely remembered the final season—was it even the final season Maria was doing idol work with Tsubasa? She wasn't sure. Besides, with Miku not being hit with the Shénshòujìng, the only way for Fudo Kazanari to absorb divine power from Shem-ha was through Hibiki.

This meant the last season would likely be very different from the anime. Hibiki was strong and not easily kidnapped, unlike Miku. Furthermore, in this world, Miku still possessed her Shénshòujìng, making any kidnapping attempt even more difficult.

These thoughts brought Mei out in a cold sweat. After fighting the Bavarian Illuminati, she had no idea how things would end. Would Shem-ha even resurrect herself now that the only way to do so was through Hibiki?

Lost in thought, Mei failed to notice that she herself was a target. While the Shénshòujìng beam didn't affect her, Fudo knew she had been hit by it. What's more, because she was from a parallel world, the Curse of Balal had no effect on her. As she pondered this, she didn't realize that a shadow was already moving, unnoticed.