In Conan, people have a brain option system.

Chapter 34: Shame
1 month 5 day.

The Tokyo Metro Ginza Line is filled with a strong atmosphere of post-holiday fatigue.

Countless office workers in suits and carrying briefcases were shoulder to shoulder, taking the subway with numb expressions to the companies where they work.

Today is the second day after the New Year holiday in Japan.

But apart from the New Year promotional advertisements that have not yet been removed, there is no trace of the New Year's atmosphere in the subway.

Among these office workers rushing to work during the morning rush hour,

There was a figure that seemed somewhat out of place.

He was a man who looked a little thin.

At this moment, he was holding the pull ring of the subway with one hand, browsing his mobile phone through his chestnut bangs that almost covered his eyes.

Next to him, also wearing a suit, has perfectly blended in with the surrounding office workers,
The young woman with shoulder-length hair and thick-framed glasses had a pale face and was breathing heavily.

Before the New Year holiday, Akikawa Sosuke and Itakura Misaki successfully received notification that they had passed the preliminary review.

So today, we went to the Imperial Theater in Chiyoda-ku for the final comprehensive audition.

After arriving at Ginza Station, Akigawa Sosuke and Itakura Misaki got off the subway and walked towards Exit A9 near the Imperial Theater.

"Ms. Itakura seems very nervous, what's wrong?"

Akikawa Sosuke looked at Itakura Misaki's pale face and rapid breathing, and asked with concern.

"Don't you think about who did it?!"

Itakura Misaki glared at Akikawa Sousuke and spoke loudly.

They received the notification of passing the preliminary review the day before the year-end holiday, and the formal audition was on the day after the year-end holiday.

So Akikawa Sosuke and Itakura Misaki didn't have much time to prepare.

Originally, Itakura Misaki wanted to invite Akikawa Sousuke to rent a place outside to practice the audition during the holidays, but Akikawa Sousuke refused on the grounds that he wanted to study novels and directing.

As a result, until today, Itakura Misaki has never even seen Akikawa Sousuke act.

"It's no problem, don't worry."

"You didn't even know what a stage play was before you signed up. Mr. Akikawa, what you said is totally unconvincing!"

Although Akikawa Sosuke promised that he would study the role well during the holidays.

However, Itakura Misaki didn't believe that Akikawa Sousuke would practice without anyone supervising him.

When we arrived at the Empire Theatre, there were already quite a few artists waiting for auditions.

“There are so many people!”

Itakura Misaki looked around and saw that there were at least 10 artists waiting here.

There is still half an hour before the audition starts.

Itakura Misaki estimates that in the end there will probably be more than 20 artists participating in the audition.

I thought it was just the role of a high school student and not many people would be interested in it.

In the end, Itakura Misaki found that she had still underestimated Kudo Yusaku's ability.

"At least half of these 20 people were selected through two rounds of interviews, and the rest are all contracted artists from well-known artist companies... This is extremely difficult."

Itakura Misaki thought in her mind.

She found that each of the artists looked sparkling and full of energy before the audition.

Then looking back at the artist next to him who exudes a gloomy and lazy vibe and can't even recognize all the Chinese characters on the paperback books.

Itakura Misaki felt anxious again.

“It’s like taking the test without preparation!”

Just when Itakura Misaki was feeling panic-stricken alone, she suddenly heard the surroundings becoming noisy.

"Nishihara Koichi?! He actually came to participate in this audition?!"

"Is this true? Isn't he filming a TV series? When will he act in a stage play?"

Itakura Misaki followed the gaze of the artists and managers present.
Then the pair of dark eyes suddenly widened.

This artist is known to Itakura Misaki. Like Akikawa Sorasuke, she is a signed artist of Wonderful.

Unlike most artists, Koichi Nishihara did not debut as an idol.

Instead, he debuted as a child star at the age of three and is still an actor now.

Although Koichi Nishihara's popularity is not as high as Yoko Okino's,

But basically, when I perform, I am able to get the role of the enemy, or the main supporting role.

Therefore, when Itakura Misaki saw that Nishihara Koichi had signed up for the audition for what was at most a minor supporting role,
I felt extremely incredible in my heart.

"When we signed up, it didn't show any other Wonderful artists signing up, so did Mr. Nishihara sign up after us?"

Itakura Misaki's heart, which had already begun to cool down, cooled even more at this moment.

Not to mention that Koichi Nishihara has the advantage of popularity, which gives him an advantage during the audition.

If we just talk about experience in filming, there is no artist here who has more experience than Koichi Nishihara.

Many artists at the scene looked uneasy because of Koichi Nishihara's appearance.

"Hey, nice to meet you, Akikawa-kun."

Akikawa Sosuke, who was sitting there looking at his phone, suddenly heard someone greet him.

He looked up and saw a handsome-looking artist walking towards him.

"Hello, who are you?"

"Akikawa-kun, you don't recognize me. My name is Nishihara Koichi, and I'm from the same Wonderful group as you."

Nishihara Koichi smiled at Akikawa Kusuke.

"Oh, Hello."

Akikawa Sosuke stared quietly at Nishihara Koichi in front of him with his deep blue eyes and greeted him politely.

"The corners of his eyes didn't change when he smiled. It was a fake smile." "He came straight to me. It was not a coincidence. He knew I was here a long time ago."

"So, was this greeting to me just a polite exchange, or did you have another purpose?"

Through a brief conversation with Koichi Nishihara, Akikawa Sosuke sensed something was a little off.

Although it was a bit puzzling, Akikawa Sosuke felt that the other party was probably targeting him.

"By the way, Akikawa-kun, why did you decide to sign up for this audition? Stage plays should be difficult for newcomers, right?"

"I had experience in the drama club when I was in school, so I wanted to give it a try."

"Oh, is that so? But I heard that Akikawa-kun seemed to have dropped out of elementary school."

Koichi Nishihara asked with a confused look on his face.

"You actually knew I was lying. It seems like you investigated my information and knew that I wouldn't have the chance to act in the club."

"Sure enough, they came specifically for me, but why?"

"There is definitely nothing about me that is worthy of this artist's criticism, it's because of others."

"If someone in Wonderful has more energy and is likely to be connected to me, then a veteran artist will target me."

"Then it can only be Okino Yoko."

Akikawa Sosuke showed an expression that was very embarrassed after his lie was exposed.

He scratched the back of his head and said a little embarrassedly:

"Actually, I thought that if I came here, I might have a chance to perform on the same stage with Ms. Yoko, so I signed up."

"I guess so."

Nishihara Hirokazu chuckled, looking like he already knew the truth.

"But acting is not like being an idol, where you can easily do the job just by relying on your looks."

"Especially when performing on stage, you need to face the audience directly."

"A small mistake on your part could affect the quality of the entire work, bringing shame to the work and your company."

"Eh?! Is it that exaggerated?"

Akikawa Sosuke also widened his eyes as he listened to Nishihara Hirokazu's explanation to him.

He knew very well that a normal expression of surprise would not stay on a face for more than a second, so the expression was fleeting.

"This is not an exaggeration, this is the truth."

As Nishihara Koichi was speaking, he heard someone calling his name.

"But I'm very optimistic about Akikawa-kun. The fact that you're brave enough to try something new makes you much better than other artists. Keep it up!"

Koichi Nishihara patted Akikawa Sosuke on the shoulder and walked towards the audition room.

"Are you jealous?"

Akikawa Sosuke stared at Nishihara Koichi's back and thought in his heart.

"Does Mr. Akikawa know Mr. Nishihara?"

At this time, the agent Miss Itakura Misaki came over with a very curious expression.

"I don't know him, but Senior Nishihara told me a lot of things and he seems to be a nice person."

"What a great guy! He's so famous, and he knows we've signed up for this audition, but he still wants to sign up!"

"It's just abominable!"

Itakura Misaki said angrily.

"Ms. Itakura seems very dissatisfied."

"Of course! If we have him competing with us, we won't have the chance to perform on the same stage with Miss Yoko!"

"That's not necessarily true. I just heard someone say that he doesn't seem to have much experience in stage plays."

"Wow, sometimes I really envy your optimistic attitude, Mr. Akikawa."

At this point, Itakura Misaki was too lazy to argue with Akikawa Sousuke.

No matter how little experience Koichi Nishihara has in stage performances, he has far more experience in acting than Sosuke Akikawa.

What's more, Akikawa Sosuke's gloomy temperament is far from the image of a popular high school student.

Plus, Akikawa Sosuke never went to high school.

No matter how you think about it, there's little hope!

Itakura Misaki has basically determined in her mind that Akikawa Sousuke will not get the role this time.

If it wasn't too embarrassing to leave immediately, she really didn't want to stay here any longer.

After a while, Koichi Nishihara, who had finished the audition, came out with a smile on his face.

He once again reminded Akikawa Sosuke of some things to pay attention to during the audition, and tried his best to play the role of a senior artist who cares about his juniors.

After giving his instructions, Koichi Nishihara said goodbye to Sosuke Akikawa and left.

After more than a dozen artists finished their auditions, it was finally Akikawa Sosuke's turn.

"Come on, Mr. Akikawa!"

Although Itakura Misaki no longer had any hope in her heart, she still tried her best to cheer for Akikawa Sousuke.

After all, with the experience of this audition, subsequent auditions will become much smoother.

Akikawa Sosuke nodded expressionlessly at Itakura Misaki, and then walked towards the audition room.

"If you make a mistake during a performance, you might be embarrassed, right?"

He repeated in his mind what Nishihara Koichi had just said to him, then reached out and grabbed the door handle.

"In my case, if someone finds out that your performance is flawed, it could be fatal."

(End of this chapter)