When Nobita's mother saw someone entering, she quickly came out, only to find Yayahara Daichi standing at the door, holding Nobita in one hand and the Snail Shell in the other. She was stunned—this entrance was a little too dramatic, wasn't it?
Seeing her, Daichi said, "Auntie, I found these things outside. I believe they belong to your family?"
Nobita's mother twitched at the corner of her mouth. "Ah… I suppose they do?"
Daichi dropped Nobita and the shell onto the floor with a clang.
The thud woke Nobita up. He clutched his face and cried out in pain. Hearing the commotion, Doraemon came downstairs.
Daichi decided to get to the point. "Auntie, here's Nobita's test paper. I took it back to mark his corrections. Please help supervise him—he did make some progress on this exam, so I hope he keeps trying."
He handed the paper over to Tamako Nobi.
She took it, saw the 41-point score—not a zero—and was overjoyed. Tonight, we feast on steak! No one can stop me!
Nobita perked up too and started negotiating—asking for more allowance, more snacks, and so on.
Tamako, feeling a bit guilty for the misunderstanding and proud of his improvement, was about to agree to his ridiculous demands.
Then she recalled Daichi had taken the test paper without informing Nobita. Turning to him, she said, "Daichi, I really appreciate your effort to help Nobita, but next time, please let him know, okay?"
"Oh, that," Daichi replied. "I did intend to tell him, but he was being punished for sleeping in class and then got held back afterward. Since our homes are close anyway, I figured I'd just give it to you."
Tamako's expression changed again. Steak? Forget steak! The only thing on the menu now is a lesson in love—a.k.a. discipline!
Nobita instantly realized something was wrong and scrambled to dive into the Snail Shell.
But Daichi was quicker. He snatched the device and stuffed it into Doraemon's pocket.
Having just done a good deed, Daichi felt refreshed. "Man, I really am a good person."
As for the miserable shrieking in the background… he knew nothing. With the family distracted, Daichi quietly took his leave.
Back home, he helped Dekisugi make dinner. That night, as usual, the two read books and chatted before heading to bed.
But he didn't expect Tuesday to bring him the greatest crisis since arriving in this world.
"You what?! You agreed to go to Gian's concert—and you roped me in too?!" Daichi stared at Dekisugi in utter disbelief.
"No wonder Nobita said I didn't need to tutor him today. Turns out he was invited to Gian's singing performance! You want to go, fine, but why drag me down with you? I still want to live!"
Dekisugi looked embarrassed. He knew full well how terrifying Gian's singing could be.
"Well, Gian said you kept rejecting his invitations before, so he asked me to bring you along. He wouldn't stop pestering me, so I gave in..."
Daichi took a deep breath, suppressing the violent surge of mana inside his sea of consciousness. He resisted the urge to blast them both to bits and squeezed out two words through gritted teeth: "I'll go."
In his previous life, Daichi had heard Gian's singing in the anime—tied with Suneo's violin for the most terrifying sound in the Doraemon universe. Arguably, Suneo's might be even worse.
It only sounded mildly unpleasant on a computer—after all, it had been processed. But here, in this world, it came with the blessing of world rules.
Which meant: Gian's voice was officially recognized as the most unbearable singing in existence.
Dekisugi sighed in relief. "We'll go after finishing our homework, okay?" He even patted Daichi on the shoulder. "Don't worry, we're in this together!"
I don't want to be in this together! Daichi thought, shooting a venomous glare his way before angrily diving into his homework.
If it weren't for you, dragging me to this sonic hellhole, I'd break Gian's legs before I ever went!
As soon as homework was done, the time for the concert approached. Though Daichi had never smoked in either life, right now he desperately wished for a cigarette to calm his nerves.
Alas, he had no lighter and wouldn't smoke in front of Dekisugi anyway, so he picked up a book on natural science and pretended to read.
When it was time to go, the two headed out and ran into Nobita and Doraemon on the way.
"Haha! What a coincidence! You're going to the concert too?" said Nobita gleefully—clearly relishing the thought of Daichi suffering.
"...Heh." Daichi's face was blank, but inwardly, a thousand alpacas thundered across his soul. I didn't want to go! You're all dragging me down!
He shot Dekisugi another glare. Dekisugi nervously tried to smooth things over. "Since we're going the same way, let's head over together!"
Soon, the group arrived at the vacant lot. Gian had already set up a wooden crate by the concrete pipes to use as a stage.
Seeing them, Gian enthusiastically welcomed them—especially Daichi, clapping him hard on the back.
"Daichi! You finally came to hear my concert. I promise, you'll be blown away!"
Yeah, Daichi sneered inwardly. Blown away, alright. I'm about to blast you off the stage with a fireball.
He vowed: If it's too horrible, I'm using magic. I won't suffer in silence.
With that thought, he picked a spot far from the stage and sat down to await his doom.
Soon, Suneo and Shizuka arrived, along with a few unfamiliar faces—likely people Gian had physically persuaded to attend.
At 4:00 p.m., Gian climbed on stage. Daichi checked his watch. Punctual, he thought. At least better than the pop stars who show up an hour late.
After a short intro, Gian began to sing.
"I'm Gian, the king of the kids~!"
A formless sonic wave erupted from his mouth. As Daichi heard the first note, his ears trembled and his soul recoiled.
The sound hit his consciousness directly. His sea of consciousness rippled violently, and Daichi clutched his ears.
No way… A regular person… actually launched a spiritual attack? This is the power of world rules? Terrifying!
Just when he thought he couldn't take it anymore, Doraemon stepped in.
"Wait a sec, Gian!" he called.
Gian, confused but compliant, stopped. "Huh? What's up?"
"Try this!" Doraemon said, pulling out a pink candy from his pocket. "It's great for your throat!"
Gian ate it. "Hmm, sweet." Then he returned to the stage and began singing again.
But this time… it wasn't the same grating screech. It was a masculine, resonant voice. Not exactly good, but listenable.
Doraemon whispered to Nobita, "I recorded a famous singer's voice and put it in that candy."
Daichi overheard. Voiceprint candy, huh? I remember this plot… Fine. Since you saved my ears, I'll help you out when Gian comes after you.
The concert continued. Though the singing wasn't stellar, it wasn't torture. Everyone clapped furiously when it ended—grateful to survive.
"Thank you, thank you all!" Gian bowed. "Today's concert is officially over!"
And with that, the crowd dispersed like fleeing captives.
Gian, proud of his performance, thought about the "I'm the Future Star" auditions happening the next day and ran off to sign up.
That night, back at home, Daichi clasped his hands together and pleaded, "Please, if there's ever another event like this—don't invite me!"
Elsewhere, Doraemon and Nobita were hanging out when someone knocked on their door.
"What?! You signed me up for the 'Future Star' audition?!" they shouted in unison.
"Yup. So, Doraemon, do you still have that candy? Pretty please?"
Doraemon groaned. "Fine, fine! I'll give it to you!"
(End of Chapter)