Ruko Araba 

A girl attending a co-ed high school. She was born into a fairly affluent family, raised by two working parents, and was taught to take care of herself.

She had no particular hobbies, and she didn't belong to any school clubs. Her friends invited her to hang out sometimes, but she halfheartedly played along, pretending to have fun.

She started working part time so she could buy things she wanted sometimes. In her free time before work, she spent time at the arcade.

"Sigh... I'm so bored."

Today, too, she uttered her usual phrase with a sigh.

She started playing a certain rhythm game with songs she heard online.

What's up with this washing machine?

For me, games were just a way to kill time. It's not that I hated classes or talking to my friends, but they were boring to me. I didn't especially like games. Manga and books were fine, too, but I was just killing time at the arcade near my job before it started.

I was about to spend time at the arcade today, too, when I spotted a washing machine.

If it's not a washing machine, it's a big speaker or something. It's playing music... Oh, it's a rhythm game?

Normally I played puzzle games and fighting games—I hadn't tried rhythm games. I mean, they seemed really hard, and they were always crowded. Something I could pick up and put down whenever I wanted was just right for me.

But there weren't many people today, unusually. I figured with no one around, I'd give it a try.

From the day I gave it a shot, I started playing rhythm games from time to time. I made sure no one was there today, too. It feels kind of embarrassing to have someone watch you play—is that just me?

It was time to raise the level, so today I was trying Advanced. I tried Easy and Basic before, but they were too simple. Surely there was a difficulty just right for me. For someone who plays a little bit like me, it would be the perfect way to kill time. After my first play, I got rank AA! I raised my hands in celebration, and people gathered behind me before I knew it! Come on, go away already...

I stepped away for a short break on a bench. I took deep breaths to calm my heart pounding from being watched. Then, one of the people from that group came over to me.

She was about my age, wearing a gothic lolita outfit with the frilly kind of skirt I'd never wear, and her face was even cuter than mine...

"If it's okay, would you like to Sync with me?"

...Sync? What's that?

The gothic lolita who invited me to Sync was stubborn. When I said, "Aren't games something you enjoy on your own?" she very thoroughly explained Sync to me...

Hmm... I still had time before my job. There was no real reason to refuse. I didn't have much choice. I'd go along with it just this once...

Maybe it's 'cause I was pouting, but she covered my credit...and when I left the song selection to her, she started touching my screen! Options? It's easier to play when you increase your speed?

...I just stood there.

"Uhh... You know Vocaloid songs, right?"

Without waiting for me to reply, she picked a song.

Oh, but I do know this one.

The gothic lolita girl was way better than me. When the song was over, she got rank S.

Whoa, didn't know it went that high...

"I'm glad, you did great!" she said with a smile, then continued, "Hey, you finally smiled!"

I ended up smiling a little without realizing...

"I'm glad, you did great!"

She said that, and it's true that I was getting better. But it didn't make me all that happy... All I did was pick a difficulty that suited me!

Maybe Advanced wasn't satisfying me. I'd try raising the level again.

Expert? What? How am I supposed to hit this...?

Maybe it was time to go back to Advanced...but continuing to do stuff I could clear easily was boring.

Oh yeah, when that girl was playing, she didn't push the buttons. I knew you could touch the screen too, but I hadn't tried it yet.

Oh, this could be easier!

Since switching to the touchscreen, I managed to get better at keeping my combo. I was even okay keeping up with intense movements. I learned how to do multiple simultaneous inputs with one hand, too.

Things I struggled with at first, I was able to do on the next play. When I realized that, I was sure that the things I was struggling with now, I would eventually be able to clear. Maybe that was the first time I'd felt that way about anything I'd done before...

Oh yeah, I used to always say stuff was boring, but not so much lately... Well, I guess it's proof I found a good time-killer.

I got used to Expert, too. It was time to focus on one song.

I finally, finally got rank S on Expert! That was one of my goals achieved.

What's this...? The level goes higher... Master? What do you mean, the level goes past 10? Well, I made it this far, so I guess I'll give it a shot...

...No way, no way, no way. Who the hell made something this hard!?

Ever since I started playing using the touchscreen, my fingers hurt really bad. I was moving my hands quickly, so I had to watch out for my nails, too. I mean, a girl's gotta be fashionable...

That was when I remembered people playing with gloves. The work gloves laid out next to the cabinet were probably for times like this too, right?

Whew, that's one mystery solved. Um, sorry to the people I thought were weird.

But the work gloves weren't cute at all. I went to buy gloves immediately. My favorite brand was sure to have some cute gloves.

I played for longer than usual that day. Gloves are great, right? They're super comfy.

Just when I thought I was getting pretty good, it wants me to do some movements I don't understand. What's with this game?

There was a part where I couldn't keep my combo, no matter what I did. I played it over and over. I had no other choice. I'd just go home today and look online.

I half-assed my homework and spent my free time on the internet. As I absentmindedly looked at a news site, I saw someone had uploaded a Maimai video.

I didn't know what the uploader was thinking, but I decided to give it a look.

Oh, this is the song I played today... Whoa, amazing movements... Oh, they kept the combo... How'd they do that?

I watched the part I was having trouble with over and over.

Ahh, so you move your hands like that. This's more helpful than I thought...

This way, I could practice even when I wasn't at the arcade.

Um, so you go here like this, then move like this... Huh? Did I become a gamer without realizing?

I practiced by watching videos, and went to the arcade before and after work. I guess I really became a rhythm gamer.

I'd unlocked all kinds of Master songs now, so I was aiming to clear difficult songs.

If I saw this when I was just starting out, I'd probably think it's cringe. No! My movements should be cleaner! They shouldn't be as ungraceful as the ones in the video!

Anyway, I was having trouble with level 11 and up. In order to raise my score, I'd probably need to make my movements sharper and more precise. The charts I hated were mostly mai-Star's fault. I learned where to direct my rage.

From the info I gathered online, apparently the buttons were better for improving your accuracy.

Hmm, buttons, huh...? I had a hard time with the buttons before, but... Famous players are using the buttons...

Well, guess I'll give it a shot...

Today, I'd challenge Master difficulty! I started getting S rank. Next up, SS rank!

AP was too much, so this was just the right goal for me now. Come to think of it, I'd really improved since starting out.

Plus, I became able to play without minding people's attention. Kinda scary how you can get used to that stuff...

But when someone really skilled was watching, I still got nervous. Whenever I played well, I couldn't help but look over my shoulder.

Huh? That boy, in the school uniform... Feels like I've seen his face somewhere... He's not from my school... I've never seen that uniform before.

Oh, that girl! The one who looks good in that black and white gothic lolita outfit, with a cuter face than me...was crossdressing!?

I waved, and he seemed to notice me, too...

But I totally thought he was a girl back then. There sure are all kinds of eccentric rhythm gamers, huh?

A guy was cuter than me—maybe I should complain to him.

...But there was something else I wanted to say first. I was thinking that if we met again, I'd be the one to say it this time.

"If it's okay, would you like to Sync with me again?"

From that day on, games weren't just a way to kill time. From that day on, the arcade wasn't just a place to keep busy.

It wasn't so bad to be passionate about something. And it wasn't so bad to enjoy it together with someone.

I met all kinds of rhythm gamers after that, and we would just nod at each other when we met at the arcade, but they were people I could call my arcade friends. I'd surely make more of them, too.

Oh, yeah. Apparently that guy's sister made him crossdress as a prank. He took an interest in it, and looked pretty good, so eventually I got used to it, too.

When I got to the arcade today, I saw players gathered together, including from games other than Maimai, looking at something.

What's this... A new game? The Maimai team made another one!? He's inviting me to play it together... Hehehe, guess I've got no choice.

Ruko mentions trying both Easy and Basic difficulty charts—Easy was the lowest difficulty in older versions of Maimai before it was removed in DX. Maimai also didn't add SSS rank until Maimai Pink, released late 2015 after Chunithm's initial release, so SS was in fact the highest possible rank achievable here. Maimai's difficulty scale has also been through a lot since this was written. Most old 11s would be rated 13 or 13+ now.

mai-Star, the charter Ruko loves to complain about, charted for Maimai from 2012-2016 and is responsible for many infamously janky standard charts. mai-Star also charted for Chunithm, but more on that in Seito's story.