Mutsumi Wakaba

• Mutsumi Wakaba is a first-year student at Tsukinokuni Girls' Academy.
• She is about 153 cm tall.
• She has played a seven-string guitar since she was little.
• Her guitar skills are top-notch.
• She usually looks blank and quiet, hiding her complicated feelings.
• Sometimes, during live shows, she reveals a much more expressive side that surprises others.

• Mutsumi is very quiet and does not show much emotion.
• Inside, she is gentle and cares deeply about others.
• She feels she can't "make the guitar sing" and this causes her a lot of pain.
• She worries her words or actions will cause trouble, so she often stays silent.
• She hates being seen only as "the daughter of celebrities" and wants to prove her own worth.
• She is thoughtful and always tries to consider others, despite being self-critical and filled with doubts.

• Mutsumi used to play guitar in CRYCHIC.
• She once said, "I've never thought being in a band was fun," leading to CRYCHIC's break-up.
• After the band broke up, she stuck with her childhood friend Sakiko Togawa, but avoided any new band activities.
• Sakiko, who transferred schools, was the only one to share her new whereabouts with Mutsumi.
• Her father is veteran comedian Takafumi Wakaba, and her mother is famous actress Minami Mori.
• She doesn't like the attention from being a celebrity's daughter, and calls her parents by cute nicknames "Taakun" and "Minami-chan."
• She has experienced band conflicts, media pressure, trouble on their first national tour, and being highly praised by the press—making her emotionally scarred and despairing.

• Her guitar-playing ability is extremely advanced thanks to years of practice.
• She doubts her ability to play expressively and often questions her performance.
• Even if she loses focus or faints during shows, she can adapt with quick thinking, which people sometimes mistake for purposeful performance.
• She has experience on TV and large stages, but doesn't always enjoy the extra attention.

• Mutsumi and Sakiko Togawa are close childhood friends, sharing a special bond, but sometimes they clash.
• With Sakiko, Mutsumi became one of the only people to know her whereabouts after transferring.
• She often gets caught between Sakiko and Soyo Nagasaki, leading to tension.
• She has complicated connections with her old and new bandmates from CRYCHIC, MyGO!!!!!, Ave Mujica, RiNG, and more, with band reunions causing more disagreements.
• With her parents, she fights between being their daughter and wanting her own independence.
• "Mortis," another personality within her, represents her inner struggles—they argue about her future and roles.

• She is in the gardening club at school, and is passionate about growing cucumbers—hers are beautiful enough to be sold.
• Mutsumi once gave cucumbers to MyGO!!!!! as a gesture of support, but it was rejected.
• She has fainted during live shows, and fans praised it as performance, not knowing of her stress and pain.
• In the Budokan live show, her mask was pulled off, revealing her identity, and she suffered emotionally from the press comparing her to her parents.
• On the first tour date, a small mistake led to collapsing on stage; Sakiko covered her with an ad-lib, but people began to expect repeated "special" performances, increasing her pressure.
• The other self, Mortis, developed, mixing acting from her mother and comedy from her father. Mortis's performances were popular, but caused conflict with Sakiko.
• Mortis's videos went viral online, and even classmates saw these acts, adding to Mutsumi's everyday stress.
• In her mind, Mutsumi struggles with many inner "roles," and her mother once called her "born to be an actress."
• Mutsumi feels deep guilt for causing CRYCHIC's break-up and for not being there for Sakiko, as shown in the story of "not offering an umbrella in the rain."

"I've never thought being in a band was fun."

"Saki... is about to break."

"So, it's okay now."

"Good night, sweet dreams."

Starting in MyGO!!!!!

Because she is Sakiko's childhood friend, Mutsumi gets involved when Soyo Nagasaki tries to find Sakiko. After talking with Sakiko, they both reject Soyo's push to start CRYCHIC again.

Later, Mutsumi gifts her home-grown cucumbers to MyGO!!!!! as a peace offering, but Soyo returns them, saying, "I don't need this!"

After that, Sakiko invites Mutsumi to join the new band Ave Mujica as the guitarist, Mortis. Mutsumi agrees, saying, "Saki is about to break."

Ave Mujica Era

Ave Mujica faces drama:

• In their first episode, Sakiko's past is revealed, showing how Mutsumi always stayed by her side.
• During a big live at Budokan, everyone's real faces are unmasked, and Mutsumi suffers from being recognized as a celebrity's child.
• She becomes overwhelmed by work offers and is forced to do more solo events because of media hype.
• Her house studio is opened for band use, making her lose her private music space.
• At an interview, she blurts out "it won't last," causing rumors about Ave Mujica's possible split.
• The demands to perform "special" acts increase, weighing on Mutsumi.
• Eventually, she collapses on stage after a small mistake, but Sakiko's quick thinking saves the show, now seen as a "genius performance," which only increases pressure on her.

Inner Struggles and Mortis

• Mutsumi has always been known as a comedian and actress's daughter, rarely as "Mutsumi Wakaba."
• She loses her confidence in expressing herself through guitar in CRYCHIC, leading her to claim, "I've never thought being in a band is fun."
• Feelings of failure and inability to help Sakiko haunt her.
• As the pressure mounts, a puppet-like Mortis appears to comfort her, soon developing into a talking, acting second self.
• Mortis starts to take over, performing on shows and interacting with the world, while Mutsumi fades away, staying silent inside.
• Mortis causes drama with Sakiko and other bandmates, leading to multiple conflicts.
• Mutsumi's deep guilt about CRYCHIC and feeling unable to help Sakiko becomes clear in a rain scene, where she couldn't offer her an umbrella.

The Conflict Inside

• Mortis's spoken lines cut deeply, worsening the rift with Sakiko.
• Mutsumi and Mortis fight for control, with Mortis hiding Mutsumi within her own mind.
• A video of this internal fight spreads online and draws more unwanted attention.
• Others try to help, but Mortis keeps rejecting them.
• Sakiko, feeling responsible, waits outside Mutsumi's house to meet her.
• Eventually, Mortis loses control, and both disappear inside Mutsumi's mind, leaving only an "empty actress" who switches between different roles.

After the Disappearance

• With the disappearance of both personalities, Mutsumi now acts only according to what others expect, with no real self left.
• She starts helping more in the band, practicing acting with Nyamu Yuutenji, and even growing bitter melons at school.
• During live shows, her expression remains blank but sharp, switching rapidly among different "roles"—sometimes smiling, winking, or even making daring faces.
• The story ends with her looking into a mirror, seeing Mortis's smile reflected.

• Mutsumi's surname, Wakaba, comes from a place in Tokyo.
• She is seen singing "Mou Ichido Luminous" by Pastel*Palettes in a karaoke scene.
• Only Sakiko fully understands the true meaning behind Mutsumi's words and actions.
• In media interviews, it is said that Mutsumi joined Ave Mujica partly to atone for her past actions toward Sakiko.
• Her true driving force is to protect Sakiko, even if it means being hurt herself.
• Mutsumi and Hatsuka Misumi are not childhood friends despite the similar connection to Sakiko.
• Her stage name, Mortis, means "lake of death," hinting at her inner journey.
• After the anime, it is revealed Mutsumi is now only an empty "role," acting out what is needed, with the real selves—Mutsumi and Mortis—gone.

• School: Tsukinokuni Girls' Academy
• Class: High School Year 1, Class A
• Height: 153 cm
• Birthday: January 14
• Zodiac: Capricorn
• Band: Ave Mujica
• Band Role: Guitarist
• Childhood friend: Sakiko Togawa

Mutsumi Wakaba is a shy guitar prodigy living in the shadow of her celebrity parents, struggling to find her own sense of self in music and relationships, and haunted by guilt and inner conflict, making her story one of self-acceptance, mental battles, and the complexities of growing up.