"I worked hard, but I failed."
Haru was dazed. The audition results.
Mio sat beside her. Unusually, she spoke first. "Did you think effort always pays off?"
"Of course," Haru answered. "I practiced more than anyone."
Simon approached. "Effort doesn't necessarily pay off."
"That's wrong."
"It might be wrong. But it's reality."
Mio quietly asked. "Why do you think effort pays off?"
"Because... otherwise it's unfair."
Simon explained. "There's a concept called the just-world hypothesis."
"What's that?"
"The psychological tendency to believe the world is fair. Good deeds bring good results, bad deeds bring bad results."
Haru nodded. "Isn't that normal?"
"But reality is different," Mio said.
"Different?"
"There's luck. There's timing. There are other factors."
Simon continued. "No matter how much you practice, if the judges' preferences differ, you won't be selected."
"That's unfair."
"It's unfair," Mio admitted. "But fairness is a human concept. The world doesn't care."
Haru resisted. "So effort is meaningless?"
"Not meaningless," Simon answered. "But effort and results don't correspond linearly."
"What do you mean?"
Mio explained. "Effort is a necessary condition. But not a sufficient condition."
"Hard to understand."
"Without effort, you absolutely won't succeed. But with effort, you don't necessarily succeed."
Haru pondered. "Then why make effort?"
"Good question," Simon smiled.
Mio answered quietly. "Not for results, but for the process."
"Process?"
"Through effort, you grow. That's the reward."
Haru had doubts. "But I want results too."
"Naturally," Simon said. "Seeking results itself isn't bad."
"Then?"
"Being too attached to results makes you lose the meaning of effort."
Mio supplemented. "Results can only be partially controlled."
"Can't be controlled?"
"You can control effort. But results are also influenced by luck and environment."
Simon asked philosophically. "So what should you control?"
Haru thought. "...The effort itself?"
"Yes. Stoic philosopher Epictetus said to distinguish between what you can control and what you can't."
"Distinguish..."
Mio continued. "Wanting results is natural. But depending happiness on results makes you unstable."
"So what should I do?"
"Find value in effort itself," Simon answered.
Haru understood a little. "But isn't that consolation?"
"Maybe consolation," Mio admitted. "But also truth."
"Truth?"
"Skills, experience, self-understanding gained through effort... they don't disappear."
Simon gave an example. "From this audition, what did you learn?"
Haru thought. "...My weaknesses. Areas to improve. The feeling on stage."
"That's the reward."
"But I wanted to pass."
"Of course," Mio said. "That frustration is also important."
"Frustration?"
"It becomes motivation for next time."
Simon nodded. "Whether effort pays off depends on definition."
"Definition?"
"If you define 'pays off' as 'getting desired results,' it sometimes doesn't pay off. But if you define it as 'growing,' it always pays off."
Haru laughed. "Sounds like wordplay."
"But important," Mio said. "Words create reality."
"Create reality?"
"If you think 'it didn't pay off,' everything feels wasted. If you think 'I grew,' you see meaning."
Simon said finally. "Effort is not investment toward results, but investment in yourself."
Haru took a deep breath. "Then I'll try hard next time too."
"Why?" Mio asked.
"Because I want to grow. Though I want results too."
"That's balance," Simon smiled.
"Effort pays off. Just not necessarily in the expected form," Mio said quietly.
Outside the window, the sunset descends. Traces of effort always remain. In changed forms.
"How it pays off, I decide," Haru murmured.
"Exactly," the two answered.