The curtain slowly rose, and the three members of the Wings of Freedom stood back-to-back on the lift.
Kohinata held her hammer upright on the stage with one hand, while Night Sakura's long-handled umbrella was half-open, its fringed edges swaying gently in the breeze. Standing beside Kohinata, Amamiya had already unsheathed her twin kodachi, crossing them in front of her with the tips pointing downward.
The clamor of the audience gradually quieted down.
“Hello, everyone! We are—the Wings of Freedom!” Their three voices rang out in unison.
“Spread your wings and fly to where the light reaches. Protecting your dreams with magic! The Wings of Freedom have arrived!”
As cheers erupted from the crowd, Night Sakura stepped to the front of the stage. She lightly tapped the tip of her umbrella against the edge of the stage, leaning forward slightly.
“Our first song today is dedicated to all the nights that went unrecognized, and to everyone—” She spun around, fully opening her umbrella. The gold patterns embroidered on the deep purple fabric shimmered brilliantly under the lights. “—who has decided to take flight on their own.”
Shizuru sat next to Rei with Nuomi resting on her lap. Nuomi wanted to wag its tail to the rhythm of the music, but she gently held it down.
She looked away from the stage and scanned the rows of spectators, her eyes sweeping across the back rows several times. She felt that Lightweaver should be here to watch the performance, yet she couldn't find that familiar figure anywhere.
Noticing her distraction, Rei leaned over and nudged her elbow. “Are you looking for someone? Is it Kurokawa? I sent her a message earlier, and she's already on her way.”
“No, I was just checking to see if the seats were full.” Shizuru withdrew her gaze and looked back at the stage.
Rei stood on her tiptoes, leaning half her body out to wave vigorously toward the aisle. The newly bought woven bracelet on her wrist jingled gently with her movements.
Yuki stood at the entrance of the audience section, cradling three bottles of drinks in her arms. She searched the crowd for a moment, and only after spotting Rei's raised hand did she squeeze through the aisle.
“I saved the best seat for you, right in the middle!” Rei patted the empty seat next to her. “Senior Shizuru just said this spot has the best view, and you won't get blocked by the rows in front or behind.”
Rei took the drink Yuki handed her, her eyes peering past Yuki's shoulder to look behind her.
“Huh? Where's Tian Gong? Didn't you two come together? I specifically saved an extra seat, thinking you'd definitely show up together. I walked in with her this morning, so how did she disappear this afternoon?”
“She's resting in the nurse's office,” Yuki said, sitting down in the empty seat next to Rei.
“The nurse's office?” Rei almost jumped out of her seat, but Yuki gently pressed down on her shoulder.
“It's just indigestion. She's fine now and is currently resting. She told me to come ahead because she didn't want to miss the Wings of Freedom's performance.”
Rei wanted to ask more, but the music on stage suddenly changed tempo, dragging her attention right back.
She immediately turned back to the stage, raising her glow stick and waving it enthusiastically to the beat.
On the other side, Lightweaver pushed open the side door to the audience seating. She kept her head low as she slipped past the rows of spectators, sitting down next to Misa Tachibana.
Seeing Lightweaver sit down, Misa Tachibana turned her head slightly. “Is your friend okay?”
“She's fine now. I let her rest in the nurse's office.” Lightweaver leaned back in her chair, her gaze drifting toward the wings of the stage. The three members of the Wings of Freedom were standing together, with Kohinata still clutching her hammer, its head resting on the floor by her feet.
She seemed completely relaxed now, standing on her tiptoes to peer into the crowd, probably counting how many people were in the audience.
“They're in great shape today.” Misa Tachibana followed Lightweaver's gaze toward the side of the stage. “I was cheering them on backstage before they went on, but they all complained I was being too wordy. They said, 'Store Owner, if you keep talking, we're going to be late.'”
“Night Sakura, Night Sakura! Look at that girl holding up our support board! Her sign has chibi portraits of the three of us! She drew my hammer so big!”
She tugged at Night Sakura's sleeve, nearly wrenching the umbrella handle out of her hand.
“I see it, I see it. She even drew Amamiya as a cat.”
Night Sakura switched the umbrella handle to her other hand, taking half a step closer to Kohinata. She lowered her voice and spoke into her microphone. “Though I don't think it looks much like her. Since when is Amamiya that cute?”
“Who are you calling not cute?” Kohinata immediately let go of her sleeve.
“I'm saying Amamiya isn't as cute as the cat drawing.”
“So you're saying Amamiya isn't cute?” Kohinata pressed half a step forward, looking up at Night Sakura.
“I mean the cat drawing is just too cute. It far exceeds the original.”
Standing on Kohinata's other side, Amamiya cut off their bickering. “You two, arguing about this on stage...”
Their banter made the atmosphere in the gymnasium both lively and relaxed.
Qiluo sat in the corner, quietly listening to the cheers and support from the audience.
【Amamiya is clearly super cute!】
Ah, that was an Amamiya fan.
【Did anyone ask? Is Lightweaver not here?】
And even a fan of mine?
【Mommy!】
What in the world?
Seeing that the mood was just right, Night Sakura wrapped up the bickering with her teammates.
“Alright, alright. First, let's introduce ourselves—I am Night Sakura, the leader of the Wings of Freedom, responsible for tactical command and intelligence analysis.”
She bowed slightly as she finished, prompting a wave of organized applause and cheers from the crowd.
“I'm Kohinata! The Striker of the Wings of Freedom!” Kohinata raised her hammer with one hand and gave it a wave.
The hammerhead flashed under the ceiling lights. Perhaps thinking it didn't look cool enough, she put more muscle into it, but overdid it. The momentum of the heavy hammer pulled her forward, causing her to stumble half a step.
She quickly dug her other foot into the ground to regain her balance, then planted the hammer back down as if nothing had happened.
A mix of applause and shouts of “So cute!” erupted from the audience.
“Amamiya, main damage dealer,” Amamiya said. “No comment on the cat part those two were talking about just now.”
“Actually, standing here today, we want to share something very happy with everyone.” Night Sakura folded her umbrella and held the handle with both hands. “Yesterday, we completed a mission together with other Magical Girls. Although the process was a bit thrilling, everyone returned safely.”
“And it was also our first time fighting alongside others,” Kohinata took over. “We used to only act as a trio, but fighting together with everyone this time taught us a lot and helped us make new friends.”
“So our first song today is dedicated to the companions who fought alongside us yesterday. Although we come from different places and hold different stances—” Night Sakura fully opened her umbrella, its deep purple canopy casting a soft glow under the lights. “—when facing the Erosion Bodies, we are all on the same side.”
Rate on N.U.
