The lights on the stage dimmed, leaving only a single spotlight falling on Night Sakura.
She stood in the center of the stage. The long-handled umbrella that never left her side slowly unfurled, its deep purple canopy shimmering with gold patterns like the first stars lighting up the night sky.
Mana flowed from the tips of the umbrella ribs, condensing at her feet into a mist-like, pale purple halo. The intro rose from the tip of her umbrella. She tilted her head slightly and sang the first line.
When the chorus hit, orange mana burst from Kohinata's hammer, painting the entire stage in a burning, warm hue.
The drumbeats climbed alongside the rhythm of the hammer. Amamiya's twin kodachi swept out from the flanks, leaving trails of pale green light where the blades passed, perfectly catching the cascade of sound pouring from the tip of Night Sakura's umbrella.
The three crossed paths as they moved, their voices separating and overlapping in the chorus. It was like three winds blowing from different directions colliding, yet instead of dispersing, they swept each other up to even greater heights.
In the audience, spectators waved their glow sticks to the beat.
Night Sakura's voice surged from the front, mixing with the unique reverberation under the gymnasium dome, completely enveloping Qiluo Tian Gong.
She hadn't paid much attention during Seina's concert last time, but now she realized that using mana on stage was actually quite nice.
But as for her standing on stage and doing the same? No way!
Kizuna stood by the backstage wings, revealing only half her face and her eyes.
Yuzuki stood half a step behind her, her gaze drifting over her younger sister's head to land on the three crisscrossing figures on stage.
“Sis—they're so cool!” Kizuna's whispered voice crackled with obvious excitement. “The chemistry between the three of them is amazing. When can we sing and dance on stage like that?”
Watching her sister look as if she were about to leap out from behind the curtain, Yuzuki reached out and adjusted the shawl that had slipped from Kizuna's shoulder.
“Soon. You're the finale. Instead of envying others, you should think about how you're going to perform. Have you memorized the lyrics? Do you remember your blocking?”
“Memorized! Remembered! Won't forget!” Kizuna's eyes remained glued to the stage, but her fingers had already unconsciously drifted to her bowstring, plucking it lightly and sending a faint hum through the air.
“Lightweaver really isn't going on stage.”
Beyond the curtain, the cheers surged wave after wave as the Wings of Freedom trio's debut reached its climax.
“If Lightweaver really wanted to be an idol, she would have debuted long ago; we wouldn't be left here guessing. She's probably better suited to standing backstage, or—”
“Or what?”
“Or standing in the very back row of the audience, arms crossed, pretending she's just passing by.” Yuzuki's eyes crinkled. “And then, when some sharp-eyed person recognizes her, she'll pretend she isn't Lightweaver.”
Kizuna imagined the scene and couldn't help but laugh.
Yuzuki was still helping her adjust the sash of her stage costume, untying the bow to retie it.
Slightly squeezed by the tight sash, Kizuna let out a soft “hiss” and turned her head to look at her sister's profile.
“Sis, what exactly is this 'special segment' you mentioned? You've been so mysterious about it since yesterday. Can't you even tell me?”
“It's no big deal.” Yuzuki tightened the final loop of the bow, took half a step back to make sure it was symmetrical, and then leisurely added, “I just want to draw a member of the audience to come up and sing along.”
“Draw an audience member? How? Is it random?”
“Pretty much.” Yuzuki pulled out her phone, opened a simple mini-program, and turned the screen toward her sister. She lightly tapped her finger on a pre-marked dot of light. “See? This program will help me select a spectator.”
Kizuna looked down at the marked dot of light on the screen.
It sat there quietly, mixed in with the other spectators' dots, showing nothing out of the ordinary.
“Sis, you aren't manually selecting them from backstage, are you?”
“Of course not!”
Yuzuki pulled her phone back. “I was just testing it. After all, there are so many people today. It would be embarrassing if the system crashed during the draw. Imagine the host on stage shouting, 'Let's see who our lucky spectator is—' only for the screen to go black and the entire venue to fall silent for ten seconds. How terrifying would that be?”
She made it sound so reasonable that Kizuna almost believed her.
“Then why did you specifically tap that dot of light just now? Is there something special about it?”
“Nothing special. It's just that the signal from that dot is exceptionally stable, making it a perfect test sample.”
Kizuna stared at her sister, opening her mouth to press further, but Yuzuki reached out and pressed her shoulders, turning her back toward the stage.
“Alright, stop asking. If you keep digging, today's surprise won't be a surprise anymore. All you need to know is that your sister is going to help you fulfill a wish today.”
“My wish?” Kizuna tilted her head, her brow furrowing slightly as she tried hard to remember what wish she had ever mentioned.
She thought for a moment, and her eyes suddenly lit up. “Wait, Sis, you aren't planning to call Lightweaver up on stage, are you?”
Yuzuki pressed a finger to her lips, winked at her sister, and lowered her voice with a hint of mischievous playfulness.
“Shh—it's a surprise. It won't be fun if it's spoiled early. Besides, it's not guaranteed she'll agree to go up. That girl always has plenty of excuses. So you have to help me—if she really tries to run, block her escape from over there.”
As she spoke, she gestured with her chin toward the side door on the right side of the stage.
“Roger that!” Kizuna stood at attention, but then asked with some concern, “But Sis, are you sure she'll accept? She wouldn't even go on stage for her own organization. Making her sing... I think she'll get mad~”
“She'll definitely be annoyed, but she won't actually lose her temper. At most, she'll just stare at you with that look for a while afterward.”
“What kind of look?” Kizuna asked nervously.
“The kind where she clearly wants to say something, but in the end, says nothing, sighs, and pats your head.”
Yuzuki mimicked the gesture, reaching out to pat Kizuna's head twice.
“When the time comes, just blink and say it was your sister's idea. I'll handle the rest; I have plenty of ways anyway. And you know what? Actually—”
“Teasing the kind of person who won't actually get mad at you is the most fun. You'll understand in the future. Think about it: she's always hiding in the shadows, keeping her distance from everyone where no one can reach her.”
“But if you don't try to reach out, she'll stay in that unreachable place forever. So sometimes, you have to use a little force to drag her out, to let her know that people are looking forward to seeing her.”
Kizuna blinked, looking at the matter-of-fact expression on her sister's face, and suddenly felt a bit of sympathy for Lightweaver.
But she felt even more sympathy for herself. If Lightweaver really got angry, her sister would most likely throw her out as a shield. When that happened, she wouldn't even be able to stand straight, let alone beg for mercy.
Rate on N.U.
