Episode 92 – The Play (2)

The Play (2)

Two hours before the start of the play [The Bard].

Elise was looking down at the first floor from the second floor of the Palette Theater.

Endex was on the verge of bursting. Even in the evening, when the dusk slowly descended, the streetlights were bright, and people were everywhere – inside buildings, in parks, on lawns, at street stalls, everywhere.

“Elly! They’re about to start letting people in! It’s a full house!”

Layla, who was next to her, was bouncing around.

The 600 pre-sold tickets and the 1,600 tickets sold on-site. They were sold out.

Almost all of the remaining 100 VIP seats were occupied, so in front of the theater now were luxury cars, a red carpet, bodyguards, and reporters lined up.

It was fitting for the festival of Edsilla’s top prestigious magic school.

“……Where’s Shion?”

Elise asked about Shion Ascal first.

“He just arrived! But he’s in the dressing room right now.”

“Is that so? That’s a relief.”

As time passed and the event approached, Elise became more anxious.

Could Shion Ascal perform the play well?

Realistically, it’s tough. Some people have only memorized a few lines and screams after practicing every day for two weeks.

Right here.

“……Layla. You’ve memorized all your lines, right?”

She asked out of sudden anxiety. Layla looked at her incredulously.

“Elly, stop biting your nails. You seem more nervous than me?”

“……”

She kept biting her nails. It was a habit she had barely corrected when she was young. This is the first time she has been so psychologically cornered recently, other than PTSD.

“What’s Shion doing in the dressing room? Makeup?”

“The makeup is all done. But Shion said he needs to prepare a bit more. He said something about jogging his Memory… Oh, I’m nervous.”

“……”

He was the one who confidently said that he didn’t need to memorize the lines.

Still, the Duke only appears in the second act. He has a little more leeway if he needs time than the other actors.

About 30 minutes?

“……Start getting ready now. You too, Layla.”

The final rehearsal is impossible, anyway. Thanks to some useless guy who got hit by a car on the day of the play, just five hours before the start. He should have been hit earlier if he was going to get hit. He should have just died.

“Yeah. Oh, Asher and Kain are here too. Should I call them for a bit?”

“No.”

Elise shook her head.

“I have to become the Bard. So can you leave me alone?”

Method acting. She plans to slowly immerse herself into the script from now on.

______________________________________________________________________

In the actor’s dressing room of the Palette Theater. I’m sitting alone, looking in the mirror.

The reflection in it is similar to the Duke in my Memory.

I asked for the makeup to be done that way on purpose. Even while drawing a picture.

“The face looks pretty good.”

The man who played the Duke in this [The Bard] in the past became an overnight star in the musical world with just the role of the Duke.

His Duke was so fiery, inscrutable, mysterious, cold, and charming.

Now I have to follow him. I have to go on stage and Manifest his Duke through Method acting.

“……Phew.”

It’s going to be difficult. It’s going to be complicated. As a regressor, I wonder why I’m even doing this play.

Anyway, Duke is a complex character. His very existence is vital.

In the play, Bard starts by killing the Minister of Internal Affairs, then a baron, a prince, a queen, and a king. Still, he confronts Duke in the final bloody palace and has a bold conversation.

Through this conversation, Bard realizes.

That Duke was the one who killed Bard’s mother.

That he recognized the Bard at first sight.

And yet, the Duke used him to kill the king and queen, to swallow up the kingdom.

Enraged, the Bard fights Duke and pushes him to the brink of death, but then, as the final twist and ultimate climax…

Please enjoy the rest in the theater.

“Ah, I’m annoyed.”

Suddenly, I was irritated. A sigh slipped out. I resented Miller.

“That crazy guy should have just taken the subway.”

Why did he have to drive in this traffic? What kind of trouble is this because of him? Playing an actor that’s not even in my destiny…

Let’s just focus.

Resenting him won’t bring that college bastard, no, that college boy back to life. Of course, he’s not dead but in the hospital.

I wish he would just die.

“……Tsk.”

More importantly, is there any coffee?

Even instant coffee would be nice. It would be good to have a cup of coffee.

While I was looking around the waiting room.

Knock knock-

─Shion! There’s an hour left until the play starts! The audience is coming in now!

Layla said from outside the door.

─Are you ready~?

“Ah, I’m ready. Hey. Can you bring me a cup of coffee?”

─Huh! Coffee! Got it!

Layla quickly disappeared and then quickly reappeared, flinging the door open.

“Here’s your coffee! Café latte……”

She offered me the coffee and looked at me. Her eyes slowly widened. She shuddered. The coffee in her hand sloshed.

I asked.

“What. What’s wrong?”

“……You’re not Shion! Who are you!”

Suddenly, Layla yelled.

“Are you crazy?”

I snatched the coffee from Layla’s hand.

“……What. Are you really Shion?”

Those suspicious eyes scanned me up and down, then she pursed her lips and made a smile-like expression.

“Oh wow…… when you dress up, you’re kind of-”

“Shut up and get out. Let me focus.”

“-Aaah!”

I chased Layla out. I put the latte on the table.

Let’s do the doping before the play starts.

______________________________________________________________________

SETABLAX. The windows are all enchanted so that you can’t see inside from the outside. Still, from the inside, you can clearly see outside—even magnified like a magnifying glass. It’s a luxury enchanted sedan.

Jade changes dozens of sedans depending on his mood that day, and this one is particularly favored on the ground.

“Like roaches.”

Inside, Jade muttered as he looked out the car window at Endex’s correctional facility.

There are a lot of people.

Like cockroaches emerging from their eggs, Endex during the festival season was swarming not only with families, lovers, and tourists, but also journalists.

Self-proclaimed ‘celebrities’ who visited their alma mater, Endex, were also a common sight. They seemed to be escorted by bodyguards, but to the ‘real aristocrat’ Jade, they were just noisy.

The fuss made by these insignificant nobodies was irritating. Their moving limbs, brushing clothes, smiles revealing teeth, all of these things annoyed Jade.

“Sir Jade, there are many cameras and journalists.”

The chauffeur said, slowing down the sedan.

“I know.”

He wanted to just get out, but the rules of the family were absolute.

The Libra clan should never become the subject of mere media or mass communication.

For that sole purpose, an artifact was developed, invented, and advanced solely by Libra.

“Stop at an appropriate place.”

In other words, ‘choose a point that you can become the center of attention.’

“Yes.”

The chauffeur, understanding perfectly, slowly moved the sedan right in front of the VIP red carpet.

Jade fiddled with the necklace in his pocket.

The top-tier diamond artifact, ‘Sea Mist of Heaven.’

When worn, no camera, whether it’s a smartphone, lens, or film, can capture the wearer’s figure. It only appears as a faint mist.

The reason why no media can find a photo of a direct descendant of Libra is all thanks to this artifact.

For Jade, it was a ‘reason.’

“It’s suffocating.”

Jade muttered as he put on the necklace. He was dissatisfied with this constraint. Leaving the flawless appearance of Libra for future generations should also be a duty of an aristocrat leading the nation.

Even though the eldest son, eldest daughter, and youngest child were highly reluctant to engage in external activities, Jade was the only one who especially liked to roam outside.

“I’ll get off.”

Five minutes before the start of the play. Jade spoke when he felt that the outside attention had somewhat concentrated.

“Yes.”

The chauffeur got off first.

Kyaaa-

A tremendous admiration and cheer slightly seeped in as the front door opened and closed. Jade smirked.

Soon, the chauffeur opened the back door for him. Jade got off as calmly as usual. There was a red carpet right in front of him. As soon as he stepped on it, the whole area fell silent. They were shocked by his appearance.

As Jade took his second step-

───Kyaaaaaaa!

A cheer close to a scream rang out. There were screams purely praising him.

The commoners on earth were vulgar and pitiful. Still, such an experience should occasionally be allowed as a reward for their trivial labor and life like a hamster wheel.

Jade walked the red carpet more like a model than a model.

“Sir Jade, this way.”

The bodyguards hired by Endex guided him to his seat. It was a well-decorated VIP seat.

As expected of his alma mater. The treatment of guests was not bad for a high school festival.

As soon as Jade sat down, the self-proclaimed celebs flocked to him.

“Sir Jade, you really came?”

“It’s an honor. Do you remember the incident with the Knights last week?”

“Sir Jade, you are always perfect whenever I see you…….”

There were successors of large corporations, renowned knights, and movie actors who often appeared on the screen.

It seemed like they had gathered people of a similar class, but they were all infinitely trivial compared to Libra.

“Sir Jade. I heard that the Libra Knights are holding a selection process these days. Are you choosing a direct escort knight?”

“That’s correct.”

“I heard that the Limto mine is about to reopen. It seems like a tremendous amount of mana stones will be produced. Congratulations.”

“An estimated 100 million tons.”

While Jade was casually responding to small talk,

…Click.

The sound of a switch being flipped echoed, and the stage went dark. The chatter of the audience gradually subsided.

Jade rested his hand on his chin nonchalantly. The play hadn’t even started yet, but he checked his wristwatch.

Only one minute had passed.

Whooooosh───

The sound of the wind blowing could be heard, and as the stage lit up, the silver curtain imbued with mana began to display the scenery.

Everywhere the eye could see transformed into a park.

A pond sprang up, and the park was filled with the chirping of birds.

In the middle of it all, an actress made her appearance. With each click-clack of her footsteps, her aura rippled.

A woman of such elegance and beauty that even Jade raised an eyebrow.

Elise Petra.

Her presence captivated the audience’s attention.