August 31st

August 31st

On a platform built above the clouds, Shiko and the giraffe stood at opposite ends, facing each other.

"For some reason, I'm not surprised at all," Shiko said.

The giraffe lowered its head slightly, and its seemingly eternal gaze met Shiko's.

Its shadow stretched out and overlapped with Shiko's, like a whisper.

"I've always been here." Its mouth did not move, yet its voice echoed in Shiko's mind. It was a voice that concealed irrepressible delight beneath its calmness.

"Is that so?" Shiko's mouth opened a little wider. "Then I was careless."

A fierce wind howled.

"Then, the 'broken fantasy' is..."

"Exactly what it sounds like." The giraffe remained motionless, like a specimen. "Reality is no longer reality, so it ceases to exist. Look."

Shiko gazed into the distance. At the end of the void, she seemed to see the glimmering waves of the sea coming from the outside world.

"What will happen to me after everything disappears?"

Shiko lowered her head and searched the ground for CiRCLE, Starry, Shuka High School, Seisho, Haneoka, Hanasakigawa, and Tsukinomori. She found some, but not others.

"You'll see what the other you saw. That's all."

Starry fell into the void. Shiko remembered that she still had not said her final farewells to the owner and the others.

"Then why did you appear here, in this place?" She did not turn around. Unhurriedly, she waited for the next landmark to disappear.

The next one should be Shuka.

The giraffe's voice came from behind her, equally unhurried. "The actors of Wi(l)d-Screen Baroque failed to arrive on time."

Only then did Shiko turn around. "I didn't expect the audience to travel such a long way just to drag the actors back to the set."

"Exactly. The continuation of a performance enacted by Stage Girls. The audience is waiting."

Shiko smiled. "I understand."

"They aren't on the stage right now. They're in the wilderness." The giraffe continued, "There are no seats for an audience there, either. I can't reach that place."

"But this place is different." The giraffe lowered its head until it was almost in front of Shiko's face. "It was originally part of the 'wilderness,' but because of you, it gained some of the properties of a 'stage.'"

"Because of the other me's abilities?"

"And you. Because of the two of you, I managed to buy an unauthorized standing-room ticket." The giraffe pulled its head back and once again looked down at Shiko from its original position. "But now, I'm about to be discovered. That's because of you, too."

Shiko was speechless. "If you hadn't stayed hidden for so long... Forget it. If you can remain here, can you take the Stage Girls back?"

"I only need a tiny opportunity."

"What about the others?"

"Of course. Although they don't belong to the same stage, they've also put on countless dazzling and colorful performances."

Shiko smiled freely. "Then there's no need to hesitate."

Shiko awoke surrounded by everyone.

"Shiko!" Ichiri, who had always been passive, was the first to throw her arms around Shiko this time. Shiko's PTSD almost flared up. However, judging from Ichiri's eyes, she did not seem about to lose control again.

"Which Wu-san is it?" Yukina asked.

Shiko extended her left hand, and a talisman appeared.

"Don't worry. She's fine." Shiko stood up. "I should soon be able to find a way for her not to cause trouble or hurt herself."

"Um, Ichiri..." She turned toward Ichiri. With everyone watching, Shiko felt too embarrassed to bring up what had happened before. But Ichiri seemed to have realized it already. Her expression changed, and before Shiko could stop her, she slipped through a gap in the crowd and quickly fled the scene. Shiko looked around at everyone, hesitated where she stood, and finally took half a step forward, about to chase after her.

Several people moved aside to clear a path for her.

At that moment, Shiko's expression suddenly changed.

At the top of the clouds.

Shiko stopped behind Shiko.

"What are you going to do?"

Shiko turned around.

"If this continues, the world will collapse, and she"—she pointed at the giraffe behind Shiko—"won't be able to remain here. And only if she stays here can she help us return to reality."

"So I'm going to fall asleep and let my consciousness enter a state of stagnation, maintaining this world's existence."

Shiko was about to say something, but Shiko waved a hand and stopped her. "This is necessary. If we rely only on our own strength, how would we be any different from those failed predecessors? We would only fail again. The giraffe's power is indispensable."

Shiko turned back in confusion and looked at the motionless giraffe, then at the calm Shiko.

"Then how long will it take?"

"Until we return to reality."

"You mean Ichiri might never see you again?" Shiko shook her head. "No."

"Then there's nothing more to say?"

"There's nothing more to say."

The two stood back to back. At the same moment, starlight gathered in their hands and formed a long sword. A shoulder cape appeared on each of them, fastened to their shoulders with a cord and button—one red, the other blue.

At the same moment, they turned around. Shiko held her long sword horizontally before her chest and sang out her own lines:

"The most dazzling starry sky changes in countless ways,"

"I will protect the radiance of every moment."

The long sword left a pale pink trail through the air, outlining the shape of a constellation.

"Shuka High School Drama Club, Wu Shiko."

"I can offer everything to all the stars!"

Shiko flourished her sword and immediately answered:

"The most dazzling starry sky will never lack a single star,"

"I will protect every wisp of faint light."

Black energy appeared on the long sword. The gale blew it toward Shiko, forming a straight path.

"Kessoku Band, Wu Shiko."

"If you're going to sacrifice yourself, I'll stop you."

"Because you're a star, too!"

There was no exaggerated rain of steel, nor any earth-shaking tremor. There was only the crossing of sword blades. In midair, only one button flew up.

The shoulder cape slipped from her body and was carried into the blue sky by the gale, departing like a bird.

"Position 0." Shiko sneered. "You were fighting all this time, yet I defeated you with one move?"

Shiko tried to catch the cord as it slid downward, but it flew away through her fingers.

She gave a helpless laugh. "I've been holding back against you this whole time."

"So that's how it is." Shiko took a step forward and leaned against Shiko's shoulder. "Then hold back against me one more time."

Shiko gently stroked her head.

Shiko closed her eyes and quietly savored the moment.

"Summer vacation is ending," she said regretfully.

"Then wait for the next summer vacation." Shiko promised her beside her ear, "It won't be long. When the next summer vacation comes, you can play as much as you want, with no time limit."

"Mm." A wistful smile touched Shiko's lips. "This summer vacation was so much fun."

"...That's good."

"Are you going to school tomorrow? Help me pass a message to them... As for what to say, you can decide for yourself. You're me, anyway."

"...Mm."

"What else was there... Oh, right. I have one more song. I've only written half of it. Help me finish it." Shiko took a notebook from her clothing and handed it to Shiko.

Shiko accepted the notebook. "Then I'll also write only half of a song by then, and let you finish it."

"Okay... It's a promise..." Shiko's voice grew weaker. "When the time comes... you come out during the day, and I come out at night. We'll take turns..."

"But whenever Ichiri and I go back to our hometown, you have to hand control over to me. I'm the one who promised her."

"Hehe... What a cheater... Am I not you?"

"Then we'll see what Ichiri says."

"Okay... What else..." Shiko realized that she seemed to have many things left to say, things she had never said. Using the last of her strength, she searched through her thoughts and memories, then said everything she found.

"Oh, right... I just remembered. I didn't actually need to break the fantasy... I only had to say that I had a second personality..."

"...Heh. Then why did you say it?"

"It was just... going with the flow. The atmosphere was right... Forget it. It doesn't matter."

"And one more thing... The giraffe gave me a map... Here, take it." Shiko weakly tapped Shiko's forehead. A map of the entire wilderness, including the locations of everyone within it, appeared in Shiko's mind.

"Thank you," Shiko said. The map would be a huge help.

"Why thank yourself..."

"And... I think that's all..." Shiko's words were nearly delirious. "There really isn't much to say to myself... If I were speaking to them... I'd probably have many more things to say..."

"I'll say them for you." Shiko forced down the lump in her voice. She knew the time was almost here.

"Then... Ah, I remember." A smile curved Shiko's lips. "I ferried them across... I ferried the girls I love most to the future of this planet..."

Shiko's nose stung. "Even now, you're still thinking about making a pun?"

"It's role-playing... Role-playing... I... am just..."

Shiko's final words were swallowed by the sound of the wind. Her breathing was calm and peaceful.

She slept soundly.

(End of Volume Two)

Afterword to Volume Two

First of all, thank you all for reading this far!

Thank you to everyone who voted for recommendations, cast monthly votes, or sent gifts! Thank you, Suifeng Piaoluo, Commander, Wuming Wuwei, Bookworm 1973412, Bookworm 37877538688, Bai Junlang, Xi Ye, Ai~??, Zhuque Gui Manlong, Fondant Toast, Sakura's Ally of Justice, Red Arrow-12, Yog-Williams, Zhiai, Bookworm ×333, Bookworm 64205251755, and Passing Unidentified Flying Object! Your support has truly given me a great deal of encouragement! Thank you!

The title of this volume comes from the lyrics of Avant-garde HISTORY: "Sing while carrying your pain." I felt it suited everyone's state after losing Miss Marina.

When reflecting on the first volume, I felt that it lacked a clear plotline. So, while advancing the main plot in Volume Two, I also tried adding a smaller plotline belonging to this volume. At the time, I happened to be obsessed with Summer Pockets, so I tried imitating its sort of story: "Spend a brilliant and dazzling everyday life with your friends, then face the tragedy that is bound to come with a smile." Looking back from my current perspective, this volume still has quite a few problems, but at least it's much better than the first volume. I'm confident about that.

However, I got a little too carried away while writing the ending chapters, and added somewhat too many SP elements. Although I did my best to revise them afterward, I'm still worried that they might affect readers who haven't played SP's understanding of the plot... But no matter what, there won't be anything like that later on. qwq

For the ending of Shiko's second personality, I drew inspiration from the ending of The End of the Stars. After finishing it, I sent it to a friend to read. Looking at this chapter alone, he said it had a certain "Squid" feel to it... Hehe, I was delighted by that comment for a long time, though he has always rated my book a little too highly... In any case, I'm quite satisfied with it. I wonder what all of you think?

In this volume, the relationship I put the most effort into shaping throughout the entire book—the triangle between Ichiri, Kita, and Shiko—finally began to take shape. I can guarantee how twisted and sweet this relationship will become later. Kita's leg-trap and Shiko's Blade were easily the two chapters I had the most fun writing in the entire volume. Although Shiko's Blade was still 1,000 characters shorter than the legendary Telephone Porridge Shimamura Blade, I think it achieved the effect I wanted. As for the other pairings, such as the twins and Shiko and Yukina, I managed to give them some attention as well.

At the end, the members of Revue Starlight finally made an appearance, too—although they weren't Stage Girls...

I've mentioned the things I'm relatively satisfied with. Now I'll talk about some areas that still fell short.

Each short arc was too brief. This directly caused the word count of this volume to remain roughly the same as the first volume instead of increasing. It wasn't until the final arc that I suddenly had an epiphany and learned to control the pacing. Thanks to that, Volume Three ended up being roughly twice as long as Volume Two.

Moreover, the short arcs were not connected closely enough, causing the structure to resemble an anthology series. Volume Three also improves on this issue. Although it still has an anthology-like structure, the different arcs are connected much more smoothly.

As for the results... all I can say is, "Sigh." These days, I don't even necessarily gain a few new bookmarks in a day, and there still aren't many readers following the updates. I tried promoting it on Tieba, but the status of female-protagonist novels there... those who know, know. There's no hope of putting it on sale. Whatever. I'll just keep writing it like this. As long as I occasionally get a comment, I'm already satisfied. (Come to think of it, with only twenty readers following the updates, I probably couldn't even build a reader group...)

To sum up, although Volume Two has some problems, it also contains the single chapter I'm most satisfied with so far. Overall, it's probably decent.

As for Volume Three, Embrace Hope and Sing of That Twisted Vow, it contains both the short arc and the long arc I'm most satisfied with so far. Please look forward to it.

By the way, here's a little aside:

The day after uploading Shiko's Blade, I happened to watch episode twelve of GBC. When I got up that morning, I saw that Shiko's Blade, which I had put so much effort into writing, had received absolutely no response. Whether comments, votes, bookmarks, or views, nothing had moved at all. It dealt me a huge blow at the time, just like Nina seeing that the song they had worked so hard to write had only 103 plays. Yet a few hours later, I saw a comment. Then I saw recommendation votes and monthly votes. I felt as though I had been redeemed. It turned out that everyone wasn't uninterested—they just hadn't read it yet... Wonderful... I hope that when episode thirteen airs, Nina can also realize that she was merely being too impatient.

When I uploaded this volume, I also happened to finish Summer Pockets. I started playing it in winter and put it aside several times over a long period, finally finishing it in summer. I have to say, it really is an outstanding work and absolutely worth playing. It had a major influence not only on this volume but also on my writing afterward. And coincidentally, Summer Pockets is getting an anime adaptation. Maybe a PV will be released on the 29th. If it really gets divine-level production, I believe that with its script quality, it will definitely become next year's top anime. When that happens, I'd like to write a fanfic dedicated to it as well. I already have the idea.