Firefly Light

Guided by police officers and Pro Hero Steel Gate Rikishi, residents lined up in an orderly fashion. Most of them took out their mobile phones at a simple table on the right side of the entrance, showed the staff their online ticket purchase records, and received their tickets from him.

Many people also suddenly had the idea to see the performance. They took out their money, handed it to the government staff sitting behind the table, and then passed through the gate one by one after receiving their tickets.

Because of the clown who had just appeared, the residents readily paid their fees, and some even opted for expensive VIP seats. They were eagerly anticipating some surprises from the circus.

The first person to pay put the ticket in his breast pocket, walked impatiently to the tightly closed door, took a deep breath, and pushed it open forcefully.

A dense forest appeared before him, blocking the view of the castle-like tent with its central yellow light. At his feet was a cobblestone path leading into the depths of the forest.

The moment he stepped onto the cobblestone path, small blue lights suddenly lit up on both sides of the path, forming two seemingly endless parallel lines that reflected a blue hue onto his face.

He had been to Oumagadoki Park before, but he swore there was never anything like this before. In other words, was this blue path created by the circus?

One reason why Oumagadoki Park is unpopular with citizens is that the park entrance is surrounded by trees and has no lights at night. Just like its name suggests, in the quiet night, people always feel that there are demons inside. Apart from some children who want to test their courage, no one wants to come here to be afraid.

They really put a lot of thought into these small details so as not to scare the children.

The first audience member smiled slightly, like Hansel and Gretel in the fairy tale who guided the way with breadcrumbs, and walked along the faintly blue-glowing path toward the large tent that seemed like a warm home...

"Okay, I understand..." The Snake Woman listened to the voice coming from the walkie-talkie, then turned it off and excitedly said, "Director, two-thirds of the tickets for tonight have been sold, and the number is still increasing!"

"Wow, that's great!" Everyone on the stage cheered.

Jilan walked up to the clown who hadn't removed his makeup yet, and said with a smile, "Jiancao- jun, thanks to you, we've achieved a small goal!"

If two-thirds of the audience can come to watch for three consecutive days, then at the very least, the performance won't lose money.

Diduo Chengjie ran over, his face beaming with excitement, and said, "Earman, you're amazing! I could hear the applause from the audience at the door! No wonder you used to be Magician!"

The clown who was performing outside just now was Jiancao Erren. His Quirk is "Transforming Paint," which allows him to conjure up paint of various colors out of thin air and to deform and expand it.

Before becoming a member of the band, he performed magic on the street and was very popular. In order to increase people's desire to buy tickets, he volunteered to perform on the street. After communicating with the police at the entrance, he rehearsed such a good show in less than 20 minutes.

Jiancao Erren laughed and replied, "Well, that's just a little trick. I only helped out a little. Your performance is the main event."

That's right. The audience has been entering the park one after another, and the first person is about to approach the tent. They're not here to see the clowns' street performance, but to see the circus.

Jilan Jiyu made a phone call to Yaoyorozu, "You two, a large number of spectators are on their way, remember to be prepared."

Two people stood at the entrance of the tent: Momo Yaoyorozu and Itsuka Kendo. They were both dressed in well-fitting cheongsams and were in charge of greeting guests.

Yaoyorozu looked at Kendo, who was excitedly peering out of the tent, and sighed helplessly, "Jilan, I just realized we came to watch the performance, not to help out..."

Jilan's calm voice came through the microphone. "But didn't you ask for it yourself?"

Originally, Jilan hadn't prepared any pre-show performances or greeters due to a shortage of manpower, intending to let the audience find their own seats with their tickets, just like in a movie theater. However, Yaoyorozu and Kendo suddenly felt anxious when they saw the Soul Band around them already tuning their instruments and the actors going over their lines for the last time. They offered to help, and after a brief moment of thought, Jilan assigned the two of them to be greeters.

"Do you regret it? Actually, the welcoming job wasn't necessary; it could have been eliminated."

"Regret? Not at all..." Yaoyorozu suddenly said, "After it's over, you have to treat me to dinner."

Jilan dislikes owing favors to others, so she was more than happy to accept Yaoyorozu Jilan's offer.

The first audience member entered, and Yaoyorozu and Kendo simultaneously greeted him with smiles, "Welcome to the Oumagadoki Circus."

Qiyuan Yūko watched her mother laugh incessantly during the clown performance, and a smile crept onto her own lips. After buying tickets with her mother, they entered the park.

Because they decided to see the performance at the very last minute, by the time the ticket checker reached them, there weren't many people left behind them. As they stepped onto the pale blue path, Yūko thought of that famous fairy tale.

"It's a pity there are no breadcrumbs..." And, Mom is right beside me... Yūko thought to herself, a smile unconsciously spreading across her face, and she suddenly felt a little more relaxed.

Suddenly, Mrs. Qiyuan waved her little hand, which was clasped with Yūko's, and exclaimed excitedly, "Yūko, look! Fireflies!"

Yūko looked up in surprise and saw a group of small insects flashing green light gradually approaching her. She unconsciously stopped in her tracks.

As if with a precise target, the fireflies came to Yūko and began to circle around her.

Yūko carefully raised her index finger, and a firefly, as if understanding her body language, gently landed on it.

Fireflies... It's rare to see even a single firefly at night, let alone a swarm. This kind of sight can only be seen in places like the very green Oumagadoki Park.

A girl, so adorable at first glance that you can't help but want to cherish her, stands on blue pebbles. A swarm of glowing fireflies surrounds her, and one even lands on her finger. The surroundings are utterly silent, save for a gentle breeze that softly stirs her hair. In that instant, the girl is like a Disney princess, as beautiful as a painting.

Even though they could have gone around her, the people behind Yūko stopped in surprise, speechless at the sight. After a long pause, they finally managed to stammer, "This little girl is so popular with the fireflies..."

It would be even better if I could take off my shoes and let my bare feet step onto the cool pebbles...

Yūko snapped out of her daze after hearing their words. She realized that the reason the fireflies were surrounding her was probably because the hormones she unconsciously emitted were attracting them.

Yūko's heart suddenly felt lighter, and the troubles of the day seemed to vanish in an instant.

Even though my Quirk brings me a lot of trouble, at least... fireflies like it!

That's enough.

"--Click"

A sudden white light shone on the girl, startling the fireflies, which fluttered around in the air like headless flies, quickly moving away from her.

Mrs. Qiyuan turned around with displeasure. "Who do you think you are? Don't you know you need someone's permission before taking a picture? Besides, your picture has scared all the fireflies away!"

Not only Mrs. Qiyuan, but even the audience behind them cast disapproving glances at the person taking the photos indiscriminately.

A young man with a camera hanging around his neck awkwardly put it down and explained nervously, "Sorry, I just felt it would be a shame not to take a picture of such a beautiful scene, so I just instinctively..."

The young man was a reporter from a newspaper. He had come to interview the circus ringmaster after the performance. He wasn't interested in the circus at all, but he hadn't refused the job assigned to him by his superior because he was a newcomer. He only became interested after watching the clown performance, so he was at the end of the line.

Just as he said, he was simply attracted by the beauty, and it was out of a pursuit of beauty that he subconsciously took photos.

"I don't believe you! You look like a shifty-eyed thief. Are you eyeing my Yūko? You little lecher!" Mrs. Qiyuan didn't believe him at all. She rolled up her sleeves and stormed towards him!

"Madam, I'm telling the truth!" he hurriedly explained, but this did nothing to quell Mrs. Qiyuan's anger. The surrounding spectators were also angered by the man and did not step forward to stop him, watching the scene coldly.

The young man knew he had done wrong, so he covered his face, closed his eyes, and prepared to accept the punishment he deserved. Just as Mrs. Qiyuan was about to punch him, Yūko's voice rang out.

"Mom, don't do it, let's just let it go." Yūko tugged at Mrs. Qiyuan's sleeve, smiled at the young man, "I think this older brother didn't do it on purpose, I believe him."

The young man opened his eyes upon hearing these words, and seeing Yūko's healing smile, his heart seemed to melt instantly.

This girl not only looks like a princess, but her heart is also as pure as a princess's. No wonder the fireflies swarm around her; she is the embodiment of a princess!!!

Completely disregarding his own dignity, the young man suddenly knelt on the ground in a dogeza (a traditional Chinese swearing posture), placed his hands on the ground as a pillow, and said with tears streaming down his face, "Madam, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to!"

He wasn't begging Mrs. Qiyuan for forgiveness; he was practically kneeling before his princess!

"... Tch, fine, I'll let you off this time." Mrs. Qiyuan looked at his sincere apology, but in the end, she didn't throw a punch. She took Yūko's hand and turned to leave. "Yūko, let's hurry, the performance is about to start."

Those around seemed to realize something upon hearing this and hurriedly followed suit.

The man remained kneeling on the ground, his body trembling.