Chapter 378: The Day of the Performance, Prelude

Time flew by, and the swirling shadows were hidden by the bright sunlight.

The true form of Beelzebub remained unknown; so far, no other manifestation had been found. It had spread millions of Marks of Gluttony, and the Witch of Relief had worked tirelessly for 24 hours to remove them using the “Rain of Relief” and placed a protective blessing to prevent recontamination.

But no one knew if there were other Beasts of Love or if apostles were lurking.

The next day, Ji Qianju’s prophetic poem was refreshed once more.

“Tears,” “Portrait of My Daughter,” “When a Light Shatters.”

This poem was even more difficult to understand, but just from the titles, it was clear that all their efforts over the past 24 hours had not changed the situation for the better, as if nothing could go against fate.

Especially the last prophecy poem; the tactics team of the Countermeasures Bureau unanimously believed that this broken lamp most likely referred to the current Chief of Staff, the “Lighthouse,” a popular idol, and the past savior—Chu Yuanqing.

Because of this, the upper council fell into an anxious and heavy atmosphere. After an urgent discussion, they decided to mobilize more manpower and sent a captain-level witch to help.

—Fairy Witch Dorothy.

This captain-level witch, who once killed a bishop in the Ideal State and single-handedly suppressed a riot in a forbidden area, ranked in the top three of the Countermeasures Bureau’s combat sequence, even higher than the Dragon Witch. Her Patronus Magic was “Lonely Fairytale.”

As for her specific abilities, they were a blend of concepts and rules, allowing her to ignore the strength or weakness of her enemies based on her will and preferences, transforming them into an entirely different reality filled with cute fairy tale creatures, and determining victory or defeat through games or various methods.

In short, once defeated by her, even the fierce and terrifying Grade A disaster beast would become a two-dimensional pattern in her magic book, turning into a member of the fairy tale army.

At this point, the four captain-level witches had gathered together, waiting at the performance venue on this sunny day, calmly anticipating the coming storm.

Under Tianpu Bridge, at the bus terminal, a bustling crowd gathered there, with yellow warning tape set up in advance and buses transporting eager audiences to the performance site.

This time, thirty thousand spectators were invited, which was double the fifteen thousand announced two months ago.

Although it seemed like compensation for the Kyoto audience going to Sea City to watch the performance, they actually pulled an extra ten thousand tickets there and also gave five thousand tickets to the Sea City audience.

But in reality, it was a decision made to speed up the rhythm of “Dazzling Stage,” so that the little idol could gather more support.

However, the huge crowd caused the entrance for the midday performance to be very crowded early in the morning, with a sea of people in the summer, including both ticket holders and fans hoping to catch a glimpse of their favorites.

Along the road, almost all were disguised as police, armed to the teeth with EtherTech, ready to deal with any crisis, while the crowd also hid magical girls waiting for instructions.

“Wow, Honey Ling, there are really so many people here, and it’s so hot!”

Pei Xiaotong carried a small backpack as she followed her cousin sister, her curious eyes scanning the bustling crowd. She was squeezed into the stuffy passage while sipping on cold lemonade and cooling her flushed face with a small electric fan.

Xu Ling adjusted the camera hanging on her chest; she glanced back at the excited little girl. Due to the extra tickets, lucky Pei Xiaotong had won a special prize and received a performance ticket two days ago, which made her so excited last night that she could barely sleep.

The girl tugged gently at her arm, reminding her:

“Be careful not to get lost while looking around, the venue is very big.”

“Also, don’t drink too much water, or it will be a big hassle to go to the bathroom later.”

“Yes, yes, I will be good.”

Hearing this, Pei Xiaotong was scared and quickly put the lemon tea back in her bag. She obediently followed her sister, but her eyes couldn’t help but look around, like a little deer lost in the city, quite adorable.

“By the way, I haven’t seen Yuanxiao Group holding signs and banners for Honey Qing.”

The little girl looked around and saw many fans holding up signs. It seemed some had come all the way from Kyoto to support their idol.

Xu Ling also felt a little disappointed and said regretfully:

“Yeah, the fan support groups had already organized for this performance. Even if Honey Qing couldn’t participate, everyone just planned to change the slogans and lines on the banners to continue supporting her.”

“But yesterday, Honey Qing specifically asked everyone not to support her, and if they really wanted to, they could just film a video at home and post it under her latest Weibo post. She would see it and try her best to reply.”

Pei Xiaotong thought for a moment and was not very surprised by what she heard. Given Honey Qing’s character, it was clear that she would find it hard to accept many fans braving the heat outside in Daxia to hold up signs in support when she herself could not attend the performance. She felt she did not deserve that kind of effort.

Although this kind of thing was very common in the fan world, and because of Honey Qing’s latest achievements and her position as Countermeasures Bureau Chief of Staff, she was completely worthy of being treated this way.

But it was precisely because Chu Yuanqing was that kind of person that everyone still liked her so much.

Xu Ling still remembered after Honey Qing finished playing the guitar, her pink lips pressed together, her golden eyes dim, her gaze melancholic as she looked at the camera, saying, “I don’t want everyone to waste unnecessary time,” “I feel sad seeing live support online,” and “I will respond well next time,” which made Xu Ling’s heart flutter.

To be honest, any fan would have to obediently surrender after seeing the Pure White Succubus’s request, struck by her beauty. Even Xu Ling, who had a ticket to the performance, silently put away the banner and support sign she had prepared out of fear that Honey Qing might misunderstand, and did not bring them.

Even now, thinking back, she felt a bit dizzy and could only say that the Pure White Succubus was truly too powerful. If there had been a Honey Qing as a concubine in ancient times, it would have made perfect sense for a king to skip morning court, and the chaos she could bring to the country was no joke.

If it weren’t for the performance today, needing to support Little Sakura and Honey Qing’s other teammates, she would have stayed up all night yesterday editing the livestream so that other fans who missed it could enjoy Honey Qing’s succubus moment.

Ten minutes later, the two walked into the bus with the crowd, officially entering the venue.

On the other side, the huge venue of the gymnasium.

Here gathered small idols from Sea City and Kyoto. Apart from those like Chu Qiushuang, who sadly lost their lives in the disaster, and others who could not participate due to unavoidable reasons, there were a total of 162 contestants, about 36 teams.

Ji Shuzhu sat next to Chen Yining, her eyes downcast as she looked at the empty center of the venue. She glanced at the surrounding small idols, who were whispering and creating a wave of conversation, all showing confusion on their faces, and sighed softly:

“The moment that decides our fate is coming.”

Liang Xiaoxiao tied her mixed gray and white hair up, exposing her pale neck and increasingly thin profile. With her dark beauty contacts covering her gray spiral eyes and the disaster aura that could appear when she activated her powers, she looked calm.

Lin Baor quietly glanced at the other’s neck, gently stroking it with her fingertips, causing the seemingly cool Xiaoxiao to falter instantly, turning to stare at her in silence, both of them frozen in place.

Ruan Wutong listened intently, watching the two face off with a curious expression.

After Xiaoxiao stayed at Baor’s house for a few days, had their relationship become better?

Little Purple Fur naively daydreamed, simply watching the lively scene.

Chen Yining kept pace with her childhood friend, remembering the elimination rules for the third performance.

In this performance shared by Sea City and Kyoto, only fifty people could advance.

In other words, if counted by teams, only about ten teams would make it through, making the competition very intense.

But for Little Shuzhu, fate was not just about advancing or not.

It was something more important that could determine the direction of life.

That was—whether to become a magical girl.

Recently, there had been explosive news stories about magical girls, the Disaster group, and the “Dazzling Stage.” From the atmosphere around, it was clear that the contestants already knew they were caught in a whirlwind, and their attitudes toward this performance had become uncertain.

Idols, magical girls.

When ideals and dreams met, combined with unexpected responsibilities and risks, many of these girls, most of whom were not yet adults or had just turned 18, inevitably felt confused.

If they participated, did it mean they agreed to walk the path of becoming a magical girl?

If they said no, would they miss a chance that could truly change their life and their destiny?

If they continued, would all the years of hard work in dancing, singing, and expressing emotions really be useful on stage?

The path ahead was full of fog, hiding unknown thorns, or maybe it was filled with the taste of gold, leaving each performer unsure of how to face this show.

Even knowing this, in order not to waste their past efforts and to honor the audience, they still tried their best to show themselves on stage, but everyone still found themselves lost in thought, which could affect their performance.

If I wasn’t mistaken,

Dream Weaver Rabbit would not allow everyone to go on stage in this state. It would surely grant those who had yet to “turn on the light” and had not entered the Ideal State a relatively fair right to know a few hours before the official start of the competition.

Otherwise, there would be no need to hold this performance at all; they could simply let all the magic girls in the teams advance directly, and eliminate the rest.

Meanwhile, at a nearby seat,

The green-eyed cat’s tired eyelids drooped, and she rubbed her face drowsily. To help Xie Qingxuan’s “Virtuous King” perform at its peak, she had overused “Mask” and had yet to recover.

Little Sakura stroked the cat and said with some concern:

“Liuli, you have to sleep well tonight. You can’t just play games because you have some free time.”

Kirimi Miyuki was not worried about Liuli Cat slipping up on stage; her “Idol Realm” could help her fully restore her best stage condition. At worst, there might be a brief period of weakness afterward, which wasn’t a big problem.

Xie Qingxuan pinched Liuli’s ear and reminded her,

“Today, for Honey Qing, you have to give your all on stage.”

Chu Wang Shu nodded firmly and said,

“Although Dad has implicitly acknowledged our advancement, some might still think it’s unfair. We must deliver the best stage and earn the highest score to perfectly quell those objections.”

After the little girl finished speaking, she glanced at her phone where Chu Yuanqing had replied “Good luck with the performance,” and murmured,

“I wonder if there will be time to see Dad later. She should be in our team’s waiting room now, right?”

Tang Liuli’s eyes widened slightly. She leaned on the table, tilted her head sideways, and looked back at her lovely daughter with some worry, asking,

“Is Little Qing there all alone right now?”

Everyone had just come out of the Ideal State not long ago, arriving just in time, with no chance to reunite with Chu Yuanqing.

Chu Wang Shu shook her head and said,

“Dad said Mom is with her, and there are other magic girls sent by the Countermeasures Bureau too. It seems Sister Little Yu is also there.”

The green-eyed cat was about to say that Charlotte should be in Vienna for the performance, but suddenly realized the factors of [time difference] and [spatial techniques].

After careful calculation, by the time the performance in Daxia concluded, Austria’s event would be starting, so she could indeed make it in time.

It seemed that, like them, Charlotte vaguely sensed something was wrong and preferred to time her return precisely to Austria for the performance rather than leave Chu Yuanqing early.

The girl pondered this, then looked back at Xie Qingxuan as if to confirm something. When she saw Xie Qingxuan nod, she pursed her lips and nodded in return. The weariness and sleepiness in her emerald eyes vanished. As the performance neared, the anxiety in her heart deepened.

In theory, Charlotte, she, Xie Qingxuan, and Kirimi Miyuki, with all their efforts, could stand against bishops and even stronger opponents. With several captain-level witches dispatched by the Countermeasures Bureau, their defense was already overwhelmingly strong.

But this unfounded emotion felt like a premonition of a nightmare, making all their preparations seem inadequate.

Hope… was only an illusion.

While this heavy feeling weighed on her heart, streams of data flickered at the center of the venue. Under the watchful eyes of over a hundred contestants, they coalesced into a household animated figure—Dream Weaver Rabbit.

The super AI encircled the area; it did not display its signature infuriating smile, but instead showed a strangely calm expression as it spoke to everyone:

“Hello everyone, long time no see.”

As the voice faded, the virtual projection’s shape wove and reformed with the changing tone, transforming into a slender girl amid the confused, shocked, and bewildered gazes of the crowd.

Esther appeared like an elegant and beautiful noble lady, wearing a floor-length gown that concealed her ankles. Her silver hair cascaded like a waterfall, and her crimson eyes looked at everyone with a faint smile as she softly said,

“I am the chief mentor of ‘Dazzling Stage,’ known as Dream Weaver Rabbit. I am also the person behind the Counter-Magic Bureau’s account, the former Chief of Staff of the Countermeasures Bureau, and the Original Witch—Esther.”

“Now, in these three identities united, I will explain to all present the meaning of ‘Dazzling Stage,’ the connection between idols and magical girls, and… the future you are about to face.”