The comments section all think I'm a really good person.

She was probably referring to the time I pretended to hug her, but actually secretly kissed her when Hua Lian's mother and Xiao Guang's mother couldn't see.

"It won't happen again." I said sincerely. "I was just so excited to see Mahiru come back that I rushed over and accidentally bumped into her."

I lied to her; I did it on purpose.

This clumsy acting was no surprise to Aunt Mahiru, but she just looked slightly annoyed and helpless, distanced herself from me, stared at my face, and sighed.

"You said you wouldn't do that again," she said, forgiving me.

Honestly, you're too soft-hearted, Mahiru.

If this kind of doting were directed at someone else, I would probably shake my head and sigh, thinking that Mahiru is a confused elder.

But what can I do when she's biased towards me?

"I really won't do it again next time." This time I was serious.

I prefer this way of getting along in private to things that would make Mahiru sad and scared.

【3】

but.

At my age, it's normal to be interested in things like kissing and hugging, right?

However, Mahiru doesn't seem to be used to it.

Next time, should I try calling her "Auntie Mahiru" in private and acting cute?

First Preface

【1】

StarLight.

That was the story of goddesses, guided by starlight.

They forged bonds through collisions, disputes, and disagreements.

However, they were separated and could never meet again.

—A sad story.

Good evening, Aicheng Hualian.

Under the bright red light, the giraffe's silhouette was stretched into a terrifying shape by the strange lighting angle.

A third-year student at Shengxiang Music Academy, in the Actor Training Class A, with appearance number 1, Aicheng Hualian, stands on this familiar underground theater stage.

Her figure was also bathed in the bright red light, which was somewhat dazzling, and her gaze towards the giraffe was full of confusion.

"...Huh? A giraffe...?"

The giraffe, who hadn't appeared since the second-year selection, the owner of this underground theater, suddenly appeared before her on the eve of graduation.

【2】

The alarm clock rang loudly nearby, and Ruki Mahiru subconsciously sat up. The bright sunlight poured into the dormitory, clearing her previously drowsy mind a little.

Then, Mahiru Rosaki realized that something was wrong.

How could that be?

The blue dinosaur alarm clock, which was working diligently, had recently broken down completely. Ai Cheng Hua Lian removed the battery and put it away, planning to throw it away on the day she took out the trash.

Since both of them were moving out of the dormitory soon, the two-person dormitory, which should have been almost emptied and piled with many cardboard boxes that had not yet been mailed, was still full of things, with no trace of them moving out.

Stunned by the monotonous ringing of the alarm clock, she subconsciously glanced at the calendar hanging on the wall beside Ai Cheng Hua Lian's bed across the room. A date was circled in red marker, clearly showing—

—September 14, 2018.

Time rewinds to a year and a half ago.

The day Kagura Hikaru returned from London, the selection process began.

【3】

After getting off the train with her suitcase, Kagura Hikaru looked down at the date displayed on her phone.

Originally, she was supposed to drop out of Seisho in her third year and return to London, but after waking up, she found herself back in Japan for a new round of selections.

The street scene looked both familiar and strange, the phone was the same model as a year ago, and the suitcase looked a bit newer... This was probably the feeling brought about by time travel.

Kagura Hikaru's hands, gripping the suitcase handle, were already damp with sweat, sticky and somewhat uncomfortable.

she……

They had just chosen to escape not long ago.

Now, however, he has been brought back because of this strange revue.

【4】

"...again?"

Nana Ōba stared at the group photo from the 99th Seishō Festival on the table, her back to Junna Hoshimi, who was washing up, and murmured in a voice only she could hear.

The diligent and earnest class representative, Hoshimi Junna, had already changed her clothes. Seeing her roommate still standing there in a daze, she couldn't help but ask in confusion, "Nana? What are you daydreaming about?"

"Ah, no." After a brief pause, Nana Ohba's face lit up with her usual warm and gentle smile. "It's just that I feel like there'll be good news today~"

Although it's unclear who orchestrated this re-enactment, but...

...Barely, it's a good thing, I suppose.

For everyone.

【5】

The first rule of revue:

Play your role well, that is, [yourself in the selection process in 2018], otherwise you will be eliminated.

Rule Two:

You only have one chance to identify the person who orchestrated the re-enactment; if you identify the wrong person, you are out.

Rule Three:

careful【----】.

The performance has now begun.

Second

【6】

【Encore】.

—We've returned to the crucial point in time, which is the first day of the selection process.

When Aicheng Hualian opened her eyes again, she realized this fact.

Putting aside the date shown on the calendar hanging by the bed, even the smell in the room was quite different from what I remembered.

Although the word "smell" is not quite right, and words like "atmosphere" or "breath" would be better, the first word that popped into Aijo Karen's head to describe it was "smell".

It's difficult to describe the jumbled thoughts in one's mind; instead, one uses instinct to transform feelings into tangible sensory experiences... thus expressing one's emotions.

In the details, she displays qualities very similar to those of dogs.

It wasn't the change in the shower gel, nor the smell of dust filling the room, but rather...

The feeling of loneliness has vanished.

Since Xiaoguang voluntarily dropped out of school, the two-person room that originally housed three people has finally ended its overcrowding and returned to the state where only two people lived when he was in the first grade.

Even though she should have been familiar with living together by now, Karen Aijo still felt a huge and unbearable sense of loss after Hikaru Kagura left.

Even if there are two people in the room, when she turns her head and doesn't see Kagura Hikari, she still feels a deep loneliness from her heart.

It felt empty, like a crucial piece of a puzzle was missing.

Before Kagura Hikari left, Aijo Karen seemed to be a child who was never lonely. She was so enthusiastic and cheerful that she had almost no boundaries. She was always full of energy and seemed to have an inexhaustible supply of fuel in her body. She could be called an energetic idiot.

In this state, Edison Hualian seems absolutely not to be associated with the word "loneliness".

But this negative state, this emptiness like falling from a great height, still overwhelmed her and made it difficult for her to break free.

The fact that Ai Chenghua was filled with sorrow was unbelievable to those who knew her.

But that's exactly what happened.

Unable to leave the stage of fate on her own, Ai Cheng Hua Ren, together with the giraffe, orchestrated this reenactment.

Hard to understand.

Unbelievable.

Arabian Nights.

But this is precisely what Aicheng Hualian is so fixated on, the "stage of fate."

She curled up in bed, taking deep, silent breaths and inhaling the familiar scent.

Having paid too much for the stage fuel at her own expense, she felt an almost maddening emptiness that desperately pulled her down into the dark, icy water.

My body wasn't as light as usual; the fatigue and drowsiness were so intense that they were almost overwhelming. If I didn't force myself to stay awake, I probably would have staggered when I stood up.

More importantly, unlike the physical hunger, a certain kind of hunger had forcefully taken over all her nerves, to the point that it was almost impossible for her to think.

She knew exactly why.

When she and the giraffe reunited after a long separation and reached a consensus to perform again, the giraffe made it clear that it would be very difficult for her to support the operation of a stage by herself alone.

If Edmonton Romance cannot sustain the expenses of this fuel, the stage for another performance will collapse immediately, with no possibility of reopening.

Her choice was like walking on a tightrope, with an endless abyss both ahead and beneath her feet.

However, Ai Cheng Hua Lian still showed the same smile as always, her eyes sparkling.

Because today is the day Xiao Guang is coming back!

【7】