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

She actually wanted to ask Nana Oba, but the impression Oba had left on her was somewhat obsessive. If it were any other question, it would be fine, but regarding the stage, she thought it was better to figure it out herself.

"You look troubled, Ms. Hachiya." Nana Ohba didn't point out Shiori Hachiya's embarrassment, but instead avoided the main point, "You can talk to me about anything. I'll prepare some dessert and wait for you to arrive."

"Whether it's on stage or anything else, it's fine."

As soon as he finished speaking, silence returned between the two of them.

The atmosphere between these two is so awkward...

Speaking of which, the child actor in that commercial on the TV in this store looks kind of familiar.

[It really is true, isn't this the grapefruit vinegar commercial that Bee Valley filmed when she was a kid?]

Wow, is it really that cute?

Looking at the information in the barrage, Nana Ohba slightly raised her head and, as if by chance, noticed the old grapefruit vinegar advertisement that was playing on the TV.

In the advertisement, the child actor holding grapefruit vinegar and showing a sweet smile seems to perfectly match the image of Shiori Hachiya in front of him.

It's the same person.

Nana Oba chuckled.

A once-prodigy child star whose brilliance has faded.

This is exactly how Shiori Hachiya is described online.

PS: Here it comes!

I'll try to update more today, let's go!

41. Comic strip launched online

After talking with Nana Oba, Shiori Hachiya finally put aside her mission to find Yuki Uesugi for the time being, since the latter was in the hands of the Silver Garden. And through her communication with Nana Oba, she knew that her colleague was quite safe.

The photos reveal that Yuki Uesugi, who was originally pale, is getting better every day.

This put Shiori Hachiya's mind at ease for the time being, and also dissuaded Saki Koizumi from going directly to Silver Garden to demand the person back.

There must be something fishy about the attack on Yuki Uesugi.

Before this matter is thoroughly investigated, Yuki Uesugi has no need to leave the Silver Garden's protection.

The tower intended to send someone to negotiate with Nana Oba, but strangely enough, no matter what, she was able to skillfully avoid the negotiators.

Despite working every day, they are elusive and can be completely avoided unless you actively seek to talk to them.

Shiori Hachiya is able to focus on her concert rehearsals for the time being. Her physical weakness, which she had suffered from having her days and nights completely reversed recently, is gradually recovering thanks to the nutritious meals provided by Kita Kirihara.

At least she felt a little lighter than before.

Time flies, and the first episode of Revue Starlight, which viewers have been eagerly anticipating, has finally been released on the WP website.

The first page is a large double-page spread, taking up two entire sides of the open notebook.

It's a group photo of everyone. The nine girls stand in front of the acrylic display board celebrating the successful holding of the 99th Seisho Festival, their bright smiles shining under the lights.

However, the angle of the light was slightly off, only illuminating the figures of eight girls.

The tallest member, Nana Ohba, used the camera's time-lapse function to take photos for everyone. The camera clearly captured the scene of her adjusting the shutter with tears in her eyes, and then hurriedly running to the far left at the back.

She was the only one not standing under the light; her smile and tears were shrouded in shadow, carrying a strong suggestive meaning.

On the page, a few lines of narration appear intermittently.

If you pluck the smallest star, you will find a small happiness.

If you pluck the biggest star, you will gain great wealth.

[If you can obtain both, you will receive your eternal wish.]

This is part of the dialogue from the performance, reflecting the girls' happy and joyful faces at the celebration banquet.

However, turning to the next page revealed two sections, the top of which was completely black, with only large, cold white print and tangled white lines displaying a powerful yet ambiguous line of dialogue:

[Let time stand still, don't become an adult.]

Next, there's a close-up of Nana Ohba's smile, with tears glistening in the corners of her eyes.

Countless stories are unfolding within that gentle smile.

The comic also has a bullet screen commenting feature. Readers' comments will appear as transparent blue dots on the comic's panels. When a reader clicks on a dot, other people's comments will appear.

[Brother Banana! We've finally waited for you!]

Everyone is so cute!

【Seisho? This school has never appeared in the manga series before】

[So this is what everyone looks like now; finally, we can match their names with their appearances!]

Why isn't Brother Banana in the middle?

[Hana sitting in the very center is so energetic! I love it!]

[Their positioning is quite meaningful; although Banana is with everyone, she doesn't seem to be participating much.]

[This lighting alone is really weird, isn't it?]

The day of the 100th Seishō Festival.

However, one of the important actresses who played the goddess was nowhere to be seen.

The camera pans across the students who are rushing around, searching for Nana Ohba, their hurried and anxious expressions contrasting sharply with Nana Ohba, who is lying somewhere, staring blankly at the dome of the underground theater.

With blonde hair and green eyes, her hair tied in twin ponytails that resembled bananas, Nana Ohba, whom everyone was looking for, was lying on the empty stage wearing the gray school uniform of Seisho Music Academy.

She should have changed into her goddess costume right now and been waiting backstage on the ground, ready to step onto the stage at any moment.

But today is different.

"...Three minutes left."

Beside her lay a notebook filled with sticky notes, so worn out from being flipped through that it was almost falling apart.

The frog pattern and the logo of the 99th Seisho Festival on the cover have faded and worn to the point of being almost invisible.

The stark white spotlight shone on Nana Ohba, who was lying on the edge of the stage, her calves dangling down from the edge, the tips of her shoes soaking in crimson liquid.

The entire underground theater was almost submerged in prop blood, presenting an unusually dilapidated state.

Nana Oba's expression was blank and confused. She held the notebook up in front of her and muttered to herself in confusion:

"Has this reenactment already reached its end?"

"The giraffe is gone, and everyone looks exactly the same as before, but..."

She put down her notebook and slowly closed her eyes.

"……but."

Ten seconds left.

Why keep moving forward?

He muttered to himself as he fell silent.

9, 8, 7...

"I really don't understand, the 99th Seisho Festival should have been..."

...Three, two, one.

At the very moment the curtain was drawn back for the 100th Sacred Feast, a faint explosion and tremor, loud enough to send chills down the spines of everyone present, emanated from underground.

The table and floor shook violently for a moment, the lights in the preparation room flickered, and Aijo Karen, who was standing next to it, was almost knocked over. She instinctively grabbed the table, thus avoiding falling on top of the actors.

However, when she came to her senses, her hand was grabbed by someone else.

It was the B-class student who had been frantically searching for Nana Oba just moments before. She was holding Karen Aijo's wrist, and when she saw that she was still wearing her school uniform, she was so anxious that she almost burst into tears.

"Aicheng! Why haven't you changed your clothes yet? You're going on stage soon!"

Aicheng Hualian, completely oblivious, pointed to herself: "...Eh? Me? Going on stage?"

Starlight only has eight roles, right? She just happened to not be chosen this year, so she can stand here idly with the other actors like this.

The missing character should be Banana's.

Oh, right, where is banana?

As others gradually forget her, Nana Ohba, whose fragmented information is still remembered only by Karen Aijo, is still lying in the underground theater.

In the devastation left by the explosion, flames raged. The flames licked at the girl's hair and face, gradually climbing up the notebook that lay beside her.

The 99th Seisho Festival and the frog pattern, the notebook that carried countless memories of this performance, have finally turned to ashes on this stage.

"...Use me as fuel," the girl said softly, a slightly apologetic smile on her face, "to activate this final..."

The last words were swallowed up in the deafening crash of the collapsing beam.

—This is the final reenactment.

P.S.: Goodnight!

42. Strive to become Kita Kirihara

[Opening Ceremony Strike]

【banana——banana——(sadness)】

[Is this a flashback, so Nana sent it at the beginning?]

[It seems she's trying to reverse time by burning herself?]

[Banana has always been very attached to the 99th Starlight Awards, but this is about to be the 100th.]

[Wow, she could actually do this? I always thought her only ability was to expand her stage area...]

Come to think of it, nobody remembers her anymore, so why does Ai Cheng Hua Lian still remember her?

[This name alone sounds like it belongs to a main character.]

Is this a dual-protagonist storyline?