Collapse, the Ordinary Daily Life of the Valkyries

I wonder if the red and black ballpoint pen I just mentioned would be a big hit if it were actually released? While mentally calculating the business opportunities, I passed a petite, brown-haired girl on my bicycle. The girl, her lips pursed into a straight line, strode forward with earnestness. Her unwavering stride betrayed her determination to reach a specific destination.

Then, I passed another cool guy with glasses who looked quite unique. His long legs walked at a natural pace, neither fast nor slow, in contrast to the girl just now. However, judging from his straight line of sight, his destination was also very clear.

I don't know why, but I feel like they're going to the same place as me.

After arriving at my destination, I parked my bike in the parking lot next to the building and walked back to the entrance. A metal sign read "Studio Elysion" hung next to the glass door in the entrance hall.

There is also a piece of paper posted:

The third selection venue

Yes, this is the rehearsal room of "that" top theater troupe.

A truly top-tier professional theater company in Japan, attracting 200,000 spectators a year.

The super theater troupe "Pandora"'s recruitment venue.

2

The rehearsal room was located in the basement of a building. Just as I'd seen on the official website, fifteen men and women stood in the middle of the wooden floor, all looking nervous. I imagine my expression was similar.

The two people I just passed on my bike were also here. The cool guy still looked cool in his tracksuit, while the brunette had a stern look on her face. The powerful aura she exuded as she walked might have been locked inside her when she stopped; I thought I heard a "crackling" sound from within her body. However, it's also possible that her aura was truly powerful enough to make a sound, after all, these two people were both powerful warriors who had already cleared two levels in a row.

I'd heard during the second round of selection that there were 500 people who took the first round of written review, 150 of whom made it to the second round of practical tests. However, by the third round, only 15 remained—a truly astonishing elimination rate. Furthermore, only three newcomers are announced on the official website each year, sometimes even zero. This meant that the remaining 15 would be eliminated again, to a level below one-third.

I think the third level should be the final one, right? Sorry, Brunette, Cool Guy, you should give up early. After all, I'm definitely the new member joining the group this year. Of course, it would be best if the three of us could pass it together.

After observing everyone present at the audition, I looked around the room. Standing against the wall were a few people who looked like members of a theater company. I'd seen some of them on stage many times before, like Mr. Shimono, a leading actor active in both television and film. If there were any fans of his among the auditions, they'd surely be thrilled, right? But I didn't have any particular feelings for him.

At this moment, the door opened with a "click".

Turning around, they saw two people walking into the rehearsal room, and all the selectors suddenly became nervous.

Of course it's impossible not to be nervous. How could I not know the origins of these two people when I'm standing here?

One of the men was wearing thin-framed glasses. He was the one who had transformed Pandora from a small university drama club into a top-tier theater group. He was also the head of the super theater group Pandora—the theater producer Nobu Mikihiko.

The other one is someone I saw in person for the first time today.

A graceful and charming beauty.

The exclusive screenwriter for the super theater troupe "Pandora".

Tsutomu Mishima is responsible for writing all the scripts and directing.

This time, I had to get excited.

3

All the selectors stood upright. Now was not the time to stand in an unruly manner. After all, the two people in front of them were the two giants of Pandora.

"Not bad, not bad. Just the right amount of tension."

Mikihiko stood in front of us, smiling slightly. His hair, as smooth as a girl's, framed his silver-rimmed glasses. The thin lines of his glasses gave him a fox-like look, even though his eyes didn't curve upwards.

"Okay... Now, let's let Xiaozhu speak to everyone. Since everyone has made it this far, I think you should know her. This is Mishima Zhu, our exclusive scriptwriter for 'Pandora'."

Mishima Tsutomu, who was standing aside, stepped forward at the call of Mr. Bude.

Sanjiyan stood in front of us and said with a faint chuckle. His hair, as smooth as a girl's, framed his silver-rimmed glasses. The thin lines of his glasses gave him a fox-like look, even though his eyes didn't curve upwards.

"Okay... Now, let's let Xiaozhu speak to everyone. Since everyone has made it this far, I think you should know her. This is Mishima Zhu, our exclusive scriptwriter for 'Pandora'."

Mishima Tsutomu, who was standing aside, stepped forward at the call of Mr. Bude.

Miscellaneous: Poor Thinking

"Mrs. Koiba prefers younger women, so they'll be replaced at the latest after forty. All middle-aged and older women who were once Mister Koiba's were forced to bear this secret, and this has been going on for hundreds of years. No one else knows about this, not even Mister Koiba's servants."

"Wait a minute, so Mr. Kurozuka doesn't know the truth either?"

He was in pain all the time...hiding his inner conflict with an expressionless face...I finally shed tears.

"I had planned to wait until Tsubaki got pregnant, then apologize to Kurozuka, who had been kept in the dark, and tell him the truth. That way, even if Kurozuka accidentally let Tsubaki know, Tsubaki wouldn't be physically harmed. But Tsubaki never got pregnant. So, I became anxious and ordered your kidnapping."

Was it the elders' instructions? Not Hongye's? Elder Gangli also said something similar... Why?

"Didn't the elder say that the reason he was using my power was for the prosperity of the clan—"

"That's true on the surface. No, that's also important. But... I want to save those two people as soon as possible."

According to the logic of the monsters, I might just be a tool after all. But I just can't bring myself to blame the elder.

"I've long considered letting Tsubaki become Momiji-sama. But my daughter, Tsubaki's mother, the previous Momiji-sama, felt sorry for her. After giving birth to Tsubaki, she arranged for Tsubaki's only child with the village couple, Kurozuka, to be betrothed, hoping to end Momiji-sama's legacy with her generation. Even if it meant opposing me, she wanted her child to be free."

"But...where's Tsubaki's mother? I haven't seen her."

"He died of illness four years ago. I made Tsubaki Momiji-sama, but I immediately and intensely regretted it... because I finally realized how serious Tsubaki and Kurozuka's relationship was."

I originally thought it was just a simple and innocent romance… the elder sighed.

Kuang's love story also began as a child. But because they were children, they didn't know fear, and their love was pure and serious. Kuang missed me alone for ten years and fought to get me.

"Rather, just because they're children...that's what I think."

“I forgot I was once a child.”

So, to make amends, he suggested waiting until I turned sixteen to kidnap me. I should be angry at a time like this, but... in my eyes, the elder seemed to have suddenly become smaller.

"...Mrs. Hongye has always been against kidnapping you. This is probably due to the inner heart of Tsubaki in Mr. Hongye.

As time went by, Lord Xianguo turned sixteen and was immediately engaged to the head of the Tengu family.

In a moment of impatience, I used my zither to manipulate Lady Momiji, who was rejecting the "invasion of the power of the Immortal Fruit," and it was I who asked her to agree. Because, no matter what, I wanted to save those two people."

The elder seemed to have prepared himself mentally. He took a deep breath and said resolutely:

"The harp used for the spell is right there. Destroy it if you want. Since the harp cannot separate the spells cast, Immortal Fruit-sama's spell will be dispelled at the same time as Momiji-sama's spell. My spell, and the spell Kurotsuka cast last night, will also be dispelled."

"Kurozuka's last night?" I didn't quite understand what that meant, but it wasn't important. I opened the cabinet the elder had pointed to and took the zither.

"Master Xian Guo, please be sure to only ask those two people—"

The elder drew his dagger. At that moment, a strong gust of wind blew from behind, blowing the dagger out of the elder's hand.

"Now's the time, Misao!"

As soon as I heard the sound of the gong, I threw the qin with all my might. Using the force of the wind pushing against my back, I smashed the qin against the large pillar beside me, snapping it in two. The strings broke, emitting a low, echoing sound.

"Don't be so quick to evade your responsibilities, old lady!"

The paper windows of this room were fully opened, and Converse stood there majestically.

A strange bird... no, it was a humanoid figure with black wings on its back. Wearing a black kimono and black pants, with a sheathed sword in hand and blazing red eyes, it was ready to fight.

"Kuang! Your appearance! It's back to normal!"

"Misao, you've taken too long... I'm glad I destroyed your koto, but are you okay?"

"Si, Kuang, are you the one who is in trouble?"

The ripped kimono had wounds visible everywhere. It wasn't obvious because it was black, but it was definitely covered in blood. Goose bumps spread across my back.

And there seemed to be a bandage under the kimono. I think it was the wound caused by the arrow shot by Kurozuka last night.

"Who cares about that!"

Kuang sheathed his sword and strode towards the elder, grabbing his hand. The elder gave Kuang a fearful look.

"Master Tengu..."

"Would you mind coming with us and telling that jerk and the headmistress what we just said? We don't intend to kill the headmistress physically, but we want her personality to disappear."

The elder's face turned pale, as if he was so shocked by Kuang's courage that he couldn't speak.

Then Kuang looked at me.

"Well done, Misao."

Kuang laughed suddenly, and I felt itchy again.

I followed the elder back to the wing room with Kuang pulling him.

The garden was a shambles, trampled to pieces. In the center, Kurozuka shielded Momiji with his back, while seven Tengu surrounded them. Including the six-year-old triplets, all were dressed in black, with black wings on their backs, red eyes, and swords at their sides.

Great, everyone is just as they are. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Tengu normally hide their wings, looking just like humans; once they return to their original form with wings on their backs, one can clearly feel the overwhelming aura they exude.

Everyone was injured, even the young triplets... Perhaps because the tattered sleeves were getting in the way, Mr. Maeda tore them off and threw them away. Everyone was covered in blood, but no one showed any sign of pain. Their faces were stern, their gazes fixed on Kurozuka.

As for the disheveled Kurozuka, he was injured just as badly as Tengu and the others. Tsubaki seemed fine. Kurozuka wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Hey, ghost, this old lady seems to have something to say."

Kuang pushed aside the bushes and entered the garden, putting a knife to the elder's neck to express this.

"Misao, it's dangerous here. Hide behind the camellia over there. Taro, Jiro, Saburo, protect Misao."

Kuang instructed me to stay at the camellia hedge for a while. The triplets, covered in wounds, ran towards me, wary.

"We will protect the princess!"

"Leave it to us."

Taro and Jiro bravely stood in front to cover me.

"Is the piano broken?"

Saburo came around behind me and asked me, "Yeah." I nodded.

"Taro, Jiro, and Saburo all look cute to me. Do your wounds hurt?"

The three of them looked at me with happy smiles, but quickly calmed down and picked up their swords again. They didn't cry out in pain. Even though they were young, they were still true warriors.

The atmosphere in the garden became even more tense.

Under the unwavering and silent vigilance of Mr. Sagami and the other four, Kuang took the elder hostage and approached Kurozuka step by step. Kurozuka's face turned pale, no longer expressionless.

Kurozuka might be unexpectedly fragile... He's a very gentle person at heart. Could his previous expressionless demeanor, rather than coldness, have been an attempt to hide his true nature?

"Master Tengu, you're so ruthless even to the elderly."

Kurozuka curled his lips in disdain.

Miscellaneous: Leave

Chapter 1: Which wicked guy designed this sliding-lid coffin?

Lance is in a very bad situation now.

Ever since he woke up, he felt like he had been locked up in a small space that was just big enough for him to lie flat.

The temperature here was unusually low, and it was pitch black, unable to see anything. He could vaguely hear the howling sound of wind and snow from outside. His limbs, which were almost frozen to the point of numbness, felt wet. This was obviously far from the environment inside the ambulance he was familiar with.

Every breath was very difficult, and I could smell a very strong smell of blood and stench.

Lance pursed his cracked lips with difficulty. The sweet taste in his mouth and the severe pain all over his body as if it were falling apart were constantly irritating his nerves.

What happened?

He tried hard to recall, and remembered that he was hit by a fully loaded dump truck that ran a red light and roared past on his way to an offline gathering of Paradox players.

His memory only stopped at the moment when he was knocked out, and he happened to see the face of the middle-aged man in the cab, who looked panicked and exhausted.

Obviously, this should just be an accident.

【This is so unlucky! 】

Lance opened his mouth habitually, wanting to say some quintessential Chinese cultural words, such as a green plant.

Unfortunately, although his larynx moved, no sound came out.

On the contrary, because he was lying flat, a stream of gastric juice mixed with blood flowed up from his esophagus.

The sour, stimulating and extremely painful feeling, accompanied by violent coughing, made Lance want to die for a moment.

He swallowed hard, squeezing the gastric fluid back. He remained silent in this dark and narrow environment for a long time, listening carefully to the sounds outside, trying to discern the situation outside.

He hoped that there would be someone kind enough to pass by and help him.

But until his patience was exhausted, all he could hear from outside was the howling of wind and snow, without even the slightest sign of human movement.

At the same time, Lance also keenly realized that each breath he took was becoming more and more difficult, which gave Lance an extremely terrifying guess.