I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

Filled with regret, Huaye and the masked envoys chose the fate of "better to die a glorious death than live a shameful life."

He burned all his spirit, unleashing the strongest 'indiscriminate attack' from his personality mask.

The white flashes and the loud buzzing sound lingered for a long time before the curtain gradually closed.

"Fin."

In the lobby of the hot spring inn, the girls surrounding Amamiya, who had watched the entire 'play' in one go, remained silent.

"..."

After a moment, Kirino, rubbing her slightly damp, long, straight white hair that was draped over her shoulders, broke the silence with a sigh: "The second half felt like watching an inspirational movie."

"Indeed... I have that feeling."

Kayoko then came to her senses, nodded in agreement, and acknowledged Kirino's sentiments.

Aruru blinked a few times before saying in a cryptic tone, "Now I understand the significance of what Sensei meant by 'Federal Student Council President Hikari Shiranui.'"

"Indeed very strong, but until an individual's strength reaches 'absolute' level, it's difficult to turn the tide..."

Fubuki shook her head and sighed softly, full of regret.

Yuriko remained silent.

Although she didn't really approve of Hana... it has to be said that Hana's sense of responsibility in the latter half of the 'plot development' was at least passable.

However, this 'plot development' is only based on the most ideal scenario.

No wonder... 'Federal Student Council President Shiranui Hanaya' is an SSR—this possibility is simply impossible in a normal world line.

"Sensei, next... it's time for the 'announcement' part, right?"

"Ah."

After the 'screening' ended, Amamiya stood up and clapped her hands.

"Let's get some rest early today in preparation for the upcoming 'Hall of Fame Master Battle'."

Chapter Sixty-One: Puppet Show

If only all of this were just a dream...

As she closed her eyes, Hua Ye thought to herself, filled with regret.

If I had given up the idea of ​​becoming the 'President of the Federal Student Council'...would I have avoided all that pain for me?

If I had recognized the limits of my abilities earlier and only done what I could do, would I be facing the same emptiness as I am now?

I don't know, I don't understand.

Thinking about all this now... is pointless, isn't it?

Consciousness is gradually sinking, and the world around me is becoming blurry and viscous.

The distorted worlds stuck together, then merged together, turning into a thick red and black color.

So tired, so sleepy...

I want to close my eyes and fall asleep...

If you feel tired...

"Simply fold your wings and drift off to sleep."

"Go and enjoy this moment of peace."

The soft whispers in her ear cleared up Hua Ye's previously sluggish and confused mind considerably.

Strange... how come I can still hear sounds?

Hua Ye, who had intended to fall into a deep sleep, opened her eyes with difficulty, and then happened to see an unknown bird, which looked like it was woven from glowing threads, flapping its wings and gradually moving away.

The blurry surroundings gradually became clearer.

A spotlight shone down from above, blinding Hua Ye briefly.

While shielding her eyes from the glaring light with her forearm, Huaye tried to look around.

"This is... a stage?"

The results of her observations left Hua Ye even more puzzled.

The floor beneath my feet is made of wood, and as far as the eye can see is the bottomless audience seating area.

In each audience seat sat a 'spectator' whose face was either blurry or clear, and without exception, a halo shone above their head.

Nearby in the audience seats sat one after another familiar faces to Huaye.

Rin, Ayumi, Momoka, Aoi, Haiyin...

All the department heads I know are here.

Seated in the head seats, each of them stretched out their hands, their fingers wrapped with the threads used to control puppets, watching the stage with expressions that ranged from schadenfreude to keen interest.

'Puppet show...?'

With this thought in mind, Huaye tried to act, but found that she couldn't open her mouth and make a sound.

Even their movements were subject to extremely strict restrictions.

She was alarmed to find that she could not move as she pleased and looked down to check, only to find that her limbs were stiff and awkward, like the joints of a large puppet.

Let alone taking effective action... even the most basic movements cannot be completed without the control of the 'puppet strings'.

What exactly is going on?

After the absurdity came an unprecedented fear.

I've become a puppet... and I have to perform various actions under the control of the strings, putting on a ridiculous puppet show for all my acquaintances.

Do not make jokes!

Huaye gritted her teeth, trying to resist the irresistible pulling force emanating from the silk threads.

I coveted the position of acting president, but lacked the ability to fulfill it; that was indeed my fault...

However, this kind of "punishment," where one has no freedom whatsoever and is treated like a puppet controlled by strings, is indeed somewhat...

Huaye struggled violently, tearing and making all sorts of unnatural movements.

However, the audience below the stage regarded this as a stage clown's fooling, and burst into laughter at Huaye's behavior.

Some were cheering, some were supporting the show, while others were making sarcastic and mocking remarks...

Huaye struggled fiercely, but in the end she only managed to twist the strings controlling her into a tangled mess, causing her puppet limbs to become entangled with each other in bizarre ways.

The force of the pulling thread continues to try to drag and control.

But Huaye gritted her teeth, contorting herself in a grotesque 'clown' pose, refusing to move an inch further.

This kind of bound and unfree ending is not befitting of the "honorable defeat" of the Federal Student Council president.

After a long stalemate, Huaye heard two soft sighs coming from behind the curtain.

"Sigh... So, they're unwilling to continue anyway?"

"What kind of power... is it that keeps you rooted to the spot?"

The power binding him suddenly vanished, and Huayedun remained rooted to the spot.

Then... two stage curtains appeared before her eyes.

"Well then... let's end this 'performance' here."

As the curtain closed, Hana, having lost all her strength and forced to sit still, heard the boos from the audience outside the venue, dissatisfied with the sudden departure, and the gradually fading sounds of their conversations.

"Well... it's alright, Chief Hanaya didn't actually do that."

"Eh...is that all? I'm still a little unsatisfied."

"If next time we could randomly select a room leader..."

"Hey, as the first group to come on vacation with Sensei, we're really lucky to have witnessed such a spectacular show..."

"The perseverance of the second half of the story, especially that of the head of the Hanaya department, is truly awe-inspiring."

"I wish the real-world Hanaya was really this mature."

What were they talking about?

Play?

How is this related to my current situation?

The doubts and unease in her heart grew stronger, and Hua Ye suddenly realized—yes, she was now on a 'stage'.

On a stage that has been deliberately cleared out.

"..."

The bone-chilling cold and the sound of the alarm clock jolted Hua Ye awake from her daze.

She instinctively sat up and picked up the alarm clock next to her, pressing it. Just as she woke up from the nightmare, Hua Ye gasped for breath and, still shaken, began to look around with the alarm clock in hand.

This is...my own bedroom?

It felt very familiar, yet strangely familiar yet unfamiliar.

Wait a minute... wasn't I just communicating with Caesar PMC? How come it's already morning in the blink of an eye?

The tremors from the nightmare subsided quickly, but almost simultaneously, Huaye discovered that the memory of the 'nightmare' did not disappear quickly upon waking.

After trying to recall the various details of the nightmare, Huaye, who was still in shock, was quickly enveloped by another indescribable feeling.

...Although there are examples of nightmare memories being preserved for a long time after 'waking up', the fact that 'even the smallest details can be easily recalled' clearly cannot be explained by the simple category of dreams, right?

It's so clear, it's like my own life resume... How is that possible?

Hua Ye couldn't understand it, but when she thought about what she was about to do, she felt a strange resistance to repeating the same mistakes.

After hesitating and agonizing for a while, Huaye decided... to stop thinking about it for now.

Call up the Fox team and assign them today's 'tasks'...

Tsk.

No.

After dawdling for quite a while, Huaye finally changed her clothes.

"I guess I really was under too much pressure and it all came together..."

"Why don't we go out for a walk and relax? Let's go to Sanba for a bit..."

As soon as Huaye opened the door, she bumped into four foxes.

...The Fox team? I haven't even contacted them today, how did they show up?

Hana, who was about to stretch and relax, stopped and frowned as she looked at Yukino.

Before she could say anything, Yukino took the initiative and acted first.

Unhurriedly, she opened one of the pockets on her chest, took out a small card, and calmly handed it over.

"This is... a pre-announcement?"

Chapter Sixty-Two: Shiranui Hanaya's [Announcement]

"This is... a pre-announcement?"

The moment she instinctively reached out to take it, Hua Ye's heart skipped a beat, and a sense of tension rose up for no reason.

Even though she already knew exactly what the 'card' Yukino handed her was, she still found it hard to believe.

why?

Why did I receive a notification email?

Is all of this... related to my own 'dream'?

Have the 'desires' in my heart become so unbearable?

Didn't I say that... "Persona users" cannot create a Hall of Fame?