Chapter 32: A Yearning Future
“Y-you… What do you want? I warn you, don’t get fresh with me, or you’ll regret it.”
Night Lan said warily.
The dream narrator shook his head and teleported in front of her.
“What…”
Before she could react, the dream narrator placed his finger on her forehead.
“Let me see your dreams.”
A blinding white light flashed, and Night Lan quickly lost consciousness.
Crushing all hope!
“Mmm…”
When Night Lan regained consciousness, she found herself in the headquarters’ lounge.
“Huh? You’re awake?”
After stretching and getting up, Night Lan washed up and left the lounge to grab something to eat.
At this moment, Night Feather also came out of the lounge.
“Ugh, good morning, Lady Night Feather.”
Night Lan greeted as usual.
“Not bad, my servant. You’re quite spirited today.”
“Hehe, staying positive for the new day is the best way to live, you know.”
After this little chat, Night Lan and Night Feather headed to the headquarters’ cafeteria for breakfast.
On the way, Night Lan suddenly noticed something odd.
A Night Watcher with leader-like charisma walked alongside an old man in a black cloak and hat, a very harmonious scene indeed.
“Wow! The leader!? The group leader? Why is the group leader here?!”
Night Lan was genuinely bewildered.
Hearing Night Lan’s words, Night Feather asked in puzzlement, “Have you been dreaming too much, servant? The Demon King has made peace with the Night Watchers. For them, he’s no longer an enemy, but rather the best partner.”
“No way!”
Night Lan was shocked once again.
Night Feather continued, “Even I admire that Demon King. His skills are top-notch, powerful yet dedicated to his ideals. He brings his troupe to the headquarters every week to perform for stressed-out Night Watchers, really helping them unwind. Quite impressive.”
“Wow? The theater troupe performs at headquarters?”
This piece of news utterly stunned Night Lan.
Night Feather nodded firmly.
“Yes, we’ve cracked the negative impact star etchings have on ordinary folks. We won’t worry about harmful star etchings tormenting society anymore. We can eliminate the negatives and integrate them into human society—peaceful coexistence.”
“Oh wow…”
If it were true, this would be a huge breakthrough. And for the troupe’s interests, it was fantastic. Even without an audience performer, they could perform outside, without worrying about a lack of spectators or star etching harming them, a perfect picture of harmony.
If that were the case… it would definitely be a stellar outcome.
Suddenly, an idea struck Night Lan, and she urgently asked Night Feather, “What about the audience performer of the Rising Sunrise Troupe?”
“The audience performer of the Rising Sunrise Troupe? She’s the jewel in the crown, the most precious treasure. During performances, she watches from below or by the edge of the stage, always mysterious and cute.”
Night Lan instinctively swallowed.
Though it felt good to be praised like that, she now wanted to know—
“Actually… Do you know her real identity?”
Night Feather shook her head.
“Didn’t I say she’s mysterious? So unknown that even I don’t know her true self, only that she’s a cute girl and the heart of the troupe. Besides the other members, she has tons of fans, and her masks are hot-selling merchandise everywhere.”
Relief washed over Night Lan.
She didn’t get exposed to the Rising Sunrise Troupe.
Not becoming a laughingstock was great!
Even if world peace was achieved and star etchings lived harmoniously with Night Watchers, the Rising Sunrise Troupe could integrate easily into human society. Night Lan certainly did not want to be seen.
Not wanting to become a laughingstock was subconsciously her goal.
At this point, another thought popped into Night Lan’s mind.
“What about the theater over there?”
With this thought, Night Star’s viewpoint appeared. Now she stood inside the Rising Sunset Theater.
Dumbfounded, Night Star looked around and noticed a significant change.
It wasn’t so eerie anymore. In fact, it had gained lots of vitality.
On the grand stage, a troupe was performing.
Not just current members, but also the first-generation troupe members.
The gentlemen, swindlers, enthusiastic singers, Thousand Faces boy, and dance fairies, virtually all present.
First-generation troupe members were passionately performing with no discord.
Below the stage, the audience was filled with strangers. They watched with intense enthusiasm, obviously enjoying the troupe’s performances.
Witnessing this, Night Star froze again.
At this moment, Mo Rabbit appeared beside her.
“Hey, you! Are you spacing out? Shouldn’t you be watching their performance from down here?”
“B—broadcaster…?”
Night Star still hadn’t fully recovered.
“Why is everything different?”
“How? You brain-damaged? This is what you yearned for—a future where the Rising Sunrise Troupe is accepted by Night Watchers and humans, where the negative star etchings are resolved. A perfect future for you.”
“Is this true?”
Night Star pondered; something felt off.
All of this was exactly what she had hoped for. She truly wished for the Rising Sunrise Troupe to be accepted by everyone, for star etchings to live in harmony with Night Watchers, for everything to turn mundane.
But something was missing—the authenticity.
As Night Star was in a daze, Broadcaster grabbed her hand and beamed a cute smile.
“Come on, stop zoning out. Go watch the show. Isn’t this what you love?”
“Um…”
Night Star felt Broadcaster suddenly appeared more adorable, every move reminiscent of a little girl, which could melt even someone of her tastes.
Might Mo Rabbit have completely become a cute character?
If so, this looked rather nice.
Then, Mo Rabbit led Night Star to the audience seats right in the front row. Here, she could clearly see the stage and enjoy the performances flawlessly.
Once Night Star arrived, the on-stage performers clearly treated her differently, favoring her. Yes, she was originally the troupe’s audience member, the beloved one.
Night Star suddenly realized that this beautiful future was really something to look forward to.
