Chapter 46: Restoration
Night Star Lan returned from ancient times to the Rising Sun Theater, and instantaneously, drowsiness hit her like a freight train.
But she pushed through and didn’t crash into dreamland immediately.
“Wish Princess… Can the disappearance of the Ballad Conductor be corrected in reality?”
【Yes】
“Phew~ That’s a relief…”
Once she relaxed, Night Star Lan finally drifted off into a peaceful slumber.
But soon, two figures rushed in and managed to catch the oncoming fall of both Night Star and Night Lan.
Those were the Fraudster and the Gentleman.
Their Star Eclipse essence hadn’t changed, but the abnormalities they wore like bad cologne vanished with Night Star Lan’s return.
The Fraudster caught Night Star, a smirk tugging at his lips.
“Though I’m not sure what happened, the Audience Performer reminded me of quite a few things. The Ballad Conductor, huh? Even worse than me, the Fraudster! To disguise myself as her for a final blow? What a fool I was to believe it!”
The Gentleman wore a gentle smile that screamed, “I’m totally helpless right now.”
“That’s all well and good, but now it’s time for the Audience Performer to get some proper rest.”
“Can’t argue with that.”
And so, the Fraudster and the Gentleman each cradled a tired Loli and whisked them back to their room to recharge their batteries.
The Group Leader and others watched their retreating figures and sensed that both theater members had returned to normal.
Looks like the Audience Performer really put in some heavy lifting.
Kong Yu Bai let out a sigh.
“Who knows how much she suffered during this incident?”
At that moment, the Gentleman and the Fraudster rejoined the lineup.
The Group Leader glanced at the two.
“The Audience Performer saved you, so make sure to thank her properly once she wakes up.”
The Gentleman nodded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
“Of course.”
The Fraudster placed a hand on his mask and lifted it off with ease.
After waking up, a flurry of memories swirled back to him, making him realize why he wore the mask in the first place.
His true face was part of the deception, and the mask was meant to fool others.
But with no outsiders around, only trustworthy members of the theater group, off came the mask.
“Once the Audience Performer wakes up, I’ll thank her. In those memories that don’t belong to me, I seem to have duped her multiple times and held a solid distrust. So, naturally, I owe her a compensation, hoping she won’t hold a grudge.”
The Gentleman sighed wistfully.
“The Audience Performer worked so hard and still didn’t change the story’s ending. She must be pretty heartbroken. We should think of how to comfort her later. A lady shouldn’t be made sad—that’s not very gentlemanly.”
The Fraudster jumped into the conversation without thinking, “I’m not a gentleman, but… yeah, we should definitely comfort her.”
The mix of past and present memories made the Gentleman and the Fraudster seem like old pals, with plenty of topics to chat about.
Meanwhile, Kong Yu Bai and the others had NO idea what they were babbling about.
Kong Yu Bai suddenly had an epiphany.
“Wait… Did the Audience Performer also leave a mark in their past?”
The Gentleman and the Fraudster looked deep in thought, recalling memories from their human days.
Although their Star Eclipse personas had cut themselves off from the past, they could still fish out some tales for discussion.
Right now, they should probably be considered “Hughes” and “Ulysses,” huh?
Retrieving those past memories meant reclaiming a part of their humanity.
Even as Star Eclipses, they certainly had a dash of “human” flavor now.
Lost in thought, Lianhua noticed something and her eyes lit up.
“So… Are there new stories?!”
Lianhua scooted up to the Gentleman and the Fraudster, looking like a cat that spotted a canary.
“Can you tell me? I want to adapt it into a puppet show, please!”
That’s just Lianhua for you.
She was practically a walking storybook, already knowing a lot about the stories of many theater members.
If the Gentleman and the Fraudster had stories, you bet Lianhua wouldn’t pass that up.
Moreover, this was a story that included Night Star Lan!
She had to hear the stories of both the Fraudster and the Gentleman, as well as the Audience Performer—now that’s what we call well-rounded storytelling!
The Gentleman, of course, wouldn’t reject the Puppet Master’s request.
“Okay, I’ll share, but I only know a part of it; you’ll have to get the rest from the Fraudster.”
The Fraudster didn’t decline either.
“Just so you know, it won’t be a happy tale; it’s a tragedy.”
A trace of helplessness flickered in the Gentleman’s eyes.
“It really is… one of those despair-inducing tragedies.”
And so, the Gentleman and the Fraudster sat down and began to recount that chapter of memories.
Book Yao, Kong Yu Bai, and others quickly settled in, their curiosity piqued.
After all…
The Audience Performer was involved, just like in their stories.
With such an incredible person in the mix, how would their tale change?
And what of the impending tragedy? Surely even the Audience Performer couldn’t do anything about it?
Beneath the eager eyes of their fellow members, the Gentleman and the Fraudster slowly revealed their story.
…
Before anyone knew it.
Night Star Lan woke up.
“Ugh…”
The two little Lolis woke up still half-asleep, lost in a fog.
As consciousness returned, she began to recall what had happened before she dozed off.
“Wait! How long have I been sleeping?!”
“Ugh… Please tell me I didn’t miss the theater’s performance again…”
Just the thought of oversleeping and missing the show made her head throb.
Thankfully, the Wish Princess popped up at that moment.
“You’ve slept through the night; it’s morning now.”
Upon hearing this, Night Star Lan breathed a huge sigh of relief.
“Then all’s good.”
Doing some mental math, it seemed to be the first day of the weekend.
If it was morning, there was still plenty of time before the show to get ready.
What a relief it was not to have missed another performance!
Once she confirmed that, Night Star Lan shifted her focus to another matter.
“How are the Gentleman and the Fraudster doing?”
The Wish Princess replied softly, “They’ve awakened and regained their past memories. The price they paid was the right to use Star Eclipse power. You can use their abilities as you please.”
That was like having two hosts for the abilities of 【Polite Devil】 and 【Concept Interference】.
One was the embodiment of Star Eclipse itself, and the other was Night Star Lan.
The only difference was that Night Star Lan’s authority was higher.
If she felt like it, she could even nullify the Gentleman and the Fraudster’s powers, preventing them from using Star Eclipse abilities.
“Ugh…”
Night Star Lan closed her eyes to sense within herself, discovering two new presences indeed.
“Just cramming in all sorts of weird stuff again…”
When it came to the Fraudster and the Gentleman’s abilities, the former seemed a lot more useful.
As for the latter, Night Star Lan had no clue what to do with it.
She usually didn’t care to maintain any semblance of politeness, let alone restrain others’ decorum.
### Polite Devil might fit as a warehouse manager, though.
As for 【Concept Interference】… Well, not really useful for now.
Future potential, maybe.
Those were just side notes for now.
Right now, Night Star Lan was laser-focused on the situation of the Ballad Conductor!
If he didn’t bite the dust, she was going to have a hard time relaxing.
In the Gentleman and the Fraudster’s story, she could really feel just how terrifying that j*rk was.
“Where’s the Ballad Conductor?”
“He’s already completed the reality correction; the Ballad Conductor has confirmed his disappearance.”
As she said this, the Wish Princess extended one hand.
A glowing orb appeared above her palm, peacefully hovering.
From this glowing sphere, Night Star Lan sensed a chilling aura.
No doubt about it.
This was indeed a product related to the Origin of the Stars.
