The three of them grabbed a quick lunch before hurrying to the concert venue.
Although the concert was still several hours away from starting, crowds had already gathered outside.
Vendors lined the surrounding streets, selling every imaginable piece of official merchandise.
The instant Oenone and Yinbing saw the stalls...
they entered shopping mode.
They pulled out a homemade strategy guide packed with checklists, routes, and countless handwritten notes.
Oenone tossed Ethel a bulging wallet.
It was stuffed with cash.
"Mission One."
"Buy every single item from every stall."
"Six of each."
"...Six?"
"Three for me, three for Yinbing."
"One to use."
"One to collect."
"One as a backup."
"We'll meet back here in two hours."
"We're going to fight for the limited-edition merchandise."
"Bye~~"
The two of them disappeared like the wind.
"...Did they really just use Force for that..."
Ethel stood there speechless.
After several stunned seconds, he dragged the two enormous empty suitcases behind him and began carrying out his assignment.
At first, he had assumed it was only merchandise.
How heavy could it possibly get?
Halfway through the shopping area...
he realized just how naïve that thought had been.
Before he'd even finished half the venue, both suitcases were already packed solid with albums, towels, light sticks, posters, keychains of every imaginable size, and countless other goods.
Only then did he notice several folded shopping bags tucked neatly inside the luggage.
Apparently...
the two of them had known from the beginning the suitcases wouldn't be enough.
By the time he was buying concert shirts according to the size chart they'd given him...
he was already carrying two completely full shopping bags in addition to everything else.
And the pile kept growing.
More than two exhausting hours later...
Ethel finally returned to the meeting point, burdened beneath a mountain of purchases.
The other two were already waiting.
"Only ten minutes late."
Yinbing glanced at the time.
"Not bad."
The limited-edition merchandise in their hands suggested they had been fighting over items that sold out almost immediately.
No wonder they had insisted on buying those personally.
Without giving Ethel even a moment to rest...
they immediately moved on to the next phase.
They led him around the perimeter of the venue before stopping in front of one enormous display wall.
It featured promotional artwork for one of Kotoha's songs.
While buying merchandise, Ethel had noticed similar posters scattered throughout the venue.
Each one showed Kotoha wearing a different outfit, with the clothing and scenery reflecting a different song.
"Here."
Oenone shoved a camera into Ethel's hands.
Her intentions couldn't have been clearer.
"Make sure I look good~~~"
She happily walked over to the poster and posed.
"...Not bad."
By the time he finally heard those words...
fifteen minutes had passed.
Ethel had never taken photographs before.
Lighting.
Composition.
Angles.
He knew absolutely nothing about any of it.
Only after Oenone rejected shot after shot...
and Yinbing patiently coached him from the sidelines...
did he finally manage to produce a picture Oenone found acceptable.
Just as Ethel thought the ordeal was over—
he heard the words that sent a chill down his spine.
"Great."
"My turn next."
"But you'll have to work a little faster."
"That was only the first one."
"...The first?"
No way...
Ethel thought.
"Yep."
"There are twenty-three more."
"...Somebody save me..."
Another two hours passed.
At long last...
they arrived before the final poster.
Judging by the crowd gathered there...
it was unquestionably the most popular one.
The poster showed Kotoha sitting sideways upon the ground.
Her legs were folded gracefully before her as she looked back over her shoulder toward the viewer.
She wore a white lace dress.
Ripples spread outward across the ground from where she sat.
Mist drifted through the blurred background, where the faint silhouette of an enormous clock could just barely be seen.
Thin red and white lines extended from the corners of her eyes to the edges of her lips.
In the upper-right corner was the title of the song—
Mist Bell.
"This is her most famous song."
Yinbing explained enthusiastically.
"It was her debut single."
"And it's still my favorite."
"She wrote both the lyrics and the music herself."
"The moment it was released, it swept across the entire city."
"It made her famous overnight."
"It's the one I played for you that day."
Ethel remembered the song immediately.
That ethereal voice...
carrying both warmth and sorrow...
It truly had been beautiful.
Standing before the Mist Bell poster, Yinbing struck even more poses than before.
Ethel ended up taking far more photographs than he had at any previous display.
Her enthusiasm made it obvious just how much she loved this particular song.
Looking through the camera lens...
Ethel noticed something.
Among every photograph he had taken that day...
Yinbing's smile in these pictures was by far the brightest.
The happiest.
Although they took several extra shots...
they finished much faster than Oenone's very first session.
After two straight hours of photographic boot camp...
Ethel had at least learned enough about composition, lighting, and framing to satisfy the two perfectionists.
When he pressed the shutter one final time...
the three of them immediately stepped aside to make room for the fans still waiting in line.
Yinbing and Ethel returned to their original meeting place.
Between hauling mountains of luggage...
and spending hours taking photographs without pause...
Ethel was breathing heavily.
The past several hours had exhausted him so thoroughly that it felt no less demanding than one of his usual training sessions.
A few minutes later, Oenone returned carrying drinks.
"Here."
"Thanks."
The icy bottle pressed against his neck sent a wave of relief through Ethel's exhausted body.
Gratefully, he accepted the water and drained nearly the entire bottle in one go.
As the concert drew closer, the crowd around them continued to swell.
Closing his eyes, Ethel finally allowed himself a brief moment of rest.
He had assumed that once the shopping and photography were over, he could relax until the doors opened.
That illusion lasted only a few minutes.
Before long, Yinbing grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back to his feet.
This time, unlike before, they split up from Oenone.
The two of them headed in another direction.
Their destination—
the Mist Bell poster.
Every poster around the venue had attracted a sizable crowd.
But the gathering in front of Mist Bell was several times larger than any of the others.
"What are we doing now?"
Burdened beneath the mountain of luggage, Ethel struggled to keep pace with Yinbing.
Only after she finally stopped did he manage to ask.
"Before the concert starts..."
"...they give these posters away."
"It's like a little pre-show game."
"I already know the Mist Bell poster will have the most people competing for it..."
"...but I really, really want it."
Her face was filled with unrestrained longing.
Yinbing had helped Ethel countless times.
She was also the first true friend he had ever made.
If there was any way he could help her obtain what she wanted...
he wanted to try.
"So..."
"...that's why you brought me?"
"Exactly."
"The more people, the better the odds."
"But if you win..."
"...the poster is yours."
"If I win..."
"...I'll give it to you."
"I can buy it from you!"
"It's alright."
"You were the one who introduced me to Kotoha."
"But..."
"...how do you actually win?"
"...Luck."
The moment Ethel heard that...
his confidence deflated like a punctured balloon.
Luck wasn't something effort alone could earn.
"There are six circles."
"You randomly choose one to stand in."
"Only two circles are selected to advance to the next round."
"They keep repeating until either one person—or nobody—is left."
"...Nobody?"
"So it can end without a winner?"
"Yep."
"When a circle is chosen, a spotlight shines on it."
"Actually..."
Yinbing lowered her voice once again.
"Those lights are controlled by Commander Hermes using his Concept."
"He stays in his office and randomly selects coordinates for the posters."
"Since he can't actually see what's happening here..."
"...there's absolutely no way to predict what he'll choose."
The crowd suddenly surged forward.
The game was about to begin.
"Anyway..."
"Just don't stand in the same circle as me."
"We'll each do our best."
"Neither Oenone nor I have ever won one in previous years."
"So don't put too much pressure on yourself."
"Okay?"
The sea of people soon separated them.
After the host appeared and briefly explained the rules, the atmosphere steadily grew more excited.
It was the perfect pre-show event, quickly raising everyone's anticipation before the concert.
Once the explanations were finished...
the game officially began.
Almost two-thirds of the participants were eliminated in the very first round.
Although disappointed, those who lost calmly stepped aside to make room for the remaining contestants.
Both Ethel and Yinbing survived the first two rounds.
By sheer luck, each of them had chosen one of the winning circles.
But in the third round...
Yinbing was eliminated.
Only Ethel remained.
By then, fewer than fifty contestants were left.
The number of advancing circles had also dropped from two...
to one.
After the fourth round...
fewer than ten people remained.
Ethel was still among them.
After the fifth...
only three contestants were left.
Watching Ethel continue standing among the finalists, Yinbing clasped her hands tightly before her face.
She prayed with all her heart.
"We're down to our final round!"
the host announced excitedly.
"Will our most popular poster, Mist Bell, finally find its owner?"
"Contestants!"
"Make your final choice!"
Standing in the center of the six circles, Ethel tilted his head for a moment.
Then, without hesitation...
he stepped into one.
The other two contestants each chose different circles.
This would undoubtedly decide everything.
Yinbing couldn't bear to watch anymore.
She covered her eyes and nervously waited for the result.
The sound effects came to an end.
The spotlight descended one final time.
A thunderous cheer erupted from the crowd.
Even without looking, Yinbing knew someone had won.
"Congratulations!"
the host shouted.
"Would you like to say a few words?"
"My friend really wanted this poster."
"I'm just happy I could win it for her."
The familiar voice made Yinbing's eyes snap open.
Standing inside the glowing circle—
accepting the interview—
was Ethel.
"Let's hear it one more time for our winner!"
"You can claim your prize after the concert."
"The venue is now open!"
"Please proceed to the entrance in an orderly fashion."
"We'll see you all again at the next concert!"
The crowd immediately began flowing toward the entrance.
Ethel searched among the sea of people for a flash of silver hair.
The moment he spotted Yinbing—
she had already thrown herself into him.
"Ethel!"
"You actually won!"
"You're amazing!"
"Just like I promised."
"It's yours."
"Oh, Ethel..."
"I don't even know how to thank you."
"I've wanted that poster for so long."
"We should find Captain Oenone first."
Surrounded by a crowd constantly pushing everyone toward the entrance...
the middle of the flow was hardly the place to stop and chat.
ns216.73.217.114da2
and then Add to home screen.