Sweet Dreams for All
Yes, that's right — Xia Yu had finally pulled Xiao a while back.
And the moment she did, thinking of today's performance, she'd immediately arranged for him to join the opening act.
Ever since she'd first watched the promo short for the Genshin Concert, she had longed to see a live performance with her own eyes. Now that the chance had finally come, there was no way she was going to miss it.
"Such a shame," Paimon sighed. "The Traveler's luck still isn't good enough — Paimon still hasn't gotten to see Diona or Eula. Today's show would've been perfect otherwise!"
Xia Yu rolled her eyes internally. Paimon was getting a little too full of herself if she thought this luck still wasn't good enough. "Seven nations, seven Archons — I've already pulled four of them! Apart from the Cryo Archon, who isn't even out yet, all I'm missing are the Anemo Archon and the Pyro Archon, okay?!"
"Fair enough." Paimon had to admit the Traveler really was quite lucky in that department. Still... "Speaking of which, how come you haven't pulled the bard yet? Paimon figured he'd be the first Archon you'd ever get!"
"That's not something I can control — it all comes down to luck."
The curtain drew fully open, and the performance was about to begin. Xia Yu's attention snapped at once to the show she had been anticipating for so long.
"Oh my," Ran murmured. "The opening act has Mr. Zhongli conducting, with Albedo, Kaveh, and Ayaka playing instruments."
Sonoko excitedly raised her video camera. "That's right — and not a single one of them isn't gorgeous! This performance alone is worth the price of admission." (Even though none of them had actually paid.)
Overhearing Sonoko's assessment, Conan's eyes narrowed to half-moons. She's judging purely on looks. The performance hasn't even started and she's already declared it a masterpiece.
As for Subaru Okiya, he had no interest whatsoever in the chatter around him. The instant the curtain rose, his gaze locked like a torch onto the orange-haired man standing at the left side of the stage.
Childe — Tartaglia!
Subaru's eyes, which had been lazily half-lidded, widened slightly with shock. Never in a million years had he expected to cross paths with the man in a place like this — and more baffling still, Tartaglia was up on stage, ready to perform.
As the show officially began, Subaru listened intently to the guitar weaving through the music, and realized with profoundly mixed feelings that this man who had struck him as unfathomably deep from their very first meeting was actually... pretty good at the guitar.
Come to think of it, everyone in this opening act was presumably a member of the Teyvat Syndicate — and a remarkably multi-talented bunch at that.
At the thought, the corner of Subaru's mouth twitched.
Just how high are the entry requirements for this organization? Not only do you need serious combat skills — you have to be a virtuoso musician too?
Subaru's curiosity about the Teyvat Syndicate's shadowy boss deepened by the minute. What manner of charisma and cunning did this mysterious figure possess, to gather such a collection of wildly different personalities — brilliant, capable, dangerous people — under one banner and command their unwavering loyalty?
And how had he fused people of such obviously disparate backgrounds into an organization this powerful and this unified? Every layer of it left Subaru bewildered and hungry for answers.
Meanwhile, not far away, just above the stage.
Nahida, freshly returned to Japan, slipped out of the audience's sightlines and leapt lightly onto the horizontal beam above the stage, settling herself down with practiced ease. Swinging her legs to the rhythm of the music, she watched the performance below with a smile — the music of the Geo Archon Morax himself, conducted with all his ancient grace.
Her eyes brimmed with curiosity and anticipation, darting now and then toward the center of the stage, utterly absorbed in the concert.
She closed her eyes gently and gave herself over to the music, listening to each note as it danced, feeling the emotions swell and resonate through her.
Only as the performance neared its close did Nahida slowly open those green eyes, green as a deep forest. She gazed quietly out ahead of her, as if she could see straight through the heavy curtain to every last soul seated in the audience beyond.
Raising her hand, she framed the entire audience between her fingers and thumb like a viewfinder, and spoke in a voice as light as a breeze. Then, with those words spoken, Nahida leapt downward and vanished into the air.
Down in the audience, the moment the words left her lips, Xia Yu blinked once — and, stealing a secret glance at Ayato, knew that they had already passed into a dream.
Nahida was the Dendro Archon, after all. She had pulled this many people into a dream all at once, and yet apart from a handful of unusually sensitive souls — such as the FBI's ace, Shuichi Akai, disguised as Subaru Okiya, who felt only a fleeting instant of something being ever so slightly off before a careful scan of his surroundings put his mind at ease — not a single person, not even the protagonist himself, Edogawa Conan, noticed anything amiss.
As the dream unfolded around them, the opening act drew to its close, and thunderous applause swept the hall.
Sonoko had been right. The opening performance alone was worth the price of admission.
Clapping with all her strength, Xia Yu marveled once more at how very right her decision had been.