Chapter 76
Chapter 76
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 76
Chapter Title:Academy Festival (11)
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Melody did not hurry, moving forward slowly.
As if dreaming within the silence.
Moonlight passed through the stained glass of the ceiling, filling the theater with multicolored light.
Transparent blues and reds.
Sparkling stars, each holding their own hue, poured down, recreating thousands of small lanterns.
Radiance settled upon the stage, which until moments ago had been black and white.
It was truly an awe-inspiring sight.
To think that such an atmosphere could be created solely by natural light.
'Hugo Kahn, are you truly a genius?'
The surprise was fleeting.
Notes flowing from Diana's fingertips cautiously walked across the keys, then scattered as if about to take flight, lightly shattering the theater's air.
The melody continued to stretch out far.
Beyond the rippling rainbow lights in the audience seats.
Like small birds fluttering their wings.
Within that ecstatic atmosphere, I found myself unknowingly being sucked into her dream.
Everyone must have felt the same emotion.
Over The Rainbow.
A soft leap between fingers.
There were no difficult techniques.
Yet, the aftertaste dug deep into the heart, leaving a thick impression.
Sometimes, a single line of text can touch the heart more than a lengthy novel.
What is her strength?
Innate talent?
Definitely not.
Auditory sensitivity.
Flexibility and agility of the body.
Ability to interpret musical scores, or a sense of rhythm.
From stage experience to expressiveness.
None of it is outstanding; if anything, it is lacking.
Diana was unsophisticated in all aspects just a year ago.
It would take her a long time just to grasp the composer's intent within a piece if she didn't demonstrate it herself.
Enough that she played a single "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" for weeks.
However.
Just because she wasn't born with it, doesn't mean she has to live that way forever, does it?
She ultimately accepted her weaknesses and, after overcoming them, finally dominated this grand stage.
If magic exists.
I believe this very moment is magic.
She reforged her flaws into her most shining weapon.
The potion Elise drank?
That isn't so much magic as... as I said, closer to alchemy.
Eventually.
Diana stopped the hand that had been striking the keys.
As she caught her breath, she offered a gentle smile toward the audience.
A facial expression as if she were certain of something.
She must have realized.
That the place where her existence belongs is right here on this stage.
Some emotions can be intuited without confirmation.
A girl who grew up in a countryside not protected by the Empire, who loved music more than anyone but couldn't step forward due to her circumstances.
After a long time, having traveled a long way, she has finally arrived.
She finally blooms here at this very spot.
The stage is Diana's present, and soon, her home.
The journey of patience is like the scarecrow finding wisdom, the tin man finding a heart, and the cowardly lion finding courage.
She has grown by overcoming her inadequacies and fears one by one.
She learned the basics with a Little Star.
She learned how to fully express emotions with an Arabesque.
Slower than anyone, but more sincere than anyone.
Audience members began to stand up and clap one by one.
This was a tribute to her courage today.
Playing the piano in front of hundreds of people—how easy could that be?
Though she showed no sign of it, she must have been trembling inside.
Diana stood up from her seat and bowed deeply.
Her blonde hair swayed, casting a deep shadow on the floor.
The stage was over, but for her, this was the beginning.
Like Dorothy returning home after a long journey.
Someday, she too will return here.
Diana is no longer the unsophisticated country girl of the past.
Performer.
Pianist.
A person who can stand proudly on stage at any time.
Her steps toward the waiting room came to an abrupt halt as she looked up at the ceiling.
Moonlight passing through the stained glass shone softly on her face.
It looked just like a spotlight, and I swallowed a gasp inwardly.
Eventually.
"Next time! I will stand before you with even better music!"
"Waaah!"
At Diana's cheerful greeting, the audience, who had been applauding, let out explosive cheers as if a war had broken out.
It was a very warm sight.
She turned around and walked toward me.
She stumbled forward and plopped down.
"Ah."
"Careful."
It seemed her legs gave out.
I quickly reached out my arm to support her.
"Ah... it hurts..."
It seemed she twisted her ankle while stumbling.
This wasn't part of the plan.
Getting injured right after a successful performance.
A video of a soccer player being carried off during a performance played in my head, and I couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh.
"What is this... Young Master. I didn't know you had a thing for laughing at people in pain."
Now that we've grown close, she doesn't hesitate to say things like this.
I'm the one involved, so I don't really mind and just let it be.
It only happens occasionally.
Compared to Aria, well.
Anyway.
"You did well."
I smoothed over the situation with a plain compliment.
"Pfft... Hahaha!"
Diana tilted her head back and laughed brightly, as if she couldn't be more satisfied.
Was the experience so thrilling that she forgot the pain?
She will continue to take on challenges in the future.
Someday, she might leave my side and see a wider world.
But.
"Come back anytime."
"What do you mean?"
"It means the theater will treat you as an official performer from now on. You have skill. I saw it again."
"Tch."
She tilted her head at that.
She slowly lifted the hand that had been clutching her ankle and, looking embarrassed, brushed back her hair.
"W-Why would I leave the Young Master's side?"
Was that what she was worried about?
She's not wrong, though.
"Well, there isn't anyone as proficient at the piano as I am. It would be your loss if you left."
"That's not..."
"Don't worry. I'll teach you everything I can."
"That's not what I meant."
"Do you want to enter the Academy? Is that what you're saying again?"
"Ah, seriously."
Thinking I wasn't getting it, Diana shook her head and pushed me away.
"I can walk by myself."
I didn't stop her.
Honestly.
I know exactly what she meant.
She wasn't exactly hiding it; if anything, she was being blatant about it.
Yet, the reason I pretend not to know is for one reason only.
'I'm sorry for being born in this era, with this status.'
There is no possibility of our relationship developing further than this.
Lately, Diana's appeals have gotten stronger, which is worrying.
I think I need to keep a bit of distance.
As I watched her limp away into the darkness, I couldn't help but sigh.
Why do memories of the past suddenly come to mind?
'I shouldn't have taught her the March of the Wooden Soldiers.'
That seems to be the culprit.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
I needed to focus on the remaining performances, so I immediately went to find Elise.
"Your Highness? What are you doing right now?"
Victor and Edward were looking awkward and shuffling their feet, so I went over to see what was going on.
Elise was frowning while holding two musical scores open.
One was, as expected, "For Elise."
The other was "Turkish March," a piece I had sent to the Imperial Palace recently.
Of course, since there is no place called Turkey in this world, it was reborn simply under the title "March."
Anyway.
If "For Elise" consists of a somewhat slow tempo and simple rhythm patterns, this one requires maintaining a faster and clearer speed.
It also requires much more technique.
It's a piece that one cannot easily challenge without experience, but I thought it was time to raise the difficulty, so I taught it to her.
"It's a dilemma..."
Elise kept muttering to herself as she rummaged through the scores.
"Haven't you already finished selecting the song?"
I stepped in to sort out the situation, having watched enough.
"That is true."
Then I asked what the problem was.
I didn't ask so bluntly, of course; I tried to be as polite as possible.
She explained.
Originally, she planned to play "For Elise" today, but she couldn't contain her soaring confidence...
"I know this piece is much more difficult, but I feel like I can pull it off perfectly today!"
She was drawn to the march she had brought just in case.
If the other person were Erdi or Victor, I would have told her to do both without hesitation.
However, first of all, I had only sent the march about a month ago.
And second, Elise's current condition is unpredictable.
These two factors combined make it difficult to come to an easy conclusion.
If I think rationally...
"I venture to guess cautiously that the desire to play the march might be greed..."
"That certainly makes sense."
It would be better to choose the safe path.
Moreover, wasn't this person almost crying in front of me just a moment ago, saying she couldn't get on stage?
"But!"
Just as I thought the situation was being sorted out.
"'For Elise' is a piece for me alone, but doesn't the march feel more like a work for everyone? Especially His Majesty the Emperor would seem to like it."
At this point, my patience was wearing thin.
"I think it's dangerous to recklessly present a piece that isn't perfectly prepared for such a simple reason."
It was sound advice.
"I understand."
She accepted it more easily than I thought.
"In exchange, play this piece in my place."
"Pardon?"
"Is that not possible?"
"No, it's not that it's impossible."
My recital is scheduled for tomorrow.
The song selection is already finished.
Changing the schedule isn't difficult, and I already have the Turkish March memorized perfectly, so I'm not too worried.
But is there a reason she must do this?
As if sensing my question, Elise added a word.
Whispering.
"...Actually, my father recently conquered a kingdom to the east."
"Do you mean the Kingdom of Ivelon?"
"So you knew."
Actually, I didn't.
So that matter has finally been settled?
I heard they didn't absorb it completely; they decided to recognize its autonomy but make Ivelon a vassal state of the Empire.
Of course, the ruling class was already replaced.
It took a long time because there was much to wrap up militarily and diplomatically.
Apparently, the Imperial flag was planted in front of the Ivelon Royal Palace, and Ruhan was deeply involved in this matter.
The Emperor plans to hold an official speech and an Imperial banquet soon to celebrate this achievement, but Elise's thought was to use this "March" performance to move the two of them before that.
'Didn't they have a bad relationship?'
Private feelings and public praise are different things.
It's not a bad opinion.
If I had known about this event beforehand, I would have prepared.
"An announcement will be made soon. It's natural that you didn't know until then."
"So Your Highness was busy with that."
"Oh. Thank you for noticing. Hehe."
With such clear grounds, it's impossible to refuse.
In the end.
Elise played the piece she had prepared on her own.
And a plan was hastily added for me to go on stage after her.