11. Wonderland (15)
11. Wonderland (15)
The performance time for <The Five Acrobats> was set for the afternoon of the 12th.
The acrobats kept practicing late into the night before.
When they finished the group sequence of the final scene, all six performers were completely spent.
They had run the rehearsal again and again just today. Juggling acting, singing, and acrobatics all at once drained their stamina to an absurd degree.
In a normal play, you naturally find a rhythm by matching your co-stars, and a certain momentum builds from there. But this performance kept demanding solo scenes directed at shadows or dolls in between, which made it hard to sustain concentration.
Above all, the punishing rehearsal schedule was the real issue.
Standard practice is to pace your stamina sensibly with the actual show in mind.
But this play was a one-and-done affair. No need to hold anything back. They had to pour everything into drawing out peak form and leave themselves with exactly one performance's worth of energy.
"To save strength for later is an insult to Christian."
That was Lord Fantastic's position. For once, even Ella, who often clashed with him, agreed.
The one mercy was that the duke was blind.
If they had also been expected to perfect every stage effect, prop, costume, and directorial cue, a month wouldn't have been enough—two wouldn't have sufficed.
The instant Simon declared practice over, Ella and Ruelo collapsed where they stood. Clara and Karen simply sprawled out flat on the stage floor. Maya and Reina managed to stay upright by leaning lightly against a wall.
The troupe leaders' faces were equally etched with exhaustion.
Lord Fantastic sank into the sofa the moment he called the session, perhaps from overusing 'Mime in the Mirror.' Hobbs, who had grumbled all day about having to play silent extras, had no energy left for words—he just sat there, head hanging low.
Arno looked just as worn out.
Personally implementing and revising every illusion while simultaneously handling the vocal performances meant his fatigue was on a whole different level.
Minova tossed aside his drumsticks and let out a rough breath.
He served as the drummer for the main performance.
Solo pieces often pair one actor with one drummer. <The Five Acrobats> featured multiple characters, but structurally it was very close to a solo performance. A single drum kit carried the entire musical weight of the play. He had been pounding it nonstop all day; even someone as sturdy as Minova was running on fumes.
While everyone else sat there too exhausted to move, one man climbed onto the stage, his expression conspicuously animated.
"Ha ha, excellent work, everyone!"
Throughout their rehearsal, Wonderstein had been sitting in the audience with his eyes closed. He had been experiencing the performance entirely through his ears, taking the duke's perspective.
To ensure that nothing he saw accidentally would color the experience, he had deliberately avoided watching the rehearsals as much as possible.
At first, Ella had thought Lord Fantastic was deliberately freezing him out. After all, the man kept inventing errands to shoo him out of the practice room whenever they worked on their acrobatics.
She had been on the verge of confronting him about the harassment when Wonderstein stopped her.
He shared the conversation the two of them had before practice began—the agreement that he would serve as the audience during rehearsals.
"Th-then he should have explained that from the start..."
"Heh. He said that if the actors become conscious of a specific listener during rehearsal, their performance falls apart. Especially in a show like this one, aimed at a single audience member—apparently that kind of fixation effect is much more pronounced."
Ella pouted at his explanation but didn't dispute it.
She knew the phenomenon well herself.
The Cookie Merchant Effect.
A term born from the old saying that if you perform for children, you'll unconsciously start pandering with childish acting—it describes what happens when you become so hyperaware of your audience's biases that the focus of your performance skews.
If a performance needed fine-tuning, it should be done according to the director's judgment. Asking individual actors to be aware of it and self-regulate their own acting only caused chaos.
"Today was flawless. Absolutely perfect."
For the past several days, Wonderstein had observed the rehearsals from the duke's point of view.
Which parts were hard to follow by ear alone? Which parts made it difficult to mentally picture the scene?
Each time, subtle adjustments followed. Since the duke wanted the original work preserved as-written, they couldn't touch the script, but within the director's allowed discretion, they could refine the staging.
Thanks to that, they had managed to craft a performance the duke could enjoy a little more easily.
"Let's all wash up and get to bed early tonight. We've got one more rehearsal in the morning."
At Simon's words, everyone rose and retreated to their respective rooms.
The six lead performers all headed in the same direction.
To deepen their immersion in the play, they had been sharing the largest room, living together just like the characters they portrayed.
The room was large enough for six to sleep in, but the bathroom was not quite as spacious. So they split into two teams to wash up.
Ella, Ruelo, and Reina used the attached bathroom, while Maya, Karen, and Clara used the one across the hall.
"Luri! Want me to wash you?"
Ella held up a shower towel and called out.
Ruelo gave a small shake of her head, then shuffled over and glued herself to Reina instead.
"I like it better when Reina washes me."
"Agh!"
Ella made a theatrically wounded face.
At first, Ruelo had been close only to her. Now she was pushing her aside and seeking out someone else.
Well, they had spent over ten days living under one roof—it was only natural they'd grow friendly. But still, watching the little girl cling straight to another older girl right in front of her stung her pride.
"Fr-frankly, it's a bother, but... if Luri insists..."
A crack appeared in Reina's icy expression. She made a show of being put-upon, but the twitching at the corner of her lips meant she was barely suppressing a smile.
Ella's eyes blazed as she shouted.
"I'm the one who gave her the nickname Luri!"
Reina's brow creased at that.
"Did you put a copyright on a nickname or something?"
"Don't fight, you two."
Ruelo wedged herself between them.
That only made Ella angrier. Sure, she was pretending to break up the fight, but the way she looked at her while waving her off seemed to say, 'just stay put, will you?'
Left with no other choice, Ella drew her trump card.
"Are you really going to wash with Reina? Gudol and Jjiksun here were really looking forward to playing with you, you know? Oh well, what a shame. I'll just send them outside since you don't want to."
From the hat Ella had tossed into the laundry basket, a pigeon and a rat poked their heads out.
Picking up on their owner's intent, they drooped their wings and ears, striking distinctly disappointed poses.
"Ah."
Ruelo let out a rueful little sigh. Playing with those two was one of her absolute favorite things. Bath time together would have been so much fun.
The two animals looked back at Ruelo, radiating disappointment and reproach. They'd wanted to play with her too, and now they were sulking because she'd rejected them.
But Ruelo couldn't bring herself to give up being washed by Reina. It was something another presence sharing her body urgently wanted.
She fidgeted, utterly torn, before finally speaking.
"S-sorry... you two."
Tears brimmed in her eyes.
Seeing that, a wave of self-reproach hit Ella.
What am I doing to a six-year-old?
In the end, she raised the white flag.
"D-don't cry! Haha! I was just joking! You can play with them!"
"R-really? Oh, wow! Thank you, Ella!"
Ruelo beamed at the bird and mouse now nestling into her arms.
At the sight of her innocent joy, Ella and Reina traded a glance, snorted a quiet laugh, and sank into the bath.
Reina watched Jjiksun swimming freestyle back and forth in front of Ruelo and remarked,
"Is he going to be all right? I've heard mice shouldn't get water in their ears..."
"He's trained his ear-canal muscles. They close tight so water can't get in."
"Impressive..."
"Tch. You're the impressive one. How did you sweet-talk Luri into this?"
It was Ruelo, giggling as Gudol pecked lightly at the nape of her neck, who answered.
"Reina washes my hair better."
Ella's head snapped up.
"Hair? Huh? You betrayed me over that?"
"I-it's not betrayal... I-It's not me, it's my hair that feels that way... When Reina washes it... it's soft."
"Soft?"
Ella tilted her head, not following.
Ruelo stole a glance at her and mumbled,
"Her chest is..."
"Agh!"
Ella swallowed a groan as she stared at Ruelo, now nestled against Reina's body with her head resting against her.
Of all things, Wonderstein's comment from two weeks ago echoed in her ears.
-If she did gain it, then I'm glad she did.
Not just men—even little girls liked big-chested older girls.
There were things the Talent for Taming alone couldn't overcome when it came to winning people's affection.
She wasn't the only one reminded of his words in that moment.
In the bathroom across the hall, Maya was thinking back to that exact conversation.
"Karen, come on, let's get in!"
"Ugh, Cl-Clara..."
Karen's soul had nearly left her body the moment she heard she'd be sleeping in the same room as other girls. Being told she also had to bathe with them practically finished the job.
When she saw Maya and Clara without their clothes, her face had heated to the point of detonation.
She'd curled up in the corner, clutching her head and insisting she absolutely could not do it—until Clara hauled her in by force.
Clara had been asked by Wonderstein to look after her younger juniors. That sense of responsibility had only deepened as she immersed herself in the lead role of <The Five Acrobats>.
The foundation of Ground Acrobatics was Enduring.
Under normal circumstances, Clara's skills would never have allowed her to drag Karen into the bath. But she knew the girl's weak point. Hugging her while undressed sapped the strength right out of her body.
"Aaahh, Cl-Clara!"
It had become a nightly ritual: Clara, naked, dragging in a bath-resistant Karen.
Today, Karen had her face buried against the older girl's chest, completely out of her wits.
Watching that, Maya felt a prickle of irritation.
-If she did gain it, then I'm glad she did.
Ever since the Troupe Leader said that, she'd found herself acutely aware of every woman's body she met. And if one of them happened to have a larger chest than hers, a hot surge of anger would rise up for reasons she couldn't explain.
With Ella, she figured she still had a fighting chance down the line. But the sight of Clara undressed had considerably shrunk that confidence. And as for Reina's figure—she didn't even let herself compare, fearing the mere thought would break her spirit.
She was in the middle of a ridiculous daydream, imagining how the Troupe Leader would react if she used Illusion Magic to enlarge her chest, when Karen finally shed her clothes and stepped into the bath.
At least now, with both Clara and Maya submerged in the bubble bath, Karen wasn't as completely undone as before.
The moment Maya glanced at her friend's body, a sudden wave of relief washed over her—enough to coax a quiet smile.
Karen tilted her head at the look.
"Huh? What?"
"Nothing at all."
Once they were done bathing, they grabbed pillows and gathered in the center of the room.
Ordinary girls might have chattered the night away, but they were acrobats, after all. They preferred moving their bodies to running their mouths.
"The 10th Duke Slagbort's Pillow Fight has begun!"
At Ella's declaration, all six of them let out a war cry and lunged at each other, pillows swinging.
The game, which Ella had proposed, was one she'd often played with friends back in school. Even Reina and Maya, who had been reluctant at first, got enthusiastically involved after taking a few pillows directly to the face.
Two weeks of living and training together had forged bonds between them, and the story they were performing had deepened that connection.
They should have gone to sleep early to rest up for tomorrow's show, but they couldn't bring themselves to. There was a lingering regret that tonight might be the last time they'd live like this.
The troupe leaders understood, and so they didn't try to stop them.
Then again, the very notion of suppressing festivities and celebration was alien to followers of Kirkeus to begin with.
It was long after the midnight bell had tolled that the lively building finally fell quiet.