【Prologue】『A Grand Ovation.』

Tonight's performance at the Chanze Theater was going well. From the opening until now, everything had proceeded exactly as planned and perfectly.

"Another 'masterpiece' today, I see."

At the back of the auditorium, Lonto was watching the stage illuminated by a pale blue spotlight from her usual spot, where she could see both the audience and the stage.

The house was full. With this, the record for consecutive sold-out shows had surpassed the all-time high.

Eventually, the atmosphere of the stage changed.

The ballerinas who had been dancing until then disappeared into the darkness on the stage-left side, the classical music that had been playing quieted down, and a melody like the rhythm of a river began to flow.

The lights went dark, and when they came back on, they quietly illuminated only a single point.

A lone ballerina emerged from the darkness on the stage-right side.

The girl, dressed in white, bowed deeply like a bird spreading its wings and then began to dance quietly.

"...It is time for your turn. —Welcome, my lovely white swan."

The dancing of the girl called the Swan, "Maggot," could only be described as beautiful, even to an amateur's eye.

Maggot's footsteps felt entirely devoid of weight or gravity, giving the audience the illusion that they were looking at a single swan floating on a moonlit lake through the trees.

It was at that moment, when everyone was captivated by her and had forgotten even to breathe—

"—!"

Lonto did not miss the change in Maggot's expression.

To Lonto, it looked as if Maggot's left foot had slipped for just an instant when it touched the stage. It might have just been her imagination. Because none of the audience members seemed to have noticed it.

And then, Maggot's turn ended. Maggot bowed just as she had at the beginning.

As she turned her back to leave the stage, applause enveloped her. However, Maggot's expression could hardly be called good—