Chapter 60
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Volume 1: First Performance: A Tragic Love Story Of A Young Lady And Spring Cherry Blossoms
Chapter 60: The Cross-Dressing Boy Makes Up His Mind
[From Akane Tsukishiro’s Point Of View]
[Ah, so that’s… Kaede Kisaragi’s true acting…?]
The performance I saw during the audition and this are on a completely different level.
Kaede’s acting had color, had light. There was something that overwhelmed the audience.
Juliet bathing by the river made the audience forget reality.
It felt as if the real Juliet was there.
It felt as if the real Adige River was there.
Making the audience envision a landscape through one’s acting is not something an ordinary actor can achieve.
It was clear that such magical acting was not something a mere student, let alone an amateur actor, should be able to perform.
[———This won’t do. At this rate, I’ll be swallowed up!!]
The lead role in this play, Romeo, is mine.
If the protagonist is overwhelmed by the heroine and becomes a mere shadow, this play will collapse.
…Surely, right now, Fuuma must be watching from somewhere in the audience.
I can’t afford to show my rival… my weak side.
I am destined to stand at the top of the entertainment world, alongside Fuuma Yanagisawa.
I won’t let some inexplicable monster that suddenly appeared here make me lose―――――!!
“――――W-who on earth is that beautiful lady! For a moment, I thought the goddess of beauty, Aphrodite, had descended from the heavens!!”
I made a genuinely surprised face and praised Juliet.
This was improvised. Romeo doesn’t have any lines here originally.
Improvisation at the beginning is generally considered an unwise technique as it can confuse the director.
However… if I move on to the next scene without saying anything here, my Romeo will surely be pushed to the edge by that girl.
That is something that I must be avoided at all costs.
So, I can continue being an actress on this stage.
To bring Fuuma back to the path of acting again.
I absolutely won’t let that girl… Kaede’s Juliet, monopolize the stage!!
“……Heh.”
That’s when it happened.
Glancing over her shoulder, Juliet turned to me with a bewitching smile.
At that moment, I felt a shiver run through my entire body.
[…This is bad. This is bad, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad, this is bad…!!!!!!]
It’s frightening. I can’t help, but be scared.
That was no longer the Kaede I knew.
Looking into her blue eyes, it felt like gazing into a deep, bottomless chasm, as if staring into an endless abyss.
That was not Kaede, but something else that had descended into her body—a beauty beyond anything described in the script.
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The scene where Romeo and Juliet meet at the Adige River ended, and the curtain fell momentarily.
Then, the narration by the character Father Lawrence, played by Honoka, began.
“――――On this bridge, the two first met.”
“The young man gazed at the water’s surface with a sullen look, while the girl observed him from afar with a curious expression.”
“When the young man looked up, startled by the presence of another, their eyes deeply locked―――as if time had stopped, Romeo and Juliet silently stared into each other’s eyes.”
“The young man’s name is Romeo, and the girl’s name is Juliet.”
“What begins now is the story of two tragic lovers who fell into an impossible love.”
“Please, everyone, watch until the end of their love story――――”
As I listened to the narration, I hurried to the side of the stage.
To be honest, right now, I was barely holding onto consciousness.
My head was spinning, my vision was distorted, and I felt a bit nauseous.
Perhaps it was because I had dived too deeply into my acting after such a long time.
I was on the verge of developing the yips.
“……What are you? Are you really an amateur?”
As soon as I entered the stage wing, Akane was the first to speak.
After taking a deep breath, I turned to Akane with a calm expression and spoke quietly.
“Yes, of course, I’m an amateur. After all, you’ve never heard of an actress named Kaede Kisaragi before, have you?”
“That’s… true, but… I can’t believe an actress with your level of skill has been unknown until now. Your acting just now had something devilish in it.”
“Thank you. Hearing that from you, Akane-san, makes it worth all the effort――――—Ugh!”
“!? What, what’s wrong!? Are you okay!?”
As I clutched my chest, knelt on the floor, and gasped for breath, Akane hurried over, flustered.
“Someone! Call the teacher! Kaede’s condition seems strange!”
“O-Okay! I’ll go and get Professor Wagatsuma (Agatsuma) or Professor Yanagisawa right now――――”
“No… it’s fine! You don’t need to call anyone! I’ll be fine after a little rest!”
At my words, my classmates who were acting as Extras stopped in their tracks and looked at me with concern.
To reassure them, I gave a gentle smile and then looked back at Akane.
“Akane-san, please calm down as well. I’m fine.”
“But…!! Y-your face is so pale!? And sweat is pouring down from your forehead…!!”
In my blurred vision, I could see Akane’s worried face.
Behind her… I could see a sinister black shadow like fog.
I gave a small smile to the black shadow and took a deep breath.
“……As I thought, it’s still appearing…”
“Eh…?”
“It’s nothing. More importantly… Akane-san, let’s get back to the stage. Once Honoka-san’s narration ends, we’ll move into the next scene. There’s no time to rest.”
“Wh-what are you saying? You can’t possibly act properly in that state…”
“Akane-san, are you… misunderstanding something?”
“…Eh?”
“I once helped you from Okunosaka-senpai and the others. But it wasn’t just because I wanted to be friendly with you. I wanted to compete with you on stage, to see which of us is superior with all our might. That’s why I helped you.”
“Kaede…?”
As I gazed at Akane’s surprised, wide-eyed face, I stood up.
Then, maintaining eye contact with her at close range, I spoke quietly.
“I’ll be straightforward. I plan to dethrone you as an actress on this stage… and declare myself the top actress of Hananomiya Girls’ Academy. To defeat you, the protagonist, and engrave the name Kaede Kisaragi in the public eye… It’s clear that I need a stepping stone for comparison. The more renowned that stepping stone is, the more effective it will be.”
“……Are you saying that I’m that stepping stone…?”
“Yes, that’s right. Did you think I was just a kind-hearted person? I am essentially someone who ignores others’ suffering if it doesn’t benefit me. I am someone who moves based on gain and loss. Therefore… I will use you, the up-and-coming young actress, Akane Tsukishiro.”
Her face trembled, and for some reason, Akane gave a sinister smile.
“You really are just like Fuuma. I had this strange feeling of talking to the old Fuuma, the child actor, just now. I never imagined there would be two such terrifying monsters in this world…”
“……”
“I understand. I won’t stop you anymore, no matter what happens. You’re neither my friend nor my rival. You are my… enemy! Kaede Kisaragi! I’ll crush you here!”
“Yes, please do. I will also do my best to dominate this stage. ———But whether someone like you can stand up to me is highly questionable, Akane-san.”
At my words, Akane’s eyes sparkled and she trembled once more.
…This is good. The more I provoke her, the more she will unleash her full potential, making this stage better.
And with this conversation, she must have understood my resolve.
As long as I don’t collapse from fainting, she will surely prioritize this battle with me.
My rival is a passionate woman like that.
“Are you okay? It seemed like there was some commotion…”
Professor Wagatsuma (Agatsuma), who had appeared in the stage wing, spoke to us.
At those words, Akane shook her head.
“It’s nothing. Right, Kaede?”
“Yes, that’s right. It’s nothing, Professor Wagatsuma (Agatsuma).”
“? Is that so? If there’s any trouble, you can let me know anytime, okay?”
“Yes.”
We both answered at the same time and exchanged glances with each other.
Then we nodded to each other and headed back onto the stage.
―――――It has been one month since I enrolled in Hananomiya Girls’ Academy.
A lot has really happened up until now.
I reunited with my estranged father, met Senpai Ginjou, and was supported by Honoka when I was disheartened… and now, I’m here, competing with Akane in acting just like old times.
Akane wished strongly for me to return to the entertainment world.
She had waited alone in the world of theater for me.
Even though I am not Fuuma Yanagisawa right now… at the very least, as Kaede Kisaragi, I want to respond to her feelings.
I will overcome past traumas and reclaim my identity as an actor.
From now on, I intend to give my all and surpass my past genius child actor self in my performances with Akane.
“‥‥Kaede… Fu, Maa‥‥”
At that moment.
Suddenly, I realized the dark shadow behind me was calling my name with a rasping voice.
That voice belonged to my mother, just before she passed away.
I had long understood the true nature of that dark shadow.
It was my feelings for my mother, my regrets, and my fears.
I entered the world of acting to make my mother proud.
In every performance of Fuuma Yanagisawa, my mother, Yuki Yanagisawa, was always present in the shadows.
Therefore, whenever I deeply focus on my acting, I can’t help but recall my mother’s shadow.
I vividly remember the moment of her death.
“‥‥”
To me, the act of loving someone had always been a source of fear.
If I loved someone, the moment of their death would feel terrifying.
That’s why I had never deeply connected with others.
Even when I made friends, I never formed a bond strong enough to call someone my best friend, and no matter how cute a girl was, I never thought about having a romantic relationship.
People will eventually die.
So, deepening relationships with others seemed pointless and only hurtful.
The thought of parting ways like I did with my mother was terrifying.
Because of this, I developed an extreme aversion to the word “love” and avoided getting close to others.
But―――― I have decided today to break free from this curse.
I will love Romeo with all my heart as Juliet and witness his death with my own eyes.
The moment I made up my mind, my head started throbbing painfully, as if being hit with a hammer.
I could feel my heart pounding fiercely like a rapidly beating drum.
The dark shadow behind me began emitting a piercing, high-pitched scream, and I felt a sensation like acid reflux.
I wanted to escape from this place immediately.
I wanted to flee from this hellish world and live a dazed life, far removed from acting.
But‥‥ I will no longer run away.
I will continue to fight in this world. I decided that when I confessed my past to Akane.
“‥‥‥‥ Fuuma Yanagisawa may have been defeated and broken by this yips, but‥‥ don’t underestimate Kaede Kisaragi. I have already‥‥ no, I have decided to move forward. The break is over. I will perform on stage once again.”
The buzzer sounded, and the curtain rose again.
With a bewitching smile towards the audience―――― I stepped back into the sea of performance.