It was June again, the rainy season. Sitting inside the heavy gray steel aircraft, Thilan looked out through the round window, gazing at the world below.
A gray curtain of rain enveloped the world, water droplets cascading over the wings and sliding across the window before disappearing, leaving behind ever-changing trails of water.
Leaning back in her seat, Thilan closed her eyes briefly before opening them again, her mind wandering through the past few days she had spent at Swallow Garden Academy. Then, her thoughts drifted to the rainy season a year ago, another gray afternoon when she stood in the crowded admissions hall, like a small boat navigating through fog and uncertainty, trying to grasp a glimmer of hope.
Time flies so quickly. A year has already passed.
She filtered through the tumultuous experiences of the past year in her mind, her thoughts finally settling on the Winter Festival evening.
Her memories of following her parents to Saint Ingo Academy as a child were already hazy, leaving only a vague impression. That night, the venue seemed particularly lively, and her sister, Themisia, soared through the night sky like a shining star, captivating everyone's attention.
That overwhelming brilliance and height made Thilan feel both envious and a sense of loss. She knew she could never reach her sister's level and could only curl up in a corner, silently watching.
From that night on, she became even more silent.
Under normal circumstances, she should have been happy and proud of her sister's achievements, but she didn't feel that way. Perhaps she had realized early on that she was herself, and Themisia was Themisia. She had never thought of relying on her sister, and no matter how dazzling Themisia was, it couldn't change the fact that she was weak and timid.
It's strange, Thilan thought, closing her eyes and slowly recalling when the relationship between the sisters had become like this.
It was probably in middle school. After Themisia entered middle school, she began training in transcendent sequences, while Thilan was still in elementary school. They attended different schools and gradually grew apart. Due to her talent, Themisia became more confident, stronger, and increasingly disapproving of Thilan's timid and hesitant nature. There was probably a sense of frustration in her, as Themisia saw Thilan's hesitation and timidity as unnecessary self-inflicted struggles.
As a result, the two, with their different personalities and values, drifted further apart, and their bond weakened.
It wasn't that Themisia treated her badly, but in Themisia's world, Thilan occupied only a very small part. As a genius and top student at Saint Ingo, Themisia had already glimpsed a broader and higher level of the world. She had greater ambitions and pursuits, things that an ordinary family could no longer assist with.
The past—whether it was classmates, family, or anything else—quickly became insignificant. From then on, she rarely discussed things with her family, as the situations she faced were beyond their help. This was reflected in their lives as they grew more distant, only speaking more during important holidays when she returned home.
Back then, her sister must have been very lonely too, Thilan thought vaguely.
Why did Themisia choose to merge with her, even at the cost of her own life? Where did she learn the truth, and why did she come up with such a dangerous idea? Thilan didn't know. Perhaps only by completely defeating Saint Ingo and accessing their internal archives and databases could she uncover the truth of what happened back then.
However, one thing was certain: Themisia must have decided and carried out this plan on her own. If there had been assistance from others or an organization, Thilan wouldn't have nearly died a year ago.
In this regard, Themisia was quite bold, not even considering the possibility that her younger sister might not survive. Thilan shook her head.
But thinking about Themisia's confident and resolute personality, she probably thought the chance of such an accident was too small to consider. After all, when Themisia took her own life, their father and mother were still around, and they would surely take care of Thilan.
However, no one could have predicted that Themisia, the world-renowned genius, would take her own life, and their mother, overwhelmed by grief, would also pass away. By the time Thilan turned 15, her father had quietly left as well.
Amidst these swirling thoughts, the scenery outside the window gradually changed. As the aircraft flew south, breaking through the thick clouds, it ascended to an altitude of over 10,000 meters, revealing the azure sea below.
This return to Edess Academy marked the beginning of the battle. At the end of the month, they would face the Hive Dominion Academy. Thilan was now able to control the extent of her talent, limiting it to the level of a Starlight-Grade Songstress, comparable to Fiery Sugar Princoco.
If they won this time, it would be a perfect conclusion to her first year of studies. She wondered how Princoco would react when she saw her.
They had only met once, introduced by Botis, and had exchanged a few words. Perhaps Prin didn't even know Thilan had joined Edess Academy, as during the Crystal Dream event, Thilan had only told her her codename, Dantalion.
This meeting would probably come as a shock to her. Thinking of this, a sense of anticipation welled up in Thilan's heart.
The azure flames roared, filling the air with a deafening noise. As the aircraft gradually stabilized within Edess Academy, the large square nozzles slowly extinguished.
Carrying a simple suitcase, Thilan stepped out and waved to the staff behind her. The gray steel aircraft then took off again, soaring into the sky.
The holiday was over, and it was time to get to work. Looking at the bustling and prosperous Southern District, Thilan felt a sense of determination. Behind her, in the shadows, a fluffy spider quietly peeked out, curiously surveying its surroundings.
Considering that she would be staying at Edess Academy for a while, Thilan had brought both the spider and the indigo serpent with her.
When she returned to her residence, Annelie was startled by the spider at Thilan's feet. Thilan quickly explained, picking up the spider to ease Annelie's fear.
"It's rare and surprising that Thilan would keep such a fierce pet," Annelie said, patting her chest and cautiously observing the spider in Thilan's arms.
"It's at the high end of Sequence 4, right? I feel like this guy is pretty strong."
"Yes, Decay Sequence 4: Ghostface Spider," Thilan explained while gently stroking the spider.
"Ah, a Decay Sequence spider. That's quite rare."
Annelie bent down to examine the spider closely. Suddenly, the spider leaped onto Annelie's head, causing the silver-haired young lady to scream in fright.
"Ah! Get it off! Get it off!"
She jumped around, trying to shake off the spider but failing.
"Stop."
Seeing the chaos, Thilan pointed at the spider on Annelie's head. It froze and fell to the ground with a hard thud.
After picking up the spider and moving it away from Annelie, the young lady finally caught her breath.
"Whew, that was scary. I'm most afraid of spiders and serpents," she said, still shaken as she looked at the spider in Thilan's arms.
"This guy has been a bit mischievous lately. I'll make sure to teach it a lesson."
Thilan tapped the spider in her arms, thought for a moment, then untied the beautiful, slender ribbon from her hair and used it to bind the spider. She then placed it in the wardrobe in her upstairs bedroom and closed the door before returning downstairs.
"Alright, it should behave for a few days now," Thilan reassured Annelie, and the two sat down to discuss the upcoming competition at the end of the month.
"Regarding the competition and song selection, Evony has already prepared most of it."
Annelie opened her tablet and showed Thilan the details.
"The competition is divided into three stages. The first stage involves each side performing their prepared pieces to set the atmosphere, and judges will score based on their performance."
"Since the entire process will be livestreamed and completely public, and the judges are well-known figures in the music industry, fairness can be largely ensured."
"The second stage is the warm-up battle. Based on the scores from the first stage, the number of combatants each side can field will vary. This means the higher the score in the first stage, the more members can participate."
"At this point, representatives from both sides will draw lots to determine five themes. Then, there will be five one-on-one battles. During the battles, Songstress abilities can be used to enhance one's own members, but the songs performed must be related to the theme, or they will be deemed invalid and result in a loss."
"Each victory in the second stage earns a special resonance crystal, which can be used to enhance the band's abilities in the third stage."
"The third stage is the final battle. At this point, both the band members and combatants from each side will take the field and engage in combat. If all of a side's band members are defeated, it means defeat."
"So, the final outcome depends entirely on the third stage, right?" Thilan pondered.
"Correct, but winning the first and second stages will significantly enhance your side's strength. More members and resonance crystals with enhancement effects can create a snowball effect. If you lose the first two stages, it's easy to be overwhelmed," Annelie explained.
"In the third stage, combatants will receive buffs from the band members, boosting their strength. However, they must also protect their band members. If all the band members are taken out, it means defeat."
"Overall, this competition tests the overall strength and teamwork of the entire club."
"Additionally, each student can only participate in one competition per semester, which means we can't freely borrow members from the Hat and Dagger club. We'll have to rely on the Opera Fan Club or other students who haven't participated yet."
"For now, it's fine since this is the semester-ending competition, and we don't need to save members for later matches."
Thilan thought for a moment, then asked about the arrangements for the Opera Fan Club.
"Evony will definitely participate, but she's only at Sequence 4, so she'll be part of the band rather than the combat team. Due to her training in music and dance since childhood, her skills aren't inferior to those of higher-grade members," Annelie explained.
"The Opera Fan Club currently has three top-tier musicians—members who are guaranteed to perform well. However, the band has six slots, meaning if we include Thilan and Evony, we're still short one person. While there are other members in the club who can fill the gap, their skills aren't on par with the top three."
"Only three?"
Thilan understood that Annelie's "top-tier" referred to members who had achieved high-level musician certifications, qualifying them to join mainstream professional bands. Such members were rare in high school.
Learning music was a tedious and time-consuming endeavor, and balancing it with transcendent sequence training required even more effort. As a result, there weren't many such individuals. Previously, the Opera Fan Club had eight members with high-level musician certifications, all at Sequence 5.
However, after graduation, five of them left for higher education, leaving only three with the necessary qualifications.
"Are there any other music clubs in the academy?" Thilan pressed her fingers to her temples.
"No, Edess Academy isn't particularly strong in music. Among the top six academies, only Saint Ingo, Hive Dominion, and Relisa have programs focused on Songstress training."
"If we're talking about expertise, it's mainly Saint Ingo and Hive Dominion. Relisa Academy's music is concentrated in classical and sacred music, as they are a conservative church academy and don't focus on rock or pop music."
"According to our intelligence, even after the last batch of seniors graduated, Hive Dominion can still field 16 top-tier musician students, two more than Saint Ingo. This is because Hive Dominion is an all-girls school, and noble young ladies have a tradition of cultivating musical talents, giving them a large pool to draw from."
"And their leader is 'Fiery Sugar' Princoco."
Thilan added, feeling that winning while conserving their strength wouldn't be easy.
"As for combatants, we don't need to worry. Even if the Hat and Dagger club can't participate, there are plenty of other clubs and students at Edess Academy who excel in combat."
"But for musicians... it seems we'll have to issue a notice to recruit. Maybe there are some lone wolves who aren't part of a music club but are skilled in music," Thilan decided.
"Let's issue the notice first. If we can't find anyone, we'll have to settle for slightly less skilled members."
"There are 20 days left until the competition. We need to start preparing, aiming to gather all members by this weekend and begin rehearsals to familiarize everyone with each other."
"Alright, I'll draft the notice," Annelie nodded.
"Tomorrow, I'll visit Evony to discuss the final song selection and ask about her strengths."
"Considering the importance of keeping our cards close, we'll try to have Evony take the lead in the first two stages, so we can surprise them in the third stage."
"Of course, that's the ideal scenario. If we can't hold out in the first stage, I'll have to reveal my hand early," Thilan shook her head.
If she had to use her Songstress abilities to compete in the first stage, the third stage would require more than just Starlight-Grade talent to sustain the battle.
“'Fiery Sugar' Princoco…”
Thilan silently repeated the name, recalling the rainy night when the fiery girl descended from the sky, her singing spreading like wildfire underground, intense and overwhelming.
This time, would it be fire or ice that prevailed? Or would their talents lead to a stalemate?