The grand palace of Intis stood proudly in all its glory, bathed in the golden light cast by the star hanging in the blue sky. Inside, Princess Minnie was dressed in an elegant soft pink ribbon dress.
She was a mouse like Mickey, quite cute and with a childlike yet elegant demeanor—a princess who was taking the reins and was still quite green. But the experiences of the last few nights had lit a fire in her eyes that no one could ignore.
For this reason, all the subjects and court officials remained in their places with their heads bowed, with no intention of raising their heads until Her Highness gave the go-ahead.
Princess Minnie looked around calmly, her dark eyes taking in all the participants without any hurry.
This was fine. She was the princess after all; her will was the law here. Something she would have no problem reminding those present, if any of them crossed the line.
After a few moments, feeling satisfied with what she saw, she looked down at the foot of the stairs of her throne.
To the three heroes kneeling on the carpet who had saved her.
Outside were the poor imitations of armor. Now wearing white shirts and blue vests, along with the light armor that was the proper uniform. The symbol of the kingdom was woven in yellow in the middle of their chests - a rising sun welcoming the dawn of the kingdom.
With her head held high, Princess Minnie smiled serenely.
"Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy. What you three have accomplished cannot be underestimated. Not only did you uncover the conspiracy to take Captain Pete's throne," there was a flash of disgusting emotion in the princess's eyes as she said that name.
But, ignoring that, she continued with great emotion, "Not only did you uncover it, but despite being at a disadvantage in numbers and resources, you bravely faced him and defeated him. Saving my life and the kingdom itself in just one night."
"As such... And in gratitude for saving the Kingdom of Intis... I hereby dub thee, Mickey, Donald, and Goofy... all royal musketeers!"
Clap! Clap! Clap!
There was an explosion of applause throughout the hall, and with that, the three musketeers smiled at each other with teary eyes.
Then, Princess Minnie raised a hand, her voice booming, "Rise, my musketeers!"
With such a command given, how could they say no?
The trio rose slowly, bright smiles on their faces.
The now Musketeer Mickey gave a knowing look to his best friends, his hand on the hilt of his rapier.
"What do you say, everybody? All for one..."
Understanding the message, Donald and Goofy drew their swords and raised them to the sky. The three shouted at the same time.
"And one for all!"
With the cry of victory, a splash of ink fell over the scene, freezing it in an old painting with signs of its age and appearing between the pages of a yellowed book.
Pop
It closed slowly, a gloved hand resting on its cover, the Troubadour turtle smiled wistfully as he closed his eyes.
"And so, my friends! That's how our three heroes have finally... made their dream come true and became musketeers... Sigh..."
His free hand ran through his shiny but wrinkled head, scratching it in slow but heavy circular motions. Repeating this a couple of times, the turtle sighed again, one that seemed to carry something the audience couldn't put into words.
"Forgive me, it's been a while since I've told a story, so I may not have been the best storyteller I could have been..." Shaking his head, the Troubadour stood up and smiled brightly.
"It doesn't matter; there's always a next time to improve. Isn't that what we all strive for? To always be better than yesterday's self? Hehehe."
Whistle~
The turtle began to whistle the same tune that played at the beginning of the film. With a little jump, his feet touched the ground and, accompanied by the rhythm, he began to walk towards the office exit.
With each step, the color slowly melted away from the drawing, returning to black and white.
When he finally reached the front door, he was the only thing left in color in the office.
Before leaving, he turned around and smiled at the audience, a bright smile that lit up the entire room.
"Oh, I almost forgot."
With an exaggerated bow worthy of a circus director, the turtle shouted.
"I hope we see each other again soon!
Boom!
The scene immediately exploded with color and music. A rainbow soon began to replay the most critical moments of the film in a compilation that cut as the note changed. But, unlike the cartoon animals, this time it was humans who took on the role, giving a change of flavor to a dish that had already been tasted.
The response was immediate.
Clap, clap! Clap-clap! CLAP-CLAP-CLAP!
The room exploded with applause, from the oldest to the youngest, from the most experienced to the most novice. Everyone looked on in wonder at what they had just witnessed. Some even shed tears.
"Beautiful! Beautiful!"
"Hahaha! Who would have thought that cartoons could be so interesting?! Hahahaha!"
Amidst the shouts of the audience, applauding in a daze, Rosalie looked at her husband with her heart in her mouth.
"Not a single minute of change... Did that affect the experience so much?"
Naturally, every time an act of a scene in the theater ended, there had to be a short pause to change either the set, the actors, the clothes they wore, or all of the above.
With what she had just witnessed, Rosalie understood that this changed everything.
Not a single second would be wasted in changing the set. The entire duration of the performance, from the first second to the last, would be a constant dose of spectacle!
Finally, after about two minutes, the recap of the scenes stopped, and an elegant "The End" on a black background was the last thing to appear. The next moment, the presentation was cut off. The only thing illuminating the room now was warm lights that remained at low power.
Placing a hand on her chest and feeling her pounding heart, Rosalie sighed tremulously. 'I really have to control the salt I put in the soup...'
Otto smiled at his wife, nodding, "At least 10 minutes are lost between scenes in a normal play. This is clearly reduced if the team's ability and coordination are good, but a single mistake in the change or preparations easily adds more time to this..."
Repeating the words Harvey Wayne had used to explain what he wanted, Otto laughed as he alternated between clapping and explaining to his wife what he had seen.
Clap, clap!
'I have to admit, Mr. K is weird, but I'd be an idiot if I said the guy isn't creative with his ideas.' Vivian nodded, impressed by what she had seen.
While she had her reservations about this strange idea of his, the result could not be denied. If the audience's reaction was anything to go by...
"I liked the duck," the boy Saul said suddenly beside her.
"..." Vivian closed her eyes and pressed her lips together to keep from laughing. The boy's suddenness threw her off a little.
'This kid...' The corners of her lips trembled a little, but relying on her experience as a lawyer, Vivian maintained her composure.
At that moment, Saul turned to look at her, interrupting her thoughts, "Which one did you like, Miss Vivian?"
The barbarian fell silent, taking a few seconds to think about whether to answer or pretend she hadn't heard anything.
'There's a lot of noise, it shouldn't be a problem if I do that...' Vivian considered before sighing.
"... It's also the duck..."
At her response, the boy's dark green eyes widened slightly, and with a somewhat excited voice, he said, "Isn't his voice funny?"
"Mhm" The barbarian gave a small grunt in return as she scratched her neck.
She wanted to be home already...
Pop! Pop!
Amidst the applause and praise, the theater lights came on at full power, cutting through the darkness with beams of light, all pointing to the center of the stage.
A tall man now stood in the center, with black hair combed back and prominent cheekbones. He was elegantly dressed and looked straight ahead with a small smile.
His sudden presence fell upon the room, all attention falling on him.
Unaffected by the stares, he placed a hand on his chest and, imitating the Troubadour turtle, bowed like a circus director, deeply and with his free arm extended to one side.
"Harvey Wayne, at your service!" his voice echoed in the room, reaching its deepest part.
Straightening up, he continued, this time extending his arms in front of him, "Thank you for coming to the premiere of the first Wayne Enterprises film!
"I hope you enjoyed the film. A lot of effort and love went into it." Harvey lowered his arms, putting one hand in his pocket.
His gaze softened as he slowly scanned the audience while he spoke, "This would never have been possible without the efforts of everyone in the company... For that, I am grateful."
At that moment, his eyes stopped on one spot in the room, and his smile grew as soon as that happened. Following his words, he extended his hand forward with his palm facing up.
"I am especially grateful to those who welcomed me when I took control of the company and kept it afloat in its darkest moments!
"This achievement is also yours!"
Pom pom!
Several spotlights came on, pointing to different places in the room and illuminating several people.
Librarian Clara Fielding froze in place. She couldn't believe that she had now become the center of attention for such a large number of people.
The same thing happened to Archivist Beatrice Whitake, Mail Officer Thomas Wainwright, Assistant Eleanor Pembroke, and Accountant Arthur Beaumont. They found themselves bathed in light before the surprised eyes of their families.
With eyes sparkling mischievously like precious stones, Harvey Wayne winked and glanced at the audience.
"I hope it's not too much trouble to ask for a round of applause for them~"
Clap, clap! Clap-clap!
"So that's why Mr. Wayne asked us to come dressed up..." Eleanor muttered to himself, standing almost like a statue amid the applause around him.
He had no idea what he was supposed to do now. Should he raise a hand and wave? Or stand like a statue in the face of all this attention?
"Why does Mr. Wayne make everything so complicated for me?" The 25-year-old could only lament as he smiled with trembling eyebrows.
At his side, Thomas slipped some bills to Arthur. His face twisted into a slight grimace.
"Last time I bet with you."
Putting the money in his pocket, the old man closed his eyes. "Learn to lose, Mr. Thomas."
"Ah... I thought it was because we were going to eat afterwards." Covering her mouth with one hand as she yawned, Clara rubbed her eyes wearily.
It was almost time for her to go to bed...
Beatrice, on the other hand, quickly straightened up and, with a dignified smile, raised a hand and waved around amusedly.
On one side of the theater, with a glass of iced tea in his hands, a blond man dressed in floral-patterned robes, bronze earrings, and a simple brown hat watched all this through his glasses.
Lowering his drink, the man scratched his beard with tight lips.
'This guy is as exaggerated as Roselle...' Feeling like he was watching the live-action version of the emperor's diary, Klein Moretti couldn't help but sigh inside.
Until now, all the Seniors he knew, directly or indirectly, were extras.
Was this a condition of transmigration? To be extra?
'Well... It's not like I'm innocent of that either. After all, I am the hidden existence behind the Tarot Club...' Slowly, Klein took a slight sip of his drink with a flat face.
Not to mention, in Joa's eyes, that existence was the ancestor who lost control of the Antigonus Family.
'I guess I surpassed Huang Tao and Joa in that regard, huh? They both took on the identities of historical figures and comic book characters who can't complain about being stolen from, while I'm playing in the lion's den covered in sauce and wine...' Lampooning, Klein reined in his thoughts before they moved into dangerous territory.
With calmer thoughts in his head, the detective rested his cheek against his knuckles. Watching as his soul brother continued his thank-you speech.
Observing that familiar face, the disguised detective couldn't help but find the situation somewhat ridiculous, so much so that Clown's powers were used a little to avoid laughing out loud at it.
Literally, the best live-action Batman was giving an interview about Mickey Mouse!
'I wonder if this is what it feels like to see Playboy Bruce Wayne in action at one of his parties? How crazy would that be?' Lips breaking into a trembling smile, Klein laughed softly.
Now he understood why, even if they told the people of Gotham that the multimillionaire was Batman, the inhabitants would laugh in the informants' faces and recommend them to the nearest mental hospital.
After all, who would believe Klein if he now said that the fun-loving and charming Harvey Wayne was actually Adryan Kenway, the most wanted man by three churches and an entire kingdom?
This silly thought made the magician laugh out loud, which went unnoticed amid the laughter and guffaws of the audience.
After a few low days, being able to laugh now truly lifted his spirits, and a warm feeling rose in his stomach.
Although strange, he had no complaints about the first movie being a Mickey Mouse film instead of something more exciting, like Megamind or How to Train Your Dragon.
At that thought, a memory popped into his mind.
'Mom had a strange obsession with Toothless, she used to say he reminded her of a cat…' A slight melancholy, Klein sighed softly.
Sometimes, the simple things were the best to remember.
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Official Design of Sasha and Nathan. By @MikasanB on Twitter!
Late birthday present for Adryan aaaa. A normal day in the life of the redhead and Miss Worm~ By Sononaka on Twitter!