While we were hiding beneath the cooling body of the rabbit monster, waiting for Mr. Gregory's tantrum to burn out, a sound slipped into the stadium like a phantom.
A soft, melancholic whistle.
It pierced the air, almost too faint to notice... and yet.
Drip.
Drip.
Tears spilled from my eyes without warning, falling silently onto the dusty floor.
I blinked in confusion, wiping at my face with the back of my hand.
What is this...?
The whistle wrapped around my heart like cold chains, dragging old wounds to the surface.
"L-Llyne!" Ronald gasped, his voice cracking. He scooted closer, his hands trembling in panic. "Wah! Llyne! Are you alright?!"
I tilted my head, genuinely puzzled at his freakout.
Rona crawled over, her usually bubbly face knitted with worry. She gently dabbed my face with the edge of her sleeve, her movements clumsy but warm.
"Llyne misses her Ma?" she asked, her voice so small it was almost a whisper.
I glanced down at her soaked sleeve and gave her a small, crooked smile. I ruffled her hair with a rough hand.
"What's there to panic about? I'm fine. For some reason, when I heard that whistling sound, my tears just... fell on their own."
Ronald's face was pale. He clutched at his chest like he was physically fighting something inside him.
"I heard it too..." he muttered. "But instead of crying, I just... I keep asking myself—why am I such a crybaby? Why am I so weak? Why can't I protect anyone I care about? Ugh..." Ronald groaned and flopped backward. "This confusion is giving me a massive headache. It's like... my brain and heart are at war."
He let out a dry laugh, more defeated than amused.
Meanwhile, Rona pouted, kicking at the floor.
"Rona can't hear a thing," she grumbled.
I frowned and carefully peeked out from under the monster's belly.
The stadium was a complete madhouse.
Some audience members were wailing hysterically, others laughed maniacally, some beat each other into bloody pulps, and a horrifying number simply hurled themselves off the stands without hesitation.
I jerked back under cover, heart pounding.
"Outside isn't pretty either," I muttered, brushing dust off my clothes.
My mind raced.
Rona can't hear the whistle... and she's not affected at all. That can't be a coincidence.
An idea clicked into place.
"Cover your ears," I said, more to myself than anyone.
I pressed both palms tightly against my ears, cutting off all sound. Ronald, wide-eyed, immediately mirrored me.
Minutes passed.
Slowly... the crushing emotions lifted, like a storm cloud blowing away.
I could think again.
I could breathe again.
Ronald's eyes sparkled as he grinned and mouthed something at me.
I watched his lips carefully:
"My head is clear now!"
I gave him a thumbs-up—but Ronald's face immediately shifted to horror.
He mouthed something else quickly, panic rising again.
"I can't hear what I'm saying!!"
Pfft—
I burst into uncontrollable laughter, doubling over under the rabbit's corpse.
Ronald stared at me, utterly horrified.
"D-Don't tell me it didn't work on Llyne! Oh no! She's broken for real!" he cried, shaking me by the shoulders.
Rona blinked at us in confusion, her face pure innocence.
Suddenly—
BOOM!!
The ground shook like a giant's fist had slammed into it.
Dust spiraled into the air, and the monster's corpse shielding us rattled dangerously.
We jumped in shock, our bodies tensed like pulled bows.
"That was loud..." I muttered, heart hammering against my ribs. "Something huge must've hit the ground. I hope it wasn't a bomb."
Ronald immediately latched onto Rona's arm, his face pale.
I crawled to the edge of the monster's body and cautiously peeked out.
The stadium, already a nightmare of chaos, had fallen into stunned silence.
There, lying in the middle of the battlefield, were two very clean halves of Mr. Gregory. His blood painted the broken floor like a grotesque work of art.
"Whoa," I said, blinking. "That's... a clean cut."
I tilted my head upward—
And there he was.
Master Khun stood off his throne, his figure radiating an oppressive, unapproachable aura.
In one hand, he held a gleaming katana—still whispering smoke from the slash.
Without a word, he flicked the blade clean, sheathed it in one smooth, deadly motion, and dropped back into his seat as if nothing had happened.
A slow, sinking dread pooled in my stomach.
I scurried backward under the monster's body and whispered urgently, "Mr. Gregory is dead. And..."
Snap!
Ronald bolted upright like a spring-loaded toy.
"Dead?!" he blurted out, his voice breaking into a weird half-squeal.
In his panic, he grabbed the rabbit monster's cooling body—and accidentally flung it into the air.
WHOOOSH!!
The entire stadium turned toward the sudden projectile flying over the battlefield.
For a moment, time seemed to freeze.
The rabbit monster flailed comically mid-air before slamming onto the far side of the stadium with a deafening BAAM!.
Ronald stood there, frozen, hands still awkwardly raised, as the crowd of terrified, weeping, and hysterical spectators stared at us like we were monsters.
"I... I didn't know I was that strong," Ronald whispered in horror, his voice cracking. Tears welled up in his eyes.
Rona immediately jumped with excitement, her face glowing like a child who just saw fireworks for the first time.
"Ronald is super strong!!" she cheered, spinning around with her arms spread wide. "You go whoosh! and the rabbit went phew! and then baam!!"
She reenacted the whole thing with exaggerated sound effects and wild hand motions.
Ronald's entire face turned a shade of red that would make a tomato jealous.
He covered his face with both hands and groaned.
"Wahh... so embarrassing..."
I snickered, unable to resist.
"Ronald looks like a tomato," I teased. "Except his hair isn't green."
Rona gasped, her eyes sparkling like she'd just been handed a million-dollar idea.
"Ronald! Ronald! Make your hair green! Green!!" she squealed, bouncing around him like a crazed fan.
Ronald turned toward me with a look of pure betrayal.
I shrugged innocently.
Meanwhile, Rona gave Ronald her deadliest weapon yet: the Puppy Eyes Attack.
Instant KO.
Ronald collapsed in defeat.
"...Fine," he muttered miserably.
Rona jumped into the air with a victorious cheer, pumping her fists.
"YAY! Ronald is gonna be a real tomato!"
I stood at the sideline and howled with laughter, tears stinging my eyes again—but this time from amusement, not sorrow.
Meanwhile, Ronald looked like his soul had already left his body.
Bzzt.
"Hmm?"
I wiped away the lingering tears and blinked hard.
Floating high in the air, a massive, glowing blue screen materialized—buzzing faintly like an old television.
Rona tilted her head, puzzled. "I don't see anyone."
Ronald clutched at his shirt nervously, eyes darting left and right. "What are they going to do now? Revenge...? They don't think Mr. Gregory's death has anything to do with us, right?"
Before I could answer—
A piercing scream cut through the stadium.
"HEEEEEYYAAAAHH!!!!"
A girl with flashy, glittering pink twin-tails popped onto the screen like a cartoon character brought to life.
She was decked out in sparkling clothes so shiny they could probably blind a normal person.
"My name is Mimi!" she chirped, twirling. "You guys can call me Mi, sis, cutiepie, love, or anything! Mimi loves anything that is cute!"
I wiped my eyes again, feeling like I'd stepped into a hallucination.
"...She's super, erm... energetic?" I muttered.
Mimi continued, her voice like a sugar bomb exploding.
"Now that Mr. Uncle is gone, Mimi will take over! Mimi hopes you all won't be disappointed~"
Pew! Pew! Boom! Bam!
She launched a barrage of colorful fireworks into the sky, showering the arena in bursts of neon light.
"Wow! What are those? They're so colorful!" Rona hopped up and down like a bunny.
Ronald chuckled and patted her head. "Fireworks."
"Fireworks!" Rona repeated the word over and over, absolutely entranced.
Meanwhile, I pressed my hands over my ears and grimaced.
Gods above... of all things, why fireworks?! I'd rather she snapped her fingers like Mr. James always does...