Seeing that Sparkle intended to blow up the Grand Theater directly, Sylvia even offered to help set things up.
For one thing, Sylvia had been unable to find any trace of the Stellaron within the Grand Theater, nor anything even remotely related to it.
Just as she had suspected, The Family had hidden the Stellaron incredibly well. Even knowing it was inside was useless; if you couldn't find it, for all intents and purposes, it didn't exist.
Therefore, although Sparkle's proposal was a bit unhinged, it was actually highly effective. If you can't find where the treasure is hidden, just blow up the entire room holding it.
Flip the table—if I can't have it, nobody can!
Of course, there was a high possibility that even after blowing the Penacony Grand Theater to smithereens, they still wouldn't find the Stellaron. In fact, Sylvia felt this was quite likely.
If the Stellaron were so easy to unearth, it would make The Family's security measures look pathetic.
On the other hand, Sylvia wanted to test the Dreammaster. If, as she suspected, the Dreammaster was the one intentionally facilitating the conflict between Robin and The Family, then in order to maintain that status quo, he certainly wouldn't allow Sparkle's bombs to detonate today.
If he did, would The Family let them off the hook?
They'd be at each other's throats immediately, and the situation would spiral in unpredictable directions, ruining the Dreammaster's plans. He shouldn't let that happen.
Well, let's see how the Dreammaster reacts.
With that thought, Sylvia continued to scout for information in the theater while activating bombs and planting them in hidden corners.
Sparkle skipped along ahead of her, like a child anticipating a fireworks show.
She was smiling, pure and cheerful. Anyone who didn't know her would think she was looking forward to a pleasant surprise, never imagining that this person was a terrorist obsessed with massive explosions.
--+--
However, in a room where a bomb had already been placed—far behind where Sylvia and Sparkle were—a petite Pepeshi, dressed in the attire of the Bloodhound Family, walked in with steps so quiet they were almost imperceptible.
As if prepared in advance, she found the tiny button hidden behind a bookshelf in the corner of the room.
Click.
She pressed the button, cutting off the detonator.
At the same time, a petite, jet-black raven flapped its wings, flying out from another room and trailing far behind, following the trajectory of Sparkle's movements.
--+--
Because of the distance, and the fact that the theater was already crawling with patrolling Family members, neither Sparkle nor Sylvia noticed that small tail trailing far behind, completely out of sight.
"Oopsie, that's ninety-nine. My, how hard I've worked~"
Sparkle wiped a non-existent bead of sweat from her forehead and clapped her hands, announcing the number with excitement. In her hand was the very last firework bomb.
"Didn't you say the bombs were powerful? Was it really necessary to plant a hundred of them?"
"They are pretty big. But the more you have, the bigger the fireworks!"
Sparkle placed the final bomb on the auditorium seats and then dragged Sylvia toward the exit.
"Hurry, hurry! There's only one minute left! If we don't run, we're going to get blown up!"
"What?! Didn't you say it would take three system hours?! We've only been here for two!"
Sylvia was startled by Sparkle's declaration. What the hell are you talking about?!
"Hee hee hee~ Just a little surprise! I wanted to make the little white-haired girl's heart race during our date."
"You little—!!"
Sylvia cursed, the power of the Herrscher of the Void manifesting instantly. With a series of short-range teleports, she surged out of the Grand Theater within half a minute.
Just as they rushed out the front door, before the nearby Bloodhounds could even get a clear look at them, Sparkle suddenly exerted force, pulling Sylvia and jumping off the high platform at the edge of the theater. They plunged into the gale, falling toward an unknown destination.
Sparkle giggled, wrapped her arms around Sylvia's neck, and jumped into her arms. Sylvia reflexively caught her, instinctively shifting into a bridal carry.
Sparkle clung to Sylvia's neck, raised her right hand, and cheered, "Hee hee~ Time to watch the fireworks—!"
"Huh?"
As soon as she finished speaking, just as Sylvia managed to turn her head back, small mechanical devices suddenly rushed out from nowhere inside the Penacony Grand Theater.
They sprinted in a certain direction, then seemed to bloom upon hitting someone. With a series of roars, they transformed into a grand, spectacular fireworks display in mid-air.
Amidst the fireworks, Sylvia vaguely caught a glimpse of a raven being blown out of the sky...
"This is..."
For some reason, the explosion had turned into a fireworks display.
Watching the giant masks of the Fools, the Astral Express, and the Stonehearts erupt in the sky, the sheer scale of the display caught the attention of everyone in the dreamscape, including those in the Dewlight Pavilion.
People looked up, staring at the theater that had suddenly started putting on a show.
Many even assumed it was a teaser for the Charmony Festival. As for Sylvia, staring at the fireworks, she had only one thought, wanting to grab Sparkle by the ear and shout:
"Sparkle, that wasn't even a minute!"
Listening to Sylvia's complaint, Sparkle remained unmoved.
She looked up at the fireworks and suddenly said, "The script Silver Wolf showed me says that the Penacony Grand Theater is the final, grandest stage."
As she said this, Sparkle's expression suddenly turned indifferent.
The smile that usually hung on her face was nowhere to be found. Her exquisite little face became cold, hollow, and unapproachable.
Even though Sylvia was physically inches away, the distance between their hearts felt like a galaxy apart.
"What do you mean?"
"In Silver Wolf's script, the Penacony Grand Theater isn't supposed to be destroyed until the Charmony Festival."
Sparkle's tone became calm and serious, and Sylvia couldn't help but turn serious herself. "You weren't using bombs at all?"
"Oh no, I was using bombs. It's just that... Sparkle-bombs can turn into fireworks too."
Having said this, Sparkle lowered her head, her falling bangs obscuring her face, making it impossible for Sylvia to read her expression.
However, Sylvia suddenly realized something: If Sparkle knew the script said the theater wouldn't be destroyed, why go through the trouble of bringing bombs? Was it a test? Or... was she actually trying to verify if the script seen by that "Slave of Destiny" was truly unbreakable?
Probably that, Sylvia thought. She didn't know what was going through Sparkle's mind right now, but one thing was certain: someone was definitely watching them.
And it wasn't the other members of The Family. It had to be the Dreammaster, or perhaps Sunday.
Sylvia thought about the target that had been tracked by the bomb and the raven that had been knocked unconscious.
What if I gave the theater a proper blast right now? Sylvia mused, admiring the grand display.
At that moment, Sparkle looked up again, a smile once more gracing her face.
"Oh my, it looks like this operation was a complete failure."
"Not entirely unexpected—but that's your own fault for adding weird functions to them."
Sylvia suddenly wanted to try and blow up the theater for real, though she couldn't afford to be too overt.
The previous bombs were one thing, but if Sylvia launched a direct attack to destroy the theater in front of witnesses, there would be no room for negotiation. And if they still failed to retrieve the Stellaron after going to such lengths, Robin would be put in an extremely passive position.
So, she would have to change her identity before acting. And to be honest, Sylvia didn't like their chances.
The key lay in what kind of countermeasures The Family had put in place for the Stellaron. Without that information, it was hard for them to make any meaningful progress.
"It seems there's no chance of finding clues at the theater now. In the end, we'll still have to face The Family head-on." Sylvia sighed softly.
If they eventually had to turn to The Family for a solution, the Dreammaster's stance would become very delicate.
Sparkle, naturally, had also noticed they were being watched, and clearly by a third party. She leaned into Sylvia's ear and blew gently.
"What a troublesome situation, indeed. Hee hee, I put in a lot of effort, you know. How are you going to thank me, little whitey?"
"Your 'effort' was putting on a free fireworks show for Penacony?" Sylvia tilted her head, trying to avoid Sparkle's breath; the girl was tickling her ear on purpose.
"Don't blame me, blame The Family."
"Enough talk. These little tricks won't work for long; if we're too obvious, The Family will start taking issue."
Sylvia flew through the air with Sparkle and returned to the Dewlight Pavilion.
Sparkle draped herself over Sylvia's back, resting her head on her shoulder as she exhaled. "I still want to blow that place up. Sylvia, think of a way~"
"Why does it have to be me thinking of a way... I don't have any ideas. If I make a move now, we'll lose any chance of investigating further." Sylvia rolled her eyes and reached up to try and pull Sparkle off.
"Eh—you can shapeshift, can't you? Change your appearance, for example—into someone from the annihilated Ever-Flame Mansion."
"My shapeshifting requires a personal item from the subject; I can't just do it at will. Besides, you can do it yourself. Why don't you go?" Sylvia pinched Sparkle's cheek.
It was soft and tender, quite fun to squish. Sylvia had always been curious about Sparkle's true strength; all she had shown so far were masterful physical combat skills and that tiny revolver.
"Hee hee, are you sure you want me to go?"
Sparkle loosened her grip and slid down from Sylvia's back. By the time she turned around to face her, she had transformed. She now looked exactly like Sylvia.
Two identical Herrscher of the Voids stood facing each other. The one in front of Sylvia wore a mischievous, impish grin. "Then I'm off~"
Sparkle turned as if to leave, but dragged out the sound, waiting for two seconds. Seeing that Sylvia didn't react at all, she pouted. "You aren't going to stop me?"
"Why would I stop you?" Sylvia chuckled, even giving Sparkle's shoulder a push.
"Go, go! Let me see what you're capable of! We've known each other for so long, and I still haven't seen how strong you really are."
Seeing Sylvia so enthusiastic, Sparkle rolled her eyes, gave a sly grin, and said, "But, I refuse! Your reaction is so boring."
Sparkle loved riling people up, but she didn't know enough about Sylvia.
It was frustrating for her to not know what could make someone who appeared out of nowhere finally lose their cool. Even the Masked Fools couldn't find anything on Sylvia's past. It was truly annoying.
"Unh-huh~" Sylvia shrugged, completely unfazed by Sparkle's chatter. Fine, no explosion then.
--+--
After leaving the Dewlight Pavilion, Sylvia found a place to rest in the Moment of Oasis.
It was the afternoon in the Sunlight Park; the sun was just right and the climate was pleasant—a perfect place to relax. Sparkle was still trailing behind, clearly not intending to leave.
Sylvia took the opportunity to ask about Firefly's investigation.
First, they confirmed one thing: Misha had become "existent." This directly contradicted the "non-existent" result Sylvia had found earlier. Although the information was vague and contained suspicious points, it was enough to confirm that he was someone with a hidden agenda.
The three of them had encountered almost no resistance. But Robin had run into trouble while searching for information; so far, she had yielded no results.
The Family was actively hindering Robin's actions, yet they had almost completely ignored the investigations by Sylvia and the others. It seemed The Family was very confident that Sylvia and her companions wouldn't be able to find the Stellaron outside of The Family's own reach.
Realizing this, Sylvia gave up on any expectations for the Grand Theater investigation.
"Sylvia, what are you planning to do with that mask? Are you just going to carry it around forever?"
Sparkle, wearing a pair of giant sunglasses she'd pilfered from somewhere, lay on the ground with her legs crossed, staring at the reflection of the Grand Theater and the Twelve Hours. She brought up the mask.
"We'll see. Maybe one day I'll sell it to someone or just give it away."
"Pah, boring." Sparkle clicked her tongue, then suddenly asked for the time.
"...What is it?"
"Nothing. It's just that the last system hour is almost up, you know~"
Sparkle suddenly wore that "my scheme succeeded" smile again. She reached into her flat chest, pulled out another pair of sunglasses, and handed them to Sylvia.
"Here~ This time, please enjoy a real firework show~"
"..."
Sylvia frowned, took the sunglasses, and thought to herself, No way?! She put them on.
"One minute left~"
"..."
Reminded by Sparkle, Sylvia looked nervously at the Grand Theater in the sky.
Could it really explode? How did Sparkle arrange this? How did she do it? Could there be other Masked Fools working as accomplices? Or did she secretly plant bombs there a long time ago?
Sylvia was still pondering how Sparkle had pulled it off when the countdown of less than a minute rapidly hit zero.
Then—
BOOM—!!!
A massive explosion, accompanied by light and fire, bloomed over the Penacony Grand Theater.
Hum—
Following the violent eruption, the ripples around the theater were clearly distorted and turbulent.
The architecture of the Grand Theater was ripped apart, and the sheer power of the bombs shattered the entire structure into pieces.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL