Five days had passed, and today was finally the day of the concert.
Phoebe woke up early in the morning as sunlight gently touched her face. She slowly opened her eyes while still wearing her white nightdress. Stretching lightly, she turned her gaze toward her rapier and spoke softly.
"Good morning, Uriel."
Soon, Uriel emerged in her small chick form and replied, "Yeah. Good thing you woke up early. I assume the three of you are going to that concert held by the idol Ranker today?"
"Yes, today's the day," Phoebe said with a bright smile. "It's such great timing that the concert is being held on a day when we don't have classes."
"I see. But I believe they intentionally scheduled it on a day when academy students are free, just to boost their profits," Uriel said calmly.
"Now that you mention it, that does sound possible," Phoebe replied, looking slightly puzzled.
"Well, forget about that. Go downstairs and eat already," Uriel said before retreating back into the rapier.
Phoebe washed up, changed into her usual clothes, and headed downstairs for breakfast. As she descended, she immediately noticed Lucas passionately talking with Ryze. The two of them seemed much friendlier than before, chatting comfortably with one another.
As Phoebe approached, Ryze greeted her first.
"Phoebe, you're awake. Good morning," Ryze said with a soft smile.
"Good morning to you too, Ryze," Phoebe replied warmly.
"You're awake early," Lucas said in a cool tone.
Phoebe immediately made a disgusted face. "You're up very early in the morning, huh? Are you perhaps excited? Hmm?"
"Why wouldn't I be? Today's the day we get to see Starlight perform, right?" Lucas said confidently.
"I see, so that's your reason," Phoebe said with a smirk.
"W-What do you mean by that?" Lucas asked, blushing.
"Do you want me to spell it out right here?" Phoebe said smugly.
"J-Just shut up, would you?" Lucas said, his face growing even redder.
"What are you two talking about?" Ryze asked innocently.
"Oh, it's nothing, Ryze," Lucas said quickly, wiping a bit of sweat from his forehead.
"Well, anyway, here's your food, Phoebe," Ryze said kindly. "Lucas and I already ate earlier. We'll wait for you to finish. I'll just give some instructions to my staff before we leave, okay?"
With that, Ryze walked over to speak with her staff.
As Phoebe ate, she leaned closer to Lucas and spoke quietly. "So, when are you going to confess to Ryze?"
"What kind of question is that?" Lucas replied.
"Well? Are you or not?" Phoebe asked seriously.
"W-What's with that sudden seriousness?" Lucas said nervously. "For now… not yet. I want us to know more about each other first."
"Why? If she accepts you, you'll get to know each other more anyway. Why let the opportunity pass by?" Phoebe asked.
"I don't want to startle her or make things awkward," Lucas said with a slightly cold tone. "I'll do it when the time comes."
"Well, it's up to you then," Phoebe said, puffing her cheeks.
Soon, Ryze returned, and the three of them headed toward the plaza where the concert would be held.
The plaza was already packed with people, nearly overflowing with excited fans. As they reached the center of the crowd, a massive stage came into view. At its center stood an elevated platform surrounded by circular lamps fueled by mana stones.
Various races filled the plaza, waving glowsticks and wearing clothes decorated with Starlight's image.
Suddenly, the lights on the stage went dark, leaving only the elevated platform illuminated.
Five figures appeared on the platform. As the crowd began chanting Starlight's name repeatedly, the figure in the center stepped forward.
She was a woman with pastel ice-blue eyes and shimmering pastel blue hair styled in a high side ponytail, soft waves cascading down. Light bangs framed her face, and a black lace headband completed her look.
She wore a white and deep-violet dress layered with petal-like panels, the skirt lined with gold trim and delicate star patterns. One side of her bodice rose into a sculpted violet fold clasped by a golden star-crest ornament, giving her an elegant, celestial presence. Detachable violet sleeves adorned her arms, each accented with star-shaped designs. Her dark-violet heels had crossing straps, with small star charms dangling at her ankles and around her neck, a diamond necklace with two wings, a circle in the center, with an "S" above and a "6" below.
Stardust particles shimmered around her in brilliant colors.
She was Starlight Lumberadge, an S-Ranker seated at number six among all S-Rankers. Known as the Stellar Maiden, she was famous for her enormous mana capacity and devastating long-range area-of-effect abilities.
Her race, the Staries, possessed extraordinary mana regeneration and mana multiplication abilities—but only at night. They were known for emitting stardust and having the ability to float. Most of them resided in the Middle Continent.
Behind Starlight stood four women wearing black skirts and long black silk sleeves, each adorned with a golden star-crest ornament. They were from different races—an elf, a bird beastman, a harpy, and a dryad.
Holding a mana-powered microphone, Starlight finally spoke.
"Hi everybody! Did you wait long? Did you miss me?"
The entire plaza erupted.
"YESSS!"
Phoebe flinched from the sheer volume and covered her ears.
Starlight smiled brightly. "Alright! Without further ado, I, along with my idol group Star Gazers, will now—BEGIN!!"
"YEAHHH! STARDUST! STARDUST!!"
The lamps blazed brilliantly, illuminating the entire stage as the performance began. The crowd cheered wildly.
Phoebe and Ryze joined in happily, shouting and waving their glowsticks with bright smiles.
Yet among the crowd, there was one person whose gaze wasn't on the stage.
Lucas was staring at Ryze.
Her cheerful expression captivated him completely.
"Damn… her look right now is way too good," Lucas thought, swallowing hard.
"Her eyes are so beautiful. I feel like I'm drowning every time I look at them… and that smile—so soft, it makes me want to touch her cheeks…"
His heartbeat grew louder.
"Hah… the more I look at her, the more I want her to be my wife someday. How perfect would that be?"
But then doubt crept in.
"Should I confess now? The atmosphere is perfect… No, not yet. It's too soon. I don't want to ruin what we have."
Suddenly, he noticed Phoebe smirking at him.
His face instantly turned red, and he quickly turned back to the stage.
Ryze noticed Phoebe's gaze and followed it—only to see Lucas blushing furiously.
"Is there something wrong with Mr. Lucas?" Ryze whispered to Phoebe. "Is he unwell?"
Phoebe smiled softly. "By the looks of it, he might be. Could you ask him, Ryze?"
Ryze nodded and moved closer, leaning in to whisper near Lucas's ear.
"Lucas, are you okay? Are you feeling unwell?"
Lucas nearly jumped. Turning around, he saw Ryze's face far too close for comfort.
"O-Oh! Ryze—um—what did you say?" he stammered.
"I was just worried. Your face is very red," Ryze said, tilting her head slightly.
"Oh, I'm fine! I was just thinking about something," Lucas said with a forced laugh.
"Are you sure?" Ryze asked gently.
Lucas smiled wider. "Yes, Lady Ryze. I'm completely fine. Thank you for your concern."
As he spoke, he reached out and gently patted her head, his hand sliding softly toward her cheek.
Their eyes met.
For a moment, the noise around them disappeared.
Ryze froze, her face burning red before she snapped back to reality.
"O-Oh! That's good then! I-I'll go back to Phoebe," she said quickly, retreating.
Lucas watched her go.
Phoebe gave him an exaggerated OK hand sign.
Lucas smirked and closed his eyes briefly.
The three of them returned their attention to the stage, enjoying the rest of the performance.
From afar, the plaza shimmered with countless glowsticks raised high, the air filled with nothing but excitement, music, and joy.