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shivalriesSeason: Autumn
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[euthanasia Stage]
(A while later, during the euthanasia performance)
Arashi: ♪~♪~♪
Izumi: ~...♪
Ritsu: (Wheeew... Somehow or other, we managed to crawl our way up to this point, but geez, it sure was a struggle. I'm not doing this again for a long while.)
(In the end, it's way more my style to lie around on the floor and watch over everyone being so busy and energetic.)
(I don't like to stick my neck out like this, and there's no way I'm gonna get used to it.)
(I wanna live my life doing things I like, if I can.)
(But... living a life that's all fun and games is the sole right of children. Once you're grown up, you have to trade away something else in exchange if you want it.)
(That's what all of this ruckus boils down to.)
(This is a rite of passage for us to grow into adults like everyone else.)
Izumi: (whispering) Come on, Kuma-kun. Take this seriously.
Arashi: Yeah! We're not about to let you slack off, you hear?
Ritsu: Alright already. Well, out of obligation, I'll at least give it the minimal amount of effort... But I'm the judge this time, so I can't show too much support for you guys, you know.
Damn... I thought being the judge could get me by without having to work too hard.
I've been way busier than ever with a bunch of prep work and all the stuff happening outside euthanasia too.
Izumi: Haha. So, things didn't go as planned for once, Kuma-kun?
Ritsu: Weeell... even if that might be the case, I can still say everything's in the palm of my hand. I am kinda like Knights' strategist, position-wise.
I suffered a humiliating defeat in Requiem, but with this, I'm gonna redeem myself.
Arashi: Oh, you're more serious about this than I thought.
Ritsu: Yup. If it's for Ma~kun or Knights, I'll pull out all the stops. These days, I've had more and more of that kinda thing in this world. It makes me happy.
Arashi: What kinda thing? Like, your brother, for example?
Ritsu: That worm has no worth to me.
Arashi: Ufufu, you know, I think about this every time it comes up, but the way you're only ever this harsh when it comes to your brother makes it sound like he's actually more special to you than anyone else. ♪
Ritsu: Right, then. Team Arashi Narukami has committed a fatal error, and, unfortunately, has been disqualified from the competition for pissing off the judge.
Arashi: O-Oh gosh, no! Don't be mad, Ritsu-chan, it was just a joke! ♪
Izumi: Like I said, can we get serious already?! How many times do I have to tell you? Sooo~ annoying!
Ritsu: (Ahaha. Whoops, I ended up messing around like always again.)
(I'm in a different position now, so I need to stay focused on that.)
(I've gotta act the part, according to plan. We might be pretending it's all fun and games right now, but we're still in a risky spot.)
(Let your guard down for a moment, and you die—and it won't be a blissful death, like euthanasia implies.)
~...♪
(euthanasia's rules are similar to Judgment, our specialty.)
(As opposed to a Duel, where we pick fights with other units, Judgment is reserved for fights within Knights itself.)
(Two teams are battling it out today: Nacchan and Secchan, and Tsukipi~ and Su~chan.)
(Each team will take turns performing by singing and dancing onstage.)
(The audience will vote with their light sticks to decide the winner.)
(...That's the DreamFes format. It's not very popular these days, but Knights fans are really familiar with it.)
(We don't have to explain it to them; they'll just go along with us.)
(We've already announced that the losing team won't suffer any penalties, anyway. The fans will be able to enjoy it like a game or a variety show.)
(The original Judgment was a life-or-death situation, in which the losing team would have to resign from Knights.)
(But those cruel customs were already starting to disappear by the time Tsukipi~ came back and started up that one Judgment last year.)
(If we were suddenly like, "The losers will be fired!" to our fans now, they'd be totally thunderstruck.)
(It could end up in this huge drama amid cries of outrage, like with those units that Crazy:B attacked in summer.)
(That's why we need to make sure that euthanasia looks like a peaceful affair from the outside, at the very least.)
(Putting our lives on the line might make for a more exciting spectacle, but...)
(That's nothing but extra noise to the fans who just came to see a fun idol performance. It's like, why do this now?)
(If the fans want something kinder, then it's our job as idols to give that to them.)
(...No, that's what chivalry is—we Knights serving the masters we adore.)
(I don't care if people complain about how it's boring and not as extreme anymore.)
(That's the kind of criticism Anija and the rest of UNDEAD got, but the warring era is over already.)
(Well, either way, we've made it so that the losing team won't be punished—on the surface, anyway.)
(But in reality, the losing team has to listen to what the winning team says, just like in Judgment.)
(They have to bend the knee and follow orders, even if they don't want to. That's what happens in duels—there'd be no point in fighting otherwise.)
(This time around, if Su~chan and Tsukipi~ win, then we'll keep Knights' current situation as-is.)
(But if Nacchan and Secchan win, they have the power to refuse to go along with that.)
(Then, according to their wishes, we'll focus our activities more intensely on the five of us.)
(But if that happens, it's possible that we'd just revert to how we were before, and all the assets we've built up since ES was established will be erased.)
(Like what happened with Ryuseitai. It's not like I can say at this stage whether their choice was good or bad, but...)
(They have their problems, and we have ours. Besides, I don't have the will or the resourcefulness that Anija has to take care of people "outside the family".)
---
< Until the Morning Light Chapter 8 || Masterlist || Until the Morning Light Chapter 10 >
---
[euthanasia Stage]
(A while later, during the euthanasia performance)
Arashi: ♪~♪~♪
Izumi: ~...♪
Ritsu: (Wheeew... Somehow or other, we managed to crawl our way up to this point, but geez, it sure was a struggle. I'm not doing this again for a long while.)
(In the end, it's way more my style to lie around on the floor and watch over everyone being so busy and energetic.)
(I don't like to stick my neck out like this, and there's no way I'm gonna get used to it.)
(I wanna live my life doing things I like, if I can.)
(But... living a life that's all fun and games is the sole right of children. Once you're grown up, you have to trade away something else in exchange if you want it.)
(That's what all of this ruckus boils down to.)
(This is a rite of passage for us to grow into adults like everyone else.)
Izumi: (whispering) Come on, Kuma-kun. Take this seriously.
Arashi: Yeah! We're not about to let you slack off, you hear?
Ritsu: Alright already. Well, out of obligation, I'll at least give it the minimal amount of effort... But I'm the judge this time, so I can't show too much support for you guys, you know.
Damn... I thought being the judge could get me by without having to work too hard.
I've been way busier than ever with a bunch of prep work and all the stuff happening outside euthanasia too.
Izumi: Haha. So, things didn't go as planned for once, Kuma-kun?
Ritsu: Weeell... even if that might be the case, I can still say everything's in the palm of my hand. I am kinda like Knights' strategist, position-wise.
I suffered a humiliating defeat in Requiem, but with this, I'm gonna redeem myself.
Arashi: Oh, you're more serious about this than I thought.
Ritsu: Yup. If it's for Ma~kun or Knights, I'll pull out all the stops. These days, I've had more and more of that kinda thing in this world. It makes me happy.
Arashi: What kinda thing? Like, your brother, for example?
Ritsu: That worm has no worth to me.
Arashi: Ufufu, you know, I think about this every time it comes up, but the way you're only ever this harsh when it comes to your brother makes it sound like he's actually more special to you than anyone else. ♪
Ritsu: Right, then. Team Arashi Narukami has committed a fatal error, and, unfortunately, has been disqualified from the competition for pissing off the judge.
Arashi: O-Oh gosh, no! Don't be mad, Ritsu-chan, it was just a joke! ♪
Izumi: Like I said, can we get serious already?! How many times do I have to tell you? Sooo~ annoying!
Ritsu: (Ahaha. Whoops, I ended up messing around like always again.)
(I'm in a different position now, so I need to stay focused on that.)
(I've gotta act the part, according to plan. We might be pretending it's all fun and games right now, but we're still in a risky spot.)
(Let your guard down for a moment, and you die—and it won't be a blissful death, like euthanasia implies.)
~...♪
(euthanasia's rules are similar to Judgment, our specialty.)
(As opposed to a Duel, where we pick fights with other units, Judgment is reserved for fights within Knights itself.)
(Two teams are battling it out today: Nacchan and Secchan, and Tsukipi~ and Su~chan.)
(Each team will take turns performing by singing and dancing onstage.)
(The audience will vote with their light sticks to decide the winner.)
(...That's the DreamFes format. It's not very popular these days, but Knights fans are really familiar with it.)
(We don't have to explain it to them; they'll just go along with us.)
(We've already announced that the losing team won't suffer any penalties, anyway. The fans will be able to enjoy it like a game or a variety show.)
(The original Judgment was a life-or-death situation, in which the losing team would have to resign from Knights.)
(But those cruel customs were already starting to disappear by the time Tsukipi~ came back and started up that one Judgment last year.)
(If we were suddenly like, "The losers will be fired!" to our fans now, they'd be totally thunderstruck.)
(It could end up in this huge drama amid cries of outrage, like with those units that Crazy:B attacked in summer.)
(That's why we need to make sure that euthanasia looks like a peaceful affair from the outside, at the very least.)
(Putting our lives on the line might make for a more exciting spectacle, but...)
(That's nothing but extra noise to the fans who just came to see a fun idol performance. It's like, why do this now?)
(If the fans want something kinder, then it's our job as idols to give that to them.)
(...No, that's what chivalry is—we Knights serving the masters we adore.)
(I don't care if people complain about how it's boring and not as extreme anymore.)
(That's the kind of criticism Anija and the rest of UNDEAD got, but the warring era is over already.)
(Well, either way, we've made it so that the losing team won't be punished—on the surface, anyway.)
(But in reality, the losing team has to listen to what the winning team says, just like in Judgment.)
(They have to bend the knee and follow orders, even if they don't want to. That's what happens in duels—there'd be no point in fighting otherwise.)
(This time around, if Su~chan and Tsukipi~ win, then we'll keep Knights' current situation as-is.)
(But if Nacchan and Secchan win, they have the power to refuse to go along with that.)
(Then, according to their wishes, we'll focus our activities more intensely on the five of us.)
(But if that happens, it's possible that we'd just revert to how we were before, and all the assets we've built up since ES was established will be erased.)
(Like what happened with Ryuseitai. It's not like I can say at this stage whether their choice was good or bad, but...)
(They have their problems, and we have ours. Besides, I don't have the will or the resourcefulness that Anija has to take care of people "outside the family".)
---
< Until the Morning Light Chapter 8 || Masterlist || Until the Morning Light Chapter 10 >
