[End of Vol. 2] Welcome to the Biggest Stage of Theatreux

By the time the mechanical pegasus finally landed on the ground, everyone kicked the doors open and piled over each other with weary groans. Theodore frantically crawled away from the group and scampered toward a trimmed bush, cupping his mouth and gagging. “Oh god, that was the worst ride I had in my life,” he croaked. “M-My motion sickness… I-I’m gonna—”

The poor young man buried his head into the bush and hurled away. Dorothy quickly rushed over and patted his back, pulling out her handkerchief for him.

Horace, on the other hand, stumbled toward the other carriage with windows stained red, hesitating to open it.

Meanwhile, everyone else dropped their jaws and bulged their eyes at a grand, menacing, and somewhat gloomy castle looming above them all. Black iron vines intertwined with the pointed arches, flying buttresses, and embellished columns, and grotesque gargoyles perched on its gutters, its frozen gaze staring across the landscape, including the newcomers.

Cherry rubbed her eyes a few times and rapidly blinked. “Are you seeing this too, Charlie?”

“Yeah,” Charlie murmured, trembling his eyes. “This… this place is…”

“King Carmin’s castle,” Clover finished, swallowing.

“Huh, how did Penelope’s horse know that we planned to get here?” Cherry asked, her hands on her hips. “Talk about convenient.”

Eloi grimaced and clutched his head.

“What’s wrong?” asked Penelope.

“I… I’m sensing so much Crimoire in there,” he hissed, rubbing his head. “There’s so much energy that it’s giving me a sudden headache.”

Theodore groaned as he wiped his mouth with a handkerchief. “Lots of Crimoire, huh? Guess we’ll find out more in a moment.”

“What do you mean?” asked Cherry.

Theodore rubbed his ears. “I hear a bunch of people coming toward us.”

Everyone’s hearts dropped in anxiety as the door ahead of them creaked open. All seven also turned pale when they faced the marching wooden puppets, all wearing the familiar masks they knew too terribly well.

Penelope stroked her chin, staring in awe. “They’re… all mechanical puppets…”

“Hey, why are these guys wearing the same masks you guys used to wear?” asked Eloi, pointing at them.

The Vamiers turned to their older brother, who wore the same confused face. “I… I got them from Ren,” said Clover. “But I never knew where exactly he got them from…”

“Ren? You mean… Ren is here? This whole time?” asked Cherry, gawking at the masked army standing in formation.

“He actually abandoned us?!” Charlie asked distraughtly.

“No, he didn’t,” said a new voice.

Everyone whipped toward the door far ahead of them. Standing at the door was none other than the headmaster of Astrale Academy himself. “I was the one who dragged him over here,” he said, readjusting his glasses. “You’ll have to pardon me for that.”

“Headmaster Fantario?” asked Clover, widening his eyes. “You’re here as well?”

“Of course I am.” He looked around. “Where’s Solomon?”

The group immediately fell silent and twisted their faces, turning to Horace who still didn’t open the blood-stained carriage.

Fantario widened his eyes in realization.

With gripped fists, Horace stomped toward the headmaster and furiously bashed him at his jaw, knocking off his glasses and staggering him a few steps backward.

A few gasps and whistles escaped the youths.

“You bloody cowards,” Horace snarled, snatching Fantario’s lapels. “If you and Ren were there, Solomon would still be alive! Why did you leave us all to die?!”

“W-Wait, Mister Horace, we should at least hear him out!” said Cherry, approaching them. “He probably has his reasons!”

Fantario stopped her with a lift of his palm. He wiped the blood stains off his lips, pulled a brown feather from his pocket, and let it float back inside the castle. “Follow the feather, and you’ll meet them,” he muttered. “Go.”

“Eh? But—”

“Leave us be,” said Horace. “I will chastise him.”

Everyone exchanged reluctant glances. As much as they wanted to pour out all their bitter frustrations themselves, the shocked expression carved on the headmaster’s face said otherwise. Besides, Horace already had their backs.

Charlie took a deep breath and walked first, and the moment he stepped close enough to the puppets, they immediately kneeled before him and hung their heads low.

Charlie paused. “Eh?”

“Wow, talk about royalty treatment,” said Theodore, approaching next.

Except, the puppets didn’t bow.

“Oh?” Theodore tilted his head.

His siblings and Eloi also stepped closer, but the puppets didn’t bow to any of them besides the twins.

“Huh, how come you two get special treatment?” asked Eloi.

“I-I have no clue,” said Cherry.

“We’re wasting time standing around here,” said Clover. “We can just ask Ren once we meet him.”

Hesitantly, the group began their walk and entered through the door. They eventually caught up to the floating feather as it guided them through a series of dark tunnels. With their guide being a mere feather, the group could only whisper questions to one another until it slipped under a wooden door.

Charlie tried pushing the door open, but it didn’t budge. Dorothy stepped up and tried pushing it next, only to end up with the same results. She curled a fist and nearly smashed the door down, but everyone else immediately stopped her lest they drew unwanted attention.

It was thanks to Penelope’s sharp eyes that she found a hidden button within the cobblestone walls, and with a simple push, the door slid away, revealing orange and yellow rays of light.

The group adjusted their eyes on a massive, golden grand hall. Lined up beside each marble pillar were massive statues and colorful vases. Golden chandeliers illuminated the hall, its light bouncing off between mechanical artifacts, the intricate ribbed vaults, and the paintings’ golden frames.

“Woah,” said Cherry, her voice echoing through the hall. She quickly cupped her mouth with instant regret, gaping at the two veiled figures standing together at a distance.

One was dressed in a gleaming black suit and a long, scarlet cape. A shadowy veil draped over his head, hanging from a golden crown floating above his head. The other wore a radiant scarlet gown, wearing a similar dark red veil over her head. Both whipped around at the echo of her voice, their faces mysteriously concealed.

Their fancy, elegant attires, their floating crowns, and their iconic, mysterious veils everyone would see in the newspapers… They were none other than…

All seven youths simultaneously kneeled before the king and queen, their heads hung low with trembling legs.

“Holy crap,” Charlie whispered. “Queen Starlet is still alive? I thought she died!”

“Right?” Theodore remarked. “I almost forgot the king even had a queen…”

“You two, zip it!” Eloi hissed.

“F-Forgive us for intruding, Your Majesties!” Clover stammered. “We were led here by Headmaster Fantario! We weren’t warned about your presence in the slightest! Please excuse us!”

The king and queen exchanged quiet glances, briefly staring quietly before the king abruptly snickered. In response, the queen elbowed him.

The youths blinked and curved their brows.

Queen Starlet cleared her throat and gestured to them with a lift of her arm. “You may stand,” she said.

The twins whipped their heads up the fastest and bulged their eyes.

“Charlie?” Cherry whispered. “Am I hearing things?”

“No,” Charlie whispered back. “You and I know this voice way too well.” He stood up first, staring at the queen in disbelief.

“Hey, Your Highness?” Theodore asked bluntly, raising a hand. “Why do you sound like Madam Fiona?”

Everyone else widened their eyes at Theodore and the queen with confusion as they straightened their backs. There was no way the Vamier sibling with sensitive ears would ever mistake his observation.

Penelope squinted and peered through their veils, only to gasp and widen her eyes in astonishment. “Y-You’re…”

King Carmin cleared his throat. “You’re forgiven,” he said. “In fact, we’ve been expecting you.”

Everyone rubbed their ears and stared at the king next.

“R-Ren?” Dorothy murmured. “Is that you?”

For a brief moment, the couple remained wholly still. “Damn, I should’ve stayed quiet a little longer after all,” said the king shaking his head. “Well, whatever. Follow us anyway. Save your questions for later—we’ll explain everything.”

The seven once again mirrored each other’s shocked and confused faces. They rushed toward the door and welcomed themselves inside, a blast of copper and vanilla air greeting them.

They found themselves in a peculiar study room filled with more mechanical gadgets and thick stacks of books. Some of these inventions were even astral themed artifacts.

Standing in the center of the room and glowing the brightest was a clear crystal ball on a decorated stand. The king and queen stood in front of it, facing the newcomers as they surveyed in awe.

When everyone stepped inside, King Carmin snapped his fingers, closing all doors and windows. Everyone jolted around, gawking at the king.

“Alright, everyone is mostly here,” he said. “Well, I’ve been meaning to have an official meeting with the seven of you kids first, so here we are.”

“Ren, what is the meaning of this?” Clover asked.

“This… this isn’t funny, you two,” said Dorothy. “Wouldn’t you be in big trouble for mimicking the king and queen?”

The queen sighed. “I told you we should’ve informed them ahead of time.”

“Haha, and ruin the surprise? This is way better!” The king took off his veil, revealing the twins’ father in his true, middle-aged form.

The queen hesitantly pulled off her veil next, her warm, brown eyes staring regretfully at her children as strands of her burgundy hair dangled at her cheeks.

“Mom? Dad?” the twins both stammered, gaping their eyes.

The queen inhaled and bowed to the youths. “I’m sorry that your father and I have been keeping this secret from you,” she said. “Allow us to reintroduce ourselves: I am Queen Starlet, real name Fiona Elthean.”

The king grinned and dramatically bowed next. “And I… am King Carmin, real name Renetigue—or Ren for short! To our friends, we welcome you as recruits, and to you two, our long lost children, we welcome you back to your real home at last.”

✦ To be continued next volume! Thank you for reading! ✦