CHAPTER 66: STAGE PRESENCE 16

The second act was going suspiciously well.

Too well.

Aegis delivered her monologue about loyalty and sacrifice, and the audience hung on every word. When she collapsed to her knees after being banished by the false councilor, several noblewomen in the front row actually dabbed at their eyes.

It was all very, very easy.

[A little too easy,] Aegis thought as she exited stage right. [Something’s off.]

In the original game, the play event was cut content. But, it was meant to be a major turning point for several romance routes before the devs decided not to go through with it. It was also a trigger for one of the first shadow magic incidents, though, again, that ended up being scrapped.

So why did everything feel so... smooth?

[Even if it was cut content, things should be a bit more hectic than they are... So what gives?]

Aegis peeked out from behind the curtain, scanning the audience. Lady Roseheart was smiling broadly. Even Duchess Valemont looked grudgingly impressed.

No assassins bursting through the doors. No shadow creatures manifesting from the darkness. Just a theater full of engaged nobles watching a play.

[Maybe I’m overthinking it.]

"Five minutes until your next scene," a stagehand whispered, rushing past with an armful of prop swords.

Aegis nodded, retreating deeper backstage to where the other actors were preparing for the upcoming battle sequence. The scene where Elara fought her way through palace guards to reach Rosanna.

Aegis checked her costume in a nearby mirror, adjusting the fake scar on her cheek. The makeup artist had done an impressive job—the wound looked genuinely painful, adding to her character’s rugged appearance after months in exile.

"You’re doing great out there."

Aegis turned to find Liora smiling at her, still in her councilor’s robes.

"Thanks." Aegis grinned. "You make a pretty convincing part of nobility yourself."

"Me? I’m just following the script." Liora glanced around before lowering her voice. "But that moment between you and Talia in the throne room scene, that was great!"

"All part of the performance," Aegis said with a wink.

Aegis felt it too. There had been something electric between them on stage, a tension that went beyond acting. Even with their awkward conversation backstage, once the lights hit them, something genuine sparked.

And Aegis couldn’t be happier about it.

[Finally, the desire to fuck me is starting to balance out the desire to turn me into a pile of Aegis ash.]

"Well, whatever it was, the audience is eating it up." Liora adjusted Aegis’s collar slightly. "Just be careful. Talia seems... distracted."

"Distracted how?"

"I’m not sure. She missed a cue in our last scene together. I don’t think the audience noticed, but it wasn’t like her at all."

Before Aegis could respond, Professor Loralei floated by.

"Starcaller! There you are!" She clapped her hands. "The battle scene is next. Are you prepared to dazzle us with your martial prowess?"

"As ready as I’ll ever be," Aegis replied.

"Magnificent! Remember, this scene is all about Elara’s desperation to reach her queen. Each guard you fight represents another obstacle between you and true love!"

With that dramatic declaration, Professor Loralei twirled away, leaving a trail of glitter in her wake.

Aegis turned back to Liora.

"Duty calls."

"Break a leg." Liora hesitated, then quickly kissed Aegis’s cheek. "For luck."

As Liora hurried off to her own position, Aegis touched the spot where the girl’s lips had been, a smile spreading across her face.

[Hehe... Things are coming along nicely.]

The stagehand appeared again, gesturing frantically.

"Starcaller! Places!"

Aegis shook herself, focusing on the task at hand.

She moved to her mark, waiting for the curtain to rise. Through a gap in the fabric, she could see the stage being reset. It was now a palace corridor with guards stationed at intervals.

This scene was tricky. It required Aegis to fight convincingly without actually hurting her fellow students playing the guards. They’d rehearsed it endlessly, choreographing each move with precision.

[My low Power should come in handy as far as not actually hurting anyone is concerned.]

The music swelled, a melody that signaled the start of Elara’s desperate return to the palace.

Curtain up.

Aegis burst onto the stage, prop sword drawn. The audience gasped at her dramatic entrance, clothes tattered, face scarred, eyes wild with determination.

The first guard stepped forward.

"Halt! The exiled traitor returns!"

Aegis raised her sword.

"Stand aside. I bring warning of treachery within these walls."

"The only traitor here is you!"

The guard lunged, and the fight began.

Aegis parried his attack, spinning around him in a move Scarlett had taught her. Their swords clashed with satisfying metallic clangs, the enchanted props creating real sparks when they connected.

Aegis disarmed him with a flourish, sending his sword clattering across the stage.

"I don’t wish to harm the queen’s loyal guards," she declared. "But I will not be stopped."

Two more guards advanced. This part was trickier, fighting multiple opponents at once. Aegis slid between them, dodging one attack while blocking another.

The audience was enthralled, some literally on the edge of their seats. From the corner of her eye, behind the curtain, Aegis could see Scarlett grinning widely, probably recognizing some of the moves she’d taught Aegis during their training sessions.

Five minutes and six unconscious guards later, Aegis stood victorious on stage, panting dramatically.

"The queen," she gasped, staggering toward the prop door that represented the entrance to the royal chambers. "I must warn her."

Blackout.

The stage went dark. Stagehands rushed to reset for the next scene, the royal chambers where Rosanna would be confronting the treacherous council members.

Aegis hurried backstage to change costumes. Her battle outfit was swapped for something more regal, a sign that Elara had reclaimed her position at court.

As she was adjusting her new jacket, she spotted movement at the back of the dressing area. A figure in dark clothing slipping through a service door.

[Was that...?]

"Thirty seconds, Starcaller!" the stagehand called.

No time to investigate now. Aegis finished with her costume and rushed back to her position.

The next scene began with Talia, as Rosanna, seated on her throne, surrounded by council members. Liora stood at her right hand.

Aegis waited for her cue, watching the scene unfold from the wings.

"The armies mass at our borders," one councilor was saying. "We must respond with force, Your Majesty."

"Force only begets more force," Talia replied, her voice carrying regally across the theater. "I will not lead my people into needless bloodshed."

Liora stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, perhaps there is another way. The ancient treaties speak of a ritual that could ensure peace."

That was Aegis’s cue. She strode onto the stage, drawing gasps from both the in-universe council and the real audience.

"The only ritual they speak of requires royal blood," Aegis declared. "A sacrifice no true advisor would suggest."

The council erupted in chaotic whispers. Talia rose from her throne, eyes wide with shock.

"Elara." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "You returned."

"I made a vow, Your Majesty." Aegis dropped to one knee before Talia’s throne. "My life is yours. No decree can change that."

The audience was silent, captivated. This was the pivotal moment, Elara’s return from exile to warn Rosanna about the plot against her.

Talia descended the three steps from her throne to stand before Aegis.

"Rise, Elara." Her hand extended, trembling slightly. "You never needed to kneel before me."

Aegis took the offered hand, rising to her feet. Their faces were inches apart, just as they’d rehearsed. The next line was Aegis’s, a declaration that would lead to their second, way longer kiss, the one that sealed Elara’s fate as Rosanna’s protector and lover.

But something caught Aegis’s eye. A movement in the rigging above.

She glanced up, keeping her face neutral so as not to break character. The heavy metal spotlight directly above the stage shifted slightly, its moorings loosening.

Someone was up there, manipulating the ropes.

And through the darkness, she caught a glimpse of Varyn’s smirking face.

[That little shit.]

The spotlight was aimed directly at where she and Talia were standing. But mostly at Talia. If it fell now, it would crush the princess beneath its weight.

[Bastard! Did he want to crush me under that thing, but because of his incompetence, he’s about to kill Talia instead???]

Aegis had seconds to decide. Stick to the script and watch Talia get crushed, or break character and potentially ruin the play.

"Rosanna," she began, trying to keep her voice steady while calculating the best way to move Talia without seeming too obvious. "I return bearing knowledge of betrayal within these very walls."

Talia’s brow furrowed slightly at the minor deviation from the script.

"What betrayal do you speak of?" she improvised smoothly.

Aegis stepped closer, one hand moving to Talia’s waist as if preparing for their embrace and kiss. But her eyes remained fixed on the spotlight above, watching as Varyn loosened the final bolt.

"The shadows surround us even now," she said, low enough that only Talia could hear. "When I move, follow my lead."

Confusion flickered across Talia’s face.

"What are you—"

The spotlight creaked. One bolt fell, bouncing off the stage with a metallic ping.

[Fuck, fuck, fuck... Now what?]