As they stepped out of the corridor, a deafening wave of sound hit their ears. The sudden transition from the dim passage to the bright surroundings made their eyes sting from the harsh light.

  "Is this... music?" one of them asked.

  Through the overwhelming noise, a faint melody and... a voice?

  They blinked, adjusting to the light, and looked ahead. Before them, tless people were waving glowing sticks in synized patterns.

  On stage, a pink-haired loli dressed in a cute skirt was singing and dang.

  "Miss Zilliane?"

  Without a doubt, the loli perf on stage was the Demon Lord Zilliane.

  "Wait a sed... this outfit, this melody, this se... is this a cert?"

  Misako, with her vast knowledge of otherworldly things, quickly pared the situation in her mind and realized what was happening.

  "You've arrived," said a voice from the side. Lucciliane was walking toward them.

  "Is this the surprise you were talking about?" Misako asked, pointing toward Zilliane on stage.

  "That's right. Today marks the thirtieth anniversary of Zilliane's debut. You should all have ylow sticks, right? Just wave them like the others down there. Of course, this special viewing area is reserved for VIPs, so you have plenty of space to cheer however you like."

  Lucciliaured toward the other side of the viewing area, where a group of maids were enthusiastically waving their glow sticks in perfeison. The sight reminded her of the past, of the times she had spent with Naf and the others. It seemed their spirit had been passed down.

  "Anyway, it's almost time. I still o adjust some equipment, so enjoy yourselves."

  With that, Lucciliane quickly disappeared, leaving them to their own devices.

  "Well... I guess I'll go with the flow," Misako muttered, looking at Farkonia and the others. She noticed that Veridith had already started cheering, even teag Farkonia and Aris how to do it.

  But...

  "Big sister, try to smile a little. You look kind of scary like that," Veridith said as she waved her glow stick along with Aris. Aris's face was pletely expressionless, ae mimig the movements perfectly, her meical as cked the passion needed for real cheering. She came off more like aionless cheer mae.

  Still, it was an improvement. At least Aris listeo Veridith. If it had been Arymm, she'd probably have she glow sti half and pined, "Why do I have to do this?"

  In trast, Farkonia did a much better job. Though her naturally anding presence made her movements a bit clumsy, she at least veyed emotion.

  ‘Who would’ve thought that after leaving the Abyss, I’d be the one cheering as a fan now?’ Misako thought, refleg oime in the Abyss. Back then, she held a revered position in the shrine, and most of those who worked there admired her. Eveer from the hot springs she’d bathed in was treated as holy water... Though the ‘admiratio somewhat strange, in a way, she and Zilliane were seen as simir figures by their respective people.

  Of course, Misako, who had absorbed knowledge from many other worlds, was well-versed in things like idols and fan culture. As someone who was revered, she was also familiar with the dynamics of such admiration.

  "Hey, let me teach you all..."

  ...

  Some time passed, and after Zilliane performed several songs, the cert entered an intermission. Fans temporarily put down their glow sticks to rest.

  In the special viewing area where Misako and the others were seated, there were not only the excited maids but also a few children who didn’t seem to be affiliated with the Demon Lord's castle. They sat nearby, resting.

  Strangely, the children were dressed in both luxurious and simple clothing, as if aristocratid oner children were mingling together.

  "...That glow stick of yours looks like a limited edition. Isn’t that hard to get, even if you have money?" a oner-looking child asked.

  "You’re right. I sneaked out of my house and waited in line for hours just to get it," the aristocratic-looking child replied.

  "Wow, you’ve got initiative. The best I could do was buy a mass-produced oh the pocket money I saved up. The only special item I have is a merdise my older sister got too many of and gave to me," the oner child said, pulling out a fan. The fan had pictures of three people printed on it. In the middle was Zilliane, with two girls of simir height to her, one in bd the other in white, standing beside her.

  "...Isn’t this a rare fan? It was only sold twenty years ago, and there was only one release!" the aristocratic child said, surprised.

  "Wait, really?" the oner child responded, clearly unaware.

  "Of course! The two girls beside the Demon Lord on the fahe Witch Lady and the Priestess!"

  “...What?”

  The aristocratic child’s voice was loud enough that Misako and the others overheard. They had already been surprised to see the aristocratid oner childreing along so well, but when they heard “Witch” and “Priestess,” their surprise turo shock.

  “Wait! Did you just say ‘Witch’?” Misako and Farkonia immediately rushed over to the aristocratic child.

  "Uh... yeah, I guess," the aristocratic child stammered, suddenly nervous upon seeing Farkonia and Misako. But they still gave a proper answer.

  "... I take a look at that fan?" Farkonia asked, bending down to the oner child.

  "Sure, Big Sister," the oner child replied without hesitation.

  Uhe aristocratic child, the oner child hahe fan over immediately.

  Farkonia took the fan, holding it lower so Misako could also see, though due to their height difference, Misako had to stand on tiptoe to get a good look.

  “The Witch... This must be the Witch eared retly...” Farkonia murmured. The two girls on the fan, oh bck hair and bck eyes and the other with white hair and gray eyes, were clearly reizable. The one in bck was the Witch, and the one in white was the Priestess.

  By now, you might wonder why they were so ed about the Witch.

  Apart from the fact that the Witch was an immensely powerful being who transded gods, a being beyond the stro of worlds, there was another key reason. The thing is, they had no idea what the Witch looked like. Despite the fact that they had both seen her and had memories of her appearance, something—some inexplicable force—had erased all details of her appearance from their minds. Eveitle was something they couldn’t fully reize.

  The power of the Witch transds the cept of strength.

  ‘Still ’t remember…’

  They had hoped that seeing someone who was simirly known as a Witch might trigger their memory, but iy, it didn’t help at all.

  At that moment, the music resumed, pulling them bato the present.