Chapter 264: The Unprecedented, Unparalleled Era of the Girl Band

Shoulder-length ash-blonde hair, slightly curled at the ends, tousled as if she'd just woken up and forgotten to comb it; beneath her short bangs glowed a pair of sharp golden eyes. Though she was undeniably cute, one couldn't help thinking, "This girl must be an idiot."

But.

Even idiots have no right to stand in the middle of the road acting foolish.

"Sorry! Really sorry!"

The petite girl, around middle-school age, bowed repeatedly to those around her, apologizing for the trouble she'd unintentionally caused.

Yet, there was a reason she'd become like this…

"What exactly is a Kaleidoscope? And why 'Warrior Princess' as a nickname? It's weird… but so cool!"

She didn't yet understand what these personalized nicknames, generated according to each person's traits, meant to her now that she was so excited.

Doubt flashed through the girl's mind and vanished instantly, but her instinct told her that receiving this chat group—visible only to her, unseen by anyone else—could not be a bad thing.

But the mystery of the Kaleidoscope could wait!

Today, she had something far more important—her best friend, Asahina Mirai, had invited her to a live concert of her favorite group, Zwei-wing. Two joyful events combined sent the already hyperactive girl racing toward the venue's ticket checkpoint at a dizzying speed.

But when she reached the very end of the endless crowd, she received news that left her heart sinking…

Her best friend had stood her up.

"Sigh～ Why? This concert was Mirai's promise to me… I don't even know this place～ Ugh, maybe I'm cursed." With a sigh, she kept moving with the flow.

Perhaps because she was fully focused on her call with her friend, she didn't notice the notification ping in her mind's interface, nor did she immediately accept someone's request.

A future without a future isn't the future I want—this held true for Hanabi Hana, too, at this moment.

But since she'd come this far, she wouldn't miss the concert.

In 2040, the hottest twin duo, Zwei-wing, held their live concert. Though over 100, 00 spectators and staff filled the venue, the exceptionally spacious arena easily accommodated them all.

Had the girl seen a classic animated film from many years ago, she might have muttered, "People like trash," but this was her first live concert ever. The electric atmosphere felt entirely new to her.

The sun sank lower, and the futuristic stage apparatus unfolded, plunging the venue into darkness.

"Click!"

Countless orange light sticks ignited in the stands, forming a tidal wave of light that rose and fell with the prelude.

"Wow!"

As countless feathers drifted down from the air, the two girls of Zwei-wing descended from above, smiling and waving to the crowd.

The crimson-haired songstress, Amane Kanade.

The icy-blue-haired songstress, Kaze Naru Tsubasa.

Like twin sovereigns upon a throne, the two girls, each with wings on their backs, descended to the center of the stage, their eyes sparkling like starlight, luminous and clear.

Light as flying birds, they began singing while waving, sprinting toward the main stage amid the crowd's roaring cheers.

The girls' fiery emotions and dancing notes wove together in the air, their brilliant sonic waves rising and falling into a breathtaking symphony.

"Kikoemasu ka?"

"Jōki odore hirogaru mujiiku."

"Ten ni tokihanate."

…

Like two girls standing defiantly in the storm, their emotion, lyrics, notes, and rhythm fused seamlessly—their harmonies merged into a single, piercing, explosive sound that stirred every soul.

The wave of sound swept across the entire venue in an instant.

The singing was like an invisible hurricane, its force threatening to lift listeners into the sky; its melodious tones layered one upon another, each higher than the last, flooding the hall and piercing straight to the heart.

Hana's gaze was utterly captivated. Those two radiant songstresses were like colossal whirlpools, swallowing every discordant noise, then gaining even greater power to shake the soul.

Her heart pounded wildly; she couldn't look away…

The girl in the audience stared wide-eyed, radiating a brilliance never seen before.

Kirakiradokidoki…

So amazing—this is what a live concert is!

Perhaps by chance, the noisy environment and fiery atmosphere caused the careless girl, newly granted the Kaleidoscope, to be swept up in adrenaline and once again ignore the faint, firefly-like alert tone compared to the singers' brilliance.

"Kamisama mo shiranai hikari de rekishi o tsukurō,"

"(With light even the gods have never known, let us create history.)"

"Gyakuhikari no shawā mirai terasu."

As the song reached its climax, the entire stage burst open. The elegant wings, backlit by the setting sun, shimmered with golden light.

When the final lyric ended, the two singers stood side by side, raising their microphones in unison to conclude the first song.

Their movements were perfectly synchronized; in this unique setting, their flowing robes added an extraordinary beauty.

"It's not over yet!"

As the crowd began to quiet, the figure with fiery red hair announced to the hundreds of thousands with astonishing presence.

The passion in her voice blazed like a firestorm, blooming wildly across the crimson sky—her crimson, rose-red silhouette, swept by the wind, seemed determined to stretch this perfect moment into eternity.

But in the next instant, something no one expected happened—

A terrifying explosion erupted from beneath the stage. With a roar, bricks, cement, dust, and countless shards of debris shot outward toward the audience.

As the ground shattered, twisted figures crawled out from the ruins.

Monsters designed to target humans—

—"Niose," attacked!!!

…

"Shit, this is cliché!"

The world's malice is too great—why here of all places?!

Upon learning the current timeline, Jia Ji, across another world, was drenched in sweat, frantically pinging the newbie Hanabi Hana.

Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!

"Hana! Stop being obsessed with the girl band—log in now!"

"Can you hear me? Did you hear me? Can you hear me now? Are you listening?!"

Unlike the girl lost in music, Jia Ji wished he could transform into the legendary giant god Edian and unleash a roar echoing across worlds.

High-energy ahead!

(End of Chapter)