—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Eh?"
Stelle: "The three Nameless predecessors tried to spread the Path of Trailblaze, but it was of no use?"
Stelle: "Does that mean these victors shackled themselves?"
Stelle: "What kind of move is that?"
March 7th: "Could it be… that the prisoners have been imprisoned for too long?"
March 7th: "So they don't know how to live freely anymore?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Having just gained freedom, it actually makes these prisoners feel uncomfortable."
Furina de Fontaine: "That's really ironic…"
Hu Tao: "No way…"
Hu Tao: "Then wasn't this victory all for nothing?"
Lumine: "It shouldn't be everyone."
Lumine: "Otherwise, Penacony wouldn't be what it is today."
....
『 [ Once again, Asdana was engulfed in war, this time the enemies originating from within. The prisoners remained prisoners for the rest of their lives, fighting for freedom rather than living for it. ]
After Sunday finished explaining, the puppet began to display text.
Let's build another prison
Not within the physical world
But within their minds
As long as we keep them imprisoned
They will always have a sanctuary 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Qingque: "Good grief."
Qingque: "After gaining freedom, they started infighting?"
Qingque: "This is too classic."
Qingque: "It's really like they had nothing better to do…"
Welt Yang: "After external threats were resolved, internal conflicts began to be triggered."
Welt Yang: "Human nature is like this… I don't find it surprising."
Welt Yang: "And, compared to fighting for freedom before."
Welt Yang: "This internal strife is actually the hardest to solve."
Himeko: "Human nature is complex and changeable."
Himeko: "After driving away the IPC, some of these prisoners developed the desire to become masters of other prisoners…"
Hu Tao: "So, this is the cause of the civil war?"
Hu Tao: "Some people who once fought side-by-side now want to imitate the IPC's methods and dominate these people's freedom again?"
Hu Tao: "Sigh… they really are insatiable…"
Stelle: "I actually think these people are more cunning than the IPC."
Stelle: "These people want to build a cage in the hearts of these prisoners."
Stelle: "To have their freedom imprisoned from the root."
Stelle: "And not just physically imprisoned."
March 7th: "Tsk tsk tsk, this behavior is way more vicious than the IPC."
March 7th: "Sure enough, the cruelest ones are still your own kind."
....
『 [ Hope you like this—land of freedom, atop the scorched earth. ]
The three continued forward and saw a puppet named "Voice of the Past," speaking to three other puppets.
[ As you can see, their sentences have long ended, and the IPC guards have long been expelled. Yet, these prisoners remain enslaved, not by external forces, but by the confines of their own minds. ]
[ Freedom permeates every corner except fragile souls. It gives solace only to those who believe in its existence. ]
After Sunday's words fell, the puppet named "Voice of the Past" began to issue a magnificent declaration.
[ Prisoners! I command you to learn freedom, and teach your brothers—fight to live! ]
After the puppet finished speaking, it actually started attacking the three of them directly. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "What the heck?"
Stelle: "We don't care if you want to fight to live or fight for freedom."
Stelle: "But why did this puppet just suddenly start attacking us?"
March 7th: "We aren't the ones hindering their freedom, why are they hitting us?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Uh… I guess in this play, you are acting as the ones hindering their freedom?"
Furina de Fontaine: "So, to be more immersive, they attacked?"
Silver Wolf: "About to get beaten up when caught off guard."
Silver Wolf: "Laughing to death, this is indeed very immersive."
Boothill: "After saying so much, isn't Sunday just trying to express that cowards don't deserve freedom?"
Boothill: "Hey, I agree with this viewpoint."
Boothill: "The biggest factor hindering their freedom has clearly been resolved, yet these cowards still can't change that submissive, slave-like appearance."
Boothill: "Son of a nice lady, they don't even have the courage to yearn for freedom; they deserve to be slaves!"
Li Sushang: "You can't really say it like that…"
Li Sushang: "I think most people were just locked up for too long and became numb, which is why they temporarily forgot the courage to yearn for freedom."
Li Sushang: "I believe that as long as someone guides them slowly, they can definitely awaken that courage they once had!"
Li Sushang: "Look, just like this puppet is showing!"
Guinaifen: "Wow, Shangshang, you can actually say such insightful things!"
Guinaifen: "Are you still the Shangshang I know?"
Li Sushang: "KEI-CHAN, DO YOU WANT ME TO BEAT YOU UP RIGHT NOW!!?"
Stelle: "Right, beat her hard, for calling you silly."
Qingque: "What undisguised instigation…"
....
『 [ Hey, why do we have to fight while enjoying the show? ]
March 7th exclaimed as she watched the attacking puppet.
[ Because I don't just want you all to appreciate this play, I also hope you… Help me complete it. ]
Sunday explained. Immediately, the three began to exchange blows with the puppets.
And after circling for a moment, the puppets retreated themselves, and stopped attacking the three.
[ No one can block your path anymore, you are free. ]
The puppet shouted.
[ Thus ends the first act. ]
[ In the raging flames of war, the frontier prison gradually moved towards becoming a land of exile. ]
Sunday's voice followed.
[ This is probably the history of Penacony's construction. ]
[ With the help of outsiders, the prisoners finally moved towards freedom and established a land of exile in the universe. ]
[ It's just that compared to physical cages, Sunday seems to focus more on expressing people's spiritual plight. ]
After watching the first act, Himeko felt moved to speak.
[ This play is a bit too artistic for me, the easiest part to understand was actually the fighting… ]
[ But at least we've reached the exit, let's go! ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Tsk tsk tsk, March, so you're a brute."
Stelle: "Only knowing how to fight!"
Stelle: "Unlike me, I understood this play easily."
March 7th: "Pfft—! You actually called me a brute."
March 7th: "Your baseball bat and fire lance were almost spinning sparks!!"
March 7th: "How dare you say that?"
Silver Wolf: "As soon as Stelle sees a fight, she's like a pervert seeing a world-class beauty."
Qingque: "There's definitely some violent psychopath gene in there."
Stelle: "Who's a violent psychopath?"
Stelle: "I call this 'persuading people with reason'!"
Stelle: "Do you understand what 'persuading people with reason' means?"
Paimon: "Understand, understand, Lumine, and I also like to persuade people with reason!!"
Lumine: "Ahem… if we can just fight, we don't say much…"
Lumine: "It really is easier when adventuring…"
Stelle: "As expected of my good sister, even our habits are shockingly similar!"
Stelle: "Sister, I'm looking forward to you coming even more now."
Stelle: "By then, we'll persuade people with reason together!"
Furina de Fontaine: "Calling beating people up 'persuading with reason'."
Furina de Fontaine: "That really is a fresh and refined way of putting it…"
....
『 The three entered the exit frame and arrived in the transition space leading to the second act.
[ THEY transmuted streams of stars into inked nibs, creating symbols to be pronounced and counted.]
[ THEY molded stardust into flowing rivers, assigning the righteous upstream and the unjust downstream. ]
[ Thus, all things were marked, and the world learned to discern between good and evil. ]
[ That marked the third and fourth days. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Is good and evil really defined by Order?"
Stelle: "Before this universe had Order, was there no so-called good and evil?"
March 7th: "Uh… that's really a hard question to answer."
March 7th: "Mainly because the birth of the Aeon of Order seems to be very ancient."
March 7th: "So… maybe it really was THEM who established the concept of good and evil?"
Stelle: "If that's true, Order is still quite stylish."
Stelle: "I just don't know how such an ancient god died."
Furina de Fontaine: "Is it possible, how the Tayzzyronth died, is how THEY died?"
Furina de Fontaine: "After all, such a powerful god wouldn't die easily, right?"
Furina de Fontaine: "So I think THEY was probably ganged up on too."
Hu Tao: "The Aeons have suffered under Order for too long."
Hu Tao: "So the Aeons found a good opportunity and hit the Aeon of Order hard."
Hu Tao: "And then Order was gone."
Zhongli: "Hehe, what the Director said is vivid and humorous."
Zhongli: "I think it makes a lot of sense."
Zhongli: "In this universe, no Aeon can truly place THEIR rules above all things."
Zhongli: "The fall of Order may be because it touched this taboo…"
....
『 [ Look, another frame… ]
After walking for a while, March 7th saw another frame.
Then she stepped in first. Stelle and Himeko followed closely behind.
Stage Play Act II: Ode to Fool
The announcement sounded as usual.
[ Ode to Fool… presumably this is the second act. ]
Himeko listened to the announcement thoughtfully.
[ The environment is different from before, too. ]
[ The furnishings around… seem to have become neater? ]
March 7th said after looking at the completely different environment.
[ Behold the ensuing tale, a struggle for power. Penacony witnessed the ascent of the seven major lineages — Tree, Grass, Flower, Bird, Beast, Fruit, and Insect. ]
[ Peace never truly graced the land of the exiles. The history in this era is rich and intricate, so please allow me to present it in allegorical form. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Paimon: "Tree, Grass, Flower, Bird, Beast, Fruit, Insect??"
Paimon: "What kind of families are these?"
Paimon: "Why does it sound a bit dizzying?"
Stelle: "I know, I know!"
Stelle: "This refers to the Oak(Tree), Alfalfa(Grass), Iris(Flower), Nightingale(Bird), Bloodhound(Beast), and Lampmoth(Insect) families!"
March 7th: "So what about Fruit?"
March 7th: "Did you eat the Fruit?"
Stelle: "That's right, I ate the Fruit!"
Stelle: "Therefore, I don't know."
Furina de Fontaine: "Then which family is this Fruit exactly?"
Sunday: "It is the Blackplum family… it is the family that perished early in a conspiracy and became history…"
Hu Tao: "Sounds like… this family also buried some unbearable past events."
Dan Heng: "Most likely they were victims of the power struggle."
Dan Heng: "I just don't know what kind of role this family played in it…"
....
『 [ Land of the exiles was in disarray, besieged by both internal and external perils. ]
[ The seven families are united on the surface, but in reality, they are each doing their own thing, with constant disputes. ]
After Sunday finished speaking, it was the puppet's turn.
Welcome to this mansion
Dear outsiders
Its founder has been exiled by those beneath them
And now the seven servants believe
They can replace their former master 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Does the founder here refer to the IPC?"
Stelle: "Or perhaps Hanunue and Mikhail and others?"
March 7th: "Hard to say, feels like both are possible."
Furina de Fontaine: "Power struggles, everyone wants to be the master."
Furina de Fontaine: "Were the original families like this?"
Black Swan: "Or rather, this is the most normal manifestation based on human nature…"
....
『 [ The first to withdraw from the civil war was the Blackplum family. In the White Desert Incident planned by the Alfalfa family, they became history forever. ]
After the three walked to a puppet lying on the ground, Sunday's voice sounded again.
Immediately, text began to appear next to the puppet.
Accountant! We are the pillars of this mansion
Bound by an oath of loyalty
And unity
Why are you plotting my downfall?
After these words appeared, another puppet, acting as if attacking, began to have text appear.
Because Master shaped you from clay
But forged me from fire
I'm superior to you! 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "What a fratricide!"
Stelle: "Looking at this, the Blackplum family didn't even understand the situation before they were wiped out by the insidious Alfalfa family."
Stelle: "What an unlucky guy."
March 7th: "That's the lives of an entire family!"
March 7th: "The Alfalfa family just acted so ruthlessly?"
March 7th: "God, for the sake of power, they are completely crazy!"
Furina de Fontaine: "Simply without a bottom line."
Furina de Fontaine: "Actually saying 'I'm superior to you."
Furina de Fontaine: "Unbelievable!"
Dr. Veritas Ratio: "The ugliness of human nature is displayed to the extreme at this moment."
Dr. Veritas Ratio: "For that illusory power, the so-called alliance friendship, heh… is worth nothing."
Himeko: "At this time… these families shouldn't have joined The Family of Harmony yet, right?"
....