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VS Princess - Chapter 2
May. 16th, 2024 10:52 pmChapter 2 - Battle Royale
Characters: Mao, Subaru
Season: Spring
(Several minutes later. 4piece Venue 1, “Prince Castle.”)
Mao:
I think this is the venue we’re supposed to be in…
Subaru:
Whoa~! It’s like a real castle! It’s all shiny and sparkly~!☆
Subaru:
I dunno what any of this means, but! This place is crazy fancy! Hey, Sally~ What are they gonna make us do here?
Mao:
I told you; this is 4piece.
Haha. The second you catch sight of something shiny, you snap back into a great mood, Subaru.
Subaru:
I can’t stay sunken forever!
Mao:
Yup, the sun never does. And I really appreciate that.
Anyway. I already said this on the way here, but the most I’ve heard about what they’re gonna make us do during 4piece is all rumors at best.
So even if you ask me for an explanation, I can’t say I can give you one. Seriously.
Subaru:
Yeah. Uh, so this “4piece” isn’t managed by ES for once?
Mao:
Well, ES are lending their support, so I’m sure they’re gonna be heavily involved. They’ve dispatched staff as part of their contribution, so we’re gonna feel their presence here and there.
But the main organizers and management behind 4piece seems to be some sort of huge foreign company.
Supposedly it’s called “Thunderbolt Entertainment.” You ever heard of it, Subaru?
Subaru:
There seems to be a whole lot of super long English names all of a sudden, which are hard to remember. Though I guess seeing as this event is centered around a foreign company, that can’t be helped.
Wait, why are you asking me? I’m the one who doesn’t know anything, so isn’t it your or Ukki’s job to explain everything to me, Sally? C’mon, do it properly!
Mao:
What are you getting mad at me for…? But if you look at things objectively, you’ve been performing for, hell, involved with the idol industry in general for waaay longer than I have, Subaru.
You’ve been submerged in it right up to your neck ever since your father was around.
Subaru:
Hehe. I really like how you guys bring up my dad while we’re just having a regular conversation lately. I don’t want it to seem like a sore subject that no one’s allowed to talk about.
But I feel like I was pretty isolated from the idol industry when I was younger. And he never really told me much about working abroad.
And that’s why I don’t really know anything about this Thunder-something; sounds more like the name of a movie monster or a pro wrestler.
Sally~! Explain please!
Mao:
Makoto seems to like this kinda of thing, and he’s much better at it. But I guess it can’t be helped, seeing as I’m the only one here this time.
“Thunderbolt Entertainment”, otherwise known as “Thunderbolt”, is one of the world’s biggest corporations.
It seems to have mainly flourished within the entertainment industry.
Subaru:
Oh… But I feel like I might have seen their logo around Japan sometimes too. Like, on toys or at amusement parks.
Their logo is super shiny, so I happen to like it.
Mao:
Yeah, it seems like something you’d like. Though I’m a little triggered by anything spiky, and it’s so flashy that it’s sorta hard on the eyes.
Subaru:
It feels like bolts of lightning!
Mao:
Yeah. Though seeing as ES, or rather, the Tenshouin and Himemiya conglomerates are in a position where they take priority, it doesn’t really stand out that much within Japan.
Now and then when it comes to our outsourced proposals and stuff, we’ll do some sort of work related to Thunderbolt though.
Subaru:
Yeah. So like, seeing as some big, fancy foreign company is hosting this thing, we can’t just do whatever we want, like always⸺is what they warned us, right?
Mao:
No, the whole “you can’t just do whatever you want” applies in general. Though I guess that’s who you, and Trickstar are as individuals.
Subaru:
Ehen.
…So this big foreign company sniffed out the scent of ES, then waited for the right time to set out here for this huge scale event?
Mao:
I guess ‘cause ES have really been making an impact lately, so it’s not like even a foreign company could just sit back quietly and watch.
By the way, people in Japan may be talking about ES non-stop, and not to mention it’s growing like crazy, but the reality is, it’s still a young company that was only just established.
So as a company, when it comes to scale or achievements, it’s just not on the same level as Thunderbolt. So, at least it has the awareness that it’s no match for it as an opponent.
Subaru:
So it’s like, if a young rascal mishaves, he’ll get scolded by his big, important uncle?
Mao:
Mmm… Dunno.
Thunderbolt is a huge international company. I’m suspicious of whether or not they even have a personality.
Rather than coming here to scold anyone, they might just be here after the scent of profit?
Subaru:
Hate that sort of greedy old uncle.
Mao:
Well, that’s capitalism for you. We’ve learned that much from the bitter experience of being played around with in the past.
Still, we do have a chance here.
Company though it may be, the people within are all only human. So the more active we are during 4piece, we should be able to get a lot of support from the staff of a global company.
When it comes to the foreign countries that ES has already expanded to up to now, we should be able to get our hands on those sorts of connections and stuff.
And so, the sort of stage we’ve never laid eyes on before is bound to be awaiting us on the other side.
That is, every single country overseas; nothing could be bigger than that.
Next Chapter
