Chapter 189
[Sunday looked at the already deceased Raven and sighed with complex emotions, then said:
"I shall soar to great heights, becoming the sun in the sky."
"The masses shall thrive fervently in my radiance, and all sins shall have nowhere to hide."
...2 system hours until the Harmony Festival, Nameless perspective;
The three Nameless arrived at the grand theater according to Sunday's arrangement, but the place was completely empty, eerily quiet.
On guard, the Nameless began investigating the area, but the more they searched, the more unsettling it felt—
In the deserted grand theater, silence prevailed. Their own movements echoed through the theater, with only lifeless puppets watching them. Just as March 7th began suspecting Sunday had stood them up, Sunday said: "Apologies for making you wait, Miss March 7th."
March 7th jumped with a start: "You scared me! Where... where are you speaking from?"
"I await you all behind the curtains. Before the grand ceremony begins, following Asdana's ancient tradition, I would like to invite you all to enjoy three prelude performances."]
[Huohuo]: "Aah, this is so scary!"
[Tail]: "Tch, it's just an empty grand theater full of lifeless puppets? This scares you?"
[Kiana]: "It does seem somewhat frightening though?"
[Honkai: Star Rail·Welt]: "Grand theater... and puppets, this reminds me of some things from back home."
[Einstein]: "What things?"
[Honkai: Star Rail·Welt]: "You need to be careful of the Herrscher of Domination. Her external manifestation is a thousand puppets, and they also have a space called the Theater of Domination."
[Honkai: Star Rail·Welt]: "Moreover, the Thousand-Herrscher can usurp and dominate the authority of other Herrschers."
[Mobius]: "A thousand beings can have such power? It seems even fixed Herrscher authorities can undergo changes."
[Prelude Performance·First Act·"Ode to the Prisoner"
"The atmosphere here... is very similar to Sunday's inner world. Perhaps this so-called [prelude performance] is a similar ability."
"This performance is called 'Ode to the Prisoner.' Combined with the surrounding atmosphere... I'm afraid what's about to be performed is Penacony's past."
March 7th muttered somewhat dejectedly: "We haven't been to any prisons in our recent Trailblazing journeys, I thought my luck had finally turned! But it seems I can't escape this fate after all..."
Sunday didn't wish to cross blades with them, still hoping to persuade them. Thus, the first act recounted Penacony's history to them. ...... "Look, their sentences had long ended, the company's jailers had been expelled. Yet these prisoners remained slaves, because what imprisoned them wasn't external things, but their own hearts."
After some fighting, Sunday said: "This concludes the first act. In the raging flames of war, the [Frontier Prison] gradually became the [Land of Exile]."
Himeko explained to the still confused March 7th and
Stelle: "This is likely Penacony's founding history. With help from outsiders, the prisoners finally moved toward freedom and established the [Land of Exile] in the universe."
"However, compared to people's physical's dilemma, Sunday focuses more on their mental cages."
"This drama is still too artistic for me, the easiest part to understand was actually the fight scenes... But we've finally reached the exit, let's hurry and leave!"]
[Sushang]: "Huh? Is this how plays are performed? Doesn't seem as understandable as Little Gui's."
[Guinaifen]: "Uh... seems we really can't appreciate this kind of art. Like March 7th said, only the combat parts were understandable."
[March 7th]: "Combat! Awesome!"
[Rico]: 'It's a good play, just a bit too stream-of-consciousness.'
[Stelle]: "March 7th, congratulations on ending up in prison again. You've actually Trailblazed into prisons before?"
[Silver Wolf]: 'LMAO, don't you get wanted all the time? Probably been to prison more times than us.'
[Otto]: "It's the same history, but with different perspectives, you get different answers. Mikhail and Sunday have different views."
[Prelude Performance·Second Act·"Ode to the Foolish Servant"
"The following story revolves around power struggles. The seven Families—Tree, Grass, Flower, Bird, Beast, Fruit, and Insect—were successively established in Penacony."
"Peace never truly came to the Land of Exile.
This history is extremely complex with countless threads, please allow me to present it to you through allegory."
The seven Families fought for power and profit in Penacony, their struggles unceasing, then began civil war that led to two Families being wiped out. It wasn't until Oak Family led The Family to the Land of Exile and the five remaining Families converted one after another that Penacony became the Land of Dreams. Himeko commented: "It seems this second act tells the process of Penacony becoming the [Land of Dreams], with The Family's arrival playing an indispensable role."
"But this [newly arrived master] doesn't seem like a good person?"
"This might be what Sunday implied between the lines—[Harmony] changed Penacony, but its methods were no different from the past jailers."
Sunday also sighed: "Unfortunately, until the very end, they remained slaves who had been granted freedom."
"This concludes the second act. In illusory harmony, the [Land of Exile] gradually became the [Star of Celebration]."
Himeko, the most knowledgeable among the Nameless, continued explaining to March 7th and
Stelle: "This is the process of Penacony gradually becoming Family territory. After [Harmony] arrived, the Land of Exile underwent earth-shaking changes... though not all were positive."
"This guy really loves drama, his whole family are veteran actors."
March 7th found nothing enjoyable about this play at all, only feeling bored.]
[Theresa]: "I almost feel sorry for Sunday. He put so much effort into these three plays that have now performed two acts."
[Theresa]: "Originally meant to persuade the Nameless, but only Himeko understood Sunday's meaning while March 7th and Stelle completely didn't get it, obviously finding it boring."
[Murata Himeko]: "And did you understand it?"
[Theresa]: "I'm not familiar with Penacony's history, of course I didn't understand!"
[Eden]: "Indeed, to grasp the main themes of these performances, one should have some understanding of Penacony's history."
[March 7th]: "Sorry for being illiterate and not understanding!"
[Stelle]: "Good that you know!"
[March 7th]: "Wait, you understood? When did you evolve behind my back?"
[Stelle]: "Not understanding doesn't stop me from mocking you!"
[Prelude Performance·Third Act·"Ode to Order"
"This time I finally understand—this final act is meant to sing praises to [Order]."
"And the atmosphere here... is completely different from the previous two scenes."
In the grayish-white silent performance, Sunday's gentle voice came through: "This is the final act. I've shown you Penacony's past and present, and sincerely hope you can understand why I want to change the current situation."
"And next... I will reveal Penacony's future to you."
At the final stage, a row of puppets respectfully saluted a general. Stelle tried to use clockwork tricks like in the previous act, but everyone became bound by threads;
The puppets said: "We bid you farewell, monarch of old. We no longer need a monarch—we ourselves are monarchs surpassing all things!"
The Trailblaze's will couldn't shake the puppets bound by threads. Sunday stopped Stelle's futile attempts, saying: "Please forgive my discourtesy. I forgot to tell you all—only this final performance has already been completed."
All the puppets chanted in unison: "Let our monarch of old tell you. Now, it's time to begin the final ceremony."]
[Otto]: "Sunday wants to be an eternally responsible God, just like having God sacrifice freedom to seek welfare for all beings. Let God exhaust all possibilities so that all beings may obtain freedom, obtain happiness, obtain their heart's desires."
[Otto]: "Truly an admirable ideal."
[Mobius]: "This act seems to satire not only [Harmony] but also [Order]. The paradise he wants relies solely on Order's power without needing the existence of the [Order]