The blistering rock tempo was forcibly accelerated and pitched up, transforming into an ultra-high-frequency shriek characteristic of electronic overdrive. Even the air itself seemed to shudder under the strain.
"I feel the pain and anger! Wicked monster, losin' control!!"
"I'm ready for a battle, wakened shadow, blood on my soul!!"
If a human singer's limit was dictated by the vibration of their vocal cords, then what Ai-chan was displaying right now was absolute, computational mastery over acoustics.
Especially after being tenderized by Shigure Kira's intro—which sounded like a rusty hacksaw violently grating against sheet metal—the audience easily absorbed Ai-chan's twelve-key pitched-up rendition of Flare.
Although... the sensation of having high-voltage electricity injected directly into their auditory nerves, detonating a dazzling fireworks display inside their brains, wasn't exactly...
Wait.
Something felt a little off! OHHHH—!!
Everyone instantly realized something was very wrong.
Despite the blisteringly fast tempo, every single syllable was terrifyingly crisp.
The rapid-fire, rap-like lyrics spewed from Ai-chan's mouth with the precise, brutal efficiency of a machine gun. Every note chiseled its way into the listeners' eardrums like armor-piercing rounds.
Even the originally low-pitched verses were now piercingly high after the 12-key boost.
But the expected pain never came. Instead, a torrential wave of pure euphoria rapidly built up, threatening to blast straight through the tops of their skulls!
"Burn it, burning it all, heavens, let them fall~"
"Haha..."
During a momentary pause, Ai-chan suddenly whipped her head around, flashing a wicked smirk at the audience and the camera.
The next second, the entire aesthetic of the stage shifted.
The golden lights morphed into a bloody crimson, and the cold, sterile environment was swallowed by raging, hellish flames.
"They taste of bitter ashes, littered plastic, crumblin' away"
"They glimpse the broken faces, devil racin', searching for faith"
"Crushing, crushing it all, shadows, watch them crawl~"
"Hahaha—!!"
The stage lights abruptly froze.
Like the suffocating calm before a hurricane, all the frantic energy was suddenly snuffed out. The audience's rapid, ragged breathing caught in their throats.
"Creepin' up my brain"
"Creepin' up my brain"
As that violently suppressed whisper trailed off, every single light on the stage died.
Darkness.
A deathly, absolute black.
Then came the crisp sound of a finger snap.
SNAP.
BOOM—!!!
In a fraction of a second, millions of golden beams erupted from center stage like a supernova! The hellish crimson landscape was instantly washed away, replaced by a terrifyingly pure, blindingly radiant domain of absolute holy white!
Ai-chan's silhouette slowly ascended within the brilliant light. Her twin tails seemed to have transformed into two burning golden comets, whipping wildly behind her.
The microphone in her hand was no longer an instrument, but a scepter commanding this divine domain, pointed straight at the heavens.
"Baby watchin' it burn, send death to isolation!—!!!"
"Oh watchin' it burn, ain't got no hesitation"
"Watchin' it burn, we're fallin' higher"
That first earth-shattering scream blasted out of the speakers!
It was an absolute high note that surpassed the limits of human hearing, yet was perfectly modulated to hover on the absolute razor's edge of what the eardrum could withstand, slamming ruthlessly into everyone's soul!
It sounded as if someone had popped the lid off your skull and hooked your brain up to a non-lethal, high-voltage battery. The electricity surged through the auditory nerves and instantly shot through the entire body.
Every single cell convulsed in a frenzied, overloaded state of ecstasy.
There was no pain.
Just pure, unadulterated HYPE!!
It was the ultimate rush of having your soul forcibly ripped from your flesh and hurled onto the surface of a scorching sun!
"Oh↗↘↗↗↘↘↗—Yee!!!"
Ai-chan whipped around. Two literal beams of golden light blasted from her electronic eyes, as if an actual sun had detonated inside her chest.
"I'll cast your dark intentions, convolution, never before"
"I'll fight with skeletons, adrenaline, conviction in war"
"Terror, terror is near, I will shatter you all!"
Down in the crowd, the audience had gone completely feral.
Such immense power! It's incredible!
To hear a musical duel between such absolute powerhouses... my life was worth the ticket price!!
"Baby watchin' it burn, send death to isolation"
"Oh watchin' it burn, ain't got no hesitation"
"Watchin' it burn, we're fallin' higher"
"Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh~"
Back in the waiting room.
Listening to Ai-chan practically burn out her vocal processors, the four of them fell into a deep, contemplative silence.
Well, more accurately, only Shu was lost in deep contemplation.
The other three were all thinking that Ai-chan's choice of song was actually completely justified.
She could actually hit those notes!
"Shu." Kiana bobbed her head to the beat, turning to look at him. "Could you pull that off?"
Shu: "..."