Just as 'Sparkle' let out a laugh.
Sparkle suddenly pressed a button.
Instantly, a metallic chain shot out from the device, binding 'Sparkle's' hands.
But 'Sparkle' just gave a slight flick of her wrists, and the taut chains immediately loosened and retracted.
"Tch, figured it wouldn't work on you~"
"Of course not. I made this thing. How could it possibly work on me?"
"So boring. No fun at all." Sparkle pouted.
This kind of flawlessness, leaving no openings—it just wasn't amusing.
"So, why did you lure me here anyway?"
Setting aside her mischievous impulses, Sparkle clasped her hands behind her back and stared straight at the other her.
If the other party was the type who liked to be meticulous and leave no loose ends…
Then the clues left in the video and account could only mean she was deliberately meant to find her way here.
"Hmm… what if I said I just did it for fun? Watching you get lured in by me, then caught by me—I'm having a pretty good time right now."
'Sparkle' blinked playfully at the original.
But Sparkle herself wasn't exactly thrilled.
Spending every day looking for amusement, only to end up as someone else's amusement, huh.
It wasn't like she wasn't prepared for that possibility.
But it was still so annoying.
Seeing the look on Sparkle's face…
The 'Sparkle' who originally just wanted to harvest some emotional reactions now genuinely found it interesting.
After all… Director Sparkle had always had a bit of a bratty streak.
Bullying the brat and watching her make that face was actually quite satisfying.
Oh no.
Could it be that she'd really been infected by Aha's influence and was turning into a Masked Fool herself?
'Sparkle' felt a sudden lurch in her heart.
Then she reached out, smiling, and patted Sparkle on the head.
"Just kidding. I just wanted to hang out with you."
"…"
Sparkle shot her a weird look.
Did she really think she'd believe such an obvious lie?
But…
"Interested in causing some trouble with me?"
Sparkle's mood shifted lightning-fast, and soon her usual mischievous grin was back in place.
Truly, Director Sparkle—her mental resilience was something else.
'Sparkle' mused inwardly for a moment, then pulled over a chair and sat down: "That depends on what kind of trouble you're planning."
But to her surprise, Sparkle shook her head with a giggle, wearing a mysterious expression: "I don't know yet. We'll have to see what the Aeon of Elation wants us to do."
"What do you mean?"
"It means I like surprise boxes—randomly picking a lucky world and going there to have some fun."
When she had no commissions or particularly interesting targets…
This was Sparkle's favorite pastime.
"Now then, let's see who our lucky performer will be this time~"
Giggling, Sparkle manipulated her device, inputting some program.
The selection of the lucky—or unlucky—lot began.
As she operated the program, Sparkle curiously pointed at a nearby screen.
"Looks like you've got more videos. Why not post them?"
The image on the screen was unmistakably that of a Lord Ravager.
Of course, compared to the awe-inspiring presence of an Aeon, a Lord Ravager was much more approachable.
While you could still sense that destructive aura…
It was nowhere near as intimidating as an Aeon.
"Made them for fun. Not planning to release them yet. Or are you really keen on having a heart-to-heart with a Lord Ravager?"
"Sparkle" smiled while staring right at her.
Aeons were lofty and distant.
Who'd really care about that sort of thing?
But Lord Ravagers were different.
If they got upset, they'd probably come for you personally.
I can finish the act, then just skip town. But when you, Sparkle, end up with a bounty on your head, you'll learn what regret feels like.
"Yeah, let's not."
Sparkle shook her head vigorously.
Having fun was one thing, but actually getting a Lord Ravager on your tail? That wouldn't be fun at all.
"Ooh~ We've got a result. Let me see what kind of place this is~"
Hearing a ding from the prompt, Sparkle looked down at the screen that had popped up.
"Aeragan-Epharshel? What kind of place is that? Never heard of it. Let me ask around…"
This was the best part of true randomness.
The places you landed on were always so unexpected.
When 'Sparkle' heard the name, her eyelid twitched slightly:
"That's a pretty ordinary world, but it has a mineral deposit there that's considered a strategic resource for the Interastral Peace Corporation."
"Oh? Really? Seems the Aeon of Elation picked a good spot for me~"
Hearing this, Sparkle immediately broke into a grin that just screamed "I'm up to no good."
"…What are you planning?"
"Hmm~ Not sure yet. Let me gather some intel first." Sparkle shook her head, still smiling.
Then she started messaging someone on her phone.
It seemed Sparkle had her own reliable information network.
But that made sense.
Someone who loved stirring up trouble all over the universe would naturally have her own ways of gathering intel.
For all she knew, there was an intelligence specialist right within the Tavern.
She didn't have to wait long.
Just about the time it took to watch that Lord Ravager video.
A reply came through.
"Got it~ Heehee, the guy in charge of the mining operations at Aeragan-Epharshel is someone named Oswaldo. An ambitious man of action."
Sparkle sent the file to her other self.
Then she said with a playful laugh:
"Hey, little tanuki, wanna play a cooperative game?"
"What kind of game?"
"You know what roles are the most fun on stage? The protagonist? The villain? In my opinion, guys like this are the most interesting."
Sparkle tapped her finger on Oswaldo's profile picture.
"An ambitious climber in a hurry, a young man rising fast within the Corporation. Someone like that is perfect for providing entertainment on stage."
Those ordinary cowboys or whatever? They looked boring at a glance.
The same old story of oppression and rebellion. And they were pathetically weak to boot.
Compared to that, this Oswaldo guy piqued Sparkle's interest more.
You could tell his ambitions were swelling right along with his promotions.
And, while it was unclear what he was in such a rush about, he was clearly in a hurry.
People like that were the easiest to fool.
"Let's go put him on stage together and see what kind of performance he puts on, shall we?"
Sparkle giggled as she extended the invitation to her other self.
'Sparkle' listened to this somewhat incoherent spiel and tilted her head slightly:
"So you still haven't said what you actually plan to do?"
"Isn't that enough? Don't forget the nickname you gave me—Director Sparkle~ Gotta say, I like that title. This director wants to see his improv act now."
"…"
'Sparkle' felt that sometimes, interacting with Masked Fools was truly a helpless experience.
As a relatively normal person, it was sometimes really hard to understand what was going on in these chaos-seekers' heads.
While she roughly grasped that Sparkle wanted to go cause trouble…
After all that circling, she still hadn't said what exactly they were going to do.
So you just have a vague idea, and you're dragging me along for the ride?
--+--