The moment the curtains opened, the plaza erupted.
A sea of people—tens of thousands—raised their hands, cheering so hard the air trembled. Mana lanterns floated above the plaza like stars, glowing softly in blue and silver.
Aster and Astra stepped into the light, smiles warm and confident. The applause washed over them like a tidal wave.
"Aster! Astra!"
"Wynfall Twins forever!"
"We love you two!"
"Sing for us!"
Aster waited for the noise to settle, then lifted the sound-amplifying stone.
"Thank you," he said, voice resonant and clear. "Today is a very special day for me and my sister."
Astra stepped forward, bright-eyed. "It's our first official concert!"
The crowd roared.
Aster raised his hand again, calming the noise with a soft pulse of Sound Magic.
"And today…" he continued, "we're performing our very first *album.* Its name is—"
He glanced at his mother, who was seated beside their sisters in the front row.
"—Our Mom."
The crowd gasped, then burst into emotional applause. Many mothers in the audience teared up instantly.
Aster smiled softly.
"This album has fifteen songs—twelve classics and three raps."
A wave of confusion spread.
"Rap?!"
"What is rap?"
"They say the prince invented a new way of singing…"
"Is that even possible?"
Aster chuckled.
"You'll find out soon."
***
The stage glowed with magic as Aster lifted his hands.
Astra stood beside him, ready to begin.
Since this world had no instruments, Aster had to **create all the music from scratch**—using pure Sound Magic and mana.
Soft chimes.
Warm chords.
Gentle rhythms.
They all formed around him, shimmering in the air like glowing wind.
The first song began.
A lullaby dedicated to their mother.
Arlienne covered her mouth instantly, tears overflowing.
The people swayed.
Children clapped.
Families held hands.
The melody wrapped the plaza in warmth.
Song after song drifted into the evening sky.
Aster sang lead, Astra harmonized beautifully, and the crowd responded to each shift in emotion—laughing during upbeat songs, crying during nostalgic ones, and cheering whenever Astra hit a pure high note.
By the sixth song, the crowd was singing with them.
By the tenth, the plaza felt like a single, unified heartbeat.
It truly felt like a **concert**, something this world had never imagined.
***
But behind the magic, Aster was struggling.
Every sound effect—every beat, every chord, every background harmony—required mana.
And he was just eight years old.
Even with his unusually large mana pool, his body trembled slightly by the eleventh song.
Astra noticed immediately.
"Aster… you okay?" she whispered between verses.
He nodded, forcing a smile. "I'm fine. Just… pushing a bit more than usual."
She frowned. "Let me take over the magic for a while."
"No. You sing. I'll handle this part."
He pushed himself harder.
The mana circles expanded.
The light intensified.
The music grew richer.
But Aster's vision dimmed for a moment.
*Not yet…
I can't collapse yet…
This is our dream. Our first album. Our mother's album.*
He forced his mana into a steady stream.
It worked—for now.
***
The crowd didn't notice his exhaustion. They were too lost in the magic of the moment.
"Encore!"
"One more!"
"Prince Aster! Princess Astra!"
"SING!!!"
The twins exchanged a smile.
Aster lifted the stone again.
"Only three songs left!" he announced.
The crowd cheered wildly.
"And the last ones…" Astra added, "are all rap!"
Excitement surged through the plaza.
"Rap! Rap! Rap!"
"What is rap?!"
"Is it really that amazing?!"
"I heard it last year—it was insane!"
"I've never heard anything like it!"
Aster chuckled, wiping sweat from his forehead.
Rap was still completely unknown in this world, but after last year's performance, rumors had spread:
*The prince can speak in rhythm faster than the wind itself.*
*Sound Magic moves with his words.*
*It is like magic woven into speech.*
People had come from distant towns just to hear it again.
Aster glanced at Astra.
"You ready for the finale?"
Astra nodded. "Let's blow their minds."
But before the final rap section, they needed a short break.
The twins stepped backstage, breathing heavily. Aster dropped onto a crate, panting.
Astra handed him a water flask. "Aster… your mana is draining too fast."
"I know," he admitted. "Rap requires stronger beats. Stronger resonance. More layers."
"Aster… you're shaking."
He looked at his hands.
They were trembling.
Not from fear.
From **overuse of raw mana**.
Astra grabbed his shoulders. "Let me support the rhythm this time. If you force yourself, you'll faint on stage!"
Aster looked at her.
Her eyes were filled with worry.
Her determination matched his own.
After a long pause, he nodded.
"Okay. We'll split the magic."
She smiled with relief.
"Good."
But even as he agreed, Aster felt something strange deep inside his chest.
A slight vibration.
A pulse.
A resonance.
Like something inside him was *awakening*.
He ignored it for now.
Right now, the crowd was waiting.
Right now, the nation was listening.
Right now… it was time to change the world again.
Aster stood, still tired but determined.
He took Astra's hand.
"Let's finish this, Astra."
She squeezed tightly.
"Together."
And as they stepped back onto the stage, the lights brightened—
The crowd roared—
"RAP! RAP! RAP!!!"
The mana stones hummed—
The evening sky shimmered—
And the twins prepared to deliver the performance that would become **legendary**.
Little did they know:
During the final rap…
Something extraordinary was about to happen.
***************************************
Backstage, Aster's breathing was shallow. Sweat clung to his hair. His mana was dangerously low.
Astra hovered beside him, biting her lip. "Aster… please rest a little longer. You don't look okay."
But he shook his head.
"This is the finale. I can't stop now."
Before Astra could argue, he reached for a mana potion on the table and drank it in one gulp.
Astra froze. "Aster—!"
The curtain rustled.
Arlienne rushed in, panic in her eyes.
"Aster! You can't drink a full mana potion at your age, let alone—"
Aster grabbed the second bottle.
"Aster, STOP!"
But he didn't.
He drank the second potion before Arlienne could snatch it away.
The bottle shattered on the floor.
Mana surged violently through his body, making his entire frame tremble. His vision blurred, and his heartbeat became painfully loud.
Arlienne grabbed his shoulders, voice trembling.
"Aster… you'll damage your channels. Your body is too young to handle that much mana—"
Seraphine and Lyria rushed in behind her, pale with fear.
"Aster, no more!"
"You've already done so much—please, don't push yourself!"
Aster's breathing steadied—not naturally, but forcefully, as if he was controlling it with sheer will.
He stepped back, gently removing his mother's hands.
"I have to do this," he whispered. "For all the people who came… and for the dream I'm chasing."
Arlienne's eyes trembled. She knew that tone. It was the same determined voice she heard when he created the birthday miracle. The same voice that invented sound stones. The same voice that carried the heart of a grown soul.
She embraced him tightly.
"Then… promise me you'll come back safe."
Aster's embrace trembled.
"…I promise."
Astra took his hand.
"Then I'm going with you. I'll support your voice."
He smiled.
"Always."
And together, the twins stepped out of the backstage tunnel—
Into the roaring cheers of tens of thousands.
***
The plaza erupted when the twins returned.
"Aster!"
"Astra!"
"They're back!"
"Rap! Rap! RAP!"
"Go little prince!"
Aster raised the amplifying stone.
"Thank you for waiting. These last three songs… are dedicated to all of YOU."
The crowd shook with excitement.
Astra took a breath and began the first of the final songs—a classic-style vocal piece. Her voice soared gracefully above the plaza while Aster generated the beat pattern beneath it, weaving her singing into a warm, uplifting harmony.
But despite recovering mana, his body still trembled. The output drain was still massive.
He endured it.
And then—
Aster exhaled.
Time for the rap.
He stepped forward, his eyes glowing faintly with the unstable mana swirling in him.
"This one," he announced, "is about the people of Vornis—and how proud we are of you."
Astra's magic formed the rhythm this time. A deep, pulsing beat filled the air.
Aster began to rap.
Fast.
Sharp.
Precise.
Each word flowed like a blade carving rhythm through the sky.
"It's happening again—!"
"That rhythm… it's unreal!"
"I've never heard anything like it in my LIFE!"
Aster's rap painted pictures:
The hardworking vendors.
The mothers who raised their children with love.
The people who kept the capital running.
The warmth, the unity, the hope of Vornis.
His words lifted the audience's hearts.
When he finished, the plaza erupted.
But Aster lifted a hand.
"One last song."
The crowd immediately fell silent.
"This," he said softly, "is a rap about how wonderful the world is… and how precious life can be."
Astra started the beat—gentle, emotional, like a heartbeat.
Aster closed his eyes.
And poured everything inside him into the song.
His fear.
His rebirth.
His gratitude.
His hope.
His dreams.
Words flowed like light.
Astra backed him with soft harmonies, tears shimmering in her eyes.
The audience was stunned into silence. Not a single whisper moved through the plaza. Even the nobles watching from afar felt something awaken inside their hearts.
Arlienne covered her mouth, crying openly.
Seraphine and Lyria couldn't blink.
Even the palace guards—trained to remain stoic—had tears gathering in their eyes.
By the end of the rap, Aster's voice cracked once.
Only once.
But that single crack carried more emotion than most performers achieved in a lifetime.
He finished with a whisper:
"…and that is why… this world is beautiful."
The last echo faded into the night.
And for a solid ten seconds—
No one moved.
No one spoke.
Not a breath.
Then—
The plaza detonated with applause.
Screaming.
Crying.
Cheering.
Waving lanterns.
People holding each other.
It was the most emotional reaction Vornis had ever witnessed in a public square.
Aster swayed slightly.
Astra caught him.
"You did it…" she whispered.
But Aster wasn't done.
The twins bowed, and the crowd began to settle.
People prepared to leave, wiping tears from their faces.
But Aster held up a hand.
"Everyone, please wait."
The entire plaza halted.
Tens of hundreds faced him again.
"I have an announcement to make."
Astra stared in shock. "Aster…?"
Arlienne stood, concerned.
Even distant nobles leaned forward in their observation towers.
And somewhere in the palace, the queen sat upright, sensing danger.
Aster lifted the magical stone to his mouth, determination burning in his silver eyes.
Under the glowing lights, with all of Vornis watching, he declared—