NOVPUBAfter receiving the birthday present from Fate-san, the next person to take the stage at the hidden talent show was…… Blossom-san.
She was wearing a rather authentic-looking kimono, exuding an air of determination but…… what was she going to do? When it comes to Blossom-san, the strong image that comes to mind is one of "misunderstood Japanese culture", so what could she be planning to do in a kimono?
"Next up, we have Blossom-san."
"I wonder what she’s going to do? Since the scoring favors unpredictability, I feel like the more capable participants are actually at a disadvantage……"
As Fate-san said, this hidden talent show was being judged with an emphasis on surprise, which inherently put top-tier powerhouses like the Count-rank participants at a disadvantage. After all, nothing would be surprising coming from them.
Conversely, humans or those who, in terms of sheer ability, fell short of the highest ranks had the upper hand under this system.
"I am Blossom, a dependent of World King Lillywood-sama. Though only for a short while today, please allow me to present my humble performance. Now then, I shall begin."
Blossom-san, looking unusually focused, bowed with a calm demeanor that seemed almost unreal compared to her usual boisterous self. With only a brief self-introduction, she began her act.
When she pulled a fan from her sleeve and unfolded it, traditional Japanese instruments began to play…… Was this Japanese classical dance? I’d never seen it before, but judging from the atmosphere and her movements, I was pretty sure that’s what it was.
To the tune of elegant music, Blossom-san danced gracefully, occasionally using props like a folding fan or a paper parasol. She looked so polished and elegant…… it was quite the transformation. Usually she gave off a noisy, chaotic vibe, but now she seemed like a refined Yamato Nadeshiko, the gap between her usual image and this one was striking.
The dance itself was truly splendid. I was so absorbed watching it that before I knew it, it was over.
"That was a magnificent performance. Now then, judges, please present your scores!"
I hesitated a bit on how to score her. Blossom-san, being a subordinate of the World King, was obviously strong in music-related fields. That she could dance well wasn’t exactly surprising, which weakened the impact from a surprise element standpoint.
However, the stark contrast with her usual image made the graceful Japanese dance all the more memorable. From the perspective of showcasing a different side of herself, I raised the 4-point card.
"Oh, this one’s a bit divided, isn’t it?"
"God of Time and Space and Lili-tan gave 3 points, Kai-chan and Kurorin gave 4 points, and Canalis-sama gave 5…… Yep, that’s the most variation we’ve seen so far. Should we ask each judge for their reasoning?"
"Sounds good. Let’s start with…… Chronois-san, your thoughts?"
With a total of 19 points, this was definitely the most divided score so far.
"The dance itself was a bit unusual, but truly marvelous. However, as one of the World King's Executives, her skill in song and dance is well known. Therefore, I deducted points on the grounds of lacking surprise."
"I see…… then, Kuro-san, who gave 4 points, what did you think?"
"Hmmm…… there were some familiar elements, but it was my first time seeing this kind of dance. I was torn between 3 and 4 points, but the rarity of it tipped me toward 4."
So both Chronois-san and Kuro rated the dance highly in terms of execution but docked points due to lack of surprise. That said, Kuro said she added a point for the novelty of Japanese dance.
That made sense…… but now I was especially curious about Canalis-san, the only one who gave 5 points.
"Now then, Canalis-san, who gave the only 5-point score, what are your thoughts?"
"Tahaa~~ I’m simply overjoyed to have witnessed a historic moment. The dance that Blossom-san performed is known as Japanese classical dance from the world of Kaito-sama and the others, but there’s no record of this being passed down in detail from past Hero Actors. And that’s to be expected, most of those summoned as Hero Actors are teenagers, and unless one of them just so happened to have mastered Japanese dance, it would’ve been impossible for the genuine form to be transmitted. And yet, Blossom-san spent many years researching fragmented information gathered from various Hero Actors, and finally succeeded in almost perfectly recreating Japanese classical dance, this performance was her first unveiling of that achievement."
If Canalis-san’s comment was to be believed, then Blossom-san had taken vague descriptions of Japanese dance from former Hero Actors, gathered all that fragmented information, and through repeated trial and error, managed to perfectly recreate a traditional Japanese dance that shouldn’t have even been passed down in this world.
"The dance Blossom-san performed is a style known as shinbuyou, a somewhat modern form of Japanese classical dance. Compared to traditional dances like kamigatamai or kabuki buyou, which have long histories, shinbuyou is relatively recent and not as technically demanding. Even so, to have reconstructed it based on only fragmented information is nothing short of remarkable. It's clearly the result of painstaking study and countless adjustments. Tahaa~~ Rather than being taught from beginning to end, she managed to recreate an otherworldly culture through her own analysis and effort, my 5 points were given in recognition of that extraordinary accomplishment."
"As expected of Canalis-san, an excellent comment. Just as Canalis-san said, it’s easy to overlook when you lump it all together as just "dance", but as Kuro-san mentioned, it was something never before seen in Trinia. The fact that she completed a form of dance entirely new to this world is truly praiseworthy. It was a wonderful performance."
When Alice concluded the segment like that, many in the audience, including myself, applauded Blossom-san, who bowed quietly in return.
Hmmm, I really did feel like I saw a whole new side of Blossom-san. Thinking about all the effort it must have taken her to recreate Japanese dance like that, it really hit me just how incredible what she had accomplished was.
<Afterword>
Serious-senpai : [D*mn it, another gift scene is coming after this…… D*mn it all! If only…… If only I could Mode Change!]
Makina : [Unn? Serious-senpai, you want to Mode Change?]
Serious-senpai : [Ah! That's right, you're here!!! Please, let me Mode Change into "Anti-Lovey-Dovey Mode"!!!]
Makina : [……I don’t really get it, but leave it to me!]
Serious-senpai : [Thank you!!!]
Makina : [……(Why does she want to go into "Absolute Lovey-Dovey Mode"? Ah~~ maybe it’s that, huh? After watching so many lovey-dovey scenes over the years, Serious-senpai actually grew to like them too, but now she can’t bring herself to drop her "I hate lovey-dovey stuff" persona, so she wants to use this mode change excuse to enjoy it without ruining her image?)]
(T/N: S-Senpai said "対イチャラブモード/Tai Icharabu Mode" -> Makina heard "絶対イチャラブモード/Zettai Icharabu Mode")
