Echocalypse: Scarlet Covenant story · Themed biography
Star Dream
You and Serenelle came to the seaside resort for the same reason. As you were walking, a certain melody appeared.
8 scenes, 170 lines
1. Dancer
25 linesBackstage at the St. Jordan's Grand Theater, the bulb-framed mirror shines harshly. In the practice room, one can hear the soft pat of rosin powder.
Kala, the ribbon on your back has come loose again... Strange, it fit perfectly last week.
A little tighter, please... Thank you.
Prima, you're on next. It's your solo.
Light filters through the stage floor, casting a slender shadow behind Kala, like wings stretching in the moonlight.
Do you want to be the center of attention today?
Kala, did you call me? Do you need help?
No, I can manage myself...
By yourself? You don't have to bear this alone... I am with you. I can give you strength beyond compare.
The lights rotate, and Kala's shadow-wings flutter with them, as if in a woven cocoon.
It's easy... go enjoy the cheers of everyone, and just leave your pain to me.
Kala lifts her arm, tossing away the pill concealed in her bun, then deftly secures her hairpin.
The stage lights black out, and the shadow vanishes. From beyond the floor come the sounds of running and rolling wheels.
Set change! One minute!
She lowers her hand, fingertips brushing the mirror as if smoothing a fragile butterfly specimen.
Prima to stage! Ten seconds!
Kala turns around gracefully, lifting her skirt with one hand and striking a pose, waiting for the lift to carry her into the spotlight.
Let's go, light up the stage!
2. Guest
33 linesOne month ago, outside the Grand Theater of the Holy City.
The night glowed pink and violet under the lights, and two tickets snapped playfully right under Mira's nose.
*Eek! Ch, Charlotte!
Look at you... no sense of defense at all?
Miss Charlotte! I was admiring the theater's light show!
Since you call me your mentor, you should learn to stay alert like a proper detective.
I thought you finally decided to take a day off and take me to see a ballet. So we're still on a case, huh?
Why not both? We can enjoy the show and solve the case. The best part, our employer will reimburse the tickets.
Oh, didn't think you could be so thrifty... is the clue really inside the theater?
Today marks the premiere of Butterfly at the Grand Theater. All the social elites are here, hoping this grand occasion will add to their prestige.
And our suspect just happens to be one of those elites.
Have you already found the target?
Yes. Our target is a representative from a pharmaceutical company.
A pharmaceutical rep, huh? Sounds like someone who might have plenty of ties to [Blissbite]...
People have always tried every possible way to ease the pain caused by Echo Crystal Corrosion.
Because hospital treatments are so expensive, the black market is full of illegal drugs claiming to cure Crystal Syndrome.
If it's a pharmaceutical company, shouldn't they be working with you to stop [Blissbite] from spreading?
*Hmph... the company's profits and the employees' motives don't always align. And there are always rats getting rich in the shadows.
Darn it, treating people's lives like a game for their own gain...
We can't let them get away with it!
*Shh... mind your expressions. Tonight's a ball, not a trial.
But mentor, why don't you just arrest the suspect directly?
It wouldn't be good to cause a scene at the ball, would it?
I never said I'd make a move here.
So you really just wanted two free tickets?
*Oh, what a headache... am I here to investigate, or to answer your endless questions?
*Oh? In what way?
Both of you have important duties, yet you still make time to watch a ballet. Why is that?
*Oh... Mira, you've grown sharper lately.
*Huh? You actually praised me! Why?
Exactly, and that's the question... Why?
3. Butterfly
15 linesThe curtain rises. The stage transforms into a surreal garden. Behind the gauze, a giant calyx slowly opens and closes. Kala, in her colorful costume, is its blooming heart.
Applause roars across the theater, and the audience murmurs in awe at Kala's beauty.
I can almost taste the pollen in the air...
Kala moves on the tips of her toes, each step seemingly guided by invisible threads. She weaves in and out of the waves of dancers, like a newly born butterfly.
Is it my illusion? She dances so beautifully... that I could swear I see her wings.
I see them too.
Really? When she turned, did you feel the flowers on stage were 'breathing'?
The lights bloom like petals around Kala's ankles. She extends in a long, sweeping motion, lifting her gaze toward the audience, as if she can see their souls.
Weird... why is my vision turning red?
The theater is bathed in red light from nowhere. Mira shivers, recalling the Calamity she saw as a child, the Ember Haze storm that once destroyed everything.
As Kala's steps recoil and overlap, the narrator's voice tells a slow, haunting tale, of a witch and her captivity.
Scarlet veils descend from above like flames in a witch's hands. Kala turns sharply, and with a leap of resolve, she seems to dive into the fire like a moth to the flame.
My gosh... her shadow follows just like another butterfly chasing her.
The music tightens abruptly. As the piece ends, Kala collapses to her knees, her breathing heavy, as if saying farewell to a dream's flower.
The curtain slowly closes. After a brief silence of enchantment, a wave of applause surges through the crowd.
4. Garden
12 linesIn the lounge hall, the crystal chandeliers hang down like upside‑down waterfalls. Mira leans against the railing, her eyes still shining.
As expected of the prima... she isn't dancing but telling a story.
Miss, would you like a dessert?
Thank you!, If everyone could use their Case abilities to create beauty instead of fighting one another, how wonderful the world would be.
Mentor, should we... *Huh? Where did she go?
You mean the lady with the cap? She just went toward the backstage walkway.
*Oh... not again. Charlotte? Charlotte?, The signal's blocked?
During performances, the signal's always blocked to prevent interference.
*Hmm... the front entrance is crowded with Kala's fans. I'll check the back door for my mentor instead.
She hurries a few steps, then turns back and shoves her popcorn into the usher's hands.
Watch this for me. Don't let anyone steal it.
*Huh? Uh... yes, ma'am.
5. Bait
14 linesIn the back alley north of the theater, damp air rises from the drains, and the slick stone slabs glisten faintly.
You've paid good money to come to the theater, yet you're skipping the rest of the show... what are you doing out here, madam?
Miss, I'm just waiting for a friend.
A friend? The one you're delivering that box of medical supplies to?
You... I don't know what you're talking about!
Then let me say it another way.
Charlotte raises her hand, a thin wire snapping from her sleeve and coiling around the woman's wrist. The woman jerks back, nearly sending the box crashing to the ground.
Careful with your medicine. Don't drop it.
Stop messing around, or I'll call the patrol!
Then go ahead, or should I call them for you?
Who on earth are you!
My name is Charlotte, a detective.
A detective, *huh...
*Hmph. Well, let's see if you can catch me.
6. Shabby Alley
42 linesThe fight in the back alley ends as soon as it begins. Charlotte grabs the merchant's wrist, ready to cuff him.
Mind your own business!
You have no idea who you're messing with...
I'd like to know which great figure I've offended.
*Hmph, go ahead and turn me over to the patrol... Someone will bail me out anyway.
Or is the great detective Charlotte planning to take the law into her own hands with me?
*Oh my, I wouldn't do that, or rather... I don't need to.
Charlotte opens the suitcase. As expected, she finds a bottle of red powder.
It seems this is [Blissbite]...
Not bad. This bottle is top-tier [Blissbite]. Miss Detective, if you like it, you can keep it.
Is it a sample?
No, this is a plaything that the dignitaries enjoy. When you're out and about, you always need to have something for socializing.
So there's no point in you arresting me. The nobles have long tacitly approved Blissbite's circulation. It's addictive, but what does it compare to the pain caused by the Calamity?
Save these lines for the judge. Let me see what else you've brought...
Your business card, *huh? Westwind Foreign Trade Manager, Michelle. *Tsk, it's indeed foreign-trade business.
We are a legitimate company, operating legally.
What's this? White Rose Clinic? Such a refined business card. It seems the clinic's business is not small.
That's just a partner's card...
Caught off guard, *huh! You, a foreign trader, also handle supplies for clinics?
At that moment, two figures appear at one end of the dark alley.
Help! Robbery!
*Darn, you're really willing to go all out... Would you rather land in prison than face me?
Charlotte takes the evidence and cuffs the merchant to a streetlamp by the roadside.
I don't have time to waste on you... Sooner or later, I'll bring all of you to justice.
The detective vanishes into the thin street fog, leaving behind a crumpled 'White Rose' business card.
On the outskirts of St. Jordan, the dim slums fracture the moonlight. At the end of the alley lies the address of the mysterious clinic.
You'd never guess there's a clinic hidden here...
*Ahem. Excuse me, is the clinic still open?
A small hatch opens above the iron door, and a soft voice floats out.
Who's there?
My friend has Crystal Syndrome, she can't sleep from the pain. I heard there are... relief treatments here.
Who referred you?
It's... a friend from Westwind Foreign Trade Company.
...Understood.
We're a legitimate clinic. If your friend needs treatment, have her come herself.
I just need some medicine...
If you need medication, please provide a prescription.
Prescription? I don't think the prescription will have what I need.
We're a legitimate clinic. We don't dispense medication without a prescription.
We're closed for the day. Please leave.
The hatch shuts. Charlotte has no choice but to turn away. As she walks off, she glances back at the white rose painted on the door.
That emblem made by Goldflower? That's indeed authentic.
7. Opponent
16 linesOutside the narrow alley, by a small stall radiating heat, a familiar shadow is looking down at Charlotte from above.
...Christie.
The figure no longer hides, leaping down silently from the ledge.
Hope you're well, Great Detective.
It seems you're also chasing the clues to Blissbite...
Well, I'm not like you, solving cases from a rocking chair. The night in St. Jordan is gentler than Bifrost.
I've been tracing a smuggling route all the way from Bifrost. Everything's gone smoothly, so smoothly that it feels like someone let me see it coming.
You, a thief, can actually catch criminals?
It's all the same to me, taking what shouldn't be there.
*Hmph, sooner or later I'll capture you and bring you to justice.
What now? You're short of a prescription, and I'm short of an insider. How about we cooperate first, then you can arrest me later?
What can you offer?
I've been staking out this place for days. I've got the clinic's guard shifts and delivery schedules down pat... Also, here's the prescription you needed.
Deal. But after we solve the case, you can't take away the evidence I need.
It's settled then, you're not as rigid as you claim to be, Charlotte.
I'm not just about results... but this case is bigger than catching a petty thief.
8. Pawn's End
13 linesCharlotte glances at her watch, ready to leave the narrow alley, but spots a familiar figure standing at the entrance.
Looking around like that... are you lost?
Charlotte! I've been looking everywhere for you!
What are you doing in the outskirts? Found a new clue?
Well... I suppose so.
Tell me.
I couldn't get through to you. There were fans waiting for Miss Kala's autograph at the main gate, so I went to check the backstage exit instead...
Someone in a cloak slipped out quietly, but I recognized her right away, it was Miss Kala.
She got into an unmarked car, it kept circling around, and I followed all the way.
Sounds like a paparazzi move to me.
Wait... Kala came to the slums?
I kept following her. She walked quickly, holding an umbrella... then vanished at the end of this alley.
The three of them turn their gaze toward the clinic. In the rainy night, the white rose sign trembles faintly, like it's whispering secrets no one is meant to hear.