Into the World of Twisted Wonderland Pt 2

👑 The Beautiful Tyrant: Chapter 24 👑

Later in the day, in Pomefiore's ballroom, Vil clapped his hands, getting everyone's attention as they do their last minute preparations. "Come join me once you're done with your calisthenics," he says as everyone finishes up, joining him in the center of the room. "The song we'll be presenting at the Song & Dance Championship is now ready for us."

"Oh, so it's an original song?" Jamil asks in curiosity. "Pretty impressive for a school musical presentation."

"Composing original tracks for the SDC has been the norm for several years now," Vil states. "Let me be clear about this undertaking. The SDC is not a beauty contest or fashion show. Scores are based on singing ability, dancing skill, and the degree to which a given song befits its performers."

"That criteria's...kind of vague," Deuce says in thought.

"Look at it this way: you know how some people look odd or uncomfortable in certain clothing? It would negatively impact a group's score to select a song poorly suited to its members' vocal capabilities or general image," he explains. "Imagine elementary schoolers performing gritty blues or heavy metal. No matter how good at singing they might be, the choice of song would inevitably clash with their aesthetics and vocal styllings. Selecting the perfect song for our group is critical to clicking with our audience."

"Ah, yes," Jamil says in understanding. "The audience votes on the finalists, don't they?"

"Correct," Vil answers. "Winners and loser at the SDC are decided by popular vote. Each audience member, staff member, and entrant gets to cast one vote for their winning team."

"They let entrants weigh in too?" Kalim asked, puzzled by the description. "Wouldn't everyone just pick themselves, then? Everybody thinks they're number one! At least I figured they would..." he trails off. Angel looks at Kalim in slight surprise. I never thought Kalin would think that but he's technically right...

"Amateurs may think that way. You would be surprised, though," Vil says. "Sometimes, the more capable you become, the harder it gets to endorse yourself. Sometimes, when you see a performance, all it takes is an instant to think, 'That's an act I could never follow.' Once you have that knowledge, lying to yourself about your worthiness becomes a sad thing indeed." Angel noticed that Vil's expression seemed a little down, despite him hiding it well from the others. He must experienced it himself... She thinks, only to think about herself. I...can't say that I don't know what he's talking about though. I always feel worthless... Even just thinking about times she thought she had worth only reminded her on how useless, powerless, she was to be in this world. After all, who would even think that a magicless person like her would have much worth in the world?

"I think I know what you mean, at least a bit," Jamil says in thought.

"Lying to yourself..." Epel repeats, letting the words sink in.

"That's why I strive my hardest to ensure that I can vote for myself with a clean conscious," Vil says. "Which brings us to the original song I had commissioned for us."

"Seeing you in side profile, gaze fixed upon the heavens above..." Rook says in admiration. "So radiant, Vil! So inspiring! Might we hear the song now?"

"Of course," he says as he looks to Angel. "Well, Manager? Would you mind pressing play on the audio player?"

The title confused her. "I'm a manager now?" She asks him in confusion.

"Who else would I be addressing?" He asks with a sigh. "The headmage asked you to provide us with support, did he not? If you really want that prize money, you're working for us now. Don't you know this?"

"Ah..." Angel thinks for a moment. "I never knew a manager did that...but okay then," she says as she heads to the player, pressing the play button. Suddenly, the sound of music fills the room, everyone listening closely as the music plays. Based on the music, compared to the song everyone was auditioning to, the song sounded more vibrant and youthful, almost as if saying it was the perfect song for youth to enjoy, as if it was made for young people. Everyone closed they eyes, letting the song sink in until it finished, only to be surprised at the composition of the song.

"Whoa, this is the real deal!" Ace exclaims.

"I like the rhythm! This is nice," Kalim happily says.

"Would this fall under the electronic dance music genre?" Jamil asks. "If we're dancing to this, would we want to go with urban hip-hop? No, maybe hip-hop jazz?" He thinks.

"I'm thinking urban hip-hop as a base, with touches of jazz, breakdancing, and voguing," Vil says. "We'll have three main vocalists. The rest of us will primarily focus on backup chorus and dancing."

"Aw, we're not all singing together?" Kalim asks.

"Without a solid grounding in choral music, it would just sound like a cacophony. We're not going to get all seven of us on the same singing level in a month. Thus, it makes the most sense to devise idiosyncratic focal points based on our respective proficiencies."

"I-I don't know what half of these words mean..." Deuce says, trying to process the conversation.

"Dude. Me neither," Grim agrees. He looks to Angel, thinking about the words. "Angel. You know what they're talking about?"

She thinks for a moment. "Basically, if I get this right, everyone has different singing levels, and if everyone sung together, then it wouldn't be harmonious, and the whole performance would fall flat..." She explains. "If having the strongest voices stand out, then the other voices can accompany them, making it seem more synchronized than chaotic."

"You got that from the conversation?" Deuce asks in shock.

"My, my," Vil says as he listened to the explanation. "Seems like our manager is more informed than I thought. Tell me, you sung before?"

The question shocks her. "O-only for music class..."

"Huh?" Grim says. "But, I thought you did for Azul-" She quickly covers his mouth, making his surprised. "Mmph!"

"Azul and the other at least told me how some theories work, so that's it," she says as Vil watches her. He sighs.

"Hmph. I guess that's a start," he says as she sighs in relief. If he asked her to sing in front of everyone, that would have been a disaster, not the fact that aside from Ace, Deuce, and Grim were here, but the fact that Vil, the professional vocalist of the world, was here to listen as well, not that she had the confidence to upstage him, but just because it was him. At least he believed the reasoning. I do not want to put myself out there.