The moment Risa and Zeno stepped onto the stage, the excitement increased.
Maybe it was the lighting. Maybe it was how quiet Zeno always was. Or maybe it was just Risa's puffy, clearly-cried-in eyes—but whatever it was, every contestant leaned forward in their seat.
The LED screen behind them lit up with the word.
EXISTENTIAL CRISIS.
That was easily the hardest prompt in the batch.
Bacon PD leaned forward, clasping his hands together as the stage crew quickly rearranged the props. A simple background with a bed, a window frame with soft blue lighting, and a bookshelf filled with indistinct shapes. It was a quiet, almost melancholic space.
"This one's difficult," Bacon said under his breath, not even bothering to hide his concern. "It's easy to go too shallow or too abstract with existential crisis. Half the time it just ends up sounding like a mopey online post."
