Chapter 180: The End of The Garden of Sinners's Screening! (Part 1)
The moment the screen lit up with new footage—The Garden of Sinners Episode 5: Paradox Spiral—the crowd collectively held its breath.
A whirlwind of stunning visuals began to play, spliced together with fragments of character dialogue, creating a chaotic but tantalizing preview.
First appeared: Ryougi Shiki and a red-haired boy.
"I just can't stand your existence!"
"I've killed people!"
"You murdered your own parents!?"
The scene quickly shifted to Aozaki Touko speaking with Kokutou Mikiya.
"Kokutou, have you heard of the new Ogawa Apartments in the city?"
"It's a weird building—two crescent-shaped ten-story towers joined together."
Then, the footage flashed back to Shiki and the red-haired boy again.
"Why not go ask your dead parents yourself?"
"Yeah, I really did kill them! It's wrong for them to still be alive!"
"Then go confirm it."
Suddenly, Souren Araya—the man in black who had caused such an uproar earlier—appeared on screen.
"Look into that darkness. Then remember your name."
"What do you want with Shiki?"
"The Tai Chi… is…"
"To absorb the Tai Chi within myself… to realize it…"
"And now—"
"Toukooooooo!!!!"
A scream from an unfamiliar voice cut through the chaos, followed by a barrage of incomprehensible, rapid-fire scenes—too fast to process.
And then, silence.
On the black screen, a single line of text slowly faded in:
The Garden of Sinners Episode 5: Paradox Spiral—Coming next month.
…
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?"
In an instant, every tavern across the southern territory exploded with chaos.
What had moments ago been quiet, contented audiences now became a screaming, frenzied mob.
"This is insane! Director Durin, you monster!"
"Seriously, what kind of inhuman soul does this to people!? I'm going to lose my damn mind!"
"I just watched KonoSuba this morning and got hit with a cliffhanger—then came The Garden of Sinners and you end it like this!? Are you trying to kill us!?"
"You think that's bad?! I woke up early to catch Fate/Zero, sprinted back to the tavern for KonoSuba, and now I watched The Garden of Sinners! I've been emotionally gutted THREE TIMES IN A ROW. I can't function anymore! GIVE ME A CONTINUATION—ANY CONTINUATION!"
"I second that! This is psychological warfare!"
"A whole month!? A WHOLE FREAKING MONTH!? Who can survive that?!"
"No Fate/Zero, no KonoSuba, no The Garden of Sinners—I'm going to die!"
"Damn it, this is too much…"
…
Amid the growing cries of despair, Emperor Hubbard watched the screen with a wry smile, his arms folded.
"To think… something so powerful could be born from a mere fictional film," he murmured. "In the hearts of the people, these characters… they might be even more influential than I am."
Standing beside him, Wilhelm stole a glance around.
The Beastkin Oracle and Juno had already left. They wouldn't return until later that afternoon, when Steins;Gate was scheduled to premiere.
Wilhelm nodded and said:
"Yes. Despite being fictitious, their influence and emotional pull surpass any public speech… more than any illustrated fable. Perhaps this is what Lord Durin meant by 'the future.'"
The Emperor gave a thoughtful hum.
"Indeed. And it's clear that this isn't just Edward Durin's ambition. That man… he envisions a far greater future for this world than we could've imagined."
Emperor Hubbard's expression remained calm and composed, even as he spoke with an unshakable smile:
"This is fine… No, this is better. The world needs change. It needs growth. Only through change can new possibilities emerge. The human empire has developed for over a thousand years, and we've long since reached a bottleneck. Now is the time to break those shackles."
Wilhelm tilted his head slightly, puzzled. "You mean…?"
Emperor Hubbard chuckled softly. "Heh. Wilhelm, since when did you start reading into people's motives like a noble politician? Don't tell me you've picked up their bad habits."
"Ah… My apologies."
The general offered a deeply respectful bow. But the Emperor simply waved it off, his smile unwavering.
"Enough of that. There's still time before the next film begins. Why don't we drop by that tavern Baron Durin owns? I'm rather hungry myself. I assume they've prepared food?"
"F-Food?!"
At the side, Princess Amy—who'd spent the entire morning watching films—perked up instantly, her eyes sparkling with life. Clearly, she was starving.
Wilhelm, however, stiffened. He knew all too well what kind of… unusual clientele frequented Edward's tavern. Ordinarily, he would never recommend letting the Emperor step foot in a place like that.
But faced with His Majesty's strong curiosity—and the pitiful sight of the princess about to faint from hunger—he could only sigh in defeat.
"…Very well. I'll escort you to Lord Durin's tavern."
"Excellent. Then let's be off."
With that, the royal entourage strode out of the television tavern, boldly and brazenly making their way toward Durin's establishment.
…
Imperial Mage Academy.
While the students in the main broadcast hall were howling in despair just like the viewers in the southern taverns, chaos unfolding with every passing second, atop the Alchemy Tower, the Arch Mages had gathered in serious discussion.
They too had just finished watching The Garden of Sinners Episode 4: The Hollow Shrine, and had seen the preview for Episode 5: Paradox Spiral.
"Damn that Edward brat! Back-to-back cliffhangers—what is he trying to do, give me a heart attack!?" the Arch Mage Warton grumbled with unfiltered rage.
Though the others shared his frustrations, they composed themselves and began analyzing the content with scholarly rigor.
"Let's focus on the important part. What sort of person is this Souren Araya supposed to be?" asked Administrator Hohenheim, adjusting his spectacles.
Warton immediately jumped in. "What kind of person? Isn't that just young Streige from the Mental and Spiritual Studies Branch? He was my assistant a couple years ago!"
Hearing that, the Arch Mage Rosa sighed, rubbing her temples.
"Stop confusing the characters with the actors. Please don't start treating me like I'm Aozaki Touko next."
"I mean… Your personalities are kind of similar. I might've accidentally called you Touko when we met last week," said Brady, the Arch Mage of Summoning, not even bothering to hide his sheepish grin.
Rosa's expression froze.
For a brief moment, she seriously began to question whether joining the film project had been the right choice after all.
<+>
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[1] https://www.patreon.com/collection/162522?view=condensed
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