Chapter 1: Set Expectations
Iruru: I strived to be a shining star.
Iruru: The world of acting where your body is burning with fervor. The heat from being in reach of the title of Daistar... I thought that I could acheive the title.
Iruru: And that's why I chose to become an actor...
Iruru: Whew....
Iruru: It's all right... It's all right...
Iruru: I can do this...
Hatsumi: Iruru, we're about to start. Get prepared.
Iruru: Ah... RIght.
Iruru: Eden's new play, "Salome".
Iruru: A play that focuses on the maddening love between Princess Salome and the prophet Jokanaan. A truly wonderful play.
Iruru: The lead role will be played by Yozoru Iruru. Usually she plays supporting roles, but this time she is playing a lead role, leading to a great dealk of attention to be directed towards her.
Iruru: For the other lead role, Jokanaan would be played by Toneri Nikako, the newcomer who has the natural talent for blending in with her acting.
Iruru: For this play to be played mainly by a supporter and a newcomer, one may say this could be a challenging performance.
Iruru: And so, the the day of the performance draws near.
Iruru: "How brilliant is the moon tonight, much like the shine of a polidhed silver sword."
Iruru: "How beautiful... Such light that shows no sign of taint."
Iruru: "This is too much. I do not wish to stay there any longer."
Iruru: "Why does King Herod lecher me so? Like a snake that scrawls all over my body... How detestable..."
Iruru: "Ahh... How viewing the moon soothes the heart. How I wish that the faint light is able to wash away these awful thoughts."
Iruru: (Princess Salome was a young girl who loved to dance. Her daintiness and beauty would often attract the attention of the guards of the castle.)
Shigure: "..."
Troupe Member: "Look, Princess Salome is dancing for us again tonight. How beautiful."
Shigure: "However, she looks quite melancholic tonight. Perhaps this is because she is under the moonlight."
Troupe Member: "Poor girl. After the previous crown had died, Queen Herodia decides to remarry and to the now King Herod no less."
Troupe Member: "For her uncle to kill her father and become her father in law. It must be quite heartbreaking."
Shigure: "Shhh. Don't say something like that out loud."
Iruru: (A corrupt royal family, a corrupt mother, and a stepfather who lusts for her. All Salome wants is to escape and forget everything around her.)
Iruru: (To escape the castle and immerse herself in her favourite dance. It was the only form of distration for her.)
Iruru: (And it was at that time she saw him...)
Nikako: "Ahhh, how could this be. You shall not be forgiven. You shall not be forgiven...!"
Iruru: "What in the world is that voice...? Who's there?"
Nikako: "Where is that man who is full of lust, whose cup is brimming with sin? Where is the foolish woman who left her husband and married his brother?"
Iruru: "What is this..."
Shigure: You must not listen, PRincess. Do not listen to that man's sayings."
Iruru: "Guard, who is that man mad at? IS he talking about my stepfather and mother...?
Nikako: "What a putrid royal family. Repent! You must pay for your sins!"
Hatsumi: ...
Tetra: Her acting is getting better and better... At breakneck pace. She's really taken everything in quickly.
Tetra: SHe's really able to express her purity. Truly a performance that only she can put on.
Hatsumi: Yeah, it seems that my instincts were correct after all. She's really living up to expectations.
HAtsumi: Jokanaan, that is.