Chapter 177: Overturning All Living Beings
After Richard-Eva's admonition last time, Suo Luo-Lie Yan had gradually extinguished that delusional thought.
However, it wasn't until he saw Jia Na at the last small gathering of the Bai Wu Xie Club.
Even knowing it was impossible, the Flame that had long been dormant in Suo Luo-Lie Yan's heart burned uncontrollably once more.
"Bang!" As everyone entered, the theater doors closed. Just as the entire theater was plunged into darkness, a beam of light suddenly shone on the red curtain of the stage, landing on a short-haired woman in a dark dress.
"Distinguished guests and friends, happy new year! Thank you for visiting the Nightingale Opera Troupe on the first day of the new year. I am Julie-Ann, the announcer for this performance. Next, 'song of the ocean,' created and directed by David-Berg, will officially meet you. To ensure your viewing experience for the premiere, the theater lights had to be dimmed, causing you some inconvenience. For this, I apologize—"
Saying this, Julie-Ann, dressed in a dress, bowed slightly to show her apology.
"However, I guarantee that the following performance will surely provide you with a satisfactory answer..."
Bang! With a soft sound, the spotlight on the stage suddenly dimmed. And Julie-Ann, having finished announcing, quietly walked off the stage, leaving behind a profound silence.
"Rumble—"
Just as everyone was waiting for the curtain to rise, suddenly, an extremely realistic sound of thunder echoed throughout the entire theater.
"Is that a sound effect?"
Crash—
Before Vivian could locate the sound system, the sound of waves, as if the sea was enraged, once again shifted Vivian's attention to the curtain slowly opening on the stage.
"Crackling—"
Realistic sound effects and lights simulating lightning, just the opening alone, successfully drew all the audience members, whether they had seen 'song of the ocean' before or not, into the scene.
"The sea is out of control—"
Crash—Though the sound was heard, the person was not seen.
Accompanied by this ethereal voice, which sounded both like a sigh and urgent, under the changing lights, at this moment, it truly felt as if seawater was surging on the stage, making one feel suffocated.
"This is—Illusion? No—this is just a simulation of waves using optical principles." Looking at the stage setting that was hard to distinguish between real and fake, Vivian, who had not originally held much expectation for the plot, became interested.
"Could this be the innovation the Nightingale Opera Troupe mentioned? Innovation in visual effects can indeed serve as the icing on the cake for enhancing the plot. Although somewhat limited, it shows the Nightingale Opera Troupe's sincerity."
"Bang!" As the lights changed again, the sea scene on the stage suddenly disappeared.
In its place, a group of strong fishermen appeared in the center of the stage, carrying a huge iron cage covered with black cloth.
"? The beginning of the plot seems to have changed?"
Looking at the luxurious long hall setting on the stage, a hint of doubt flashed in Vivian's eyes.
The first act of the original 'song of the ocean' should have been the plot where the heroine Olivia, who had lost all her magic, was surrounded and captured by fishermen among the stranded reefs—
"Is this the treasure you wish to present?"
As the lights on the stage grew brighter, in the center of the palace hall, a thin man with a goatee and wearing a top hat looked disdainfully at the fishermen nearby, who were covered in dirt and smelled foul.
"Yes, my lord, this is the treasure our fishing village presents to the prince this year—"
"Playing mystery!"
Impatiently interrupting the other party, the man with the goatee turned his head and respectfully said to the figure sitting on the golden high-backed chair:
"Your Highness, these people are just fishermen from a nearby village. I'm afraid what they offer are just some dirty things, not fit to be presented—"
"No matter, Count Ruo Erdan, I am also curious about what they will present."
"Understood."
Hearing the other party say so, Count Ruo Erdan had no choice but to turn around, wave his hand at the guards on either side, and signal them to uncover the curtain on the iron cage.
"You lowly beings dare to defile Prince Watson's eyes, I will certainly not spare you—"
Clang! As a guard walked to the cage and lifted the black cloth, in that instant, the hand of the guard lifting the black cloth seemed to freeze in mid-air, and even the saber in his hand fell directly to the ground.
"What are you doing? Hurry up and uncover it!"
Seeing the guard's strange movement, Count Ruo Erdan, who was eager to show off in front of Watson, couldn't help but let his voice turn cold.
"My—my lord, this—this is, a mermaid—"
"What!?"
Hearing this, Count Ruo Erdan lunged directly to the side of the cage and quickly lifted the black cloth off the cage.
"Hiss—"
Amidst gasps of breath, a strange creature as magnificent as a treasure suddenly appeared within the cage.—
Dishevelled yet lustrous black long hair, skin as delicate and flawless as porcelain, plus a perfect face that even deities would envy.
Against the backdrop of the huge fish tail whose scales were like blue glazed glass, a contradictory aura mixed with sadness, despair, charm, and purity made everyone present, including the audience who had already prepared themselves, feel as if they had been struck by a charm Witchcraft, unable to tear their eyes away—
"Hiss—" The sound of gasping was not only on the stage, but even the audience below the stage were taking deep breaths one after another. The light and sound effects of "seawater thunder" at the beginning might give the audience a sense of being "startled" and surprised. However, Olivia's appearance, which could be called "soul-snatching," was enough to give everyone a visually stunning impact and beauty. "Is this really Jia Na?"
This sentence was not only what Vivian thought, but also the unified thought of everyone present who was familiar with Jia Na.
Different from the image of the "Pure White Witch" Jia Na usually displayed in the academy, perhaps due to makeup, Olivia, played by Jia Na, was like a true "sea monster."
Charming to all beings, pitiful and lovely—every smile was the most fatal temptation and trap.
"Your Highness—this is actually a mermaid!"
On the stage, amidst Count Ruo Erdan's almost trembling exclamation, Watson, the prince of the Rose Kingdom played by Xiuka-Boge, also suddenly stood up from the golden high-backed chair.
"Olivia? Are you———Olivia!?"