Accumulating Starlight, with You Once More — A3! Another Spring
When I came to, I was standing at an unfamiliar train station. An impossibly vivid stream of memories flooded my mind. Brilliant stages. The smiles of my friends. And the cruel vision of a future where the person most precious to me loses his life to illness.
This is the world just before the theater troupe MANKAI Company takes its very first step. Knowing what the future holds, I made a single, desperate resolution above all else: This time, I absolutely won't lose him.
My name is Sakuya Saku
Accumulating Starlight, with You Once More — A3! Another Spring - A Miracle in the Wings — An Entrusted Future
Lighting booth.
Cramped.
Equipment crowds in. Old iron smell. Dusty.
Sakuya looked down at the stage through the booth's small window. Cue sheet in hand. The paper damp with sweat.
His heart pounded.
Throbbing. Deep in his ears.
(I'm fine.)
He told himself.
He gripped the candy in his pocket. Strawberry flavor. The one Itaru gave him. In the future.
" No matter what. Absolutely."
The audience dims.
The crowd's murmur quiets.
The curtain rises.
On stage.
Itaru stood there.
White shirt. Gaunt cheeks. The shadows under his eyes impossible to hide. The lights exposed his pallor.
And yet—his back was straight.
An actor's face.
Sakuya dropped his gaze to the cue sheet.
(First light. Cue 1.)
His finger pressed the switch.
A spotlight hit Itaru.
Warm. Amber.
Itaru's mouth opened.
First line.
" I call this karma."
His voice filled the theater.
A little hoarse. But solid. A core.
Sakuya caught his breath.
—Itaru-san's voice.
—He's on stage.
—He's still fighting.
Heat bloomed deep in his chest.
* * *
The performance moved on.
Itaru's monologue. Past sins. Inescapable karma.
One man. On stage. Dismantling himself.
Sakuya traced the cue sheet.
Changed the lights. Adjusted the sound.
Memories from the future guided his fingers.
(In this scene, drop the light just a little.)
(Here, bring in the rain sound.)
Everything. Exactly as the stage he saw in the future.
He could feel the audience holding their breath.
Pulled into the performance.
—Then.
Movement in the front row. A shadow.
Arata.
Black turtleneck. Elbow on the armrest. Fingertips tapping a rhythm.
Emotionless eyes fixed only on Itaru. On stage.
The next moment.
" Wait."
A low voice stabbed through the theater.
Itaru froze.
Arata stood.
Slowly.
Every gaze gathered on him.
" That line. It's wrong."
An ad-lib.
Cold shot down Sakuya's spine.
—Stop.
—Please stop.
Arata's voice aimed only at Itaru. On stage.
" Remember. You couldn't protect your brother."
The blood drained from Itaru's face.
" You killed him."
On stage, Itaru locked up.
His fingertips began to tremble.
" Spit out that sin. For the audience. That is your karma."
Arata's lips twisted.
Itaru's mouth opened.
But no voice came.
Just his lips quivering.
(No.)
Sakuya clenched his teeth.
Itaru's eyes went hollow.
That night—the eyes he saw in the warehouse theater. Resigned. Given up.
Arata moved to finish it.
" Enough to die—"
Then.
Sakuya's hand moved.
—Cue 7.
Kill the lights.
All light vanished.
The stage swallowed by darkness.
The audience stirred.
An unplanned blackout.
—But.
—The same timing. The blackout where Itaru got back on his feet. In the future memories.
In the dark. Time for Itaru alone to catch his breath.
Five seconds.
Ten.
Sakuya prayed.
(Itaru-san.)
(Stand up.)
(It's not over yet.)
Then.
From the darkness. A voice.
" ...I."
Trembling.
But—it didn't stop.
" I couldn't protect my brother. But I don't... think that's a sin."
An ad-lib.
Words not in the script. Itaru's own.
Arata's eyes widened.
" What I think is a sin—is that I'm still alive."
Sakuya gripped the cue sheet.
(Now.)
His finger hit the switch.
—Cue 10.
Soft. Blue light.
A spotlight. Only the center of the stage.
Itaru stood there.
Wrapped in light.
Head raised.
Tears welled in his eyes.
But—his eyes weren't dead.
" Even so—I."
His voice rang through the entire theater.
" As long as I'm alive. I'll stand on stage."
Arata's face twisted.
" That is my karma."
In the blue light.
Itaru shone.
At the end of exhaustion. Everything scraped away. A transparent radiance.
Sobs leaked from the audience.
One person.
Then another.
Only Arata didn't move.
Emotionless black eyes. Looking up at Itaru.
Sakuya saw his profile.
Arata's fingers trembled.
Too much to keep the rhythm.
(He surpassed your direction.)
Sakuya thought.
(Itaru-san escaped your hands.)
* * *
The applause wouldn't stop.
Curtain call.
Three times.
Four.
Itaru bowed again and again.
His legs shook.
Standing was all he could manage.
And yet—he never dropped his smile.
An actor's face.
The curtain closed completely.
That instant.
Itaru's knees buckled.
He collapsed into the wings.
" Itaru-san!!"
Sakuya burst from the booth.
Ran down the stairs.
Sprinted through the hallway.
Tumbled into the wings.
Rushed to Itaru. Fallen on the floor.
" Itaru-san!!"
He held Itaru's shoulders.
Cold.
Ice cold.
But—he was breathing.
Shallow. Rapid breaths.
" ...Sakuya-kun."
Itaru's eyes opened. Thin slits.
Unfocused.
Still. He looked at Sakuya.
" You... the lights."
" Yes... I did..."
Tears spilled.
Couldn't stop them.
" I did it. In the future. You taught me. Stage lighting. Sound. Everything."
Itaru's eyes widened. Just a little.
" Future...?"
" I... have memories of the future. There... you saved me. Itaru-san."
His voice shook.
" When I was crying alone. You gave me candy. You said—'You're okay.'"
He pulled the candy from his pocket.
Strawberry flavor.
" Now it's my turn. To save you."
With trembling hands. He offered the candy.
Itaru stared at it.
Then—slowly. Reached out.
Took the candy.
His fingers touched Sakuya's hand.
" ...Thank you."
A single tear traced down Itaru's face.
" I... shouldered everything. Alone."
" I know."
" Couldn't... rely on anyone."
" I know."
" Had no choice but to... keep going. Until I broke..."
" So—you're not alone anymore."
Sakuya gripped Itaru's hand.
" I'm here. I won't leave you alone. No matter what. Absolutely."
Itaru said nothing.
Just—rested his head on Sakuya's shoulder.
" ...Sorry."
A hoarse voice.
" ...Thank you."
Itaru cried quietly.
Like a child.
Killing his voice.
Shoulders trembling.
Sakuya supported Itaru's back.
So thin.
Bones jutting out.
(Was he always this thin?)
His chest tightened.
But—.
(He's alive.)
(Not dead yet.)
(I saved him.)
Sakuya bit his lip.
Tears kept coming. One after another.
* * *
The shadows.
Deep in the wings. Where no one should be.
Arata stood. Leaning against the wall.
Arms crossed. Only his fingertips moved. Unconsciously scratching the air.
His black eyes wavered.
Watching Sakuya and Itaru.
A high schooler controlled the lights.
Surpassed my direction.
—Impossible.
The impossible happened.
That brat saved Itaru.
Arata's fingers stopped.
Clenched.
Nails bit into his palm.
" ...Sakuya. Sakuma."
A low voice.
A murmur no one could hear.
" Next... it's your turn."
The corner of his lips twisted.
Was it anger?
Or—twisted delight?
A black shadow. Melting into the darkness of the wings. Vanished silently.
Neither Sakuya nor Itaru noticed.
Outside the warehouse theater. A harbor whistle sounded. Far away.
The scent of the tide rode the night wind.
The play ended.
But—the next act was already beginning to rise.
Novelia is an AI-powered platform to read original light novels and fan fiction, create your own in just a few taps, and chat with the characters. New, illustrated episodes arrive daily — free to start.