Citron | Thank you for taking care of me. |
Chikage | Are you sure this is what you wanted? |
Citron | I didn’t want to have a sorrowful goodbye with everyone. This is my last selfish wish. |
Chikage | .... |
Citron | I’m sorry for giving you an unlucky role. |
Chikage | It’s fine. This is the only thing I can do anyway. |
Citron | Thank you. |
Chikage | Take care, alright? |
Citron | You too, Chikage. Take care of Spring Troupe for me. |
Chikage | —Yeah. I will. |
| |
Guy | Do you know where Citronia is? |
Izumi | Eh? Citron-kun? Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen him. |
Sakuya | Actually, he hasn’t been around since the morning. His belongings are gone too.... |
Izumi | Eeh!? |
Itaru | This reminds me of a certain somebody. |
Masumi | ...Who? |
Tsuzuru | You. |
Itaru | ...I can’t get in touch with him. |
Izumi | Don’t tell me Citron-kun also left without a word—. |
Chikage | ...I’m home. |
Sakuya | Ah, Chikage-san! Have you seen Citron-san!? |
Chikage | Ah.... |
Itaru | Looks like you know something? |
Chikage | This. |
Izumi | That’s Citron-kun’s scroll... |
Masumi | “Citron’s Dream~4, Ninja Art: Vanishing Behind the Clouds”...? |
Chikage | The ninja art of vanishing behind the clouds. “I want you to let me flee to my country in secret, without anyone else knowing.” |
| This was his wish to me. He left on a flight for Zahra Kingdom this morning. |
Sakuya | No way—. |
Guy | I need to follow him right away—. |
| *Phone rings* |
| —Hello. |
| —Yes. Citronia seems to be headed over there. I’ll make arrangements with the airport right away—what? |
| What do you mean? That can’t be.... |
| ...I understand. Yes. |
| .... |
Izumi | Is something wrong? |
Tsuzuru | Did something happen to Citron-san? |
Guy | No. Apparently Citronia himself got in touch and said he would be returning to the country.... |
Chikage | Is that all? |
Guy | ...And when he did, he testified that I had imprisoned him overseas. |
Sakuya | Eh!? |
Tsuzuru | What’s going on...? |
Izumi | Why would Citron-kun tell such a lie...? |
Guy | ...I don’t know. |
| In any case, I can’t return to Zahra Kingdom. If I return, I’ll be captured as a wanted criminal. |
Izumi | Oh no.... |
Guy | He probably thought I was in the way. |
Izumi | There’s no way Citron-kun would think that! |
Tsuzuru | He must have had a reason. |
Chikage | But still, giving a false testimony is a pretty extreme measure. |
Itaru | It’s not like Citron. |
Izumi | You’re right.... |
Guy | Citronia has acquired all sorts of knowledge necessary for a king—he knows how to act and think under various situations. If necessary, he can make ruthless decisions. |
Izumi | .... |
| (Was the Citron-kun we knew only one side of him...?) |
Tsumugi | ...But why did he head back so early? There’s still time until the coronation ceremony. |
Chikage | He asked me on the night of the dinner cruise, but he didn’t give me a reason. |
Tasuku | We’d decided on a graduation performance for him, too.... |
Azuma | Spring Troupe’s fans will be sad. |
Masumi | ...I kind of understand. Citron’s feelings. |
Izumi | Eh? |
Masumi | It’s less sad if you leave quietly on your own. |
Izumi | Masumi-kun.... |
| (So that’s why he tried to leave on his own when his parents got divorced... I wonder if Citron-kun felt the same.) |
Sakuya | But saying goodbye like this is too sad! And we still haven’t made the wish in his last scroll come true.... |
Izumi | Last scroll? |
Sakuya | “Citron’s Dream~5, Happily Ever After.” |
| “I want to put on the greatest show with everyone in Spring Troupe one more time.” ...I wanted to make this come true during his graduation performance. |
Tsuzuru | Why did he leave that wish for last? It’s like he knew it wouldn’t come true.... |
Sakuya | —Maybe this is Citron-san’s way of saying SOS. |
| Maybe Citron-san’s true wish is to keep performing in MANKAI Company, without becoming king.... |
Itaru | Was Citron satisfied with having to become king? |
Guy | I don’t know. I’ve never heard Citronia’s feelings. |
Izumi | If you were always by his side, wouldn’t you have some insight...? |
Guy | I’m an android. I don’t understand human feelings. |
Izumi | .... |
Sakuya | Let’s go to Zahra Kingdom and confirm Citron-san’s true feelings! The coronation ceremony hasn’t happened yet; we should still have time! |
Izumi | You’re right—. |
Guy | It’s useless. |
Sakuya | Eh—. |
Guy | Even if you go to Zahra Kingdom, the Royal Palace is heavily guarded because of the upcoming coronation ceremony. You probably couldn’t even get close to him. |
| On top of that, you’re foreigners, unfamiliar with the land and language. They’ll turn you away at the door. |
Tsuzuru | Then Guy-san, can you come with us—no, if you’re a wanted criminal, that’s impossible.... |
Chikage | ...Hm. |
Itaru | What is it? |
Chikage | ...No, it’s nothing. |
Guy | Even if I weren’t a wanted criminal, if you intend to persuade Citronia against ascending to the throne, I can’t agree to help you. |
| It was decided long ago that Citronia would become king. Citronia has been preparing all these years. |
Sakuya | But what if that’s not what Citron-san truly wants.... |
Guy | Citronia returned to his country in order to attend the coronation ceremony. Doesn’t that say enough? |
Sakuya | But... |
Tsuzuru | Is giving up the only thing we can do.... |
Itaru | If Citron himself is satisfied, there’s nothing we can do. It’s not our place to tell him what to do. |
Izumi | .... |
| (This isn’t the same as Masumi-kun. Citron-kun is carrying a far-too-heavy duty upon his back...) |
| (And if Guy-san, who has been by Citron-kun’s side for all these years, says so, there really might be nothing we can do....) |
| (...But why did Citron-kun leave Guy-san behind?) |
| (Because he didn’t want him to follow him...? But making Guy-san a wanted criminal seems like going too far.) |
Chikage | What are you going to do now, Guy-san? |
Guy | I can’t return to my country, so I suppose I’ll need to hide somewhere for a while. |
Izumi | Do you have anywhere to go? |
Guy | No.... |
Izumi | Then please stay here for as long as you wish. |
Guy | But.... |
Izumi | We’re here to help each other out in times of need. Maybe the accusation is also a mistake of some sort. |
Guy | Thank you. I’m sorry. |
Sakyo | ...If Citron’s graduation performance isn’t happening, Winter Troupe’s performance will need to happen sooner. |
Itaru | Our next performance, huh.... |
Izumi | (We were so ready to put on Citron-kun’s graduation performance that it feels like there’s a big hole in my heart. I can’t think of anything else right now.) |
Tsuzuru | We can’t change our mindset so suddenly.... |
Sakyo | There’s no time for such carefree thinking. If we create a gap in our performance schedule, the troupe will suffer. |
Tsuzuru | .... |
Sakuya | Citron-kun wouldn’t want that to happen.... |
Izumi | (It’s sad, but I guess we just have to change our mindset....) |
Sakyo | Can you finish the script in time? |
Tsuzuru | ...If we’re doing my take on “The Phantom of the Opera,” I’ll pull it off somehow. |
Tsumugi | The problem is our new member. |
Tasuku | We were relaxed because we thought we had more time. It might be hard to start looking for someone now. |
Azuma | But Winter Troupe can’t be the only troupe without a new member. Our guests are all looking forward to it. |
Homare | Why don’t we say that Hisoka-kun is actually a twin and have him play two roles! |
Hisoka | ...No. That’s exhausting. Don’t go around tacking on traits to me without my permission. |
Homare | Muh... I thought it was a good idea. |
Tsumugi | What should we do... We don’t have anyone we can ask.... |
Guy | .... |
| Could you let me stand in for the new member until you find someone? |
Izumi | You, Guy-san....? |
Guy | This all happened because Citronia left out of nowhere. I want to take responsibility. |
Izumi | You did stand in for Azuma-san once, and you’re a reliable person.... |
Tsumugi | I think that’s good. |
Tasuku | You’re a good fit for Winter Troupe’s atmosphere, too; I don’t see any problems. |
Homare | I agree too. |
Izumi | —Then please take care of us! |
Guy | The same goes for me. Let’s get along. |
Izumi | (We decided everything in a hurry, but we need to focus on Winter Troupe’s performance for now....) |
| (You’re fine with this, right, Citron-kun...?) |