Deep in the winding halls of Lavinrac’s castle, where laughter echoes like a curse and silence never lasts long, Calendula had found herself a stage. A long, empty corridor—no maids, no queen, just her and her pet ghost.

Well… hopefully no maids. “Maids” being Eclair, Mono, and that one with the letter name—“L,” right? The twins were so easy to manipulate, but too loyal to Eclair to let Calendula’s “Awesome, AMAZING Show™” go on for long. Last time, her “performance” didn’t amuse Lavinrac-sama nearly enough.

And when the Queen isn’t amused… oh, that’s no bueno.

Calendula twirled her staff, the orb at its tip shimmering like candy in candlelight. She grinned, her painted tear glinting blue under the dim chandelier glow. “Say, Ghost-tan! How about we try that super dangerous trick we talked about, huh?! ☆ It’ll be super-duper-cool!! You’ll be my assistant again, like always~! ♡”

The tiny ghost creature quivered midair, its little horns twitching. It didn’t have much of a face—just that red star eye and black dot—but the way it shook ever so slightly screamed fear. Or maybe just dread. Hard to tell.

Calendula tilted her head, smiling wider. “Ooh? Don’t tell me you’re scared, Ghostie~? You’ll hurt my feelings♡! Come on, come on! This one’s got real boom! Lavinrac-sama will be sooo entertained this time! ☆☆”