I Became the Leader of the Monster Circus Troupe

In the vast underground cavern, dozens of chains were embedded in the ceiling, suspending a gigantic platform capable of holding tens of thousands of people.

Scarecrow walked through the area, recalling his final battle against Wonderstein in TT3.

Below, the Eyes of Chaos were all closed except for one. Even that one was half-closed, as if it was on the verge of sleep.

All he needed to do was sprinkle Sandman’s Sand of Slumber onto it.

Scarecrow inspected the edge of the platform where Oberon had climbed up yesterday.

Thick ropes, secured by large nails, dangled towards the ground. Grabbing one, he slid down quickly.

Upon landing, he saw nothing but grayish flesh all around. The bumps were as big as small hills.

Unlike the view from above, it was hard to distinguish anything from down here.

But he didn’t panic. He had a guide to follow.

Giggle, giggle.

The sound of Kiklins‘ laughter echoed from afar.

He ran towards the direction of the sound.

After running for a while, he found his target.

Thousands of Kiklins were surrounding and laughing at the eye, which was observing some sort of spectacle.

Carefully, he approached and opened his bag, pouring its contents onto the eye. The bright yellow sand melted away upon contact with the eye’s surface.

He was careful not to inhale any of it accidentally. The sand from Sandman was so powerful that even a handful could put dozens of people to sleep.

He had poured an entire bag.

No matter how powerful the demon was, it couldn’t resist the drowsiness. The Eye of Chaos closed, and the broadcast ceased.

The Kiklins nearby stopped laughing as well.

Mission accomplished. Scarecrow prepared to climb back up. However, he soon encountered a problem.

“Where am I?”

When he arrived, he had followed the sound of Kiklins’ laughter without paying attention to the path.

He hadn’t thought about how to return.

Looking up, all he could see were the huge platforms. The rope he had used was obscured by the fleshy mounds.

He climbed up a nearby hill to get a better view. Fortunately, he spotted the rope in the distance.

“Did I really walk this far?”

He memorized the location and descended the mound.

The uneven, flesh-covered terrain made it difficult, but he tried to keep his gaze fixed in one direction and walked in a straight line.

Upon reaching the next hill, he realized he had veered about 40 degrees off course from the rope.

“This isn’t going to be easy.”

He noted some distinctive features in the direction he needed to go and moved again. However, upon reaching the next mound, he found himself even further from the rope.

Observing his surroundings again, he noticed that the ground was slightly moving up and down.

He wasn’t standing on solid ground. He was on the skin of a giant creature.

The height of the mounds and the folds of skin changed with its breathing and slight movements.

Due to the overwhelming size difference, he hadn’t noticed until now.

No wonder his direction kept changing despite having landmarks.

Scarecrow checked his status screen. The quest completion notification hadn’t appeared yet.

“Should I wait for the reward?”

As he wandered, his body suddenly lifted into the air.

Hearing a flapping sound, he turned around. Four translucent wings had grown on his back.

He knew what they were.

“Fairy wings?”

Why had Arno’s illusion magic appeared here?

While he pondered, the wings lifted him hundreds of meters into the air, eventually bringing him to the platform.

He burst into laughter at the sight before him.

A silver-haired fairy in a fluttering sleeveless dress stood with her arms crossed, looking exasperated.

“Idiot. You should have tied the rope to your waist.”

“How did Lumie get here…?”

The fairy twitched her pointed ears and smiled smugly.

“I was worried about you, so I came to help. I thought you’d be in a coma from a psychic attack.”

“Didn’t you trust me? I said I could do it. See? Look, I’m fine.”

As Scarecrow wobbled and acted silly, Lumie’s mouth twitched.

“So, you ended up lost among Kirku’s pimples?”

“Well, I have no excuse for that.”

Their eyes met, and they both laughed lightly.

They were grateful for each other’s efforts and happy to be reunited.

“What happened to the others?”

“The kids are being protected by Oberon and others. Hey, what are you doing?”

Lumie shouted, blushing as he suddenly hugged her.

Was he confessing at this moment?

But Scarecrow looked at her with a casual expression.

“I am going to give you a piggyback ride again anyways?”

“Uh, well, yes, but……”

Lumie stammered, tearing at a stray piece of straw.

The confession she had anticipated now seemed like a ridiculous notion.

What did they really have between them, anyway?

More than that, the way he took care of her, as if he knew her well, made her heart flutter.

But what came out of her mouth was something entirely different.

“I-it’s the smell of Kirku, it’s making me dizzy! I can’t stay close!”

“Ah, you can sense things like that?”

The scarecrow, understandingly, set her down on the ground.

Lumie sighed regretfully but quickly composed her expression.

Her comment about the Kirku smell was a lie, but it was true that she should restrain herself from such behaviour.

“When we go back, don’t make a mistake. It’s troublesome if you just hug me like that. Don’t forget, when we’re outside, I’m Arno again. Be careful even when calling my name.”

“That’s a shame. I was just getting used to calling you Lumie……”

Lumie hesitated for a moment before blushing and saying,

“If, if you must, call me that when we’re alone, then I suppose it’s okay.”

“No, as you said, I might slip up, so I’ll just stick with calling you Director Arno.”

“Y-yes……”

Lumie’s antennae and ears drooped.

As they were about to head back up, they stopped in their tracks.

Three Saints were blocking the stairs.

Crazy Hatter, Diamond Queen, and Strauss stared at them with grim expressions.

“You’re all safe. Hatter, weren’t you on the battlefield? Is the fight already over?”

The man, wearing a stack of hats, shook his head.

“It’s still ongoing. I just stepped out briefly upon hearing that a Reaper had infiltrated the Judicial Theatre.”

“Although the lullaby performance was interrupted by them, I resolved it by sprinkling the Sand of Slumber,” said the scarecrow.

The Diamond Queen shook her head.

Her persona was damaged in various places, likely from the fierce battle with the reaper.

“No, it’s not fully closed yet.”

“What? But I’m sure……”

Strauss, receiving his gaze, sighed and shook his head.

“Because of the invasion of the Zakanubas, 95% of the theatres in Wonderland are unable to perform. This has thrown off the calculations.”

He pointed with his broken baton in the opposite direction of where the scarecrow had come. There, an eye was faintly opening its eyelid.

“W-what should we do?”

Then, Lumie shouted as if she had just remembered something.

“There was also sand with Clara! It should be in the hall……”

Strauss, with a regretful expression, shook his head.

“The hall has collapsed. It would be hard to find it in that wreckage. Even if we did, the eye would be fully open by then……”

The scarecrow let out a dejected sigh, regretting that he hadn’t brought the two sacks down earlier just in case.

He had been too focused on rushing.

“If it could just be closed a little more……”

Lumie stomped her feet in frustration, looking down.

“Is there no other way?”

The three Saints exchanged glances. Their eyes conveyed a mixture of bitterness and discomfort.

“There is a way.”

“What is it?”

“An impromptu performance here.”

“What?”

The scarecrow was bewildered.

He knew that performances could put Kirku to sleep, but he had seen how many performances it took to close just one giant eye.

To close that slightly open eye would require several major performances at least.

Instead of explaining, the Saints stepped forward with resolute expressions.

They surrounded him, drawing their weapons.

“It’s not the way we should treat a hero like you, but we’re sorry.”

“Don’t worry, personas can be restored with time.”

“What? What are you……”

The Crazy Hatter swung his hat instead of answering. The sharp brim severed the scarecrow’s right arm.

“Huh?”

At the same time, a card thrown by the Diamond Queen cut off the scarecrow’s left arm.

In an instant, both of his arms were severed.

But before he could even comprehend the situation, Strauss swung his baton and cut off his legs.

Thud.

The Scarecrow rolled on the ground, now just a torso.

“What… is… this…”

However, the Saints did not stop there.

They kicked him, sending him rolling toward the lone spectator below.

Then, they shouted toward that single audience member.

“Ha ha, isn’t it funny? Look at that limbless figure.”

“How dare a lowly resident without Inspira make eye contact with the Saints.”

“A maggot like him should just be hanging around with women.”

All three laughed heartily.

Lumie, her face pale, ran toward the Scarecrow who was lying on the ground.

“Hey! Are you okay? Snap out of it!”

“They’re gone… they’re gone…”

She was in shock seeing his condition.

She was more horrified by his state of panic than by his severed limbs.

It was the first time seeing him so confused, someone who was always so carefree and cheerful.

He knew that his persona would eventually recover over time.

In the end, it was not the attack itself that shocked him, but the betrayal.

Lumie stroked his cheek, trying to comfort him, and then glared at the approaching Saints.

“What the hell are you doing, you bastards!”

They had already stopped laughing and were looking at the two with bitter expressions.

“We’re sorry.”

“But this was the fastest way.”

“Bullshit!”

The Scarecrow continued to mutter something, trembling.

Lumie felt tears welling up.

She hadn’t realized how terrible it was to see someone you know broken like this.

At that moment, yellow orbs surrounded the two of them.

Kiklings giggled at the sight of the Scarecrow’s dismembered state.

“Look.”

The Crazy Hatter pointed to the bottom of the pit.

There, an eye that had just opened was closing again.

He seemed deeply satisfied after watching the Saint cut off the Scarecrow’s limbs, kick him, and mock him.

“This is what we’ve been hiding. Our god is lowly. He likes cruelty, darkness, and ridicule. But he’s not interested in war or massacre. He only enjoys the amusement provided by his followers.”

Strauss muttered in a gloomy voice.

“As you can see, the efficiency is dozens of times better than any other performance.”

The Diamond Queen couldn’t bear to look at them, turning her gaze away.

“Do you remember when we said that the influence of performances on Kirku had been weakening for decades?”

Lumie recalled what had happened yesterday. Back then, he had avoided giving a clear reason.

“The truth is, we knew the reason. Now you know too?”

She thought of what had happened to the Scarecrow.

It felt eerily familiar.

Something she had experienced in her childhood…

Her eyes widened as if she had realized something.

“Could it be…?”

The Crazy Hatter lowered his head and sighed as he spoke.

“The Monster Circus has disappeared.”

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Chapter 241: Wonderland – 44