"I'm telling you, they are distinctly different!" Teddie yelled. "Even Yuki-chan knows that!"
"But they're the same shape and everything!" Kanji shouted back. "I mean, why else would Naoto be too afraid to wear a swimsuit during the pageant?"
"It's not that easy with Naoto-kun, you know..." said Yukiko.
"Hehe, oh Kanji..." Rise said to herself. "Whenever Naoto is mentioned you just- wait, Naoto? Oh crap!" she yelled, realizing that she had forgotten something very important.
"Rise? Wah!" Kanji gasped, the others appropriately reacting in tandem as the idol was now standing before them in just her bright orange bra and panties.
"It still looks like underwear to me..." said Yukiko.
"No more apron? This really must be my birthday!" Teddie swooned.
"It's a swimsuit, and the apron's drying, but neither one's important right now!" Rise said, some slight red in her cheeks from Teddie's remarks. "Earlier I sensed something clouding up my readings and was losing track of everyone, but then I got side-tracked with this! I just hope I'm not too late," she said, scanning with Himiko once more.
The others clammed up instantly, desperately waiting for the results of Rise's scan. "Senpai? Anyone? Can you hear me?" Rise asked as she searched and searched, but no response came. Soon her persona faded away. "Well?" Yukiko asked, breaking the silence that had settled over the group.
"It's no good," Rise shook her head. "There's no sign of them and I couldn't get ahold of them either. And just like before, I couldn't penetrate any deeper than the fourth floor from here."
"No way!" Teddie gasped.
"It feels like there's something... clouding up the area, like this steam. I can't find them at all like this."
"Then what are we waiting for?" said Kanji, turning towards the bathouse's front door. "We gotta go in there and find them!"
"Right," Rise nodded. "Let's go, everyone."
And with that, the four of them ran into the dungeon.
The dungeon didn't seem very different from the last time they were there, according to everyone but Rise, at least. The monsters were no different and proved virtually no challenge, the layout had changed but not by very much, really the only difference was that the bathouse steam was far thicker than before. As they continued, Rise tried to scan for the rest of the party again, but found that she could not see further than the fourth floor, despite being closer. A bad feeling arose through the group.
Soon enough, the team reached the fourth floor of the dungeon, where they were met with a strange sight. Unlike the other areas of the dungeon, this hallway was mostly steam-free, leading them to realize just how much the steam was soaking them through earlier. Rise, quickly shuddering, glanced at herself, and sighed in relief. Fortunately her underwear was still opaque. Thank goodness she wasn't wearing white today. Going through the hallway, they found that it was a very short corridor with the only exit being two separate doors on the far end.
"What the-?" Kanji gasped.
"What is this?" Yukiko asked.
"*sniff* I can smell in here!" said Teddie. "No sign of the others though..."
"So wait, this... wasn't part of the dungeon before?" Rise asked.
"Nuh-uh," Teddie replied. "There was never an area so clear of both steam and the ugly stench of sweat."
"Hey!" Yukiko, who had advanced to the end of the hallway, called. "Take a look at this!"
The team followed and saw what she found: two doors at the end of the hallway. Each door was completely normal and unremarkable, only sporting a sign on the front of each one. Upon a closer look, the sign on the left door said "Entertainers," while the one on the right said "Audience."
"Entertainers? Audience? Is there some kind of show going on in here?" Kanji asked.
"There definitely wasn't anything like this before," Yukiko said. "Could someone have been thrown in?"
"Nope, can't be," said Teddie. "I would've smelled something. Maybe the shadows here changed on their own?"
"But this was my dungeon, wasn't it?" Kanji asked. "And I know I haven't done anything with it. Argh! Whatever, we can't just sit here while Senpai needs us! Let's just pick one and go through!" he said, reaching out.
"Wait!" Rise shouted, stopping him in his tracks. "Before we do, let me check one more time!" she said as she scanned once more.
The steam was as thick as before and she couldn't get a layout of the location, but this time, she could feel some familiar presences, somewhere behind the door. "It's Senpai and the others! They're just about in front of us, but I can't tell anything else!" Rise shouted.
"Alright, then what are we waiting for, let's go!" said Kanji.
"Hold on! What if it's a trap?" Yukiko said.
"Wha-?" said Kanji.
"Rise can't sense anything else right? So who knows what's back there? We're still going, but we need to be careful!" Yukiko explained.
"Oh, right." said Kanji. "You know, this Entertainer and Audience sounds like showbiz stuff... what do you think, Rise?"
"Hm..." said Rise, thinking it over. It did sound like show business, almost too much like that in fact. "If this is a show, then the door on the left means we'll be going on a stage, while the door on the right goes to the seats, I think? They should both lead to the same area, but it can't be that simple. Maybe we'll be forced to 'perform' or 'watch', depending on the door we choose, which could mean anywhere from a battle or a puzzle as far as Shadows are concerned. Oh, let me check..." she tried both door handles. "Yep, they're both unlocked, so whatever's made this is forcing us to make one choice or the other. But which one..." she pondered.
"I know nothing about show business," said Teddie. "Ooo! Maybe we should take the audience door and see what happens. I love watching things!"
"I dunno, Ted," said Kanji. "I don't like these creeps telling us what to do. Besides, it could just be us sitting there while the Shadows do whatever the hell they want. The other way around, at least we're doing something, so I think we should go through that one, especially if it's just some kind of fight."
"That's a good point, Kanji, but I can't help but wonder... What kind of show is this anyways?" Yukiko asked. "Sure, if we go onstage we may only have to fight, but it may instead be a performance, which could mean anything. It could be fun to act out a play, but if it's anything like the midnight channel... I really don't want to do anything embarrassing like that, you know?" she drew off.
"Oh... Hadn't thought of that," said Kanji.
The group grew silent once more.
"You know," Yukiko picked up again. "I think we should leave it up to Rise."
"Oh?" Rise asked, surprised.
"You do this sort of thing all the time right?" Yukiko asked. "So I think you have the best chance of getting us through this."
"That's a wonderful idea!" Teddie cheered. "Rise's got more experience at this than any of us, so I believe in her!"
"Yeah, that makes sense," said Kanji. "Alright, I'll follow your lead, Rise. Just tell us where to go!"
"Really? Wow! Um..." Rise was astonished. Normally all the decisions were left up to her senpai, and she just went along with them and provided what support she could, but now they were looking to her for this important choice. Suddenly she felt a lot of pressure, but also some pride in how they were all looking up to her. She almost felt she was dreaming for a second, (she was running around in her underwear after all,)but it was a very real and very serious situation right now.
So, Rise weighed the options one more time, and made her decision. "Okay, guys," she said. "We are going to go through-"
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