Umm. I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, so there's no guarantee I'm getting this right, but⁠—

Here at SANCTUARY, you get to "experience" all the perks of being an idol to the point of making you sick, right?

Yep! That's the park's whole concept. It's still in development, but that's essentially the theme of everything going on here.

Yes. They're still making adjustments, but it's already so much fun as it is now. Right, Mitsuru-kun?

Yup yup! Sometimes it made me think, "Is being an idol actually like this?" but I was still able to laugh and have lots of fun anyway!

There was, like, some kind of gap between this and reality, I guess! It was super funny!

Yeah, that's true.

We're actual idols, so the experience at SANCTUARY is so exaggerated that it's uncanny.

It does not mean it's entirely nonsense, however.

It may be exaggerated, but it is not a lie. It's the same as romance movies, where love is portrayed through rose-colored glasses as being more glittering than it is in reality.

These sorts of exaggerations and caricatures are a staple of entertainment.

Do you watch stuff about love, Yuzu-chan-senpai?

For reference, yes. I also watched the drama you were in, Tenma-sama; it was quite interesting.

Thanks! We all worked suuuper hard to make sure it was lots of fun!

Yeah, we don't spend so much money or effort just to make someone feel like crap.

We're in the entertainment business to make people happy.

Both ES and SANCTUARY were made to fulfill those bright, positive goals.

ES especially is sometimes made out to be like, some kind of weapon that makes people happy, even.

But idols aren't weapons, and we don't sell them either.

.........

Obviously. But, well, no matter how good your intentions are for something, you can always abuse it somehow. Even everyday household items like knives, scissors, or towels can be used to kill people, y'know.

It doesn't seem to be quite that bad this time, though.

What do you mean by that...?

Nngh, I'm sorry for not following!

Don't worry about it. I didn't get it either until it was explained to me like I was a kindergartner. It's easy to forget that some people are just too smart or quick-witted for their own good, though.

Ever since I went to college, I've realized that we're not actually stupid. It's just that the other idols at ES and Yumenosaki are totally the exception here.

Hehe. In our case, it's that if we don't think for ourselves, we'll be left behind.

Yep. But I couldn't wrap my head around it as well as others could. I tried to understand things by breaking them up into chunks.

And that's how I was able to get it. Tenshouin's probably trying to use SANCTUARY to increase the amount of motivated idols.

Motivated...idols?

Yep. You're all from a younger generation so you may not know this, but Yumenosaki used to be filled to the brim with unmotivated, lazy students.

They thought that thanks to the successes of those who came before us, they would be able to ride on their coattails just 'cause they went to Yumenosaki. They didn't think they'd actually have to put in effort.

But that wasn't the reality of things at all. The idol industry as a whole was in decline, so it looks like they all ended up facing some pretty miserable conditions after graduation.

And they all knew that'd happen one way or another, so they thought it'd be dumb to even try and take things seriously⁠—

So no one did. No one worked hard or put in any effort. I was convinced that we were different from everyone else, that we were constantly doing our best.

But we were a minority.

I get it. There's this atmosphere where it's like you're uncool if you work hard.

Huh? I dunno anything about that! If I keep at it, I'm gonna get stronger! And then I'll be able to totally own everyone, so I feel great about it! Doesn't everyone else think the same way?

Ahaha, you and I must've grown up in completely different worlds.

Yup! Life is great!

Heheh. I wish everyone was like you, Mitsuru-chin. But in reality, there's no shortage of people who just can't do it no matter how hard they try.

Who are unlucky, and whose efforts never pay off.

It's just not possible that all good kids who go at things in earnest will be rewarded for it or that God will judge them fairly.

But at SANCTUARY, anyone can become a "happy and successful idol." Isn't that right?

Yep. That's what I keep telling you. It's the whole theme of the park.

Right, everyone gets to be happy without going through any hardships, just by being an idol. You're rewarded for it over and over again.

Yes. You get a lot of engagement on social media, and you can make friends with celebrities, be loved and adored⁠—

In addition to satisfying the human need for approval, there are a variety of events catered to making the guests happy.

You're just having fun and playing around, but that's all recognized as putting in great work.

You can even do normal stuff like participate in variety shows or act in movies! It's lots of fun!

Yeah. There's gonna be hardships no matter what you do, but we've eliminated all of those negative aspects here.

At SANCTUARY, idol activities are portrayed as something exciting and happy.

Looks like it. And that's how ordinary people who don't know anything about idols come to misjudge that being an idol is all fun and games.

Even if it's just a misunderstanding or a misconception, it gets imprinted in their minds that being an idol is always a happy thing.

A kid who gets that kinda thing in their head might really want to be an idol in the future.

It's the same as admiring a cool hero they saw on TV.

Or a princess who gets to realize her true self, do all sorts of wonderful things, and meet her prince?

Even though actually being nobility or royalty is a whole lot of work.

But some people really think that made-up stories like that are the truth.

It's hard for even adults to distinguish between fiction and reality.

That's why there's so many people who get tricked by scammers.

They get this idea that they'll be just as lucky as what happened in the story, and that they'll find great success and everyone'll be super jealous of them.

Obviously there's always the possibility that'll happen.

It's a one in a million chance, though. But everyone assumes that God has some divine prophecy in store for them.

That's what being the main character of a story is like after all. And they think that in their own life—in this story where they're the main character—something awesome and special is going to happen to them too.

Tenshouin is being crafty and taking advantage of that kind of human psychology. He's been doing it for a long, long time—that's the kinda guy he is.

...I guess that's true.

Yeah. Everyone wants to live a happy life, and one of the ways to get that is by being an idol⁠—

That's the kind of story Tenshouin's trying to stick in our collective consciousness.