That night, Shizuka could not sleep. Ever since she had accepted the bow, she had been outmaneuvered by Tremon. He had turned one soul into six: Morihei, Claire, Lilia, Sabrina, Kiana, Yifeng.

And here, with this “invitation,” Tremon outmaneuvered her once more. Even if Katrina declined, her music would never be separate from her identity again.

The only way to save Katrina would be to have her compete as a musician. And win, as a musician.

And for that she would need the perfect piece of music.

The winner of a competition can be decided before the first note is played. What one plays in a competition should bring respect from the judges, awe from the audience, and every iota of genius from the performer. A Paganini caprice. Ernst. A Bach chaconne. Obviously, Sarasate. And, well, Beethoven is Beethoven.

Katrina might play any of these. Some of the technical areas might need some smoke, mirrors, or a very good accompanist. Still, Katrina was improving at a frightening rate. Mastering even a caprice was not unimaginable.

Yet this was neither a conventional competition nor a conventional student.

Shizuka’s previous students were predators. Even now, Shizuka might take the Grohl girl, let her smell blood, give her the curse, and send her onstage with a mandate to kill.

Katrina, however, shunned competition. She had never played a competition in her life. Yet she held her violin and her music with more persistence and hope than anyone Shizuka had ever taught.

Shizuka sat up. She put on a robe and walked downstairs. Her footsteps became more and more sure of themselves. By the time she got to her practice hall, she was almost running.

There might be another way to win—a way that a demon could never foresee.

Shizuka sat at the piano and opened her laptop. Shizuka had told Katrina that with basics, anything was possible.

And Katrina had done her part. Her basics were bulletproof. Now it was Shizuka’s turn. To hold the attention of the judges, to win their hearts, this piece also needed to be dazzling yet nuanced, despairing, entrancing.

Everything had to be completely and sublimely composed.

Shizuka accessed the soundtrack to The NetherTale.

Whatever Katrina played would start here. To rescue without killing. Was that not the core of who she was? And yes, as unsure as she was, having something familiar would help her immediately reach her fan base, win her immediate applause.

Her pencil began to move.

Next, she brought in Axxiom. The Planck constant. The Coulomb constant. The speed of light in a vacuum. The elementary charge.