Golden Week is on the way, Seiya thought. Let’s keep this train rolling!
× × ×
Guests continued to flood the park during summer vacation. They didn’t have a pool now, but there were still long lines at every attraction. The only trouble was the traffic getting into the park; the roads were narrow, accessibility was bad, and they had chronic parking issues. They’d been negotiating with the city for a road expansion, but that had gotten bogged down since the election of a new mayor. Still, the congestion issues would surely relieve themselves in September.
The mascots’ popularity was also on the rise. Moffle had finally been goaded into joining Twitter, where he’d proved surprisingly popular. He could be a little abusive sometimes, but that actually got him more attention.
The only sour note was that Salama had quit; she wasn’t getting along with the new Kobory, apparently. But they found a replacement right away—it wasn’t an issue.
× × ×
Understandably, attendance declined in the winter. Their distance from the city center made it hard for guests to just stop by on weekdays. Of course, they held a big campaign for the Christmas season, and they pulled some good numbers from that. With a little improvisation, they managed to stay in the black—and since the new park didn’t have any arbitrary attendance requirements, it was fine for them to remain “just popular enough.”
Starting in January, they decided to close the park for a few days a week—Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays—just to save money.
Latifah wasn’t feeling well, and that had Seiya worried. But when spring returned, the customers would, too—it would all turn out fine.
Wanipii was set to quit at the end of December, but that probably wouldn’t affect things much. Seiya never heard his reason for leaving.
× × ×
The park’s one-year anniversary came!
They had sunk a lot of money into an anniversary campaign, and now that it was spring, they had plenty of guests. They didn’t did pull the numbers they had the year before, but that was to be expected.
The greater problem was Rubrum—the red dragon racked up a huge food bill, but his attraction’s numbers weren’t justifying it. If his poor performance continued, they’d have to send him back to his magical realm.
Losing Sylphie was a big blow, too. She had gone to America; not as a dancer, but as a singer. Seiya found that odd, since he didn’t think she was an especially good singer... but he wished her luck, regardless.
× × ×
Summer vacation of the second year came.
They weren’t pulling as many customers as expected—word had gotten around about the traffic congestion problem, apparently. They weren’t getting along with the local government, either, because they were getting frequent complaints from the locals. Staff members with complaints against them would just quit the minute they were filed.
Tiramii wanted to renovate his attraction, but his request was rejected. Where were they supposed to get the money for that, just a year and a half into the park’s opening?
× × ×
Winter of the second year came.
They worked hard for Christmas, but they only pulled in 80% of the previous year’s attendance. Their limited schedule in winter came with a reduction of cast pay, which brought in complaints of its own. Macaron came to him to say, “We’re not seasonal labor, ron!” But there was no point in opening and paying people to staff a park that no one was coming to. They just didn’t have the money for it.
They’d used all the profits from their Amagi days on the move, and they hadn’t made their investment back yet. Austerity was key right now. They were on the defensive. Seiya was making his calculations assuming they’d pull in about 500,000 guests a year.
× × ×
The third year came.
They didn’t bother with a second anniversary campaign; Seiya calculated that standard attendance would be enough. Their second year’s attendance had come to 480,000; it was just below their 500,000 goal. They managed, barely, to remain in the black, but he needed a way to raise their numbers.
He’d already asked the expensive Rubrum to quit, and Muse retired, as she was getting to be too old. Apparently, her parents had been working on an arranged marriage for her behind the scenes; it was all worked out now, and they wanted to bring her home to prepare for life as a housewife.
× × ×
The fourth year came.
Moffle suddenly fell ill, an issue caused by an overworked schedule, trying to drive enthusiasm for the park. Nobody knew when he would return. They could put fill-ins in costumes, but they knew that might cause another drop in popularity.
The attendance for the third year came to 450,000. They’d have to work really hard in the upcoming year, or they’d fall into the red.
Maple Land issued orders for Isuzu to return. She refused, choosing to remain once and for all in the mortal realm. The two of them had officially been dating for three years now. Her support was the one thing keeping Seiya sane.
Latifah’s health had declined further. Seiya was worried.
× × ×
The fifth year came.
Attendance held steady at 450,000. They continued to cope via austerity measures; they had lost a large number of their cast as well.
Moffle never returned; he’d passed away in one of Maple Land’s hospitals. It was a major blow to everyone. Nobody told Latifah, choosing instead to let her believe that he was still in treatment, because her own condition had worsened further. She no longer felt well enough to stand. She couldn’t make her famous croquettes anymore, so they had Croquette Saigo-tei ship them in, instead. Seiya was grateful for the owner’s generosity.
Macaron retired, too. His daughter was in college now, and he couldn’t support her with his current salary.
× × ×
The tenth year came.
They faced their tenth anniversary in a state of ongoing decline. They worked hard on a campaign to celebrate the occasion, but it never quite got off the ground after having lost Tiramii, Tricen, and several other major players over the last five years. Isuzu remained supportive, but sometimes lashed out at him.
Latifah was completely bedridden. She spent day after day in a state of hazy consciousness. It was hard to watch.
Their attendance that year was 120,000. It would be hard to remain in business like this.
× × ×
The fourteenth year came.
They filed for bankruptcy. Sanami Brilliant Park officially closed, and most of the land was sold off. Isuzu worked hard to make sure they could keep part of the land and a building (the old Music Theater), where they took care of Latifah.
Seiya spent his days drinking. He couldn’t find the will to do anything else. He drank, and he performed for Latifah. She didn’t respond. More drinking, more performing.
Isuzu went out into town to work, but she didn’t say what she was doing. They hadn’t even kissed in years.
× × ×
The twentieth year came.
Now and then, former cast members came by to see how they were doing; Seiya was grateful for the charity they brought, as well.
One night, Isuzu fell ill and was hospitalized. They had no money. He wanted to apply for welfare, but since he owned land, he couldn’t.
× × ×
The twenty-fifth year came.
Isuzu had been in the hospital repeatedly, and finally passed away. He didn’t even have the money to put up a gravestone. He buried her next to the Music Theater—it was probably illegal, but he didn’t care.
While he plunged into despair, Latifah disappeared. The only thing left in her beat-up old bed was a blind hamster; it was probably the shadow of Latifah’s former self.
× × ×
The thirtieth year came.
Seiya had been supporting himself all these years. He performed for the hamster, tilled a field, and raised crops.