So Laughed the Masses

Near the spire's peak, approaching Phantasmoon, the Fool weaves the hearts of men into a marionette theater within her palms. In this moment, people are bestowed the freedom of Elation. In this moment, people are shackled by the chains of happiness...

With Fulwish fanning the unrest, discussion among the residents of Planarcadia about the Astral Express grew increasingly heated. Pearl advised the crew to stay out of sight for the time being and hoped the Phantasmoon's new stakes would not get in the way of your cooperation. Himeko speculated that the power of Abundance Fulwish wielded might have come from a predecessor Herald of Death and proposed going to the Graphia Academy to search its sealed archives for clues.

Archive records revealed that after graduating, Fulwish went to a greenhouse planet under the Intelligentsia Guild for further study. Midway through the investigation, she suddenly appeared, claiming she had once survived the Bloodstained Games by means of a mask granted by Aha. She then announced her participation in the Phantasmoon Games, inviting all Supplicants to a televised debate. In exchange for a mask, you hired Sparxie to investigate Fulwish's identity as a Fool at the tavern.

For Evanescia, arbitrator of the Phantasmoon Games, obtaining a Supplicant's mask had been without precedent. Acting on intelligence relayed by Sunday, she and Yao Guang traveled to Seafeld City, where they found every resident already under the influence of the Abundance power. Evanescia sought to pass judgment on Fulwish using the Spiritbranch of True Law, but the "measuring" made one thing clear: Fulwish was not a Supplicant, leaving no basis for judgment. Blade revealed that the Abundance cells used in the Happiness Surgery came from Shuhu, an Emanator of the Abundance, and that the Supplicant wearing the Octomorph Mask was that same being, dismembered and now parasitizing the bodies of the surgery's recipients.

Sparxie discovered a medical record detailing Fulwish's "Happiness Syntax" symptoms and entered the crack created by her mask to investigate, where she witnessed the tragic events surrounding its bestowal. Inside the crack, under the peculiar emoti's manipulation, Fulwish attempted to control Sparxie using Happiness Syntax. Sparxie resisted with all her strength and escaped with Sparkle.

A Joy Ascendant outbreak swept through Seafeld City, plunging it into chaos. Fulwish claimed that the power of Harmony had caused the flesh of the Abundance to turn infectious, and announced the cancellation of the televised debate. Yao Guang urged Evanescia to invoke her authority as arbitrator to sanction Fulwish's actions, but such judgment required a Supplicant to stand in violation. Evanescia chose to violate the rules herself and revealed to Yao Guang the true purpose behind this Aeonic game.

Pearl commissioned Silver Wolf to trace the source of the Joy Ascendant outbreak, offering tacit approval of the Stellaron Hunters' suspicious activities in return. After hacking into the network, Silver Wolf discovered that all transformed individuals had received a signal stating, "Unhappiness is a sin." Following the signal's trail, she uncovered an imposter posing as "Pearl" and crossed paths with the one backing Fulwish from the shadows, "Mr. Meanie."

Fulwish donned the Supplicant's mask and used Happiness Syntax to awaken the Shuhu cells within her body, attempting to bring down the Phantasmoon Games. Before Evanescia's judgment could take hold, you absorbed the Wishpower of the people through the Stellaron and recast the mask, defeating Fulwish head-on as a Supplicant. The Abundance transformations persisted. Blade proposed drawing Shuhu's flesh into himself, and through Sunday's tuning, all Shuhu cells across Planarcadia converged upon him, taking shape as Shuhu's giant tree form. Silver Wolf then adjusted reality parameters, compressing it into Blade's body.

Blade drove the fragments of the Shard Sword into his own body to remain conscious and ultimately succeeded in absorbing Shuhu's flesh. In the aftermath, Yao Guang proposed holding a proper funeral in the World in Canvas. After expending her strength treating those who had undergone the surgery, Evanescia's power waned. Before entering hibernation, she asked you to travel to the World in Canvas and inform Graphia that the Lord Ravager "Asat Pramad" had returned. Kuchiba then broke into the Pearluxe Tower, claiming that what Pearl and the IPC sought was the remains of Oroboros the Voracity sealed within Planarcadia by the Phantasmoon Games.