The Starsending is an annual event where people channel wishes into a Wishing Star and hang it on a tree. At Night Raven College, students selected to be “Stargazers” collect wishes from other students to hang on campus tree, and then perform a ceremony with traditional dancing and drumming.
Trey, Idia, and Deuce are selected as Stargazers, but Idia refuses to participate in fear of public humiliation.
Deuce insists that Idia join the group, and Idia points out that Deuce has been lagging behind in both wish-collecting and dancing. Deuce makes a bet with Idia: if he meets both his own and Idia’s wish-collecting quota while also improving his dancing, Idia will have to participate in the ceremony in person. If he fails, Idia will not be participating at all.
The students’ wishes are:
・Grim: to become a great mage
・Riddle: “for Heartslabyul to soundly crush the other dorms with our scores on the next exams”
・Trey: to receive a state-of-the-art food processor, a wish that he grants for himself by appealing to Riddle
・Cater: “for my life at school to be chill”
・Ace: for Grim to quit causing trouble
・Leona: to eat lots of meat
・Ruggie: to get a high-paying job
・Jack: to run faster than a sleigh pulled by a reindeer
・Azul: for Mostro Lounge to flourish more than before
・Jade: to become capable of granting Azul and Floyd’s wishes
・Floyd: for new shoes
・Kalim: for everyone to be happy
・Jamil: “to take a trip by myself”
・Vil: “for all of you to quit nagging me right now”
・Rook: to drink in every last bit of beauty in the world
・Epel: to grow taller
・Malleus: for Roaring Drago to make a friend
・Lilia: for humans, fae, and all other species to live in harmony.
・Silver: “for my father to have a long life”
・Sebek: “for the whole world to kneel before our king”
Deuce goes to Jamil and Kalim for help with his dancing and improves, and successfully collects all the wishes he needs to win his bet with Idia.
Deuce wishes to become a police officer, while Idia wishes for a sequel to video game “Star Rogue.” Ortho explains than he and Idia would play it together often when they were younger, but the development team disbanded after announcing the sequel, and they have been waiting for production to resume ever since.
Ortho wishes for Idia’s wish to come true.
The day before the ceremony a pair of bullies tries to attack the wishing stars but Deuce intervenes. Deuce threatens them with violence and chases them away, earning himself praise from Trey and Silver.
On the day of the ceremony there are gathering storm clouds that threaten rain, which would result in the cancellation of the event. Idia insists that it is safe to continue, not wanting to disappoint Ortho.
An anxious Idia coincidentally meets with Vil before his performance, who warns Idia that his poster is going to be posted online. Idia says that he will never have the mindset of “extroverts” who enjoy “basking in front of the camera” and Vil says that he sometimes does not permit people to photograph him at all, inspiring Idia.
The headmage attempts to cancel the ceremony as the weather worsens and Idia reveals his first secret weapon: Ortho, in a new “Stargazer Gear” attachment that will enable him to carry the Wishing Stars beyond the clouds.
Ortho’s rocketing through the clouds disperses them and clears the sky. Releasing the Wishig Stars into space, they rain down like shooting stars.
As students try to take pictures on their phones Idia reveals his second secret weapon: he is using a jammer that disables smartphone apps so that no one is able to photograph them.
Following the ceremony, however, it is revealed that there were reporters in attendance with “old-fashioned film cameras” who published photos of him in local newspapers.
Idia then discovers that the Star Rogue development team was inspired to reunite and resume work on the game’s sequel after seeing Ortho’s meteor shower, resulting in Idia and Ortho indirectly granting their own wishes.
Twisted Wonderland Reference Note 