"I'll be back."
"And next time, I'll bring my companions."
"They should've already entered the dream by now."
Evan looked at Mikhail and let out a quiet sigh.
Back in the Reverie Hotel lobby, he had already seen Misha—
Which meant the memory bubble in Mikhail's hands was empty.
To truly inherit Mikhail's legacy—
They would need to retrieve his memories from the Child's Dream.
But that…
Didn't matter much to Evan.
He had already obtained what he came for.
The treasure.
The Will of Trailblaze.
A power that moved forward without hesitation.
With it—
He now held a fourth Path.
Erudition. Preservation. Remembrance.
And now—
Trailblaze.
"I understand."
Evan looked at Gallagher.
The man appeared middle-aged—
But in truth, that form wasn't very old.
After all—
Gallagher had only taken on this identity for Mikhail.
Evan smiled faintly.
"By the way… where are the other two buried?"
"I didn't see their graves earlier. I'd like to pay my respects."
"Head out from here," Gallagher replied.
"You'll see a raised platform."
"They're buried there."
"The three Nameless… and their original dream."
"…Got it."
"See you."
"See you."
With the Will of Trailblaze now within him—
Evan stepped onto the platform.
From here—
He could see where Mikhail rested.
But not just him.
Also buried here—
Were his companions.
Nameless Tiernan.
Nameless Razalina.
Nameless Lagwork.
Evan created three flowers—
And placed one before each grave.
Silence.
Of the three—
Only Mikhail's grave bore no name.
As if—
His life needed no inscription.
As if—
Judgment was left to those who came after.
Evan looked at the graves.
"Mikhail. Tiernan. Razalina."
"I'll bring everyone to visit you."
"The Astral Express has already returned."
"All injustice… will be overturned."
"Gopher Wood's end is coming."
He placed the flowers down.
Closed his eyes briefly.
…
Golden Hour — Return
The deeper dream truly felt different.
The Reef of Flowing Dreams was pure.
But here—
Everything felt…
Artificial.
"Ah~ finally found you, little dark-haired one~"
"Hmm, no no… I should say—little cutie~"
"Did you miss me?"
Evan had just bought a bottle of SoulGlad from a vending machine—
When a familiar voice rang out.
The next moment—
The drink in his hand was gone.
Slurp.
"Fifty thousand credits."
Evan said flatly.
"I assume a Masked Fool isn't broke."
He casually bought another bottle.
Opened it.
Took a long drink.
"Ah…"
That sweet, fizzy taste—
Instantly washed away the irritation from earlier.
"Hey~ don't be so stingy~"
"It's just a drink~ you'll make me sad, you know?"
The "little goldfish" finally revealed herself.
A lively girl with twin tails—
Playful.
Charming.
Dangerous.
Sparkle.
She leaned in close without hesitation.
No sense of personal space whatsoever.
A revolver appeared on the table.
She smiled.
"Want to play a game~?"
"No."
Evan rejected her instantly.
"Come on~ play with me~"
"If you help me stir everything into chaos…"
"I'll let you become mine~"
"…Oh?"
Evan raised an eyebrow.
"So you're offering to become mine?"
"Pfft—no, no! You become mine!"
Her finger traced lightly across his lips.
Cool.
Provocative.
Evan moved to bite it—
But she slipped away at the last second.
Perfect control.
But—
Evan wrapped an arm around her waist.
Pulled her onto his lap.
Sparkle didn't resist.
Instead, she leaned into him, smiling.
"Hehe~ does that mean you agree?"
"You're troublesome."
"There's no such thing as someone who isn't~"
She stood back up.
Picked up the revolver.
Pressed it to her temple.
"Still—want to play?"
Click.
Empty chamber.
She handed it to Evan.
Evan glanced at it.
Then smiled.
"Sure."
"But your game is boring."
"Let's play something bigger."
"…Bigger?"
For once—
Sparkle hesitated.
She hadn't come here just for fun.
There was also—
The script.
Given to her by Silver Wolf.
Her task:
Find a girl named Firefly—
And arrange three "deaths" for her.
Perfectly executed.
No real harm.
That was the script.
But now—
Evan leaned closer.
"Let's blow Penacony sky-high."
"…Oh wow."
Sparkle's eyes lit up instantly.
"That's AMAZING!"
"This is peak entertainment!!"
"Little cutie~"
"You'd fit right into our Tavern!"
"How about I get you a mask?"
"I'll personally invite you~"
She was practically glowing with excitement.
Even passersby turned to look.
"A Masked Fool's mask?"
Evan said calmly.
"You mean… this?"
He placed a mask on the table.
Sparkle froze.
"…Oh?"
"That aura…"
"By the Elation!"
"That's Aha's presence!!"
She looked at Evan—
Eyes shining.
"Even the Aeon of Elation approves of you!"
"…So?"
Evan leaned back.
"Still want to play?"
"If we're doing this—let's go all in."
His gaze sharpened.
He wasn't joking.
He really intended—
To blow the dream apart.
Gopher Wood liked hiding, didn't he?
Using sacrifices?
Playing god?
Then fine.
Let's flip the entire board.
"…Hehe…"
"Fun. So fun!"
Sparkle clapped excitedly.
"But… my mission…"
She handed him the script.
Silver Wolf's printout.
Elio's script.
A prophecy.
Firefly would face three deaths in Penacony.
First—
Her life taken by "Sleep."
Second—
She would kill herself to awaken from the dream.
Third—
She would carry a bomb into deep memoria—
To save others.
Each death—
A performance.
Each step—
Planned.
Without Sparkle—
It would've become real death.
But with her—
It became a stage.
To read advanced Chapters, head over to p@treon:
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