Stepping out of the dreamscape, Twilight's form reappeared in the real-world corridor of Penacony. She instinctively frowned.
A faint discomfort lingered in her body. Though slight, this was after being dulled by pain control, indicating her physical deterioration was still ongoing.
She had planned to find Caelus immediately upon leaving the dream, but now it seemed better to wait a bit, let the debuff timer run out first.
"Twilight? There you are! Where on earth did you run off to?!"
Just as Twilight stood there contemplating life, March 7th's exclamation rang out from the other end of the corridor. She quickly ran over to Twilight's side. "We couldn't find you in the dreamscape, and we couldn't find you in reality either! You scared us to death! Did something happen?"
Twilight didn't answer immediately. Like an overloaded old computer, she seemed to buffer for a moment before finally looking at March 7th and slowly shaking her head. "Looking for someone in the dreamscape... Didn't find her."
"Looking for someone? ...Ah, is it that girl Firefly Caelus mentioned?" March 7th's expression turned a bit strange as she brought this up. "We heard from Caelus what happened earlier. There must be some misunderstanding, right? Maybe there was something else going on that Caelus didn't see, and that's why he misunderstood you..."
"No... Back then, I just... didn't really want to help her." Twilight shook her head honestly. She had indeed seen that Firefly wasn't entirely willing to be taken by the bus, [Something Unto Death].
But since Twilight disliked Firefly deceiving Caelus, and knew it posed no real threat to her, not helping her with that small matter seemed normal.
However, her answer sounded rather awkward to someone who didn't know the full picture.
Wow, is this Little Twilight's true personality...?
March 7th felt like she was getting to know Twilight all over again. To say she was disillusioned would be too much, but it certainly created a subtle sense of unease in her heart.
But March 7th always adjusted quickly. Unlike Caelus, she had never even met Firefly, let alone developed any feelings for her, so she wouldn't get hung up on it.
So what if Little Twilight didn't help? No one ever said Little Twilight had to like everyone and protect everyone, right?
It was normal for her to have her own feelings; she wasn't some unfeeling puppet, after all. Besides, no matter how fierce Little Twilight might be towards outsiders, she was absolutely loyal to March 7th and the rest of the Express crew!
Whether March caused trouble and needed Twilight's backing, or had some wish... Saying something that might earn her a smack from Himeko, March 7th felt Twilight treated her even better than Himeko did.
In this situation, if asked to choose between Firefly and Twilight—March 7th only had one answer.
"Ah, it's okay, it's okay! It's normal not to find her. After all, people who die in dreams get scared awake!" March 7th patted Twilight's hair. "Just rest today. Look how tired you are, you're even spacing out~ Tomorrow, I'll help you look for that Firefly girl in reality."
"Tomorrow..." Twilight's expression flickered for a moment, then she offered a serene smile. "Mm, thank you, March."
"Hehehe, I told you not to smile like that around too many people, the destructive power is too great... Then it's a promise!"
Twilight stood still, watching March 7th bounce back to her own room, happy as a big, air-headed bunny.
There's a saying: You never know which will come first, tomorrow or an unexpected accident.
This promise with March 7th probably wouldn't be kept. She still had to help Aventurine with his send-off tomorrow.
As a conscientious trader, she wouldn't slack off, preparing to give Aventurine a grand funeral with her full power. Given her current physical state, overexerting herself again, even in a dream, would likely become unsustainable...
Being able to move around cheerfully like a normal person was probably limited to today. Soon, even these brief, pain-free moments might disappear.
As for Aventurine's method to keep her alive... Heh, Twilight certainly liked the sound of it, but it couldn't help her right now, at least.
So, how should she spend her last days?
A. Go find Himeko and Welt, have them take her to experience some of that Penacony fun only available in adults-only establishments—though they'd likely refuse, it should still be amusing.
B. Go find March 7th and Dan Heng, have them take her out for a fun night.
C. Go find Caelus, who just lost his little girlfriend, was currently fuming, and blaming her. Then, most likely, completely trigger his anger with yet another late-night disturbance, get kicked out, and then sit outside his door all night.
Which to choose? Sigh, such a difficult decision~
...
Caelus tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.
His mind and body told him he was exhausted and needed rest, but the unresolved frustration churning within him made peaceful sleep impossible.
He didn't even know the exact reason for his distress... Was it failing to save Firefly? Was it seeing a companion die before his eyes?
Or was it Twilight's coldness, which defied his understanding? Or perhaps his own accusations towards her in the heat of the moment?
The more he thought, the less sense it made, and the less sense it made, the worse he felt... Ultimately, irritation became Caelus's dominant emotion.
But everyone needs rest. Caelus understood that his exhausted self was making irrational emotional decisions. If he rested until tomorrow, things might look better.
After tossing and turning for a long time, Caelus finally grasped a faint drowsiness, his thoughts gradually sinking deeper.
Finally, I can put things aside and sleep—but just then, a gentle push from beside him completely shattered the drowsiness he had just felt, startling him fully awake!
When someone is exhausted but can't sleep, they become irritable. And when they're abruptly woken just as they're finally drifting off, that irritation turns into—anger.
Caelus snapped his eyes open. Before him stood the very culprit who had plagued his thoughts all day.
She still had those innocent eyes, as if she'd done nothing wrong, gently shaking Caelus, her voice soft like she was coaxing him: "Caelus, come play outside with me."
The calm he had managed to achieve was instantly reignited by the mix of negative emotions. Looking at Twilight's innocent face, Caelus couldn't help but recall Firefly's desperate expression, tears in her eyes as she dissolved into water in his arms.
Desperately trying to control his emotions, Caelus ultimately just raised a hand silently and pointed towards the door. "...Get out."
Caelus's unexpectedly cold reaction made Twilight's slightly happy expression freeze, quickly replaced by unease. "I, I went looking for Firefly earlier... Didn't find her. Tomorrow, March and I will keep looking in reality..."
Didn't find her... To the current Caelus, this news was practically the same as announcing Firefly's death sentence.
As for Twilight's promise to search tomorrow, it felt meaningless to Caelus now—after all, Twilight was happy every day, unaware of how painful Firefly's existence in reality was!
She'd probably rather die than return to reality.
"Caelus, let's go play together—" Seeing Caelus remain silent, Twilight seemed to think he had forgiven her and cautiously tried to tug at the corner of his clothes with her finger.
However, the next moment, her hand was directly dodged.
"Get out."
Caelus covered his face, no longer looking at Twilight. "Give me some time alone. I'm not in the mood to play with you right now, and... I don't want to see you."
He was afraid—afraid that if he kept looking at Twilight acting like nothing happened, he would truly lash out in anger, condemning her cold-bloodedness.
He needed time to cool down... just a day or two. That wasn't long, even for Twilight.
So just give him some time alone.
"——"
Hearing those words, Twilight froze completely.
Caelus had indeed said quite a lot, but she only heard the last five words.
I don't want to see you.
Twilight subconsciously clenched the hem of her clothes. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, nothing came out. She could only lower her head silently and utter a sound as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
"...Mm."
Without another word, Twilight turned silently and left Caelus's room.
The surroundings fell back into dead silence. Exhausted, Caelus lay back down on the bed.
Twilight seemed hurt... But her feelings were just hurt for a moment. Others lost their lives.
What was the right thing to do...?
Already distressed, Caelus found sleep even further away now. All his myriad emotions could only coalesce into a long sigh.
Meanwhile, just on the other side of the wall, standing outside his room, Twilight stared blankly at her surroundings. Finally, she silently hugged her knees and sat down by Caelus's door, like a homeless stray dog abandoned and unsure where to go.
Caelus despised her so much he couldn't even bear to look at her anymore. What else could she do?
Go to sleep? But wasting a rare pain-free day sleeping felt like such a waste... She had to do something, even if it was meaningless.
Hmm, like counting the patterns on the wall and the carpet. One, two...