The Express crew ultimately decided to take turns watching over Twilight.
Although Caelus and March 7th both desperately wanted to stay by her side, considering her attitude, finding a way to quickly solve the puzzle of the Watchmaker's legacy seemed like the best solution to persuade her to leave Penacony and seek treatment from Herta.
They decided to draw lots to determine the order, and the first one to stay behind was Dan Heng.
After the others left to investigate the truth of the Watchmaker's legacy, only silence remained in the large room.
Although Dan Heng wracked his brains trying to say something to fill the dead quiet, his conversational skills weren't like March 7th's or Caelus's, enabling him to amuse Twilight single-handedly and distract her.
Dan Heng didn't know what kind of pain Twilight was enduring; he hadn't experienced it himself. But the unsettling descriptions from the doctors and scholars were enough to send chills down his spine.
The doctor said Twilight hadn't just fallen ill at that moment; collapsing was merely because her condition had deteriorated to a critical point... She had already been suffering intense pain long before that.
Yet Twilight hadn't shown any sign of it...
No, perhaps she had.
Sitting on the chair beside the bed, Dan Heng looked at Twilight. She wasn't speaking, just staring at the patterns on the blanket, her brow furrowed. Suddenly, he realized something.
Twilight... seemed to have been spacing out frequently for some time now... just like she was doing currently.
Now he knew she was likely spacing out because the pain was so overwhelming it was difficult to react to anything else—but what about before?
When Twilight first started her journey, before her illness manifested, she never had the habit of spacing out.
So there was only one possibility: Twilight had been suffering even back then, she just never said anything... Perhaps she didn't say it because she didn't want others to worry.
But what about him? Did he notice her condition?
Perhaps he did. Dan Heng felt his limbs grow cold. He had noticed, he just—didn't pay attention.
Though he never voiced it, deep down, perhaps he truly had thought back then... that he didn't need to worry about Twilight because she was strong enough.
But no matter how strong, couldn't she still get hurt? How long ago was it that she was injured back in Belobog?!
Dan Heng felt a chill deep inside. Did someone like him even deserve to call the Express crew his most important companions?
Even the shadow of his past self seemed to value companions far more than he did...
...
Dan Heng, are you okay? You're supposed to be looking after the patient, why are you getting emo yourself?
Seeing Dan Heng, who had unknowingly slumped in his chair staring at the floor, his face heavy, and hearing the system notifications of continuous energy gain, Twilight was genuinely amused.
This is why introspective people make great sheep; they generate their own gold coins.
But no more emo for now. Too many blows in a short time; Twilight worried Dan Heng might just snap and become a madman or a goldfish [forgetful/scatterbrained].
Kevin's precedent was still fresh in mind... Besides, what kind of look was it for Astral Express members to be listless in Penacony? They needed to keep their spirits up and uphold the dignity of [Trailblaze].
"Dan Heng...?"
Startled awake by Twilight's voice, Dan Heng found her lake-green eyes looking at him with concern. "Do you want to go with everyone else?"
"I'm sorry, if it weren't for me..."
"It's not like that!" Dan Heng wanted nothing more than to kick his past self from minutes ago square in the face, make him think about what he was doing—as the caretaker, he was now being worried over by the patient?!
And Twilight noticed his state even under these circumstances, yet he himself...
Comparisons are odious. Dan Heng's already deep remorse swelled further.
"Actually, I want to go too," Twilight looked at her hands resting on the bed; they trembled slightly beyond her control. "Going on adventures with everyone, remembering so many things... But right now, I'd just be in the way. Can't cause trouble for everyone."
"Twilight, companions are never trouble," Seeing the unusually downcast Twilight, Dan Heng forcefully suppressed all his negative emotions and tried to comfort her. "There will be plenty of opportunities later, no need to worry... Right, don't you have that notebook for recording wishes? Why not write down things you want to do now, and we can all do them together when you're better?"
"My... wishes?" Twilight stared blankly at the notebook on the bedside table. She tried to lift her hand slightly to reach for it, but Dan Heng had already quickly placed it in front of her.
"Thank you..." Twilight silently flipped open her notebook. The notebook, blank just months ago, was now filled with various drawings.
All the pages with drawings now had red circles drawn on them, signifying wishes fulfilled... but those mostly belonged to March 7th, Caelus, or others on the Express.
Flipping to the end, only three blank pages remained for herself.
Twilight laid the notebook open on the bed, staring blankly at the page for a long time before silently starting to draw.
Dan Heng sat quietly, watching her draw. Come to think of it, this seemed to be the first time Twilight had drawn something for herself in it.
Only when Twilight stopped did Dan Heng lean slightly closer to look at the contents.
Having spent so much time together, Dan Heng could now understand some of Twilight's abstract drawings, especially the recurring figures—like the two people in the current picture, whom he instantly recognized as Twilight and Caelus.
The picture was simple: just small figures of Twilight and Caelus standing together smiling in front of a golden sun.
"This is...?"
"I heard there's a dreamscape where you can see the sunrise... I looked for it before, couldn't find where it was." Twilight's face held a mix of hope and disappointment.
Dan Heng understood. Penacony's dreamscapes were almost entirely nocturnal scenes; dawn was a rare sight. It was normal for Twilight to want to see it.
"Want to go with Caelus?"
"Want to take pictures together..." As if remembering something, Twilight shook her head, her eyes full of grievance. "Want to make up with Caelus, don't want him to be angry anymore... But, still haven't found the person..."
Was she still talking about that girl Firefly? Thinking of this, Dan Heng couldn't help but feel a flicker of resentment towards Caelus, but it quickly turned into the same helplessness—what right did he have to criticize Caelus?
"I think he's probably not angry anymore... How about you just go with him directly later?"
"He wasn't talking to me just now," Twilight said dejectedly.
"That's probably... just because he didn't know what to say." Dan Heng deeply understood Caelus's feelings then; after all, he too could only remain silent moments ago. Having hurt Twilight, he didn't know what to say... Caelus's silence likely stemmed from the same reason.
"Then this... can be fulfilled?"
Seeing the glimmer of hope finally returning to Twilight's eyes, Dan Heng nodded seriously. "Don't worry, it definitely will."
"Didn't you already fulfill all the wishes in this entire notebook yourself before? So the remaining ones... will surely be fulfilled too."
"Haha, what wish is causing trouble? Why not tell me about it? I always like helping my friends~"
Twilight didn't get to respond to Dan Heng; instead, a flippant voice interjected.
"Entering uninvited, not even knocking... Are people from the IPC always this rude?"
His slightly improved mood plummeted again. Dan Heng's gaze towards the newcomer turned icy.
"An envoy from the IPC openly making threats of attack within the dreamscape. I thought you'd be busy fabricating your innocence to The Family right now... How about considering mental illness? I hear The Family treats mentally ill patients leniently. I think it suits you."
"Why so hostile, my friends?" Aventurine, who had appeared at the doorway at some point, smiled, removing his sunglasses to reveal his inscrutable eyes. "I'm here to help you."