『 [ Do you believe in karma? ]
The Dreammaster asked suddenly.
[ If karma truly exists, then all sentient beings have karma—you have yours, and I have mine. ]
[ And my karma has nothing to do with you, Mr. Gopher Wood. ]
Sunday looked at the Dreammaster with a flat expression.
[ ... ]
[ Alright, since you're willing to sacrifice yourself for her, I'll grant your wish. ]
After a moment of silence, the Dreammaster made a concession.
[ The concession came faster than I expected. ]
[ Why? ]
The Dreammaster's readiness made Sunday suspicious.
[ You were born as the twins of Order; fate decreed that one of you would tread this path and arrive at the destined ending. ]
The Dreammaster explained.
[ Was this also part of your design? ]
Sunday countered.
[ Of course, you are just as clever as you were when you were a child. ]
[ The moment of the opening draws near. ]
[ Go, child. ]
[ Usurp the authority of the Harmony, and reveal your karma. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Furina de Fontaine: "Twins of Order?"
Furina de Fontaine: "What does that mean?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Does it mean Miss Robin and Mr. Sunday were born to tread the Path of Order?"
Stelle: "Sounds like bullshit to me."
Stelle: "He's just a remnant of Order, yet he keeps spouting off about fate."
Stelle: "If Order could see through fate, would it have fallen?"
Hu Tao: "This line sounds more like the Dreammaster had long anticipated unexpected situations."
Hu Tao: "So he prepared a double insurance."
Hu Tao: "Everything is just a conspiracy by the Dreammaster."
Robin: "Sigh… It's truly hard to believe that Mr. Gopher Wood, who adopted us back then, was never a believer in the Harmony."
Lumine: "Then, is Mr. Sunday's current devotion to Order also the result of his guidance?"
March 7th: "He definitely had a hand in pushing it behind the scenes!"
March 7th: "I just wonder, if Sunday hadn't agreed to cooperate with his plot…"
March 7th: "Would he have had a backup plan?"
Dan Heng: "Someone as calculating as him must have already accounted for everything."
Qingque: Speaking of which, is their plan to usurp the authority of the Harmony?
Qingque: "But is the authority of the Harmony so easy to usurp?"
Qingque: "Are they really not afraid of provoking the descent of the Aeon of Harmony?"
Stelle: "No idea what kind of crazy stunt they're trying to pull."
Stelle: "I can't even imagine how one would usurp an Aeon's authority anyway."
Stelle: "Stealing from an Aeon—that's just asking for a death wish."
....
『 [ I have one final question, Master. ]
[ Why did you choose to have Order descend upon Penacony? ]
[ A world with no way out should have been a better choice, yet you still chose this City of Dreams, where people hold freedom in their hearts. ]
[ Why? ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
March 7th: "Oh, that's a sharp question!"
March 7th: "The Dreammaster went through so much trouble to stir up trouble in Penacony—what is it for?"
March 7th: "Like Sunday said, wouldn't it be better and easier to just promote Order somewhere else?"
Stelle: "Maybe because Penacony is special enough?"
Stelle: "After all, other places aren't like Penacony, capable of becoming a world of sweet dreams."
Furina de Fontaine: "That makes sense."
Furina de Fontaine: "As far as it seems, Penacony is a unique place in the universe."
Furina de Fontaine: "The Dreammaster choosing this place must be the result of careful deliberation."
....
『 [ It's for justice, my child. ]
[ If we lose justice in our hearts, we'll make the same mistake as the Harmony did. ]
The Dreammaster answered Sunday's question profoundly.
[ So, it's not you who manipulates the Dreamscape with the Stellaron, but— ]
Sunday understood something at this moment.
[ Well, that's where our conversation ends. Go ahead. The 107,336 souls of the Oak Family have dreamed of this moment too many times... ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "What the heck?"
Stelle: "What kind of riddle is this?"
March 7th: "The Dreammaster said he chose Penacony for the sake of justice??"
March 7th: "And Sunday seems to confirm that the one manipulating the Stellaron isn't actually the Dreammaster, but someone else??"
Boothill: "What in the tarnation—this situation is way more complicated than we thought!!"
Furina de Fontaine: "The Dreammaster isn't even the mastermind behind the Stellaron?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Then who on earth is controlling this Stellaron?"
Lumine: "It seems now that the Dreammaster is just a simple remnant of Order."
Lumine: "Manipulating the Stellaron wasn't his intention."
Lumine: "His plan was just to revive Order in Penacony."
Qingque: "Is it possible that the one controlling the Stellaron is actually the Family itself?"
Qingque: "They use the power of the Stellaron to deepen the Family's influence over the dream."
Qingque: "Doesn't that seem like a normal thing to do?"
Guinaifen: "What you said actually makes a lot of sense."
Guinaifen: "Maybe it really was the Family's own doing."
Guinaifen: "Otherwise, the Grand Theater of Penacony has been sitting there for so long—did really no one in the Family notice something was wrong with it?"
Jade: "Heh, the Family is far filthier than you imagine."
Jade: "I have said it before: no matter how noble the philosophy of the Harmony is, it cannot stop the greedy desires of some people."
Jade: "To some, they will stop at nothing for profit!"
Welt Yang: "Listening to Ms. Jade, it seems you have grasped some secrets within the Family?"
Jade: "Hardly secrets, just some superficial understanding."
Robin: "I never expected that after being away from home for so many years, the Family has become so different from the one in my memories…"
Robin: "No wonder my brother had such a massive change…"
Robin: "I think I can understand his feelings now."
Stelle: "Once we lose the justice within our hearts, we will repeat the mistakes of the Harmony…"
Stelle: "Is this reflecting that the current Family has already fallen?"
Stelle: "And the Dreammaster, who believes in Order, advocates for justice and fairness."
Stelle: "Tsk, put that way, the stature of the remnants of Order is indeed greater than these people in the Family…"
....
『 After the Dreammaster finished speaking, Sunday turned his back, saying nothing more.
However, suddenly, he spun around violently.
He saw the purple night crows covering the ground, having lost their breath at some unknown time.
The atmosphere at the scene, due to this eerie sight, fell into silence. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Holy crap, what happened to the Dreammaster?"
Stelle: "Did he just drop dead suddenly?"
Stelle: "Wasn't he fine just a moment ago?"
Silver Wolf: "Croaked just like that."
Silver Wolf: "That was way too sudden, right?"
March 7th: "I just want to know, why was the Dreammaster a purple crow?"
March 7th: "What kind of method is this?"
March 7th: "Also, did he just commit suicide?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Why would he commit suicide out of the blue?"
Furina de Fontaine: "Wasn't he supposed to watch his plan come to fruition?"
Furina de Fontaine: "What does it mean to just die like that?"
Boothill: "Son of a biscuit, these people, one by one, act like their brains are broken."
Boothill: "Not only do they talk in riddles, but their behavior is also confusing and unfathomable."
Paimon: "After watching such a complex plot, Paimon feels like her IQ has been forcibly raised a bit…"
Lumine: "Oh, really?"
Lumine: "Hehe, then it wasn't a waste to watch!"
Lumine: "If it can make Paimon smarter, THIS PLOT IS WORTH IT!!!"
Paimon: "Uh… are you saying I was stupid before?"
Lumine: "I didn't say it; you said it yourself."
Hu Tao: "Paimon, I'm glad you have self-awareness."
Hu Tao: "That's right, sometimes you are a bit of a goofball."
Paimon: "Grrr… you're meanie!"
Paimon: "PAIMON IS NOT STUPID!!"
Paimon: "Paimon is just occasionally a bit confused!"
Venti: "Ehe, isn't being confused just being silly?"
Paimon: "Tone-deaf bard, you're the silly one!"
....
『 Sunday remained silent for a moment, then turned his back again.
[ I will fly to the high heavens and become the sun in the sky. ]
[ The masses will thrive in my radiance, and all sin shall have nowhere to hide. ]
Sunday muttered as if to himself, behind him were rows of lifeless night crows. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Navia Caspar: "Huh? Wasn't there only one night crow?"
Navia Caspar: "How come the camera cut, and there are so many dead crows on the ground??"
Navia Caspar: "Are these all manifestations of the Dreammaster?"
Furina de Fontaine: "An eerie sight."
Furina de Fontaine: "The Dreammaster must know some evil magic."
Welt Yang: "Perhaps, they were just puppets of Order."
Welt Yang: "I am more concerned with where the Dreammaster has gone now."
Welt Yang: "Has he truly fallen?"
Welt Yang: "Or has he merged with something unknown?"
Stelle: "Eh, feels like the Dreammaster's whereabouts aren't important anymore."
Stelle: "Next, it should be Sunday's main stage."
Stelle: "Listen to his speech."
Stelle: "He's preparing to become the sun."
Hu Tao: "Oh?"
Hu Tao: "So, Sunday is going to transform too?!"
Hu Tao: "Great, looks like I'll get to see a big show again!!"
Hanabi: "Hehe~, what will the chicken-wing boy turn into?"
Hanabi: "Let me guess… into a chicken?"
Hanabi: "And then fly up to the sky?"
Hanabi: "Hahaha~, then I'll definitely die laughing~"
Amber: "Miss Hanabi's words are as malicious as always."
Stelle: "You mean, Sunday isn't going to turn into the sun?"
Stelle: "But instead, after turning into a chicken, he'll rely on crowing to summon the sun?"
March 7th: "???"
March 7th: "How did you seriously analyze that image from Hanabi's words?"
Silver Wolf: "Hahaha, god-tier interpretation. Oh no, I've got the image in my head now!"
Silver Wolf: "I'm going to laugh until I can't stand up!"
Guinaifen: "Pfft, you guys are toxic!"
Guinaifen: "Please, stop coming up with these abstract images."
Guinaifen: "If you keep this up, the little bit of dignity and dominance Mr. Sunday just established is going to be completely wiped out by you guys!"
Sunday: "..."
....
『 2 system hours before the start of the Harmony Festival, at the same location.
At this time, Stelle and the others had already arrived.
[ This is the inside of the Penacony Grand Theater. ]
Himeko looked around and said to the two of them.
[ The feeling of being blasted into the sky by soda is quite exciting. ]
[ However… the Harmony Festival is about to start, but why hasn't it opened for admission yet? ]
The grand theater was quiet, which made March 7th a bit puzzled.
[ Not only that, but the whole theater is unusually quiet. ]
[ Not only are there no audience members, but I haven't even seen any staff or performers… ]
Himeko also felt something was off.
[ Tsk, looks like the Charmony Festival was a flop at the box office! ]
Stelle smiled and made a joke.
[ Yeah, I wonder how many tickets... Hey, that's not what we should be concerned about! ]
March 7th was almost led astray by Stelle's words.
[ Let's look around. ]
[ Everyone, proceed with caution. ] 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "The Harmony Festival is about to start."
Stelle: "If they aren't letting people in now, are they planning to let us watch it alone?"
Stelle: "But with just us few in the audience, it won't be lively enough!"
March 7th: "Did you forget?"
March 7th: "Sunday didn't invite us to be the audience."
March 7th: "He invited us to get on stage and perform with him!"
Furina de Fontaine: "That's not a performance, right?"
Furina de Fontaine: "It should be a showdown."
Himeko: "It seems Mr. Sunday doesn't want to make this matter known to everyone either."
Welt Yang: "Heh, he's leaving enough leeway for the Family."
Welt Yang: "Is he still considering old ties after all?"
Dan Heng: "Sigh, why go this far?"
....
『 The three began to walk toward the depths of the Grand Theater.
[ My god, the atmosphere in this theater is too eerie, it's so creepy… ]
[ Even if the audience hasn't entered, there should at least be stagehands. Why is there no sound at all?
The empty interior of the Grand Theater was deathly silent, giving March 7th a hair-raising feeling.
[ Yikes! They scared the life out of me! Why are there so many... puppets at the ticket office? ]
Passing by the ticket office, March 7th was almost scared out of her wits by the eerie puppets standing there.
[ M—March... b—behind you... ]
At this moment, Stelle feigned a frightened expression and reminded March 7th.
[ Wh—What...? Ah! You're so annoying! Stop scaring me! ]
March 7th was startled and couldn't help but smack Stelle. 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
March 7th: "What a bad person!"
March 7th: "In such a gloomy atmosphere, you actually scared me!"
Stelle: "What do you mean, scared you? I'm bolstering your courage!"
Silver Wolf: "Reverse courage, huh?"
Silver Wolf: "Your way of bolstering courage is pretty hardcore."
Guinaifen: "Come to think of it, how can such a magnificent Grand Theater be made to look so gloomy?"
Qingque: "Did you forget?"
Qingque: "The essence of this Grand Theater is a Stellaron, known as the Cancer of All Worlds!"
....