『 "The exact same room…" Hotaru whispered, looking around at the room that was identical to the one before.
██Help█ ███ █ help ██...
An eerie cry for help echoed through the room.
Stelle couldn't help but tighten her grip on her baseball bat, shielding Hotaru behind her.
"Let's keep going."
Stelle chose a different door this time, but after the two walked through it, they found themselves in yet another room indistinguishable from the previous one.
"Again? No, could it be…" Hotaru began to think as she looked at the room they had returned to.
Just then, that eerie voice rang out in the room once more, but this time it was severely distorted, making it difficult for the two to hear what it was saying.
█said███do█not█ ██ █open the box██...
As the voice faded, text appeared in the air once again.
We have nowhere to go...
Don't let him get away!
No, don't come close.
Help me 』
『 ....』
〘March 7th〙: Hiss, it's getting creepier and creepier.
〘Fu Xuan〙: Are these words from the people who entered here before?
〘Black Swan〙: That should be right. Because the Memetic substance in that area is too dense, combined with the dreamscape, it caused this effect.
〘Theresa Apocalypse〙: It's even scarier after the explanation!
....
『 Stelle took a deep breath, pulled Hotaru toward another door, and walked through the familiar corridor.
Ding-a-ling~~
A sound similar to an alarm rang out in the corridor, then dissipated.
Stelle was startled by the noise and, pulling Hotaru, ran quickly toward the door. After pushing it open, what greeted them was still the familiar room.
But this time, the strange voices in the room were becoming more chaotic, as if countless people were whispering in their ears.
█beg█you██ █I████ ███ █scared█...
Help me
Come back here
"The space here is getting more and more wrong… damn it, where did we come in from?" Hotaru asked, looking at the identical doors surrounding them.
After circling a few times, the two had completely lost their sense of direction.
"At this point, we have no choice but to bite the bullet." Stelle gripped Hotaru's hand and pulled her toward a door.
Help
No, don't come close
Penacony must save itself
The two continued through the familiar corridor, but when they arrived at the familiar room, it had changed.
█Let's go home███, █ ███ ██ ███ ███ █ █...
Hotaru pointed at the glowing TV and said rapidly: "The flash from the TV is too blinding… no, wait! Careful, there seems to be something strange…"
Ding-a-ling-a-ling!
Before she could finish, the alarm sound from the corridor rang out in the room too. Then, the TV in front of them suddenly erupted with intense light like a flashbang, forcing the two to hurriedly raise their hands to shield their eyes. 』
『 ....』
〘Stelle〙: Ah, my eyes.
〘Aha〙: Brighter than the sun!
....
『 When the light faded, the two looked at the TV in front of them.
The TV, which should have been showing static, slowly opened an eye! It was a purple, narrow, and long eye that was unsettling to look at.
In an instant, more and more TVs opened their eyes, and countless purple pupils stared at the two with malice.
Stelle looked around nervously, her baseball bat glowing with faint silver light due to the power of the Path.
"Watch out above!" Hotaru shouted.
Stelle looked up reflexively, and her gaze was instantly drawn to the creature before her—a pitch-black being with its face entirely covered in purple pupils, its whole body covered in purple eyes, emerging from a mist. 』
『 ....』
〘Theresa Apocalypse〙: Kyaa, Judah! BEAT IT TO DEATH FOR ME!!!!
〘Otto Apocalypse〙: Be calm, my dear granddaughter.
〘Li Sushang〙: What a creepy creature, I've got goosebumps.
〘Fu Xuan〙: This monster reeks of death…
〘Misha〙: Her name is Sleepie, she's very well-behaved.
〘Stelle〙: Huh???
〘Kiana Kaslana〙: Hm???
〘Hanabi〙: Good name.
....
—✦In Between✦—
—✦Honkai Star Rail World✦—
At this moment, in the Dreamflux Reef at Mikhail's resting place, Gallagher looked at Sleepie on the light screen and smiled. He looked at Mikhail and said:
"Old man, it seems it won't be long before I go down to keep you company. But judging by the content above, what you hoped for has indeed happened. The Nameless have come to save Penacony, it's just a pity that I'm afraid I won't get to see it."
After speaking, Gallagher toasted the light screen, stood beside Mikhail, and continued to watch, slowly waiting for his own curtain call.
—
『 On the screen, Stelle raised her baseball bat without hesitation and smashed it toward the monster's fangs.
Clang!
A crisp metallic clashing sound echoed throughout the room. Stelle's arm went numb from the shock, but Sleepie acted as if nothing had happened. It hovered in mid-air, its wings flashing with strange light, and charged at Stelle.
Then, with a deafening boom, Stelle flew straight backward, her body slamming hard into the wall.
After knocking Stelle away, Sleepie immediately charged at Hotaru, grabbing her into the air in the blink of an eye.
"Cough, cough…" Stelle struggled to stand up, looking at Hotaru, who was being held by Sleepie. She ignored her own injuries and tried to stand, only to find she couldn't.
At this moment, the camera zoomed in on Sleepie's large eyeball. It looked at Hotaru, and red light slowly rose in its eyes. Then the scene cut to Hotaru's clenched left hand. She seemed to want to do something, but after a moment of thought, she finally let her hand drop.
The next moment, a mysterious purple formation appeared under the feet of Sleepie and Hotaru. Once the formation took shape, countless purple crystal hands shot out from it, pressing Sleepie against the ceiling.
"If you don't grasp the correct method… You won't be able to escape the shadow of death unscathed, you know."
A low voice that Stelle felt she had heard somewhere echoed in the room.
Stelle turned to look at the source of the voice and saw a woman wearing a pitch-black bodysuit and a purple cloak, playing with a deck of cards, elegantly sitting on a giant TV with her legs crossed. 』
『 ....』
〘Black Swan〙: So, I've made my move~
〘Stelle〙: A timely save.
....
『 Hotaru slowly stood up from the ground and quickly ran to Stelle's side, asking with concern, "Are you okay?"
Stelle shook her head slightly, indicating she was fine. She then looked vigilantly at the mysterious person who had saved her and Hotaru.
"Don't be so tense, little girls. Rest assured, I am on your side." Black Swan looked at the two vigilant girls and smiled softly, her tone extremely confident.
"Then… what should we call you?" Hotaru asked.
"You can call me... the Memokeeper, Black Swan."
Just as the three were talking, Sleepie let out an earth-shattering, deafening roar, and then it actually broke free from the shackles of the glass arms. Seeing that it had escaped, it immediately charged toward the three.
"See ya next time." Black Swan raised her hand, and Tarot cards flew toward Sleepie. They instantly formed a formation, suppressing Sleepie.
"Let's go." After saying this, Black Swan threw a Tarot card backward. The card shattered upon hitting the TV, forming a purple passage.
Before Stelle could react, she was pulled through it by Hotaru. In the blink of an eye, the two disappeared from the room. 』
『 ....』
〘Hanabi〙: Chicken Wing Boy, can you perform that again? That one.
〘Stelle〙: Is it this one? The Family solemnly promises that there is no danger in Penacony.
〘Aha〙: Yeah, no danger, because that is death~
〘Camille〙: A charming moment for journalism.
....