"Everyone, the check-in issue has been resolved. It's time to experience the real Penacony—uh, did something happen?"
When Himeko and Welt finally returned after battling Penacony's regulations, they saw Caelus and the other two still gathered around Twilight, comforting her, looking afraid she might suddenly go berserk.
"Uh, it's nothing, just little Twilight seemed a bit stressed after seeing an older sister…?"
Caelus's vague tone made Himeko a little puzzled, but seeing that everyone seemed unharmed, she figured it probably wasn't a big deal.
"Alright, let's put aside the unhappy little things for now. I have good news for everyone—" Himeko looked at everyone's curious gazes and smiled slightly. "Although there was a small incident earlier, the actual managers of the hotel, Mr. Sunday and Miss Robin, have upgraded our room types as compensation~"
"Upgraded room types?"
"Miss Robin?!"
Caelus and March 7th reacted quite strongly. In comparison, Twilight was much calmer.
Firstly, she wasn't interested in idols. Beauty held zero attraction for Twilight—could anyone be cuter than herself?
Secondly, upgrading room types… Hehe, did they know what she was carrying right now? It was the gold card of a Corporation executive! A mere room upgrade was just pocket change, nothing worth mentioning~
It was only because March 7th and Caelus missed the opportunity to fleece the big spender Aventurine that they were getting excited over such a small matter.
But since March 7th is so easily impressed, maybe I can try a domineering CEO style to farm her favorability later…
Himeko and the others were still discussing the suspicions surrounding Sunday and Robin, as well as the invitation letter cum distress signal the train received from the [Clockmaker]. But Twilight was equally uninterested in this. Her mind was only filled with thoughts of what posture would be more enjoyable for farming wool in the dreamscape.
And this seemingly detached appearance once again aroused Dan Heng's suspicion—Twilight today seemed to be spacing out frequently?
Strange, did she have this habit before? If she wasn't interested in the topic, didn't she usually choose to just sleep… Now she wasn't sleeping, just spacing out?
Did she not want to sleep, or was there a reason she couldn't sleep…
Of course, Twilight noticed Dan Heng looking at her, but so what?
She never cared.
——
After entering the Penacony Grand Hotel, Caelus finally understood—his protagonist halo hadn't disappeared, it just arrived a little late!
When he arrived at his room according to the number, he found the door wide open, and a strange blonde man waiting inside. The man spoke a bunch of confusing riddles to him, the gist being that he was from the Corporation and hoped to cooperate with him and the Express crew to explore the secrets behind Penacony and the Family together.
Caelus wasn't really interested, but the man named Aventurine was surprisingly clingy. Just then, Acheron, whom he had met not long ago, suddenly appeared at the door, drove away this Aventurine for Caelus, and also spoke a bunch of confusing riddles… Simply put, she felt Caelus looked somewhat familiar, giving her the illusion that they were once sworn enemies who crossed swords.
Heh, just a woman's little trick to get his attention—although Caelus really wanted to joke like that, he felt that saying this would have serious consequences, so he ultimately held his tongue.
A madman who stubbornly chases the lingering shadows even after the sun has long set… Although Acheron said he reminded her of such a person, Caelus didn't think he was that unlucky—this person sounded like a simp who knew he would get nothing in the end but still desperately pushed forward.
He wasn't such a failure. Weren't both Twilight and the white-haired sister showing super obvious affection for him? As the Galaxy Baseball Bat Man, he wasn't a simp, but an absolute winner in life!
Especially after he found a way to cure Twilight… Speaking of which, Himeko mentioned earlier that Penacony had a large library. Maybe he could find something there.
And if he still couldn't find it…
Aventurine and Acheron had both left, and silence returned to the room. Caelus stood in front of the dream pool, silently staring at the reflection on the water's surface.
He wasn't a fool. After contacting Aventurine and Acheron, he naturally understood that behind the seemingly peaceful Penacony, there must be a turbulent conspiracy… But the greater the crisis, the greater the opportunity it contained… If normal methods couldn't save Twilight, perhaps those conspirators would have some taboo methods.
Whether he used them in the end or not, he always had to contact these people, just as a last resort.
Taking a deep breath, Caelus made up his mind and silently stepped into the dream pool.
…
"Caelus, before you embark on this trailblazing journey, can you answer a few questions for me first?"
A familiar voice sounded in his ear. Caelus suddenly opened his eyes. He didn't see the magnificent dream city as expected, but instead found himself sitting in a dimly lit hotel room. Beside him was a familiar lady with long, pale hair.
"White Hair?!"
Seeing Caelus's surprised look, she just smiled slightly without responding, continuing to ask: "Caelus, on the path of trailblazing, you have already established connections with many people, and after this, you will form bonds with even more—do you feel fear at the thought of losing these connections?"
"That depends on the situation. If it means everyone disappears…" Caelus briefly imagined the scene of everyone on the Express disappearing, and immediately shivered. "No, no, absolutely not!"
"Yes, regardless of oneself, one always feels fear when relatives and friends nearby are harmed." The white-haired woman's eyelashes lowered slightly as she asked the second question.
"...Then, if there was a dream that could mend all regrets and make everything unfold as you ideally wish—would you be willing to indulge in it?"
"The world in dreams is virtual, no matter how strong you are in a dream, it's fake…" Caelus didn't hesitate on this question. How could anyone be willing to indulge in dreams? Wasn't that purely escaping reality? As a winner in life, how could he do something so pathetic!
"That's right, no matter how tempting the dream, it's all false… Even if reality is painful, one cannot choose to escape because of it."
"Last question…" She tilted her head closer to Caelus, her somewhat dim greyish-white eyes looking directly into his pupils. "If you already knew the end of the journey before embarking, would you still set foot on this journey?"
"How could Trailblazing be such an inconvenient thing! The so-called Trailblazing is about breaking through the end point and continuing forward!"
"...Yes, the so-called Trailblazing is about continuing to walk no matter what. My answers are exactly the same as yours, Caelus." Amidst Caelus's somewhat puzzled gaze, she gently raised her hand and tapped his forehead. "So, remember your true heart."
"See you next time, Caelus."
The next moment, everything around him seemed to start rushing away frantically. In just a daze, Caelus found that he was no longer in the dim hotel—but in the sky right above the city!
"?!"
After the riddler segment comes high-altitude bungee jumping without a rope?! Penacony is too thrilling!