After swallowing another mouthful of dry, stale air, Dream Weaver struggled to open her eyes.
Squinting, she fumbled blindly by the bedside until she was sure her hand had closed around the water kettle, then forced herself to sit up.
Gulp, gulp.
Only after draining the last of the plain water from the kettle did she begin to feel somewhat better.
She sat blankly on the bed, her eyes staring vacantly ahead, her mind utterly empty.
It took several minutes before she finally began to come to her senses.
Picking up her phone and turning it on, she couldn't help but click her tongue at the time displayed on the screen.
"Up so early today..."
Her alarm hadn't even gone off yet; thirst had woken her first.
Dream Weaver even hesitated for a moment, wondering if she should go back to sleep for a while longer. But she quickly patted her cheeks and dismissed the thought.
After washing up, changing clothes, and storing yesterday's newspaper back into her system inventory, Dream Weaver picked up her schoolbag and stepped out of her room.
With a creak, before her eyes could even adjust to the morning light, Granny Misaki—hearing the noise—looked up in surprise.
She was standing in a small clearing in front of the apartment building, leaning on a broom as she smiled at Dream Weaver.
"Up so early today, little Dream? Do you have something special to do?"
Hearing Granny Misaki's words, Dream Weaver's first thought was of redeeming the Hope Gem—the item that had guided her through several instance worlds had finally met the redemption conditions.
The hope of saving her mother was right before her eyes, close enough to grasp with just a little reach.
Yet, suddenly, she felt something akin to apprehension, a strange hesitation holding her back for a moment.
Luckily, Granny Misaki didn't seem to notice Dream Weaver's flustered expression and continued with a smile.
"But remember to come back early tonight, alright? Didn't we agree yesterday? Everyone in the apartment is having a dinner gathering together."
"When you head to school later, we'll all go out to buy ingredients for tonight's meal."
Looking at the cheerfully smiling Granny Misaki, Dream Weaver felt as if she'd been jolted awake and quickly nodded in agreement.
"Got it, I'll definitely come back early today."
"I'm off to school now, bye Granny!"
With that, she hoisted her bag and scampered out of the apartment building.
Behind her, Granny Misaki waved at Dream Weaver's retreating back, laughing.
"Even if you're coming back early, don't you dare skip class, alright? Your main job right now is still studying."
"Got it—!"
Hearing Dream Weaver's spirited reply, the old woman smiled and resumed sweeping the small courtyard in front of the apartments.
--+--
Meanwhile, Dream Weaver ran all the way to the train station and boarded the line heading straight for Central Tracen Academy.
Sitting in her seat, Dream Weaver leaned against the handrail beside her, eyes fixed dazedly ahead.
She hadn't expected to hesitate at a time like this. Before she could redeem the Hope Gem, she had already imagined countless scenarios of waking her mother in her mind.
But now, at this final step, she felt an inexplicable panic.
"So I was never really prepared, after all."
Dream Weaver murmured softly.
Only at this moment did she finally realize: she had achieved her goal.
A hundred thousand points, and the Proof of Triple Crown—two requirements that had once seemed like insurmountable chasms—had now been overcome.
Now, nothing could stop her from saving her mother.
She let out a long sigh, shook her head as if to dislodge the strange emotions swirling inside, and muttered to herself, "I'll just go back to the apartment for the gathering today."
"Tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll take leave and go to the hospital to wake Mother up."
Though tinged with uncertainty, the outcome didn't allow her to stall any longer.
This was, after all, the goal she had strived for until now.
How could she slow down because of some vague, inexplicable feeling? She just needed a little buffer time.
It just so happened that today's apartment gathering provided the perfect excuse for that buffer. Within this day, she would figure out what to say when she saw her mother tomorrow.
Dream Weaver thought to herself.
Leaning against the train's handrail, she stared blankly ahead, imagining in her mind what would happen tomorrow after she woke her mother.
Only when the announcement for Central Tracen Station sounded did Dream Weaver suddenly snap back to reality from her daze.
Seeing the doors about to close, Dream Weaver had no time to hesitate—she grabbed her bag and dashed out.
Fortunately, with her racehorse-like speed, covering that short distance to exit the train was more than enough.
Just as she let out a sigh of relief, the Uma Musume who had been stared at by Dream Weaver the entire ride finally relaxed as well.
Mr. C.B. pressed a hand to her chest, feeling the inexplicably fiery emotion burning inside, momentarily at a loss.
She'd had a strange dream today.
It was a dream where the meaning of the Triple Crown had been distorted, and she and her companions had gathered to set things right, embarking on a path of resistance.
This dream hadn't ended abruptly like most dreams do—Mr. C.B. remembered everything from start to finish. In the end, they had achieved their dreams, just as they'd wished.
Though the specific details of the dream had grown somewhat hazy since morning, the joy of realizing those dreams still lingered in Mr. C.B.'s heart.
Some of the characters in the dream were Uma Musume she knew personally, like Symboli Rudolf and Shinzan, so at first Mr. C.B. thought she had simply woven a story in her dream using people from her surroundings.
But among them was an Uma Musume she had never seen before.
At first, Mr. C.B. thought this Uma Musume was just a product of her imagination, but she couldn't help wondering—could she really imagine someone who felt so real?
Until now, it was still just a somewhat strange dream.
But perhaps because of that peculiar Uma Musume, Mr. C.B. didn't want to waste time commuting today and, breaking her usual habit, had chosen to take the train to school.
And it was this choice that made Mr. C.B.'s breath catch for an instant.
That Uma Musume from her dream—the one who had guided her, pulled her back from a cage called 'freedom' onto the racetrack—was she really appearing before her eyes right now?!
And she was even staring right at her.
Mr. C.B. knew her expression must look bizarre; otherwise, why would her face feel so hot to the touch?
Under that Uma Musume's unwavering gaze, Mr. C.B. squirmed uncomfortably in her seat as if sitting on pins and needles, her heart pounding wildly beneath those undisguised eyes.
Why was she staring like that? Could it be… she had the same dream and recognized me here?!
But before Mr. C.B. could break free from her confusion and muster the courage to approach that Uma Musume, the other girl stood up and left her seat first.
Left behind, Mr. C.B. felt relieved, yet also an inexplicable sense of loss.
Why did she leave so suddenly? Would she run into her here again at this time tomorrow?
And if she was also an Uma Musume, would she meet her again at Tracen?
Before Mr. C.B. could finish her thoughts, as the train doors closed and the announcement for the next station played, she watched the unfamiliar scenery flash by outside the window and finally realized something.
She had… missed her stop, hadn't she?
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.