—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Stelle: "Is it just me, or is this place seriously creepy?"
March 7th: "Creepy doesn't even begin to cover it—it's downright bone-chilling!"
March 7th: "That inexplicable text, and now there are even voices drifting out!"
Houhou: "I-It sort of feels like the whispering of vengeful spirits… (shivering.jpg)"
Nahida: "The structural integrity of this dreamscape is incredibly chaotic."
Nahida: "It gives off a sensation of disordered decay."
Nahida: "Compared to the previous dream worlds, the difference is like night and day."
Aventurine: "Heh, to think such a place exists within The Family's sweet dream…"
Aventurine: "Could it be a little surprise The Family prepared intentionally for their guests?"
Robin: "This…"
Sunday: "The Family has no knowledge of this location."
Sunday: "However, Miss Stelle and Miss Hotaru arrived here due to the machinations of that Masked Fool, Miss Hanabi."
Sunday: "Therefore, I have reason to suspect that all of this is Miss Fool's doing!"
Hanabi: "Oh my~ Chicken Wing Boy, you really do lie through your teeth with your eyes wide open!"
Hanabi: "I am a Fool, not a Memokeeper!"
Hanabi: "I don't have the grand capability to fabricate an entirely new dreamscape within the dream~"
Hanabi: "So, let's be clear: this is just a place that naturally exists within your Family's dreamscape."
Hanabi: "All I did was use a teeny-weeny little trick to send Little Gray Hair and her friend inside."
Hanabi: "Heeheehee~ don't go splashing dirty water on me now, okay?~"
Sampo: "That much is true. Fools indeed lack the capacity to manipulate the dreamscape."
Sampo: "Especially right under The Family's nose."
Dr. Ratio: "Then, The Family owes us an explanation regarding the nature of this unknown dreamscape!"
Welt: "Agreed. A dreamscape of this nature seems to pose a threat to the safety of everyone in Penacony."
Welt: "The Family truly needs to provide an explanation for this."
Furina: "So, after all that talk, is The Family brewing some sort of conspiracy themselves?"
Hu Tao: "Ugh… that seems highly probable."
Robin: "Brother… what exactly is going on?"
Sunday: "Apologies, everyone. To be honest, I am also completely in the dark."
Sunday: "I admit, this is indeed an oversight on The Family's part!"
Sunday: "But please rest assured, The Family will certainly investigate and excise this dangerous dreamscape!"
Sunday: "We will guarantee everyone's safety!"
Sunday: "Absolutely no danger shall appear within The Family's sweet dream!"
Venti: "Ehe, that's quite a responsible statement."
Aventurine: "Heh, nothing but high-sounding rhetoric."
Aventurine: "You keep claiming that no danger exists within The Family's dream."
Aventurine: "Then, I'm quite eager to see if the upcoming footage aligns with your claims!"
....
—✦In Between✦—
"Heh, interesting! Has The Family revealed its cloven hoof so soon? Tsk tsk tsk, I must watch the following scenes with utmost attention."
"It is a pity that these images are being projected by unknown means and cannot be recorded. Otherwise, I guarantee that if this footage were released… The Family would certainly face total ruin and disgrace! When that time comes, the IPC's reclamation of Penacony would be much simpler."
Aventurine watched the scene in the video, the corners of his mouth beginning to curve upward in a frenzy!
—
『 Before a gateway, Stelle and Hotaru hesitated, unwilling to advance.
Hotaru believed that entering this gate would reveal the truth, but Stelle couldn't shake the feeling that the world behind this door might be fraught with danger.
[ Um… staying here isn't a solution either. ]
[ Why don't we go in and take a look? ]
After a moment, Hotaru looked at Stelle and proposed.
[ Uh… you have a point. ]
[ Alright, let's go in and check it out. ]
[ But we must be careful! ]
Stelle felt Hotaru was right and had no choice but to agree.
Then, taking a deep breath, Stelle stepped forward and pushed open the heavy doors before her.
Hotaru followed closely at her side, not straying an inch. Behind the doors lay a long corridor.
Standing at the entrance, it appeared no different from the corridors they had traversed before.
Seeing this, the two breathed a sigh of relief and began to walk inward.
However, the moment they stepped into the corridor…
The doors behind them slammed shut! Then, the lights in the corridor began to extinguish one by one!
A shroud of darkness descended, and the corridor became profoundly deep and gloomy. But this scene did not frighten Stelle and Hotaru away. They exchanged a glance, steeled their nerves, and continued forward.
Moments later, they reached the end of the corridor, facing yet another large door. This time, Stelle and Hotaru did not hesitate; they pushed the door open and entered directly.
Immediately, they found themselves in a dark room.
[ Uh… just a single treasure chest? ]
[ So suspicious. Should we open it…? ]
Upon entering the room, the surroundings were dim, but in the center, a bright spotlight shone down.
Under the spotlight sat an incredibly luxurious treasure chest.
[ Let's open it… ]
Stelle could not resist the temptation of the chest. She stepped forward and threw it open.
However, the instant she opened the chest… A short, sharp ringing sound exploded!
Immediately, the entire room began to light up!
[ Ah?! ]
[ What's happening?! ]
[ Why did all the lights turn on? That's so scary… ]
This sudden turn of events startled Hotaru.
[ However, there are surprisingly many doors here… ]
[ We should be able to leave through one of them… ]
Hotaru summoned her courage to inspect the room under the lights, discovering doors on all sides.
She thought for a moment and reminded Stelle.
Stelle nodded, deciding to explore the door directly in front of them first.
So, the two stepped forward, pushed open the door, and began walking down the corridor.
During this process, bizarre lights would occasionally flash before their eyes.
Soon, they reached the end and pushed the door open once more.
[ … ]
[ It's the exact same room? ]
Walking into the room, they found the layout was identical to the one they had just left.
[ ██Help█ ███ █ help ██... ]
Suddenly, a somewhat shrill cry for help rang out in the room.
This caused a vague sense of unease to rise in their hearts.
But they did not linger; they chose another door to proceed through, desperate to leave this bizarre place.
Behind the door lay the familiar corridor.
The eerie flashes continued to flicker before their eyes.
When they reached the end and pushed open the door, the scene inside was, unsurprisingly, the same.
[ Again… ]
[ No, could it be…! ]
Hotaru looked at the painfully familiar environment, a bad conjecture forming in her mind.
[ █said███do█not█ ██ █open the box██... ]
The shrill voice rang out again, casting a shadow over their hearts.
And the ticking of a clock, along with an inexplicable, eerie melody that had been echoing in the room, began to accelerate with that sentence.
It was like a countdown to death, sending shivers down their spines.
[ We must leave here immediately! ]
The situation made Stelle anxious.
She grabbed Hotaru and they chose a new door to enter.
However, moments later, they returned to the exact same room.
[ This is bad…! ]
Which was the original door?
Hotaru was now completely disoriented, unable to remember which door they had originally chosen!
[ █beg█you██ █I████ ███ █scared█... ]
The eerie melody intensified, and the shrill cry for help became even more hollow and ghostly.
[ Leave this place! ]
The ticking sound was accelerating constantly.
Stelle felt that something was about to emerge!
Without hesitation, she grabbed Hotaru and bolted out the door.
But after a bout of running, they ultimately returned to this room.
And this time, the shrill voice turned completely into a segment of eerie static, no longer forming coherent words.
[ The flashing from the TVs is so blinding! ]
[ Careful! ]
[ It feels like something… ]
[ Is coming out! ]
The televisions surrounding the room suddenly began to flash frantically, causing Hotaru to cry out!
The piercing light shone continuously, forcing them to squint their eyes. Then, the televisions inexplicably returned to normal.
After a brief moment of static snow, grotesque purple vertical eyes began to surface on all the screens!
They stared dead at the two of them, encircling them! This horrifying scene made Stelle's scalp tingle!
Subconsciously, she pulled out her baseball bat and shielded Hotaru firmly behind her!
Then—
BOOM!
A loud noise erupted from above!
A terrifying monster, its body covered in compound eyes, flew out from the dark mist and descended before them! 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Diona: "S-So scary!"
Diona: "What is that monster?!"
Diona: "Why does it have so many eyes?!"
Fu Xuan: "Unbelievable. To think such a hideous abomination would appear within a sweet dream."
Qingque: "Aaaah! If you run into a monster like that, can you still call it a sweet dream?"
Qingque: "That's clearly a NIGHTMARE!!"
Guinaifen: "Wuwuwu, I actually really wanted to visit Penacony for a trip."
Guinaifen: "But now, I'm scared out of my wits, wuwuwu…"
Furina: "That monster looks way too terrifying!"
Furina: "It doesn't eat people, does it?"
Paimon: "E-Eat people?!"
Paimon: "Then Miss Hotaru and Miss Stelle… are they going to be eaten by it?!"
Paimon: "N-NO!! That kind of thing can't happen!"
Aventurine: "HAHAHAHAHAHA!!"
Aventurine: "Look! Look at this thing!"
Aventurine: "To think such a ruthless entity exists within The Family's sweet dream!"
Aventurine: "Sunday… how will you explain this now?"
Sunday: "…"
Sunday: "I know that whatever I say now is too late."
Sunday: "Give me some time. I will personally find this monster."
Robin: "Brother, no! That's too dangerous!"
Sunday: "Rest assured, Robin. Just trust me!"
Gallagher: "Why so tense?"
Gallagher: "Is there a possibility that this thing just looks a bit fierce?"
Gallagher: "Maybe it's actually quite obedient and cute on the inside."
Gallagher: "Of course… I'm just guessing blindly…"
Lumine: "Mr. Gallagher, you call that thing cute?"
Boothill: "Meow~ If that thing can be called cute, then my baby is ten thousand times cuter than it!"
Stelle: "Just speak normally, why are you acting cute??"
Stelle: "Why are you meowing?"
Boothill: "Meow~ I ain't meowing! I'm saying MEOW~!!"
March 7th: "Uh… isn't that still meowing?"
Boothill: "Mother-fudger! This meow~ I'm actually trying to say a PLANT!!"
Boothill: "You know the plant, RIGHT!! That kind of PLANT!!"
Stelle: "Don't get it."
Hu Tao: "Don't get it + 1"
March 7th: "I don't get it either."
Boothill: "…"
Boothill: "If you don't get it, then forget it. Just pretend I'm meowing~"
....
『 Inside the room, with the descent of the terrifying monster, the tension in Hotaru and Stelle snapped tight.
[ W-What is this monster— ]
[ It looks like the ones we met along the way… Are these monsters the secret The Family is hiding? ]
Shielded behind Stelle, Hotaru looked at the monster, panic in her expression.
[ Don't be afraid, I'll take it down! ]
Stelle comforted Hotaru and prepared to strike first with her bat!
[ Ugh… is there no way to shake it off? ]
Hotaru was reluctant to let Stelle take the risk. However, at that moment, the monster made the first move!
Dragging the bladed appendage at its tail, it slashed towards Stelle and Hotaru.
Seeing this, Stelle shoved Hotaru aside and began to battle the monster.
However, the monster's attack patterns were incredibly bizarre, and Stelle fell into a disadvantage within moments.
Then, with a sweeping strike, the monster sent Stelle flying into the distance.
Seeing this, Hotaru rushed frantically towards Stelle, intending to shield her, to protect her!
But she had only taken a few steps before the monster snatched her up! Watching this scene, anxiety exploded in Stelle's heart as she struggled to stand up! 』
『 ....』
—✦Omniscient Viewer's Chat Lodge✦—
Amber: "It's over, it's over!"
Amber: "Miss Stelle was knocked away!"
Amber: "And Miss Hotaru has been caught by the MONSTER!!"
Amber: "WHAT DO WE DO NOW?!!"
March 7th: "Damn monster, don't you dare hurt them!"
March 7th: "Dammit, why wasn't I with THEM!!"
March 7th: "If I were there, the three of us together could definitely defeat that hateful monster!"
Black Swan: "While I understand Miss March 7th's anxiety."
Black Swan: "If you were truly there as well, I fear it would only add another victim."
Black Swan: "Because that is no ordinary monster…"
Furina: "Then what should be done?"
Furina: "Are Miss Hotaru and Miss Stelle just going to die in the dream like this?!"
Himeko: "Death should not exist within The Family's sweet dream!"
Himeko: "May I ask, what exactly is The Family's intention in designing such a horrific dreamscape?!"
Jing Yuan: "I initially thought this was an internal affair of Penacony, so the Xianzhou Alliance could not intervene."
Jing Yuan: "But now it appears that the esteemed guests of my Xianzhou Alliance have encountered a life-or-death crisis upon arriving in Penacony!"
Jing Yuan: "As the General of the Xianzhou Alliance, I cannot help but seek justice for the members of the Astral Express!"
Jing Yuan: "The entire crew of the Express are the Luofu Xianzhou's most steadfast allies!"
Jing Yuan: "To place our allies in peril is to act against the Luofu!"
Fu Xuan: "The General speaks reason. If The Family does not provide a proper explanation, the Luofu Xianzhou may have no choice but to deploy the Cloud Knights to escort our esteemed guests on their journey through Penacony."
Sushang: "I am a member of the Cloud Knights! Let me go! I will definitely protect Miss Stelle and Miss Hotaru!"
Welt: "Thank you, General, for your righteous support! But we have not yet reached the point of no return."
Welt: "So, let us continue watching to see exactly what The Family is plotting!"
Welt: "If it truly is an unforgivable act, The Family shall face the judgment of the Astral Express!"
....