"What do you do this for…?!" Shichiro muttered, the words trembling out of him.
Kentarō laughed, a sharp, unhinged sound, and flung his arms wide.
"ENTERTAINMENT!"
Behind him, fabric ripped through reality.A massive circus tent swelled into existence, striped in impossible colors.Clowns poured out, juggling knives.Then more — tossing fireballs into the air like toys.More tents erupted across the battlefield, children's laughter echoing from within.
Ryosen clenched his fist and slammed it into the ground."What are we even supposed to do?! DAMN IT!"
And Shichiro…Something changed.
He started floating, rising slowly into the air.His eyes blazed.Heat bent around him as a fireball formed above his raised hands, swelling, growing, consuming the sky.
Until everything shattered.
He woke up.
"DIE!" he screamed as he jerked upright, drenched in sweat.
Katsu, in the next room, nearly fell off his bed."What the hell is this guy doing now, bro… I can't even rest."
Down the hall, Kentarō cracked open his door, half-asleep and irritated."Who was that? I could hear him from all the way here."
"It was Shichiro," Katsu groaned. "Probably another nightmare."
Rokuro yawned deeply, rubbing his eyes."He's been yelling in his sleep about… uh… 'why do you do this' or something. I've been sitting in front of his door waiting for you guys to wake up. Can we bust inside already? I just want to check if he's alive."
Aegis stepped out, carrying a sleepy Ketsuki on his back.His face was twisted with concern.
"Kentarō. Rokuro. Katsu. …Where's Ryosen?"
"He went to his temple to pack his stuff. He's moving into his new place," Kentarō said, stretching his arms. "Anyway."
He cracked his knuckles.
"I'm busting in to see what's going on with this guy."
Kentarō twisted the doorknob, and the others crowded behind him as the door creaked open.
Shichiro was sitting on the edge of his bed, hunched over, chest heaving like he'd run a marathon. Sweat dripped from his chin. His eyes, still faintly glowing orange, darted to them.
Rokuro raised a brow. "Dude… you look like you fought a dragon with your bare hands."
Shichiro didn't answer at first.He just stared at his own trembling palms.
Katsu crossed his arms. "Alright. Spill. What kind of nightmare makes you scream 'DIE' loud enough to wake the entire building?"
Shichiro swallowed hard.His voice was thin. Fragile.
"It… wasn't just a nightmare."
Kentarō snorted. "Bro. You were dreaming about circus tents and fireballs. What, did a clown mug you in your sleep?"
A weak laugh rippled through the group, but Shichiro didn't join.
He lifted his head slowly.
His expression shut them up instantly.
"No. It felt real. All of you were there. And you—"
He pointed at Kentarō.
Kentarō raised a brow. "Me?"
Shichiro's voice cracked.
"You died."
The room went silent.
Even Ketsuki, half-asleep moments ago, opened his eyes.
Aegis stepped forward. "…Shichiro. Dreams feel real sometimes. That doesn't—"
"No."Shichiro's breath trembled."It wasn't like that. I've dreamt before, this wasn't a dream. It was… smooth. Like reality. Like I was there. No blur. No darkness. Nothing shifting or fading. I watched him die like I was awake."
The others exchanged looks.
Katsu whispered, "Shichiro… are you okay?"
Shichiro shook his head helplessly.
"You don't understand… In the dream, Kentarō dropped his daggers. He laughed. And then—"
He choked on the memory.
Kentarō waved a hand dismissively."Look, I appreciate the concern, but I'm not dying anytime soon. If anything, I'll be the last one standing. You? Maybe. Me? Never."
He laughed, but Shichiro flinched.
Because the laugh was the same.Exactly the same as in the nightmare.
The sound scraped down Shichiro's spine.
Rokuro let out a sigh. "Shichiro, we get it. You're stressed. After everything with the elites, anyone would be. But it's just a dream."
"It wasn't," Shichiro whispered."I don't know how to explain it, but… something's coming. Something horrible. And I think I saw it."
Katsu clapped a hand onto his shoulder."Then we'll deal with it when it comes, alright? For now, try to get some rest."
But Shichiro just stared at the wall.
Because in his dream…
The circus tents.The clowns.The fire.Kentarō's laugh.His death.
Everything had felt real.
And worst of all.
There was a final detail he couldn't bring himself to say:
In the nightmare, right before Kentarō died,Bellerophon whispered to him:
"The God of Entertainment."