Sylvia lowered her gaze to her own hand, the one being held, then looked up at the back of the figure leading her.
She didn't say a word.
A peculiar feeling was stirring inside her.
Something felt off—even the sensation of touch seemed slightly wrong.
Though this was a dream, the dissonance lingered.
Her mental resilience and sensitivity to the nature of memories allowed her to keenly detect this subtle disharmony.
While she was still turning it over in her mind, the two of them had already swiftly traversed the long corridor, arriving before that ornate picture frame.
The Robin ahead of her suddenly came to a stop.
"Alright, just step through here, and we'll reach the beautiful dream of Penacony. Go on in, now."
Robin politely took a step back, gesturing for Sylvia to enter first.
Sylvia didn't hurry forward. Instead, she looked at Robin and asked, "Aren't you coming?"
"I'll follow shortly. Besides, our landing points aren't quite the same."
As she spoke, Robin suddenly stepped closer, rather boldly leaning in beside Sylvia. She rose onto her toes, bringing herself level with Sylvia's ear.
Her voice was intimate, almost a whisper: "Enjoy this beautiful dream to the fullest, hehe~"
Accompanied by a faint, slightly distorted chuckle, Robin abruptly pulled back.
She raised her hands as if to press them against Sylvia's shoulders and give her a push—clearly intending to shove Sylvia straight into the frame.
But the instant those hands were about to make contact—
Slap—
Sylvia spun around in a flash, her own hand clamping firmly around 'Robin's' wrist.
Facing 'Robin's' startled expression, Sylvia's lips curved into a slight smile. A complex, intricate sigil flickered within her pupils.
Her sharp gaze seemed intent on seeing right through this 'Robin.'
"Sylvia… you're hurting my…"
Before she could finish, Sylvia yanked hard, pulling 'Robin' forward and wrapping her arms tightly around her, pressing her firmly against her own chest.
Then, leaning back with all her weight, Sylvia threw them both backward, plunging headfirst into the glowing picture frame.
As the light faded, solid ground vanished, replaced by the roar of wind rushing past their ears.
Sylvia looked down at the dazzling, neon-lit dreamscape below, then glanced at the 'Robin' still curled against her chest.
She lowered her head, bringing her lips close to the other's ear, and said,
"Pretending to be someone I know right in front of me isn't the wisest move, Masked Fool… Miss Sparkle."
Exposed, Sparkle reverted to her true form in the blink of an eye. Blue locks transformed into twin black pigtails.
The elegant gown melted away into a red miniskirt.
Even her figure seemed to shrink noticeably within Sylvia's embrace.
Then, with her face still buried against Sylvia's chest, Sparkle tilted her head back, wearing an exaggerated look of chagrin.
"Aww~ I didn't expect our cute little snow-top to be so sharp, seeing right through my disguise! Come on, tell me, how did you figure it out? Could it be my technique's still not up to par?"
"Probably. If you're not good enough, you just need more practice."
Sylvia didn't mince words. In her recollection, while Sparkle hadn't actually attacked her, not a single pleasant word had ever left her mouth.
She was the kind of 'bratty girl' who made people's fists itch with the urge to teach her a lesson.
"Ugh… so boring, getting spotted right away. Fine then, little snow-hair, let me go. I need to go back and train properly!"
Sparkle waved a small fist, but Sylvia didn't release her. Instead, she grinned.
"No."
"Didn't realize little snow-hair liked Sparkle so much. But hey, we're about to hit the ground headfirst, you know."
A note of urgency entered Sparkle's tone, though it sounded more like a performance put on for Sylvia's benefit.
So Sylvia held on tighter, even flipping their positions to press Sparkle beneath her.
"Sounds perfect. A grand entrance for our trip to Penacony!"
"Hey, hey—! We're really gonna crash—!"
After two shrill cries of mock panic, Sparkle suddenly paused, her expression melting into a wide, playful smile. From who-knows-where, she produced a small button.
"Did you think I'd actually say that~? But you're more interesting than I imagined, snow-hair. So, wanna guess what this button does?"
"Nope!"
Sylvia didn't bother guessing. She simply reached out, seized Sparkle's hand, and pressed the button herself.
Then—Boom—!
A burst of flame ignited in the dream sky, blossoming into a brilliant firework.
It drew the gaze of countless tourists below.
Amidst the showering sparks, two figures locked in a tight embrace trailed plumes of smoke as they plummeted, crashing spectacularly into the plaza under the watchful eyes of the crowd.
Passersby glanced over for a moment before losing interest.
New dream-chasers crash-landing like this wasn't exactly rare. After all, in a dream, you couldn't really get hurt from a fall.
Within the settling dust, Sparkle coughed and sputtered, trying to wriggle free from Sylvia's arms while complaining,
"Cough… Why'd you press it without even guessing? Cough… Seriously! I was going to press it myself."
It was hard to tell if her irritation was genuine or just part of the act.
Sylvia hadn't planned on holding Sparkle forever anyway, so she loosened her grip. But as she did, she swiftly took advantage of the lingering dust to grab Sparkle's twin pigtails—
And tied them together in a big, loopy bow!
Then, watching as Sparkle finally squirmed out of her hold, Sylvia climbed to her feet from the cracked pavement.
She shot Sparkle a light chuckle, her expression clearly saying, 'What kind of nonsense are you talking about?'
"Heh, come on. If a button's right in front of you, could you resist pressing it?"
"…"
Sparkle planted her hands on her hips, looking up at Sylvia.
"I'm starting to see what you're like, little snow-hair… Huh?"
Mid-sentence, Sparkle herself sensed something odd about the top of her head.
She reached up and felt her pigtails tied together.
"Hey! You're really the worst, you know that? Don't you understand that a girl's hairstyle is her most important feature? And you had to go and tie a knot in it. So annoying!"
Clutching her hair, Sparkle puffed out her cheeks and glared at Sylvia.
Sylvia just shrugged.
"Aha~ I've got an appointment to keep, so I'll catch you later. See you around~"
With that, she turned and walked away.
She hadn't actually planned to come down hard on Sparkle—mainly because she had no idea what the girl was really after.
Better to attend to her own business first.
"Huh? Hey—! You're just leaving? Don't go!"
Sparkle was momentarily dumbfounded. She'd assumed they'd at least trade a few more barbs. How could she just run off like that?
"What a pain, that woman! Next time we meet, I'm tying your hair in a hundred and eighty knots!"
Sparkle stuck her tongue out emphatically at Sylvia's retreating back.
At the same time, her hands, still cradling her pigtails, worked nimbly for a few seconds, undoing the bow.
But plenty of strands remained tangled, leaving her once-smooth twin tails looking thoroughly disheveled.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 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.