Watching all the infected people move in sync with Robin's rhythm—stepping forward, stepping back, raising their hands, spinning in circles—the livestream collectively fell silent in shock.
[Stelle: What… why are they dancing now?!]
[March 7th: Hey, don't say that—I think I look pretty good dancing!]
[Silver Wolf: Why am I in there too?]
[Firefly: Phew… that was close.]
Fortunately, this time they were in the real Penacony. Firefly let out a sigh of relief. Otherwise, she might've been dragged into dancing as well.
[Jade: ...…]
[Aventurine: So? How was the performance? Any tips?]
[Topaz: Shut up, this is so embarrassing.]
[Himeko: Robin is the one singing—why do we have to dance along?]
She couldn't understand it. Why should she be backup dancing?
[Valerius: Heh, you clearly don't understand the terror of square dancing.]
He laughed. Penacony really lived up to its title as the "City of Festivities." Even square dancing had to be included.
When the song ended, Jaina noticed that the black mist around everyone had grown thicker.
"So this is… corruption."
She hadn't expected Robin to have such an effect.
A thought surfaced in her mind—could Robin be the source of the infection?
But after thinking it through, that didn't seem right. If Robin were the source, then they wouldn't have already been in this state upon arriving in Penacony. And Sunday had been babbling nonsense from the start.
"The source of the infection is unknown, but Robin can amplify it."
Jaina reached a conclusion almost instantly. At the same time, she began planning how to remove Robin from the picture.
She still had to survive here for a week. If Robin performed like this every day, everyone's corruption would only worsen.
Just as she was considering how to get rid of Robin, Acheron broke free from the song's influence and walked over.
"Here… I found this in the dream."
She handed over a slip of paper.
Jaina first carefully observed Acheron's condition. There was black mist around her again, though much less than before. This only confirmed her suspicion—Robin had to go.
"Thanks."
She opened the note, and her eyes widened at what was written.
"What does this mean?"
The message was vague and incomplete. She couldn't make sense of it.
Her gaze swept across the crowd, who had already returned to their seats. Jaina decided to test something.
"Kaf—Kafka!"
She raised her voice, calling out a name, while carefully observing everyone's reactions.
Very quickly, she noticed that Himeko had subtly frowned when she heard Kafka's name.
"…Is it her?"
Looking back at the note, which contained only two lines, Jaina made her decision.
"Miss Acheron, please protect me."
It was a risky move, but she had a feeling the contents of the note were worth testing.
"Do whatever you want. I'll protect you."
Acheron nodded. She wanted to see what Jaina was planning.
Taking a deep breath, Jaina loudly read out the contents of the note.
"Some people really can't compare to Kafka, yet they still have the nerve to call her a 'purple eggplant,' not realizing they themselves are just a red tomato."
"Let me see… not as well-endowed, not as elegant, yet specializing in explosions?"
As Jaina read the note aloud, the black mist around Himeko visibly thickened.
She slowly turned her head, glaring at Jaina with vicious intent.
That gaze felt so tangible it almost pierced through her.
[Kafka: Heh… who could that be referring to? I'm quite curious.]
[Stelle: Could it be Argenti? He's kind of like a red tomato.]
[March 7th: No way it's Argenti. Jaina clearly said 'specializes in explosions.' I think… I think… never mind, I didn't say anything.]
Oh no. March 7th suddenly felt Himeko's gaze turn unfriendly toward her.
[Himeko: Heh, March seems quite lively lately. I have some coffee here—care for a cup?]
[March 7th: I'll pass! But I am curious—who gave Kafka the nickname 'purple eggplant'? It's actually quite fitting. Must've been someone knowledgeable.]
[Dan Heng: ...…]
[Welt: ...…]
[Stelle: How can you talk about Kafka like that? She's my… never mind.]
[Valerius: Ah~~~ this person is mother, ah~~~ this person is mom!!!]
[Bronya: Stop singing, please.]
She was exasperated. Couldn't he see the atmosphere was tense? Why stir things up now?
Bronya worried that if this continued, things might escalate into a full-blown conflict.
The livestream was still calm, but inside the space, Himeko was no longer willing to tolerate it.
She stood up and walked over to Jaina. "What are you implying?"
Her gaze was fierce, black mist pouring from her body. Jaina was certain—if her answer displeased Himeko even slightly, she would be attacked immediately.
But Jaina remained calm. She believed she had already grasped the key to clearing this stage.
"I don't know. I just picked up a card from the ground and read it out loud."
"Oh… is that so?"
Himeko's tone was indifferent. She reached out a hand—her arm was now covered in dense, scale-like growths.
At that critical moment, Acheron stepped in and grabbed her.
"What do you think you're doing?"
Others might be afraid, but Acheron wasn't. Whoever it was—if they dared act out, she would cut them down.
Clearly, the corrupted Himeko feared Acheron. She hesitated, unable to act decisively.
"Heh."
Jaina hadn't expected Acheron to have this kind of deterrence. She immediately decided to go further and read the second line on the note.
"He may have lost his father, but he still has me. I can guide his life, can't I?"
With a loud crash, Welt exploded.
He kicked over the table in front of him and strode straight toward Jaina.
"What do you mean by that?!"
"Uh… I'm just reading the note. What's wrong?"
Truthfully, Jaina didn't understand why that line triggered such a strong reaction from Welt.
[March 7th: What does that even mean?]
[Stelle: Listen to that—does that sound like something a normal person would say?]
[Welt: ...…]
[Valerius: …I apologize. I'll make adjustments to the game. This kind of situation won't happen again.]
Valerius frowned. He enjoyed watching people embarrass themselves, but this crossed a line. This wasn't harmless embarrassment—it was reopening old wounds.
To other players, that line meant nothing. But Valerius knew exactly how much damage it did to Welt.
Games were fine—but this was like pouring salt into a wound.
[Welt: …Very well.]
For a brief moment, Welt had nearly lost control. That line sounded exactly like something a certain despicable bishop would say. Not just the Welt in the game—even he himself had felt the urge to step in and unleash a pseudo-black hole.
[Valerius: How about… I compensate you with some points?]
[Welt: No need. Let's proceed as usual.]
[Yae Miko: Wow~~ even turning down points!]
[Raiden Ei: I'll take them! Compensate me!]
[Valerius: What does this have to do with you?!]
He was speechless. This was Welt's matter—why was she butting in?
Although Welt declined the compensation, many others' eyes lit up.
It was clear now—Valerius had principles.
That line had clearly struck a nerve, yet he immediately acknowledged the issue and promised to fix it. That level of responsibility wasn't something everyone had.
In their eyes, Valerius was powerful and controlled the entire game space. Even if he ignored others' feelings, no one could do much about it.
Yet he chose not to.
He acknowledged mistakes and respected boundaries.
And with that realization, his image rose significantly in the eyes of many.
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