Stelle followed Black Swan and Acheron into the hotel lobby.
However, this was not reality; it was still within the dream.
In the lobby, countless figures of tourists stood frozen.
Their faces wore the same foolish smile, completely immersed in a false ocean of happiness, oblivious to all changes in the outside world.
Seeing this, Black Swan let out a bitter laugh, "Humanity's yearning for beautiful illusions is, in itself, a kind of prejudiced belief."
Acheron also sighed, "To make such a large group of people break free on their own is as difficult as resurrecting an Aeon; a stronger external force must intervene."
"But we cannot stand idly by."
Dan Heng, accompanied by Boothill, joined the others. "We must find a way, a way that can instantly shake the very foundation of this dream."
A flash of inspiration struck Stelle, and a name was on the tip of her tongue.
That black figure who always walked at the forefront, bearing everything.
She subconsciously spoke, "Actually, we can find..."
A name was right on her lips.
His name was incredibly familiar, the absolute core and pillar throughout the entire trailblazing journey.
However, just as the words were about to escape, and the image was about to be fully formed...
It was paused.
Then came excruciating pain!
His name, along with all memories related to him, was being forcibly gouged from her mind by some power!
"Ugh..."
Stelle groaned in pain, her face ashen.
At the same moment, Dan Heng also let out a muffled grunt, pressing one hand tightly against his forehead.
He, too, had thought of "that person" and was likewise subjected to this torture of memory.
It wasn't that he couldn't remember.
It was an experience far more terrifying than forgetting itself—a memory being plucked out of thin air, leaving only an unfillable void deep within the soul.
Who was he?
He was clearly so important!
So important that his heart was crying out!
But why... couldn't he remember?!
"Something's wrong!"
Black Swan's pupils suddenly constricted.
As a Memokeeper, it was the first time she felt her own "memories" being so crudely, so savagely altered and torn!
What chilled her to the bone even more was that a perfectly self-consistent set of false memories was flooding in, attempting to fill that void, telling her in an unquestionable tone—
"Everything is normal; this person never existed."
In this eerie stalemate, Boothill broke the silence.
He pulled out the relic Acheron had given him,
"Do you know what this is?"
"When their light appears in the universe, it means a giant star has fallen."
"And the direction it falls... countless meteors will streak across the sky; that is the beacon of the Galaxy Rangers gathering!"
"They come from all corners of the galaxy, at any cost, without asking why."
"Only because we uphold a common bottom line—the flying stars of The Hunt will only fall on the longest night, and behind it—will be the arrival of dawn!"
Boothill's voice was resolute.
"It's time for the entire universe to remember our names again! And I will fire the first shot!"
Robin nodded and responded, "The moment the dream wavers, I will use the song of 'Harmony' to guide everyone!"
Acheron gripped her sword hilt, her eyes determined, "The power of the 'Choir of Unity' is no different from an Emanator; the final step to overturning this beautiful dream... will be completed by me."
Their eyes met, ready to execute the plan.
Just then.
"Ah ah ah—!"
A tourist immersed in the beautiful dream suddenly screamed, clutching his head without warning.
"What is this... get out of my head!"
Immediately following were a second, a third... screams coalesced into a wave of sound, tearing apart this false peace!
"It's so hot! My body... my soul... it's burning!"
"The sword... why use a sword on him?! Isn't he a close friend?!"
"Don't kill me! We are the same person!! Why kill me!!"
A more frantic, more sorrowful will, brazenly breached the dam of the "Oneiric Realm"!
That will, without question, poured into Stelle and her companions' minds!
Stelle's vision suddenly went dark.
She saw it!
She saw familiar white hair, saw that man pierced by Acheron's blade, yet still smiling and telling her, "Don't forget me, partner, I'll be back soon."
The next instant, blood gushed!
She saw countless failed cycles, countless futile journeys to the end, saw that lonely figure, rising again and again from the molten ashes!
An endless torrent of memory fragments rushed in!
Each one carried enough pain and despair to crush a normal person.
Cycle, meltdown, and then... being forgotten... yet the owner of the memories never once chose to give up.
Crack—
The canvas of the beautiful dream was completely torn apart by this immense will!
"This is... what an immense memory."
Black Swan murmured distractedly, "What we glimpsed was merely... the tip of the iceberg."
The next moment, the ground beneath their feet completely collapsed.
Everyone fell into the collapsing abyss.
Countless shattered dream fragments surrounded them; in each mirror, the same blurry face was reflected.
A face they could see clearly but could not remember.
When the world stopped spinning.
Stelle suddenly opened her eyes, finding herself back on the grand theater stage, or rather, she had never left.
March 7th rubbed her sleepy eyes.
Dan Heng subconsciously pulled out his Cloud-Piercer, while Welt Yang and Himeko were already standing ready.
Before them, Sunday stood with his hands behind his back.
But at this moment, he was not looking at the Express crew, but gazing in horror at the dream sky that was falling apart.
As the core of the dream, Sunday felt that will and clearly counted their number.
His voice, for the first time, carried an undisguised tremor.
"A thousand years... thirty million cycles..."
Sunday saw the determination to shoulder the world, saw an obsession powerful enough to crush stars.
"It's... thirty million cycles!"
"No wonder... no wonder even the dream of 'Order' could be so savagely and forcibly torn apart!"
"Who is he?"
"And where is he?"
Sunday's voice trembled, finally turning into a cold assertion.
"No, he... will eventually be forgotten by the world...