"...You broke free from the dream of Order?"
Sunday looked at the resolute Twilight before him, his eyes filled only with confusion. "Why would you do that? Everything in that dream should have aligned with your deepest desires. Why leave it for this cruel reality?"
My deepest desires? Buddy, that Dream of Unity you cooked up nearly gave me a heart attack!
Hearing Sunday's confusion, Twilight had a bellyful of complaints she wanted to vent.
The moment the Dream of Unity [Ena] activated, Twilight, who had been on standby in the sickroom ready to jump in, was pulled in too.
She quickly realized she was trapped in a dream—the reason was simple: Caelus and the others suddenly returned, having defeated Sunday, and all of Penacony's problems were perfectly resolved.
Then, they told her Herta had developed a cure for her illness, and even more ridiculously, after taking her back to the Herta Space Station, they actually cured her.
The Express crew then began their next Trailblaze journey, happy-go-lucky, no arguments, everyone getting along harmoniously, not a single sad thing happening—and absolutely no opportunity to harvest energy!
Not only was she dragged non-stop to various planets for exhausting Trailblaze journeys, but she couldn't even get a single speck of emotional energy... To Twilight, this was a genuine ghost story. She couldn't stand another second in that Dream of Unity [Ena].
But naturally, she couldn't voice such reasons. So, facing Sunday's confusion, Twilight simply stated with unwavering resolve, "Only reality... is where everyone truly is."
"Even if not every second is happy, even if we occasionally argue, even if it hurts sometimes, the ones accompanying me are the real everyone—these bonds should never be replaced by a false dream!"
"...That's just because you are too young."
Looking at Twilight's determined eyes, Sunday didn't change his mind. "No matter. Helping you make the right choice is also my responsibility!"
A bird nearing its end yet still yearning for the sky, and a child who, out of pity for the injured bird, resolves to cage and care for it... Though their views couldn't align, their convictions were equally firm. Thus, the final answer still had to be decided by strength.
Twilight, having exchanged for her skill, could certainly power up and solo Sunday. But as a qualified female lead who had deeply studied the ways of heroines, how could she steal the spotlight from the protagonist and the players at such a crucial moment?
"Caelus..."
The power of Abundance swept through the dreamscape, instantly healing every fallen companion. Amidst this scene, which felt vaguely familiar to Caelus, she smiled and extended her hand towards him. "Hold my hand?"
"...Mm!"
The moment Caelus tightly grasped Twilight's hand, he seemed to hear hearts beating—not just his own, but the hearts of every companion beating in the same rhythm, even seeming to connect with the countless hearts in the distant void!
And these synchronously beating hearts provided him with an endless stream of power, supporting him forward.
In a daze, Caelus seemed to grasp something—this feeling of marching forward shoulder-to-shoulder with companions, hearts and minds united towards the same goal, perhaps this was the so-called [Harmony]?
Harmony meant mutual understanding. Sunday, walking the Path of Order, couldn't understand Twilight's choice, so he could only impose his own ideas onto her.
That's wrong. Everyone's destiny should never be controlled by others... Therefore, this world should not belong to [Order]!
The moment this thought emerged, Caelus seemed to hear indescribable music by his ears. He felt a gentle gaze projected from the other side of the galaxy... The Aeon who had remained indifferent when he fell defeated and desperate before Sunday now cast their attention upon him!
And the source of that gaze was precisely the Aeon of Harmony—Xipe!
Sigh, this isn't easy... Being a female lead, yet having to act like the 'old grandpa' mentor figure, trying every way to set up cool moments and power-ups for Caelus.
Feeling the power of [Harmony] emerge within Caelus just as she predicted, Twilight finally breathed a sigh of relief internally.
After healing the others, she hadn't chosen to transform into a more violent Path like Destruction or The Hunt to fight Sunday directly. Instead, she switched to the Path of Harmony, buffing the Express crew and Acheron. The main purpose was to strengthen Caelus!
Mainly, if she didn't give Caelus another boost, she worried his strength might be lacking when they reached the Xianzhou.
After all, due to the timeline changes, the current Xianzhou was definitely more dangerous than in the original plot, yet Caelus, the protagonist, hadn't even unlocked his second Path... To prevent Caelus from becoming a mere spectator, and more importantly, to prevent him from getting killed off on the Xianzhou, Twilight had to find a way to get him a new power-up.
In the original plot, Caelus did obtain the power of Harmony in Penacony. But now, thanks to her meddling, his understanding of the Path of Harmony wasn't deep enough.
Therefore, Twilight had to manually intervene, using Emanator-level Harmony power to give him a 'sudden enlightenment'. Honestly, she wasn't sure if it would work, but the results seemed positive so far.
Hopefully, the buffed Express crew can now defeat Sunday by shouting about love and bonds. Otherwise, she'd have to temporarily switch to Destruction and fight another round to clean things up.
"Pitiful... Only Order can save everything!"
With a soft hum from Sunday, the light of primordial creation erupted once more. But this time, the power that had previously crushed enemies effortlessly failed to display its expected might.
It wasn't that Sunday had weakened, but rather...
"I... I feel so strong!"
March 7th, still slightly dazed, looked at her hands in astonishment. Had she just blocked Sunday's attack herself?!
"Is this Harmony... No, and Twilight's power too?" Himeko's perception was sharper, instantly assessing the situation. "Let's go together now! Don't bother with any fair duel!"
The tide of battle, previously a one-sided beatdown by Sunday, seemed to completely reverse after restarting. Under the relentless, unchivalrous group assault of the Express crew, enveloped in the power of Harmony, Sunday was steadily pushed back.
He couldn't be blamed; he did his best—it was just that the buff Twilight provided was too immense.
Strengthening companions with the power of a Harmony Emanator was already a huge boost. She even snatched back some of the Harmony power within the dreamscape from Sunday during the process. Plus, there was Caelus, who attracted a sudden glance from the Aeon of Harmony...
Finally, stacking her lifespan-burning technique on top, Twilight herself wasn't being humble, but if she gave this power to Asta's Peppy, Caelus probably couldn't even beat that pet dog.
The already formidable Express crew became even more ridiculous after the buffs, especially with Acheron among them. Despite resisting with all his might, Sunday ultimately fell under Caelus's bat... er, hat?
However, his final gaze didn't land on Caelus, but on Twilight.
"Why...?"
"...Dreams eventually end. After waking, there are no traces left," Twilight shook her head silently. "I want to leave traces, leave memories of being together with everyone in reality... I don't want to be forgotten."
"I hope everyone remembers me, even after I die... For half a year, at least..."