Boom—! Boom—!
The twisted, chaotic colors grew even more distorted. The already fragmented dungeon space was now self-destructing at an accelerating rate.
Takakai leaped and rolled through the crumbling world, dodging relentlessly. The firefighter formed from Howard's Obsession, after initially losing to the Butcher, had rushed to Takakai's side and lunged onto the giant maw-flower, wrapping safety ropes around it to prevent it from slipping back into the shadows.
Yet, even so, the frenzied monster remained fixated on Takakai, relentlessly closing in, determined to tear him apart on the spot.
What now?
Takakai rolled away from another attack, then glanced down at the photo in his hand, thinking quickly.
Hachiya Chiyo, the Core Obsession, was still sealed, unable to interact with the outside world. He'd already tried pressing the photo against her motionless face—no reaction, and he'd nearly been bitten to death by the pursuing maw-flower for his trouble.
Maybe I could summon Alice's Safe House and use its five-hour safety period to wait out the seal?
As he dodged the monstrous, fleshy version of an armored core ice worm, Takakai surveyed the increasingly distorted, collapsing structures around him and the terrifying colors swallowing the world beyond.
No. I have to resolve the Core Obsession now.
He abandoned the idea without hesitation.
Delaying would only let those chaotic colors spread further, consuming the entire dungeon. And then it would all be over.
Even if Chiyo's power was sealed, this world was still shaped by her Obsession. There had to be a way to let her consciousness interact with this photo, to let her Obsession feel its presence.
Wait—if that's the case...
Takakai suddenly looked down, summoning the blood-drawing pencil Touyama had given him.
Though it appeared to merely sketch, this Crimson Moon-grade Obsession could connect the user to a Remnant based on their understanding of it. It could bypass the Suppression Bullets' seal and link Takakai directly to Chiyo's Obsession.
Then... draw on the photo? Draw Chiyo into this picture?
CRASH—!
The firefighter's ropes snapped. His body was flung into the air—then swallowed whole by the maw-flower.
Those few minutes bought Takakai time to devise a solution, but with the monster still raging, executing it wouldn't be easy.
"Woof! Woof woof—!"
A spirited bark rang out nearby.
Takakai turned to see the husky—Shinomiya Kaguya—barking at him before darting into a classroom.
Without hesitation, Takakai sprinted after her, charging into the room just as the roaring monster crashed in after him—
—and then... nothing.
Absolute darkness.
No light reached the depths of this classroom.
Chiyo's summoned maw-flower always emerged from shadows into lit areas before attacking.
So, in a place with no light, it couldn't manifest.
This was the key Kaguya had deduced while observing Takakai's battle—free from the burden of solving the dungeon, she'd spotted the weakness he'd missed.
After all, despite its grandiose title [Supreme Sovereign], this monster was born from children's imaginations. And children couldn't conceive of something that remained entirely unseen.
Takakai placed the pencil against the photo.
His spatial memory was impeccable—the tip landed precisely on the blurred silhouette where Chiyo should be.
Skritch-skritch—
In seconds, he'd drawn Chiyo into the photo.
Did it work?
Silence.
No change. The dungeon kept crumbling. Chiyo's Obsession remained unresolved.
...What? Did I misread her? Does she not want to reunite with her family?
No—the pencil showed me her longing, her pain. This should be right.
"Whine..."
Something brushed against his leg—the golden retriever, Hayasaka.
Even if we clear this dungeon, she'll be mentally scarred. But she's mine now. I'll get help from Crimson Moon players if needed.
The thought came naturally—
—then it hit him.
That's what I missed.
He gripped the pencil again.
In the pitch black, guided only by the Obsession's intuition, he drew the Butcher into the photo's blank space—the one person in Shirasawa who'd shown Chiyo kindness.
HUM—!
The entire dungeon shuddered.
The Suppression Bullets' seal on Chiyo shattered as something fundamental shifted.
Takakai sensed her presence again—
—no longer filled with malice, but... peaceful.
[Auntie... Uncle... Ryouhei...]
A soft voice called out as gentle light pierced the darkness.
The collapsing structures slowed.
The Butcher, who'd torn off the policeman's arm but failed to break free, stilled.
The chaotic colors dimmed, fading into pure black—no longer distorted.
[Chiyo, Auntie's right here~]
A warm-faced woman smiled, waving from the orphanage entrance.
Hachiya Keiko—the orphanage's founder. A woman who'd been abandoned herself, built a life, then chose to shelter others like her.
For two years after the first, Chiyo had walked home alone from school—only to find Keiko waiting every day.
[Auntie... I'm home...]
She'd always forced a smile, hiding her pain. She didn't want to worry Keiko, who worked so hard.
But—
No, not "Auntie."
After seeing other children with parents, she'd envied them—until she realized she had nothing to envy.
So—
[Mom, I'm home. And I brought a new friend~]
Under warm lights, the girl led the elderly woman inside, where non-blood-related uncles and siblings waited.
And the tall, awkward man—gently pulled along—finally stepped into the light.
No more pain. No more suffering.
All regrets fulfilled at last—
—until—
E̷͔̚R̸̖͋R̴̹̈́Ǒ̵̦Ṟ̶͝
The heartwarming scene froze.
The collapsing structures froze.
The entire dungeon stopped—time itself suspending.
Touyama, crawling from rubble. The one-armed policeman. The two dogs. Even Takakai—all frozen.
A figure appeared before Takakai.
A man in an ornate suit, lace at his collar, holding a book—dressed like nobility.
Human... but not quite. Something off in the details, as if he'd merely chosen this form.
His expression, however, was anything but noble.
[To think you'd still break my dungeon at this stage... Cheater! Trash! Vermin! If not for that thing's power, a wretch like you would never touch my masterpiece!]
He seized Takakai's throat, fingers tightening to crush his windpipe.
[This is your fault! You derailed everything! That child was meant to die alone, unloved—a perfect tragedy! But you—with your filthy happy endings—ruined it!]
[No matter. I'll correct this. Once you're dead, once your stain is erased, my script will resume. The world will return to order! And you—]
His grip should have snapped Takakai's neck instantly.
After all, this man could restart—though not endlessly. Twelve times at most. And he'd already closed most escape routes. Next round, it would end.
No one would know he'd cheated. The dungeon wasn't officially open—no witnesses. Everything would—
—Huh?
The man blinked.
His fingers—which should have shattered Takakai's throat—wouldn't budge.
Worse—
Takakai's face, frozen mid-snarl, veins bulging, eyes burning—was locked onto him.
[H-How are you—Ghk!?]
Before he could finish—
—Takakai's hand shot up, seizing the man's head, lifting him off his feet.
"Finally got you."
The words dripped with venom.
"All that bullshit. All those cheap tricks."
"A shitty writer who can't even lose gracefully, changing rules mid-game, then calling me the cheater?"
"T̷̩͠Ǒ̴̙Ḑ̵͝a̴̪͝Y̶̮̎!̵̢̈́!̸̙͝!̶̗̿"
His grip tightened.
"I'M! GOING! TO! FUCKING! END! YOU!!!"