"No matter who you are, the Hound Family is conducting an investigation here. Please take another route…" the female Hound stated matter-of-factly.
The other Hound, who had sharper eyes, seemed to notice something and quickly nudged her arm. "Hey! Gray hair, yellow eyes, clothes with a bunch of inexplicable ribbons hanging off… she looks like that major shareholder!"
"What?! My Sovereign, why didn't you say so earlier!" The female Hound instantly switched attitudes. "Oh my, honored guest! I was a bit loud just now—please forgive me! The Hounds are only performing a routine inspection. All guest room facilities are perfectly normal. Please feel free to settle in with peace of mind."
[HAHAHA, "inexplicable ribbons"—that's so Hoyoverse.]
[Those are Stelle's anti-counterfeit tags.]
[Your Sovereign just got taken down by the person in front of you. No—Sovereign day!]
[Stelle: I still prefer your untamed look from before.]
[I don't really approve. No "Dragon King returns" moment at all.]
[Exactly, such a perfect setup for a face-slapping power move wasted.]
[Bro, get some better material. It's 5202 already—still doing crooked-mouth Dragon King stuff.]
The other Hound was dumbfounded. The face-change was way too fast. He muttered under his breath, "But the criminal…"
"Criminal?" Stelle's brows furrowed slightly.
"You!" The female Hound glared fiercely—then immediately pivoted. "Ah yes yes yes, annoying, definitely annoying! But these procedures are all for the guests' safety. The Hounds never mind the trouble! We'll leave right away. Please rest well."
"Um… please be sure to stay safe in the dream. Take utmost care…"
The female Hound delivered a flying kick. "That's enough—hurry up and come with me!"
With that, the two hurriedly evacuated from Stelle's room.
"???" Stelle stood there completely baffled. "What the heck was that? Those two were obviously hiding something. Better do a quick check before entering the dream."
She then thoroughly searched the room. Nothing seemed particularly off, though there was definitely a chest—she had the strong feeling it was packed with a ton of treasure waiting for her.
After trying for a while, she really couldn't open it. A knot formed in her heart.
"Whatever. Can't keep March 7th and Dan Heng waiting too long. Better sleep first."
Stelle stretched, stepped into the Dream Pool, found a comfortable position, and closed her eyes.
Suddenly, a cloud of mist appeared in the room. A girl emerged from it and tilted her head slightly. "This Planet of Festivities really is airtight. No other way—I'll just have to borrow the bed for a moment."
As she spoke, Rappa had already walked into the Dream Pool and slowly lay down beside Stelle.
"Please forgive the intrusion!"
[Oh oh oh oh oh oh.]
[So this is Rappa?]
[Rappa-neesan is seriously so cool!]
[HAHAHA, baby, Rappa's debut is pretty stunning.]
[There's such a good thing?]
[I've seen cats grow in bed, but never ninjas.]
[How can two people sleep in one Dream Pool? This is way too unfair to Stelle. I propose Stelle steps out and gets her own room, and I'll take her place. I'll bear this hardship myself.]
[Forget it, I can endure hardship better. Let me take this suffering.]
[Firefly: I will set Rappa ablaze!]
[Good thing Firefly isn't here. She worked the entire fourth season just to get one princess carry, and now Rappa's sleeping with Stelle.]
[This has to be the episode that most wants to set the entire sea of stars on fire.]
— —
"Focus on your breathing. Imagine a paradise… imagine… a field... a field… a field… a field… a field——"
The originally black screen suddenly filled with highly mentally contaminating visuals.
The Sleeping Banana Monkey appeared without warning, still chanting the Sleeping Banana Monkey song.
[Zero-frame opener—who can withstand this, fam?]
[This is way too abstract. Even after watching a ton, it's still too abstract.]
[No more, no more—I feel like the more I listen, the more hooked I get.]
[HAHAHAHAHAHA, hard to believe the creator's mental state.]
[This is practically a memetic virus now.]
[Be confident—drop the "practically."]
[God-tier!]
— —
"Did I just… see something weird?"
Stelle slowly opened her eyes, feeling her brain had been heavily polluted.
She scanned her surroundings. It felt strangely familiar.
"Is this Origami University? Doesn't look like a school… but it feels really familiar."
"And what the heck is that?"
The camera followed Stelle's gaze. Standing in front of her… was a monkey?
Upon closer inspection, forget everything else—just the pair of eyes brimming with wisdom was enough to make one tremble from the depths of their soul.
After a brief exchange, Stelle realized a problem: she seemed to have been infected by some unknown thing.
"Ba na na na~"
"What's wrong with me? What's happening?" Stelle grumbled inwardly. The Sleeping Banana Monkey song inexplicably filled her entire brain.
It was exactly like those nights when random songs pop into your head, making you toss and turn, unable to sleep.
And more and more Sleeping Banana Monkeys appeared around Stelle, completely surrounding her.
What a wondrous yet harmonious atmosphere!
No matter what, Stelle should join them—embrace the monkeys' melodious bana cries and banana aroma.
"By the Great Lan Sovereign!!"
Rappa stood on high ground, watching Stelle gradually being assimilated. "What a terrifying, razor-edge situation. At this ungodly hour of the rat, the solemn skyscraper shall become the starting point of a grand hunt!"
A thunderous boom from the sky—Rappa made her dazzling entrance.
"Beneath the starry sky, evil spirits run rampant. Helpless souls struggle in the darkness."
"Wordless ninjutsu written in blood and tears. Selfless ninja accepted by the night curtain."
"In chaotic tides, all villains shall be erased. Dawn arrives to ignite dazzling sparks. Yo (yo)! Frenzied Ninja • AKA Rappa, at your service, my lord."
Rappa struck a cool pose—full marks for style—but she got beaned in the head by the paint bottle she'd casually tossed earlier.
[This story teaches us: don't drop things from high places.]
[Don't lie—that rap segment actually slaps hard!]
[Damn, that hit went straight into my kokoro. Sorry Robin.]
[Stelle: So there really are other god-tier people like me?]
— —
Rappa rubbed the spot on her head that got hit. "Ow—ow! What a cunning trap! Not only are evil spirits everywhere, there are also flying hidden weapons all over the place!"
Stelle found it odd. "Didn't you throw that yourself?"
"Nay. My lord is too kind-hearted and unaware—these evil spirits used sorcery to control its trajectory." Rappa turned her gaze toward the nearby Sleeping Banana Monkeys. "All manner of evil spirits, begone at once. Otherwise this one shall let you taste the might of Frenzied • Ninjutsu."
The Sleeping Banana Monkey looked innocently pure. "Ba na na na, Ba na na na~ !"
"This… impossible. How can this be?"
Stelle raised an eyebrow. "You understood that?"
"This one… is actually unable to communicate with these evil spirits!"
Stelle: "…"
[HAHAHA, first time I've seen Stelle so speechless.]
[Usually it's Stelle making others speechless—now it's her turn. What a perfect boomerang.]
[Stelle says she rarely calls anyone god-tier.]
The next moment, Stelle heard the Sleeping Banana Monkey's voice again and sank back into the sensation.
Rappa shouted loudly, "Beware! This too is evil spirit sorcery! Please grit your teeth, my lord—this one comes to your aid!"
She raised her right hand high. "Frenzied • Empty-Hand Karate • Righteous Confusion-Cleaving Hand Chop!"
Smack—
So shocking! Rappa struck Stelle squarely between the brows. The powerful force pierced straight through body to soul. In an instant, all five senses were severed, and the monkey cries vanished completely.
Stelle clutched her head, expression in extreme pain. "Almost shattered my Stellaron."
"My apologies. This is soul-direct Frenzied • Empty-Hand Karate. This one already restrained the force as much as possible, but to awaken my lord, some pain was unavoidable."
[Translation: I held back, or you'd already be gone.]
[Force was just right—stunned but no brain damage.]
[That one chop rang out the entire midsummer.]
— —
With Rappa's help, the countless Sleeping Banana Monkeys slowly dispersed and stopped circling Stelle.
Seeing this as a good opportunity, Rappa led Stelle away from the area.
Before leaving, Rappa also warned Stelle: the dreamscape is not safe right now. The appearance of evil spirits is an omen of great calamity.
Stelle found everything utterly baffling. Top priority was getting out of there immediately.
With that thought, she entered a dream bubble.
Just like entering the dream before, after stepping into the bubble she inexplicably dreamed of a ninja again.
"What a bizarre dream…" She shook her head helplessly and surveyed the surroundings. "This should finally be Origami University, right?"
[Rappa really is a ninja?!]
[What did you think? Boothill mentioned before—Rappa's also a Galaxy Ranger. Of course they've got all kinds of people.]
[Right, the Galaxy Rangers are a highly diverse group. A ninja isn't that strange.]
— —
"We're over here!" March 7th and Dan Heng came up to Stelle—they'd clearly been waiting for a while.
Stelle finally found someone she could tell everything to. She recounted all she had seen and heard to Dan Heng and March 7th.
March 7th listened and immediately felt it sounded oddly familiar. "Hmm… the monkeys you're talking about—could it be these ones?"
Stelle followed March 7th's pointing finger. "Am I still dreaming?"
March 7th gave Stelle a crash course on Sleeping Banana Monkey culture, including the viral Sleeping Banana Monkey song.
Stelle raised a hand to stop her. "I really don't want to experience it again. But that song sounds so inexplicably weird."
March 7th smiled slightly. "It is a bit inexplicable, but the more abstract something is, the easier it spreads, right?"
Dan Heng was puzzled—how did March collect so much useless intel in such a short time? "Where did you learn all this?"
"Of course from the 'alumni group'! Add the group before school starts to get familiar with faces—it's common sense. If you're too antisocial, you won't make friends after enrollment. Here, I'll add you guys too!"
Ding—
Stelle's phone vibrated twice. She had been pulled into the chat.
[I, Trailblazer Stelle, have joined the chat group.]
[Writing a novel here?]
Dan Heng still cooperated and sent a "Hello everyone."
When it was Stelle's turn to introduce herself, she carefully pondered and decided she had to go with something "trendy":
"Nice to meet you all~☆:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:☆——I'm the Trailblazer, or you can call me Silver • River • Baseball • Hero (strikes a super cool pose)! Just a cute little freshman~ Welcome to expand the friend list, everyone please teach me lots of bana ~"
The group members found it hilarious. March 7th said she didn't know this person.
[HAHAHA, as expected of Stelle—going full abstract again.]
[Gotta admit, that self-intro is actually super trendy!]
[Yeah, kinda funny—left the whole group speechless.]
— —
After the farce, the three little ones finally stepped into Origami University.
An aerial shot beautifully showcased the entire campus—it really had that youthful vibe.
Along the way, Dan Heng gave a brief history of Origami University.
Following the three little ones' perspective, the plot slowly advanced. Under the craze of Sleeping Banana Monkeys, the whole school was filled with bana-speak and bana-language.
Soon after, a university student called out to the three little ones. Thanks to March 7th's distinctive hair color and outfit, she recognized them instantly.
The female student was named Montana. She mentioned a fairly important piece of information: during the entrance ceremony, family members would use "tuning" to analyze the students' potential and assign them to the appropriate college.
[What is this, Harry Potter?]
[I want to go to Azkaban.]
[I want Civil Engineering College.]
After a simple explanation of the sorting mechanism, the three little ones arrived at the entrance ceremony venue.
Right then.
A person wearing a monkey headpiece stepped onto the stage.
The three little ones simultaneously furrowed their brows—everything seemed to be heading in an increasingly bizarre direction.
Many students in attendance also felt surprised.
"I am 'Professor Primon.' Of course, everyone can also refer to me in a more popular way—as Banana Professor!
Haha, did everyone get a little shock? Don't worry—I'm neither stupid nor crazy. The reason I appear in this outfit is simply to show new students the true face of Origami University—'Dreams are colorful, ideals are free'!"
Banana Professor answered everyone's questions about his appearance and further announced, to lighten the students' burden: "After discussion, the teaching and research group has unanimously decided to cancel all courses and exams this semester. Participation in the school festival alone will be sufficient to earn credits!"
The moment those words left his mouth, the atmosphere on site instantly ignited.
Any doubts about Banana Professor's appearance were immediately thrown aside and would never be brought up again.
March 7th glanced around. "This school's vibe is way too good!"
Even Dan Heng couldn't help but sigh. "It seems Origami University's school spirit is even more open than rumored—very in line with Penacony's character."
…
Not long after the entrance ceremony ended, the three little ones arrived in the classroom to participate in the "String Test."
Stelle found her assigned seat based on her student number.
For some reason, she seemed to have contracted a disease where just thinking about class made her drowsy.
Stelle propped her cheek on one hand. Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier. Eventually instinct overcame her will to study, and her eyes slowly closed.
Suddenly, a shout came from outside the door: "Actors, quiet—quiet. No unnecessary movement. Turn off all recording and filming devices… Get ready. The film is about to begin."