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Penacony Grand Theater.
When Sol and Sunday withdrew from the dream, Robin and the members of the Astral Express Crew had already awakened as well.
Sunday casted a complicated glance at Robin. As the creator and sustainer of the Dreamscape, within the dream he could see anything he wished to see.
The dream he arranged for his sister was her long-cherished wish—allowing the world to achieve peace according to Robin's ideals: respecting the self-will of life and realizing Harmony through the fulfillment of all beings' desires.
Within that dream, countless beautiful scenes unfolded exactly as Robin wished, and he himself followed Robin's ideals in full.
Yet Robin still woke up quickly, leaving the dream almost at the same moment as Acheron. She merely cast a brief look toward the future before resolutely withdrawing from the dream.
Just as Sol had said, Robin was completely unable to immerse herself in the beautiful illusion he had created.
It was he who had harmed Robin. His vision was not suitable for everyone, and it caused Robin to shoulder immense pressure for nothing—so much so that Sol was able to exploit the opening.
If he placed himself in Robin's situation, he feared that he, too, would have been unable to withstand Sol's fierce advance. The hand extended at the most difficult moment, entwined with thorns of affection, was all the more impossible to resist.
"Brother, do you understand now?"
Robin looked at Sunday, her multicolored eyes filled with hope.
She hoped her brother could turn back while there was still time, that things could still be handled with leniency.
"Things are done by people," Sunday said slowly, his golden eyes unwavering. "The dream cannot be perfect right now, but it can be in the future."
He looked deeply at Robin and said in a low voice, "Now, I can finally go forward without worry."
Seeing that the others had experienced the dream without having their wills crushed—on the contrary, with even greater resolve—only strengthened his fighting spirit.
Now that Robin had Sol's protection, even if Sol harbored ulterior motives, he was still enough to guarantee her safety.
With that, Sunday had no more doubts and resolved to stake everything on this final gamble.
"Brother, you—"
Robin reached out, wanting to stop him, yet she knew all too well that her brother's stubbornness at this moment could not be shaken by words alone.
"My dream has many flaws, yet there are still those who find shelter within it. I am not wrong."
Sunday's conviction grew firmer than ever before.
He had seen the severe bugs Sol Mercer and the others pointed out—the Heavenly Kingdom of Order was riddled with loopholes.
But at the same time, he had also seen countless people living happily within the dream he created. In reality, they were broken and weak; within the dream, they found something to rely on.
"Then let us fight!"
Stelle gripped her bat and pointed it straight at Sunday, her fighting spirit blazing. "People should have the freedom to choose their own fate! Maybe I'll beat a log-out button into you!"
Defeating Sunday once in the dream had not made her lose patience for another battle. Instead, she yearned even more to liberate this false world.
At that very moment, a gentle yet vast gaze descended, and the power of Harmony shone upon Stelle.
It was the gaze of Xipe, Aeon of Harmony, opening a brand-new Path for her.
Sunday paid no mind to Stelle's declaration of war, because that outcome had already been decided the moment the Astral Express Crew awakened from the dream.
What he focused on instead was the new Path Stelle had opened, and that surge of Harmony's power. "The Aeons have always been watching."
His gaze pierced through the void, and through Dominicus' perspective, he beheld that deity with a threefold aspect.
That was the god he had once worshiped, the one whose power he now usurped. This Aeon had always been present, yet had not stopped his actions, instead bestowing divine power upon his weaker opponents.
He could even sense Xipe's benevolence—still tolerating his recklessness, hoping that those standing opposite him would awaken him instead.
Let them try.Let's see what the final result will be.
Xipe offered no response, silently permitting everything to unfold.
THEIR gaze shifted to Acheron. Harmony did not incline toward Nihility, yet Nihility was a trial that Harmony itself had to overcome.
Those lowered divine eyes then turned toward Sol. All three divine faces scrutinized him, yet merely observed without taking action.
Hope existed within Harmony's tolerance.
"..."
Sol met that divinely encouraging gaze and, for once, felt a rare sense of helplessness.
Aeons stood far above all else; nearly the entire universe was their playground. Whenever they noticed a lifeform of interest, THEY would casually cast a glance its way.
In such a high-energy world where powerful beings loved to manifest daily, one had to be prepared for divine interruptions when attempting anything significant.
Fortunately, Sol had an entire stockpile of revival trinkets, with his respawn point not even located within this universe, granting him an unshakable sense of confidence.
And this time, Xipe happened not to oppose his objective, allowing everything to proceed smoothly. Until one reached the Ninth Tier, even if one possessed power sufficient to destroy half the universe, they were still no more than ants before these beings.
He had long since experienced the terror of concepts. These existences who had carved open Paths and walked them the farthest could, to a large extent, represent the Paths themselves.
At his current stage, the only thing Sol possessed that could contend with an Aeon was the [Four Conceptual Blessings] he had drawn from his very first lottery.
But he could feel it coming.
The appearance of [Glitter Tiga] would mark the opening of his ascension to godhood—an audacious experiment.
By invoking the hopes of all beings to draw power, the Giant of Light from another universe—the legendary powerhouse infamous for leaving bodies in its wake—was an existence that could rival the representatives of the universal will itself.
In a world where no original body existed, Sol would become the new incarnation. Even if it lacked Tiga's full completeness, it would still allow him to take another decisive step toward godhood.
And with that step taken, he would travel to another world to conduct a second, truly genuine attempt.
Ascending to the Ninth Tier in a universe where Ninth-Tier beings already existed was far more difficult than doing so in a universe where none did.
Reaching the Ninth Tier required not only internal conditions, but also external trials.
The so-called trials were not necessarily destined calamities—sometimes, it was simply other powerful beings finding you unpleasant and just decided to make your life specifically difficult.
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