["If it means their departure, I will." Stelle answered honestly.]
["Hm… Then if there is a vast dream, realistic enough to be indistinguishable from reality. There would be no parting by death, everyone would receive the happiness they deserve, and live happily forever."]
[Acheron continued asking: "May I ask, would you be willing to reside within it?"]
["No matter what, I don't want to live in a dream." Stelle shook her head.]
["Then… if this beautiful dream shatters, everything will depart. Everyone in their memories, those smiles and tears, completed and uncompleted promises… will ultimately head toward their predetermined end. If at the very beginning of the journey, you already knew the destination of this trip…"]
["May I ask, would you still embark on this journey?"]
[Stelle's gaze was firm: "I would blaze the trail without hesitation."]
[Acheron said expressionlessly: "I know this is difficult. There's no need to rush to make a decision. As I said… the answer doesn't matter. So back to the original question… May I ask, do you still remember me?"]
["No, this is our first meeting." Stelle remained very certain.]
["…I understand." Acheron nodded. "The golden beautiful dream is about to stir. In the long night to come, you will likely encounter many setbacks, witness numerous tragedies, and in the end… only black and white will remain in your sight."]
["But please believe that in that black-and-white world, there will be a flash of red. When you make your choice, it will surely reappear…"]
——
Mob Psycho 100.
"Master, did you understand what she said?" Mob stared blankly at Reigen Arataka.
"N-Not at all…" Reigen felt like his CPU was about to burn out. Every single word this woman said was understandable on its own, but put together, he couldn't understand a single sentence. She seemed to have said everything, yet nothing at all, like she was speaking in riddles.
What "long night," "golden beautiful dream," "black and white"… Were they metaphors?
This woman called Acheron had clearly met Stelle before. Who asks questions like that right away? And she seemed very familiar with Penacony… Could she be someone from the [Harmony] Family's side?
No matter what she was implying, Reigen drew one conclusion from her words — Penacony was definitely not as simple as Stelle imagined. Combined with what the young brother and sister with halos behind their heads had said, there must be some unknown tragedy hidden beneath this beautiful dream.
"Master, do you think there's a possibility… that Miss Acheron is testing Stelle?" Mob said quietly.
"Testing?"
"Yeah. Miss Acheron is a Galaxy Ranger, like a knight roaming the galaxy. She doesn't just ask Stelle these questions. She asks everyone she considers suspicious. Anyone whose answer she finds unsatisfactory or hostile, she directly—"
Mob didn't continue speaking and instead made a throat-slitting gesture with a solemn expression.
"Hey hey hey… Is she a Ranger or a murderer? Judging friend from foe this way, Miss Acheron has probably already been wanted internally by the Galaxy Rangers?!"
——
[Acheron gripped her katana tightly. The moment she lightly brushed past Stelle's clothes, time suddenly became viscous.]
["And you must carefully chew on its meaning — then, return to the waking world."]
[Acheron slowly raised her head. Those eternally indifferent eyes… shed a single drop of blood tear.]
[Stelle turned back in confusion, wanting to ask what her words meant, but before the question could form, intense pain exploded from her abdomen.]
[Scarlet red.]
[This was Stelle's final perception before losing consciousness. She felt herself falling rapidly, plunging into an icy lake, suffocating bit by bit.]
["…Passenger Stelle?"]
[Pom-Pom's voice suddenly pierced through the darkness.]
[Stelle abruptly opened her eyes, her fingers digging deep into the leather of the train seat. There was a cool sensation on her face — it wasn't blood, but two lines of tears that had flowed down at some point.]
[Pom-Pom was looking at her with a concerned face: "What's wrong? W-Why are you suddenly crying?"]
["I dreamed of a riddle-speaker saying strange things…"]
——
One Punch Man.
"What a hardcore wake-up service…"
"By the way, just that one slash is already much stronger than the S-Class heroes in the Association, right?"
"Are you implying Atomic Samurai, the 4th ranked S-Class? Heh, I admit he's very strong in Z City, but in the universe… I can only say he still needs more training."
"Hey! Do you want to die?! The real Atomic Samurai is right here!"
"For real…! I hope he didn't hear that! I'm out!"
"…"
Inside the ramen shop, the customers put down their chopsticks one after another and discussed animatedly. At a table on the second floor, Atomic Samurai and his disciples were staring blankly at the Celestial Screen, their chopsticks trembling slightly. A half-cooked onsen egg slipped from the tip of the chopsticks and created small ripples on the soup surface.
"Hey, did you guys see clearly just now? The way she drew her blade…"
Atomic Samurai tried hard to recall Acheron's slash earlier. He really couldn't remember where exactly that woman had drawn her blade from. In his impression, she had only gripped the scabbard tightly, her fingers resting on the tsuba, with no other movements.
Was it because of the dream?
His disciple Iaian shook his head. Forget seeing the blade-drawing motion clearly — he felt that Acheron had been walking casually the whole time, and while walking, the Stelle behind her had been slashed to death.
"Master, since we can't see it clearly, why don't we ask…" Iaian lowered his voice and pointed with his thumb at the man not far away who was burying his face in his food.
—— KING.
Atomic Samurai had noticed KING eating by the window as soon as he entered. He originally didn't want to disturb him, but since such an interesting scene had appeared on the Celestial Screen, he had no choice but to talk to this man known as the "strongest human" and ultimate weapon.
(Full of openings… Is he hoping to lure hidden monsters into attacking him this way, then counter-kill them? As expected of KING, what a meticulous man…)
Atomic Samurai praised in his heart while bringing his disciple to sit opposite KING.
KING, who was slurping noodles, looked at Atomic Samurai in complete confusion, having no idea what this guy wanted.
"KING, you saw Acheron's blade draw on the Celestial Screen just now, right?" Atomic Samurai smiled slightly. "None of us could see clearly how that woman drew her blade. You are called the 'strongest human,' so you should have seen it clearly, right?"
"Blade draw?"
KING frowned. What blade draw? Earlier when he was eating noodles and watching the Celestial Screen, he had been so engrossed that he accidentally choked on chili oil. By the time he recovered, Stelle had already woken up.