Sylvia didn't go after Sparkle.
Didn't even ask for her contact info.
Based on how that girl operated before, if she wanted to find you, she would. Always.
At least when it came to popping up out of thin air, Sylvia had to admit she was no match for Sparkle.
Just as Sylvia was pulling herself out of the dream, a call from Robin buzzed on her phone.
She pressed answer, and Robin's anxious voice immediately filled her ear:
"Sylvia! Are you okay?! What just happened, where are you?"
"Calm down, Robin. I'm fine."
Seeing Sylvia sitting safe and sound on the other end of the line, Robin stared blankly for a good long while before pressing a hand to her chest and letting out a huge sigh of relief.
"You scared me to death. I suddenly couldn't reach you, I thought something had happened."
Because both Sylvia and Robin knew that within the beautiful dreams of Penacony, there had been cases of dreamchasers going missing, or even dying.
So while they were investigating, the two of them made sure to check in with each other at regular intervals, just to prevent one of them from losing contact without the other having any idea.
And today.
After Sylvia went to Dreamflux Reef, the communication naturally cut out. Robin was terrified when she realized Sylvia was gone.
She immediately contacted members of the Bloodhound Family right then and there, asking them to help search for Sylvia's trail in The Golden Hour.
All the way up until now.
Sylvia returned to reality, and the connection was restored.
Only then did Robin finally breathe easy.
"So what happened? There shouldn't be any signal outages in the dream."
But as she relaxed, Robin also grew curious about what exactly Sylvia had encountered.
In the dream, all sorts of things could happen, but a complete lack of signal coverage wasn't one of them.
Just like there's no death in a beautiful dream, you could say it's common knowledge within the dreams of Penacony.
Yet, under those very conditions, Sylvia had been out of contact for several system hours.
Naturally, that got Robin's attention.
Sylvia was silent for a moment, then asked:
"About this... when do you have time? Come to my room in reality, and we'll talk in detail."
"Huh? Okay, I'll head over right now!"
Seeing Sylvia's demeanor, Robin immediately realized she'd probably found something out.
So she hurriedly agreed and hung up.
Before long.
A knock sounded at the door, and then Robin rushed in, out of breath.
"Sylvia, did you find something?"
"Don't rush. Have some water first."
Sylvia smiled and poured Robin a cup of tea, handing it to her.
Then she reached out and gently patted Robin's back, letting her catch her breath.
The little wings behind her ears gave a soft flutter with Robin's movements.
She lowered her head and took a few sips of tea, steadying her breathing.
"Sorry, I got a little ahead of myself."
"It's okay, there's still time. I'll tell you what happened today…"
Sylvia had no intention of hiding things. Except for matters concerning Sunday, she could tell Robin everything else directly.
Including Gallagher, the strange Memory Zone Meme, Dreamflux Reef, Micah, and even Sparkle.
Of course, she left out Silver Wolf and the Stellaron Hunters, as well as the part where she used special methods to pry information out of Sparkle.
Those things were just a bit too embarrassing to tell someone outright.
Besides, they weren't really crucial intel, so it didn't matter.
"There's actually a settlement outside the beautiful dream… So that's the truth behind the deaths."
After listening to Sylvia's account, Robin finally understood the answer to the riddle in the invitation.
"You can ask more after you've been there yourself. I don't really know Penacony's history, after all."
Sylvia was referring to Micah. That guy clearly didn't mind telling anyone and everyone about Penacony's past.
Robin nodded. She really did have a lot of questions she wanted to ask.
"But speaking of which… that Masked Fool… can we trust her?"
"I don't know."
"You don't know?"
Robin held her cup, looking at Sylvia with a slightly dazed expression, her bewildered face rather cute.
"I need to ask a friend to confirm. Then again, that girl pops up out of nowhere. If she really wanted to do something, we couldn't stop her anyway."
"Mmm…"
Hearing Sylvia's assessment, Robin furrowed her brow in distress.
The problems in Penacony seemed even more serious than Robin had imagined.
Never mind the traitors, just the fact that Penacony was hiding a Stellaron to maintain the dreamscape…
That alone would take Robin some time to process.
Her home planet had been destroyed by a Stellaron. Taken in by the Family of Harmony, she grew up in Penacony.
And now she's being told that Penacony also has a Stellaron.
And that from the past all the way to the present, it has been slowly, silently using human lives to maintain the stability of the beautiful dream.
This stark contradiction was undoubtedly shaking Robin's beliefs.
"Sorry, Sylvia. I might need a little time to come to terms with this…"
Robin looked a bit defeated. She rubbed her temples.
The little wings behind her ears drooped listlessly as well.
"There's still plenty of time. And you're not alone. No need to rush."
Sylvia sat down beside Robin and poured herself a cup of tea too.
Seeing this, Robin tilted her body slightly, resting her head on Sylvia's shoulder.
"You know, my brother and I… our home planet was also destroyed by a Stellaron disaster. The Family took us in and gave us a new home."
Her voice was softer than usual, carrying a bit more fragility.
Sylvia resisted the urge to reach out and pat Robin's head. She let her continue.
"My brother and I grew up in the Family. I followed the meaning of Harmony, walking through the universe, using strength to aid the weak, using death to protect life…"
"But if the Family that raised me is itself plundering lives in the name of Harmony… then I have no choice but to reject them, in the name of Harmony. But that…"
It wasn't that Robin's faith was wavering.
Having witnessed so much throughout the universe, she possessed a firm sense of self.
If the Family deviated from Harmony, she would reject the Family.
But regardless, the Family had shown her and Sunday, and countless other Halovians, the grace of saving their lives and raising them.
And Robin could swear that Penacony had never treated them unfairly, not in the slightest.
Yet now, Robin might have to turn her back on the Penacony of today.
This internal conflict left her feeling exhausted.
"…Sylvia."
"What?"
"Do you think… my brother, as the head of the Oak Family, knows about all this? And deliberately kept it from me?"
"Who knows."
"...Let me lean on you for a bit, Sylvia…"
With that, Robin fell silent.
She wasn't weak. She just needed a little time to sort out her emotions.
Sylvia sighed softly to herself and said nothing more.
But this time, Sylvia raised her hand and placed it on Robin's head.
Gently, she began to stroke her hair.
In the game, it hadn't felt like much.
But now that Sylvia had actually come to understand what this girl had done out there in the universe…
She became keenly aware that Robin was far stronger than she appeared.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.