In the video, after leaving March 7th's room, Steluna returned to the lounge and sat down on the sofa, waiting quietly for warp.
A moment later, Pom-Pom's announcement echoed through the carriage.
[Ahem— ahem ahem— Attention passengers—!]
[The train is about to warp— the train is about to warp— please remain seated and hold tight, Pom!!]
Hearing that, Steluna instinctively shifted deeper into the couch, trying to stabilize herself.
[Pom-Pom: Warp commencing!]
Then came the countdown.
[5… 4… 3… 2…]
A surging tide of energy wrapped around the entire Astral Express.
And the moment Pom-Pom's "1" dropped—
The screen blurred violently.
The scenery shattered and reassembled.
In the next instant, Steluna found herself sitting on a couch inside an unfamiliar room.
"???"
"What just happened??"
"Wasn't I sitting on the train properly for warp?"
"How did my noble backside teleport locations in the blink of an eye?!"
Watching the video, Steluna stared at her confused self, completely baffled.
March 7th:
"Right?! And why are you the only one there?"
"Where did we all go?"
Welt:
"It's possible this is merely a dream."
"The Conductor already explained that Asdana is a memory-saturated star system."
"Those sensitive to such environments may suddenly fall into dream states."
Himeko:
"That's true. There's precedent for such things."
Lumine:
"So… is this a physical condition problem, Miss Steluna?"
Arataki Itto:
"Hahaha! You're just too weak, miss!"
"If it were me, I'd never fall into some puny dream!"
Kuki Shinobu:
"Boss, shut up! NOW!!"
Silver Wolf:
"Weak? If you knew what she has sealed inside her, you wouldn't be saying that."
"Oh no… I knew it… I am weak!"
"Everyone's fine but I fell into a dream alone — this is so embarrassing!"
Steluna buried her face dramatically.
"Hey, this has nothing to do with being weak!" March huffed.
"Different people just react differently to memory environments!"
"Maybe you're just more sensitive, that's all."
"Really?"
"Then it's not embarrassing?"
"Not at all!"
"Cool, I'm fine now."
Instant recovery.
"…You were totally pretending just now, weren't you?" March deadpanned.
"Would the Galactic Baseball Knight ever be broken by such a trivial thing?" Steluna scoffed arrogantly.
"You underestimate my willpower!"
"That situation still feels… off."
Welt frowned.
"I agree," Himeko added softly.
"My instincts tell me this isn't just a simple dream."
"Then we'll keep watching," Welt said, pushing up his glasses.
"And see who exactly is targeting our companion."
Inside the Dream
After hesitating briefly, Steluna rose from the couch and decided to explore.
But just as she took a step—
A calm, unfamiliar voice spoke beside her.
[...Another one.]
The tone carried faint weariness.
Startled, Steluna turned toward the source.
A woman stood beside the couch — unfamiliar, yet strangely composed.
"…Come with me."
The woman offered no explanation and began walking toward the exit.
[Steluna: Who are you?]
The woman paused briefly, then spoke softly:
[These questions are meaningless… yet I will explain as best I can.]
[This is the boundary between reality and the memory realm — a place known as a "dream."]
[By chance, you and I share this same dreamscape, appearing within one another's consciousness.]
[This is the Dreamland's first greeting to us.]
[Do not worry. You will soon awaken and forget everything that happened here — leaving behind only a faint melancholy.]
[Such "forgetting" happens every morning. We have grown accustomed to it.]
[...So come. I will lead you home.]
She stepped forward, leaving behind a final instruction:
[Left corridor, end of the hall. I'll be waiting.]
"What the heck is this?"
"Am I really dreaming? This feels way too real…"
"And who is that cool mysterious lady?"
"She's kinda stylish… I like her."
March 7th:
"Wow wow, already falling for mysterious women again?"
"At this rate, you really will get scammed by some dangerous lady one day!"
Steluna:
"Please. I'm an expert in this field. No one scams me."
"And who says she's a bad woman?!"
March 7th:
"She just randomly appears beside you and drags you into a dream!"
"She's obviously suspicious!"
Acheron:
"…I don't remember everything clearly… but I believe… I'm not a bad woman."
The sudden message silenced the chat.
March 7th:
"EH?!"
"You're the mysterious woman in the video?!"
Acheron:
"If no one is impersonating me… then yes, that should be me."
Welt:
"Then Miss Acheron, what intention did you have when leading Steluna into this dream?"
Acheron:
"…I do not know."
"I'm not skilled in manipulating dreamscapes. This isn't something I deliberately caused."
"I know you doubt me, but…"
Acheron:
"Please continue watching."
"This video will prove my words."
A gentle pause followed.
And with it came a sense of quiet gravity.
The dream… had only just begun.
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