While Kai remained trapped in a lucid dream, somewhere deep in the shadows, a meeting was taking place.
"When is your Boss going to arrive?" Nexus sighed, her small voice heavy with sleep.
The Masked Man remained completely silent.
Suddenly, Nexus's eyes widened. Her sleepy demeanor vanished instantly
"Someone is coming."
With every step the unknown entity took, the atmospheric pressure in the room grew heavier.
The Masked Man immediately materialized his harpe in his hand.
Tap. Tap.
With every approaching footstep, the blade in the Masked Man's hand vibrated.
Tap. Tap.
The footsteps stopped. Nexus stood up, her tiny eyes glowing as she activated her X-Ray scan.
Nothing. The hallway was empty.
The Masked Man let out a breath and relaxed his grip.
But in that exact microsecond, a shadow detached itself from the floor behind him.
A woman emerged from the darkness, smoothly pressing the cold edge of a blade directly against the Masked Man's throat.
It caught Nexus completely off guard.
Furious, the cat's eyes flared as she began condensing violent, absolute-grade energy. She was about to shoot.
"Stop!" the Masked Man shouted, freezing in place. "She is the person we were waiting for."
The woman stepped fully into the dim light. Her attire was a haunting marriage of Victorian mourning and modern industrialism.
A stiff, dark collar framed a face obscured by a delicate fishnet shroud—a piece of mourning jewelry that felt much more like a threat than a tribute.
Every inch of her dark raiment was precise, from the sharp flare of her shoulders to the rhythmic pattern of white stitching that marched down her chest like a row of bared teeth.
The woman smoothly released the Masked Man and vanished the blade back into her attire. She bowed slightly, lifting the edge of her dark dress.
"Hello, everyone. Nice to meet you."
The Masked Man rubbed his throat where the steel had pressed. "Why did you do that?"
The woman's beautiful lips curved into a horrifying smile.
"I just wanted to check whether you would panic or not."
Her face was so devious, so unnervingly cold, that Nexus immediately canceled her attack and hid behind the Masked Man's leg.
"And you passed," she whispered.
The woman noticed the trembling cat and suddenly teleported, reappearing inches from Nexus.
"What a beautiful cat with such violent eyes."
Seeing the terrifying smirk on the woman's face, Nexus squeezed her eyes shut and covered her head with her little trembling paws.
"I like it," the woman hummed. "Can I tame her?"
The Masked Man quickly snatched Nexus from the floor, shielding her. "She belongs to no one."
Suddenly, the woman's face shifted. The smile vanished, and the entire room became suffocatingly gloomy.
"Now," the woman asked nonchalantly. "Are they here?"
The Masked Man looked down at Nexus, who was still shivering in his arms.
"Y-yes... they are watching."
The woman's lips curved again. "Persistent creatures, aren't they?"
"Yeah, they really are," the Masked Man agreed.
"Did you get what you wanted?"
The woman slowly turned her gaze toward the Masked Man.
"Yes. It was a risk to put my life on the line, but it went exactly according to the plan. I was able to perfectly merge with her."
She suddenly shifted her gaze, looking past the Masked Man. She stared directly into the empty air, her eyes locking onto a far, distinct, blue luminous screen.
"The Fool of the Novel… the only one who walks without knowing the path," the Masked Man murmured.
"He is laying in a hospital bed, enjoying his lucid dreams," the woman replied, her voice turning serious.
"When will the other guy meet the fool?" she asked, her eyes never leaving the blue screen.
The Masked Man followed her gaze, staring directly into the same invisible screen.
"He is going to meet him in the next scenario."
"Interesting. Now we can finally put our plan into motion," the woman spoke, her gaze practically piercing through the blue light.
The Masked Man laughed, a low, echoing sound. "Yes. Let's proceed."
Both of them stared straight ahead, completely breaking the boundaries of their reality, their voices merging perfectly.
"Escape the fate."
Before turning to leave, the woman paused. "Do you have a pen? I broke my precious pen."
The Masked Man handed her a sleek pen. As he did, he asked the ultimate question.
"What about Tristan?"
The woman remained silent.
One second. Two seconds.
"Don't worry. He will never succeed in his plan," the woman finally spoke, writing something down in a book that looked remarkably like a diary.
"I think it is time to end our conversation," the Masked Man warned.
The woman shifted her gaze toward the blue screen one last time. She smoothed out her Victorian clothes.
The Masked Man raised his hand, waving directly at the glass alongside her.
"Since you insist on watching… you may as well know my name," she said, her smile widening into something dangerous.
"I am Elisa. The Escaper. Goodbye, my dear sociopaths."