♤ revised v.1♤
[ This Is a dream simulation chapter, not particularly part of the story so you can proceed to 9 if you're just here for the flow of the story. ]
Arch stood in the center of the blue dome, curious what's behind the behind the coffin.
"Okay, think. To teleport, I need objects to swap. I just need a badass incantation... some magic words... and then... shazam."
As the exhaustion from the "ROOM" began to cloud his mind, reality started to warp. The wooden walls of the Kominka didn't just fade; they transformed.
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[ DREAM SIMULATION: START ]
Arch blinked. He wasn't in a ruin anymore. He was standing on a polished white stage under blinding spotlights. He looked down—he was wearing a tiny, perfectly tailored black tuxedo, a flowing cape, and a silk top hat.
In front of him sat a long table with four famous faces.
"Welcome," the Bald Judge said, leaning into his microphone. "And what is your name, little boy?"
"My name is Arch Newgate," Arch said, his voice amplified by a headset.
"And what will you be doing for us today?"
"I will perform real-life TELEPORTATION magic!"
The audience gasped. The "Curvy Judge" leaned forward, intrigued. Arch scanned the crowd and pointed a gloved finger toward the very back of the theater. "I need a volunteer! You! The guy who looks like a bald doctor—the Johnny Sins lookalike!"
A man in the back row stood up, looking offended. "Me? I'm just bald, you brat! This better be real!"
"Watch closely," Arch commanded. He didn't just imagine a "ROOM" now; he manifested it. A massive blue sphere surged out from his palm, swallowing the entire auditorium. The judges ducked, and the audience shrieked in awe as the blue light hummed through their bodies.
"READY? 3... 2... 1..."
Arch snapped his fingers. "SHAMBLES!"
SWOOSH.
In a blur of displaced air, the bald man was suddenly standing on the stage, looking dazed. Arch's top hat, which had been on the floor, was now sitting perfectly on the man's empty chair at the back of the room.
The silence lasted for three seconds before the building practically exploded with noise. The judges were on their feet. The "Squared Judge" was laughing in disbelief.
"Unbelievable!" the Squared Judge yelled. "A kid with that kind of power? You know what? You deserve this!"
The judge reached out, and in slow motion, slammed his hand onto the center of the table.
BAM!
The Golden Buzzer roared. Gold confetti began to rain from the ceiling like shimmering snow. Arch stood there, basking in the glory, a hero at last.
But then, the sound changed. The cheering didn't fade; it was replaced by an agonizing, familiar noise.
CREEAAAAKKKK.
"Wait," Arch muttered, looking at the ceiling. "Do you guys hear that?"
The audience didn't answer. They were frozen. Arch looked at his black hat on the floor. A single, heavy red droplet fell onto the silk. Then another. He looked up, expecting to see the theater roof.
There was no roof. There was only the pitch-black Void, and within it, the gargantuan, bloodshot eye from the System Door, staring down at him with cosmic indifference.
[ DREAM SIMULATION: END ]
AHHHHHHHHH!"
Arch's eyes snapped open. He was back on the cold, wooden floor of the Kominka. He was shivering, his breath coming in ragged gasps.
"What... what was that?" He checked his hands. No tuxedo. No gold confetti. Just blood and splinters. "Thank goodness... it was just a dream. A weird, high-budget dream."
He groaned, his body feeling like it had been run over by a sea king. The "ROOM" had vanished. He realized now that he had pushed himself too far; the moment he had tried to sense the object behind the coffin, his five-year-old brain had simply short-circuited into a coma.
"This is ridiculous," Arch muttered, rubbing his eyes. "Ever since I got isekai'd, it's just one weird thing after another. Magic tricks, giant eyes, and systems that use genjutsu..."
He sat up slowly, looking back at the corner behind the "Little Palace." He was awake now, but the presence he had sensed before he passed out was still there. And this time, he wasn't going to sleep through it....
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TO BE CONTINUED