The world had grown quieter.
Not the kind of silence born from peace…
but the kind that followed something ancient shifting out of place.
The forest no longer felt the same.
The wind still moved. Snow still fell. Light still touched the earth.
Yet beneath it all… something had changed.
As if the world itself was watching.
---
Atop a jagged cliff overlooking the vast wilderness, four figures stood against the cold morning wind.
Below them stretched a frozen expanse unlike anything they had seen before.
A massive lake, locked in ice.
Endless. Still. Unnatural.
Haruna stepped forward slightly and raised her hand, pointing toward the distant body of frozen water.
"That is Lake Tsukuyomi," she said.
"Humans call it the Lake of Nightmares… but we call it the Lake of Illusions."
Haruto and Hana stared in silence.
Even from this distance, something felt wrong.
A thick, pale mist rose from the surface of the frozen lake, curling upward like breath from a sleeping giant. It didn't spread across the land… it lingered. Bound to the lake itself.
Hana narrowed her eyes.
"You said illusions… does that have something to do with that mist?"
Haruna nodded.
"Yes. It is said to be the tears of the great hero… carried into the air."
Her voice carried a faint note of pride.
"It has psychological effects comparable to the illusions within the Chaos Maw… though on a far smaller scale."
Haruto caught that tone immediately.
There was history there.
Something personal.
Maybe they—
Wait.
His expression shifted.
"Hold on… did you say illusions in the Chaos Maw?"
Something clicked.
Those voices.
That dream-like state.
That feeling of something whispering inside his mind—
Haruna turned toward him.
"Yes. The Chaos Maw contains some of the most powerful artificially created illusions in existence. That is no exaggeration. They were crafted by Lord Charybdis himself."
She looked back toward the lake.
"Even the great hero required decades to overcome them… trapped within a timeless prison of despair."
Her hand lifted again, pointing toward the mist-covered lake.
"They say that the tears she shed during that endless struggle became this lake."
Hana tilted her head slightly.
Haruki's voice echoed softly within their minds.
"…But how does that create illusions?"
Before Haruna could answer, Haruto spoke.
"The hero didn't resist the illusions."
They all looked at him.
"She fought them with illusions of her own."
He narrowed his eyes slightly, thinking it through.
"She used hope to overwrite despair. Two opposing constructs clashing until one replaces the other."
He exhaled lightly.
"It makes sense… in a magical framework. But that only works if both sides are equal. And I doubt that was the case."
Haruna froze for a moment.
Then nodded.
"Y-yes… that is what the legends say."
Her voice lowered slightly.
"It was an extremely dangerous method. After all, she was opposing a Primordial god. If Lord Charybdis had not held back… the outcome would have been very different."
Haruto sighed.
"Sounds like both sides exaggerated things to make themselves look better."
He shrugged it off.
"But back to the illusions. You said the labyrinth had them too, right?"
He frowned slightly.
"So why didn't we encounter any? Did we just skip them?"
Haruna smiled faintly.
"They are not something you encounter."
A pause.
"They happen the moment you enter."
Haruto's body went still.
"…What?"
Hana's expression tightened.
"You've gotta be kidding."
Haruna pointed toward the mask resting against her.
"Lady Haru protected me from hostile illusions."
Then she looked at Haruto.
"And you… were born there. The labyrinth does not reject you."
Her voice softened.
"It would not harm you. It would… guide you."
Haruto fell silent.
"…So that's what it was."
He exhaled slowly.
"I thought something was living inside my head."
He glanced at Hana.
She was looking around, brows furrowed.
Her jaw tightened.
"Damnit…"
"What happened?" he asked.
She sighed.
"That's on me. I didn't even check the system window after we left."
Her expression darkened slightly.
"Guess it was all just an illusion."
That was when it clicked.
The voice he heard.
The one that sounded like Hana.
It appeared when he was at his lowest… pushing him forward.
The system panels.
The achievements.
The constant sense of progression that drove Hana forward.
After that "dream," he had awakened with control over Astrons far beyond anything he had before.
They had grown stronger.
Because of it.
Everything… was connected.
But one thing didn't sit right.
Why hadn't he spoken about it?
Why did it feel… wrong to tell anyone?
He glanced at Hana again.
She hadn't said anything at first either.
She only mentioned it later.
After hesitation.
A small detail.
But not meaningless.
The conclusion settled quietly in his mind.
The illusions didn't just influence perception.
They interfered.
They shaped thought.
At a fundamental level.
Haruto turned his gaze back to the lake.
"You said that lake has similar effects, right?"
Haruna nodded.
"Yes. But there is a difference."
Her tone shifted.
"It is hostile… unless you are chosen."
She pointed toward the flowing river connected to the lake, tracing its path.
"But we avoid it. Instead, we use another source."
Her finger moved further.
"That is Lake Venol. It lies within lizardmen territory, but it is protected by the Forest Council."
She continued,
"The river flows into Venol first… then continues into Tsukuyomi. Because of that, the water there is free of illusionary influence."
Haruto stared at the frozen surface of the Lake of Nightmares.
Then slowly turned away.
The sun had risen higher.
Day had begun.
He exhaled.
"…Man. I really need a break."
Haruki's voice echoed immediately.
"You can rest when we reach Haruna's village. You didn't complain in that death trap, so what's different now? Too peaceful?"
Haruto gave an annoyed look.
Haruna, noticing his gaze fixed on the mask, quickly removed it, holding it awkwardly in her hands.
Hana stretched lazily.
"Same here. I'm tired too."
Then she paused.
"…Actually, yeah. It has been peaceful."
Haruto nodded.
"…Let's just be grateful for that. I'm not in the mood to fight anything right now."
Haruna smiled and stepped forward.
"Yes. Follow me. We're very close now."
Her tone brightened.
"You can rest as much as you want when we arrive."
Haruto smiled.
"Fine… but we're throwing a party tonight."
Haruna nodded instantly.
"Of course."
They began descending the cliff, stepping into the snow-covered path below.
As they walked, Haruto's gaze drifted toward the mask in Haruna's arms.
A faint smile formed.
"Let's see…" he murmured.
He closed his eyes.
A thin layer of Astrons spread outward from his body.
Subtle.
Controlled.
Almost invisible.
It rippled through the air in expanding waves.
Like radar.
In the modern world, radar worked by emitting signals that bounced off objects and returned, allowing one to map the surroundings.
Haruto was doing the same.
But instead of electromagnetic waves—
He used Astrons.
By sensing the minute disturbances in the returning flow, he formed a rough image of everything around him.
"What are you doing?" Hana asked.
"Scouting," he replied simply, eyes still closed. "Just in case."
They accepted it without question and continued walking beside him.
Unaware…
That what he had just begun…
Was something far greater than simple scouting.
As their figures gradually disappeared into the endless stretch of white, the wind rose softly behind them.
Snow drifted.
Footprints faded.
And the world… moved on.
...
Far beyond the frozen cliffs.
Far beyond the forests, the lakes, and the fragile lives walking upon them…
There existed a place untouched by time.
A world without sound.
Without wind.
Without meaning.
White.
Endless.
A void that stretched infinitely in all directions, swallowing even the concept of distance itself.
At its center—
Sat a throne.
Not carved.
Not built.
But present.
As though it had always existed there, long before anything else ever could.
And upon it…
She sat.
One leg crossed over the other, her posture relaxed, almost lazy.
Yet the space around her felt… distorted.
Unstable.
Like reality itself was quietly rejecting her presence.
Before her, a tear lingered in the white expanse.
A rift.
Within it… a moving world.
Snow.
Trees.
Light.
And through it—
A boy's vision.
She watched silently.
Unblinking.
Then—
A small scoff escaped her lips.
"Illusions… huh?"
Her voice carried a faint amusement… laced with something sharper.
Something restrained.
Her fingers tapped lightly against the arm of the throne.
"If only I could correct him…"
A pause.
For the briefest moment—
Something fragile passed through her expression.
Regret.
Then it vanished.
Replaced.
Twisted.
A slow smile spread across her lips.
Not warm.
Not kind.
But… fond in a way that didn't feel right.
"Guess I'll just have to wait…"
A soft giggle slipped out.
Light.
Playful.
And completely out of place in that silent world.
Her gaze remained locked onto the rift.
On him.
Watching.
Always watching.
As if the distance between them…
Never truly existed.
...