Chapter 170: In a Corner Unseen, Little Blue Light Begins to Evolve
"Is this the Dreamscape?" Stelle asked, her voice laced with suspicion as she took in the small, serene garden they had materialized in. "Is there a path leading out of here? Where exactly did we end up?"
"Don't worry, we just randomly spawned into this pocket of the dream," Rekka replied casually. He scanned their surroundings, noting the strange sense of isolation. It was as if the Dreampool had simply carved out the nearest available pocket of space for them, a quiet, forgotten rooftop floating in an endless void.
"But it feels like there's nowhere to go," Stelle observed, walking to the edge of the manicured lawn. She peered over the ornate stone railing and saw nothing but bottomless, inky darkness stretching out below. The garden was an island in a sea of night. "We're completely cut off."
"Hey, look over there," Rozaliya chirped, pointing with a sharp-nailed finger. "Who's that old man napping with the hat on his head?"
Rekka's eyes followed her gesture, and his breath caught for a second. He recognized the scene instantly. The sleeping figure, the top hat, the shimmering orb of condensed memory floating nearby… No wonder it felt so familiar. Had the Dreampool somehow sent them straight to the final cutscene?
"Stelle," he said, a grin spreading across his face. "We've cleared the game!"
"Huh?" Stelle blinked, turning away from the abyss. "What do you mean, 'cleared the game'?"
Rekka tapped her lightly on the head. "Do you remember what the invitation to Penacony said?"
"Uh..." Stelle's brow furrowed in concentration. "I don't remember."
"It said: 'We cordially invite the honored guests of the Family to visit Penacony and join the other guests in attending the Grand Banquet.'"
Stelle tilted her head, still lost. "So, is the Grand Banquet here?"
"There's still the second half!" Rekka recited dramatically. "'Witness the impossible in the dream, find the legacy of the Father of Penacony—the Watchmaker—and answer: Why does life slumber?'"
Stelle's eyes widened in shock. Her gaze darted to the old man in the chair, his hand resting peacefully near the sphere of solidified Memory Zone material. "He... he is the legacy?"
Rekka's triumphant expression froze. "...?"
This time, it was his turn to be utterly baffled by her logic.
"Isn't he?" Stelle reasoned with unshakable conviction. "The elderly are society's most precious treasure, after all."
Without another word, she walked over to the slumbering figure, stood before the chair, and performed a deep, respectful bow. "Great elder, I pay my respects to you!"
A heavy silence descended. Rekka could only stare. "...He is the Watchmaker," he finally managed to say, his voice softer now. "And he has already passed away."
At that, even Stelle fell silent. She straightened up, her previous boisterous energy draining away, and stood with Rekka before the old man. He looked so peaceful, as if he were merely sleeping, but they both knew those eyes would never open again. That hand would never lift.
After a long moment of quiet respect, they looked at each other.
"So," Stelle whispered, "where is the legacy?"
"The hat," Rekka gestured, "and this ball of memory." The answer was simple, direct, and staring them right in the face.
"Then does this hat have any specific function?"
"It's a hat with no special effects, but it has immense commemorative value. It's an heirloom of the Nameless."
Still, reaching out and just taking a hat from a deceased elder felt deeply disrespectful. Stelle's hand hovered, then retreated. She instead reached for the shimmering memory bubble, only for her fingers to pass right through it. It was completely empty.
"So, what about the Watchmaker's legacy?" she asked, a hint of frustration in her voice.
"The Watchmaker was actually a Trailblazer from our Astral Express," Rekka explained.
"Which one?" Stelle's interest was immediately piqued. "Tiernan? Razalina? Or Mikhail?"
"Mikhail," Rekka confirmed.
Stelle's eyes narrowed. "...Hiss. Just how many secrets are you hiding?"
"Hmm... let's just go with the idea that I need to see things to trigger certain associations, and then I'll know what they are. How about that?"
"What a ridiculously convenient setting," Stelle pouted.
The two of them sat in the small garden for a while longer, the deep quiet of the place seeping into them, calming their thoughts. Gradually, a mischievous grin returned to Stelle's face.
"So... can we take the legacy now? We're Trailblazers, after all. It belongs with us." She reached for the dream bubble again.
And again, nothing happened.
"What's going on?!" she yelped, staring at her hand as it phased through the shimmering orb. "Did the legacy grow legs and run away?!"
"How did you know?" Rekka deadpanned, before adding, "In my opinion, this hat is an equally important part of the legacy."
He stepped forward and, with great care and reverence, gently lifted the top hat from Mikhail's head. "This is the hat passed from the Astral Express navigator Falcon Amundsen to Glanholm, and then to this legendary Father of Penacony. Don't you think... this hat has significant commemorative value?"
Stelle's eyes were wide with awe. "Is this... for real?"
"Yes. Put it on and go on an adventure," Rekka said, offering it to her. "However, I suggest you keep it with your baseball bat and greatsword when you're not wearing it."
"Got it." Stelle took the hat with careful hands, an inexplicable feeling of history and purpose washing over her as her fingers brushed the felt. She placed it on her head. "I feel filled with the determination to Trailblaze now!"
"Good," Rekka said, his tone shifting from playful to serious. "Because we didn't sneak over here just to enjoy the scenery. Get ready. We need to stop the resurrection of the Aeon of Order."
"Nani?! What do you mean we have to stop the resurrection of an Aeon? Me? Us?" Stelle blinked, the weight of his words slowly sinking in. Then, a sudden realization dawned. "Hiss... then... do you want to try turning into your super angry Destruction form?"
"An IPC Agent? If I transform into that, everyone dies."
"Then what should we do?"
The two looked at each other, a familiar spark of chaotic energy passing between them.
"Do you have an idea?" Stelle asked.
"I have a plan," Rekka grinned.
A short while later, Rekka and Stelle awoke from the dream, stretching their limbs as they sat up in the Dreampool.
"Little Blue Light—!" Rekka called out.
"Rozaliya, Liliya!"
The sisters, who had been standing guard, snapped to attention.
"Yes! Captain!" Rozaliya saluted sharply.
"We are here," Liliya added softly.
With Liliya revived and by her side, Rozaliya had reverted from the focused, combat-ready Delta back into her purely comedic, energetic self.
"I now order the two of you to merge—wait, where is Little Blue Light?"
"Little Blue Light... seems to be spinning silk in its nest to form a cocoon," Rozaliya reported. "We don't know why, but it's glowing green."
Rekka's senses immediately reached out, checking on the creature's condition. Sure enough, Little Blue Light had woven its entire nest into a thick, pulsating cocoon of emerald silk. It was likely absorbing the latent power of Abundance he'd gathered to strengthen itself.
'That's great,' he thought.
"Alright, then you two help out first. Once Little Blue Light finishes its metamorphosis, we'll have it enter the Dreamscape with us."
Once a genuine Broodmother like Little Blue Light entered Penacony's Dreamscape, it could effortlessly hijack control of the Swarm within the dream, causing them to defect on the spot. Aside from the Swarm King itself, only an Emanator-class entity like Little Blue Light, which had inherited a part of the original's body, possessed that tier of authority.
Rozaliya and Liliya fused into Delta and, along with Stelle, helped carry the Dreampool into an empty guest room.
Why didn't Rekka carry it? Because today, he was a physically powerless Path of Erudition. Or so he claimed.
Rekka and Stelle settled back into the Dreampool one after another. As soon as Stelle's consciousness slipped into the dream, Delta, having neatly placed Liliya's clothes on a small table, took advantage of the moment. She deftly pulled open Rekka's arm and curled up against his side, a little trick of the pink and blue twins going unnoticed.
And of course, almost no one noticed the other change taking place. In a quiet corner of the Astral Express, deep within the cocoon woven by Little Blue Light, the shadow stirring inside had begun to change.
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