Although Sunday's Dream of Oneness pulled everyone into the dreamscape, it wouldn't drastically alter the current situation, so as to prevent others from noticing that something was amiss. Only at the very end would everyone be fully immersed in the dream.
Derick and Aventurine's battle would continue, and the energy in Aventurine's body would still be under his complete control, no different from before he entered the dream.
But in the single instant between entering the dream and his ability to act being restored, the energy within Aventurine's body would stagnate. Aventurine himself wouldn't feel this stagnation; even the energy within him wouldn't sense it.
But Derick, who had not entered the dream, could seize this opportunity.
He raised his spear and lunged forward.
The tip of the long halberd pierced through Aventurine's ribs, pinning him to the wall beside them.
"Pfft—"
Blood trickled from the corner of Aventurine's mouth, his face a mask of shock.
In his current state, he was unaware of the Dream of Oneness. From his perspective, he had been continuously defending against Derick's attacks, preparing to launch a counterattack once Derick's energy waned. But then, one of Derick's attacks had suddenly broken through his defenses, plunging the long halberd into his chest and through his back.
Furthermore, Derick hadn't just pierced Aventurine's chest; his spear had also shattered the Cornerstone on Aventurine's body.
Aventurine wasn't a true Emanator, after all. With his Cornerstone shattered, his power rapidly diminished, and the strength granted to him by Diamond completely dissipated.
Derick pulled the long halberd from Aventurine's body. Losing his support, Aventurine slumped from the wall to the ground.
Looking at the heavily injured Aventurine, Derick turned to leave.
"This is the dream world. My attack won't kill you. Besides, there was a lot of commotion here. Someone will be here to rescue you soon."
Derick said this to Aventurine before departing.
Then, Derick walked away, his figure disappearing into the distance.
"Alright..."
A bitter smile appeared on Aventurine's face.
He had lost again, and this loss was even more miserable than the last.
He had wagered all his chips, and the result was still a crushing defeat. Even his Cornerstone was shattered. Even if he could return to the Interastral Peace Corporation, his fate would likely not be a good one.
"Looks like I'll have to struggle my way up from the bottom to the top all over again."
Aventurine thought to himself.
The Corporation doesn't execute people. It's not because they're kind, but because they want to maximize profits.
Aventurine lay there for a while before Topaz and Dr. Ratio walked over. They looked down at his grievously wounded form on the ground and shook their heads helplessly.
"What do you plan to do now?" Topaz asked Aventurine.
This matter didn't have much to do with her; she was just curious about what he would do next.
"All I can do is wait," Aventurine said to Topaz, feigning a relaxed tone.
"Right now, there's nothing we can do. The only option is to see what others do and if we can recoup some of our losses."
The Corporation's power in Penacony was now insufficient. The only thing they could do was salvage what little they could.
After speaking, Aventurine looked at Topaz again and said with a smile, "But then again, there might be another way. This matter, however, might require your help, Topaz."
Topaz waved her hands dismissively. "Oh? What do you want me to do? Surely you're not going to ask me to fight Derick again? I still owe him a favor. Fighting him without repaying it is completely unjustifiable."
"Not at all. What I mean is, doesn't Derick not refuse the advances of girls? Why don't you go and charm him? It might work, you know?"
"Don't even think about it. As it happens, I'm going to take these next two days to properly explore Penacony. I'll treat it as a vacation," Topaz said, hugging Numby as she stretched lazily.
"By the way, let me remind you. The official explanation to the Corporation and The Family will definitely be that this was your own personal action, unrelated to the Corporation."
"I know," Aventurine nodded, indicating he understood.
If Aventurine had succeeded in taking back Penacony, the Corporation would have certainly claimed it was all at their direction. But now that he had not only failed but also caused a major embarrassment, it would all be chalked up to Aventurine's personal actions.
For Topaz, she hadn't contributed anything to this operation; it had instead turned into a personal vacation for her.
Dr. Ratio supported Aventurine while Topaz held Numby, and the three of them left the area.
For now, there was nothing they could do. But once Penacony descended into chaos, the situation might change.
...
Derick prepared to head to the Reverie Reef. Initially, he planned to find the Reverie Reef by following the location of his Fifth Clone. But thinking about it, he realized it would be hard to explain how he got there.
Furthermore, they were currently in a dream state. If Derick's actions were too outrageous, Sunday would inevitably notice something was off.
What should he do next?
Just as Derick was pondering this, Something Unto Death quietly appeared before him.
Clearly, Something Unto Death had been specifically left by Gallagher to wait for Derick and guide him.
Derick's two eyes could see different things: one saw the situation in the dreamscape, while the other saw reality. Seeing that both the dream and reality were the same—with Something Unto Death there to greet him—Derick felt relieved.
Something Unto Death was clearly very afraid of Derick. It couldn't help but flinch upon seeing him.
"Let's go. Take me there," Derick said to Something Unto Death.
Something Unto Death's body bobbed up and down, which Derick took as a nod.
Then, Something Unto Death led Derick towards the Reverie Reef.
Derick didn't mind being impaled for teleportation, but Something Unto Death didn't dare use that method on him.
Because of the battle between Derick and Aventurine, the surrounding dreamscape had already been damaged. To avoid any issues with the transfer, Derick decided to let Something Unto Death take a slightly longer route.
After a few twists and turns, Derick arrived at the Reverie Reef under Something Unto Death's guidance.
Upon arriving, Derick saw Castorice and Stelle waiting for him.
Seeing Derick appear, Castorice breathed a sigh of relief. Stelle, on the other hand, walked up to him excitedly, punched his shoulder, and said, "I knew it! You're definitely strong enough. Even if your opponent became an Emanator, you could still escape from him."
"I didn't run away, you know!"
Hearing Stelle say that, Derick was displeased and quickly corrected her.
"You didn't run? Don't tell me he's still following you?" Stelle looked behind Derick, adopting a defensive posture.
"No. Can't you imagine a scenario where I defeated him?"
"Defeated him? Did Miss Acheron and the others go help?" Stelle asked doubtfully.
Derick retorted speechlessly, "Can't you just believe that I defeated Aventurine all by myself?"
"How could... Really?!" At first, Stelle thought Derick was joking, but seeing his expression, she knew he wasn't kidding.
"Yes, the real deal," Derick nodded.
"Awesome!" Stelle happily patted Derick's shoulder.
Castorice, however, asked with some concern, "Defeating him... are you alright?"
"Don't worry, you know how fast I recover. I got a little injured, but I'm pretty much healed by now."
Derick indicated that his body was fine.
"Mhm."
Hearing Derick's assurance, Castorice finally relaxed.
She took Derick's hand and had no intention of letting go.
At that moment, Derick asked Stelle, "By the way, Stelle, where are Mr. Yang and Himeko? Where did they go?"
Stelle told Derick, "Mr. Yang and Gallagher went to find someone. I didn't catch who they were looking for. As for Himeko and March 7th, they went with Clockie and Misha to investigate something else. Actually, they were all planning to wait here with me and Castorice for you. But I convinced them you'd get away safely, so I told them to go do other things."
Castorice nodded beside her, confirming what Stelle had said.
"But I didn't expect you to not only make it over successfully but also defeat him," Stelle said to Derick.
Beside them, Castorice wore a proud smile.
Stelle thought for a moment, then asked Derick, "By the way, Derick, where do we go next? Should we find Mr. Yang and the others, or Himeko's group? I'm fine with either. Or if you're too tired, we can find a place to rest, that's fine too."
"Let's go find Himeko."
Derick replied to Stelle.
Mr. Yang and Gallagher were probably still searching for Sparkle. And with the Memokeepers from the Garden of Recollection hiding her tracks, Mr. Yang's efforts were likely to be in vain. If Derick went, he'd just be patrolling the Reverie Reef with them.
He couldn't just reveal the location of Sparkle and the others in the Great Cavern himself.
"Okay."
Stelle nodded.
Then, she took out her phone and sent a message to Himeko, asking for their current location.
A minute later, Himeko sent them their coordinates.
"Let's go, it's not far from here."
Stelle said to Derick and Castorice.
"Let's go."
Derick and Castorice followed Stelle to the location Himeko had indicated.
When Derick and the others arrived, he felt that something was off. It wasn't just him; Castorice and Stelle also sensed that the atmosphere was strange.
Derick quickly identified the source of the problem. He looked at Misha, who was standing beside Himeko, and clearly felt a huge change in his demeanor.
When they had met before, he had the vibrant energy of a youth, but now, he exuded the calm composure of someone with rich experience.
"So, has Himeko already helped him recover all of Mikhail's memories?"
Derick wondered to himself as he looked at Misha.
______
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