"Stelle, are you alright?" Lumina asked worriedly as she entered the room, glancing at Stelle, who had been talking with Acheron for some time. "Did Aventurine do anything to you?"
"No, I'm fine," Stelle replied, shaking her head. "I just feel a little... bewildered." Her eyes, clouded with confusion moments before, cleared significantly at Lumina's arrival.
Didn't we come to Penacony for a vacation? Isn't this supposed to be the land of dreams? Didn't the Family promise that Penacony would be completely safe?
To Stelle, Aventurine's words seemed like the ravings of a madman, and she didn't give them much thought.
"Good to hear," Lumina nodded, glancing at Acheron, who nodded in acknowledgment. "Then we should get going. Let's hurry and enter Penacony through the Dream Pool."
"Don't overthink it. Penacony is simple, not complicated at all."
A director, a seeker of meaning, a reclaimant of territory, a collector of memories, an executor of wills, a dreamer of paradise, a History Fictionologist, a dreamwalker, a Trailblaze—are these complex? No, they're simple. Are they simple? Very simple.
Therefore, Lumina wasn't lying.
"Acheron and I have some business to attend to, so we'll be leaving now."
"If Aventurine keeps bothering you, tell me, and I'll scare him off."
Lumina smiled, offered a brief instruction, and turned to leave.
"Please remember what I've said." Seeing her departure, Acheron also turned to leave, but before she did, she left a final message: "You should know these things before making your choice."
"Farewell."
With that, Acheron followed Lumina's footsteps and left the scene.
"...?" Watching them leave, Stelle scratched her head.
Why is everyone speaking in riddles? Stelle thought. As expected, it's so much easier to talk to March 7th.
Looking at Acheron's enigmatic expression and then at Sister Lumina's knowing gaze, Stelle couldn't believe for a second that they didn't know something.
But since Sister Lumina had assured her that Penacony wasn't complicated—in fact, it was quite simple—Stelle decided not to dwell on it.
She shook her head, dismissing her doubts. Penacony, the land of dreams, the paradise of beautiful dreams! Vacation, vacation, vacation!
Trash cans, trash cans, trash cans!
After quickly reading the Dream Pool's guide, Stelle eagerly lay down in the pool.
Why was she in such a hurry?
Because she had spotted something incredible in the Penacony tourist guide: magical trash cans!
Overwhelmed with excitement, Stelle couldn't wait to enter Penacony and reunite with her trash can brothers.
Closing her eyes slowly, she followed the Dream Pool's guidance and entered Penacony.
-
In the real world, as Version 2.0 launched, players eagerly boarded the Astral Express, setting course for the cosmos.
Just recently, the song "White Night" had taken the gaming community by storm, even drawing in outsiders and fueling boundless anticipation for Penacony's storyline and characters.
After all, who wouldn't be excited about new husbandos and waifus?
As for the plot itself, players were equally eager. It was supposed to be a wholesome, uplifting, and bright story, surely filled with beauty and wonder, right?
Shortly after the train departed, most players finished their gacha pulls and dove headfirst into the storyline.
On the Bilibili platform, in a live stream hosted by "Little Bear," the host had finally escaped the chaotic questions at the front desk and retreated to his room.
"Hiss... let me think. Does Aventurine die in this version?"
After Lumina and Acheron left, Little Bear pondered Acheron's earlier words: "Gambler, all-in bet." Combined with the fact that the story was written by Shaoji, it was hard to imagine Aventurine making it out unscathed.
"Wait, that doesn't make sense. With Lumina's power, how could anyone possibly stab someone right in front of her?"
While there were bound to be heartbreaking moments, Little Bear couldn't fathom any scenario where someone could be killed under Lumina's very nose.
Though Lumina's personality wasn't as perfect as Little Bear had imagined, she couldn't possibly stand by and watch someone get stabbed right in front of her, could she?
[Streamer, don't panic! Let's think outside the box—what if Lumina is the final boss of Penacony?!]
[Penacony might be a place Lumina once saved. They don't worship the Harmony Aeon; they worship Lumina!]
[Exactly! I already know how the story will unfold. Though initially devoted to Lumina, over time, some Penaconians began worshipping the Harmony Aeon. Eventually, Lumina's followers clashed with the Harmony adherents! And these VIP guests—powerful figures from major factions—naturally become key players in this epic battle between Lumina's devotees and Harmony's believers!]
[Holy History Fictionologists!]
[Even History Fictionologists aren't this "History"!]
"?..." Little Bear's lips twitched as he scanned the Comment Section, amused by these wild theories. He couldn't help but type a "?" in response.
He shook his head. The story had barely begun, and he'd only been spitballing ideas, yet the Comment Section was already filled with experts!
Without dwelling further, Little Bear steered his character into the Dream Pool. The screen went black, the perspective shifted...
...to Aventurine's side.