Once everything was in place, Pei Guang placed a trash bin in an inconspicuous corner, then quickly opened the wardrobe and motioned for Firefly to make room.
When she shifted over, he squeezed inside too.
As soon as he did, black mist began seeping into the makeshift room.
Both Firefly, hiding in the wardrobe, and Stelle, under the bed, saw it all.
Along with the black mist came Something Unto Death.
After a brief rest, it had fully recovered: even the claw Stelle had knocked off and the eye she had gouged out had regrown.
The monster looked around, puzzled. Something about the room's decor felt… off, but it couldn't tell what.
Then it realized: there were two trash bins.
It couldn't sense its targets inside, but that didn't matter. Having witnessed two people crawl out of trash cans before, it immediately concluded: they could be hiding there again.
Because it had been ambushed last time, it didn't approach recklessly. Instead, it sent the black mist to seep inside the bins.
But as the mist tried to squeeze through the gaps, the trash cans… resisted.
As trash cans, they could accept any kind of garbage thrown inside, sure—but forcing something in through the cracks? Absolutely not.
Trash cans had their dignity too!
Rejected by a trash bin, Something Unto Death froze.
It… got refused? By a trash can?
???
Its head was filled with question marks. It didn't understand why even a trash bin would reject it, but fine: it could go check in person.
It stretched out a claw and swung at the bin. But the bin didn't flinch.
It just stood there, calm and still, as the claw came down.
The expected sound of it being smashed apart never came—instead, clang! The monster's claw was blocked.
That clang not only left Something Unto Death utterly bewildered: even Firefly stopped trying to make sense of it. She'd seen plenty of strange things before: trash cans with arms and legs, maybe even some with weird powers… but a trash can this sturdy?
She hadn't fought that monster directly, but judging from its speed, its massive body, and those sharp claws, punching through a metal bin should've been trivial. Yet the bin wasn't just intact: it had blocked the attack?
Sure, this was a dreamscape, but still…
As Firefly gave up trying to reason with it and silently ranted in her head, she noticed Pei Guang quietly sliding open the wardrobe and crouching out. Stelle crawled out from under the bed at the same time.
"?"
She knew Pei Guang had some kind of stealth ability, but he could use it now too?
Neither Pei Guang nor Stelle answered her confused thoughts.
The two crouched together, Stelle aiming her flame spear at Something Unto Death's lower half, while Pei Guang raised a trash bin high above his head.
But just as they were about to strike, Pei Guang noticed something and turned toward the wardrobe—toward Firefly.
Through his gaze, she understood what he meant: he wanted her to join in.
"Can I really do this?"
The thought flashed through Firefly's mind and her eyes made it obvious.
Seeing the uncertainty in her gaze, Pei Guang nodded with a smile.
Firefly took a deep breath. Then she clenched her fists, made up her mind, and went for it.
She'd already gone along with Pei Guang's madness too many times to count: one more wouldn't hurt.
As for worrying that this thing might harm Pei Guang or Stelle? Maybe she'd have thought that back when they first met, but now, all she wanted was for this monster to meet a peaceful end.
Mimicking the way Pei Guang and Stelle had snuck around earlier, she quietly crept up behind Something Unto Death. At the moment, all of its many eyes were fixated on the trash bin.
It had already attacked several times, but even it was starting to despair at how absurdly sturdy the trash bin was.
Facing the creature's despair, the trash bin instead seemed to radiate gentleness and compassion.
It was, after all, a trash bin that accepted all kinds of garbage. It didn't understand why this monster was so obsessed with forcing its way inside, but if that's what it wanted… then fine, it could come in.
The trash bin "informed" it of the proper way to enter—and for some reason, its lid slowly lifted open.
Seeing the lid open, Something Unto Death leaned its head over to peer inside.
"Death is here~"
It couldn't speak, of course, but that was the clear impression it gave off.
Just as its head dipped into the trash bin, Pei Guang silently handed Firefly a massive syringe.
Inside was a horrifying concoction: a super-concentrated mix of sleeping coffee, Himeko coffee, Mung Bean Soda, stinky tofu juice, garbage slurry, and worse things.
Stelle's earlier suggestion had clearly stuck with Pei Guang.
Even though most of those ingredients would only work on living beings and might not affect a memetic creature like this one, it didn't matter: just imagining using it on the enemy made him feel really good.
Holding the syringe, Firefly hesitated, glancing at Something Unto Death.
Pei Guang, meanwhile, pointed toward its rear end and traced an invisible "X" in the air before giving her a firm nod.
Firefly looked from the syringe in her hand to the nonexistent backside of the creature. She understood: once she stabbed this thing, there'd be no turning back.
It was a crossroads, one that might just determine her future.
For a moment, she wavered.
Pei Guang, seeing her trembling hands, assumed she was afraid. But then he thought back: sure, she loved mimicking heroes from Kamen Rider and Ultraman, but facing a real monster was different.
Anyone would be scared, even him once upon a time.
To steady her nerves, he took her hand gently, preparing to guide her through her "first lesson."
That lesson was simple: when facing an enemy, don't hesitate. Strike fast and strike true, send it off in a blaze of glory.
The moment Firefly felt his touch, her hesitation vanished. She had chosen her path.
Maybe most people wouldn't understand, but… as long as she was happy, that was enough. Even if her illness could never be cured, leaving this world smiling was still better than leaving it in pain.
At that moment, Firefly made her choice.
Even without Pei Guang's hand, she could have done it—but she didn't pull away. Because she didn't know if she'd ever again get to experience what it felt like to fight alongside someone like this.
Pei Guang held her hand as they drove the syringe into Something Unto Death's backside.
Whether it actually had a backside was beside the point: if Pei Guang decided it did, then it did.
The liquid mixture was forcefully injected into its body. Even though the creature was a meme-born abomination, it instinctively twisted around in shock.
Its countless eyes widened as it turned, and even the air itself seemed to fill with glaring eyes staring back at the three behind it.
It couldn't comprehend how they'd appeared there, or why it hadn't sensed them, but it didn't matter. Because the moment the mixture entered its body, its entire form began to convulse.
Even if it wanted to attack, it couldn't.
And just because it couldn't attack didn't mean Pei Guang and Stelle would sit still. This thing dropped materials and regenerated: perfect for farming.
So, in that brief moment of paralysis, both of them went all in.
Stelle swung her bat down hard, smashing off one of its claws, then quickly switched to her flame spear and deftly gouged out the giant eye that had just regrown on its head.
Pei Guang was even more decisive: he went straight for a killing blow. But as his sword plunged into the monster's body, it suddenly lunged away.
This time, injected with that vile concoction, with one claw shattered and its weak point pierced, Something Unto Death let out a scream of pure agony. Its body and eyes began to ooze a strange, unsettling fluid.
Though the eye atop its head was gone, countless others in the air still glared hatefully at the trio. After one last look, the creature vanished.
But it didn't escape unscathed: Pei Guang's blade had severed one of its entire arms.
Even so, the creature could feel it: if it stayed here any longer, it would be finished. It needed to retreat, to recover… and when it did, it would tear those three apart.
Watching the enemy flee, Firefly turned to Pei Guang and Stelle.
For some reason, seeing that monster retreat before her, and seeing her two companions beside her, filled her with a strange happiness.
Driving away death with her own hands made her feel something new: a stronger, clearer desire to live.
She refused to die.
She would live!