Back to the present
Inside an immense castle overlooking Dream City, a young girl walked through the corridors, humming a light melody.
"It will be my birthday soon…" she murmured with a dreamy smile.
"My sleeping prince will awaken on that day."
She stopped in front of a large door guarded by an armored soldier.
"Good evening, Princess Akane."
Akane blushed slightly.
"Is he still asleep?"
"Yes. According to your father's orders, you are not authorized to make contact with him."
"My father this, my father that…" she sighed. "It's exhausting.
I can at least look at him, can't I?"
The guard hesitated for a moment, then gave in.
"Very well. But no more than one minute."
The door slowly opened.
The room was immense.
A monumental bed stood at its center, covered with translucent veils gently floating in the air.
Akane approached.
On the bed lay a sleeping man.
Rastaban.
"Still as handsome as ever…" she whispered.
In his sleep, his lips moved.
"Hold on, Hastur… You won't die…"
"Benkei…"
Akane smiled.
"He still talks in his dreams… How cute."
The last time, he often repeated the words: "twelve years ago"…
She turned to the guard.
"When will the effects of the Dream Sand wear off?"
"Tomorrow, Your Highness."
"Tomorrow!?
That's far too soon.
He must wake up on the exact day of my sixteenth birthday.
Add more Dream Sand."
"But… your father—"
Akane turned abruptly, her gaze cold.
"Do I need to remind you who I am?
I am the daughter of the Sand Merchant.
I hold as much authority as he does."
The guard immediately bowed.
"Of course, Your Highness."
Akane left the room quietly, a satisfied smile on her lips.
"Perfect…"
---
Efa's side — Ends'ky
Efa and Harvey were sitting apart, speaking in low voices.
"Poor Arata…" Efa sighed.
"I really want to help him, but I don't know how."
"He's convinced that he's responsible for the train explosion in Peleria," Harvey replied.
"But the real culprit… is the Vassal."
"The Vassal?" Efa repeated.
"Yes.
You probably already know this: the Vassals are the highest authorities after the King in Yellow.
There are five of them, each ruling over the capital of a theater."
"And they were all chosen by the King himself?"
"Exactly.
Their selection had nothing to do with merit or social status.
Only the will of the King in Yellow."
Harvey paused.
"The Vassal I serve has never revealed his name or his face.
No one knows where he comes from.
That's why he's simply called the Vassal."
"And his power?" Rin asked, stunned.
"The King supposedly gave him a book.
A book capable of making his wishes come true."
"What!?" Rin exclaimed.
"But it's not that simple," Harvey continued.
"First, his power only activates when he considers the situation to be a game.
Second, the book can only grant wishes that don't make the game too advantageous for him."
"For example?" Efa asked.
"He can't write:
'They lose and I win.'
But he can write:
'Make them think I'm playing rock, while I'm actually playing scissors.'"
Efa slowly nodded.
"So… Arata isn't responsible for the explosion?"
"No.
The Vassal probably wrote that the child saved by Arata would explode,
but in exchange, none of us would die."
Efa's eyes widened.
"That means Rastaban and Hastur are alive…
But where can we find them?"
"I don't know," Harvey replied as he stood up.
"My break is over. I have to go back."
After he left, Efa sat down beside Arata.
"I'm the only one to blame…" he murmured.
"I killed those who reached out their hands to me."
Efa remained silent for a moment, then spoke.
"You know, Arata…
After our exodus to Peleria, my father became seriously ill.
The anima had severely parasitized him."
She lowered her gaze.
"My mother worked for two. She was exhausted, stressed…
She often came home drunk, crying, yelling that I wasn't their child."
She took a deep breath.
"The doctors said my father needed stronger…
and more expensive medicine."
"So I decided to help them," she continued.
"I worked everywhere: sewing, selling vegetables, florist's apprentice…"
A faint, sad smile appeared on her face.
"One day, the florist told me:
'You work well, little one. Choose any bouquet you like.'"
"I chose the most beautiful flowers…
A magnificent golden color."
"He told me they came from Lake Hali, in Carcosa."
Efa clenched her fists.
"I placed them beside my sleeping father.
I wanted to make my mother happy."
Her voice trembled.
"Later… I heard screams."
She raised her eyes toward Arata.
"My mother was crying.
She was holding a flower in her hand."
"A single one of those flowers contains an enormous amount of anima…
And I had brought back an entire bouquet, while my father was already suffering from severe saturation."
Efa swallowed.
"She told me:
'He's dead. You killed him. Disappear.'"
A heavy silence settled in.
"Not long after, she sold me to a slave trader.
I managed to escape…
And I lived on the streets."
Efa lifted her head.
"Despite everything, I always remembered what the florist told me:
'Stay true to yourself.'"
Arata finally looked at her.
"Life has been cruel to me, Arata," she concluded.
"But I can't help loving it.
Living, crying, laughing… all of that is part of life."
She stood up.
"The real challenge is standing back up after every fall."
"I must live…" Arata whispered.