Confusion.
That was the only thing Dan Heng could feel in that instant.
What happened? Did Cloud-Piercer, the spear he threw, actually hit Twilight? Actually hurt her...?
But... how was that possible? That was Twilight.
Dan Heng clearly remembered, not long after leaving the Herta Space Station, a much smaller Twilight had played with his Cloud-Piercer out of boredom.
The spear's edge hadn't even left a white mark when it brushed against her skin... Later, she even chewed off a corner of the spearhead without getting hurt in the slightest!
Besides, he wasn't even attacking; he just threw the spear to get Twilight's attention... How could it possibly hurt her? It was like throwing a toothpick at an elephant—how could it possibly cause injury—
"Dan Heng, what are you doing?!!"
March 7th's sharp, terrified scream pierced Dan Heng's eardrums, forcefully pulling him back from his stunned disbelief and denial of reality, making him instantly see the truth before him.
Twilight had fallen, right in front of him, because of the spear he had thrown.
"Twi-Twilight!"
Panicked and clumsy, Dan Heng forgot everything else, rushing over on legs that trembled uncontrollably.
Maybe Twilight was just joking—this last shred of hope in Dan Heng's heart completely dissipated when he saw Twilight's condition clearly.
She was pinned to the ground, the spearhead piercing her arm. Her body was curled up, trembling and struggling weakly. Her face, usually calm and serene, was now etched with pain.
Cold sweat soaked her temples, strands of hair sticking to her pale face... Anyone could see instantly that the person before them was enduring unimaginable agony.
And when Dan Heng hastily reached Twilight's side, ready to provide aid, he realized—he had absolutely no idea what to do.
Cloud-Piercer had indeed hurt Twilight, but it only injured her arm!?
Did something happen? Was Cloud-Piercer tampered with, poisoned? Or did he accidentally hit some hidden weakness of Twilight's?
Panic clouded his judgment. Dan Heng was suddenly unsure whether he should pull the spear out, worried it might worsen Twilight's condition.
"Twilight— Hey, move it, you're in the way!"
Compared to Dan Heng, March 7th, who casually kicked a certain company executive lying in the path aside and scrambled over, had no time for such considerations.
She frantically pulled Cloud-Piercer out of Twilight's arm, tossed it aside, and took out gauze from her pouch to bandage Twilight.
Getting injured in battle happens. Carrying some first-aid supplies was a habit of March 7th's... but these supplies hadn't been used in a long time.
After meeting Little Twilight, she hardly ever encountered situations where she herself got hurt; these things were simply unnecessary!
Today, March 7th was glad she hadn't thrown away those old supplies just because they weren't needed... Though she still wasn't injured now, the one who always protected her was.
Just then, Caelus, Himeko, and Welt also rushed over, equally unable to believe what they had just witnessed.
"Dan Heng, what were you doing? Why did you suddenly attack Twilight!"
Caelus felt like his brain was about to explode. Was Penacony some kind of place that drove people insane?!
A couple of days ago, Twilight watched someone die without helping, and today, Dan Heng attacked Twilight from behind?!
This world had gone mad; nothing was normal anymore!
Were Twilight and Dan Heng both affected, or was he the one affected? Was everything he saw fake? Was everything in this dream false?!
He had quarreled with Twilight earlier because of Firefly, but that absolutely didn't mean he wanted to see Twilight hurt, let alone suffer such pain!
Faced with Caelus's incredulous questioning, Dan Heng had no idea how to respond.
"I, I didn't mean to hurt her, I just... I just wanted to stop her..."
Dan Heng felt his words sounded incredibly stupid. With Twilight collapsed and struggling now, all his explanations seemed pale and weak... even meaningless to himself.
Earlier, when he saw Caelus giving Twilight the cold shoulder, he had internally lamented Caelus's foolish behavior. Now, someone even more foolish had appeared—himself, the one who had personally harmed his companion.
"What's going on... Why isn't the bandage working?"
March 7th's tearful question trembled, but no one could answer.
Apart from the wound on her arm, Twilight seemed to have no other problems... Logically, even an ordinary person wouldn't suffer such immense pain just from having their arm pierced.
Besides, this was a dreamscape; even true death would merely result in dissolving into dreamlike liquid, absolutely impossible to cause such torment.
Clearly, what Twilight was experiencing now was far more complex than just being injured.
Compared to the completely flustered younger members, the more mature Himeko and Welt retained their reason and ability to think.
"We can't worry about anything else, retreat from the dreamscape first!" At the critical moment, Himeko, as the navigator, made the decisive call without hesitation. "Welt, could you please contact Sunday? We might need The Family's help."
If medical assistance was needed in Penacony, The Family was undoubtedly the best choice... Knowing the other party had ulterior motives, the Astral Express shouldn't normally owe them another favor. But when a companion was in danger, such considerations became irrelevant.
However, although Himeko seemed to be calmly making arrangements, her eyes couldn't linger on Twilight for more than a few seconds.
Her heart ached... She couldn't bear to look at Twilight, who used to love clinging to her, suffering like this now.
She must be sick, or maybe she suffered some enemy's mental attack earlier... Himeko's mind raced, searching for reasons for Twilight's condition, sincerely hoping they were true.
Because those situations still had solutions. If not, then there was only one other possibility.
Twilight's body was finally starting to give out.
The problem that even members of the Genius Society couldn't solve had finally caught up to her.
...
Why did everyone leave?
There's still someone here who hasn't quite died yet, anybody gonna help?
After the Astral Express crew hastily carried Twilight away, only Aventurine was left lying wretchedly below the stage—he had been kicked off it by March 7th earlier for being in the way.
His planned grand death had clearly fallen through. He got beaten up for nothing, hurt like hell, and ended up almost dead but not quite... But there was one piece of good news: it seemed he wouldn't need to die this time.
Although he wasn't at the gambling table this time, he had won again!
Sometimes, what's more terrifying than death is pain itself... Though he only caught a glimpse before being kicked down,
Aventurine was certain the torment Miss Twilight endured was enough to terrify anyone wanting to enter the dreamscape.
His own death was no longer needed as proof; the lie of the dream's safety had completely crumbled.
From this perspective, Twilight had not only saved his life but also incidentally helped him complete the mission he originally needed to die for. She was practically the best person ever.
It was just a pity that in this world, kind people often weren't treated kindly... Although, he himself was also using her, so he had no right to say that.