They continued forward along the path through the Flower Garden, fairy-tale clouds brushing across their faces and bodies.
But Silvi had lost her earlier excitement. Her little face was taut as she sat on He Ao's shoulder, peering around like a squirrel searching for food. Yet she was afraid of seeing something dangerous, so her gaze only flicked over things before immediately pulling back.
Pink flowers drifted through the Flower Garden filled with standing skeletons. Their petals swayed like butterflies dancing among real flowers, weaving between the clouds and bones.
Silvi watched the fairy-tale scene warily, her whole body tense, afraid those "butterfly flowers" would come near.
Seeing this, He Ao smiled and continued onward.
Those fluttering petals would naturally draw in people passing by the Flower Garden, but as long as they did not enter the area filled with bones, there would be no real problem.
As for entering the bone-filled area, in De Norne's words, they would "become seeds planted in the Flower Garden by the butterflies."
Soon, He Ao followed the path between the flower beds to the end of the Flower Garden.
He raised his head and looked ahead. A towering high-rise stood directly in his field of vision.
The building's exterior was entirely made of mirrored glass, and face after face twisted in agony emerged across its surface.
Silvi also looked up at the faces on the mirror. They clung tightly to the walls like sculptures, yet also looked like someone stretching their head out from behind a membrane and pressing a face into it.
They hung neatly and densely across the wall, gazing toward the Flower Garden as though welcoming guests arriving from it.
Silvi raised her head and watched those faces warily, carefully clutching He Ao's clothes.
Ah—
At that moment, as He