Chapter Summaries

Angel entered the Box Garden and found Laplace and Gleipnir caught between killing the unconscious Billa and preserving her, since a revelation said reaching 100% exploration required both death and life. The chapter ended with Laplace suggesting that the transformed Feast of the Glutton might be related to Gleipnir.

• Angel saw that Feast of the Glutton had transformed into a crystal whip covered in roses whose pistils bore human heads.
• Angel entered the Box Garden and found Laplace and Gleipnir defending themselves from three human-head balloons while Billa lay unconscious nearby.
• Laplace explained that the balloons endlessly revived as long as Billa lived, and Gleipnir revealed that killing Billa might end the dream at 91% exploration.
• Gleipnir told Angel that her revelation said reaching 100% exploration required both death and life, leaving them unsure whether to kill Billa.
• Laplace recounted how she and Gleipnir had cleared the Box Garden and reunited Billa's scattered body parts, only to become stuck at the final decision.
• Angel asked about the changed Feast of the Glutton, and Laplace suggested that its transformation might be related to Gleipnir.

Angel learned how Rabbit Girl’s Rabbit Hole movement worked and discussed Luigi’s approach to Dream Mountain with Laplace. Gleipnir identified the heads growing from the roses as Helen and Billa at different ages, then began explaining her deductions about how to complete the realm’s exploration.

• Angel learned that the Glutton’s hunting list admitted its targets to the mutated Glutton’s Banquet, while Laplace had dragged Gleipnir inside and raised the realm’s difficulty.
• Laplace explained that Rabbit Girl’s Rabbit Hole used traces of bloodline aura to leap around a battlefield and suggested she might create a similar technique for a bloodline wizard who earned her agreement.
• Angel described Luigi’s approach to Dream Mountain, and Laplace decided to let him explore because he could log off if danger arose.
• Gleipnir asked Angel to check whether Helen and Billa appeared among the heads on the roses, and Angel confirmed that the heads represented only the two of them at different ages.
• Gleipnir said the starry sky had revealed the answer and began explaining her deductions about completing the exploration degree.

Laplace opened Billa’s belly and uncovered human-headed roses containing the people tied to the Fan Family’s downfall. Executing them raised Glutton’s Banquet’s exploration to 95%, while three rose heads remained.

• Gleipnir explained that reaching 100% exploration depended on solving what Helen’s Dream lacked and why Billa became the Glutton.
• Laplace cut open Billa’s belly, revealing attacking vines and six human-headed roses that caused Billa’s body to shrink.
• Laplace executed the manor’s steward and owner, raising exploration from 91% to 93% and revealing their roles in Helen’s history.
• Laplace killed the former head maid, whose arson had destroyed the Fan Family, raising exploration to 94%.
• Laplace executed a former cook whose jealousy had driven her to kill a woman she called her sister, raising exploration to 95%.

Laplace opened Billa’s belly and found Helen alive inside a vine cocoon, proving that he had been resurrected after his death in Helen’s Dream. After Laplace removed his mask, Helen became a frail, abused boy who recognized the two Human-Head Roses as his parents and crawled toward them.

• Laplace decided to leave the two Human-Head Roses alone until they chose whether to attack, and continued cutting open Billa’s belly.
• Laplace explained that Billa had likely swallowed Helen after both were resurrected in Billa’s Sweet Dream, and that Helen might still be alive.
• Laplace cut open Billa’s fourth abdominal layer and found a struggling vine cocoon containing a badly corroded person wearing the Masked Man’s mask.
• Laplace confirmed the Masked Man was Helen, removed his mask, and revealed him as the abused, frightened boy Vilaf Fan Helen.
• Little Helen crawled toward the two Human-Head Roses, babbling for his parents, and they finally opened their eyes.

Little Helen reunited with the memories of his parents, whose release raised Glutton's Banquet's exploration to 99%. Laplace saved Helen instead of Billa during a forced choice, completing the dream at 100% and returning with Gleipnir to the outside world.

• Little Helen cried beneath his parents' human-head roses, then fell asleep as they released warm memories of his childhood and their deaths.
• Laplace explained that Helen's parents had been discovered and released by Little Helen, raising Glutton's Banquet's exploration to 99%.
• The three human-head balloons fused into a giant meteor, forcing Laplace to choose between saving Helen and Billa.
• Laplace saved Helen, and the meteor crushed Billa as the special dream ended and its exploration reached 100%.
• Angel saw Laplace and Gleipnir return from the Box Garden, and Laplace explained the logic behind choosing Helen.

After completing Glutton's Banquet, Gleipnir and Laplace examined their rewards while Angel helped Laplace consider which of three labeled boxes to choose. Angel then discovered that Rabbit Girl had logged off before finishing her purger hunt, so the group decided to log off and ask her what had happened.

• Gleipnir revealed Billa's Long Whip, and Angel identified it as a Wonderland item with little information beyond its background and storage space.
• Laplace described three reward boxes labeled Mirror Realm, Dream Realm, and Wonderland, and Angel advised him to choose the Mirror Realm box.
• Gleipnir failed to learn anything about the rewards through astrology and suggested asking Luigi for guidance through his intuition.
• Angel checked his god's-eye view and found that Luigi had not started climbing Dream Mountain, while Rabbit Girl had logged off before completing her purger hunt.
• Laplace and Angel decided to log off so Laplace could ask Rabbit Girl why she had left.

Laplace explained that Rabbit Girl had failed the first track in the special dream Sunshine Circus and was sealed there, unable to leave until she cleared it. Laplace decided to enter the dream to rescue her after the group returned to Dream Crystal Plain, while Angel found he could not use the Dream Gate to pull Rabbit Girl out.

• Laplace told Angel that Rabbit Girl had entered Sunshine Circus after touching a rabbit-ear headband tied to Laplace's altered childhood memories.
• Rabbit Girl had failed the Blade Mountain Track, lost access to her abilities, and been sealed in a cage; the dream allowed her to try again the next day or another challenger to restart her progress.
• Laplace decided to challenge Sunshine Circus herself, and the group logged back into Dream Crystal Plain near Dream Mountain.
• Laplace told Luigi about Rabbit Girl while he prepared to offer his intuition, and Angel revealed that the Dream Gate could not transfer Rabbit Girl out of the special dream.

Laplace chose the Wonderland reward and received the intangible title “Glory of the Fan Family,” which granted her a noble temperament. She then entered the Sunshine Circus special dream to rescue Rabbit Girl and, after being forced to choose an animal codename, called herself Silver Fox.

• Luigi recommended Wonderland through his intuition, and Laplace chose that reward despite Angel questioning his reasoning.
• Laplace received the title “Glory of the Fan Family,” which had already fused into her without any noticeable effect.
• Laplace, Angel, Luigi, and Gleipnir traveled to Rabbit Girl’s location, where Laplace cleared the Demonic Beasts and picked up the rabbit-ear headband.
• Laplace put on the headband and entered Sunshine Circus, where the clown host announced her as a new challenger and said she could not use the already-claimed codename Black Rabbit.
• Laplace first offered Fairy as her codename, but when the clown host insisted on an animal, she chose Silver Fox.

Laplace began the Sunshine Circus challenge as Silver Fox, discovering that she was trapped in a glass diorama and watched by a faceless audience. Angel identified the Blade Mountain Track and helped her realize she could use Helen's Delusional Physique, leaving Laplace to prepare for the cableway challenge.

• The clown host introduced Laplace as the noble challenger Silver Fox, and spotlights revealed that she wore a heavy silver fox mascot costume.
• Laplace found herself on a mountaintop before the Blade Mountain Track and read the rules: she had to cross a thousand-meter cableway within the time limit while avoiding blades below.
• Laplace contacted Angel, who explained that she was inside a glass diorama within the Sunshine Circus and that a shadowy audience watched her from outside.
• Angel could not see the other four tracks or Laplace's Time Doppelgänger, but sensed that Rabbit Girl was elsewhere in the circus.
• Angel suggested Laplace's noble status came from Glory of the Fan Family and might carry across the Wonderland, then proposed that other rewards could work in the circus.
• Laplace activated Helen's Delusional Physique, strengthening her body as she continued preparing to begin the challenge.

Laplace completed the Cableway Course, but her low exploration rate suggested that audience enjoyment mattered as much as finishing. She then escaped the pursuing clown through the Swamp Course and reached the finish line.

• Laplace sped through the Cableway Course with Imagined Physique, finishing with twenty-five seconds to spare and earning 11% exploration.
• Angel and Laplace concluded that the audience’s muted response had likely lowered her exploration rate, but Laplace chose to prioritize completing courses over performing.
• The second course transformed the glass display case into a forest swamp, where Angel spotted a giant clown head waiting beyond the red curtain and learned the route looped back to the starting point.
• Laplace activated Imagined Physique, started the timer, and raced across the swamp on a skateboard with a pole as the clown head pursued her.
• Laplace reached dry ground and the finish line, escaping the clown head.

Laplace failed the Fire Ring Track in Sunshine Circus after the fire ring appeared flat on the sea and the Phantom Dolphin trapped her in a performance. Back offline, Angel and the others discussed how to rescue Laplace and Rabbit Girl, but Laplace revealed she had received a prompt before disconnecting.

• Laplace began the Fire Ring Track, summoned a Phantom Dolphin with a whistle, and rode it toward the finish while Angel searched for the fire ring.
• The fire ring appeared flat on the sea, and the Phantom Dolphin carried Laplace into it and began performing instead of moving forward.
• Laplace ran out of time, told Angel to take Gleipnir and Luigi offline, and failed the challenge as the audience booed.
• Angel recounted the failure to Gleipnir, Luigi, Laplace, and Rabbit Girl after they went offline, and Gleipnir suggested that Luigi might perform in the circus.
• Angel considered ways to rescue Laplace and Rabbit Girl, but Laplace said she had received a prompt before going offline.

Laplace and the others chose to explore the relay race and assigned Angel the Magic Track and Luigi the Fire Ring Track. Their practice runs showed that Rabbit Girl could clear the Blade Mountain Track, while only Laplace seemed capable of surviving the Swamp Course, leaving the relay team’s remaining assignments uncertain.

• Laplace explained the relay race, and Angel volunteered to join so they could fill the five Challenger slots.
• Laplace started the relay race with Rabbit Girl and revealed that the final courses were the Animal-Taming Track and the Magic Track.
• Angel claimed the Magic Track, Luigi chose the Fire Ring Track, and the group used Angel’s illusions to test the other courses.
• Luigi and Gleipnir failed the Blade Mountain Track without assistance, but Gleipnir cleared it using an illusory whip, and Rabbit Girl succeeded by rolling along the tightrope.
• The group failed Angel’s simulated Swamp Course, so he recommended Laplace take it and suggested Gleipnir for the Animal-Taming Track if her whip could be used.

Angel, Laplace, Gleipnir, Luigi, and Rabbit Girl entered a multiplayer relay race at the Sunshine Circus and learned that audience scores and gifts would determine whether they succeeded. After choosing stage names and hearing the rules, they took their seats as the first track, Blade Mountain, was revealed.

• Angel asked Laplace whether they should gamble on attempting the relay, and Gleipnir agreed to try.
• The five Challengers chose the stage names Red-tailed Frog, White Bear, Black Cat, Silver Fox, and Black Rabbit.
• The host explained that each Challenger had to take one of five tracks, that the audience would score each performance, and that their combined score had to exceed seventy-five points.
• The host added that audience gifts carried bonus points and could be exchanged between Challengers.
• The group rose to the floating seats in costumes matching their stage names, and the Blade Mountain Track appeared.

The group prepared for the relay race, confirming Gleipnir could use her Wonderland items and discussing how to meet the score requirement. Rabbit Girl began the first track by following Angel’s advice to win applause, while Angel helped Luigi choose a hymn that would not frighten his Phantom Dolphin.

• Gleipnir confirmed that she could retrieve items from Wonderland, and Laplace told Luigi he needed a perfect score.
• Angel and Luigi discussed Lightfeather’s hymns, and Angel warned that The Light King's Slaying of the Coral Dragon might frighten Luigi’s Phantom Dolphin.
• Rabbit Girl entered the first track and followed Angel’s advice to stretch and mime eating a carrot, earning enthusiastic applause.
• Angel suggested Sea Spirit Hymn or The Lord of Long Night Emerges from the Abyss as alternatives, and Luigi considered his options.

Luigi chose a sung poem for the Fire Ring Track while Laplace and Angel discussed the team’s chances. Rabbit Girl earned eighteen points and Laplace scored thirteen on the Swamp Course, leaving Luigi to begin the third track with the team already past the passing score.

• Luigi chose an incomplete poem and said he had written lyrics for its missing ending, while Angel decided not to reveal the full version of “Sea Spirit Hymn.”
• Laplace asked Angel to perform if Luigi faltered, but Gleipnir suggested the later tracks might count as performances on their own.
• Rabbit Girl rolled down the Blade Mountain Track, earned eighteen points, and received a bouquet worth one point for the relay team.
• Angel urged Laplace to enter the Swamp Course while the audience was still enthusiastic, and she finished with thirteen points.
• Luigi entered the Fire Ring Track as the Red-tailed Frog, introduced himself as a bard, and climbed onto the phantom dolphin.

Luigi performed “Sea Spirit Hymn” on the Phantom Dolphin, awakening a large pod of dolphins that danced alongside him and captivating the audience. When the fire rings multiplied and the countdown began increasing, Angel realized the dreammaker had triggered a hidden plot to let Luigi finish the hymn, leaving everyone waiting to hear how he would perform its ending.

• Luigi began “Sea Spirit Hymn” with a gentle hum, then sang of encountering dolphins as the Phantom Dolphin beneath him came alive.
• More Phantom Dolphins surfaced and danced to Luigi’s song as he advanced through the track.
• Angel told Laplace and Gleipnir that raising Gleipnir’s score was less important than clearing the unfamiliar beast-taming track, and privately recognized that he could use his Celestial Change Authority if needed.
• Luigi reached the hymn’s climaxes, singing about a rejected whale and a turtle carrying an island while fire rings appeared along the course.
• Luigi noticed that the fire rings kept multiplying and the clown head’s countdown was increasing, prompting Angel to identify the change as a hidden plot that would give Luigi time to finish the hymn.

Angel listened as Luigi performed Sea Spirit Hymn, including a radically different final section in which the singer recited questions to an unknown god in the Silent Strait. Luigi won the Fire Ring Track with the highest score, but Angel suspected the final section’s cosmic perspective came from Laplace, whose reaction remained dissatisfied.

• Luigi’s interpretation of Sea Spirit Hymn’s climax stirred Angel’s spiritual sea and led him to recognize Luigi’s artistic ability.
• Luigi continued the song beyond its incomplete ending, having the singer drift into the Silent Strait and recite to an unknown god in a language Angel had never heard.
• The audience erupted into cheers and applause after Luigi finished, and the host praised the performance.
• Luigi cleared the third course with ten minutes remaining and earned twenty points, three bouquets, and an envelope from the host.
• Gleipnir, Rabbit Girl, and Angel praised Luigi, but Laplace watched him with a subtly dissatisfied expression.
• Angel wondered whether Luigi’s final section had drawn its extraordinary breadth of vision from Laplace.

Laplace explained that Luigi had received a portion of her spirituality, which shaped his creative sensibility, and revealed that the language in his final performance came from a world that had fused with another. She left Angel realizing that this language belonged to intelligent life from a world he had never known existed.

• Laplace told Angel that Luigi had received a portion of her spirituality rather than her abilities, and explained why she had no desire to control the Dream Crystal Plain.
• Angel reasoned that Laplace’s spirituality meant sensibility and suspected that Luigi’s final performance drew on her own memories and experiences.
• Angel asked Laplace about the language Luigi used in his final dialogue, and she said it was a language that did not exist.
• Laplace described how memory fragments from fused worlds could travel through Sea Eyes between the Empty Mirror Seas of different Mirror Realms.
• Laplace revealed that Luigi’s language came from intelligent life in one of two distant worlds that had fused, and Angel abruptly realized the implication.

Laplace explained that some plane fusions were prolonged wars between equally powerful worlds, ending with one civilization erased and the other left devastated; she named the surviving world’s energy tower the Moon Chariot. The fourth track began with five checkpoints requiring Gleipnir and a trained beast to finish together, and Angel wondered whether she could kill the beast and drag its corpse across the course.

• Laplace told Angel that some plane fusions pitted two great worlds against each other for over a century, until one was utterly destroyed and the other was left exhausted.
• Laplace said the surviving world’s energy hub was called the Moon Chariot, and Angel promised to remember the name.
• Angel suggested turning Luigi’s unusual performance into a Shadow Box before the third track ended.
• The host introduced the Animal-Taming Track, explaining that Gleipnir and a Sunshine Circus beast had to clear five checkpoints and cross the finish line within two seconds of each other.
• The group saw the stone pillars, swamp fire rings, gravity space, aerial cableway, and high-altitude swings that made up the track.
• Angel considered whether Gleipnir could kill the beast and drag its corpse through the course.

Gleipnir entered the Animal-Taming Track and chose a Black Cat, only for an enormous, untamed Black Tiger to appear. Billa's Long Whip revealed its special ability, Return to Original Form, and Gleipnir captured the tiger; she began the course with it while Laplace wondered about the envelope Luigi had received.

• After Angel suggested using a tamed beast's corpse to clear the stages, Gleipnir decided to enter first and test Billa's Long Whip.
• Gleipnir learned she could choose a beast based on the team codenames and selected Black Cat.
• An enormous, wild Black Tiger appeared, and Gleipnir struck it with Billa's Long Whip while it was shaken by her gaze.
• The whip revealed its Return to Original Form ability, and the Black Tiger submitted rather than be killed.
• Gleipnir chose capture, shrinking the Black Tiger into a little Black Cat, then led it onto the first stage.
• Laplace and Angel wondered about the whip's effect, while Laplace noticed the white envelope the host had privately given Luigi.