"Ladies and gentlemen, Dream Chasers, wealthy patrons, 'Watchmaker,' honored guests of the Family-and the famous Nameless of the Astral Express! Welcome to the Interastral Peace Corporation's show!" As the Astral Express Crew set foot on the road to the stage, a spotlight descended at just the right moment, drawing the eyes of the world to them.
"Well, this is lively, isn't it?" Hidden off to the side, Hanxing and Firefly watched the golden spade on the giant screen's green background, looking forward to a fight. "Aventurine, a Corporation employee and one of the 'Ten Stonehearts.'" Soon, all the information on the man behind the scenes appeared on Hanxing's phone.
"If we're just here to watch, we'd better not disturb them." Firefly looked toward the increasingly crowded stage, feeling a little uneasy. "Of course. Thanks to Tuning, as long as we don't show ourselves, no one except Acheron will recognize us." Hanxing smiled as though everything were under control.
"You're awfully late, Astral Express Crew. And the... 'uninvited guest' over here." Just as the crew stepped onto the center of the stage, Aventurine's voice rang out. "We came as promised, Mr. Aventurine. By the rules of etiquette, you should show yourself as well." Himeko looked up at the sky, watching the places where Aventurine might appear.
"Of course I will. But before that, I'd like to properly introduce today's star." There was a sinister charm to Aventurine's voice that left the group a little uneasy. "A round of applause for Mr. 'Stellaron'!"
"We're not here for a talent show." Caelus's voice was a little cold. "Allow me to remind you that neither this stage nor Caelus's identity should have anything to do with apprehending the real culprit," Welt said indifferently. "No, they do. Of course they do. Otherwise, why would I have worked so hard to earn your trust and invite you all here?" Aventurine paused again.
"Because he's the only eyewitness to all three murders-the best person to prove that 'no one can be harmed or killed in the Dreamscape' is nothing but empty talk!" "'Three murders'?" Himeko sounded puzzled, but even more doubtful. "That's right, ma'am. The third murder is about to happen. Right here, at Clock Studios Theme Park..."
"A truly grand death." Aventurine's voice retained its sinister charm. "You, you, you, and you... everyone will die-and it will all be because of you, Mr. 'Stellaron'... Here, you will personally become 'death.'"
"Could it be... he's going to detonate the Stellaron in Caelus's body?" Hanxing watched with interest. Having dealt with Stellarons twice before, he naturally knew what kind of energy they contained. If Aventurine really could detonate it, his words were no exaggeration.
"Don't rush. A true gentleman watches the game without commenting." Firefly smiled. "We're already here, so we might as well focus on their performance."
"I came from the deserts of Tsygonia. For sixty red copper coins, people branded me, put me in shackles, sent me to the gallows, and buried me in yellow sand..." Aventurine's voice sounded somewhat dejected, but then turned ecstatic. "But the sun couldn't kill me, and the shifting sands instead carried me into the arms of the Guild and the Corporation. Remember, I didn't just win once by chance. I've never lost."
Aventurine cut himself off and gave a soft chuckle. "Let me share a proverb with you: 'Sleep is a rehearsal for death.' Why does life fall asleep? Because we're not yet ready to face death. Every night we enter a dream is no different from going to our deaths, just like you and me at this very moment, taking refuge in dreams with death in our hearts. And 'death'... will come in answer to our sleep talk."
"My friends, the game has already begun. You can't refuse-there's no reason to, and no room to. The dice have been cast-everyone, are you ready to show your hands?" In an instant, the sky went dark. The crew immediately readied themselves for battle, and Caelus gripped his flaming lance, staring fixedly at the screen. Under everyone's gaze, Aventurine appeared on the giant screen, wearing a top hat. "A worthless stone of the Architects... hahaha-worthless."
In an instant, three twelve-sided dice appeared beneath the crew's feet, though no one knew when. "I wager, I gamble, I win." As the words rang out one by one, the three dice all landed on spades, and a masked Aventurine descended from the sky. "I let fate turn the wheel, wager everything on a single throw, and pass through death to find life."
With that, he resolutely crushed the cracked, deep-blue stone in his hand. "All for the Amber Lord!"
"What did he just crush?" Hanxing looked at Firefly, hoping for an answer. "An Aventurine. Each of the Ten Stonehearts has a similar stone as a symbol of their identity. They may have some other uses, too..." Firefly explained. She had dealt with the Corporation more than once or twice, and knowing one's opponent was always important.
"Come on, let's see who gets the last laugh-the game begins!" In an instant, several chips appeared above the crew. Caelus raised his flaming lance to block them, while March 7th shot three arrows at Aventurine, only for chips to appear out of thin air and intercept them.
"Yan Bai, remember my thing." Hanxing's thought reached Yan Bai's mind in an instant. "I know," Yan Bai replied, then left the flaming lance's shield.
"In such a hurry to die? Then I'll grant your wish!" In the blink of an eye, several chips shot straight at Yan Bai. A faint smile appeared on his face as a yellow energy arm formed in an instant and swatted the chips aside. "Mr. Welt, get over here!" A golden shield then appeared on the field.
"All right." Hearing this, Welt leaped to Yan Bai's side in a few strides, and a slash appeared beside Aventurine. "A little tricky, aren't you?" Aventurine said with a somewhat sinister smile, turning slightly to dodge. The slash left only a small crack in his mask.
"Don't underestimate me, either!" An arrow of a somewhat unusual color shot toward Aventurine. Just before it struck, it broke apart into several little blue-and-pink bears that exploded, freezing him in place. "I'll take it from here." As soon as Yan Bai finished speaking, a massive golden wave of sword energy formed along the path of his palm and shot straight at Aventurine, kicking up a cloud of dust on impact.
"That should take care of him, right?" Caelus looked at the dust billowing ahead and breathed a small sigh of relief. "Don't let your guard down. He should be fine," Himeko warned from beside him. "Hahaha-" Laughter came from within the dust.
"Even in the face of adversity, as long as people still have hope, they'll always call... The possibilities you hold are worth letting me go all in...!" The dust settled, revealing Aventurine still standing there, completely unharmed.
"Just as I thought. It wouldn't be that easy." Yan Bai looked ahead, while Hanxing, watching from the sidelines, caught sight of Acheron silently tightening her grip on her sword in the corner.
Emanator, when exactly are you going to make your move...? Hanxing wondered.