The comments section all think I'm a really good person.

After letting Saki Koizumi rest well in her dream, Shiori Hachiya suddenly looked up at the sky.

Her sudden serious expression made Koizumi Saki tense up as well, and she couldn't help but ask, "What happened? Is it [the tide]?"

Saki Koizumi knew that Shiori Hachiya was currently busy dealing with the Dream Tide.

The recurring nightmares prevent the dream weaver from getting any rest, and to make matters worse, this guy is someone who can't sit still.

Has another unexpected situation arisen?

"..." Shiori Hachiya blinked. "It's nothing important, but I have to go."

"Where are you going?" Koizumi Saki always felt that this question was a dangerous signal, and she had a bad feeling about it.

Isn't this just... a flag?

"It's just that a little friend I've known for a long time is trapped in a dream, so I'm going to help out a bit." Shiori Hachiya smiled. "That child has quite severe narcolepsy, so I'm going to talk to her."

"You really do like to meddle in other people's business." Upon hearing this, Koizumi Saki relaxed a bit, her heart finally at ease.

However, this is also Bee Valley's style.

Shiori Hachiya has a kind of enthusiastic but somewhat clumsy personality; she even goes so far as to visit the dreams of autistic child, Saki Nana, to encourage her to study.

I rolled over on the soft mat, and above me was a magnificent starry sky. Beneath the mat was a soft sea of ​​flowers and grass, exuding a natural fragrance.

After waking up, Saki Koizumi would return to her daily life full of energy.

After confirming that there was nothing wrong with the god's condition, the dream weaver quietly left Koizumi Saki's dream and went to the child's side.

Humming a song, she excitedly ran into the child's dream.

Because of her abilities, she could easily enter her friend's dream simply by stepping out of Koizumi Saki's dream.

"Little Qian Shi, I've come to play with you! What song do you want to hear today?"

As she spoke, Shiori Hachiya entered a white, dreamlike world.

It was very clean, even completely empty.

At the very center of her vision, Shiori Hachiya saw a white figure from behind.

The other person gives the impression of being purely "white".

Her long, snow-white hair trailed on the ground, she wore pure white clothes, had fair skin, and a petite body; only her beautiful, warm red eyes were a different color.

The other person looked very young, like a child in his teens, with chubby cheeks.

Upon hearing Shiori Hachiya's voice, her warm red eyes turned to look at the uninvited guest who had intruded into her world.

His expression, which had been blank before, now showed a hint of joy.

She squinted slightly, looking at Shiori Hachiya's silly face.

Good evening, 18th-tier idol.

Then, he said something that made Hachiya feel a pang of pain in her chest.

The appearance of the Dream Weaver here is truly jarring.

Her red-black dyed hair, her jubilant expression, and her undisguised enthusiasm all seemed out of place in this cold dream world.

However, that's alright.

Shiori Hachiya, shameless as she approached Chise, quickly painted the pure white space with color as she went.

"……This is?"

Shiori Hachiya walked up to Chise, reached out and picked up the immobile Chise, placing her on her beanbag chair.

“This is my home,” the Dream Weaver replied with a smile. “It’s the safest place in the world, in my opinion. Even if I suddenly fall to the ground, I won’t get hurt from bumps and bruises. And the facilities are quite complete… Didn’t you say you wanted to hear me sing last time?”

Chise was very frail; her hands and feet were so thin they looked like they would break if you squeezed them. Even in her dreams, she couldn't move like a normal child.

It looks like a newborn kitten.

Shiori Hachiya had speculated that the child might have lived in a hospital ward since childhood and had little contact with the outside world, which was why his dreams were so pure.

It was even completely empty.

Chise didn't have anything she particularly desired, which meant that when she wanted to weave a dream for Chise, she had absolutely nothing to draw upon.

But staring at each other wasn't a solution, so Hachiya shared some of her favorite things with Chise.

stage.

She even sang a song for Chise... Although Chise's expression didn't seem to show appreciation, she was probably happy... right?

There's some uncertainty about Bee Valley.

However, that was all she could bring.

In Hachiya's mind, Chise was a quiet and pitiful child.

Due to physical reasons, I have had little contact with the outside world since childhood, and even in my dreams I am in this frail state.

Bee Valley accidentally entered the child's dream and saw her sitting alone in a daze, and heard the heart crying.

She intended to just walk by, but she couldn't pretend not to see him, so she walked straight toward Chise.

Qian Shi... has a sharp tongue and very strong mental power.

When Hachiya first met Chise, she did not reveal her identity.

After all, what happens in a dream is quickly forgotten, and even if you show your face, the other person is unlikely to remember it.

But Chise remembered her, and through her face, he researched and learned about her past as an idol.

After that, Chise always called her an "18th-tier idol".

However, Bee Valley wasn't too bothered by it.

It's a fact that she's now a nobody, and she's no longer an idol, but rather actively working as a hero.

Her connection with this child was limited to this dream.

"Want to listen to my first album today?" Shiori Hachiya was in high spirits. She created another sofa next to Chise and lay down, quite pleased with herself. "This album is really hard to find now."

“…Whatever you want.” Chise simply turned her head, looked at Shiori Hachiya’s excited profile, and suddenly said, “Hey, you C-list idol.”

She could see Shiori Hachiya's haggard face, which she could hardly conceal, and she could also see the flickering flame of life in the other person's life.

And then there's that enormous positionzero.

"Hmm?" Shiori Hachiya turned her head and brought her face very close to Chise's, looking at her intently, waiting for Chise to say something next.

Qian Shi suddenly felt a little bored: "Are you an idiot?"

"Waaah... Why are you suddenly scolding me?" Bee Valley looked a little aggrieved, her lips pouting.

"Do you dare to intrude on anyone's dreams so casually?"

"Of course I'm not completely ignorant... Hmph, I'm the eldest sister, I know a lot of things." Bee Valley said smugly.

She put the CD into the player, then reached out and put the other earphone on Chise's ear.

“I will protect anyone’s dream,” said Hachiya. “If you tell me you’re a bad person and it’s ridiculous for a hero like me to go on a picnic in your dream… I won’t be angry.”

Qian Shi merely sneered and closed his eyes.

"...What a noisy song." Then, a sharp review of Shiori Hachiya's first album.

Shiori Hachiya was sunk, and she collapsed to the ground in despair, unable to get up for a while.

156. A Dream Soaring Upwards

After leaving the dream, Shiori Hachiya woke up in her soft, cozy bed at home.

She yawned, still looking sleepy.

However, I'm in a good mood.

Subconsciously, I lifted the shirt over my chest and saw only a smooth, white expanse between the hills, without any T-shaped marks.

The T-shaped scar only appears on her body in her dreams and does not affect her normal life.

In reality, for Shiori Hachiya, everyday life seems to have become less important.

Aside from the necessary nutrients to maintain her physical functions, Shiori Hachitani spends most of her time in the dream world. This is not only because the intervals between the tides are getting shorter, but also because Shiori no longer has any necessary work in reality.

She recently conducted entrance exam interviews for national colleges and universities, which was one of the few real-world jobs she had.

Things in the dream are getting busier and busier, while reality is actually not so busy anymore; in fact, it can be said to be quite leisurely.

...Speaking of which, why did Chise ask such a question?

This time, before leaving Kita Kiri Chise's dream, the other party suddenly threw a question at her: "Hachiya, do you know any other ability users with the same abilities as you?"

"Eh? Well, I don't know either." Despite adhering to the principle of protecting the dream world, Shiori Hachiya mostly remained neutral, but Chise was clearly not a kind person, so she didn't provide any further information.

Moreover, Shiori Hachiya genuinely didn't know the answer to that question.

She had been exploring the dream world for so many years, and she had never seen anyone like her who could freely travel through other people's dreams.

Strictly speaking, Nana Oba and Karen Aijo's abilities actually exploit loopholes in the stage world and have little to do with the dream world.

Shiori Hachiya has always managed this vast world, which has lost its sense of space, all by herself. Even other psychic ability users would find it difficult to take her place.

After the real-name registration law was introduced, there were basically no people like Shiori Hachiya among the registered ability users.

Therefore, Shiori Hachiya doesn't actually believe that others can possess the same level of ability as herself.

This is not arrogance.

The clearer one is about the unique nature of the dream world, the more one questions one's own abilities.

Shiori Hachiya recalled once again the time when she almost became a resident of the dream forever.

Even though quite some time has passed, she still feels lingering fear.

So she constantly reminded herself that she was a human being living in the real world, and not a member of a dream.

For Shiori Hachiya, dreams are a lonely and excessively self-centered space. If she were to completely abandon her human body, her dreams would lose their coordinates and even collapse entirely, leaving her only as a wandering, lonely soul in that world.

"...Wait, so you didn't find any other time travelers besides yourself?" Chise was momentarily dazed after hearing Shiori Hachiya's words, then her expression turned suspicious. "Could it be that you've been too lazy to find them?"

"Why would I lie to you?" Shiori Hachiya replied gently, not at all angry with a child. "I patrol two or three times every night. No matter how well you hide, I will find you."