Second period had barely begun. Lian feigned attention for five minutes, then sleep rolled in like fog and her lids fell like curtains.

To Alicia, she seemed asleep, a small cat curled under the classroom’s pale light.

—within the dream—

Lian steadied her weightless body and drifted to Ling’s side, like a feather over a still lake.

Ling was buried in the magic stored in Lian’s memories, eyes like pinpoints of light, oblivious to Lian’s arrival.

“Ling... how are you holding up?”

Her words froze Ling like a startled deer; her busy hands halted. Then she recovered fast, turned, and flashed Lian a smile bright as spring after frost.

“I’m great. Look, I’ve almost mastered natural magic. Turns out that guy was right—natural magic is strongest for a reason. Watch...”

A blazing fireball and a gleaming water sphere bloomed in her hands, sun and moon cupped in her palms.

“They just didn’t know how to use it, so it never got developed. Who’d think you have to convert it to trigger other forces, and also—like—”

“You know I’m not asking about that.”

Lian’s voice cut in, cold as a winter wind slicing through reeds.

“How long do you plan to keep hiding?”

Silence pooled like shade under a tree. Ling sighed, steam fading from a cup.

“Well, I’m not mad at Alicia anymore. I thought I’d let it go. But another problem rose up, like a shadow after sunset...”

Because they were symbiotic, Lian knew every question twining through Ling’s mind like vines.

“You’re tangled up in who you are again, right? Why do you always choke on that trivial knot?”

“How would I know? I don’t get it. You said you stuffed my soul into a man’s body. But you’re just a persona—how could you oust the prime self?”

“Tsk. That’s a tiny detail; I was giving an example. I said from the start I’m not a sub-personality that needs the host to exist. If you want it spelled out: you and I were one soul. For certain reasons—when it’s time, I’ll tell you—it split. Our soul was too strong. The instant it split, it repaired itself. You can’t cram two complete things back into one. So we ended up like this.”

Ling grasped the gist, but a fresh question surfaced like a bubble.

“Then why did we merge again? You said you existed at the edge of my soul. I pushed you out there, didn’t I?”

“That... this isn’t merger. It’s coexistence. And I wasn’t the one asking for fusion. Some guy decided soul-splitting was bad. Even if a split repairs, it leaves ripples. Honestly, the only ripple is you.”

“Some guy? You mean Aer?”

Lian clicked her tongue, tsk cutting the quiet, when Ling nailed the name.

“Shared memory is the worst... Yeah, it was Aer. She even proposed erasing you, then fusing the soul back into me. That’s likely why you were impatient with her at first. Instinct says you dislike her.”

“Then... why didn’t it work?”

“Because I tossed your soul to that other world and kept you from her erasure. World Consciousness mauled me for it, a storm tearing my sails. My body broke beyond repair, a vessel shattered. I had to cling to you like this. Well? Thank me.”

Ling bowed her head; tears fell like rain from a low cloud.

“I see...”

Lian saw it and tensed; strings inside her pulled tight. She’d probably said the wrong thing.

“Hey... don’t overthink. Don’t spiral down that narrow tunnel.”

“So... it’s all my fault? From birth till now, I’ve been a mistake. If I hadn’t appeared, you wouldn’t be tangled in this mess. I ruined everything. I stole most of what was yours. If not for me, you wouldn’t be like this. I’m scum. I thought crossing into another world meant my past did something grand. I thought I was something great. I chased a pile of fantasies. How could I be this stupid? My ‘self’ was carved from someone else’s sacrifice, and I basked in it for so long.”

As she spoke, darkness welled around her like ink in water. Lian grabbed her hand, nerves taut as bowstrings.

“Stop! Don’t chase those thoughts. I’ve never blamed you. You’re me too. How would I blame myself? Breathe. Calm down.”

Ling seemed deaf to comfort, muttering like wind through an empty hall.

“Yeah... everything about me is fake. The body is fake, the power is fake, even ‘love’ is fake. This is just... a hollow dream.”

Lian lifted a fist and swung hard toward Ling’s face, a blow meant to ring clear like a bell.

Before it landed, the world around Lian shattered like glass.

Lian jolted awake. She wasn’t in Alicia’s arms. She lay on a white bed, clean as new snow. She turned her head. Alicia sat beside her, eyes closed, holding her hand like a small hearth.

Her movement must’ve stirred Alicia. She saw Lian sit up and rushed to hug her, wrapping her like a warm quilt.

“Are you okay? Are you okay? It’s all my fault. I didn’t catch your problem in time. It’s my fault as your sister...”

She spoke and broke into tears. Lian felt helpless. Why does everyone around her pin blame on themselves out of nowhere? Are they masochists?

Lian gently stroked Alicia’s head, smoothing ruffled feathers.

“Alright, alright. I’m fine. Don’t cry. It was just a dream.”

Alicia lifted her gaze, staring into Lian’s eyes, rims still red like sunset clouds.

“Are you kidding? Why would a dream make you cry like that? If something’s wrong, talk to me, okay?”

Her words made Lian notice a dried salt line at her eye, a silver strand of tears.

I... cried? Was it... because of Ling?

She shook her head, shut that window on the rain, and answered with a smile.

“No worries, really. Big sis Alicia, it was just a touching dream. Don’t fret. Also, I’m a bit hungry. Can I eat?”

Alicia froze for a beat, a door left half-open.

Ling... you still won’t tell me, will you?

Alicia swallowed the urge to cry, nodded, and let the clumsy topic shift carry her toward the hallway.

“I’ll get you something to eat. Wait here...”

She turned and left, closing the door softly with a trembling hand, a leaf shaking in a quiet breeze.