A Shadow Approaching the City

Hmm... Those white coats... You must be from IDEA! I heard there was a fire at the hospital?

Yes, we've been having lots of people coming to ask about that. However, to the best of my knowledge, there has been no fire. It's a false alarm.

So this too, wasn't true.

Is this some sort of practical joke? The City East flood was also made up.

No, it's too early to dismiss it all as a prank.

This is going to be a long day.

Isuka, you've been investigating these incidents?

We've been flooded with incident reports. I split them between the council members and sent them off to look into it.

No, it's too early to dismiss it all as a prank.

Oh, if it isn't Isuka! Do you know what's going on?

Hi Aldo. Seems you turn up whenever there's trouble. We've been flooded with incident reports. I split them between the council members and sent them off to look into it.

But in most cases, we couldn't find anything. So it seems the reports were fake. There's no flooding in City East, no one has actually seen a mysterious flying object in Aqua Hills. Even the hospital fire was just a baseless rumor.

It's really odd, though. So many made-up stories all at once?

They're not all fake, though.

The clock tower does seem to be broken, and swarms of butterflies have been seen in various parts of the city.

For that reason, I decided to launch a more detailed investigation. Let's see what it turns up.

Can I lend you a hand with it? It's got me intrigued. Besides, I owe you for helping me out a number of times.

Can I lend you a hand with it? It's got me intrigued.

You don't need to ask. Besides, it's thanks to you that we solved the Saki's Dream World case.

Thanks. Where do I start?

Right here, in this hospital. I've already checked this floor and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. See if you can sniff out anything upstairs.

What the heck...?

Why is only this floor so crowded?

Hmph. If only I could have this many subjects in my kingdom...

Oh, Claude's here too. Are you working on this case together with Isuka?

...Thank you for the information.

Hi Claude. You're quick, I see. Already talking with possible witnesses?

It's called royal efficiency, Isuka. I don't waste any time.

Haven't we met before?

Indeed. I'm Claude. You were helping Isuka with a previous case, if I'm not mistaken.

I'm Aldo. Last time I just sort of forced my help onto her.

Thank goodness you did. You have to know, Claude, that Aldo really can be relied on.

Heh. I'll take your word for that.

Are you working on this case together with Isuka?

Yup. If Isuka thinks there's something to it, nine times out of ten, she's right. She has a nose for difficult cases.

I'd be relieved if it turned out to be just mass-hysteria or a series of pranks, though.

Anyway, why are there so many people here?

Let's think about it, hmm. Why do people come to a hospital...

Jokes aside, it is odd that only this floor is jam-packed with patients. Have they all suddenly been afflicted with the same illness?

Let's see what they're all lining up for.

Excuse me.

Look, I don't care what urgent reason you have, I'm next in line.

Oh, what's Isuka doing here?

Why are so many IDA students waiting on this floor? It's hard to even get through this crowd.

Don't worry, Isuka. I don't mind giving up my spot for you. It's not that much of a problem to wait a little longer to visit my sick friend.

We weren't trying to cut in line!

So they all came here to pay a visit to a patient. But who is it?

It's kind of them to visit a sick friend, but arriving in such numbers is sure to be a nuisance to the hospital staff. Let's speak with this patient and see what the matter is.

Hello? May we come in?

......

......

......

Nobody's answering. Maybe the room is empty?

Or the patient is in really bad condition and cannot speak. We'll have to just let ourselves in.

Wait!

The crowd disappeared?

Did any of you see them vanish?

No, when I looked they were already gone.

Same.

Then they all slipped away when we were not paying attention?

That's impossible. You can't seriously think a horde of students could leave in a matter of seconds without making any noise. Something eerie is going on here. Or it's a really clever trick.

I have a very bad hunch about this. Let's check who's inside the room.

What's it doing?!

That's an entrance to the Dream World!

Why couldn't my hunch be wrong...

Someone must have eaten a dark apple in this room.

Ops Room...? Isuka here. Yes, it's an emergency. I need you to cordon off the third floor of the University Hospital asap. We've encountered an entrance to the Dream World. Take any measures you see fit to ensure the safety of hospital staff and patients while we investigate this.

This incident sure has taken a turn for the worse. You're keeping me on your investigation team, aren't you?

Of course. Really grateful you offered to help. Looks like we'll need it.

Maybe last time you got lucky solving the Dream World case. But if you can pull it off again, I'll give it to you that you're good.

Let's see how it goes. I'll do what I can!

We have no way of knowing what to expect inside this Dream World. Make sure you're well prepared before we jump in.

If the abrupt disappearance of the visitors wasn't an elaborate trick, then we can assume it was caused by this Dream World.

We've got to proceed with utmost caution. If Claude is right, then... Well, it's pointless to be making assumptions based on guesswork instead of looking into this ourselves. No telling what awaits us inside. Are you ready to go in?

Yeah, let's jump in!

Where are we?

Seems to be the cargo bus. It's a very small Dream World. But let us not underestimate it. There may be dangers aplenty.

And here are some foes, right on cue.

That was too easy.

Seems we've taken out all of them.

Now let's look for the dreamer of this world. There aren't many places to hide in the cargo bus so it shouldn't take us long...

Next stop is IDA City - City Entrance.

...Seriously?

This looks like...

...IDA City.

This is going to be a nightmare. I'm kind of hoping that we just got brought back to the real IDA City by mistake somehow.

Slim chances of that. See those ethereal butterflies?

If this Dream World is a replica of IDA City, it must be huge!

Yes. That would make it the biggest Dream World we've ever encountered.

The size of a Dream World reflects the imagination of its dreamer. It's little wonder that imagination of this caliber could not be contained here and affected the real world.

You mean...

Even for a Dream World, this one is extraordinary.

Well then, we'd better get started with the investigation.

Heh. Your confidence speaks volumes of your resourcefulness.

Don't take anything for granted. It may seem similar to the real world, but it's not. Let's start by collecting information from people by the City Entrance and in Garden of IDA.

Special issue, hot off the press!

This Isuka is amazing. The newspaper is chockful of articles about her latest achievements!

There's nothing she can't do. The rest of the student council is just a waste of space.

......

That's not true and very rude.

Oh, I didn't notice you, Isuka.

Acting alone, I wouldn't have been able to solve half of the cases reported to the council.

You're incredible, Isuka. The best the rest of the council can do is stay out of your way. Maybe that's why they're all hiding away in Aqua Hills.

......

Huh? There's something really odd about Isuka.

Let's go.

I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself, even though I'm aware that they're not real and won't listen to me anyway.

Don't apologize, I'd have done the same! They were really getting on my nerves.

I was surprised, though. The Dream World should be centered around its dreamer. Why is everyone idolizing me?

It's as if you were the dreamer.

That's not even funny. I'm not in the best of moods to begin with.

It's really affecting you, isn't it? That's pretty unusual for you.

Let's carry on and see if we can piece this puzzle together.

Is there anything I can help you with? Injuries? Cold? Any health concerns? I'll be happy to offer advice.

If we play along, we may be able to get some information out of him.

Well, maybe?

Ah, then I'd like to recommend to you a brand new miracle drug. It cures any illness. It's called...

...No, I shouldn't just casually reveal the name of this revolutionary medicine. It's a panacea that confounds science! I'll tell you where to find it. They have it at the University Hospital. It's true. Go and see for yourselves.

This may be obvious, but since this world plays by rules of its own, there may exist a panacea cure in it.

A cure we can only dream of... existing in a Dream World. Figures.

It may be very important to the dreamer. I think that's one lead. But let's look for more clues.

Was the hospital on fire as usual?

Oh, rest assured it was burning brightly.

Phew! I get really worried whenever the flames die down. Can't rely on getting any help then.

You worrywart. It's on fire, so everything's all right.

So in this world, the hospital being on fire is a good thing?

Or else help doesn't come... Interesting.

The dreamer might have cried for help that never came. That's another clue for us. Let's carry on.

I saw her, the IDEA member that's so thin she's barely there.

The Vice-chair? I've caught glimpses of her but never had the opportunity to have a chat. She's a real role model. I wish I could be like her.

She was flying above the Aqua Hills. She's the only one deserving to be the Vice-Chair to Isuka.

Yes, it's not easy to be an assistant to somebody who's walking perfection.

Huh? I didn't know IDEA had a Vice-Chair?

It does not. At least not in the real world. That's another piece of the puzzle. What else do we have...

It's all so absurd... But then what was I expecting from a Dream World...

Let's go over our findings. I'm being idolized in this world. IDEA has a Vice-Chair who can fly and was seen in the Aqua Hills.

The other location of importance seems to be the hospital, which is on fire and offers a cure-all drug.

So our two points of interest are the hospital and Aqua Hills. I've never been to the Aqua Hills in the real world.

You can't access it without a special pass.

There's a funny rumor about that. Lots of students believe that it's because the top floor of Aqua Hills is where the head of IDEA has her apartment.

Heh. People really think that?

True or not, I bet your pass can get us in.

What works in the real world will not necessarily work here, and vice versa.

The quickest way to find out is to go there and give it a try.

We could just go there and hope for the best. But maybe we should head to the hospital first?

I doubt we'll get to the bottom of this without investigating both locations. You choose where we go first, Aldo. You've escaped unharmed from all sorts of tricky situations before.

I hope you won't regret passing on responsibility to me. Okay, so... The hospital or Aqua Hills? Hmm...

Now, we've more or less completed our investigations into the two matters we set out to investigate.

We should go over what we've learned. There are a few more things we must investigate. Let us leave the Dream World and return to the IDEA Operations room for now.

It took longer than expected. Thank you for your help.

No problem. I nearly fell off my chair when I heard where you were going!

Everyone, I have finished compiling a summary of the investigation results.

Perfect. Let's have a meeting. Saki, please join us. You've experienced a Dream World yourself, so your insights will be valuable for us.

Sure, although I'm not sure I'll be able to help with this case.

Okay, what do we have...?

The portal to the Dream World was discovered in IDA City Medical Realm University Hospital, Room 404. As such, it is reasonable to assume that the patient who was in that room is key in this case.

The hospital staff told us that a long-term patient has been in that room for considerable time.

And they refused to give us any more details, am I right? I value people's privacy, but this is making our work more difficult.

Since we're trying to keep the Dream World incidents secret from the public, we can't get a warrant to access confidential information.

You can't blame the hospital for not divulging sensitive information. If anything, I'd be worried if they were freely talking about their patients with anyone who asked. However, this is a very unique case. The Dream World is impacting the real world in very worrying ways...

Is there no other way to find out the patient's identity?

Excuse me...

You have an idea, Saki?

I know the girl who was in that hospital room, actually.

Her name's Mayu.

It was Mayu?!

That's the girl who lied about being a member of IDEA in the Dream World Aqua Hills? How do you know her?

First of all, I'd like to hear what Saki was doing at the hospital.

I'd come to the hospital for check-ups a few times after you saved me. I was often waiting for my appointment together with Mayu, and we started chatting one day and became friends.

That's pretty valuable information. Thank you, Saki. But why did you enter the Dream World in Mayu's room?

That's, err...

Well, it's because... I felt like it might have been my fault that happened to her.

Why?

She looked so crestfallen when I met her. I thought she was depressed like I used to be, so I tried to cheer her up saying she just needed to think positively. Only later, it occurred to me that she might've had serious issues and my advice sounded trite and dismissive...

Since then she's nearly stopped talking to me. A few days later I came for my appointment as usual, but she wasn't in the waiting room. I had a bad hunch and went to her room...

And you found the Dream World portal...

I jumped into it without thinking.

And yet you didn't take any action to find and save your friend in the Dream World.

I was...afraid of my power. It's been kept in check for a long time by the grimoire. But since that incident, it's been coursing through my body freely, and it's too much for me to control.

Hmph. Your latent power must have resonated with the Dream World.

I was afraid that, if I tried to use my power, I'd only end up hurting someone again.

What a pathetic excuse.

......

We're all born with different abilities. Some of us are strong, others are weak. We have no say in this matter. But it's the responsibility of the strong to protect the weak.

It's selfish to refuse to use the power you've been gifted with.

That's...kinda harsh!

I'm sorry, Saki. Claude can be blunt at times.

It's true though... I could've helped but I didn't...

Claude got so riled up only because he can see that you have this tremendous power lying dormant within you. And taking responsibility and protecting those unable to defend themselves is a sensitive issue for him. He feels this duty very strongly himself, being of royal descent.

Yes...

Back to the topic at hand... Let's assume it was Mayu in Room 404. That location is likely of key importance in the Dream World. Accessing it won't be easy.

The Dream World Isuka was guarding the fourth floor fiercely. She won't just let us pass through.

Frustrating as it is, that's the idealized image of me created by the dreamer. It makes no difference who the Dream World inhabitants are based on, they're as random as the dreamer's imagination.

We can't exactly avoid a confrontation with her, though.

Indeed, and that's why I think our best option is to challenge her directly again.

Are you sure about this?

Hmm... It's not a given that we'll lose again. We've got to keep trying until we defeat her. All right, let's do this!

Haha, I like your enthusiasm. But what I meant is, it won't be like the last time.

The first time round we approached her without any idea of her role in the Dream World.

Now we're aware of her being very powerful in that world.

And all the information we've gathered may help us find her weakness!

Precisely. What do you think of my plan, Claude?

That was my plan too. It hurts my royal pride to be the loser. I'm up for a rematch!

Can I... Can I come with you?

Forget it.

You gave me a lot to think about and I'm not sure how I feel about using my powers but... Mayu is my friend so I'd like to do something for her...

Weren't you listening? We've got one heck of a tough battle awaiting us.

I don't think Saki's presence would be a problem. At the very least, she can take care of herself.

Besides, she's the only one of us with a personal connection to Mayu.

Dream Worlds reflect the dreamer's state of mind, which Saki is in a better position than us to understand.

I'm still not sure it's a good idea.

What do you think, Aldo? Claude and I won't agree on this, from the looks of it.

If you could weigh in and break the impasse...

Yes, what's your vote, Aldo?

Hmm... Well.

Why not let her come? There's strength in numbers.

Hmm... That's not illogical, but...

I was just joking. Rather than be arguing about it, unable to make a decision, let's just give it a try and see how it goes.

So... I can come with you?

Well, we asked him for his opinion. It's not what I was hoping to hear, but it is what it is.

That's settled, then.

Come with us, Saki. But please, be cautious and don't try to be a hero.

Doing everything I can here.

Once we're in the Dream World, we'll head straight to the hospital where my double was. Make sure to prepare well, it will be a tough battle. Let's meet here in the Ops Room when we're ready.