In Noah's side, inside the world of dreams, Noah exited the bathroom while wiping his eyes from the tears that were still stuck in his eyes. He pulled his wet shirt, which had started to stick to his body, then let it re-stick again to his body.
"A-Actor...", said Lou Yan in a tense and worried tone.
Noah turned to his right to find that Lou Yan was standing next to the door, waiting for him to come out to check on his condition.
"L-Lou... Champion, what are you doing here?", asked Noah, pretending to be puzzled despite already knowing the answer.
"I-I was worried about you, I heard you vomiting... A-Are you okay?", asked Lou Yan, bringing her hand to her chest, pressing on her heart in confusion.
"I'm... fine, no need to worry about me," said Noah, smiling warmly and nervously while rubbing the back of his neck.
"N-No need to worry? Y-You were vomiting and it's obvious you were crying, your clothes are soaked and your fingers are bleeding, what do you mean I shouldn't worry?! Of course I should worry! P-Please tell me... W-What happened?", said Lou Yan, confused, pressing on Noah, cornering him.
"I-I'm... I-it's just... I'm... on my period...", said Noah, confused, finding no solution other than this — the first answer that appeared in his mind.
"P-Period...?...", Lou Yan repeated in a whisper before letting out a gasp of shock, her cheeks turning red in embarrassment as she covered her mouth modestly.
"Y-Yeah... S-So please don't tell anyone, agreed?", said Noah, nervously and confusedly, raising his index finger and placing it on his lips as a gesture for her to keep the secret.
Lou Yan raised her thumb and ran her finger across her mouth as if she were zipping it shut, while some red still remained on her cheeks.
"I can't believe I said something like that... How embarrassing," thought Noah to himself, feeling foolish and embarrassed by what he did before shifting his attention to the system notifications.
[ACT II: THE MONSTER has been completed]
"Lou Yan, you can go ahead of me, I'll be fine now," said Noah, trying to dismiss Lou Yan so he could focus alone on the system. Lou Yan obeyed and left immediately — she was feeling a bit uncomfortable ever since Noah said that, so maybe she was waiting for an excuse to leave too.
Noah sighed in relief once Lou Yan disappeared from his line of sight. Then he sat on the floor and leaned against the bathroom door lazily.
[ACT I: THE MAGICIAN
ACT II: THE MONSTER
ACT III: (locked)
ACT IV: (locked)
ACT V: (locked)
ACT VI: (locked)
ACT VII: (locked)
ACT VIII: (locked)]
"A new chapter opened, 'The Monster'... So this is what I was? Just a monster? Is that why I died in such a hideous way? Just so the audience would be satisfied that the villain met a painful end...", thought Noah negatively, tightening his fist — then he realized something.
"Livia said I would be 'The Monster', right? And she told me I was 'The Magician' before the system even appeared. That means my next roles in the plays are the key to getting out of here... 6 chapters left... 6 roles... 6 plays... There's hope... and I must cling to it...", thought Noah to himself, then got up and loosened his fist.
"... I can overcome all this by adapting... I am an actor and a stranger at the same time... All I'm good at is pretending to be something else to hide my cowardly truth and disgusting nature... While my real self is lost in the void of the many roles I play... I'm identityless, but at the same time I am everyone... everyone except me...", thought Noah to himself, then took one step forward, followed by hesitant steps until he started walking.
"So I'll smile... I'll smile like a fool... Because fools don't feel pain...", whispered Noah to himself before a wide, silly smile spread across his face.
———————
In the real world, Sirius took the train from Sector 10 to Sector 11, he entered and noticed that at the reception desk there was a woman wearing work clothes — obviously a replacement for Jarod. Sirius ignored it and went up to his room. He stopped in front of the door when he heard whispers and laughter from inside.
"Oh~", thought Sirius to himself excitedly and with thrill, then put his key in the lock and twisted it without the intention to open it — wasting time — then opened the door.
Inside, Enel was standing in place, facing the door with a tense smile on his face. His clothes were wrinkled and tilted, and his hair was messy.
"H-Hi Sirius, you came early today," said Enel, laughing nervously while rubbing his head, trying to fix it without raising suspicion.
"Yeah, Noey-kun is in his usual state, so I decided to come back early, that's all...", said Sirius, smiling playfully and cheerfully, aware of what was happening before he came in.
"I-I see—", said Enel, flustered. He was worried about Noah, but he looked more concerned about being caught right now.
That's when Enel was interrupted, as a strange sound came from the nearby closet — like someone bumped into the wall — followed by a light groan of pain.
Sirius let out a soft hum and approached the closet to open it, even though he already knew what he would find.
"W-Wait a second!", said Enel, throwing himself between the closet and Sirius, nervous and increasingly anxious.
"Y-You can't open the closet...", said Enel, confused, ready to sacrifice himself to avoid embarrassment — just before Sirius smiled lightly and mischievously, grabbed Enel by the shoulder, and threw him onto the nearby bed gently.
"D-Don't do it!", screamed Enel, flustered and terrified, trying to reach Sirius, but it was too late.
Sirius opened the closet, and it turned out that inside it, Violet was standing in place, playing with her hands and looking down modestly.
"H-Hi M-Mister Soren...", said Violet, uneasy, her cheeks red from tension and embarrassment.
"I expected this," thought Sirius to himself in a playful and cheerful tone.
After a few seconds, both Enel and Violet were sitting on the bed next to each other, tense and embarrassed that they were caught... again.
"I caught them the past few days too... I can't believe this. The only reason Enel stayed here is because he was told to stay home and rest to recover from his trauma. Violet is just helping him through it. It's not like there's anything between them — Enel clearly explained they're just friends... most likely all they do is talk about biological sciences or something like that, or do silly experiments, which explains his appearance...", thought Sirius before resting his head on his hand.
"Miss Violet, why don't you come visit the hospital? I'm sure no one would mind your presence," said Sirius in a calm, lazy tone, trying to drag Violet along so Enel would follow too.
"I-I... W-What about Enel? Doesn't he need a moral companion to always be there with him?", asked Violet, worried and confused about Enel's health.
"Enel can come too. Right, Enel? Or do you want to stay here and play while Noey-kun suffers?", said Sirius in a warning and serious tone. He wasn't asking — it was clearly an order.
"O-Okay," said Enel, nervously and awkwardly.
"That's good then. Everyone will be happy with your presence," said Sirius, happy with a mischievous smile.
———————
Inside the nightmare, Noah entered the meeting room, and everyone was already there: Sirius and Neriah sitting on the comfy couch next to each other, Lou Yan sitting on a separate couch with a soft pillow on her lap, and Calli sitting at the makeup table looking at the mirror while putting on lipstick, and Livia, as usual, standing in front of everyone near a whiteboard with a new diagram titled "The Hero", holding a white chalk.
"Everyone is already here... But, where is Enel?", thought Noah to himself in confusion and wonder.
"Actor, please sit," said Livia, gesturing for Noah to sit, and he sat near Sirius.
"Alright everyone, you all did well in the last play. We're doing great, so don't mess it up in the next one," said Livia in a warning and fierce tone.
"Aggressive as always...", everyone shared the same thought but felt relieved that Livia was pleased with their work.
"What's the theme of the next play?", asked Noah, trying to get straight to the point.
"Thank you for asking, actor. The theme of the next play, 'The Hero', is — just like the title says — a tragic hero who will lose his companions one by one and will be forced to kill his lover in the end, which will lead to his suicide. Tragic story, right?", said Livia proudly and excitedly, then pointed her finger at Noah.
"You will be the hero, actor!", said Livia in an enthusiastic tone, waiting for an equally enthusiastic reaction from Noah.
"From monster to hero, huh? I'd be excited if I wasn't afraid I'd suffer again like last time...", thought Noah to himself, coldly and anxiously.
"Anyway, both the horse and the jester will be the hero's companions. As for the Champion... you'll be his lover!", said Livia, placing her hands on her hips and looking excitedly toward Lou Yan, waiting for her reaction.
"Excuse me?", said Lou Yan, shocked and nervous.
"Yes, you heard that right, Champion. In the next play, you'll be the hero's lover — that is, the actor's lover," said Livia, smiling joyfully and looking at Lou Yan strangely, as if saying, "Thank me later."
"W-Wait a sec—", Lou Yan tried to object to such a rushed decision, but Livia cut her off.
"The actor and Champion can pretend to be lovers even backstage, so they can merge with their characters quickly and overcome awkwardness. Don't be surprised if you see them suddenly kissing," said Livia excitedly, in a tone that showed how thrilled she was.
"K-Kiss?!", said Lou Yan, flustered, her cheeks red as she looked at Noah through the corner of her eyes nervously and shyly.
"This will be hard to get used to," said Noah, smiling and laughing nervously.
"Don't worry, actor. You can get used to anything — after all, adaptation is your strength," said Livia, excited, a wide smile on her face.
"Adaptation?... Yeah, adaptation. Funny how Livia brought up the idea of adaptation right after I decided it was my path to salvation. But who cares? I'm just an actor now. I'm not Noah Grace, or a friend, or a lover, or someone to rely on... I'm the actor who will pretend to be the hero in the next chapter... So I'll adapt until I convince myself that I truly am. I'm identityless... I will be a hero!"