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The Reverie, Platinum Guest Room 217.
A shallow Dream Pool faced the room's main door, extremely eye-catching.
According to the instructions here, as long as one lay down in the Dream Pool, they could enter the world of dreams—the true origin of Penacony's title as the Planet of Festivities, a place said to be able to fulfill any desire.
However, before entering the dream, Sol needed to make sure that Miss Silver Wolf would not think about running away.
He sat on the sofa, studying the Silver Wolf in front of him, and asked thoughtfully, "Do you have any method that can guarantee you won't escape from my side?"
"Someone as slippery as you, a hacker like this—I'm really afraid that if I blink, you'll disappear without a trace."
Aether Editing was impossible to guard against. If Silver Wolf was not caught at the very moment she tried to flee, once she escaped to another star system, there would be no way to chase her down.
Being able to catch Silver Wolf this time was essentially a first-encounter kill—she had been careless and failed to dodge.
Having finally caught this little kitty, he did not want her slipping away halfway through.
"How could I run? Stellaron Hunters are the most trustworthy when it comes to promises."
Silver Wolf patted her small chest and answered solemnly. "I already promised to be your guide and teach you—"
Sol did not believe her at all.
This mischievous little thing was absolutely a crafty sprite on the level of Jade from Jackie Chan Adventures.
Keeping an eye on Silver Wolf was an epic-level quest.
But today, he had to take on that challenge.
Sol sighed and said, "But if you can't guarantee you won't run, then I can only carry you into the dream."
As long as he was holding her, he believed Silver Wolf would have no way to escape.
"No, absolutely not!"
Silver Wolf guarded her chest, extremely alert.
She had watched countless videos online—restricted content from all races across the universe. She had seen every trick in the book.
She would never fall for something so simple. Being held together and 'doing nothing' was absolutely the least trustworthy lie a man could tell!
Then she remembered that she was still a captive, so she softened her tone and took a step back. "You can hold my hand. Your body has too much information density—once there's contact, my Aether Editing won't be able to function properly."
"This plan is acceptable."
Sol nodded slightly. He had no intention of forcing anything anyway. That would not align with socialist core values—it could only exist in doujins. Otherwise, great terror would descend.
He lay directly into the Dream Pool, the clear water submerging him.
Unlike water in the chemical sense, the Dream Pool's water was extremely peculiar, seemingly a condensation of Memoria.
From within the Dream Pool, Sol extended his right hand toward Silver Wolf and curled his fingers twice slightly. "Then, come on."
"..."
Silver Wolf's expression struggled, but in the end, she still grabbed Sol's right hand.
With others holding the knife and her being the fish on the chopping board, being able to negotiate it down to just holding hands was already good enough. Pushing further would probably lead straight to forced affection.
Silver Wolf deleted the improper images in her mind at light speed and walked toward the Dream Pool.
Splash!
Her slender legs stepped into the Dream Pool, causing gentle ripples to spread.
Silver Wolf lay down beside Sol, fingers tightly interlocked.
To an outsider, they would look like nothing more than a loving young couple.
Soon, after a kaleidoscopic blur filled her vision, Silver Wolf entered the dream world. The sensations of mental haze or weightlessness never appeared—she landed smoothly.
Sol, on the other hand, abruptly opened his eyes, feeling a slight pulling force on his consciousness.
Compared to others, his consciousness seemed a bit too… large.
Sol closed his eyes again, compressing and refining his consciousness, forcibly squeezing his way into that world.
Whoosh!
Sol opened his eyes once more, and a dual-layered world unfolded before him.
On one side was the blue, bubble-like ceiling above the Dream Pool—the Platinum Guest Room 217 of The Reverie.
On the other side was a dazzling, golden cityscape, filled with skyscrapers and luxury supercars everywhere—the glorious dreamscape known as one of the Twelve Dreamscapes: Golden Hour.
"What's wrong with you?"
Silver Wolf asked curiously.
As a hacker from Punklorde, she had many channels to enter this dream world. There was even another Stellaron Hunter here—Firefly, who needed to be sealed in metal to preserve her life—and it was Silver Wolf herself who had sent her in.
However, this was her first time using the official channel.
Earlier, she had been worried that Sol's delay in entering meant he planned to do something to her body—sleeping something or other. She knew those kinds of plots well.
And as a Stellaron Hunter, she never hesitated to assume the worst about others.
But now that Sol had appeared, it seemed her body was probably fine.
That whole "three-second real man" thing was far too abstract—she did not believe it.
Silver Wolf naturally held Sol's hand. When it came to keeping her little life safe, she would not give Sol even the slightest chance to kill her.
"It's nothing."
Sol shook his head, smiled at the world before him, and said, "Let's go take a look around this dream world."
The connection between his mind and body was extremely tight. Even after his consciousness entered the dream world, he could still operate his physical body at the same time.
Being on guard against ambushes was a good thing, but the wondrous dual perspective required some adjustment.
Inside the guest room, Sol reached out and pinched Silver Wolf's delicate cheek.
Within the dream, Sol held Silver Wolf's hand.
Tsk. Even the sense of touch was doubled—truly fascinating.
"You seem very excited. Even though this dreamscape is a promised land that countless people long for day and night, it shouldn't be that big a deal to you, right?"
Silver Wolf asked with some confusion.
With someone of his caliber, he could just as easily play in custom mode in reality.
Just like for her—dream or reality made no difference. As long as Sol was not by her side, she could run away at any time.
"I discovered an interesting way to play, but now isn't the time to realize it."
Sol smiled faintly, maintaining an air of mystery.
It was better not to say too much—otherwise it might give Silver Wolf unnecessary anxiety. This was for her own good.
"Tch, I hate riddlers the most."
Silver Wolf muttered softly, then smiled very cutely. "Let's go. I'll show you around. There are lots of strange and interesting things in the dreamscape—I'm sure you'll be interested."
She remembered that Firefly should also be here. If she could find Firefly and get her help, maybe she could be rescued?
So, for the sake of being saved, even pretending to be cute—something that made her scalp crawl—was temporarily acceptable.
"Girl, I admire you."
Sol looked at Silver Wolf and curved his lips into a smile. "Always so driven, always coming up with endless ideas."
"What are you talking about? I don't understand. I just want to guide you around."
Silver Wolf forced herself to stay calm, meeting Sol's gaze directly to feign sincerity.
"Maybe. I don't really care."
"I'm actually hoping you'll do just that. Only then will things be more fun for me."
"Like a cat catching a mouse—catching a struggling mouse brings the cat even more joy."
Sol looked at the people around them, laughing freely, and said with some pleasure.
Here, people seemed to cast off all restraints and reveal their indulgent selves.
Laughing wildly, indulging without limit.
In the long run, it was not a good thing—but for a brief bout of drunken dreamlife, this place was no different from paradise.
"You're not an Emanator of Erudition at all—you're clearly an Emanator of Elation."
Silver Wolf looked at Sol's slightly deranged expression, shrank her neck a little, and complained.
"Then, would you mind doing something even more joyful—how about a little game?"
Sol accepted her evaluation cheerfully and said with a smile.
"Oh?"
Silver Wolf's eyes lit up. Games were her greatest specialty.
"See that lucky wheel over there? You and I will each use our own methods, without damaging the dreamscape. Whoever hits the grand prize first wins."
Sol pointed at the amusement facility not far away and said with interest. "The wager is your freedom. If you win, I'll let you go. If you lose, you behave obediently. Got the guts?"
This was a proud genius who viewed all the world's problems as game levels.
To someone like her, rigid constraints were challenges.
And only a verbal wager—borne from self-imposed restraint—could truly make her behave.
"Deal!"
Silver Wolf went all in without hesitation.
In raw power she was inferior to Sol, but she could also tell that Sol relied on brute force.
When it came to cheating through details, no one was a match for her, Silver Wolf.