But the Snake Clan did not have such a thing. Sometimes Gen Uesugi really hoped an Aeon could descend upon this world—or at least descend upon their family, using faith to glue together that group of yellow-haired delinquents and turn the family into a seamless whole.
Others called him the Emperor, the king who ruled Japan's underworld. But only he and the elites of the headquarters knew that he was just an ordinary Galápagos tortoise. His greatest wish in life was to crawl into his own puddle and roll around.
If an Aeon could really help him turn the entire family into a perfect whole, he would resign from all positions the next day and go sell sunscreen on a French nudist beach.
Gen Uesugi suddenly wanted to smoke, but after searching his trench coat, he only found a half-damp box of Peace cigarettes. He looked up at the grand scene in the Celestial Screen, his fingers holding the cigarette trembling slightly.
"Truly enviable…"
——
[ "Miss Acheron, what do you mean by that?" Welt's gaze sharpened. ]
[ "The sweet dream is collapsing, but not because of a certain Aeon, a certain faction, or a specific visitor. Its collapse stems from a certain inevitability of human nature. The Family is unwilling to acknowledge this, yet they have invisibly become the catalyst…" Acheron said. ]
[ "When people indulge their spirits in a dream without cost, without pain, only ease and pleasure, the distance between them and [Decay] grows closer and closer. No matter what kind of bliss he thinks he is living in, death is an unchangeable outcome." ]
[ "Moreover, this decay will spread and diffuse. The mutation of one piece will eventually cause the entire building to shake, break… and collapse." ]
[ Welt continued his words: "In the end, the sweet dream built for freedom will instead become a cage imprisoning the self." He paused. "I suppose Miss Acheron has gained quite a lot on this trip. Would you be willing to share it with me?" ]
[ Acheron nodded: "Of course… provided I still remember." ]
[ As she said this, her hand gently rested on the sword's tsuba—then quickly lowered it, gone in an instant. ]
[ Welt looked at her with a puzzled expression. ]
[ Acheron said calmly: "Don't mind it. It's just a habit. Because of some past experiences, I become very prone to… forgetting. Only when this blade is unsheathed do those hazy scenes gradually become clear." ]
——
Attack on Titan.
"What exactly do Miss Acheron's words mean?"
"I don't understand at all. Should we ask Zeke later? I heard he's been collecting intelligence from the Celestial Screen according to the military's arrangements…"
Outside the Marley military camp, after finishing a day of training for Eldian warrior candidates, Falco and Gabi walked home. Falco looked up at the brilliant scene in the Celestial Screen, his envy overflowing.
"If I could live in a place like that with my brother, even for just one month… I'd be willing to sweep the big street outside the hospital for the rest of my life."
The people passing by Welt and Acheron in the Celestial Screen were of all kinds, dressed brightly. Even the drunkard on the street was vomiting rainbows. He must have drunk a lot of Suerda just now.
Falco couldn't help swallowing.
"Stop looking, Falco. Here—" Gabi patted his shoulder, pulling the boy's gaze back, then handed him a military canteen. "My mom says no drink is better than tea and water. No matter how attractive the drinks up there are, they can't compare to plain water at home—even though it always has a rusty taste." At this point, Gabi couldn't help sticking out her tongue in disgust.
"Living in Penacony means no one will call us 'descendants of devils' every day, and no one will throw stones at us. Even if we live in ease until we die, that would be a pretty good ending, right?"
"Hmph, can you even go? And even if you could, I don't want to. If you go, that's perfect—I'll have one less competitor."
Gabi looked full of longing: "As long as I successfully inherit a Titan, my whole family can become Honorary Marleyans, and the good days will naturally come. Compared to the vague Penacony… this path is more practical, right?"
As the two were chatting, someone suddenly patted the back of their heads lightly. They turned around together and saw Miss Pieck standing in front of them holding two ice cream cones.
"Miss Pieck!" The boy and girl exclaimed in surprise together.
"What are you two talking about?"
"Oh… we were just talking about Falco." Gabi greedily licked the chocolate on the cone. "He said he wants to go to Penacony, saying there's no discrimination there, and no one will call us 'devils'… How is that possible?"
"Oh?" Pieck's gaze darkened. She bent down and stroked Falco's head. "Although dreams are beautiful, reality is very cruel… Falco, no matter where you go, discrimination exists."
"But I didn't see any discrimination in Penacony?"
"That's just because you didn't see it." Pieck gently shook her head. "Many people living always pursue a sense of superiority. They establish superiority by discriminating against a certain group. In Marley, that group is Eldians. They call us 'devils'… In Penacony, that group is the poor people beyond your sight."
"But will there really be poor people in the sweet dream?"
"There definitely will be. Alright, Falco, if we keep talking the ice cream will melt." Pieck handed the half-melted cone to the boy. "Stop yearning for that world, okay? Don't be blinded by the glamorous side… Falco."
——
[ Welt inquired about Acheron's experiences in the four moments. From Acheron's perspective, Welt realized that this beautiful dream was not as perfect as he had thought. ]
[ In the Moment of Dawn, there was the blood, sweat, and toil behind the dream's debauchery. Workers toiled day after day, only able to catch a brief respite in their cramped real-world beds. ]
[ In the Gilded Moment, the Pipisians pursued wealth by all means. Some were willing to live for wealth, and some were willing to die for it. Their greatest wish was to lock the clover coins they earned into bank vaults. ]
[ The remaining two moments were the same. On the back side of this dream city was the desolation after the glamorous facade peeled off. Neon torrents surged on the main roads, while dark and winding alleys hid countless blood, tears, and hesitation. ]
[ "Someone once said to me: Penacony was not like this long ago, and Penacony should not be like this." Acheron looked up at the luxurious theater suspended in the air in the distance. "I walked through the reality and dream of the Festival Star, watching night rise and fall, time stopping for people, while spiritual richness and poverty… remain forever at their respective scales." ]
[ She turned back to Welt: "So I believe the collapse of the [Sweet Dream] is inevitable." ]
[ "Perhaps there is a way to change all this." Welt said. ]
[ "Perhaps. But if this is exactly the world people desire—if this is the reason life chooses to sleep—should we still make it change?" ]