As the blade plunged into the girl's throat, and blood splattered, a distorted, insane laugh erupted from the grayish-white mist.
The laughter was like that of a famished ghost, having endured endless torment, who, upon a chance spider silk descending, spotted a tender piece of flesh.
"Win! Win! Win win... Won!"
"Ah hahahaha!"
Ecstasy, overwhelming ecstasy.
Everything the Daydream Cafe had experienced since its birth—pride, smugness, astonishment, fear—was not as dazzling or extreme as the joy of this moment.
A desperate comeback—a grand reversal from the abyss's abyss, the bottom's bottom, soaring straight to the sky!
It was like the ultimate comeback in the last round of mahjong, directly hitting a first-place 32,000 points; or, when on low health, drawing the crucial card and achieving a one-turn kill!
The blood-stained blade genuinely pierced Togawa Sakiko's neck, even severing her cervical spine.
And the one who caused all this was Togawa Fuuki, who desperately tried to stop it, who staked everything to protect the girl!
Watching the blue-haired girl collapse in shock and pain, seeing the disbelief on her face, a strange emotion arose in the Daydream Cafe's thoughts, as if its entire soul had been sublimated.
Yes, this was victory; it was the winner!
The mist pervading the basement quickly gathered towards the broken body, and a swirling white vortex enveloped and lifted it.
[Make Togawa Sakiko disappear] – the objective was perfectly achieved.
Now was the time for triumph!
The Daydream Cafe, having completed its tracking objective, would return to its main body, carrying this growth and the joy of victory!
Most importantly, its 'consciousness,' the first to be born with consciousness, would become the 'standard' for all subsequent clones; its deeds would become a model, and its glory would never extinguish!
The white mist gradually surged into the broken body, propelling the dilapidated form back towards the main body. Although slow, it immensely enjoyed the process, for it allowed it to savor the taste of victory and thoroughly observe the enemy's defeated expression!
Yes, Togawa Fuuki, the Heir of the Togawa Family who vowed to protect his loved ones and spoke so boldly—what kind of expression did he have now?
Was it anger? Sadness? Regret? Or despair?
It wanted to see, it really wanted to see!
As the winner, this was what it wanted to see!
Togawa Fuuki's expression would surely elevate its joy even further, completing the final piece of its grand triumph!
The Daydream Cafe looked expectantly at the disheveled young man in the pool of blood, imagining extreme agony etched on his face.
"But... why?"
"Why does he still show no expression?!"
"No..."
"He's smiling."
"Why?"
"I was the winner, I achieved the ultimate victory!"
"What right does he have to touch the glory of the victor?"
"I am the winner!"
Surprise, confusion, humiliated rage!
The emotional rollercoaster was like a freefall ride, causing the already fragile body of the Daydream Cafe to once again show signs of collapse.
The white mist inside began to leak uncontrollably, and the cracked outer shell started to peel off in chunks.
It looked blankly at the fragments falling to the ground; the surface, which should have been pure white, was etched with deep purple.
A terrifying answer, one it absolutely could not accept, suddenly flashed through its mind, but was quickly met with strong denial from its instinct.
"No, this is impossible!"
"Absolutely impossible... It can't be, absolutely not! What I felt, what I witnessed, was absolutely real, undeniable reality!"
"How could I... But when was it—"
The mental instability made the Daydream Cafe feel more 'inconsistencies'—a cruel truth behind something real that it could not accept.
Zzzzzzz—
A mechanical sound from above its head interrupted its thoughts. Unbeknownst to it, a DISC had already half-entered its skull.
"Don't think too much, it'll give you a headache."
The young man's voice once again entered its ears, pressing the pause button on its chaotic thoughts.
The shell, burdened with too many emotions, finally stopped thinking. It passed through the ceiling with the white mist, completely disappearing from the basement... Fuuki's tense nerves finally relaxed. He had, after all, won the gamble in this life-and-death struggle.
When White Snake first attacked the Daydream Cafe, Fuuki had injected 'Corrosion,' which could dissolve the mind, into its head.
Corrosion had a significant effect on a Stand with self-awareness; the opponent's gradually collapsing body was the best proof.
But Fuuki underestimated the opponent's survival instinct and its strong will to achieve its goal at all costs. At this point, Fuuki also realized he was in a very bad situation.
If he simply defeated the Stand in front of him, its main body would realize a fact—[A Stand User exists near Togawa Sakiko.]
Although it could create a temporary deterrent, with the enemy hidden and him exposed, it would give the opponent more time and opportunity to plan the next assassination.
Manipulating chance and guiding the target to a fixed outcome.
If Fuuki himself became the locked-on target, he would have little chance to resist. At that point, anything he did would encounter chance, making him unable to contend with a well-prepared enemy whose whereabouts were unknown!
Similarly, as long as the 'objective' was not completed, the Daydream Cafe would not stop tracking. And as long as Chance existed in the world, the opponent could not be completely trapped!
When the opponent called Sakiko, luring her to this dangerous basement, an idea formed in Fuuki's mind.
"Then let it 'personally' witness Togawa Sakiko's death!"
To effectively inject a sufficient amount of Corrosion into the opponent, Fuuki did not hesitate to be exposed to a large amount of chance, rushing into the white mist to attack.
Upon the second contact with that head, Fuuki frantically consumed his already depleted mental energy, deeply implanting the suggestion of 'Togawa Sakiko's death' into its mind.
However, because its body itself was filled with Chance, Fuuki could not guarantee that Corrosion would be 100% effective.
So he began to cooperate with the opponent, staging a dramatic 'Stunning Reversal.'
The plan was full of uncertainties, but Fuuki resolutely stepped onto the gambling table.
Accumulating a large amount of chance, he continuously encountered disasters—his left hand was severed, his body was pierced. He endured it all, placing his odds of winning on the moment the girl pushed the door open!
To achieve its goal, the Daydream Cafe would inevitably gather all the Chance within this confined space, and even from its own body, and project it towards Togawa Sakiko.
So, what would be left after losing Chance?
The answer was 'Inevitability.'
A 100% successful 'Illusion' was thus achieved.
To prevent Sakiko from dying under the influence of the massive amount of chance, Fuuki had to kill her one step ahead.
So, in the illusion, he threw a blood blade at the Daydream Cafe, and it was that massive amount of Chance that guided it to Togawa Sakiko's throat.
But no matter what object was thrown, it was always possible to harm Sakiko and cause her death.
So Togawa Fuuki chose the only answer.
The Ride the Lighting Stand DISC.
Although Togawa Sakiko's spirit was not strong enough, under Fuuki's perception, she should be able to temporarily wield this DISC. And this power to 'melt' things together could restore his severed hand!
...The young man's mental state finally reached its limit.
Before he lost consciousness, a pale green figure entered his sight.
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