“Then why the hell are you talking to me about this stuff?! Are we that close?! We’re pure enemies, you know! I know exactly what kind of freak you were before! Even if you turn into a beautiful girl now, I just want to punch you more!”
“You’re the only disciple I acknowledge.” The Star Listener’s tone was oddly appreciative.
“Dumb and gullible, easily led by me, and yet you still resist their will. You’re nothing like those ordinary fools.”
Allen nodded, almost agreeing. “That’s true, the other cultists are all idiots who deserve to die.”
“So, how do you like the gift your master gave you?” The Star Listener asked with a grin.
“The Brand of Shadow is pretty handy. Thanks,” Allen replied honestly.
“You’re welcome~”
“So why did you really come to find me? Couldn’t have been just to hear me say thank you, right?”
“Nothing in particular,” the Star Listener tilted her head.
“I’m just curious about your memories, so I came to flip through them. Turns out, there wasn’t much useful there… Looks like you really are a ‘variable’. In a way, you’re almost a ‘blank’ person—with no past, and a future that’s hard to predict… You’re practically like a ‘Messenger of God’ from the Holy Scripture.”
“Stop right there! Don’t start with that ‘Messenger of God’ stuff!” Allen interrupted impatiently. “If I really were, I’d have banished you, this evil creature, to the edge of the universe long ago! And, wait, you really peeked into my memories? Does that mean you peeked at Livia’s too?”
“Mmm-hmm~” The Star Listener admitted without hesitation.
“What the— You really did it…” Allen twitched, then suddenly lowered his voice, curiously asking, “I’m just wondering, Livia looks so proper… but in private, does she ever… um… you know, have a secret tryst?”
The abrupt and weird question made even the Star Listener pause. What the hell kind of question is that?!
“So your character is really this sexually repressed?” she couldn’t help but ask.
“No.” Allen kept a straight face and spouted nonsense. “But this is a dream, and dreams reflect the subconscious, which is often about repressed desire. So this actually has deep psychological significance!”
“Well then, you can relax.” The Star Listener seemed to accept this ridiculous reasoning and replied, “She’s pretty indifferent in that regard. She knows the biological facts, but physical pleasure doesn’t interest her much.”
“As expected of Livia…” Allen sighed. “Even most otome heroines aren’t this abstinent. A sheltered lady who also understands theory—what a charming contrast. But the way you say it, her only desire is probably for battle.”
“Shouldn’t you at least try to stir her interest in this area?” The Star Listener teased. “You’re her fiancé, after all.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.” Allen instantly put on a look of righteous indignation. “I’m a conservative! I firmly oppose all premarital impurity! In my view, that kind of behavior deserves to be burned by heavenly fire!”
“…” The Star Listener fell silent for a moment. “How are you even more conservative than someone from the Church…”
“Because my heart contains only the higher, pure love for yuri,” Allen boasted shamelessly. “All other base desires are simply unnecessary! Besides, you’re not even human, so isn’t it funny for you to discuss this with me?”
Allen and the Star Listener chatted like two mental patients, the conversation going further and further off-track.
It seemed that even in the dream, Livia sensed that these two were discussing her, so she walked over to the bench with a hint of confusion and spoke: “Are you… Allen de Laval? Is this my dream?”
“Huh?! What the— This is a shared dream?!”
Allen turned sharply to the side, only to find that the Star Listener had vanished at some point.
Wait! That scoundrel! You set me up, didn’t you!
Running off so fast—if you show up next time, just see if I don’t tear you apart!
Having just discussed some rather private topics about Livia in front of her actual self, Allen instantly felt a wave of social-death-level embarrassment.
Luckily, she probably didn’t hear the details… Otherwise, Livia would definitely hack him to pieces at first sight!
“A-ah, classmate, do we know each other?” Allen switched modes in an instant, putting on the harmless mob character smile. “Hello, I am indeed Allen de Laval. And you are…?”
“Um… Sorry to bother you.” Livia also seemed to realize she was being a bit abrupt, blushing slightly. “I’m Livia von Stern, a new student at Saint Nora Academy.”
Allen almost laughed out loud inside.
First, he actually managed to fool Livia; second, Livia was seriously introducing herself to him inside a dream… This girl was surprisingly cute!
“Miss Livia, pleased to meet you.” Allen kept his polite smile. “But I’m still waiting for someone—the opening ceremony is about to begin. Why don’t you head to the main hall first? We’re classmates, we’ll definitely see each other again.”
“Who are you waiting for?” Livia suddenly brightened up, curious.
“Uh…” Allen was honestly curious too—who was he waiting for, sitting here?
At that moment, a very familiar voice came from nearby.
“Master? Eh? And Livia?”
No way?! Star Listener! You… You even set up a three-person shared dream?!
How are we supposed to dance this three-person dance, huh?!
There was no doubt—the person Allen was waiting for was his personal maid, Marianne.
And from the affectionate tone of that “Master,” it was clearly the real Marianne from reality—the one who was a bit yandere for him—not the aloof or even hostile version from previous loops.
Allen hurriedly pulled Marianne aside and whispered, “We’ve been dragged into a shared dream by the Star Listener! That Livia over there is probably the real one!”
“Eh?!” Marianne was flabbergasted.
She’d been wondering why she was dreaming of a strange academy, with Master and Livia appearing—and now she could even talk to them in the dream? This was too strange!
Allen’s mind raced, and he suddenly realized this was a great opportunity.
He quickly told Marianne, “Perfect! This is basically a yuri date rehearsal between you and Livia. Now go keep her company—remember, right now, you’re the Marianne in her dream. Don’t give yourself away! I’ve got something to do.”
“Yes, Master.” Marianne didn’t quite get it, but obediently agreed.
Allen slipped away with a random excuse. Making sure Marianne and Livia were happily chatting, he immediately ran toward a direction from his memories.
He realized the true purpose behind the creation of this dream.
Livia obviously retained her memories (at least partially), and for Marianne to dream of this scene meant she too had leftover fragments from the past in her subconscious.
Tomorrow, he would meet Livia officially—he desperately needed to clear up something, something that had always weighed on his mind.
And perhaps the answer to that question existed only in the First Loop.
He sprinted through one fantastical academy building after another, driven by a certain instinct, until he arrived before a giant, clearly extraordinary door.
This door had no name; it only appeared in a special event during the first loop of Starshine Love Song, and was the most bizarre plotline in the original.
In that event, Livia wandered the academy in her dream, got lost, and eventually found this door.
A Bird-headed Gatekeeper told her that beyond the door lay a labyrinth built by its Master, with a library inside.
This Library of the Labyrinth contained fragments of nearly all knowledge in the universe, recording every thought of every living being at every moment.
Livia’s book was among them, inscribed with her hopes, dreams, and the entire truth of her predictable Fate.
Livia wanted to know what path awaited her in the future. But the gatekeeper told her the time wasn’t right—only when its Master’s Plan truly began would she be qualified to see her own Fate.
Afterward, Livia woke up, with a new “???” Archive Inheritance buff in her status bar—only with this could she unlock the following week.
Allen had always thought the endless looping was only his own torment.
But if the real one stuck in the loop was Livia, and he was merely a variable, then the truth of the loop was likely tied to this special event.
Normally, Allen could never return to the “First Loop,” let alone enter Livia’s dream. But the Star Listener had actually given him this chance.
In this shared dream with Livia, the door truly existed… only the Bird-headed Gatekeeper was missing.
Allen took a deep breath, reached out, and pushed open the heavy, mysterious door. And then, he saw—