The night was gentle, a cozy wind drifting across the distance. Raiden lay on the ground with Leo fast asleep right beside him, while behind them, everyone else was lost in slumber.
Raiden could feel himself slipping into his dormant state, yet he couldn’t help but have his senses remain somewhat awake.
His eyes rolled rapidly beneath his eyelids while his breathing remained gentle and slow, close enough to sleeping to fool most, yet not quite deep enough to truly rest.
As he lay there, confusion clouded his thoughts more than it should have as he tried to make sense of what was happening. But in the enveloping silence, all he could see was himself standing in what seemed like an endless white void.
His mind jumped from one thought to another. Was this another side effect from the retinal rift? Or perhaps everyone else was having a similar experience, and this was simply how people slept at the Solace Isle?
While his mind raced, a gentle girlish voice echoed in his head. "It’s been a while, bookkeeper." His head snapped in all directions, confused about what was happening.
However, something wasn’t right. The voice was too familiar; he knew he’d heard it before, but couldn’t place who it belonged to.
"Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten about me already," the voice said again, and this time Raiden caught the familiar tone more clearly.
His confusion began to fade as he sighed. "How exactly are you doing this, Alora?"
She giggled. "I am the dreamwalker, remember?"
Raiden had known that much the moment he realized it was the princess, but that wasn’t the answer he was looking for. He was in an absolute domain, so wasn’t he supposed to be cut off from anyone in the real world? Unless Alora’s ability had evolved to the point where she could bypass an absolute domain.
"By the way, where are you?" she asked, her voice dropping in pitch. "I’ve been trying to enter your dream, but it feels like there’s a powerful force blocking me."
Her voice echoed with relief. "This is what I can manage at the moment."
Raiden began to understand his strange situation. As his eyes glanced around at the endless whiteness, he realized his situation was nothing but Alora’s doing.
However, his expression fell in an instant. His heart began to pound while his thoughts spiraled. If Alora was reaching out to him through his dreams, did that mean Klein el Seer hadn’t covered for them at all? Was the kingdom aware that they had abandoned their post?
He gulped as sweat began to bead on his forehead. There was only one way to find out. To play along.
"Why must you reach out to me this way?" he asked, wiping his sweaty palms. "You could have come to the mansion."
Alora burst into laughter. "You really thought I wouldn’t see through those imposters you left behind?"
"I must admit, they had me fooled for a while."
Raiden’s eyes narrowed slightly. "Imposters?" he muttered in confusion, wondering what exactly Klein had done to cover for him.
"How did you make those clones, anyway?" She paused. "I’m curious."
Raiden smirked the moment Alora spoke, relief flooding through him. If Klein had created clones sophisticated enough to initially fool even Alora, then he had nothing to worry about.
"Why did you visit me, though?"
"Seriously?" Raiden could hear the disappointment in her voice immediately. "I’m your future wife. Must there be any other reason?"
Raiden shook his head in disbelief, massaging his forehead as he wondered why she was still clinging to such a manipulative tactic.
"What do you really want, though?"
Alora paused for a moment while Raiden’s eyes swept across the endless white void, the brightness already making him uncomfortable.
"Someone came here." Her tone dropped, cold and clipped, instantly catching Raiden’s attention—he had never heard her speak this seriously.
"Her presence was overwhelming. She walked with her eyes closed, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword." Raiden began to wonder who this mysterious person was. Did he know her?
"Darkness shrouded her entire form." Raiden could feel the goosebumps running through Alora’s body just from her voice alone.
"And I think she wants you, Raiden."
Raiden’s heart skipped a beat as unease prickled across his skin. "Me?"
"Yes," she said firmly. "She appeared at your mansion two days ago. Your imposter and I, along with June and the others, tried to fight her."
He could hear the devastation in her voice. "Not even a single attack landed on her, not even June’s attacks."
"Worse, she didn’t even fight back. She just approached your clone for a moment, seemed to realize it wasn’t you, and then left."
Raiden began to massage his head, his mind spiraling through countless thoughts. He didn’t know anyone of such caliber, so why would someone that powerful be searching for him?
He tried to think it through, but only came up with more questions. What was going on?
"Who is she?" Alora asked.
Raiden sighed. "I don’t know... I’ve never heard of or encountered anyone like that before."
Alora sighed clearly. "I figured," she said, her tone somehow shifting back to her usual self in an instant, as if she hadn’t been the same frightened person speaking just moments before.
"By the way, bookkeeper." Her voice turned light and stress-free. "The FIRMO is in our kingdom as we speak."
Raiden’s eyes widened in confusion. "What?!" he blurted out. He’d thought the FIRMO were after the twenty-eight pages, the same as him. So why were they in Persia?
"Yes, they’ve been around for quite a while, that’s why father sent June and me to you, but unfortunately, they haven’t approached the book of ashes."
Raiden rested his chin on his hand. If they weren’t going for the Book of Ashes, then they clearly hadn’t collected all the pages yet. Maybe some of the pages were actually in Persia.
His eyes widened as the realization hit him. "We’ll be back in no time."
"You must hurry then, they won’t be here forever, obviously."
"Noted." The instant Raiden responded, he found himself released as his eyes snapped open to the dark sky above.
He began to pant heavily, staring off into the distance. If the FIRMO was really in Persia, then once he completed his alliance with Chrono, he’d have to head there and confront them. Maybe he could claim whatever pages they had collected.
He smiled as he lay there, realizing he could beat Chrono’s unfair negotiations after all. However, his expression darkened the moment he recalled the mysterious person Alora spoke of.
Who was she? And was there a possibility that Ash knew about her?
He let out a sigh. There was only one way to find out, and he would tackle that the moment the sun rose.