[The Annihilation of the Underworld Fire Manor: Complete]
[Giovanni: To hear the Way in the morning, and die in the evening, is enough. Although the Archduke was cut down with one blow, his spirit is still worth commending.]
[Sampo: A joke is a joke, but the Archduke is a true man.]
[Black Swan: What a pity. Destruction filled with desires like yours, even if you offer your life, will not receive His approval.]
[Now Playing — Gallagher: It's all because of accursed fate playing tricks.]
[Huo Huo: Are there still masters?]
[Star: Gallagher, he was mentioned before, he's the Hound Family's Peacekeeper, right?]
[Sushang: Is that the uncle who helped Miss Firefly?]
The scene gradually unfolds: This is a retro-style bar with dim lighting. Himeko, Star, and March 7th are seated around the bar, their eyes fixed on Gallagher, who is mixing drinks.
Gallagher skillfully pours various ingredients into a cocktail shaker. After a good shake, he carefully pours the mixed cocktails into several exquisite glasses and gently pushes them towards the three.
"Alright, mission accomplished!"
Then, he raises one of the drinks and says to the people in front of him, "With this glass of 'Dream of Dreams,' I salute you, the sober ones—
—to the parents who dug their own graves."
"Not bad, Gallagher, you've still got it." The woman next to him couldn't help but praise.
[Star: How did we end up drinking with this Peacekeeper?]
[March 7th: Looking at the title, I feel like someone's about to get cut again. Guess who it is this time?]
[Star: March, I'm scared, don't say those things.]
[March 7th: What? I was just saying it casually.]
[Hook: What is this? It looks so good. Hook wants to drink it too.]
[Natasha: Children can't drink this. Go back and rest obediently.]
[Hook: Hook understands..]
"Are you satisfied, everyone?" Gallagher looked at them.
"This taste…it's much more complex than surlada." March 7th exclaimed.
Himeko also took a sip, then put down her glass and thoughtfully asked, "The taste is rich and layered, truly a masterpiece. Especially the handling of the auxiliary ingredients, I can taste a certain unique flavor—spicy, sour, yet with a hint of sweetness…
I don't know what this means, perhaps Mr. Gallagher would be willing to explain his ingenuity?"
[March 7th: Hmm…Himeko, do you think this way when you brew coffee too?]
[Star: Is this what they call…experiential learning?]
[Dan Heng: Feeling a bit tired..]
[Qingque: What, what? Himeko also brews coffee?]
[Star: Hmm…if you get a chance, you can try it.]
[Qingque: Sounds interesting. Next time you come to Xianzhou, you must come find me.]
[Star: Speaking of which—we are waiting for docking outside the Jade Gate of Xianzhou. Is anyone in charge?]
[Yukong: Starfaring Harbor has been completely sealed due to some special circumstances. We are very sorry. We will guide you for docking shortly.]
[March 7th: Hooray!]
"Unfortunately, if you're expecting a profound answer, you'll probably be disappointed," Gallagher replied. "The imagery it contains is very simple…this is just the true taste of Dreamland, nothing more."
"Is this true taste…related to Mikhail?" Himeko asked, getting straight to the point.
"It's a name that appeared in a dream…" Star said thoughtfully.
March 7th also suddenly realized, "Oh, right, I knew I'd heard it somewhere…when Star was entranced by that Masked Fools girl, I think I heard someone muttering this name, right?"
"Heh…you know quite a bit. As expected, I didn't misjudge you. Now I have no reason not to be frank with you all." Gallagher said with a smile, "Then let's talk about the case in detail, and of course…it will come with the story of Mikhail."
With that, Gallagher stepped out from behind the bar and led them to a seating area at the edge, where they sat down. He continued, "Let's start with the conclusion: According to the clues the Family has, Firefly is indeed not a local, nor is she an invited guest. In other words…she is a genuine stowaway."
"I was also deceived by this girl, I'm truly getting old. But in The star of the Festival, stowing away isn't that rare of a thing, and it's not hard to investigate. After the incident, the Hounds immediately took action, tracking from both the dream and reality."
"But the result…is only bad news, and the most troublesome news." Gallagher sighed helplessly, then crossed his arms and said, "This little girl has vanished without a trace. No traces left in the dream, and her body is completely untraceable in reality, as if she had never come to Penacony."
"Ah? Doesn't this mean…" March 7th's face was full of shock, her words cut short by Star.
Star continued incredulously, "'death' has completely erased her."
Gallagher immediately shook his head: "Impossible. The problem now isn't that she died, but that she seems to have never appeared."
"I'll be blunt. This girl's situation…not to mention you, even the Hound Family has never seen anything like it."
"'First time…So in Penacony, 'death' is real, isn't it?" Himeko asked with a firm tone.
Gallagher neither confirmed nor denied it, simply shrugging casually: "You've all seen it, what's there to hide? A city has a glamorous surface, and it certainly has an unspeakable underside. I don't need to say more about adult matters."
He then pointed out, "If you want to question the Family based on just this, it's too naive. There are accidental deaths in dreams too, so what? Such extremely low-probability events…will only affect a very small number of people."
[March 7th: Oh my, this is too dark.]
[Huo Huo: That's why I hate these boring office political games. Little March, I see you seem to think like me. Why don't you try joining The Fool?]
[March 7th: Eh…me?]
[Huo Huo: Yes, yes. How about turning Penacony upside down?]
[Sunday: Don't just stir up trouble, The Fool.]
[Huo Huo: Oh, the chicken wing boy who disappeared for so long has reappeared. Has he finished crying to his 'master'? Did he say to him: 'Waaah, waaah, my plan is about to be exposed, please help me~']
[Sunday: …]
[Huo Huo: What, the Family's dirty laundry is so much that I could talk for three days and three nights, or do you want to confess yourself?]
[Sushang: This girl is so aggressive..]
[Gallagher: Arguing with people from 'The Fool' is purely asking for trouble, but, little girl, I quite like what you said.]
[Huo Huo: Then thank you~]
"If you truly want to delve into this case, you must first understand the Family's true 'difficulty'."