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Now, a few hours later, I wake up and find myself in an unfamiliar location.

A place I do not know.

A place I have neither seen nor heard of.

The time was night; nothing more than the countless, scintillating stars could be seen in the sky and among them, the ever-present, glowing moon was all that illuminated my surroundings.

As such, there was no way I was able to take it in with my eyes.

Or at least, that\'s how it should\'ve been.

However, to even my own surprise, I am able to view the world around me as if time were flipped on its head.

Clearly, unmistakably, my eyes penetrated the darkness and studied the land around me.

The world continued on for many miles, and it felt like a seemingly endless wilderness.

This vast expanse―the ground so dry it had fractured and so boundless that it stretched into the distant horizon―resembled only one place on Earth that I knew of.

With nonexistent vegetation and a number of visible trees that I could count on a single hand in any direction.

It looked like a great, more extreme savannah.

Having been exiled through that portal gate, I ended up in such a strange place, but could I truly have faith that this place took residence on the same planet I was used to?

Instinctively, if I honed my focus for but a moment, I could feel the essence of this world.

The lethargic land slumbering beneath my feet;

The equanimous sky soaring above my head;

And even that all-seeing moon gazing down from the heavens;

Not only could I see it all in the physical sense, but my eyes could even look past that.

Piercing another layer deeper, I saw the reality.

This, too, is a fake world.

A world separate from the one I was used to.

In fact, I felt even more that this world was faker than the Earth from which I came.

And not by a small margin.

"..."

Azaki Kiryuuin, Saburou Fushigimi... and Yuu Shimura.

I recalled the three individuals who collaborated to create that portal―the gateway that led to this other world.

I didn\'t need to bother asking how it was possible. After all, if I just considered for a second what their powers were, the answer was simple.

In the order that it was most probably performed:

Yuu Shimura, who had become able to manifest dreams into reality―is likely the one to have imagined and manifested this world.

Saburou Fushigimi, who possesses the power of control over space―is the one to have established a gateway between the two worlds.

As for Kiryuuin...

Well, I still don\'t know what his Measurement evolved to become ever since I killed him, so it remains to be seen. But, I\'m certain he played a not-insignificant role in connecting the two former players\' powers somehow.

I pondered.

A manifested reality.

An entire world forged by dreams and materialised into a physical form.

Something about this didn\'t fit.

How could someone like Yuu Shimura, who hadn\'t even evolved that long ago, become able to perform such a phenomenal feat?

I suspect the answer has to do with Kiryuuin\'s power.

"...They got me good."

Muttering to myself, I still found it hard to believe.

How did I not know it was coming? It\'s not like I was careless―I had made sure to ask Truth countless times, but he said they weren\'t planning anything for the moment.

I don\'t understand how it happened, and Truth was also late with his answer as I\'m asking again.

Thinking about that naturally led me to the rest who were then present.

I wasn\'t particularly surprised to find that Araceli was working with them, but the others?

Sophie Asanami, who pushed me through the portal, was there, as well as...

"..."

I couldn\'t bring myself to recall their names.

The instant a faint visage of two white-haired girls began to form in my mind\'s eye, I shook my head to hurriedly erase it.

...This isn\'t the end.

They will pay―the lot of them.

As soon as I return, they will all rue ever daring to cross me.

In the end, Truth was the only one I could rely on.

On that note, and thinking that now was the time to use it if ever, I reached into my coat\'s interior pocket and pulled out a vial.

I wouldn\'t be able to enhance it any more anyway, now that I was in another world.

"Hm?"

However, when I raised it up, I found the vial to be empty. Belatedly, the sight forced me to recall that I had already taken it just before being sent to this place.

The M.E.I. drug―I.M.E. drug; my last resort―however you wish to call it.

I returned the empty vial to its place and contemplated.

I had taken the drug and survived. That means, either it worked and Truth had now evolved, or it didn\'t, and it was a dud.

So, tell me. Which is it?

"..."

I tried asking Truth but furrowed my eyebrows when no answer returned.

There was no message claiming that the information was restricted, so it wasn\'t because my question pertained to Forbidden Knowledge, but something else was the matter.

It could be that Measurements don\'t work in this other world for whatever reason, but that theory seemed a little far-fetched.

"Mm..."

Without realising it, I groaned.

This was the first time in my entire life that Truth was blatantly ignoring me, so I felt more than just a little displeased.

I recalled that I had been in pain for a brief moment when I swallowed the drug, but that it quickly vanished like a lie.

"...Don\'t tell me..."

Wondering momentarily if the drug had messed up beyond my wildest expectations somehow and had murdered Truth, I worried if I would ever be able to rely on him to answer my queries again, but managed to maintain composure.

Having already lost everything that was once mine, my sanity could not afford to lose my one and only Truth, too.

I was still finding it hard to believe that my recovered memories were real, so more stress was not needed.

Fortunately, I had already confirmed beforehand, and even Truth was certain about it, that the current stage of the evolution drug was literally not capable of erasing my power, even if it screwed up.

At worst, it would kill or cripple me, but if I survived without that, then it would be fine.

If I didn\'t die or want to die afterwards, Truth said, then the drug should have worked without an issue.

It\'s quite possible that it worked, but that the process of forced evolution was tough for him to endure and so he is in the middle of recuperating―convincing myself that that must be the case, I let loose a small sigh of relief.

Now, on to the most pressing matter.

Survival.

The main objective is to figure out how to return to Earth, but before I can do that, I need to not perish. Regrettably, there doesn\'t appear to be any fruit nearby... in fact, there isn\'t much of anything from what I can see.

As far as the eye can see, there was only a barren wilderness. The fractured ground looked like it hadn\'t seen rain in years, and the trees dotted sparsely around the place were parched beyond comparison.

Not only that; but in no direction could I see even an ant, let alone a creature that could provide me with a satisfactory amount of food.

"..."

All of a sudden, a dark realisation dawned on me.

...This couldn\'t possibly be the entire Otherworld those lot had created, could it?

Creating a world that was nothing but limitless arid and infertile wasteland―Did they want to make a place like that to shove me in and watch me squirm uselessly until my inevitable death?

No, that surely wasn\'t it; those people are too benevolent and merciful for their own good, and besides, the method was pointless. If their goal was to kill me, this was a far-too-roundabout way of doing it.

This world was made with the intention of imprisoning me.

I\'m sure of it.

Thus, this place has to have something I can use to survive.

Somewhere, there must be a spring of fresh water to be gathered.

Someplace, there must be guileless animals to be hunted and eaten.

After all, I highly doubted there would be something like a supermarket or fast food restaurant in this place, however convenient that may be.

In any case, there was obviously only hunger and thirst to gain from idling around these parts, so it was best to get a move on as quickly as possible.

Making up my mind, I picked a random direction to walk in and took a step forward.

-- Krrriiiiieeeeeeekkh...!

"Gh...!?"

Suddenly, an alien, ear-splitting screech resounded, shaking the atmosphere itself and giving me a severe headache. It was so awful I wished for it to stop, and I soon managed to collect myself.

"..."

What the hell was that...?

Turning my head towards the direction the noise came from, I saw it.

An unnatural, dense mass of murky black darkness like a blotch of ink staining the world.

Reflected in my eyes, it took the form of what could only be described as a monster the size of a building, and like a phantom, its intangible "body" flickered like black flames.

...Now, I don\'t think my eyes are fooling me, but wasn\'t that not there just a second ago?

-- Krrrhhk...

Abruptly, two circular shapes appeared in the ethereal black mass, staring at me with a vivid scarlet glow.

At the same time, the sinister creature\'s face stretched, spawning many long, white thorns below its eyes in an alternating pattern that clearly imitated a row of abnormally sharp teeth.

"..."

Without realising it, I gulped.

I felt something take over me as I stared at the shadowy mass.

Glancing down, I found my body subconsciously trembling before the immeasurable presence of the thing before me.

As if paused in time, I couldn\'t move my body as a primal fear dominated my body.

It stood over a hundred metres away, watching me in utter stillness, but I could still feel its sticky gaze all over me.

Considering this was a world manifested from a dream, I surmised the monster to be something like a nightmare creature, and so I called it as such.

Only able to stare speechlessly at the dreadful Nightmare in front of me, my eyes quivered.

Such extreme terror―It was the first time I had ever experienced this sensation, and not only did goosebumps rise all over my skin, but I even felt like my bones themselves were frozen stiff.

This...

Yuu Shimura, Saburou, Kiryuuin...

What the hell kind of absurd monster is that supposed to be, you stupid bastards...?

Just by looking at it, I can tell that thing is capable of devouring me in an instant.

Am I really going to die here like this?

Because of the incompetence of those fools?

"...No."

Gritting my teeth, I muttered a simple one-word phrase.

First of all, I reminded myself.

This is a fake world. Even faker than the fake world I used to think was real.

Likewise, everything within this world is fake; including that Nightmare.

As such, there is no need to be afraid.

That\'s right...

That nonsensical black mess; as something that does not truly exist, it cannot possibly harm me, a being from a higher, \'truer\' realm.

"Fu..."

Immediately, my body\'s tremors ceased, the cold sweat evaporated from my nape, and I lightly exhaled as all the fear that previously filled my mind rapidly dissipated. I felt a sense of newfound confidence surge through me as if I had never been scared in the first place.

I looked once more at the Nightmare, and through my reality-seeing eyes, I pierced through its emanating pressure, its dominant fear, and I saw it for what it really was.

Fake.

Something that could never exist in the realm of the true, and thus something that couldn\'t possibly be considered more than trash.

Instinctively, I realised something.

Truth, my friend and my power, you...

"...Tsk. Come."

Glaring at the Nightmare with cold eyes, I beckoned, and in the next instant―

-- Kriiiieeeeeeehk...!

"!"

It shot towards me at a speed that made me briefly wonder if it had been launched out of a cannon.

Approaching me at a velocity faster than the human eye could follow, I threw out my right hand towards the monster.

I took it in with my eyes, which could see the reality of everything, and I repeatedly told myself.

That monster is fake.

A mere imitation of something that could be.

Its substance cannot compare to anything even slightly resembling \'authenticity\'.

An imaginary monster in an imaginary world.

A substanceless being.

-- Kriiieeeehhk...!

Having crossed a distance of roughly 100 metres in under three seconds, the Nightmare was just a few more in front of me now.

It was only an imaginary beast, but the strength it could exert despite that was remarkable.

Nevertheless, if it were to be placed beside something \'real\', the two would never be able to be looked at through an equal lens.

Simply put, it is because they do not belong in the same realm.

The Nightmare stretched out its freakishly long forelimb and swung its thick, tenebrous claws towards me at an inconceivable speed.

But, I did not flinch.

Why would I, faced with something that doesn\'t even exist?

I have only one thing to say to a fake, imaginary creature like you.

-- Krriiieeee--

I flicked my hand, "Get out of my sight."

Pssh-!

The instant that the tip of the Nightmare\'s claws dared to connect with my body, the shadow monster vaporised―it withered into countless, spectral bits of black dust and faded with the wind.

Like an illusion, it was gone without a trace.

It hadn\'t even been ten seconds since the Nightmare first appeared, but before I knew it, it had been eradicated.

I looked down at my hand that had been pointed at the Nightmare.

With this, it had been confirmed.

"Truth..." I clenched my fist tight and muttered.

I didn\'t want to believe it was true, but faced with all the evidence in front of me, I couldn\'t help but accept it.

chapter-source-NovelFire

For it would be foolish to deny.

After staring for a moment at the empty place the Nightmare had just occupied, I turned my attention up and looked at the sky. More precisely, towards the moon.

That imaginary moon...

Bathed in the soundless atmosphere of the barren wilderness around me, I maintained my gaze on the distant lunar object like glue and silently lifted my hand.

Reaching my hand out as if to pluck the moon from the sky and clenching my fist, it disappeared behind the cover of my hand.

I released my fist a few beats later, but nothing happened.

The moon resumed illuminating the night sky without care for my nonsensical actions.

"..."

Unfortunately, it seemed there was a limit on the power I could exert, at least for now.

I lowered my hand, but my impassive gaze lingered on the light for a few moments longer.

"...You did your best, in many ways. Perhaps this is a reward for all your efforts throughout the years."

Whether he had finally grown up, or whether he had been replaced with someone new.

Whatever the case, I only knew one thing.

"Rest in peace, my friend."

From today onwards, Truth was no more.