Dimensional Hotel

Erin happily swung her stone orb, showing off to the two people on the castle roof—even though she didn't know what was so special about it, she inexplicably felt very happy.

It's joyful to have sunshine, joyful that the grass is green, joyful because there are many sounds around, and joyful that someone is waiting for her in the distance, that her actions will receive a response... all of these are things to be happy about.

Yu Sheng and Hu Li jumped down from the castle, and Erin effortlessly climbed onto Yu Sheng's shoulder, then released the Omen Wandering Star, letting it continue to circle around her head.

But suddenly, Yu Sheng furrowed his brows and turned his head to look at the stone orb floating next to the little puppet's head.

He wasn't sure if it was an illusion, but he felt as if the orb's spinning paused for a moment when he looked over.

Erin randomly tugged at Yu Sheng's hair: "What's wrong?"

"This orb... it seemed like it was making a buzzing sound just now," Yu Sheng said with a frown. "Did you hear it?"

"Nope," Erin shook her head. "This thing has been quiet all along."

Yu Sheng stared at the Omen Wandering Star for a while, and after a moment, finally withdrew his gaze. After thinking carefully, he spoke: "Erin."

"Hmm?"

"Marin sent over some information found in the deep layer of the 'Garden' network. It's about... 'you,' specifically, it's the last memory you uploaded before losing contact with Alice's Cottage. Do you want to see it?"

Erin was taken aback for a moment, then nodded vigorously without hesitation: "Yeah, yeah! I want to see it!"

The little puppet's response was expected.

Information about the "gold-haired Erin," and the subsequent investigation of the mysterious tower, the Omen Goddess, and even the "Black Star"—all these things certainly couldn't be kept from Erin, especially since Yu Sheng never intended to hide them from the little puppet.

Because he knew very well that even though Erin usually seemed uncaring and oblivious to many things, she also had a keen side, her own thoughts, and personality. If he excessively "protected" her from the truth, one day, if something were truly discovered, it might even be more difficult to deal with.

On the other hand, after encountering so much information related to the Omen Goddess and seeing a "normal" Alice puppet like Marin, Erin, although appeared unchanged, must have considered certain possibilities—spending day and night with this little puppet, Yu Sheng could still feel that this little thing's dazing moments were getting longer every day.

Outside Fairy Tale Town, by the riverbank.

The sunlight was bright, a gentle breeze blowing lightly, making the riverbank seem very quiet at this time. Yu Sheng sat on a large rock by the shore, while Erin cross-legged on his lap, holding a somewhat large phone for her, carefully reviewing the information Marin sent over.

She looked through it several times, then paused the screen, pointing to the golden-haired figure.

"Is this me?"

"The only possible match after filtering," Yu Sheng said slowly. "The other puppets named 'Erin' have all been ruled out."

"My hair isn't like this," Erin tugged at her own hair. "And the face doesn't seem quite right... My face is rounder! And more beautiful!"

"Yes, yes, very beautiful— but after a 3,700-year seal and the interference between memory and spiritual body, changes in appearance are very possible," Yu Sheng gently pinched the little puppet's cheeks, carefully considering each word. "Furthermore, your current body was processed by me. Anything I process would inevitably have some changes as you know."

"Yeah, that's true..." Erin mumbled, clearly momentarily swayed, then she quickly ignored this detail and suddenly recalled something, "Oh, then previously you mentioned seeing a broken golden-haired puppet in the mirror on the second floor... could it be..."

Yu Sheng took a deep breath, knowing Erin would surely realize it, so he calmly nodded: "Yes, now it can be basically confirmed, that was indeed you."

For a moment, Erin didn't make a sound, just staring at the phone for a few seconds, then looked up at Yu Sheng. Her eyes were very large, the crimson pupils seemed to shimmer slightly, deep within reflecting a vast and profound sky.

"...Wow," She blinked, lowered her head again, unknown what she was thinking in that moment, and after a while, she suddenly broke the silence, "Then it seems my body is pretty much beyond repair, likely needing to piece it together myself if found in the future?"

Hu Li leaned over from the side, looking at Erin very earnestly: "I'll help piece it together with you."

"Then you must wash your hands first when piecing—just licking your fingers isn't enough. You eat stuff randomly all the time," Erin immediately said with gusto, then after thinking, added, "Your tail also needs to be brushed first, don't let fur get mixed into my body, it will itch."

Hu Li squinted his eyes, nodding repeatedly: "Yes, yes."

The two of them seriously discussed how to piece together the puppet in the future, ignoring Yu Sheng's somewhat subtle expression, and Erin just continued to focus on the phone.

"...Seeing it like this, it actually seems kind of cool," She seemed to quickly accept something, nodding at the golden-haired figure in the image, but then was puzzled, "Speaking of which, what's the deal with this frying pan? Why was I wielding a frying pan to face the enemy back then?"

"Marin said it's the 'standard weapon' for your Alice puppets—don't look at me like that, I don't know how to explain either, your sister said the reason is very complex..."

"Is that so?" The little puppet suspiciously looked into Yu Sheng's eyes, finally withdrawing her gaze after a while, "I don't remember at all, ugh, amnesia is such a hassle..."

The image on the phone finally stayed on the dome of the tower, beyond the fragmented dome lay a sprawling shadow creeping in the deep space of chaos, even seeming to crawl beyond dimensions, a massive shadow from another world.

Even though this was footage already "processed" by Marin, and even though he was just looking at the blurred outline, Yu Sheng could still sense the terrifying power emanating from the shadow through the screen.

Outer God? Alien God? Or perhaps...

Dark Angel.

Yu Sheng couldn't help but recall what Baili Qing had once told him about the "criteria for identification" concerning Dark Angels by the Special Service Bureau. Excluding the features that are difficult to judge directly from the footage, such as "originating from outside the world," "cannot be killed by conventional forces," and "transcending logic and understanding," the most crucial criterion left was—indescribable in words, but a naturally felt "saintly" presence upon witnessing.

Once this thought emerged, it lingered in his mind as if it were alive, prompting him to carefully examine the details on the large shadow in the frame repeatedly, as if trying to find definitive evidence that the massive entity was or wasn't a Dark Angel.

Erin placed her phone on her leg, enlarged the image with her fingers until the two crimson glows on the shadow's head nearly filled the entire screen.

Then she closed the screen completely.

"Here you go." The little puppet looked up, holding the phone in both hands and handed it to Yu Sheng.

"What do you think after watching?" Yu Sheng took the phone and asked casually.

"I was pretty amazing back then," Erin thought for a moment, and said, face up, "and I definitely looked at least 167cm tall!"

Yu Sheng: "That's all you thought about?"

Erin then thought carefully again.

"I want to go back and watch TV!"

"Don't you have three bodies at home?"

"Two are playing games, and the other is arguing with an idiot. I'm too busy!"

Yu Sheng: "..."

He looked at the little puppet on his leg, and the little puppet looked up at him, her crimson eyes clear as mirrors without any haze.

"Okay, go back and watch TV."

"Yay!"

...

Looking at a few documents that had just been placed in front of her, Baili Qing's brows furrowed slightly, almost imperceptibly.

After a long time, she looked up at Song Cheng: "What else did the 'Alice Envoy' say?"

"She hopes to have further contact with Yu Sheng and Erin, and she also hopes the Special Service Bureau can assist her in investigating the situation of the 'Tower'—in the information she sent us, there are a lot of images of investigators withdrawing from around that tower. Although the images are blurry and chaotic, those investigators do wear ancient city-state attire from Boundary Land."

"Ancient times..." Baili Qing's gaze swept across the computer screen, showing scenes of many investigators and Spirit Realm detectives withdrawing around the peculiar Broken Tower. "If this footage truly dates back to 3,700 years ago—back when the Special Service Bureau hadn't been established and Boundary Land was unprecedentedly chaotic—we probably can't uncover much from such distant history."

"The Alice Envoy mentioned that she is aware of this, so she's merely making a request. It's best if there's a result; if not, she can accept that—those were her exact words."

"Hmm..." Baili Qing pondered slightly, nodding gently, "I understand. Tell her we will do our best to assist, and matters concerning the 'omen' are currently among the Special Service Bureau's top priorities."

Song Cheng nodded: "Alright."

He hesitated slightly: "Additionally..."

Baili Qing calmly watched him: "Speak frankly."

"Regarding the 'individual' appearing at the top of the tower last," Song Cheng chose his words carefully, "from various characteristics, ta doesn't resemble an ordinary 'entity' generated within the Exotic Realm. Based on the intelligence we currently have, if this thing indeed comes from 'outside,' then the little puppet at No. 66 Wutong Road could very well..."

He didn't continue, only looking solemnly at the director before him.

For a moment, Baili Qing spoke nothing, merely quietly watching her subordinate. It wasn't until Song Cheng started to feel somewhat uncomfortable that she unexpectedly broke the silence: "Which do you think is more dangerous, the Dark Angel or Yu Sheng?"

Song Cheng opened his mouth but was stumped for words.

"Both are very dangerous, but fortunately, the more dangerous one currently considers himself human—so, never wake him," Baili Qing said leisurely, "this principle applies to that puppet as well."

"Yes, I understand."