Pain fell at that moment, and the rot vanished from her body. As for Zero, she was in shock.


    Quickly, Zero stood up, carrying Pain on her back, and opened the door, only to find herself still in the world of mirrors.


    "Impossible... Where is the exit... It was here just a moment ago," suddenly, Zero remembered something. "The desire to get out... Damn... I got distracted... But... I didn’t choose this door... It was the Nomos... How foolish of me... The Nomos was my key to escape."


    At that moment, Zero turned around to see the Fairy Man. The instant he reached out his hand, the necklace lit up, weakening that entity.


    "Now." Eve began jumping from one platform to another, opening doors to move from place to place, looking in every direction for an exit, until she spotted a modern-style door and headed towards it.


    The moment she opened it, she found a dark space where she almost fell. She turned around to glimpse the Fairy Man getting closer.


    "What should I do..." The Fairy Man was almost upon her when she jumped away.


    She closed the door, preventing the Fairy Man from passing through.


    *******


    "And this is the end of this chapter..."


    "It was a great chapter... I didn’t expect Hades to feel these emotions for Persephone... And his confession... That was the best part," said Alice, deeply affected.


    "You''re talking about yourself, girl," Eve (in her real-world body) said with disgust.


    "Alright... Finish the last chapter for me... I want to know what happens next," Alice insisted eagerly.


    "I''m sorry... I’ll leave that chapter for tomorrow," Eve said proudly.


    "That’s too bad... What if we were both adopted... How would I know the ending?" said Pain, shaking Zero.


    "Alice... I won’t finish this book without you... Even if we separate... I’ll find you... And we’ll finish this book together."


    Alice was moved by Eve''s words and said, "Thank you... I''m excited... to read... with you... Let’s wait for the final chapter, *Charon and Hades*."


    And yet, tomorrow was truly the day we parted ways.


    *******


    Zero woke up to find herself floating in a dark abyss.


    "Where am I... Where... Where is Pain... Pain... Where are you... Pain...?"The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    She looked around, saying, "I think jumping wasn’t a wise choice." Suddenly, the darkness faded, and Zero found herself in her old bedroom. She stood up, looking around, her face filled with shock.


    *Impossible.*


    Quickly, she opened the door and went straight to the kitchen, where Maria was holding a pie in her hand.


    Zero approached her, her face still filled with shock.


    "You woke up early today..."


    "Huh...?" Zero said in surprise.


    "There’s no school today... Do you want milk or tea... Huh... Why are you standing there like a statue... You have no energy today... Why not visit your friend?" Maria said as she prepared the table. Meanwhile, Zero was struggling to comprehend the situation and said, "Who?"


    "Goodness... Did you lose your mind? Alice..."


    "Pain... Where is she?" Zero asked in astonishment.


    "Who is Pain... Huh... Listen, little one... What’s wrong with you... You look like you''ve been through a war or something... Did you... see a nightmare?"


    "Uh... maybe," Zero said nervously.


    Maria patted Zero''s head, saying, "It’s okay... Nightmares are just illusions... Live in the normal world... and forget about these fears... I think staying up late is making you too anxious... I''ll go prepare the bath for you so you can relax a bit..."


    "Uh... okay... But... I think the nightmare... is real..."


    *******


    Pain woke up to find herself floating in a dark place. She looked around.


    "What... happened? ... How did I get here... Ah... My head... the headache... It’s been a long time since I felt it... Wait... Where is Zero?"


    Pain began swimming through the air, calling out for Zero.


    *I don’t remember what happened... Can I find her... The last thing I remember... *Alice*?* Suddenly, Pain stopped mid-air. "Why did she call me... by that name?"


    Suddenly, the fog cleared, revealing mirrors surrounding her, reflecting Pain''s demonic image, and she heard whispers. "Pain... Don’t forget... our promise... Do what I say... Or else..."


    "Ah... Sorry, Master... I almost let it control me after I said that silly name... I think I... got lost... in my act... with that sweet face."


    *******


    Zero was walking in the garden, looking around in bewilderment.


    "What’s going on?... It’s like nothing happened at all..."


    *******


    "My friend..." Alice was calling out to Zero. Zero looked up and saw Alice coming toward her.


    *Ah... Pain... No... It''s Alice... That hair... those eyes... the skin... Her body is different from Pain’s... This... is strange... Even though Pain and Alice’s personalities align... this... doesn’t make sense...*


    Suddenly, Alice jumped on Zero, saying, "I haven’t seen you since yesterday... I missed you."


    "You almost killed me..." Zero said, confused.


    *****


    Alice and Zero were sitting on a bench, eating pies.


    "Yum... Your mom’s pies are so delicious! I can’t resist them."


    "Don’t talk while eating..." Zero thought to herself, *This is strange... For me to be fully in my right mind... If I were someone else... I’d go insane... *Um... Alice...*


    "Yes...?"


    "I want to ask you... Didn’t something happen to us...?"


    "Like what...?"


    "Didn’t we go to some other place... A strange... and scary one..."


    "What place...? No... We didn’t go to a haunted house..."


    "No, no... I don’t mean those fake haunted houses... I mean... a place that was actually distorted and terrifying..."


    "Umm... No... Did you see a nightmare... again?"


    "Uh...? Maybe."


    Suddenly... Alice leaned in close to Zero’s ear, whispering, "You’re right..."


    "Huh... what—" Suddenly, Alice put her hand over Zero’s mouth, saying, "Shh... I know... Zero..."


    Alice gave Zero a tap on the forehead with her finger, saying, "Goodbye..."


    Suddenly, reality shattered around Zero, as a deformed hand emerged from the cracks.


    Zero fell to the ground, staring at the hand, and the Fairy Man appeared in front of her.


    "Not again... Damn," Zero began running toward the garden exit, but the Fairy Man had already beaten her to it. She tried to head toward the other exit but found him there too, so she hid between the bushes.


    Zero started sweating coldly, clutching her necklace tightly.


    "How did he get into the real world?... Everything was so strange... I think I’m still in the world of mirrors... I need to get away from the Fairy Man... I think he’s gone," Zero said as she stepped out from her hiding place. Suddenly, the Fairy Man charged at her with incredible speed, freezing Zero in place. She couldn’t avoid his grip, and it seemed like it was too late to escape. Is this the end?


    "Why do I feel like something is... carrying me?" With incredible speed, Pain managed to rescue Zero from the entity''s grasp.


    "Keep your deformed hand away from my friend," Pain said as she carried Zero.