"Okay, that's enough, Gremlin Duo. Can we get back to the topic at hand? We can either continue this dungeon raid, or we back out."
Horo chided Nyx and Lily, whose chaotic energy had been feeding off each other to an alarming degree, much to the dismay of both Leo and Horo. Even Luna frowned, as even she agreed with him this ti.
Leo let out a sigh as he casually scratched his head in contemplation.
"We've co this far, we might as well clear it to the end. It's not like we'll die for real here, right?... whoa—"
The mont the words left his mouth, he was hit with three simultaneous glares from Luna, Lily, and Nyx. Their eyes were like winter storms—piercing, furious, and ice-cold. Leo instinctively took a step back, visibly shaken.
"Don't you ever joke about that,"
Luna snapped, her voice sharp and protective.
"It's not sothing to take lightly."
"You, of all people, shouldn't be so casual,"
Lily added, her tone softer but deeply earnest.
"Your sister and I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if anything happened to you."
Nyx, surprisingly serious, crossed her arms.
"Need I remind you that for about five whole minutes... you were legally dead? Don't ss around like that. Always choose life, Leo."
Everyone's eyes widened in shock at Nyx's casual revelation, catching even Horo off guard.
"What do you an legally dead?"
Luna asked with her whole body trembling, her gaze unsteady as she looked like she was about to collapse.
"Leo was pronounced dead. His heart stopped, lungs shut down. I am pretty sure there was zero brain activity too. Then all of sudden, it restarted again. Nobody understood why."
"I...I need to sit down for a second"
Luna sank to her knees as she tried to process what she had just heard.
Leo stood frozen in place, guilt tightening around his chest like a vice. He'd never seen Luna look so fragile—like the very ground had been ripped out from under her.
"Luna..."
he started, but the words caught in his throat.
Horo placed a hand on her shoulder, his usual sarcastic deanor subdued.
"Breathe. You're alright. He's here. He's okay."
Luna didn't respond. Her hands trembled in her lap, clenched tight like she was trying to hold herself together. Leo finally stepped forward, kneeling beside her.
"I'm sorry,"
he said quietly.
"I didn't an to scare you. I honestly didn't rember most of it until Nyx brought it up."
Luna looked up at him, her eyes glassy. "You shouldn't have had to rember sothing like that in the first place."
"I know."
Lily stood nearby, arms wrapped around Moku like a comfort plush, but her gaze was serious.
"Don't ever hide sothing like that from us again, Leo. Ever."
"I wasn't planning on dying for fun,"
Leo replied, trying for levity, but his voice cracked at the end.
Nyx let out a long breath, stretching her arms behind her head before flopping down dramatically onto the floor.
"Well... mood officially ruined. Sorry for being the bearer of traumatic news, everyone."
"No. It's good that you said sothing,"
Horo muttered.
"Better we all understand what's at stake."
Sonata seed to be deep in contemplation. Raising her head she asked
"If Leo almost died. Why is he playing a ga here rather than spending ti at the hospital?
Lily had a bemused expression on her face as she remarked
"This ga is a little...special. You see those adorable ears on his head and that kitten like tail that makes him look adorable~?"
"..Yeah? What does that have to do with anything?"
Sonata tilted her head in confusion, not understanding what she was implying.
"Well he has those in reality too. And they're real~!"
"I can attest to that. I haven't logged out yet but I am afraid I might have grown a tail myself"
Nyx raised her hand, causing Sonata to be stunned into a speechless silence.
'Does that an the experints that Adam were supposed to run on were this?!'
"Before you get any crazy ideas, my family has no part in this. Even I am affected"
Horo seed to have read her mind and rebuffed her before she misunderstood him any further.
"What are you all talking about?"
Sonata felt like she was losing her mind as Horo casually explained to her
"Well Leo has his cat features, Luna has super strength, her hair is white and eyes are red in reality too. Lily has green hair and I....well my skin is covered in scales and you saw what my blood did to that boss..."
"Wha...Huh? Thats absurd. You're joking right? Ehh?!"
Horo's expression beca complicated as he explained his own mutation. Sonata opened and closed her mouth struggling to find the right words to say. It was then that she rembered that she herself had changes when she loaded into the ga.
"D-Does that an there is a chance that I..."
Horo nodded his head as he confird what she was about to ask
"A chance that your hair colour will change and the fact that you may grow wings? Very much so. Nobody here understands what constitutes the changes.."
Leo hesitated to open his mouth but after taking a deep breath he remarked.
"I am pretty sure I hear Astra's voice in the real world too"
Again Horo nodded his head as he replied with a bombshell revelation of his own.
"You probably did. Arachne is in my head in the real world too. Very vocal too. Annoying really"
As if on cue, a hiss echoed through his mind.
'Who are you calling Annoying you brat!'
'You..'
The girls looked at Horo as if he was absolutely insane. Why was he only saying this to them now of all tis!
"Horo..."
Lily's concerned tone was t with a gruff chuckle as Horo flashed her a charming smirk
"Do you think I would want to open up about this? Of everyone here, my body is the closest to being Body Horror. I didn't want to worry anybody over soone like ."
Despite the smirk, everyone could see that deep down, Horo was disgusted with his own body. Yet he cared enough about them that he didn't want to bring any attention to himself.
"You're an idiot..."
Luna's voice cut through the somber mood. Horo tilted his head in confusion at Luna's sudden outburst.
"...I said you're an idiot"
Before he was given a chance to react, Luna reached up and grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer so she could yell at him.
"We're friends right?! Open up to us! Don't be stupid!"
Horo was stunned speechless as he saw the tears in Luna's eyes. There was so much he could have said. He could've cracked a joke, deflected with a quip—anything. But when he saw her tears, those words died in his throat. All he could do was softly mutter
"..Okay"
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