Eventually, the rushing voices, and everpresent grey substance made way to the static white ambience of the vast hallway, stretching on into eternity.
.
Ciel looked around for a moment, seeing if he could spot differences.
The sheer monotony in the walls caused him to look away after a few seconds.
The only relief he had were the doors, like drops of colors on an empty canvas.
As expected, these doors were now completely new, with the first open one only four doors down on the left.
Ciel decided not enter just yet, instead scouting out the other potential pathways.
He walked onward for a few minutes before noticing. something he hadn’t seen before.
On the right was a reddish brown swirling substance protruding from a fully open doorway.
His eyes widened with surprise as he made a connection.
This was one of the special doorways Fairy had warned him about.
He stared at it for a while before choosing to heed her warning and not enter.
Even without the warning I wouldn’t have gone in there.
Still… he couldn’t help but wonder—
“I thought I told you to avoid these doorways.”
Behind him, a slightly irritated voice rang out clearly, disrupting the oppressive silence in the hallway.
Ciel jumped slightly, whirling around to find Ferry standing behind him.
Her appearance hadn’t changed much, her white hair fell loosely behind her, almost getting lost in the similarly colored attire she wore.
Ciel realized it was a perfect camouflage in this hallway.
Since he was also wearing the clothes he had put on before sleeping, this was probably on purpose.
It hinted at the expertise this person had.
Not that he fully believed her, of course.
The silver circular mirror was clasped in her left hand by her side.
He looked back up at her silver-grey eyes with indignation.
“Are you trying to sneak up behind me all the time!?”
No footsteps at all?
What even is she… Oh wait, I didn’t cause any sound either.
Ciel looked at the clock in his hand momentarily, before gazing back at Ferry.
The clock stopped ticking too, he noted.
Ferry just looked at him, replying with little emotion, “I just got here, and I found you standing in front of something I specifically told you to avoid. I had to make sure to stop you before you did something stupid.”
Ciel sighed inwardly.
A little late for that.
Regardless, he was slightly pleased to have found her again without taking any—or at least, too many—risks.
Ciel was going to make sure he wouldn’t mess it up this time.
“Did you find what you were looking for?” he probed.
“I might have, but it doesn’t matter anymore. The dream changes each time, remember?”
Avoiding the question altogether for some reason.
She could’ve chosen to lie but didn’t.
“Then what’s the point in searching for it?”
For us?
Ciel had not really considered them as an “us” but it seemed that she did.
He considered his next question before his eyes flickered back up to the red substance in front of him.
Ciel turned, and pointed back at the open doorway.
“Is there any chance it’s in there?”
Ferry took a step closer.
“It’s not worth looking.”
Is that… desperation?
Ciel realized he had found an edge, and he pounced on it immediately.
“Have you looked?”
She hesitated before muttering, “No.”
“Then I’ll look. If it’s beneficial for us, we must search everywhere, right?”
She looked at him, puzzled, “What are you saying?”
Ciel didn’t back down, his eyes gleamed as he responded with a question of his own.
“Will you come with me?”
This finally caused Ferry to falter, she looked down at the pure white floor for a moment before subtly nodding her head
Ciel grinned, and without hesitation walked through the translucent red substance permeating through the doorway.
It only took a moment for Ferry to trail behind him.
Only when he was fully submerged in red did Ciel let his nervousness show.
Just for a moment.
Either she’s a really good actor, or she has a genuine fear of this area.
He didn’t trust her, and she didn’t trust this door, so Ciel decided to bridge the gap and dive headfirst into the unknown, taking her with him.
He trudged on through the sweeping red substance, never looking back.
It was heavier than its normal grey counterpart, reminding Ciel of the ending of his first dream.
It was also far longer than usual, but he maintained his pace.
He had to remain confident, putting on a brave face for this stranger.
Any sign of weakness from now on could spell his doom.
Eventually the floor just… ended.
Ciel fell forward, plummeting downwards, accelerating quickly.
His stomach tried to eject itself from his body through his mouth as he dropped.
A scream that he couldn’t hold in erupted from his mouth, somewhat muffled by the heavy red matter.
That scream didn’t last long, as he was finding it increasingly difficult to breathe.
Gasping for air, he continued falling, the air attacking his ears on the way.
The red in the air began to thin as he fell, allowing him to see more of his surroundings.
There was nothing in sight below him.
There was far less red in the atmosphere, but nothing came out to meet him from below.
Looking around Ciel noticed a giant looming presence in the vicinity.
It was tall, taller than anything Ciel had ever seen, and wide enough to encompass cities.
The silhouette alone was enough to make Ciel’s eyes bulge.
After another minute, the silhouette became clearer, and Ciel could see lush green… leaves?
It was a giant tree!
Its massive sprawling branches were larger than roads, and they had leaves the size of large buildings.
The red atmosphere provided a sharp contrast to the vibrant greenery.
Staring at the scene, Ciel remembered a story he had read in an old book.
It contained a tree so vast that it was known as the pillar of all worlds, connecting the heavens and the earth.
Recalling this, Ciel understood the sheer grandeur of a ‘world tree’.
Unfortunately for Ciel, this wasn’t a story he was reading in the comfort of his own home.
This was his reality as he was currently falling down at life threatening speeds.
To make matters worse, he came here of his own volition.
Just as he was rethinking all his life choices, an arm wrapped around his waist, holding him tightly.
His descent began to slow.
It didn’t stop all the way, but Ciel’s stomach could finally settle again.
Shocked, he looked back and saw Ferry, her eyes carrying a hint of melancholy.
Meanwhile Ciel struggled to grasp what had just happened.
She has Insight?
…of course she does.
Why wouldn’t his unfamiliar, untrustworthy, enigmatic, and reluctant companion also wield supernatural abilities?
Below them, the tree was slowly widening, trying its hardest to meet them.
From this distance, Ciel could see every etch and groove on the leaves, brimming with nutrients.
After a few more minutes, Ciel was relieved to see that the branches now spread out far enough to be directly under them.
Ferry, looking strained, slowed their descent down even more, and they landed only slightly too hard on one thin extended branch.
Of course it was only thin relative to the tree, it was still easily as wide as a room.
Ciel’s feet touched the ancient gnarled wooden surface, and he promptly collapsed to his knees.
He sincerely promised himself to start to listen to people’s warnings more often.
Speaking of warnings, the person whose warning he had disregarded was looking out away from the tree into the red expanse that surrounded it.
The air here was much clearer with only a slight red hue, but there was still nothing else to be seen out there in the void.
The air remained still, the leaves hanging in place, as if they hadn’t moved for centuries.
It seemed the world tree was lonely.
As Ciel considered apologizing, Ferry spoke in her usual dry tone, “Let’s start climbing, Ciel.”
“For the exit? Or for what you’re looking for?”
“Both,” Ferry replied simply.
Ciel promptly stood, using his hands as support before realizing something was off.
His clock was gone.
Looking at Ferry, he didn’t see any sign of her mirror either.
Ciel couldn’t remember if he had accidentally lost it during the fall or if it had just vanished once he entered this place.
Ciel silently mourned the loss.
He had started getting used to the comfort of its constant ticking.
Next, Ciel’s eyes made their way up the trunk of this sprawling tree they now stood on.
His neck gave up way before the tree did, and a small groan escaped his lips.