Regalia looked up at the sky.
The warm sunlight pouring down.
The fresh breeze blowing gently.
The smell of party food carried by the wind.
And the worried voice of her mother.

All of it felt so vivid, too real to believe it was just a dream.

“Lia?”
“…Mother.”
“Lia, why are you acting like this all of a sudden?”

Regalia’s mother asked, her voice filled with surprise. For a moment, Regalia thought back, recalling what she used to call her parents at this time.

It felt awkward to say now, but at the same time, it was the word she had longed to say, one that she always missed.

“M-Mama…”
“That’s right—my sweet Lia. Is something wrong?”
“…Mm.”

Her mother lifted her up, cradling her in her arms. Regalia was a ten-year-old now, so she shouldn’t be so easy to lift, but perhaps because this was a dream, that part seemed to be overlooked.

As Regalia nestled into her mother’s embrace, she closed her eyes, taking in the soft warmth of her skin and that familiar scent she hadn’t smelled in so long. If she let her guard down even for a moment, she felt like she would burst into tears.

Just as she was holding back her tears, a rough hand patted her head.

“Lia. Is something bothering you?”
“…Papa.”
“Yes, it’s Papa. Come here.”

And the moment her father appeared, Regalia couldn’t hold back any longer. The tears she had been trying so hard to suppress finally spilled over. As she began sobbing uncontrollably, her mother hurried over, scolding her father for making her cry.

“Honey! What did you do to make her cry?”
“No, I didn’t do anything…”
“Honestly! Lia, don’t cry. Today of all days, you shouldn’t be crying, okay? Today is the day you’re supposed to be the happiest in the world…”

As her mother comforted her, Regalia wept openly. Yes, today was her birthday—the day she was supposed to be the happiest.

And her mother’s words came true. From this day forward, she had never felt happiness again. No matter how hard she tried, it was impossible to turn the anniversary of her parents’ death into a day of joy.

But now, for the first time in a long time,
Regalia was feeling happiness again.

‘What is this place?’

Having been consoled and led inside the mansion, Regalia looked around and noticed a few things that didn’t add up.

First of all, this world wasn’t just a simple dream.

She hadn’t cried on her birthday five years ago, and so she had no memory of being led inside the mansion. Yet, this dream was vividly guiding her and her mother inside.

“…Mama.”
“Yes, Lia? Have you calmed down now?”
“That book… I want to read it.”
“Now? But there are people waiting outside…”
“I want to read it right now.”

Hearing her daughter’s childish request, her mother seemed troubled, but she couldn’t refuse the birthday girl’s wish. She carefully pulled a book from the shelf and handed it to her.

Taking the book, Regalia quickly flipped through its pages. Of course, it was a book she had never seen before, one she would have never sought out by chance.

‘It’s certain now. This isn’t a dream.’

If this were just a dream, the contents of the book would have come from Regalia’s own memory. The people in this world would act according to how she remembered them, and it would have been nothing more than a brief, sweet dream.

But in reality, this world contained books she didn’t remember, and the people moved in ways she didn’t recall.

In other words, this wasn’t just a simple dream—it was some kind of virtual reality, a perfect recreation of her birthday party from five years ago.

‘What did that scientist create…?’

Regalia chuckled softly, realizing this was the birthday gift Eight had prepared for her, and then followed her mother back outside.

In the garden, countless people awaited her, surrounded by heroes, private mercenaries, special police forces, and elite agents.

It was astonishing to think that despite all this security, someone had managed to kill her parents.

“Lia! Are you feeling better now?”
“…Yes, Papa. I’m fine now.”
“Hm? Good. Then we can start the party.”

With Regalia’s tears dried, the delayed birthday party began. The host officially kicked things off, and the renowned musicians and singers she still remembered started performing.

Beautiful melodies filled the party, and people came forward, one by one, to present their gifts to Regalia.

“—Miss Regalia? Happy birthday.”
“And this is…?”
“Yes, it’s a collaborative project between this hero and our company’s technology—”
“A robot that moves on its own.”
“Oh, you recognized it at first glance. As expected of you, miss.”

She received a robot filled with cherished memories.

“R-Regalia! Happy birthday!”
“…It’s been a while.”
“H-Huh? You remember me?”
“Of course. I remember you.”
“Yes! Awesome!”

She even ran into the heir of another corporation who had once had a crush on her.

“Happy birthday to your daughter, Mr. and Mrs. President.”
“The mayor, here? How unexpected.”
“Oh, it was nothing. I had to make time for this.”

Even the mayor of City E had come to celebrate her birthday.

It truly was a grand party, befitting the heir of a corporation that ruled over an entire city.

Amidst the joy and excitement of the crowd, Regalia alone remained tense. She was the only one who knew how this party would end.

“—And now that the gifts have all been given, it’s time to wrap things up…”

It was at that moment, as the host spoke, that the sky lit up.

The heroes, mercenaries, and agents rushed out, each using their powers, but none of them could stop or dodge what was coming.

“Lia! Get Lia—!”

Before her parents could even shout, Birana and the other bodyguards dashed forward, shielding her with their powers.

A barrier capable of stopping hundreds of tons of explosives appeared. It had never been breached before—an absolute, invincible defense.

But it wasn’t enough. A sudden surge of heat slammed against the barrier, and Birana’s arms and legs began to crumble from the strain of her overworked power.

“Grrr—! Miss!”
“…It’s alright, Birana.”
“M-Miss!?”

As Birana collapsed, Regalia glared at the figure beyond the barrier. She couldn’t see anything through the blinding light of the newly risen sun.

But that didn’t matter. Regalia walked straight into the searing light, so bright it threatened to burn her retinas. Soon, her body, like her parents’, melted away—but she didn’t die.

‘Again.’

The scientist had told her this world was a dream.

It didn’t seem like a dream at all, but… if it was a dream, that meant she had some control over it.

Regalia firmly believed in that fact, and belief gave her strength.

‘One more time.’

—Time reversed.

“Lia?”
“…Yes, Mama.”

Regaining her senses in the middle of the birthday party, Regalia’s eyes sharpened. She roughly remembered the timing of the attack.

Now, it was time to uncover the culprit’s identity.

After all, it was her birthday today—and the birthday girl had the authority to command anything that happened at her party. She could even command the S-rank heroes and elite mercenaries guarding her with a mere gesture.

‘I’ll keep repeating this, over and over.’

Perhaps this was why the scientist had shown her this dream.

Each time the sun rose, time rewound.

Regalia repeated the dream over and over again.

By the time she had lost count of how many times she had relived the dream, she finally managed to catch a glimpse of the attacker’s face.

“—You’re unbelievably strong, aren’t you?”
“…”

In a party full of S-rank heroes and equally powerful individuals, this man stood alone, effortlessly slaughtering them all.

But through sheer repetition of the event, Regalia finally managed to defeat the transcendent being responsible for the attack.

Of course, thinking about all the S-rank heroes and agents who died in the process made it hard to call it a victory, but…

‘If it’s just a dream, it doesn’t matter.’

That’s what she told herself as she stared at the man kneeling before her. The white mask covering his head was infuriating.

She was curious—desperately curious—to see what face lay behind it. The man known only as “Mr. Clear,” who had left no trace of his identity behind.

“I see… So that’s your face.”
“...I never thought I’d be beaten by a kid like you.”

Mr. Clear spoke for the first time, and Regalia chuckled. She laughed long and hard, with everything she had.

It was an incredibly ordinary face, one that would be difficult to remember. But that didn’t matter. She was going to engrave it into her memory, no matter what.

“—Defeated by me? Not quite. Now’s the time when you’re truly going to be defeated by me.”
“What…?”
“I’ll see you in reality.”

And in the next moment, the world began to collapse.

As everything crumbled into a white void, Regalia felt herself slowly rising.

‘Am I waking up…?’

Part of her wanted to stay in this world a little longer—but she couldn’t remain in a dream forever. She was the head of Eblis Corporation, a ruler leading countless subordinates.

Dreams had to stay as dreams.

Even knowing that, Regalia couldn’t help but glance down at her feet.

—We love you, Regalia.
—Please be happy.

“…!!”

In that moment, Regalia heard voices calling out to her and looked around. But of course, there was no one there.

Was it just an illusion? Instinctively, Regalia knew that what she had heard wasn’t a hallucination.

No mere phantom created by her mind could hold such desperate emotion. It had to be the last gift left behind by those burning souls.

“…I love you too, Mama, Papa.”

In this dream that was too close to reality, Regalia whispered the words she had held in her heart for so long, and slowly opened her eyes.

There was a knock on the door.

—Miss? May I come in?
“…Come in.”

The maid entered, drawing the curtains and opening the windows wide. The room filled with sunlight and the sound of birds chirping outside as the maid asked cautiously.

“Did you sleep well last night?”

It was a routine question, but Regalia smiled softly. Had she slept well last night?

“—Yes, better than any other night.”

It had been an incredibly happy day.

The first time she had felt happiness in five years.