When Sora next opened his eyes, he found a pair of semi-transparent blue eyes looking back at him and also two modest mounds hovering overhead. After a moment of confusion and shock, he remembered what had happened. “Yumi?”

“Oh? Now, this was not the reaction I was expecting.” Yumi said while giggling. 

Sora rolled his eyes at the teasing smile on Yumi’s face as he said: “Did you expect me to turn into a beast and attack you? While you are very beautiful, I am still a man who shows respect to women.” 

“So this respect comes in the form of you staring at my breast as you talk?” Yumi asked, causing Sora to blush.

“Well…  I am still a man….” Sora coughed and sat up. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He was almost overrun with dirty thoughts! 

“Alright, I won’t tease you anymore. You slept for almost two days. Your body is now healed enough to move. So I will tell you how to get to the mage soul.” Yumi said as she stood up and stretched. 

Sora also stood up and looked at Yumi. “Umm… I know this is inside my body, but how do I leave?”

“Hmm? Just wake up. You can only come to this place when you are in a sleep-like state. Although I can converse with you while you are awake.” Yumi replied. 

“I do not know if I can….” Sora felt stumped. He felt that the him right now was as real as day. If he was asleep, he would surely be able to wake up, but he can’t seem to do so.

“Hmmm… It may be due to your first time coming here. Your mind is unable to distinguish reality from this dream like space. While this place is real, it is also in your mind. So it is controlled by you.” After saying this, she walked over to Sora and pulled him into a hug. “You are now the master of the soul fusion lantern and are now also my master. I will help you with everything I can. Now it’s time for you to wake up.”

Sora felt Yumi’s soft mounds press against his face, but he had no time to joy the sensation as the world around him grew dark.

Sora’s eyes flickered as they slowly opened once more. He found himself once again on the river's edge. His body no longer hurt as much as it did before, and the huge wound on his stomach was completely closed but still slightly painful.  As he sat up, he looked around and felt a sense of loneliness. He couldn’t stop himself from calling out: “Yumi?”

“I’m here. Did you miss me already? Or did you miss looking at my body, you little perv!” Yumi’s teasing voice filled Sora’s mind causing him to let out a sigh of relief. That loneliness he felt was now gone. 

Although, Yumi’s words did irk him. “Yumi, I may be young, but I do know a thing or two about what happens between men and women. If you keep teasing me, I may just do more than sneak a peek.”

Yumi went quiet. Her cheeks turned red knowing what Sora was hinting at. She quickly changed the subject. “Ahem… Go straight from the direction you are facing following the river.”   

Sora chuckled on the inside. She may like to tease, but it seemed she could not take being teased. “Alright.” Sora did as Yumi said and followed the river. It took a while, but his eyes did finally adjust to the darkness. Although it only allowed him to see a few extra feet more in front of him, it was much easier to walk now than before. 

“Hey, Yumi, are you sure this thing is down this way? I think I have been walking for almost half a day.” Sora asked. It had been many hours since he started walking and had not reached their final destination yet. His body was still very sore, so it hurt to take each step. Although he was mostly numb to the pain at this point, the exhaustion he was feeling was starting to weigh him down.

“Only a little further. I would tell you to rest, but we must hurry. The power of the soul fusion lantern is starting to weaken, and I will not be able to keep any monsters away from you. Believe it or not, there are a number of monsters lurking in the darkness.” Yumi said gloomily. She did not tell Sora that if he were to die, so would she. As she was part of the soul fusion lantern and the lantern had fused with Sora, this meant that the two of them would share the same fate if Sora died. While she did not wish to disappear, she also did not wish to give Sora a heavy burden, which is why she did not say anything.

“We are here. Within the space there.” True to Yumi’s words, Sora finally came upon a small chamber within the darkness. It was well hidden deep within the crevasse of the wall. The space was very narrow, and Sora was just barely able to squeeze his body into the crevasse. After edging along the wall sideways for a little while, it finally opened up to a small space. Within the middle of this space was a white, bluish object hovering in the air silently. It only gave off a faint light, so unless one was looking at it, it would be easily overlooked. “Is this mage soul?”

“Yes. We will know what kind once you consume it. In order to do so, I need you to touch it then quickly come back into your dreamscape world so I can help you fuse with the soul.” Yumi explained.

Sora nodded and stepped forward as he asked. “Yumi, by 'dreamscape world,' you mean the space you are in within my mind?” 

“Yes, it is the space you were in before. I could not think of a better way to describe it, so I called it your dreamscape world as it seems to be a space of its own, like a dream world within your mind.”