The meal had ended in heavy tension.
Solano had told them the story of his father. Captured. Tortured. Held somewhere.
And that name… Édouard. It still lingered in their minds like a slow poison.

No one added a word. Even Bass, usually sarcastic, had stayed silent.
Arnaud, arms crossed, looked annoyed but said nothing. The mood was heavy.

"Alright… you guys must be tired," said Solano.
"Uh… yeah, things went by really fast," replied Trafalgar.
"Come on, I’ll take you to your room," Solano added, standing up.

The others followed, giving a quick goodbye to the children and thanking Solano’s wives for the delicious dinner — and even the tiger, lying in the distance.
They walked through the large house’s corridors until they reached a door.

The room was simple, quiet, lit by a lantern hanging from the ceiling.
Mats were laid on the floor, blankets neatly folded, and there was some space to move around.

"Come in, dear guests. I hope this room will suit you."
"Oh yeah, it looks perfect! I feel like I’m gonna sleep like a baby," joked Bass.

Everyone burst out laughing, easing the tension a little.
All six of them entered the room and settled in, each at a comfortable distance, either leaning against the wall or lying on the mats.

Gradually, the fatigue gave way to deeper reflection.
Trafalgar was the first to speak:

"Everything went way too fast… don’t you think?"
Maxime nodded slowly, his voice calm:

"Totally. We didn’t even get a second to breathe… We went from our homes to… this world. Through a hologram, a humanoid talking tiger… and so much more."

Shadow, curled up in a corner, spoke softly, almost broken:

"I should be at home right now. Watching TV. Or playing games."
"I should’ve been laughing with my brother… getting yelled at for not cleaning my room," added Arnaud.

He began to tremble.

"Now we’re in a world where we have to find keys, where people are willing to kill us… and we have no way to get back," said Albert.
"What kind of nightmare is this…" whispered Maxime. "I almost died."

"Strangely enough, I think we’re not shaken up enough," noted Trafalgar.
"That’s probably because of all the movies and anime we watch," replied Albert with a faint smirk.

"Yeah, I think you're right. I imagined myself in an anime so many times, with powers… and now I’m actually living it. A dream come true," said Arnaud with a hint of excitement.

"You’re not the only one. For me too, it’s a ‘dream’ come true. But that’s exactly the problem: it’s real, not virtual. Here, people actually die. And then…"

He put his hand over his eyes. Tears began to fall.

"… There’s the people in our real world. My mom. What she’s going through is horrible… Losing her whole family in such a short time…"

The others felt for him.
Bass and Maxime, especially, felt awkward, almost guilty for something.
What was happening to Shadow and his mother was heartbreaking.
They too thought of their parents, their friends… all probably in tears, desperate.

A silence settled. The mood was grim.

Then Trafalgar stood up. He wiped his tears, clenched his fists.

"Right now, there are only two options: either we do everything we can to get out of here, or we stay and live in this dimension. So? What do you choose?
As for me, I want to get out. Who’s with me?"

Arnaud stood up, face cold, and declared with conviction:

"I’m getting out of here. I want to see my family again, my friends. I’ve also got tons of manga to finish… and I’m gonna become a professional footballer. So there’s no way I’m staying."

He placed his hand on Trafalgar’s.

Then Shadow stood, just as determined:

"As for me, I need to be with my mom… and my brother. And also…"

He didn’t finish his sentence, but placed his hand too.

Maxime and Bass stood up together.

"We’re gonna become the richest men in the world and do nothing with our lives," said Bass with a big grin.
"Exactly!" added Maxime. "And even though the village girls are super hot, I need to go back to ask out Élise — Arnaud’s friend!"

They placed their hands too.

"You’re obsessed, dude… Don’t even think about it," Arnaud said, laughing. "My best friend would never date a flirt like you."

Everyone burst out laughing.

Finally, Albert stood up.

"Hmph. Damn right, idiots. We’ve got dreams to chase — out there."

He placed his hand last.

"Perfect then," said Trafalgar joyfully.

All together, they raised their hands to the sky and shouted in unison:

"WE’RE GETTING OUT OF THIS DIMENSION TOGETHER!!!"