Chapter 386. Mathilda Strikes
More entities emerged—like living paintings brought to life—each riding a unicycle, each formed from swirling, multicolored paint that seemed to dance and ripple across their semi-liquid bodies. First one, then three, then a dozen. The Dream Carnival trembled with their arrival, as though chaos itself had been summoned to the stage.
Tyler’s eyes widened as the unicycling nightmares began to encircle him. Their erratic movements made it impossible to tell which direction they’d strike from.
He took a cautious step back and yelled out, "Girls! Little help here!"
From all around him, laughter echoed. Dr. Juggler’s voice reverberated through the air like the chime of warped bells. "Haha... Do you really think your little harem can save you?"
Tyler quietly listened to see it he can find the hiding Juggler.
One of the painted figures lunged toward him, arms wide like a twisted juggler preparing to grapple. But just as it was about to collide with him, it paused mid-leap. Then, inexplicably, it reversed direction—riding the unicycle backwards through the air, retracing its steps.
"Time reversal?" Tyler muttered, he relaxed a little since the Girls took action.
Before he could analyze it further, two more of the painted entities launched at him. But before they got close, a streak of lightning whipped across the battlefield. The electric arc cracked through the air and coiled around both figures, reducing them to steam in the blink of an eye.
From atop the red shrine, Lily flicked her whip again, letting residual sparks hiss along its length.
The remaining entities, however, weren’t deterred. They surrounded Tyler in a wide ring, and just as they were about to rush him en masse, they all stopped—frozen mid-motion. Their heads, or what passed for heads in their fluid-like forms, tilted toward the tent.
Even Dr. Juggler, hidden somewhere in the twisted scenery, went quiet. His voice came after a pause, laced with confusion. "What... are they looking at?"