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墨書 Inktalez
The deceased Novice was named Gao Fei, a child from an ordinary family who worked exceptionally hard. He had often been the first to reach Clear Water during running training.
At this moment, his hands hung limply at his sides, and his eyelids naturally opened, revealing gray, hollow eyes devoid of life.
Garen withdrew his hand from Gao Fei's nose and turned to look at the deer.
"His heart is shattered; there's no saving him..." the deer shook its head, its expression grim.
Garen then glanced over at Tifet.
Tifet was staring at the dead Novice, a rare seriousness etched on his face.
"The parasitic cycle of a nightmare cannot be this short. Moreover, before it manifests, there should be a series of extraordinary reactions. The host shouldn't die so quietly," Inu pondered for a moment before analyzing.
"Yes, according to relevant records, even mild cases would exhibit vomiting," the deer nodded and said. "The endpoint of the nightmare state is to break the host's heart and courage; more accurately, it begins with the host acknowledging their own death before their body follows suit."
"Unless this nightmare went mad and chose to end the cycle at the cost of its own soul..." Inu slowly spoke, then shook his head.
Indeed, if nightmares could sacrifice their lives to create dreams, it indicated that this process held an irresistible allure for them. Under such conditions, how could a nightmare willingly end its cycle? Especially when the price was soul destruction!
"Do you have any thoughts?" the deer asked seriously. Among the three of them, Inu's intelligence was unquestionable. His willingness to speak up now indicated he had formed some hypothesis.
"There’s another possibility. Unless what they encountered wasn’t a nightmare," Inu said, narrowing his eyes.
The deer couldn't help but show a look of surprise. Although the situation these children faced was very much in line with being parasitized by nightmares, there were also various unusual doubts intertwined within it. If they could step outside the realm of "nightmares," might they find a new direction?
But what creature possessed abilities similar to nightmares?
"No, it's definitely nightmares." At that moment, Tifet, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke up.
The deer and the dog were taken aback, casting puzzled glances at each other.
A stern look appeared in Tifet's eyes as he turned to Garen and said, "To be more precise, it's nightmares that have been domesticated by someone."
"Domesticated?" Garen asked.
Tifet nodded and explained, "These nightmares obey human commands. As for when they strike and when their cycles end, that is, of course, determined by their master."
Garen's expression darkened.
He should have realized this long ago... The Nightmare Incident was no coincidence; this could be seen from one point: all the individuals parasitized by nightmares were Garen's students!
In other words, someone was using this to coerce Garen!
It was like holding a knife to the necks of the Newbies, using them as leverage to threaten Garen!
Garen turned to look back and saw Torexis and the others huddled under the eaves to avoid the rain.
It wasn't them... They used the Newbies as a weapon to attack Mayor Tutulu, but the true mastermind should not be them.
Garen fell silent for a moment before turning around and walking toward the other end of the street.
"Give it up. Even if you find the Fire Mage, it won't help," Tifet's voice came through.
"If this batch of nightmares is being controlled, then how could he give you a chance to resolve it? In fact, he can completely control these nightmares to the point where they would rather be burned alive than leave their host."
Garen stopped in his tracks and said in a low voice, "So there's no way at all?"
"There is," Tifet thought for a moment and replied. "Even if these nightmares are cultivated, it doesn't change their essence. As long as the dream is shattered, the nightmares will naturally perish, and the cycle will cease to exist."
"What do you mean?" Garen frowned.
Tifet pointed at the Newbies on the Wooden Platform and clearly stated, "They can only rely on themselves to get out."
"Is there any way to help them?" Garen took a deep breath. Now that things had come to this point, he knew there was no other way. Worrying wouldn't help; he had to view the entire situation with rational eyes.
Tifet's gaze lingered between the deer and Yasthia for a moment.
"There is, but it's very little—so little that it can be ignored."
Confusion flickered in Garen's eyes.
"For example, the Divine Lake Technique in Holy Magic can connect them together," Tifet said with a helpless shake of his head. "But you must understand that the fear in a nightmare state comes from within. Even if they are connected, it will only mean more companions for them."
"Better to have some than none," Garen replied.
Tifet smiled nonchalantly and then turned his gaze to the deer.
"It will take time," the deer said after a moment of silence. "About an hour and a half."
With that, the deer sat down in the center of the Wooden Platform, took out the Hexagram Badge, and began to cast magic. The lion and dog stood behind him; although they could not use the Divine Lake Technique for healing, all three were Holy Mages, allowing them to create a cycle of special magic to replenish each other's magical energy.
Time passed slowly, and everyone held their breath, afraid to disturb the spellcasting of the three on stage.
After about an hour, a large group of figures suddenly rushed in from the end of the street.
"What’s happening?" Tutulu whispered to Black Duncan.
"They're all parents of the students; we couldn't stop them..." Black Duncan explained.
Among this group were both men and women, mostly middle-aged, their faces filled with panic and anxiety. Fortunately, Black Duncan managed to stop them in time and briefly explained the situation. They did not rush onto the Wooden Platform, but upon seeing the Newbies on stage, cries and sobs echoed through the street.
In particular, one middle-aged couple caught everyone's attention. The man wore an apron from his blacksmith shop, and when they saw Gao Fei's body being carried away, they nearly fainted.
They were Gao Fei's parents.
Staring at the lifeless body of their son, the expressions of the two shifted from sorrow to despair, then to a hollow numbness, as if they had suddenly lost all meaning in life.
After several minutes of silence, the woman collapsed to the ground, crying out in anguish.
The man, however, struggled to hold himself together, his lips nearly bitten until they bled. Yet when he grasped Gao Fei's cold hand tightly, tears still streamed down his face.
"The deceased is gone; you must pull yourselves together!" a guard stepped forward, draping a blanket over the drenched couple and softly offering comfort.
Yet the parents remained unresponsive, as if they could not hear him at all. The woman sobbed so hard she could barely catch her breath.
Another guard, unable to bear it any longer, approached gently and said, "Believe that he wouldn’t want to see you like this in heaven. Try to let go... Life must go on!"
More and more guards came to offer comfort, but their efforts proved futile. Eventually, the last guard sought out Garen, hoping he could use his role as a mentor to help the grieving parents find a way out of their sorrow.
After a moment of silence, Garen walked over.
He coldly regarded the guards.
"Why urge them to be magnanimous?"
"Have you ever experienced their pain?"
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