I was restless, watching as everyone except the night watch villagers seemed to be asleep. I, however, felt not the slightest hint of drowsiness, despite my physical exhaustion.
Helpless, I walked over to the horses. They were already asleep as well.
"Brother, mind if I lean on you for a bit?" I murmured softly. The horse was already lying on the ground. After a while, it opened one eyelid, gazing at me with a single eye, then turned its head away, showing no hostility.
I leaned against its plump body—so soft. I gazed up at the gray-black sky, which didn’t look like night at all. It was as if thick clouds covered everything, making the scene feel unsettling.
I hugged myself, pondering how I could possibly find John Chou and Old Moe. But right now, what concerned me most was the city behind us. After all, it was very likely that Vincent Swallow’s apprentice and family were inside. If only I could find them.
Once my strength returns, I’ll have Nolan take me into the dream realm. Maybe, just maybe, I’ll find some clues there!
Just then, I heard a rush of hurried footsteps. I turned my head and saw a villager from Nolan’s village hurrying outside, with Susie quickly following behind.
"Amin, what’s going on?" I got up and went over as well. Susie asked, and the man called Amin let out a sigh.
"Nolan is missing, sigh."
"What happened?" I asked. Amin explained that the knife Nolan was holding had been given to him by his father before departing, and it meant a lot to Nolan.
At that moment, I understood—it was Nolan. When a Dream Wraith lunged at me, Nolan had used his curved blade to stab it to death, saving me. The blade was left behind in the grasslands.
A wave of worry hit me. When I first met Nolan, he seemed so agile and skilled. But thinking it over, I'd already stunned those two Dream Wraiths with Deathbane Aura—Nolan was only able to finish them off because of that.
Truth is, they're actually weak. Dreamers like Nolan are just ordinary people who run fast. Dream Wraiths, though, are like lions and tigers on the grasslands—not something you can handle so easily.
"I'll call a few people. We'll search together," Amin said, then went back to wake several villagers. Soon, seven of us set out from the village, heading toward the woods.
Worry gnawed at me the entire way. Nolan was just a kid, and those Dream Wraiths were terrifying. I sped up, but the others had already run far ahead—I struggled to keep up.
We kept walking, but there was no sign of Nolan. The woods were only thirty or forty meters away, and we hadn’t even glimpsed a Dream Wraith’s shadow.
We stopped and looked around—there wasn’t a shadow anywhere.
"You don’t think he’s been eaten, do you?"
Amin muttered, while Susie glared around, her anger visible as she scanned every corner.
I grew frantic, searching everywhere. Susie crouched down, looking for any trace of Nolan, and the other villagers joined in, all of us searching desperately.
The woods ahead looked like a monster ready to devour us—so dark, you couldn’t see a thing inside.
I moved a little closer. Even though I couldn’t use my powers, I could see clearly in the darkness for some reason, and there was a strange flutter in my chest.
A rustling came from the woods. I rushed in, and after a short run, I saw a small figure.
"Nolan!" I called out. The others saw and hurried over. We found six large, bulging sacks, and Nolan, his clothes torn, smiling while holding the curved blade. Susie walked up and slapped him hard across the face.
"Susie, I’m fine. Look—I caught six of them. Don’t worry, really."
Susie sobbed and hugged Nolan. The others looked relieved, and I finally breathed easy. We gathered Nolan’s trophies and headed out of the woods.
"Don’t be reckless like this again, Nolan. If you die, there’s no coming back."
"Something feels wrong tonight, Susie," Amin said as we left the woods.
"It’s true. Normally there are tons of Dream Wraiths here at night, but tonight it’s strangely quiet. And all those Dream Wraiths chased us so far during the day—if they wanted, they could have attacked the village, but they just left."
"Let’s hurry. I have a bad feeling about tonight."
We carried the Dream Wraiths and moved quickly, but Susie’s face stayed tense, worry in her eyes. As we walked, the sudden clatter of hooves echoed ahead.
"It’s Smarty—the horse. Something’s happened in the village!"
Susie dropped her bag and sprinted over. I saw Smarty, that odd horse, galloping toward us, covered in wounds.
Everyone realized something was wrong. We rushed toward the village, and as soon as we got close, Dream Wraiths were rampaging everywhere, screams echoing. Susie roared and charged in, but the others quickly held her back.
"Run!" Nolan shouted. Frustration and helplessness filled me. Susie broke free from the others, charging forward like someone possessed—no one could stop her.
Without hesitation, I followed Susie into the chaos.
With a bang, a massive green Dream Wraith—easily two meters tall—appeared before Susie. Seeing the danger, Susie raised her broadsword and attacked, but I grabbed her waist and dragged her back.
A creaking sound—the broadsword in Susie’s hands was crushed like a toy by the Green Wraith, twisted into a lump of iron.
"Heh, your doomsday is coming. It’s all over—everything ends now."
The Green Wraith laughed—it could speak. As it spoke, its huge hand reached for Susie. Her face turned ashen; I shouted, grabbed her, and hurled her aside.
The Green Wraith’s giant fist crashed down. I didn’t flinch—years of battle had sharpened my reflexes. I dodged nimbly, feeling the rush of wind overhead.
"Oh, you’re from outside, aren’t you? Didn’t expect you to dodge—ha!" The Green Wraith swung its arms, pounding its fists at me.
Thunderous crashes rang out as it hammered the ground, sending tremors through the earth. I dodged each blow; to my eyes, its fists seemed nearly frozen in midair.
I still couldn’t use my powers, but I’d seen Blackface’s and Huang Jun’s fists before. This Dream Wraith was strong, but slow. What I needed most now was a weapon.
"Nolan, lend me your blade!"
I shouted, dodged another attack, spun, and ran. Nolan tossed me his curved blade—I caught it and rolled across the ground, narrowly avoiding the Dream Wraith’s strike.
In an instant, I found my angle, darted forward, and drove the curved blade deep into the Dream Wraith’s thick thigh.
The Green Wraith howled and staggered back several steps.
"Nice one, apprentice!" Nolan cheered from behind. But things were far from safe—the village was crawling with blue, purple, and green Dream Wraiths, mixed in with the gray ones. I turned and shouted.
"Run, now!"
Susie sobbed, watching her village being ravaged. I roared and charged at the Dream Wraiths, powerless but still able to react.
"You want to die?" the Green Wraith snarled, sweeping its right arm. I timed my move, stepped back, and leapt onto its fist, stomping down hard and driving the blade into its huge eye.
A wail—the Green Wraith’s immense strength flung me aside. I rolled across the ground several times before stopping. Without hesitation, I got up and sprinted toward Nolan and the others, who were already running. Susie seemed to realize now wasn’t the time for grief.
During the fight, I saw it: Dreamers devoured by Dream Wraiths would, in seconds, turn into gray vapor, then slowly coalesce and transform into new Dream Wraiths.
"You won’t escape!" the Green Wraith roared, charging at us. My curved blade bent under its immense strength—this weapon couldn’t kill it.
Just then, several purple Dream Wraiths blocked Nolan and the others, pouncing on them. Among them was a burly blue Dream Wraith. In an instant, a Dreamer was knocked to the ground, and a gray Dream Wraith followed, devouring him. Seconds later, he transformed into another Dream Wraith.
I shouted, charging after them. Susie and Nolan were lost in panic. I ran desperately, hopelessness flooding my heart, yearning for a surge of power.
Are they truly real?
Just then, a voice echoed in my mind, instinctive and urgent. My head buzzed, and memories of Chief Stone and Hugh Thompson surfaced—both had said that there were other forms of existence in this world.