Chapter 454: Dream
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 454: Dream
The woman she had summoned was none other than Eliane, the princess of the Eveluse Kingdom. The head of the Alliance, who had finished her preparations to receive the princess in the quiet room, stared at Eliane and me with a distorted expression.
“You…”
I could see the gears turning in her head. She was undoubtedly trying to figure out what was happening, why I was with Eliane, and how I had entered her dream. The way her eyes darted about was typical of a person who believed themselves to be rational and intelligent.
The kind of person who thinks they’ll never be caught off guard. The sight of her unbroken spirit couldn’t help but please me.
She still had some fight left in her. A desire to somehow overcome this situation, to somehow recover.
Lee Wanyong, disguised as Eliane, slowly bowed his head and followed behind me. Without a word, I settled into a chair that was already in the room. It was a bit of a shame it wasn’t the Iron Throne, but it wasn’t bad.
“Such poor hospitality.”
“Aren’t you an uninvited guest?”
Her voice was cold, but seeing a cup of tea materialize on the table made me smile. She was all bark, but she’d already tucked her tail.
“Blood Dagger, Great Tribe Leader of the Green Skins.”
“I am Maria Trump of the Western Alliance. It is a pleasure to meet you for the first time.”
“Likewise.”
“May I ask how you managed to arrive here?”
“Are you asking my purpose for coming? Or are you asking how I got in?”
She tried to act calm, but her expression was already crumbling. This space was her unique domain, her territory. In a way, it was an ability that was both her pride and her confidence. I hadn’t looked into her life, but I was certain this convenient power accounted for at least a third of her rise to the top.
And now, her personal space had been invaded.
I imagined it must be humiliating. Humans are strange creatures, prone to feeling territorial at the mere sight of someone else in the same outfit; it was hard to imagine what she must be feeling right now.
“It seems you thought you were the only one with this kind of ability.”
“…”
A direct hit.
“I have little to say about why I came here. I was simply curious to see what you looked like. Most of your forces have been annihilated, your cities are suffering from food shortages, and you can’t even venture outside. Morale is at rock bottom. Distrust in the command structure is rampant, and it must be incredibly difficult to even maintain your current position.”
“…”
“The Alliance you championed will be torn to shreds, and those who cried for freedom and peace will start crying for their basic rights and survival. The powerless will raise their voices against the powerful, questioning the current system, and they will begin to reconsider this meaningless war.”
“What are you talking about…”
“I’m saying it’s only a matter of time before everyone finds out this was all just bullshit to fill your belly and satisfy your worthless desires. You moron.”
“Even if we lost a single battle and the situation is unfavorable… I am the head of an Alliance. A casual atmosphere is fine, but you seem to be speaking far too informally. It seems you’ve forgotten whose dream this is. And it seems the ability-user you have doesn’t yet understand what it means to enter another’s dream.”
“…”
Frowning in displeasure, Maria slowly began to raise her hand. Behind her, a monster born of hideous desire materialized. Neither human nor Green Skin, the creature drooled foul saliva as its hundreds of eyes gleamed.
Lee Wanyong’s face paled slightly as he looked at it. He unconsciously shifted to hide behind me, a gesture far from that of a loyal retainer. He was not the kind of man who would lay down his life for me.
“Interesting. Did you create that with your imagination?”
“You could say that.”
In my own dreams, the most I could conjure were chairs and tables. She must have trained extensively to create something like that. The massive monster looked as if it could swallow any enemy whole, just as she wished. It was a stark reminder that this was, indeed, her domain.
But even if this was her domain, it didn’t mean she could bind my power.
“Interesting.”
It’s simple if I just think of this place as reality. It’s not easy to manifest something I don’t have, but it’s incredibly easy to manifest what I do.
In an instant, the magic and killing intent I possessed swallowed her domain whole.
I thought of nothing else. I focused only on slitting that woman’s throat, tearing open her belly, and rummaging through her organs and bones. I imagined chewing her intestines to a pulp, ripping off her arms and legs, and watching her crawl on the ground like an insect. I focused all the killing intent and magic I possessed solely on the human named Maria and unleashed it.
“Ah… ugh…”
The first to be affected was Lee Wanyong, who was standing next to me. The killing intent wasn’t directed at him, but he seemed unable to withstand the terror that began to fill the room, and his body trembled like a leaf.
Maria was the same. Her face was deathly pale. Confronted with the terror of death head-on, she stared at me, her face drained of all color.
“Think, you moron. Imagine things that can kill me.”
“Ah… ugh… ah… St-stop…”
“Perhaps if that monster behind you grew a little larger, it might be possible. What about the strongest person you can imagine? Or what about the heroes from mythology? If not them, what about a god? I don’t care what it is. Imagine something that can kill me.”
“…”
No answer came. Instead, I heard the chattering of her teeth.
It was a pathetic sight, enough to kill my excitement. I instantly retracted my killing intent and magic back into myself, then slowly looked at her again.
“Hah… hah… hah…”
“I hope that answers your question as to why I entered your domain so defenselessly.”
“I-I understand.”
To completely break a person, you start by cutting away everything they possess, one by one. I had just completely shattered her pride. And a person who thinks they might lose everything becomes utterly wretched.
“It was a meaningless war from the start.”
“Th-that’s…”
“Spare me the bullshit about freedom and peace. We both know what the other wants, don’t we? What you want are the spoils in the East and the Central Continent. Abundant resources, remaining dungeons, achievements… things that can prolong your position of power. Even if I’m wrong and you truly did rise up for freedom and peace, I have not the slightest intention of sympathizing with you. We have designated you as the enemy, and I prefer to thoroughly crush those I consider my enemies.”
Her face pale, Maria muttered.
“Is there any room for… n-negotiation?”
“Of course not.”
There was no room for negotiation. My personality was a far cry from the magnanimous type who offers lukewarm forgiveness. It was then that I felt the look in her eyes change. It was the expression of someone cornered. The eyes of someone who might lose everything they have.
In a way, it was the ideal human form—to be able to express such an emotion even in the face of death’s terror.
[Target - Maria]
[Status - Greed]
Only then did I realize the true nature of what she possessed.
‘Fucking bitch.’
I didn’t know if she was aware of it, but her face and form were constantly shifting. Her appearance flickered back and forth between the human Maria and a monster that devoured greed. She didn’t even seem to realize it herself. A prideful rat had been cornered.
I smiled with delight and opened my mouth.
“I’m going to slowly, one by one, destroy everything you have.”
The voice that answered was not hers, but the monster’s. It was thick, sticky, and unpleasant.
“Even if the war ends, the resistance will be long.”
“Just what I was hoping for.”
“It will not be pleasant for you, either. We will resist with all our might to protect what we have.”
“Delightful news.”
“…”
“It’s all mine…”
“It’s mine, you moron.”
“It’s all mine. You think I’ll let you take it? Everything I’ve built, everything I have—you think I’ll let a monster like you take it away?!”
“…”
“My power, my money, my people, my land, my philosophy—I built it all. It wasn’t built to be offered up to you damn monsters! It wasn’t earned by coughing up blood just to hand it over to some stupid Easterners! If you even think about touching… touching what’s mine… I’ll kill you all. You monsters, the ones you love… and that goddamn traitor… you, Eliane, and those elf bitches I’d like to tear apart with my teeth!!”
After spewing out everything she had to say, the monster, panting for breath, was a far cry from the human who had been paralyzed with fear just moments ago. It’s one thing to go mad gracefully, but this was something else entirely. Perhaps she was reacting this way because it was her dream, because she believed she couldn’t truly die. But what made me laugh more than her magnificent, malice-fueled tirade was her final remark.
“Puhahahahahahat. You stupid bitch.”
“…”
“You.”
“…”
“Don’t tell me.”
“…”
“You thought…”
“…”
“She betrayed you?”
I casually gestured toward Lee Wanyong. As if by magic, Eliane’s form began to change into Lee Wanyong’s. The monster stared at the face that had taunted the West from the city walls every day, and its expression revealed exactly what it was thinking.
The monster, blinking its hundreds of eyes, began to stare intently at Lee Wanyong. Convinced that I would protect him, Lee Wanyong also curled his lips and muttered.
“The West… is slooowly, oh so slooowly, melting away.”
Even to me, his smirking eyes looked incredibly smug. He looked as if he had just eaten something incredibly sweet. The look on his face was that of someone about to swallow the sweet candy Maria had cherished so dearly in a single gulp. It would be strange not to get excited seeing a face like that.
“You… you goddamn maggot!!!!!!!!!”
The scenery began to change in an instant. The luxurious room transformed into a hellscape. The monster, which could no longer be called Maria, swung a heavy arm toward Lee Wanyong. He hastily hid behind the chair, his eyes pleading for me to save him. It was a truly ridiculous sight.
Of course, I…
…simply watched the scene unfold…
…and muttered a single word.
“Kneel.”
CRACKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!