Although Ebner had long made various guesses about the state of Rhine Carendia—this "self" of his—through numerous clues, none of them demonstrated the fact that He had not completely dissipated as clearly as the "Dream Tapir" before him.
As expected of "me"… aside from Giuseppe, not a single one of us was willing to simply disappear like that!
Moreover, Rhine leaving His original body to Lilith might not only have been to scheme against her, but also because he didn't want to "change gender." Thus, he was unwilling to let the later "me" use His body as a medium to "resurrect."
His plans for "resurrection" are probably elsewhere… rather than tampering with the "resurrection" secret technique like "Alvin" did, attempting to replace me and let his own will take dominance…
After sighing softly, Ebner thought helplessly again:
But as my Sequence and status rise, I'll eventually have to confront all the arrangements they left behind. It's unavoidable…
So I can't fear or retreat. It's best to understand them as much as possible and respond actively!
The only good news is that existences like the Goddess and Lilith either don't care about my "internal mental competition," or they prefer the current me to take the lead. After all, according to them, this version of me is relatively "clean," the least affected by the "Unknown," and thus the most beneficial to them…
After stroking the Dream Tapir's head while thinking for a while, Ebner finally stood up and said to Closfia, who was still in a state of surprise beside him, "Let's hurry upstairs before my 'transformation' ends."
After speaking, he had the Dream Tapir lead the way while he followed behind, carefully stepping onto the staircase.
At this moment, Miss "Sloth" finally came back to her senses. As she followed Ebner's steps, she tilted her head and looked him up and down for quite a while before curiously asking, "You've turned into Duke Rhine Carendia? How did you manage that?"
"This is the ability of the Beyonder item I created, the 'Transformation Belt,'" Ebner replied calmly.
If this had been before they passed through the library, Ebner wouldn't have minded revealing a bit of his background to Closfia. After all, as a favored of the Earth Mother Goddess, even if she knew, she wouldn't reveal it.
But now he found it somewhat difficult to speak about it, because Rhine's displayed "lifestyle issues" were far more serious than his own. Ebner didn't want to casually take the blame for that.
"Is that so?" Closfia blinked, a faint curve forming at the corner of her lips, seemingly thinking about something.
Ebner didn't continue the topic and instead changed the subject. "The Dream Tapir is somewhat similar to a 'Dream Devourer,' but far stronger, possessing partial authorities of angels from both the 'Spectator' and 'Sleepless' pathways… It should be a creation of 'Rhine.'"
A "Dream Devourer" was a powerful dream creature that lived in the sea of collective subconsciousness. Its stomach pouch was one of the main ingredients for the "Dream Weaver" potion.
Seeing that Ebner didn't want to talk more about his current "transformation," Closfia tactfully didn't ask further and instead sighed along with his words.
"The 'Creator' truly is terrifying. To casually create monsters comparable to 'mythical creatures'… I wonder if there are other such things in this castle."
"There shouldn't be many…" Ebner shook his head. Even if Rhine hadn't completely died, it was impossible for Him to maintain too many "creations" at the same time.
"Rather than worrying about 'creations,' it's better to worry about His 'summoned creatures'!" As he spoke, Ebner and Closfia had already reached the second floor one after the other. Here there were numerous guest rooms, living rooms, and lounges, and the corridor stretched as far as the eye could see.
"Should we keep going up, or explore the second floor of the dream first?" Closfia asked.
Logically, they should explore a bit and see if they could gain anything… but what if something embarrassing like the library happened again…
If every bedroom showed scenes of Rhine with different ladies… well, communicating… then His reputation would truly be beyond saving.
After thinking for a moment, Ebner lowered his head and glanced at the Dream Tapir lying obediently at his feet, softly asking, "Do you know where on this floor there are still leftover Beyonder characteristics or mystical items?"
The Dream Tapir nodded in a human-like manner. Then it ran toward the corridor on the left and stopped in front of the fourth door.
Seeing this, Ebner and Closfia exchanged glances before quickly arriving at the room where the Dream Tapir had stopped.
One used "Insight," while the other used the ability of a "Dream Weaver." They simultaneously investigated the situation behind the door.
But what they discovered was that behind the door was actually the dream of some "creature."
Inside this "Observer Castle," aside from that bookshelf, there are other "creatures" as well?
…
At the same time, in the real castle's second-floor left corridor.
Baron Francis of Iris and Miss "Greed," forced by several noble servants chasing them, "had no choice" but to hide inside the fourth room.
The nobles chasing them immediately stopped, not even daring to approach the room's door.
"Your Viscount, they've entered the 'Devouring Chamber' marked on the map…" The servants and mercenaries spoke while looking toward the young viscount leading them.
The young viscount gazed solemnly at the door that seemed to contain endless "horror" and spoke with difficulty:
"According to the experiences of past 'trial participants,' no one who enters that room has ever come out!
"The heir of the Iris family is as good as dead… There's no need for us to follow in and die. I'll truthfully report this matter to the count."
"Yes, Your Viscount."
On the other side, after barging into the room in panic, Francis—being only Sequence 9—might not have noticed anything, but "Greed" Ksenia immediately sensed something wrong.
Because this place no longer belonged to reality but to the "dream" she was familiar with.
"But Gluttony's memories never mentioned such a room on the second floor of the real castle…"
While Ksenia was confused, the scene before her suddenly changed. Dozens of "demon wolves" appeared out of thin air and charged toward the two of them like mad.
Even the weakest of these demon wolves had the strength of Sequence 6, while the stronger ones were no weaker than ordinary demigods. Ksenia no longer dared to hide her strength and immediately used "Dragonification," preparing to break through the encirclement first.
As for her so-called employer, Baron Iris?
He could pray for his own luck!
…
On the second-floor corridor of the dream castle, after briefly communicating with the Dream Tapir, Ebner asked in disbelief:
"You're saying that in this room lives an extremely terrifying existence, and Its dream is independent from the castle—you can't interfere with it?"
At the question, the Dream Tapir nodded firmly.
"It… mm, what kind of person is It?" Ebner asked with a frown.
Although the Dream Tapir couldn't speak, after thinking for a moment it manifested an image in midair.
It was a woman with black hair and red eyes, dressed in luxurious clothing. Her appearance couldn't be clearly seen, yet she gave off a sense of "beauty."
Ebner stared at the image for a long time before taking out the mystical item he had obtained from "Gluttony," the "Heavenly Banquet," and asked in a deep voice:
"Does this item belong to Her?"
The Dream Tapir sniffed it with its long trunk and then nodded again with certainty.
Seeing this, Ebner put away the "Heavenly Banquet." His expression appeared serious, but inwardly he thought with wry amusement:
So the wife of the 'Night Emperor,' the Sanguine 'Blood Moon Queen' Orneia, didn't die… and has been sleeping in "my" castle?
(End of Chapter)